8654/The Hawk and The Dove

The Hawk and The Dove
Date of Scene:	12 November 2021
Location:	W02 - Empty Dorm - Titan's Tower
Synopsis:	When Dawn exits the team gathering, Hank follows and they sit down to talk about who they are and what this all means. Not many answers are had but they get to know each other a little and agree to meet again and talk more.
Cast of Characters:	Dawn Granger, Hank Hall

---

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn leans over the vanity and stares at her reflection. A hand digs in to the elastic holding her braid in place at the end. With a tug she lets it loose and her white hair starts to unravel slowly. Her other hand then taps on the tablet starting some room music. Something to exemplify her feelings about the evening so far.

Les Champs-Elysees performed by Pomplamoose

Not that she has terribly much time to herself but at least she's away from the necessary chaos of Hank's reunion with his old friends. Bitter abandonment issues abound for sure and they will need to work through them. She's a polit-sci major not a psychologist. She can see the reflection of Hank in her doorway she left open as her hands brush through her now wavy hair, freeing it from the last of its plait.

She guesses he's a polite sort - except when he's yelling at buildings. But she did hear him say he was a cop. That took her by surprise. "You can come in if you want," she says in a low voice. What was it she expected when meeting this guy for the first time? she's not entirely sure but sometimes it feels like she lets her life run on autopilot and it's mightly uncomfortable to realise that.

Hank Hall has posed:
    Hank steps over the threshold hesitantly. "I... I didn't follow you to be creepy, just want to put that out there to start." He takes a bite of the sandwich he was given, taking the time it takes to chew and swallow to think.

    "I... I owe you an apology" he says. "It's not fair to try and compare..." He shakes his head. "No. That's not what I mean to say." He rolls an ankle on the ground. "I... I look at you and I feel..." He shakes his head again. "I feel like I know you, but I know that's not true. I've never seen you in my life but there's this..." He gestures between the two of them. "Thing and it's confusing. You know?" he asks.

    His expression is controted to one of embrassment the aforementioned confusion. He takes another bite of the sandwich, seeming to find the work of Cait to be exemplary, as always.

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn turns and takes a seat on the edge of the vanity. She folds her arms and says, "I know what you're trying to say." Eloquent guy, but at least he speaks from the heart. "This can't have been easy for you. Coming back here." She shuts her eyes tightly and shakes her head.. no, what is she doing.. speak your own damn truth.

"As friendly as those crazy people are I don't really know anyone here. I grew up in England and moved away when I was a teenager to New York. I have friends.. but none here in Metropolis. This tower is.. nuts. Let's be real. I mean, really nuts."

She smiles a moment, she's okay with it but it can be a bit much for her sometimes. "And I came here a year ago at first. Because Hawk and Dove were in the Titans.." she motions to Hank. "But you weren't here. And they all kept looking at me with a pain in their eyes. It wasn't their fault, they couldn't help it. So when I was offered an exchange course in London I took it."

She lets out a huff, "But when they asked if I wanted to continue for a second year there I said no and came back to the USA. Something keeps pulling me back here and it's.. well it's you." She shrugs her shoulders, "And I kinda hate that there's a part of me I have no control over." Lord of Order, she likes to be in control, for things to be orderly, to make sense.

"I don't know what I expected when I found you. I don't know.. just to talk I guess. I have these silly ideas of fighting crime and saving the day. But I also know that's too much to ask of you and I know literally nothing about you.. except that you're a cop and you like yelling at buildings."

Hank Hall has posed:
    Hank smiles a little sadly. "Yeah. It is crazy. Always was, really even before..." He frowns and looks down. Before Don's death. Being so close to her... it's strange he's able to process it more clearly than he'd ever done so before. "I... it hurts. Seeing the chaos here and liking it. Because I feel like I shouldn't. That liking the madness is an insult to his memory."

    "I didn't know you came here because of me. Had I known I..." He would've what? Stayed? No. "I don't know. I'm sorry I wasn't here to help you process."

    He looks at her for a long moment. "I guess I know what's been poking at me for years now. You." He nods. "Here. Then New York. Then England. That tracks. The feeling seemed to be coming from different angles. It was Him..." he says, gesturing to his head. l"Looking for His... Wife, for lack of a better term."

