16708/The Trouble With Gotham

The Trouble With Gotham
Date of Scene:	29 December 2023
Location:	Memorial and Meeting Rooms - Titan's Tower
Synopsis:	Charta asks to meet with Rook about her role in Gotham and they have an open and frank discussion about it. It goes round and round, but was any ground really gained?
Cast of Characters:	Damian Wayne, Clara Jennings

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Damian Wayne has posed:
The request for a meeting was quite formal and for Rook, it was one that was almost met with an eyeroll. While he was more than aware of the young woman behind it, and she was intriguing -- she did not need to be so formal. He idly has to wonder if she even knows how texting works.

...not that he wasn't so different not too long ago.

Which is perhaps why he has agreed to meet with her. But he picked the location. Standing in the memorial hall, Rook is standing before one of the artifacts in the room and studying it. Reaching up, he places his hand on the glass that protects the rusted, bloodied crowbar beneath it. And he blows out a breath.

They were all such trouble at one point. And when they don't adapt... which is how Charta may find him, his head slightly bowed at thought, hand on the artifact's case and just in a state of repose and thought.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    Part of Clara will always be as she is. In time, her reliance on scripts will become ever more clear. With anyone she does not know well, things need to be planned out. Detailed. Eventualities prepared for. There are only two exceptions to this in her life. One is back home. The other, well, he is hopefully enjoying a lovely day with the animals he cares for, far from vapid social media stars and other unpleasant people.

    Clara comes dressed casually. Armor is worn when she needs armor. Skirts and comfortable sweaters are worn when not. Today the sweater is maroon, which compliments her auburn her. The skirt is black. As is expected, there is not even a bit of it out of place. She wears modest makeup and that lilac scent that she now associates with joy. She does not, however, expect joy in this meeting.

    Finding Rook here, by that, only confirms that this will be a harsh conversation again. It frustrates her. But she had a script. She had a plan for this. Why is it that when she approaches, she already feels that sense of order slipping away?

    "Good day, Rook. Thank you for agreeing to meet me," she says quietly. Her voice is far less confident than she wished it to be. It is the crowbar. It is what it stands for. It is him.

Damian Wayne has posed:
By this point, Clara may wonder if Rook lives in his costume. But at least he appears clean and well-kempt. He may have several copies of the same uniform, after all.

When she announces herself, Rook pulls himself out of his reverie and turns to face the young woman. He looks Clara over and nods. "Good, you're already a step ahead of what I had expected in understanding what the Titans are." he comments on the relaxed look and her perfectly coifed hair.

It is not the biting words that she might have expected. He's softened the edge just a smidge, but that underlying growl has yet to be removed.

"We can move to the meeting area..." he gestures towards the arch beyond that leads to the more formal sitting area with it's table and screens and briefing set up.

Along the alcove walls, the costumes stand out. Clara will be able to notice four Robin costumes. Each one slightly different than the last.

The last one being the shortest of them, the smallest. And if she were to compare it to the costume that Rook is wearing, if not for the darker colors of the young detective, would be a dead ringer for it. "I make it a point to visit here when I come to the Tower. It is good to honor past companions..." A look toward Dove and Kole's statues -- "...even those I did not have the chance to meet. And to acknowledge past mistakes." A glance to the crowbar.

"This does not change my stance or thoughts on you. I still believe that Oriole is correct and that Batman would not look kindly on your interference. But I can acknowledge your attempt to rectify the issue and appreciate it."

And with that, he steps away from the crowbar to turn to head for the meeting area.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    This place obviously makes Clara especially uncomfortable. Clara imagines it was intentional. That this is all a message for her. If Rook means to frighten her, he has succeeded.

    That he says kind things does register. It does. But there is something that never seems enough about it. Clara will try to understand it later. And she will fail. Even these words feel more as if he were explaining how very low his expectations of her are.

    She blames herself.

    The likeness in costumes is not lost on her, either. It makes her wonder, and she almost asks, but thinks better of it. No. Not yet. Especially when he brings up Batman. And in that moment, she goes off script.

