12730/Mother and Son

Mother and Son
Date of Scene:	09 September 2022
Location:	Coventry - Miagani Island
Synopsis:	Talia talks to Damian for the first time since his arrival in Gotham.
Cast of Characters:	Talia al Ghul, Damian Wayne

---

Talia al Ghul has posed:
She'd passed along a message. Sent by courier, note on kunai thrown into nearby wall with paper twined to it. Etched in a language only a few knew. Giving a date and time. Signed with a waxed seal bearing the heraldry of the League of Assassins.
    the Daughter of the Demon wished to meet her son. And there Talia would wait. Arriving upon the annointed upon hour. Moving to sit over in a lotus position. Waiting to see whether Damian would greet her openly or with the paranoia inherent to Gotham. Would he trust her and freshly arrive here or have been watching here, or her, for hours?

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian had found the kunai, and once the message had been read, he promptly burned it. He was adamant on not letting anyone know about the meeting.

  Of course the meeting place would be Coventry, the location where Damian and Batman had clashed three years ago, only to be stopped by Talia once the fight started to really go hard, enough that Damian would have done a lot of damage, to himself and Batman.

  Between the memories flowing in his mind, he moves closer and closer to Talia. "Mother." He comments, his footfalls nearly silent even in all of his Robin gear, a skill gained by his time in the League. He trusted her enough to communicate, but there was a little bit of apprehension, time apart would do that to a boy.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would go to rise up on the approach of Damian. There is analysis in her eyes as she would look him over. Her expression steady. Her gaze evaluatory upon him as she would go to rise up from her lotus position. On her back a katana. She would rise up and then take her fists together to give him a bow.

"My son. It's been too long." She was already breaking a little bit from her mask and her normal routine.

That last part was never part of the script. Never part of the discussions the two had ever had. Almost as if she cared.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian hadn't the time to procure Ra's' sword from Titans Tower, so another sword had to do for now, attached to his back as well. He returns the bow, in the same fashion, never lowering eyes from Talia. This was just the rules of the League 101, never lower your eyes to the other person, unless you were offering your life.

  "You seem well." He comments, before rising. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia would rise up and over now in appreciation. "Is a mother not allowed to come and check in on her son? Gotham has suited you well. As has your time with your father. And your.. Family." She's talked to Phoebe. That is the way that things seem to have gone.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     "After three years? I presumed you captured or something else. Even Grandfather showed himself a month ago. He knew not of where you were."

  "I heard you were busy with Todd." He comments, only slight daggers in that comment. "Or do you speak of newer additions?"

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would rise up, and her eyes would be flat for a moment. "I could tell you many things Damian, but.." SHe would sweep through her words. "I thought distance was best. For you. You earned the chance to get to know your father and to become a part of his family. You could not do that with myself and the League continuously looking over you."
    She would bristle a bit at the mention of Todd but her expression would flatten some. "Because you deserved the chance to make a connection to your father without it seemingly being eternally about the rest of your family."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian nods slowly, while following Talia's line of thought. "Very well." Seems he wasn't exactly angry at her. Though their relationship was always different than others. Comes with the territory of running an international assassin league. He lets the air stagnate a little as he looks her over, trying to gather any info he can.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
The family never seemed to have any particular affinity for empathy and emotional attachments. "You.. Seem well, Damian. You have formed a family and been welcomed into one. It is good. Your father.. Suits you."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     "And my being Robin does not...piss you off?" There was the sailor mouth coming, a habit formed when he was young and doing missions out by himself. "Instead of claiming the League for myself?" One of Damian's 'purposes', to connect the Detective's line to the al Ghul, and give Ra's the heir he wanted to take over when he perishes.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia would look thoughtful over at that. "Extremely so, if I must be so crass. Your father and I crafted you for a purpose. A different one from which your father crafted me." Is htere actual pain on her face now?

Damian Wayne has posed:
     >tt< A tut of his tongue. "So you are feigning being happy that I am working with Father in order to engratiate yourself to me?"

  "Or you have something you need help with?" That was also a possibility Damian possibly could see.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would slowly shake her head over at Damian, twisting her lips upwards in a light smile. "Damian, we are well past the point where I could ingratiate myself for anything. And I do not have something I need your help with. Or that at this stage that you would be willing to, nor that I would ask you to do. And.. I wished to see for myself that my son was as happy as others that have observed him have told me."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian's mouth turns to a slight smile at that. At least there wasn't pretence here.

  "For better or worse, I am." Lots of worse, and a good amount of better. "I have been doing well. For what it is worth."

Talia al Ghul has posed:
There would be a twitch of s mile in Talia's facial expression. A rare enough one that wasn't a mask, wasn't put up for an exchange or a role. A bit of actual levity to her that would fade nearly as quickly as it had gone there.
    "Good. And do remember, Damian.. You are but one potential branch for your grandfather's plans. If a branch is broken off, another branch to accomplish the means can be taken." Grandfather always had many plots in motion and schemes.
    In the end if Damian was another broken one, Ras had others. So Talia's comments meant to reassure in their meaning would come off, perhaps, to one that was not raised by the League of Assassins as extremely distressing.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian gave a nod, though there was a little hesitation in his steps, once they started, he went in for it.

  He wrapped his arms around Talia, something he hadn't done since he was much smaller. There wasn't any words, and at the first sight of hesitation he'd release. But it was a hug, as rare as one was from Damian Wayne.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
And that catches Talia by surprise. Confusion. She tenses, as if expecting a knife in the back. She goes to then after a moment's hesitation return it. And she would softly reply, "I am sorry, my son, for having failed you as a mother. I am glad that you have a real family here." Truth? Feigned?
    Perhaps Talia herself did not know.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian had his head turned while they were in their embrace. Her words made his mask's eyelets open up unexpectedly. "You taught me how to fight. To never give an inch." There was a level of respect there that Damian didn't usually have for a family member, but then this wasn't the same Damian she knew three years ago.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would nod gently, "Yes, I did." She would go on quietly. "But you have understood that life's lessons and teachings are not all about combat. And stubbornness runs in the family. It needs no one to teach it and to never yield."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     He let go only then, giving a small smile there. "Many things are. Even if it does not involve a sword."

  Damian steps back, enough to where he could look at her again. "From what I understand of normal interactions, no one ever thinks they did it right. There's a certain beauty to that. As if perfection does not exist, and then, when you accept that, there's a freedom that one experiences." That was a lesson Donna Troy taught him, amongst clashing swords while sparring.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would go to slowly release it over, her arms going to fold in front of her, "I've been aware of it for a long time. You were meant to be an insturment, my son. To fulfill a purpose and a need in the great plan to make the world a better place. All you were raised as and were taught were to help you fulfill this." She would go on quietly.
    "Now.. It does not seem like it is to be your destiny."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     "Perhaps I will. Just not the way Grandfather wanted." Damian posits, before resting his gaze to Talia again. "We will see. And I hope you will be there to witness it."

  Sirens start to wail along the city, it was the curse of the Bat-clan. Crime never stopped. "I need to respond to that...but you know how to reach me...and father." There was still a little bit of him that thought that whole deal could work, somewhere in his mind.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would nod, Yes, I do." Know that he has his responsibilities. And that she has her own. And no matter what paths their lives took.. They were mother and son. But.. Those different paths perhaps set them on one other, less fonder one. But not tonight.
    Not tonight.