Post by Aurora Graves on Aug 6, 2017 14:53:44 GMT -5
Aurora and Damon’s hotel suite – Hotel Napoleon
Memphis, TN
Late Friday Night, August 4, 2017
The bathroom light shut off as Aurora stepped out into the short hallway that led into the living room, rubbing the ends of her long blonde mane with a towel. Clad in a thick white bathrobe, she padded barefoot across the living room and into the bedroom, where her husband and tag team partner Damon Graves sat propped up against the headboard, flipping through the channels on the TV.
Aurora: Anything good on?
Damon shook his head.
Damon: Nah... this time of night, it’s pretty much the standard case of TSO...
Aurora & Damon: ‘Tain’t Shit On....
Aurora tossed her towel across the room, letting it fall on the seat of a bench in the far corner of the room. She then removed her bathrobe, revealing a red satin nightgown with a neckline that just barely bordered on indecent. Damon stared at her, his eyebrow arching as he scanned her curvaceous body. He watched as she pulled back the covers and slipped into bed beside him. As Aurora settled against the pillow, she stared up at the ceiling, a gentle sigh pushing through her lips.
Damon: Whatcha thinkin’ about, Harley?
Aurora: Oh, nothing really. Just...
She shook her head softly before turning to look at him.
Aurora: You know, a lot of the others just don’t seem to realize how important you are to me. They don’t realize that if it wasn’t for you, I probably wouldn’t be here.
Damon turned the TV off, setting the remote on the nightstand beside him. He turned to face his wife, resting his weight on his elbow as he ran his fingertips behind her ear. A smirk formed on his face as he let out a light chuckle.
Damon: You mean that run-in I had with your ex back when we first met? Come on, Harley... it’s not like he really could have done much.
Aurora: That’s the thing... you didn’t know what kind of brutal shit he was really capable of. As tough as I come off sometimes...
She frowned, staring back up at the ceiling. It was as if the mental image of Jered Knight standing over her – his fist clenched even as his other hand held her down – was being projected from her mind onto the naked white surface that hovered high above them.
Aurora: There were times when I found myself wishing he would just finish me off and be done with it. Sometimes, I’d be sitting there, slumped on the floor, bruises everywhere... wishing that the next breath I took would be my last, only to keep on breathing. I would tell myself so many times that one day, I’d run – I’d get as far away from him as I could, but it wasn’t until that one night...
Damon: When you knocked his ass out.
She sat up, staring at her hands. They were shaking, her fingers locked in a claw-like position. Her voice cracked, growing shakier with each word she said.
Aurora: I didn’t know how long he’d be out, so I just took my opening and I ran for my life. I almost left Selina behind, but there she was... it was like she knew. I thought that would be the last I’d hear from him after I filed for divorce, but then he followed me to Portland....
She paused. Her hands fell into her lap as the damp strands of her hair fell in front of her shoulders, hiding her face. As Damon moved to brush her hair back, he gazed at her, his eyes narrowed in scrutinizing curiosity.
She was laughing – softly, barely even audible, but she was laughing.
Damon: I don’t see what’s so funny about that, Harley.
She looked at him, her voice still somewhat shaky, but she smiled.
Aurora: Everyone calls YOU the Joker to my Harley Quinn, but in reality, you’re anything but. Joker always treated Harley like she was nothing. You... you’ve always treated me like a queen. Sometimes, I think it’s more than I deserve.
Damon draped an arm around his wife’s shoulders, pulling her close to him.
Damon: Aurora Diamond Graves, that’s enough of that! You aren’t that girl cowering in the corner anymore. You’ve grown. You’ve matured, you’ve broken the cycle he had you trapped in. And now, you’re a champion!
She pushed away from him, but only until she was far enough to look him in the eyes.
Aurora: No... WE are champions. You’ve been with me every step of the way, Damon, even when I didn’t want you there.
Damon: Hey, you’ve got Alicia to thank for that. Speaking of Alicia, what do you think about those two new people she’s working with?
She leaned back against the headboard, pursing her lips as she pondered Alicia’s newest charges. Admittedly, she didn’t know much about them, apart from the fact that they were both signed to West Coast Genesis. About the only time they spent up until this point with them was at the gym the day after she and Damon arrived in Memphis.
Aurora: Danni and Donovan? They seem okay, I guess. That Donovan guy kinda reminds me of Jason...
Damon: Yeah, except he seems a bit – oh, I don’t know – stuffy, don’t you think?
Aurora shook her head.
Aurora: Nah, I wouldn’t say he’s stuffy... just... more of a lone wolf kind of guy. At least, that’s the vibe I’m getting off of him.
Damon: Well, when you put it that way... I guess it’s just a matter of getting to know them.
Aurora: Right. You know Alicia wouldn’t associate with them if she didn’t think they were good people. You know how she is; she won’t take a chance on anyone if she doesn’t see anything in them.
He nodded his head.
Damon: I guess you’re right. Anyway, we should probably get some sleep if we want to go grab breakfast before we hit the gym.
Aurora: You know how I hate working out on an empty stomach.
She started to settle in under the covers, pulling them up over her chest as she moved down to lay her head on the pillow. She started to turn onto her side, but paused.
Aurora: Puddin’?
Damon: What is it, Harley?
Aurora: I meant what I said; if it weren’t for you doing what you did that day in Portland, I’d probably be dead. I owe you my life....
Again, Damon raised his eyebrow, the left corner of his mouth turning upward.
Damon: So you only married me because of a life debt?
Aurora let out a laugh as she reached over to playfully bat at his face.
Aurora: Don’t be silly! We became a team because Alicia saw something in both of us and thought we’d be great together. Falling in love with you was unexpected, but it was definitely a plus. THAT is why I married you.
Damon: I guess I can live with that...
Aurora: Good. Now go to sleep.
Damon: That’s the thing; I’m not even all that tired.
Aurora: Hmph. I know how to wear you out....
Damon: Oh, really?
A wicked look washed over Aurora’s face as she growled suggestively. Pulling the covers up, she pounced on her husband, covering them both in the billowing white linens as she giggled.
Damon: HEY! No biting!