"When a flower doesn't bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower."

- Alexander Den Heijer

"Be careful with that blonde one," the man who was dragging Charlotte warned as he passed her on to another one of his partners. "She just killed Peter".

Gabe sighed and Charlotte glared at him hatefully. "It's his own fault. I warned him to be careful with her. She's a fighter that one".

The other four men laughed. "We'll take our time with that bitch then," one of them said. They all laughed again and Charlotte was tied to a chair along with Ivy, right beside Oswald who stared daggers at Gabbe. Then one of the men started taking pictures of Oswald. The flash hurt Oswald's eyes and he closed them for a moment.

"Make sure you get him from all sides," Gabe ordered. "Potential bidders need to know that he's alive and well. Once we get these delivered, the auction can begin".

Hate was too much of a nice word to describe what Charlotte was feeling for the man standing in front of her. She wanted to rip out his entrails and choke his friends with them. There was no way she would let anyone hurt Oswald or Ivy. She had to think of something.

One of the guys had left the house and returned with a pink box in his hands. "Forgot these in the car. Cannolis from Alberto's, boss".

"Thank God. I'm starved," Gabe smiled. "Alberto's are my favorite".

Ivy turned to Oswald with a bored expression. "Looks like you got yourself into quite the pickle".

He made a face at her, confused out of his mind by her need to mock him when she was in the same situation he was. "You're sitting right next to me. I think our fates are somewhat intertwined".

"Oh, no. Charlotte and I will be fine," Ivy stated confidently. Charlotte looked at her hopefully. It seemed like Ivy had already concocted some sort of plan to free them.

Oswald looked between Charlotte and Ivy even more confused than before. "What? What are you talking about?"

Ivy refused to tell him. "Totally fine".

"If you have a plan, tell me. Tell me". Ivy ignored him. "What? You want me to beg? Is that it?"

"I want you to be nice to me!" She snapped at him.

The crease in his forehead deepened. "Nice to you?"

"Yes! Is that so much to ask?" She shouted frustratedly.

Oswald sighed but tried his best to smile convincingly at the redhead. "No. No, it's not. Okay, I'll be nice. I promise. Now, what is your plan? Lay it on me".

Ivy looked at him with an emotionless expression. "Watch and learn". Then she turned to the men eating the canolli. "Oh, yoo-hoo. Canolli guy". The man who brought the canolli looked back. "Hey, quick question". He walked away from the others and approached Ivy. "If I had information, like, really good information that would get you a ton more money for Penguin, would you let me and Charlotte go?"

"I don't know," he said after looking between all of them. "You, maybe". He glared at Charlotte and she glared right back at him. "Not her". He broke the eye contact with Charlotte and looked back at Ivy. "What is it?"

"Oh, I can't tell you in front of..." her voice faded as she nodded at Oswald. "Let me whisper it in your ear". The man smirked at leaned closer to Ivy. "Do you like my perfume?"

The perfume! Of course. Charlotte had completely forgotten about the perfume. Ivy had told her and Oswald about a perfume of hers which could make men do everything she wanted.

The man smelled her neck and leaned back appearing to be high. "You'll do anything I ask?" A wave of relief washed over Charlotte and Oswald when the man smiled and nodded. "Super. Kill them all".

He didn't hesitate and raised his gun at his own partners, shooting them. He was going to shoot Gabe as well but Oswald ordered him to wait.

"Stop!" Ivy commanded and the man paused.

"Get his gun," Oswald said and Ivy ordered the man to do as Oswald asked. Once again, the man obeyed Ivy's order and took the gun from a perplexed Gabe.

"Give it to me," Oswald ordered.

"Give it to him!" Ivy yelled excitedly at the man and he quickly did as she told him to. Both Charlotte and Oswald were amazed.

"Now tell him to untie us," Oswald told Ivy.

"Untie us!" Ivy yelled even louder.

Oswald glared at her. "You don't have to yell".

Ivy giggled as the man started to untie her from the chair. "Sorry. I just got so caught up in the moment".

The minute Charlotte was finally free from the rope, she pulled her arm back and then punched the man's face as hard as she could. He let out a groan and stumbled back. Before the man could react to what was going on, Oswald stood up and shot him in the head. He looked at Charlotte and she nodded at him.

Oswald nodded back and limped towards Gabe. "You know, I like the idea of an auction, Gabe. I think I'll auction you off to myself. Piece by bloody piece".

After that, Oswald ordered Gabe to take the bodies to the greenhouse next door to the one they had been in. There Gabe was forced to dump the bodies of his partners on top of a batch of dirt. Dragging the men from one room to the other left Gabe out of breath and once he was finished, he struggled to regain his breathing.

Charlotte grabbed one of two shovels which were leaning against one of the walls and glared at Gabe threateningly.

"I trusted you, Gabe," Oswald spoke after passing the gun to Ivy. "And how did you repay that loyalty? Betrayal".

"Not for nothing, but I was there after your mother was killed when no one else was. And how'd you repay me? By passing me over," Gabe remarked.

"Wow. A valid point," Oswald commented. "Perhaps we forget that loyalty must be extended before it can be returned".

"Yeah". Gabe glanced over at Charlotte hatefully. "And you acted like she and her stupid boyfriend had been the ones there for you all that time. One already tried to kill you. I'm sure when you go back to Gotham, Charlotte will go back running to Nygma and will tell him everything you have planned".

Charlotte took a few steps closer to Gabe and held her shovel up in a threatening manner. "Wanna repeat that one more time? I dare you".

