Chapter Text
Meanwhile, in the Gotham locker room….
Everyone else had cleared out and the celebrations were over, though a few people still remained in the stadium.
“Alexandra Blaire Krieger.”
Ali froze hearing that from two voices and she wasn't sure if this was going to be worse or better than last time given who they were.
She turned around to see both her Mom and Brunn, looking at her with sympathetic but stern eyes.
Brunn went quickly to Ali’s side and put a gentle, reassuring hand on her arm. “Hey, I’m here Ali. It’s not going to be fun but it’s not going to be like last time. I’ve got you, we’ll make sure.”
Ali nodded, exhaling shakily. “Thanks Brunn, I appreciate that,” she said, before looking anxiously at her mother.
“...hi, Mom,” she tried.
“Hi. Don't worry dear, I'm not your brother. Which is why I've decided to let Rebecca finish things. I'll just handle your warm up.”
Ali gave Brunn a nervous look, and Brunn gave her a reassuring smile in return.
“It’s going to be okay Ali, deep breaths, you’re safe with us. I hope someone gave your brother an attitude adjustment for his idiocy, but that’s beyond my ability to control, unfortunately,” Becky added under her breath, just loud enough for Ali and her mother to hear.
Ali nodded. “Where are we--”
“In the massage room, like last time, but it isn’t going to be like last time otherwise,” Becky promised, walking into the otherwise empty room with Ali and her mother. Ali climbed up on the massage table and lay facedown, letting Brunn take her hands and hold her securely.
“Okay, just my hand and not lots.” At Ali and then Brunn's nod, Deb began, bringing her hand down on one bottom cheek than the other. Before long she paused, rubbing Ali’s back before moving to switch places with Brunn.
Ali took a moment to steady her breathing. True to her word, her mother hadn’t given her a very hard warmup, and Ali was not quite crying yet, not really. She felt more discomfited by the fact that it had been her mother doing it than anything else.
Brunn stepped up and rubbed Ali’s back some more. “Okay Ali,” she soothed her, “it’s alright, I’m here, just breathe for me.”
Ali nodded, swallowing nervously as the hairbrush tapped on her left bottom cheek. “How many, Brunn?”
“Well let’s think about that, shall we Ali? Your behavior after Pinoe was taken off was deplorable.” Brunn tsked at her. “I’m surprised you weren’t carded for that little tantrum, at least once.”
Ali groaned. “So am I, but it was just like…everything wasn’t fair and I got mad. It was Pinoe’s last chance--”
“And yours,” Brunn pointed out.
“It doesn’t feel like a fair match when we both weren’t able to finish it out,” Ali said.
“Right,” Brunn nodded understandingly, patting Ali’s back gently. “Definitely unfair, I know. But getting yourself yellow, or God forbid red, carded wouldn’t help Pinoe any, and it would hurt Gotham.”
Ali groaned into her folded arms. “I didn’t think of that. I guess I did a lot of not thinking,” she admitted meekly.
“I guess,” Brunn agreed. “Let’s see if these help you learn to think, hm? Eleven,” she added.
Ali nodded reluctantly and tried not to tense as the first smack with the hairbrush fell. It was sharp enough to sting and burn, but it wasn’t as bad as Kyle’s smacks had been. As ten more were shared out evenly over her bottom, Ali found herself crying, as much from relief as from pain. It wasn’t as bad as Kyle’s, and she was safe, and it was over.
Brunn put the brush aside, rubbing Ali’s back gently. “Big feelings, Ali?”
She nodded reluctantly.
“That’s okay. I’ve got you, settle, we can talk about it when you’re ready.”
“Thanks, Brunn. Things have just been…a lot, lately.”
“I bet.”
“With retiring and other things and then for Pinoe to go out like that….”
“Shh, I know. Want to go drown your sorrows in ice cream?”
“I'd rather something more liquid.”
“Yes, but I imagine some on your squad can't indulge, besides the others got ice cream earlier, it would be a shame for us to miss out just because we didn't go with them, hmm?”
“Okay, let's go get ice cream, as long as I can sit on something soft to eat it.”
With that they left in search of the sweet dessert.