DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters of Helena, Barbara, Dinah, Batman, and Catwoman etc. They are the property of DC comics and I suppose the WB network and the creators of Smallville and Tollin/Robbins (geez, this is beginning to feel like an Oscar speech) etcetera, etcetera. I'm just borrowing them for a short period of time.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story was inspired by an essay/exam induced fever and too
many trailers for Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights and The Dreamers,
which put the idea of a French accented, sweaty dancing Helena in my
head. And well, she would not be ignored, so … fetish be shared!
ARCHIVING: Only with the permission of the author.
Dance with Me
By Janine
New Gotham City … Present Day
Helena sat on the edge of the desk, her legs hanging over the edge, her feet perched on the wheel of the redhead's wheelchair as Barbara's fingers flew over the keyboard in front of her, almost too fast to make out any of the keys she was hitting.
"I can take care of it," Barbara said finally, her hands dropping from the keyboard into her lap as she turned to face Helena, who was still in her combat leathers having just returned to the clock-tower after a sweep.
"You make it sound like a booty call," Helena replied smirking at Barbara as the redhead leaned back in her chair comfortably, staring at her lazily.
"With you it's essentially the same thing," Barbara finally replied easily, shooting Helena a smile herself, "hungry and horny are pretty much interchangeable for you after a good night of ass-kicking, aren't they?" She went on knowing full well that they were. The zeal with which Helena tucked into post-sweep snacks, finger licking and moaning both part of the package, was borderline indecent, and the fondness the brunette had for whipped cream made her think any booty calls would have to be placed well after midnight on the kinky clock.
"Right, so which one are you going to take care of?" Helena asked holding Barbara's gaze with her own before biting her bottom lip as her gaze dropped to rove over Barbara.
"Well," Barbara said thoughtfully, fully aware that Helena was checking her out and probably undressing her with her eyes since the brunette seemed to have absolutely no sense of shame. "I guess that depends what you're in the mood for."
"Well, like you said, I'm a simple girl with simple tastes," Helena replied her eyes moving back to Barbara's face. "I'm fairly easy to please. Reese put pancakes on the table so it's up to you to beat his offer."
"I know how you love pancakes," Barbara said thoughtfully, her brows scrunching together in mock consternation. "I'm not sure there's anything in the kitchen that will beat that."
"That's okay, stay positive," Helena encouraged. "Think outside the box, Oracle. Let's consider the whole clock-tower, for example. Can you think of any tasty treats that might be … rolling about somewhere else?"
"Pop tarts?" Barbara suggested.
"Not better than pancakes," Helena replied shaking her head sadly.
"Pie," Barbara offered, looking over at Helena with such a mockingly hopeful expression on her face that the brunette nearly lost it.
"That does sound good, but I've got a taste for something else," she responded dropping her feet onto the floor and moving closer to the edge of the desk so that she was barely sitting on it and practically in Barbara's lap.
"I think I need a hint," Barbara commented looking up at Helena through her lashes. "I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer, you know."
"I think you're special," Helena smiled holding Barbara's gaze for moment, before slowly leaning forward, closing the distance between them until they were practically nose to nose, her lips millimeters away from Barbara's and closing in.
Barbara turned her head to the side as Helena was about to make contact with her lips, causing the brunette to draw to a stop, her lips so close to the redhead's face she could practically feel the smooth skin beneath her lips.
"It's late," Barbara commented her eyes on the computer screen as her hands dropped to the side of her chair as she rolled herself backwards slightly placing some space between herself and Helena.
"This is news to you?" Helena asked before loudly exhaling in frustration, as she pulled back so that she was once against leaning against the desk.
"Are you staying the night?" Barbara asked very aware of Helena's tone and the tension radiating off of her.
"Only if I can sleep in a bed," Helena replied pushing off the desk so that she was standing.
Barbara contemplated her silently for a moment, shifting uncomfortably in her chair before her eyes skittered away from Helena's and she opened her mouth to speak her gaze on some far corner of the clock-tower.
"Yeah, that's what I thought. And we start the dance all over," Helena muttered holding Barbara's gaze for a moment longer before moving past her and heading for the elevator.