Oswald grabbed the shovel in Charlotte's hands and placed her arms down. She looked at him and could see in his eyes he didn't believe she would betray him too or he didn't want to believe at least. Either way, that looked made her instantly calm down.

"You were loyal to me once, Gabe. I wonder, could you be again?" Oswald asked.

"Yes!" Gabe exclaimed all too happy while getting down on his knees and holding his hands together in front of him. "Oh, boss. I'd swear an oath on my dead mother's grave right now. God rest her soul".

Charlotte scoffed at the theatrics. If Gabe thought he could fool her with that, he was so wrong.

"No need for anything so dramatic," Oswald told him, because now he could be sure of the truth. Could he give Gabe a second chance? Or was Gabe too far gone? "Ivy, would you mind ensuring that Gabe's oath of loyalty is noble and true?"

Ivy looked between Charlotte and Oswald with a confused expression. "If what is what now?"

Oswald sighed and rolled his eyes before turning to her. "Make him smell your perfume".

"Right. Okay," Ivy walked up to Gabe and placed her wrist in front of Gabe's nose. He took one whiff and that was all it took for him to be totally under Ivy's control. "Uh, raise your right hand," she ordered and he held one hand up. "Do you swear to be loyal and true to Penguin?"

The answer was cold but sincere. "No".

Ivy scrunched up her face as she looked back at Oswald. "Ouch".

Oswald's eyes were wide. "I don't understand. Why not? Why can't he be loyal?"

Ivy beckoned Gabe to answer Oswald's question and the man put down his hand. "I never was. I only followed you out of fear. We all did".

That answer didn't surprise Charlotte and neither did Oswald. He simply shrugged and smiled. "Actually, I can live with that. Fear and respect management 101".

"No one ever respected you," Gabe blurted out. "We always saw you for what you really are. A tiny freak who used to hold an umbrella. Nothing more".

Oswald's nostrils flared and his eyes widened again with the rage that arose inside of him. Gabe knew how much he hated to be called that and he had dared direct that word to him so cruelly.

"A freak?" Oswald asked and repeated those words as he looked for something to attack Gabe with. He found a small trident used to rummage the dirt and plant seeds. Oswald grabbed it and immediately proceeded to stab Gabe with it over and over again at the same time he shouted. "A freak! A freak! A freak!"

Blood splattered everywhere, including on Oswald's face. Ivy took a step back to avoid getting blood on her jacket and on her dress. Charlotte got blood all over her, but she was trying to stop Oswald while still avoiding getting stabbed with the garden utensil in his hand.

Charlotte wrapped her arms around Oswald from behind, trapping his arms as well. He still tried to stab Gabe who was already dead and the pain due to the strength Charlotte was using was wearing her down. However, she didn't let go of Oswald and he ended up stopping. The blonde woman still held him against her while he recovered.

"It's okay, Oswald," Charlotte comforted him. "It's over. He's dead".

Oswald did his best to get his emotions back under control and took a sharp breath. Charlotte let go of him and the three of them proceeded to put Gabe's corpse on the batch of dirt like the others. Then Oswald grabbed the shovel Charlotte had let fall on the floor when she went to grab him and started dumping dirt on top of the bodies.

A moment of silence passed before Oswald decided to say something to excuse his behavior. He knew Charlotte wouldn't mind but he didn't know how Ivy had taken it. "Okay, I admit it. I might have lost my temper there a little bit. Sorry about that".

Ivy felt sorry for him. She couldn't judge Oswald for going all crazy after being called a freak when she had gotten mad at him that day for the same thing. "I also saw Charlotte choke a guy to death outside". When Charlotte sent her an apologetic look, Ivy just smiled and shrugged it off. "It's okay".

"I don't know why I let him get to me," Oswald questioned himself as he continued to dump dirt on top of Gabe's body. "Sticks and stones, right?"

Charlotte decided it was better to help him and grabbed the other shovel, starting to drop dirt on top of the other bodies. Ivy watched them with a sad look as she remembered all the words that hurt her in the past.

"Words always hurt me way more than sticks or stones". Charlotte and Oswald agreed with Ivy. "So does this mean you're giving up your plans for revenge?"

"Charlotte and I can't take on Nygma and Barbara and the rest of them by ourselves," Oswald told her with a look of hopelessness.

"Who said anything about taking them on by yourself?" Ivy took a few steps towards Oswald and Charlotte stopped what she was doing to listen. "Selina told me some pretty crazy stories about people she met down in Indian Hill. Said you wanted to build an army, right? Well, what about an army of freaks?"

That idea was appealing to Oswald and hope arose in him again. Charlotte liked the idea of an army of freaks too, but she still felt bad about attacking Ed. Why did he have to go on and shoot them? She wouldn't have to get revenge if he hadn't. He needed to learn she and Oswald didn't deserve that kind of crap.

"What kind of freaks?" Oswald asked with a smile forming on the corners of his lips.

Charlotte was going to lean the shovel back against the wall but she had a better idea. Instead of placing the shovel on its original position, the blonde stabbed it on the big belly of one of the corpses. The body belonged to the man who had said they would take their time with her and even called her a bitch. Then she stood beside Oswald to hear Ivy's plan.

Ivy took a deep breath and tried remembering everything her friend Selina Kyle had told her about the Indian Hill's freaks. "Well, there's Mr. Freeze and Firefly".

***

A/N: I wanted to update this week again because I can't wait for Charlotte and Ed to reunite. It's almost time, Gothamites!