“There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance and I’m pretty certain that you’ve more than overstepped it. I mean, Jesus! Are you even listening to yourself right now? And even so, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad if you hadn’t just admitted to using those skills to slaughter people on your little crusade against crime. Real funny. What I’m eager to see is someone knock a little sense into your head, but the longer this conversation goes on the more I’m starting to think that’s a lost cause. Well, it’s a relief to know that I’m not the only one to be so charmed by your company, I’d be seriously worried for the person able to stand next to you for more than two minutes without wanting to sock you. This Harper guy must be some kind of saint to be able to put up with you long enough to find out what makes you tick.”
"We already have heroes for that exact reason, except we don’t go running around with delusions of grandeur thinking that we’ve got any authority to decide who lives and who dies! That’s the whole point. You don’t let personal reasons influence your decisions on the field to the point that you get so caught up in it that you can’t see anything else. You think that just because daddy didn’t love you enough that gives you any right to take all your misplaced anger out on the world? I’ve heard that story enough times to know that it’ll end badly for you. What I’m trying to do is help you, Jason.”
"It’s sad more than anything that you genuinely seem to think that."
"What’s wrong with that? If you’re a crime fighter yourself, you know very well that those bastards won’t stay behind bars. They’re waltz in and out, just like it always happens. Why not take them out once and for all, huh? I’m doing everyone a favour here, I’m taking anyone who is a threat out. You sure all act tough yourself, wanting to punch a guy you just met, a guy who willingly admits that he’s not afraid to both maim and kill. Wanting to see him beaten down for doing what, telling you the truth as it is? Being fed too many lies from those you idolized, right? You archers with your short tempers and snappy come backs are all the same. Harper knows when to stop, something that you don’t seem to realise.”
“And they get to make that call? They get to choose who lives and who dies when they’re threatening people out there? Those people are mostly innocent, they, not so much. So killing them is a good call, they’re guilty, they won’t learn, you just get rid of them like vermin before it’s too late, simple as that. Listen here, girlie. You don’t know me or anything about me, no matter what stories you’ve heard. I don’t need your help or pity, I’m doing just dandy. So don’t try to appeal to my emotions or whatever you’re trying to do, it won’t work on me.”
“I do believe what I’m saying. I wouldn’t be standing right here if I wasn’t confident in my words and skills.”
Stephanie thought she was getting used to life without all her fancy gadgets again, but honestly she knew if Cass or O saw her, they’d point out like twenty things wrong with her form or something. It was funny how quickly you could get used to something, though. After all, when she was younger she didn’t have any of that Bat stuff. But just a few years later, and she found herself desperately missing her boomstick and friends. It’s not like I’m terrible without them or anything, she told herself, it’s just, y’know, different!
Weirder than her supposed inadequacy, however, was the fact that she’d soon found herself adjusted to living in this new city. Already, things were starting to feel like a normal routine. She’d wake up, spend her day like a normal person would, and then head to the rooftops. Which happened to be what she was doing now.
Keeping an eye out, looking for crime, and all that… It was kind of an old fashioned way of doing things. She really needed to hook something up to whatever the cops in this city used. If there were cops, even. She hadn’t had any run ins with them yet, but she know of the jail so… cops made sense? And it was a city and yeah.
A yawn escaped her lips, as she continued to wait. If this area seemed fine, she’d move onto the next and so on, just like she had been doing all night. Still, she felt as if she was missing something, as if because of her lack of equipment and knowledge, lives would be lost. And while she couldn’t allow that to happen, there wasn’t much she could do about it except for what she was doing already.
Well, that was ten minutes. She couldn’t see anything happening in the alleys below, of course, she didn’t have any of her goggles so perhaps again she was missing something. For the most part, this place seemed to be as safe as it was going to get, so she should probably move on and see if anywhere else needed her help. Or that’s what she thought she would do, until she heard the impact of a body against hard brick. Immediately, she looked down, catching sight of two men. The one in control must have been there all along, which meant… she didn’t notice him earlier. Great. Just great. At the very least, she could always rely on her apparently bat-like hearing.
She took one more quick look. A flash of red, a mask of some sorts maybe, and a leather jacket. Well, at least criminals are getting fashionable? He was threatening the other with something sharp, and already he had begun to draw blood. Definitely time to move then.
Gracefully without making a sound, she dropped down to the streets below, making a perfect landing. And what do the judges say? Perfect tens across the board! Stephanie Brown is incredible, truly! … Yeah.
As she descended, her form cast a familiar bat-shaped shadow upon the two. Stephanie raised her head slightly, as she looked again at the scene before her. The weapon was a wooden dagger, sharpened. Nothing special, but then again she was working with an empty utility belt.
“You wanna drop that thing you’ve got there? We wouldn’t want you getting any splinters, now would we?”
4/5 stars on that witty banter. Always room for improvement, after all.
Jason’s attention was focused on the squirming man, applying more pressure on his neck, turning around when he thought that he spotted a figure up close. Deciding that it was probably nothing, or even better, someone who saw him and decided that running away was their best option, he turned his back again.
