3472/There Isn't a Normal

There Isn't a Normal
Date of Scene:	21 September 2020
Location:	Master Bedroom - Tim Drake's Home - Chelsea
Synopsis:	Tim realizes he's been going about this whole boyfriend thing the wrong way, and gives Rose a gift that she can actually make use of.
Cast of Characters:	Tim Drake, Rose Wilson

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Tim Drake has posed:
There has been a lot going on of late. Missions with the team. Owls causing problems throughout Gotham. New clowns. Conner's old creators back in the mix. Political drama.

And patrols that sometimes have gone uneventfully, others not so much. It's not surprising that between all these things, Tim has been spending much of his time in the labs, working away on any number of projects. Sometimes he's been easy to coax out to sleep or eat, and others not so much. But this early morning, when he would normally be preparing to head over to Gotham University, he comes back in from patrolling-- this last evening with Red Hood. And while pulling off his armored costume and mask and stepping into the shower is normal, instead of getting dressed for a day at campus and potentially WayneTech after, he steps back out into the bedroom in just a pair of sweatpants, obviously intending on skipping class and work for the day.

Rose Wilson has posed:
Those nights Tim doesn't come back, does Rose sleep in his room? Sometimes. Last night doesn't seem to have been one of them, or she made the bed after getting up.

When he steps back out into the bedroom she's sitting on the bed, studying her phone and swiping through something.

Tim Drake has posed:
"Hey. Morning." Tim finishes drying off his hair with the towel, tossing it into the laundry basket. He sits down on the bed next to Rose, sliding his arms around her and stealing a kiss. "Boring night. Just some pushers and a couple of Falcone's thugs." He sounds tired, but he usually is this time of morning, especially if he hasn't augmented his awareness with something caffeinated. He actually didn't expect to see her until later in the day, but he's pleasantly surprised otherwise. He makes a small noise as he starts to say something, then thinks better of it, closing his mouth.

Then he sighs, pressing onward anyway. "I've been doing some thinking, actually."

Rose Wilson has posed:
"Morning." Rose replies, turning her phone off when he joins her on the bed, tossing it down onto the other side of her. She gives him another kiss in return, only to come to a stop when he goes with the "i've been doing some thinking'.

Maybe she's seen enough movies, or actually //said this// to guys she's trying to get rid of before. But her mind goes to a place, and it's clear on her face what that place might be.

Tim Drake has posed:
He watches her face fall, and it takes a moment for him to realize why it is, confusion writ on his own face. "Is everything all-- oh. Shit. See, this is... fuck."

He pulls back and runs his hand through his damp hair, looking frustrated with himself. "I did not start this right at all. God. I mean, I //have// been thinking. But it's been about how shitty of a boyfriend I've been." He sighs, rubbing his face. "I mean... I've been trying to treat you like a regular girl, and like I'm a regular... and... we're not and I've been fucking it all up." He mutters to himself, "Like now."

He glances up at her. "I've been thinking of how to change that."

Rose Wilson has posed:
There's some confusion that crosses her face as he goes through everything, then she shakes her head, "You've not been a shitty boyfriend."

Which, while he has been trying to make their relationship and interaction very NORMAL, that is not the definition of a shitty boyfriend in her eyes.

"What have you been thinking?"

Tim Drake has posed:
He pulls his legs up onto the bed, sitting cross-legged and turned to face her. "I mean... I'm happy when I'm with you. But I'm not //good// at the normal stuff." He shrugs, looking embarrassed. "I mean, honestly, I've been following a list of things I should do, but I don't think either of us... like them as much as... well." He is quiet a moment. "Patrolling with you, fighting alongside you? Sparring?" He grins a bit. "The sex is good too," he laughs a bit. "But we //are not// normal people. We didn't even meet as normal people, and I... think I need to quit trying to pretend it might be otherwise. You're not a flowers and chocolates and pretty baubles girl, and I know that."

Rose Wilson has posed:
Maybe in some kind of effort to make him feel better about his past attempts at buying her things she points out, "I like chocolates." But that isn't the same thing as saying that she's that type of girl. She's not. Both of them know it, even if it took him a little while to admit it and stop trying to make their relationship something out of a rom-com.

"So what does that mean?"

Tim Drake has posed:
"A few things." Tim leans forward, taking her hands in his. He may be breaking past a lot of the 'romantic' tropes, but some of them... well, he's still him. "For one, I've realized what I like best about being with you, and what I want to... do..." He looks like he's struggling with how to word things for a moment. Finally, he says quietly, "I want a partner. And I want to be //your// partner. Teaming up with you when we have been lately has been so... right. In so many ways."

"I've made you something," he says, his expression serious. "I've realized I should have done it long ago, but I was being an idiot. That's why I haven't left the labs for the last few days much."

Rose Wilson has posed:
"Did you put the strangle wire in that bracelet?" Because that's the level of making her something she assumes that he's talking about. They did talk about that when he gave it to her, afterall.

But those other words. The ones before the declaration that he made something, those are the types of words she'd probably prefer to ignore and just act like nothing happened. But maybe she's come to the conclusion recently that she can't keep ignoring things, that they are maybe making things worse. "We can be partners..."

