Birds of a Feather (Oswald Cobblepot)

Ménage à Trois

    I set down two cups of coffee for Barbara and myself. While I was unable to save her, Gordon was able to negotiate with Don Falcone to 'spare her life'. Although 'spare her life' isn't very much, since they want her alive to recruit into the Court of Owls.

"Thanks," she mutters, holding up the cup with both hands and taking a sip.

"So...Falcone kept his word?" I ask, "And Gordon knows nothing?"

Barbara sets her cup down, "Natalie, you can call him Jim, you should call him Jim. He's my fiance, and your my friend, so even though you two don't get along you should still be on a first name basis."

I try my best not to roll my eyes, but Barbara can already tell I'm displeased with the idea. She places her hands on her hips, "You two should get along. One of these days I'm going I invite you to dinner with the two of us and the two of you are going to find out you both have a lot in common."

"I appreciate the gesture Babs, but let's face it, that sounds like a recipe for disaster," I confess, taking a sip of my own coffee.

She puts down her coffee, her expression suddenly becoming much more serious, "So...have you given Peter the champagne yet?"

I shake my head, realizing what she's about to confront me with, "No, I got home late, and sort of just crashed on the bed. I'll probably see him tonight, I'll give it to him then."

"And...did you have any idea that your boyfriend also goes by the name 'Penguin'?"

I freeze, my cup of coffee halfway to my lips. Do I lie? No, Barbara would find out eventually, especially if both she and Oswald are tied to the mob and the Court of Owls.

I set down the cup, "Fine, so I knew-"
"And that he's a underboss for Don Falcone? Natalie, this is serious!"

"Yes, I understand this is serious, but what choice do I have? He's stalked me, threatened me with rape, death I...I'm scared of him, and I can't get rid of him. And you know the cops, they treat domestic violence the same way they treat loitering!"

Is what I'm saying true? Am I...truly scared of him? Am I just making excuses for myself or am I confronting something that's been on my mind this whole time? True, there are times when I can control him, but there's always that feeling of unease, that things might get out of hand.

Barbara slowly begins to nod her head, "I...I understand. In the end, the choice is yours but...Natalie...you deserve better."

I sigh, "Yeah, well, not everyone can end up with someone like James Gordon."

"I wouldn't count myself so lucky..."

The doorbell rings, and Barbara gets up to answer it. Flinging the door open, Renee Montoya immediately throws herself at Barbara, "Oh my gosh, I came as soon as I heard about what happened. Are you alright?"

She nods, smiling, "Of course I'm alright. Couldn't be better."

Montoya stares at her for a fraction of a second before responding, "Lier."

She sighs, "Okay, but how do you expect me to feel after being kidnapped?"

"I don't expect you to feel okay, but...oh...nevermind," she waves off.

Montoya leans over Barbara's shoulder and sees me, "Oh, hey, Natalie. Gee, quite the party you've got going on here. Where's Jim? Shouldn't he be...I don't know, comforting you after what happened?"

Barbara practically laughs, "Comfort me? No, no, he's far too busy at work. He took the rest of the day off after I was abducted, but it was back to work the very next day."