    Her ideas make him chuckle a bit. "I fight crime on a regular basis now. But... I might come back. I don't know. It's still new. Being here again. Seeing you. But... I might. For the right reasons." He adds. "You forgot football. I'm a cop, I yell at buildings, and I like football." It was a lame attempt at levity, but he was trying.

Dawn Granger has posed:
Just like her accent.. "I'm a weird hybrid of two countries because my parents were diplomats," Dawn admits as he talks about football. "So you're going to hate me when I tell you that as soon as you said football I was thinking of.. you know.. _football_ over in the UK and Europe and everywhere else in the world."

"I don't really know what to do now, but I guess the lords wanted us to at least meet." Him, looking for His Wife. She tilts her head a little and smirks at him, "Hey we're just their avatars we're not them. When Donna said I didn't choose this, I actually felt a little guilty pang in my heart. Because I did. Not.. you and your brother and all that. But Dove. I chose Dove."

She shuts off the music and finds herself relaxing a little more. The utter chaos out there of the whole team was too much but just chatting with this guy. There's something remarkably easy about it.

"I was at an embassy dinner with my mom and terrorists stormed the place. They were taking hostages and I slipped away. I was trying to call the police but they were closing in on me and instead of calling the police, Terataya called me and asked if I wanted the power to stop them."

"I said yes. I don't regret that choice for one second. I had always hoped to meet the other Dove, the Titans Dove. Finding out he had died? ...yeah, that hurt." She nods to Hank and says, "I'm really sorry for your loss. Alls I hear about him is how great he was. How kind he was."

Hank Hall has posed:
    "He was the better man" Hank replies with shakes of his head. "I know we're not Them. I wasn't implying that..." He sighs. "But they're tied together and so are we in that respect." He pauses and shrugs. "If we're sharing?"

    "My brother and I were following one of our foster brothers." He frowns. "We were both in the system after Mom died. But... we were following our brother and ended up in this warehouse. Hiding a closet we heard the deals he was working for talking about killing him... he'd broken their rule. No using what you're dealing. Pretty common among drug runners to be honest... but..." he waves a hand. "We both were asked if we wanted to be able to stop the injustice being pushed on the world. That we could get power to save our friends. Our families. And others... so we took it and we stopped them. And we did more and more of it until we were found by Dick--er, Nightwing sorry--and well..."

    "You know the rest. I don't regret it, I regret that Don died and not me. But... I like having the power I do. I liked being able to help people. Protect people. *Save* people." He chuckles. "Hell, I admit to be selfish. "I like the recongition too."

    "More honesty," he says with a smile. "I like both NFL and Euro League. Sports in general are something of a passion. Competition, the struggle, the clear victory... except when there isn't... but those are rare."

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn nods encouragingly as he starts to share. She's living out of a suit case though and she approaches it. He's got a sandwich, but she imported whiskey from the UK. It's not illegal to import it so long as its under a certain value, it's only illegal to -sell- it in the USA to a 'minor'.

"Glenfiddich?," she asks as he talks about how he and his brother were chosen by the lords of order and chaos. It's a heck of a story and she is quite fascinated as she takes a sip and then offers him the bottle. "There's cups in the kitchen if you want to make this civil."

"I know it probably doesn't mean much, but fighting one of the biggest of big bads our world has ever faced? that's pretty damn heroic," she says and her shoulders relax a little more.

"Especially the big scary ones seem uninterested in talking things out like sensible person. I guess, like a human being. They're not though are they - the big scary ones are aliens. I shouldn't expect them to behave like we would. Not every alien is going to be E.T... or Superman."

As he discusses his passion for sports she smiles, "I did dancing. That's athletic but not a sport. Ballet. I was pretty good at it too. But you can't move country and expect to pick up where you left off with a new school. The ballet world is too cut throat for that."

Hank Hall has posed:
    Hank moves forward a bit and sits. "I'm in your dorm room. I'm pretty sure that even were we to use glasses it wouldn't be civil. If you don't mind... I don't." He holds his hand out for the bottle and, once given takes a bit of a swig from it. "That's good stuff... damn" he says with a smile, as he hands back the bottle.

    "Yeah. Usually it's only heroic if you win." He frowns. "We didn't. And yeah... most of the bigger ones out there aren't human and don't even think the way we do." He looks at her as she gives some of her own background. "I can see it" he says and then he sighs and looks down. "I'm sorry you lost your position." It was at least in part his fault. She left England because of him, after all.