Tim Drake has posed:
If he notices her discomfort with how dangerously close he's come to admitting how he feels for her, he's ignoring it. It's possible he didn't notice, and it's possible that he knows better than to press. Skittish. He knows she's skittish, and he doesn't want to push her away.

So he lets her hands go, and shakes his head. "No, not yet. I was actually trying to see if there was any more interesting options for that, but..." he slips off the bed and moves over to the closet, opening it and disappearing inside for a few moments before returning with...

Armor. He had hung it up here the night before, before he had gone on patrol, once the last bit of it had been fabricated.

Built in much the same style as the rest of the Bat-Family's armor, the armor Tim is carryingis built for Rose, a form-fitting black body suit style armor with red highlights. The torso has an almost cheongsam sort of style to it, with a offset closure in the front and a high collared neck. The legs have both red thigh straps for weapons, and additional armor in the form of red greaves, each with a place for a dagger or boot knife. A red utility belt clasps at the waist with several pouches for storage of ammunition and other items. There are back straps to hold a pair of swords. Shoulder armor with stylized skull and crossbones on them will protect her shoulders and biceps; a pair of black and red gauntlet gloves will protect her hands and lower arms. There is a black half-mask with infrared and nightvision that will obscure the upper half of her face, the eye spot for her missing eye a dark red while the hole over her working eye is a white film.

He shuts the closet back, hanging the armor on the hook on the front of the closet door, letting out a soft breath, waiting to see her reaction.

Rose Wilson has posed:
"There's a few different things..." Because, ultimately, if they put their heads together they could quite easily come up with a few different things that could be hidden in the bracelet. Or any number of other things. If he keeps dragging her to society parties, the least he can let her do is weaponize it, afterall.

But when he vanishes she frowns, curious about where he's going, and what he's getting. When he pulls out the armor though, it's clear she was not expecting him to come back with something like that.

Rose unfolds herself from where she's sitting, sliding from the bed before moving towards the armor, glancing at him with an uncertain, almost questioning look before she reaches out to touch it.

Tim Drake has posed:
"It... ah.... has most of the upgrades I have in mine," Tim starts, his voice a little unsure as he begins explaining. "Heat diffusers so its harder to pick you up on scanners... flexible kevlar that can handle small arms fire, turn knives. Resistance to electrical and energy blasts... it's not perfect but it..." he trails off. "Ah, night vision and infrared in the mask." He looks like he's not sure how she's going to react.

Rose Wilson has posed:
"I can heal from most of that." Rose points out, as though maybe he didn't know? No. She knows he knows, and it's not a complaint about him putting all that into the armor. Which becomes a little more clear when she adds, "But it's nice to know that I can avoid the small stuff...it can slow me down."

She slides a hand against the front of the armor, then she drops her hand. It's not entirely clear how she's reacting. Nothing shows on her face, at least, except curiosity. Then she turns towards him, hands grabbing his face to pull him in towards her for a hard kiss.

Tim Drake has posed:
Huh. She... likes it? That's all he manages to think when she starts kissing him, which his hand moves up to cup her face as well, returning the kiss just as hard, his other hand resting on her hip. As the kiss finally breaks, he gives her a mischievous look. "Want to try it on?"

Rose Wilson has posed:
Evidently she likes it. Even when he breaks the kiss, she kisses him again, because he deserves to be rewarded for being a good boyfriend, and knowing what someone like her finds romantic.

Armor. Weapons. Violent encounters.

"Yes." Rose replies, reaching for the armor to pull it down from where he hung it up, then she moves to the bed to lay it out flat before she starts working on changing.

Tim Drake has posed:
Tim grins, watching her change into it with both an eye to see if there's any changes or improvements he'll need to make... and a more entirely purient eye, because Rose undressing is something he rather enjoys watching, for what should be obvious reasons. And those obvious reasons are why when she slides it on, it fits her perfectly and comfortably, like it was crafted specifically for her, because it was, by someone who has memorized every curve of her body... because it was. He leans against the bedroom wall while she changes, however. The armor, like all Bat-armor, isn't meant to need assistance in being put on.

Rose Wilson has posed:
There's some pulling, and some pushing. But not because it doesn't fit right, but because she's getting used to the fact that it fits and fits so well for her. When she's got it fully on she turns towards him, spreading her hands out wide, "How does it look?"

Tim Drake has posed:
He grins. "Beautiful and dangerous," he replies truthfully, moving towards her and kissing her first gently, then a little harder. "What do you think of it? Should we try it out tonight?"

Rose Wilson has posed:
"I like it." Rose replies, a hand sliding down over her front before she curls her arms around his neck, leaning her forehead against his, "We can try it out tonight." She then steps back so that she can start to remove it, because tonight is a long time from now.

Tim Drake has posed:
He looks pleased... and relaxes. As odd as it seems, and not-normal as this was? This felt normal, more normal and more right than most of his fumbling attempts to 'do things right' before. This was right, actually.

He flops down on the bed as she starts to remove the armor, sighing contentedly. "Good. I think I might go to bed for a bit." He grins. "You're welcome to join me... if you want."

Rose Wilson has posed:
The armor gets put back on the hanger, then hung back up on the closet door where he'd hung it before. Then she moves back towards the bed, evidently taking him up on his offer.