Just as promised, Ashley dragged Will back to Gotham with her the first chance she got. It had taken some convincing and nearly four whole costume changes because Ashley claimed he looked too 'shank-able', but she had done it.

"So, where to first?"

The younger brunette answered immediately with a confident tone. "Harley. I thought about Jonathan. He's the most like Hannibal style-wise, but you and I both know he'd probably drug you instinctively at least once. By the time that's done, Tim will be out of school. He's texted me the location we'll be meeting later."

Ashley paused as she slowed her pace. "Oh, and fair warning, she will insult your clothing and life choices at some point or other, but she has good intentions, for the most part, so you're just going to have to let it roll off your back like water."

"Does she do that often? Insult people while trying to give them advice?"

They had reached a less crowded area now. Ashley walked into a nearby alley and Will followed nervously. As they walked down the alley, nervous whispers seemed to follow.

"Oh shit, it's Ashley."

"I didn't know she was back."

The brunette glared at the source of the voices and the passerby's shut up. She jumped up onto the fire escape with cat-like ease. "Stay here. I'll be back."

She took something out of her pocket and shoved it into his hand. It has flat and made of cool metal. It was most likely a pocket knife.

He was waiting for perhaps two minutes at most when someone started falling from the rooftop. Instinctively, he jumped backwards as the person pulled to the stop. Hanging a couple of feet above where his head had previously been was Ashley, who was hanging upside down from a vine that was wrapped around her feet.

She tugged on it once and it slowly lowered her. Once she was upright again, Ashley smiled cheekily and made a jazz hands motion. "Ta-da!" For a split second, Ashley looked years younger than she was. Child-like joy and enthusiasm seemed to surround her like a cloud.

Will blinked once then twice as shock, fear, and finally anger flash through him like waves of color and light. "Are you crazy? You could have killed yourself!"

Her smile dropped. "It was a pre-calculated move that I've done before. I'm fine."

Will raised an eyebrow. "And if Poison Ivy had decided to drop you lower?"

Ashley scoffed slightly to herself as the vibe started to wrap around Will, who seemed oblivious. She wouldn't do that simply because the amount of people I've killed is the equivalent of planting a small forest.

"Ivy wouldn't do that, I'm adorable. Besides, no one ever truly dies in Gotham. Personally, I think it's the fact that we have supervillains that keep poisoning the water supply, but it's nothing that I can officially prove. I mean, between Ivy, Joker, and Scarecrow alone, the citizens of this shit hole stand a pretty good chance of building an immunity to neurotoxins."

Ashley tugged on the vine, which had more or less wrapped itself completely around Will's torso. "It's a Gothamite thing, you wouldn't understand. Race you to the top!"

He yells after her partly out of surprise from being lifted off the ground and partly because she had vanished into thin air. The FBI agent could only cling to the vine and hope the eco-terrorist didn't decide to kill him.

By the time he reached the top, Ashley was already sitting on the windowsill. Will's confused mind searched for a reasonable explanation but found none. No human could move that fast.

He decided to address it later as he smiled nervously at the lady in the corner of the room surrounded by her plants. Judging from her skin — which was almost a pastel green — and her red hair, she was Poison Ivy.

"I'm assuming this is him, sproutling?" Her voice was silky and laced slightly with disdain. The vine unwrapped itself and snaked its way towards her.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Will."

He was out of his element, and both women knew it too. They shared a meaningful glance. "Ivy. Harley's waiting for you inside, first door to the left."

Ashley wasn't there for that part. Instead, she was napping on the couch when Will finally exited the blonde's office. She stirred before he even reached her.  Ashley shifted slightly so that her jaw was sitting on the armrest which made her look awfully like Winston when he was pouting.

Ashley pushes herself up. "Did Harley come up with anything?"

"It could be..." Will paused to clear his throat in an attempt to get his voice to sound more confident. "It could be Schizophrenia or Borderline Personality disorder. She said the MRI scan was a good idea in case it isn't mental illness."

Ashley nodded. "Right. Well, Tim's last class ends in ten minutes."

Will couldn't quite remember how he had gotten to the café. One second he and Ashley were standing in the apartment of two notorious supervillains and the next a teenage boy in a school uniform with sunglasses was slinking out of the shadows.

"I'm assuming you're Will Graham. I read your paper on Understanding the Pathology of Killers. I found it rather interesting. I wish we were meeting under better circumstances."

Will sent Tim an out-of-place smile as he accepted his outstretched hand. "Me too."

≈§≈

Ashley should have known better than going anywhere alone in Gotham. She really should have, but it's not like she could drag Will or Tim to the bathroom with her.

She had barely stepped a foot outside of it when two hands grabbed her. Instinctively she screamed, but it came out muffled by one of his hands. The girl went nearly unnaturally still as she found herself staring into the cold eyes of Hannibal Lecter.

His other hand was wrapped tightly around her throat. Judging from the amount of pressure, Hannibal wasn't trying to strangle her or crush her windpipe, at least not yet.

"You went behind my back." As he spoke, Hannibal removed the hand covering her mouth.

Ashley tilted her head. "I didn't do anything that you didn't do first. And unlike you, I actually happen to have Will's best interest in mind. So if you'll excuse me..."

Hannibal simply tightened this grip and pressed her closer to the wall. She sighed and glared at him. "You and I both know you can't murder me in a hospital full of witnesses. Of course, you also have to take into consideration that nearly a quarter of Gotham's supervillains know where I am. If Will can't get me justice, I can promise you they'll get vengeance."

She tossed him a mocking smile. "Even if you were to kill me, I wouldn't particularly care. You have no leverage."

"Who said anything about killing you?"

Ashley's green eyes narrowed at his vague threat.

"You intend me to kill for you, or the very least, lie for you, and yet you haven't offered me any motive. Well, a motive for me anyway, not you. So, why should I do anything you have to say?"

Hannibal's maroon eyes narrowed at the defiant teen calmly glared up at him. "Aretha..."

Ashley blinked once then twice. She was still standing in the hallway, but now she was alone. She didn't remember Hannibal leaving... but perhaps he had never been there after all.

"Ashley?" She turned at the sound of Tim's voice. "The doctor's ready to tell us the results now."

Everything seemed to be ringing as Ashley listen to the doctor. He was lying, that much was apparent. He did find something wrong, so why was he claiming otherwise?

The youngest brunette winced slightly. Gods, why does my head hurt so much? Whenever she thought too hard about why the doctor was lying, a sharp stabbing pain would burst through her head, almost as if someone was jabbing a dagger through her cerebellum and limbic system over and over again.

Something was wrong, and Ashley was going to find out what it was if it was the last thing she did.