Gotham City … 8 years ago
Barbara felt a delicate hand come to rest lightly on the curve of her hip and breathed in deeply as she felt a trim yet strong body move closer towards her so that they were almost standing chest to chest. She felt hot and uncomfortable and tilted her head to the side to address the person holding onto her, the words "I don't think this is such a good idea" hanging on her lips as she watched a pale arm lift up, remote control in hand, to turn the stereo on. However, before she could get the words out of her mouth the remote control was flipped easily onto a nearby couch and the girl who's hand it had just been in turned around to face her, pinning her in place with her eyes as her now free hand took its place on the other side of her hip.
"Don't think okay, just move with me," came the smooth, confident and slightly accented words from the girl in front of her as those clear, blue eyes continued to hold her in place. "I'll take care of you," Helena went on leaning a little closer as she straightened her body and shifted her weight onto the balls of her feet.
And with that she was suddenly drawn roughly against Helena by the hand the brunette had snaked around behind her back, the movement so swift that it surprised her causing her to gasp and open her eyes wide, though she instinctively placed her hand on Helena's arm, just above her bicep.
"Don't you think we're close enough," Barbara managed to breathe out refusing to push into the body in front of her even though she knew she should according to the rules of the dance. Instead she simply extended her right arm in the ballroom manner causing Helena to follow her motion and move on from the missed action.
"You can never get close enough Bar-ba-ra," came the smiling response as she felt Helena press lightly against her hand before she clasped it.
Barbara found herself grinning a little at the way her name sounded as it dropped from those lips. Only one person ever said her name like that, and she still found it as charming as she had the first time she heard it. It came out confident, teasing, and slightly mysterious as if there was a meaning behind the extra syllable that even the speaker was ignorant to.
It was quintessential Helena.
"Five to ten says differently," Barbara replied finally as she stepped backwards with her right foot and then backwards with her left foot, as Helena stepped forward with her left foot and then forward with her right foot.
"Okay," Helena replied before laughing airily, more amused by the statement than Barbara would have liked. Like her mother, Helena seemed inordinately amused by her at times, most of the time actually. "Whatever you say."
"Are you humoring me?" Barbara asked as they began the rock steps, pivoting as she stepped to the left before making a 360 degree counter-clockwise turn. Her tone was indignant and mildly chastising.
Helena stared at her for a long moment, still moving in time with the music, her eyes moving away from Barbara's only for a moment when the redhead accidentally stepped on her foot. She smirked at that before spinning Barbara around, and then looked over at her contemplatively again before finally muttering, "Why are you talking so much?"
"That's the pot calling the kettle black," Barbara murmured pointedly before dropping her eyes to look at her feet as they moved through the next set of steps, jerking back slightly when Helena's face suddenly appeared right in front of hers.
"Don't look at you feet, look at me," Helena said quietly. "You won't be able to tell what I'm going to do next by looking at my shoes," she continued watching as Barbara somewhat reluctantly returned her gaze to her. "Good," she went on seemingly pleased with the turn events had taken. "Now stop thinking. You can't dance if you think."
"That seems a little antithetical," Barbara commented. "Not all of us were raised in ballrooms and studios. I have to think about the steps in order to execute them," she went on noticing how Helena smirked at the mention of `ballrooms'.
"That's bullshit," Helena responded. "We both know I learned to dance like this in barrooms … just like mammon," she continued smirking at the redhead as they swayed back and forth. "And you don't need to think about the steps `in order to execute them'. You know them, now you just have to feel them."
"I feel like Jennifer Grey," Barbara muttered under her breath, nonetheless trying to follow Helena's advice and go with the flow.
"Concentrate on how my body feels moving against you," Helena instructed her voice barely a whisper as she leaned in closer to Barbara.
"I'd really rather not," Barbara bit off before she realized she had spoken.
Helena was quiet for a long moment after that though she continued to lead Barbara through the steps. Her features had closed off, and Barbara could tell that she was thinking intensely about something, which impressed her since the teens body was still moving bonelessly as if she didn't have a care in the world.
"This is not the dance for you," Helena said finally pulling away from Barbara as the song neared its end.
"What do you mean?" Barbara asked uncertain as to the brunette's meaning and tone. She wasn't sure whether she had hurt Helena's feelings with her previous comment. "Selina said it would be perfect for …"
"I know," Helena interrupted, her back facing Barbara as she moved towards the entertainment system at the side of the room. "I was there remember, I was thinking what she was thinking," she went on her tone slightly teasing. Selina had turned to her daughter after a moment of consideration when Barbara had detailed the situation to her, and had said to Helena, "are you thinking what I'm thinking?" to which the girl had smiled brightly and nodded her head.