    "I cannot help but notice, you think very much of Batman, and understandably are interested in his approval. But what are your thoughts? I mean about me."

    This is why she does not go off script with people she does not know well.

    "That is to say about my purpose!" It is a quick correction. Cheeks turn pink with embarrassment. "I mean, I do not fight villains like you do, I would never want to. Is there a middle ground?" All off script.

    "Sorry, of course you do not want to fight. I mean, at least I do not think you go out looking for danger. I was trying to say, rather, that I am, well, more likely to call the authorities than go into great danger. I hope to learn the best way to tell the difference."

Damian Wayne has posed:
Rook pauses in his movement towards the meeting room and turns to face Clara, considering her words. Yes, the intent was there. It was not to show her that the Titans were scary, but do come with risks.

Last night, he had sugar-coated it with Mary and Kori, because he did not want to bring down the first impression that the two women were making with Clara. Perhaps he had hoped that they would be more open to bringing her in and inviting her to go shopping or the such. They were the friendly ones, after all. Rook brings the bitter pills with him.

"What you see here is the cost that some of the Titans have paid for what they have done in return." he explains to her. "But at least here, they are memorialized. If you were to continue on your task in Gotham, against things you have yet to come to understand and should find yourself in danger, who could you rely on? Would you know that you had assitance? Or would you be alone? Against that which would rather kill you than look at you? Would you be remembered by friends and loved ones? Or would you be a lonely grave on a solitary hill, with only a single flower left by those who you left behind." He paints a stark, but much needed tapestry for her.

"That is what you will face in Gotham." he explains. But his attention turns to the question. "You have a lot to learn. I don't mean book smarts. You're well-read. You seem to understand your task and mission. Having a devotion to that is admirable. But you lack any kind of social grace." Pot, meet kettle. "If you remain in Gotham? You will, inevitably, run afoul of those villians that we fight. You will never know if Penguin holds one of your precious books. If Joker is the arsonist you are trailing. If Bane has taken control of something you were sent after."

"You're wrong. I do go looking for danger. I am the shield that protects Gotham from it's final descent into madness. Myself, Batman, all of the others. That is our task. That is our mission. You concern yourself with history, with preservation. Our concern is the well-being of Gotham and it's citizens. And we let nothing stop ourselves in that pursuit. It is why vigilantism is illegal, yet the police turn a mostly blind eye to our activities."

"This is why I suggested you come here. To speak with the Titans. You will find a friendly ear here. You'll find those that can understand what you are and what you do. I could make other suggestions, Lady Lara Croft for instance."

"I appreciate your efforts, Charta, but do not get in the way."

Clara Jennings has posed:
    Clara nods in understanding. She knew the purpose. Knew the costs. These are, in her mind, real heroes. She does not count herself among them. In her corner of the world, the heroes are almost all dead. Leonardo, Dickens, Shakesspeare. They were the heroes who made marvels. She is nothing but a custodian.

    "My role is, as you say, dangerous. And you are right. I would rather not leave my governess alone. Nor ... well, nor someone else." She may throw her name around, but she is not going to drag Damian into her messy professional life. How will she ever explain this to him? How can anyone understand that she might die to protect a book?

    Then he has to point out her lack of social graces. "I admit I am not good at speaking with others. At least, not most others." She diverts her gaze. His glance is intense. "But I will at least introduce myself to a few people each time I come here. And make contacts." Friends may be a bit too ambitious, really.

    Clara listens quite a bit in this conversation. So he seeks danger? "It all sounds very lonely," she points out. That is not something she would have said a week ago.

    "Lady Lara Croft?" That is a name she knows. She smiles at Rook and then laughs softly. "She's a legend, Rook. I'm effectively a librarian. Whyever would she have the time or desire to talk to me?" She pauses and asks, "If I use your name would she actually talk to me?" She sounds hopeful.

