#* bnnerr .

                               harleen chuckled . it was a soft little sound but it allowed a flash of teeth to break through her reddened lips . this was the guy everyone was freaking out about back at arkham ? this was the guy her patients believed to be the demon haunting the streets of america ? the devil that aided all those criminals pleading for insanity clauses sound more credible ? BUT HE LOOKED SO SOFT . the type of guy harleen could shatter with her heel if she applied just enough pressure . the blonde tilted her head while examining dr. banner from head to toe , unapologetically assessing every inch of him .     ❝      aw , bruce .    ❞     dr. kopski said , sticking her lower lip out  ,  patronizing the man ,  just like she had been so many times before . not even allowing him the FORMALITY of being called dr. banner .  ❝      is that as deep as anyone’s gone with you ?   ❞    

                harleen had been babbling about banner’s family . about how his parents’ toxic dynamics had eventually affected the man standing before her , how broken and miserable he’d be in the long run , how trusting would always be hard , how HOPELESS IT ALL WAS . all of this while chewing through a bowl of pretzels that hadn’t been offered to her . bruce must have had enough . harleen’s mouth stopped moving mid-sentence , freezing into a bright red “O” shape when hearing a very firm command from the man standing on the other side of the kitchen . a command that told her to CEASE . to stop . her masterful fall , her beautiful and fearless undoing , HER TRUE SELF , finally stripped bare for everyone to see , and this man told her to stop .   ❝     ... what ?  ❞       it was a small whimper at first . he wanted her to stop talking . harley had heard it clearly , she knew she had . but why ? was her true self too much to witness ? OR DID BRUCE BANNER NOT WANT TO SEE HIMSELF ? his true horrible self ?   ───   why did he think he ought to be spared if she wasn’t ?   ❝      what did you just say ?  ❞      dr. kopski asked , hand slowly moving away from the small bowl of pretzels . she has lost her appetite .

                       ❝     say it again .  ❞      the blonde inhaled through her nostrils , surprised at the bitterness in her voice . those big blue bulging eyes blinked rapidly , feeling the burning of tears building up somewhere behind her eyeballs . such a horrible habit it was , crying whenever she got angry . having her fury mistaken for SADNESS . harleen had spent her whole life holding back . but tonight , she wouldn’t .  ❝     no , really , please , i want to hear it .   ❞      there was a moment of stillness in the house . no sound to fill the space between them . only the quiet buzzing of a working fridge . 

                       one bony hand suddenly reached for the pretzel bowl , red nails sinking into the salt as she threw it at the man , letting the snacks fly across the air . harleen gritted her teeth into a snarl and watched the damn thing miss his head and shatter against the wall . her eyes were moist , but her voice sounded like leather being dragged across burning asphalt .

                  the  smack  on  his  left  hand  cut  hellboy  mid  action  ,  causing  his  arm  to  immediately  pull  away  from  the  microscope  sitting  on  the  counter  like  he  had  been  STRUCK  BY  LIGHTING  .  bruce  banner’s  sudden  act  of  violence  had  startled  red  .  not  everyone  dared  approaching  a  creature  like  him  so  recklessly  .  craniums  had  been  cracked  through  for  smaller  offenses  .  heck  ,  just  last  week  hellboy  had  headbutted  his  way  through  a  wall  to  make  sure  he  got  taco  tuesday’s  last  taco  before  manning  .  everyone  knew  by  now  that  the  paranormal  agent  had  a  short  temper  and  that  he  seemed  to  enjoy  acting  on  impulses  .  still  ,  instead  of  receiving  that  slap  with  a  clench  of  his  jaw  or  the  rise  of  his  RED  RIGHT  FIST  ,  the  bprd  agent  just  stood  there  ,  dumbfounded  ,  staring  down  at  the  smaller  man  as  if  he  were  traumatized  .    hellboy  slowly  pressed  the  assaulted  hand  against  his  chest  ,  letting  the  crucifix  he  wore  around  his  wrist  gently  brush  against  his  stomach  .  father  had  never  hit  him  .  he’d  just  ground  him  or  make  sure  he  knew  how  DISAPPOINTED  he  was  whenever  hellboy  messed  up  .  he  figured  that  hurt  a  whole  lot  more  than  a  slap  on  the  wrist  .  but  whatever  information  doctor  banner  spoke  after  fell  on  deaf  ears  .  he  was  a  hellish  creature  ,  yes  ,  the  right  hand  of  doom  ,  the  beast  that  would  bring  forth  the  apocalypse  …  but  most  of  all  ,  hellboy  was  a  terribly  childish  man  .