"Then …"
"We were wrong, it's not the right dance for you," Helena said cutting Barbara off once again as she opened up a CD case and pulled out the disc, placing it into an empty slot on the player.
"Why?" Barbara asked somewhat off-put by Helena's rather dismissive tone.
"The Argentine Tango is a dance of passion," Helena commented stepping away from the stereo and moving over towards the couch where she had thrown the remote control earlier.
"Are you saying I'm devoid of passion?" Barbara asked quirking an eyebrow, not sure whether to be insulted or amused by Helena's youthful presumption.
"No," Helena said running her thumb over the buttons of the remote thoughtfully before tilting her head to look over at Barbara. "No, I think you are very passionate," she continued pointing the remote at the stereo, but seemingly thinking better of it and dropping her arm again. "I also think that scares you."
"What?" Barbara asked not quite sure she liked where Helena was going with her statements, but not certain enough to outwardly argue with the girl yet about it.
"You like being in charge, in control of everything," Helena responded sounding almost sad as she spoke.
"So," Barbara challenged, her back straightening a bit defensively. There was nothing wrong with wanting to be fully informed, self- sufficient, and capable.
"So you can't let yourself go," Helena said holding her eyes, meeting the challenge. "We try this instead," she continued finally turning on the stereo again. "The Cha-Cha, it is playful. Much less exposed. You'll like this better," she went on walking the few steps that would bring her in front of Barbara once again. "You won't have to get so close for this," she added looking directly at Barbara as she reached for her hand.
Barbara remained silent though she allowed Helena to take her hand. She felt chastised by the look, and somewhat foolish since a sixteen year old had mastered a dance that apparently she was emotionally incapable of learning.
"We do a crossover pattern for this one," Helena began drawing Barbara's attention back to her. "You are looking at your partner, at me in this case, and then you turn away and look at something else. Very coy, `I can see that you want me, but I don't want you. Or do I?' You turn back towards me then, a brief look, and I smile or maybe wink at you. I know you want me too, but you are playing hard to get. You are a saucy minx. We turn away from each other. Then we go back to a standard face-to-face pattern. We dance, you look at me, and blow a kiss, it says `not tonight my friend', and we start the dance all over."
New Gotham City … Present Day
"Helena!" Barbara called out, her hands on the wheels of her chair propelling her towards the elevator and the brunette quickly. "Don't go."
"Why stay?" Helena asked as she flung her back against a nearby wall and crossed her legs at the ankle before folding her arms over her chest defensively.
"For the company," Barbara suggested smiling playfully, though she sobered pretty quickly when Helena remained stone-faced and surly even in the face of her charming rapport. "Which you obviously find lacking," she added a moment later under her breath, before breathing in deeply.
"I don't find your company lacking, which is exactly the point," Helena responded her head turned towards Barbara, watching her with darkly intense, hooded eyes as she rested against the wall. "Well," she continued her head turning away from Barbara's to roam the clock- tower. "Maybe in one respect, but again that's exactly the point."
"I know," Barbara admitted her eyes dropping down into her lap for a second before looking up again to meet Helena's which were once again on her. "I'm more comfortable with the Cha-Cha, you were right."
Helena stared at her for a moment before smiling a little, her eyes sparkling as she gazed at the redhead. But almost as soon as the look appeared it vanished, replaced by once more serious eyes, and lips with a sad pout to them.
"Yeah," Helena replied softly, "that's why I suggested it. But … that was a long time ago. I'm tired of chasing you only to have you turn away," she continued her voice still quiet though her eyes were burning into Barbara's with a brooding intensity that sent a shiver through the redhead's body. "Dance with me."
"I had my dancing shoes retired for me a long time ago," Barbara said meeting Helena's eyes.
"There's more than one way to Tango," Helena replied uncrossing her arms, her expression less stand-offish than it had been a few moments before as she gazed at the redhead, a slow smile working its way across her lips.
Barbara's hands dropped to the wheels of her chair as her eyes dropped away from Helena's. Her back was tense and straight, and her jaw clamped tightly shut. She began to rock her wheelchair back and forth unconsciously as she wrestled with the desire to flee the conversation and all that came with it, and stay and finish it and all that came with that.