Damian Wayne has posed:
Leonardo lives under the sewers of New York and swings a mean pair of katanas. Rook can appreciate that. The other two never had to die to protect a sheet of paper. "Then you need to think about them when you are considering your mission, Charta." Still not calling her Clara. He is forcing that disconnect between her real and secret idenities.

"What would they want for you? To be alone? To do this in the face of the odds I have laid out before you? There will come a time where the threat will have a name. But a thug with a gun and dumb luck can be just as dangerous. I cannot make you try to change your ways. I can only strongly suggest."

Which is the same thing Damian went through to stop being a murder hobbit. Behind the domino mask, he narrows his eyes, but his posture seems to consider her words.

"It is lonely." Rook responds quietly, for just a moment, she gets to see the real him. "But that is why I'm here. That is why I place the importance on you getting to know the Titans. I have that connection, and to those that work with Batman. You have neither. I'd rather you not die alone." he points out.

But then she is bringing up the differences between her and Lara and he chuckles. A soft noise, it's a chuff of a laugh, something she may not have expected. "You do not need my connection to speak with Lady Croft." he points out. "You only need a pen, elegant script and the pluckiness to make the first step to reach out to her to ask for a meeting. You are that bold, at least?" he asks. "Or are you that scared that you have never made a first move?"

That was a taunt.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    "No, never alone. I could never do that." Her words are soft and emotional. The thought of Damian alone, crying at her grave, comes unbidden to her. She feels it like ice. She can hardly handle an evening without him. And for the first time, she realizes that she may not be as committed to her mission as she previously believed.

    "I refuse to accept that it has to be lonely, Rook. Not anymore. I... I can have friends. And I will." If she needs others to survive, well, the Conservatory will have to simply put up with it. It's not like they have a single other paper master to call upon. And part of her also hopes if they fire her over it that Damian would save her somehow. Maybe he can help her find a library to work at. Then they could settle down and...

    ... and Rook plays with her. Teases her. "I can of course make a first move! I will have you know that I recently did just that in a most important matter!" The particulars of which are none of his business! And completely in his knowledge.

    "Now, I had a question for you. And, well, since we are here, something else, maybe, too. But first, a question!"

    She can take control when she must!

    "I have now stopped the same nobody mob fixer, Donald Six Toes, from burning the library at the Gotham Musem of Natural History four times. He was arrested once. He was immediately bailed out, and my organization failed to find out where his money came from. While I generally admire persistance, it beggars belief. That library is not worth much financially. I was stopping him mostly because, well, I am very partial to it." For personal reasons. "What ever would inspire him to keep trying? I could do more. I have the training, but I find violence to be the worst educator."

Damian Wayne has posed:
"Good, you're learning." Rook responds with a dry tone as he folds his arms across his chest, fingers dropping on his gauntlets and lightly drumming in thought.

He could pursue her backpedal when she starts about taking control and making the first move. To tease her further. Was it about someone special to her? Do they know she actually made a first move or is she just imagning she did?

But then she shifts the subject. And he follows it in order to understand the pursuit. "Donald Six Toes is a low level nothing. Donald Six Toes fixes for Denny the Diner, who in turn is a capo for one of Black Mask's lieutenants. You might as well have been pursuing a shoplifter while someone is firing a gun in a store."

But, he gets to the root of the problem. "The Gotham police department has it's issues. Their commissioner is good. And there are solid members of the force. But there are far too many who will look the other way for a few dollars. After the tidal wave that wrecked most of Gotham. After the alien invasion, Gotham is still on the verge of lawlessness. The justice system is broken, and those that are put away, if they are powerful enough, never are for long. We're doing what we can to remove those that are at the top. But crime is an issue in Gotham. And it is an issue that may not be corrected in my lifetime. But it is our problem. Not Metropolis'. Not New York."

Clara Jennings has posed:
    "It is our problem," replies Clara. "Because Gotham is my home, too. And while Batman and all of you are more experienced than I am, I think maybe I can help in my own way." A pause and another of those nervous laughs, "Well, that is, once I figure out what that way is."