“Don’t be like that, can’t you see that I’m being so nice at you?”, he laughed, so obvious by now that the man had some sort of a pocket knife stuffed in his jacket, resisting to hand it over. It seemed that Jason needed to be more persuasive, and everyone knew how convincing he could get with his actions, especially when he would lose his temper. That didn’t happen so often now, but once he would lose control, it was harder to calm himself down more than anything else.
Then he heard it, the fame voice, coming from behind him. How did she get there without being heard? That didn’t feel nice, for sure, the mysterious stranger would be dealt with first for trying to interfere with something that had nothing to do with her. Who knew, maybe she had better equipment than the guy before him.
“Or else what, you’re going to arrest me, officer? Or you can’t be bothered to pay for my medical insurance?”, he snorted as he turned his head around, his eyes narrowing under the red helmet of his.
The blonde hair, the utility belt, the bat shaped cowl and of course, the symbol on her chest, they all screamed one thing at him; she wasn’t to be trusted, and someone probably sent her after him.
Letting go of the man who cursed at him and ran away as far as he could, he turned his attention to the newcomer; she was way more interesting than a pocket knife, that went without a doubt. Wiping the tip of his dagger and fixing his leather jacket, he faced her properly. He did his research, she was probably a member of Batman Inc, and a girl. Batwoman, no, she seemed to young for that, Batgirl, maybe. Probably.
“I see that he started dressing up his orphans in his own colours now. That’s progress.”, he said with a chuckle, his voice echoing a bit through the helmet.
No sign of Dick or Tim, or even Damian, just her, someone who he didn’t even recall meeting before. Or really bothered to look up. But she knew him, she must had, especially if she was the new Bat kid. He really hated that title, he would glare at Roy whenever he used it.
“I’ve got no interest in watching you give any kinda performance unless it’s you on the receiving end of that session. I don’t care how powerful and all-important you think you are, sooner or later that arrogance is gonna trip you up and you’ll regret it. Might even knock you down from that high horse of yours, who knows? Alright. You want to know what my first impressions are? If I haven’t made it clear enough already, I think that you’re pathetic. I think that you’re pretentious, and supercilious, and overwhelmingly big-headed— do you want me to go on? I can think of a few more adjectives.”
“That isn’t justice. Don’t go around pretending like you’re a hero acting out of some sense of obligation to the public, deserving anyone’s thanks. What you do is nothing but an attempt to satisfy your own need for revenge, or whatever your deal is, and it isn’t right. It makes you no better than the criminals you think you’ve any right to dispatch. Clearly there’re some buried affairs, here. Don’t tell me… daddy issues? Some sort of inferiority complex? Am I getting close?”
"You know, honestly, it’s gotta be some sort of miracle that you’re even standing upright under the weight of all that bravado, sweetheart.”
"So being confident in your skills is bad? Let me tell you something, I’ve been trained by top assassins and the teachers of All Castle, I can bring down anyone who will try to get in my ways, including you. You’re so eager to see me beaten up, I didn’t know young girls like you were into that sort of thing. Interesting, you sound like someone from Gotham all right. Those were some really charming adjectives, I’ll give you that. Nothing that I wasn’t called before, got something more original? Harper can do better than that and he knows exactly what to say to make me tick.”
“Hero? No, I’m what this city needs, someone to do their dirty work, take out anyone who dares to pose a threat to the common folk. I may have some personal reasons to do certain things but trust me, I’m getting revenge when I see the people responsible for some things. The criminals here, they’re the ones who are pathetic, thinking that they can make make a living out of this life, that’s why they’re getting punished. What, you’re going to psychoanalyze me? Be my guest, I was sat down in Arkham and had a weird doc trying to..what did he call it..help me let go of my past, move forward, all that crap.”
“It’s a gift, isn’t it? That’s what makes me so special, Katie.”
“You’re really that eager to get your ass handed to you on a silver platter? Believe me, I’m starting to think that’s a show I’d like front row seats to. I can tell that you’re something else, alright, but somehow I don’t think we’re quite on the same page regarding what that is.”
"In this place? What important stuff has a guy like you got on his mind? Really, I’m curious. You somehow don’t seem like the ‘contributing member of society’ type. Listen, you patronize me like that one more time and I won’t have to direct anyone anywhere, I’ll clock you in your arrogant face myself.”
“I’m the one with the attitude problem, now? That’s got to be the funniest thing I’ve heard all week, considering I’m standing right in front of a guy whose ego could crush him to death in his sleep.”
"You’re in for a huge treat then, I don’t let anyone beat me. You should sit on the front row when I’m next fighting in that little club. I’ll be sure to give the guy I’m facing a maiming session from you. How about you give me a request now? Really? I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours, first impressions are always the best, right?”
“A tough and rough girl that’s something nice for a change. Oh, but I am. I clean the scum of the streets, you should be all thanking me. Unlike others, I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty. Criminals get what it’s coming for them, and that’s my dagger slicing their neck. If I had my pistols, a couple of bullets through their head. As simple as that.”
“Yeah, yeah, the death part. Been there, done that, and now I’m here where apparently you can die? That’s not making me shake in my red helmet at all you know.”
