A Clever Fascination

Chapter 10 - Enemies and Allies

"Edward!"

Both of their heads snapped towards the door as they heard the loud interruption. It made Kit's heart jump, as the next loud noise she expected to hear was a gunshot that never came. The taps on the ground were heard as the person approached, they came in threes. Left foot. Right foot. Cane.

"Katherine, I-" Edward was more concerned with explaining himself.

Oswald's voice wasn't easy to ignore. It was loud and very distinctive. There was no way he was going to be able to explain this to her now, his timing made Edward look incredibly guilty.

"What exactly are you going to achieve by putting a bullet in her?"

"Oswald, this has literally nothing to do with you. Unless you want me to shoot you again, get out." Ed warned his old friend. The shorter man groaned dramatically, his lack of fear told Kit that she might just make it out of this alive.

The Penguin limped to stand between Edward and Kit. Oswald didn't even consider that he would pull the trigger now. The lowered gun was a good sign but he hadn't heard the conversation that had led to this point. He might just have been seconds away from aiming and firing. This was stupid but there was an opportunity for the taking, in saving Kit Valentine's life. She had the ear of Jim Gordon and was an extremely capable person. When Zsasz had told him over the phone where he had been, Oswald began to draw some rather grim conclusions that he may have been right about.

"This will just put you back on Gordon's list. You'll accomplish nothing if you're in Arkham and I won't be there to get you out."

"I'm not- I wasn't- She's-"

"Are you trying to make an enemy out of Gordon? We don't kill cops, you idiot! The Good Detective hasn't made any kind of move against anyone yet. Except Victor. But not even you could pay him enough to kill her," Edward's face soured slightly. The Penguin noticed right away. "Oh I see, that's the issue, is it?"

"No."

"I can almost guarantee that killing her isn't going to help with the problem, Edward. You're being irrational. Snap out of it."

He had already changed in his mind. His decision to shoot the woman had been vetoed in his own head. Though neither Oswald, nor Kit, knew that. His mouth hung open a little as if he planned on speaking but no words left his lips. Instead Edward swallowed harshly, as if he were biting back whatever he had planned on saying. He took a brief moment to push his glasses up slightly with his free hand before he lowered the gun once and for all.

Kit still didn't move out of uncertainty and fear. She did, however, risk a look over at Oswald who was standing between them very calmly. She wanted to leave but she'd have to be alive to do that, so waiting seemed like the most viable option. Her unblinking eyes had almost dried but her cheeks were still wet with streaks of tears.

"Detective, I think we should give Edward a moment, don't you?" Oswald took a few steps towards the woman, offering his arm out.

Kit paid no attention to the man with his arm out, only his words as she briskly left the room, almost running but not quite. She reached the foyer she had previously stood in before Zsasz left and found that the room was spinning slightly. Kit breathed heavily and told herself to calm down, sitting on the steps of old house.

Calm down.

But how could she? That wasn't what she had expected when she followed him into that room.

She hadn't even been here long. In fact, the amount of time she sat on the stairs as Oswald and Edward bickered in the other room, was almost half the time she had spent in that damn house all together.