    She dearly hopes her way does not involve tearing people to bits with razor sharp paper. Clara dislikes unseemly acts.

    The matter of the low level problem gets a nod from her. "So he is indeed a nothing. Also, I have recently learned, may need a name change. There are only four toes left." She adds, then, "I think that Mr. Diner or the Black Mask has an interest in that library, then. It still begs the question as to why. I have visited and reviewed the contents and it just does not add up. But I will keep an eye on it, in any case. I sense that if I give them an inch on burning a library, then in a week they will be casting fuel on every one of them."

    Her attention glides through the description of the police department. She read some things about it, but reading is not experience. Reading is about imagination.

    "The problem always starts with opportunity. In its absence there is desperation. And then opportunity. It is a cycle that is hard to break. Cracking down on corruption is a good start."

    This gives her an idea, clearly. It is in her eyes. "There is always a paper trail with corruption. Always a record somewhere. Like an astronomer tracking a black hole by its gravity alone. Maybe I can help in my own way." She smiles at this idea, but says quickly, "And yes I know that's probably the most dangerous thing to do! I.. hm. I will ask that you just think about this maybe. Or give me the name of someone I could trust in the government? I can do the leg work. I'm really quite good with records and numbers."

    There is something different about Rook though. He is... is he warming up to her a bit? Or is she warming up to him? A troubling thought. But he is so irritatingly... right.

Damian Wayne has posed:
"That's part of the problem." Rook explains, a soft sight escaping from him. He is realizing that they could go round and round on this for days and not reach a resolution.

"I do not have a magic answer to that." he finally says. "Part of the reason I mentioned Lady Croft to you is because she may have those recommendations for you. If anyone knows about organizations that are part of perserving documents, it would be her."

"But that's to the root of the problem. You have a niche that you work in. I. The others in Gotham? We work on all the problems. From top to bottom. We can't just focus on the murderer, because there may a rapist. There may be a trafficker. A drug runner. A gun runner. We have to handle all of these things." he points out to her.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    "Well, of course you have to! You are such a small team. You have no chance to specialize when you have the weight of a whole city on your backs." Clara is not being critical. It is not in her nature. Except with bimbos who dare to talk to... in any case.

    "So I have people to reach out, and some time that is free." She is not subtle. But he did tease her about taking the lead on things. "Would you care to spar with me? I would enjoy the chance to learn with you, and if there is one thing I enjoy, it is being a student. And while you have a growly, scary voice, you are a good teacher. You would not do all this if you did not care about me."

    She can tease him too, she hopes.

Damian Wayne has posed:
"Tt." Rook lets out a breath, in a chuff of amusement. "I'm not sure you could keep up." he comments dryly, that small tone of overconfidence - the same overconfidence that got him in trouble with Flatline - shows through.

"As much as I would want to take the moment to spend in sparring with you, I had only carved out time for the meeting and I need to return to patrol soon." he admits to her with a shake of his head.

"I am a terrible teacher. That is why you are here. They can nurture you far better. All I can teach you is how to be angry, jaded and bitter with the world." With that quiet admission, he turns to walk away. "And I only care that you stay out of the way if you cannot be of assistance."

Apparently he's not one to be teased. Happy fun Robin, indeed.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    There is a flare of something when he says that. Clara is upset, but she hides it. He is busy, after all, and he is probably right. He has more experience than she does. It never occurs to her that her powers might just make up for that deficit. It will later occur to her that she is not angry, but sad that he is leaving.

    "Thank you for coming, Rook," she says. She does appreciate it. And she can even curtsey properly now. "I hope the rest of your day goes well. And honestly, I imagine you have far more to offer than those things. You got me here. You taught me lessons already that I needed far more than you seem to realize. As a teacher in my own right, I think there is only one thing you have yet to master. A teacher learns just as much from their students as their students learn from them."

Damian Wayne has posed:
There's a brief pause. A momentary thought from Rook.

But he doesn't respond, instead departing through the memorial room, leaving Clara there to parse out her thoughts on him and others.