"I couldn't even keep up with you back then," she finally said stilling her chair before taking a deep breath and looking up at Helena. "And now …" she trailed off, her eyes avoiding Helena's again before she screwed her eyes tightly shut, wishing she had just let Helena go, or at the very least had removed herself from the situation a few moments before.
"And now?" Helena asked softly walking towards her.
"And now, I'm afraid you'd find my staccato footwork," Barbara began a bit darkly looking over at Helena as the brunette reached her, watching as she kneeled in front of her, "rather lacking," she finished as Helena gazed up at her.
"I want you," Helena said simply, her eyes resting steadily on Barbara though the redhead was doing everything in her power to avoid looking at her.
"You can't have me," Barbara responded her hands falling to the wheels of her chair, though when she tried to move back she found herself impeded. Helena had a hold on the chair and wasn't about to let go anytime soon if the look on her face was any indication when Barbara glanced at her peevishly.
"I need you," Helena said pushing closer to Barbara, wrapping her arms around the redhead's legs, hugging them to her as she rested her chin in Barbara's lap.
"You need to devise a better method for getting dates," Barbara replied trying to move back again and finding that she could move a little, but not a lot since Helena would just end up swaying with her killing any momentum she was able to get going.
"I love you," Helena stated in the same tone, only this time with her head resting on its side in Barbara's lap as she looked up at the older woman.
That brought Barbara up short and somewhat helplessly drew her eyes down towards the baby blues staring up at her. There were certain things Helena was extremely open about, that Barbara was sure it didn't even occur to her to be coy about though most people would be hesitant to even broach thinking about talking about it. But when it came to things she felt strongly about, emotions that could leave her vulnerable Helena could be as closed off as Barbara herself was, or even as distant as Bruce. Helena would tell you every detail of some masturbatory fantasy she'd had, but ask her about something close to her heart and she could stonewall you with the best of them. Which meant that Barbara was rather shocked to hear the words "I love you" fall so freely, and seemingly unconcerned from Helena's lips, especially considering the conversation they had just been having.
"That got your attention," Helena commented lifting her head off of Barbara's leg.
"Yeah," Barbara confirmed watching Helena as her eyes skittered away for a moment though she maintained the hug she had around the redhead's legs.
"Good," Helena said finally, letting go of Barbara's legs hopping back slightly so that she could stand up. "Cause I want you to listen to me," she went on once she was up right. "I love you and I want to be with you, in every possible way. I want to wake up and see your eyes blinking at me suspiciously in the morning before you realize I'm suppose to be there. I want to come back from sweeps and carry you into the bedroom in fine cavewoman form and do unspeakable things to you before having milk and cookies. I want to spend my breaks thinking up cute puns I can put on cards and send flowers to you, and impress you with my wit. I really want to see the look on your dad's face when you tell him we're engaged. I want to stare at you until I know absolutely every line and curve of your face, until I'm half sick of looking at you and yet, still completely captivated by you. I want be with you until I'm in a walker and we sit around all day in checkered robes arguing over butterscotch candy. And I don't care if I sound far too impressed with myself, arrogant or conceited because I know that you want me too. So, I'm going to rest my hands on the arms of that chair in a few seconds, lean forward and kiss you and after that, we're finally going to get around to that Tango. Comprende?"
"Comprende," Barbara replied a big smile working its way across her face as Helena took a step forward and leaned down resting her hands on the arm rests of her chair as she said she would. "Wait, engaged?" Barbara asked as the brunette leaned forward, the last syllable barely escaping from her mouth before she felt Helena's lips brush against hers softly.
"Hmmm, I'm going to make an honest woman of you," Helena murmured. Barbara felt her lips upturn in a smile then before the brunette pressed forward again, sucking Barbara's bottom lip into her mouth as she kissed again, slowly, a simmering kiss that left Barbara waiting to boil over.
"Of me?" Barbara asked somewhat incredulously as Helena pulled back slightly.
"Why are you talking so much?" Helena asked smirking as Barbara leaned forward pressing a soft kiss to her lips as her hand made it's way to the brunette's check, stroking the skin there lightly before she deepened the kiss, her hand moving around Helena's neck to tangle in her hair. "Shut up," the brunette continued when Barbara broke their kiss momentarily to drag her closer, "and dance with me."
The End