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn shakes her head, "Oh no. No it wasn't you. It was my parents. They had a falling out and I moved back to the states with my mother while my sister stayed with dad in England." She smiles and takes back the bottle. Another sip and she says, "Not everything in my life circles around you."

She seems a bit amused by this and then asks, "So.. you were shouting at the tower huh. Was it really getting to you? being told what to do but not really understanding it? I get it."

She pauses a moment and peers at him, "Yeah this is a bit weird. It's like talking to my sister, except an older brother. And less yelling. You're easy to talk to. Is it that connection thing or are you just my kind of person?" Best not to contemplate that too much. She takes another sip and hands the bottle back.

Hank Hall has posed:
    Hank makes an 'O' with his mouth but doesn't voacalize his sentiment. "I guess that's... fair..." he says. "I didn't mean to say..." He pauses. "Okay. I guess I did. I didn't think. Sorry."

    He nods. "I had a beat in DC. But the commisioner signed up for this quad city exchange. DC, New York, Metopolis, and Gotham would select cops at random and relocate them." He gave the woman a flat look. "Guess who was picked and where I was sent? I knew what that it was more than coincidence the moment it came up." He shakes his head. "And each day, I'd ride my bike on the beat and this Tower is just... right here. In my vision and every day... just a constant poke poke poke. 'You need to go there.'"

    He sighs. "I had a few too many too quick after my shift today and... decided to say fu--screw it. So I showed up." He rubs at the back of his neck, embarrassment plain on his face. "It went about as well as tipsy decisions tend to go."

    He takes the bottle, takes a draw, and hands it back before almost choking on the hot liquor. "I... ah... yeah...." he clears his throat. "You're easy to talk to, as well." That isn't precisely an answer to her question, now is it.

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn nods her head and chuckles, "So you yelled at a tower filled with people who care about you. So I guess you were subconsciously looking for a hug?" She looks a touch amused a moment. "Or apparently a fist fight." She takes in a deep breath and stares up at the ceiling.

"It's okay.. if you don't want to come back here again. I can handle myself," she comments. Though, now, she would rather he stuck around because of all the people in this place he seems to make the most sense. A bit rough around the edges but he is a tried and true Titan.

"Hey Flash startled me earlier. I almost transformed," she says with a laugh and then takes back the whiskey and puts the cork back on top of it. Responsible drinker it seems. And the pause gives her time to build up the words to say, "But I'd prefer it if you stayed."

Hank Hall has posed:
    Hank is quiet for a moment. Taking the time to finish off his sandwich. "I guess in a way, I was looking for both. Haven't got either yet, but it'll come eventually." He sighs and looks at her. First her statement of not caring about whether he stays and then the contradiction, he could feel that the second was the truth.


    He didn't have the awareness with others but with her he could read it. "I said I might stay if given the right reason. Helping you. Helping my friends. Those are the right reason... I think." He smiles. "And we can see how we work out together. I've gotta say, I am interested in seeing how Dove manifests in you. I'm at a disadvantage. You can look up training logs and see how Hawk works in me."

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn goes quiet herself for a bit. Contemplative. "Do you ever feel like everyone in this tower is a genius and the only reason you're here is because some god like creation has a point to prove to their peers?" She lulls her head over to look at him and then puts the alcohol away in the bed side drawer.

"There's a problem with training," she adds after a bit, "I have done jiu jitsu for seven years and dancing longer and practicing that stuff is fine and fun. I love it. But the Dove stuff? I need to be real danger for her be able to come out."

She is admitting what he already knows because he's likely done it himself plenty of times. She deliberately puts herself in dangerous situations just to test herself and figure out what she can and cannot do. It's quite the weakness, but her danger sense is very acute.

Hank Hall has posed:
    "But it's not dangerous enogh" Hank replies with a nod. "Yeah. I'm a cop and I had a beat that wasn't just ticket duty and park casing for dealers before. I've been shot at, stabbed at, jumped by a gang. And... the desire to shout that one word was always there. But I didn't because..."

    He smiles a sad and pained thing. "Hawks power is... too much. His rage is too great without... without Dove. I can't say, had I even wanted to call on him, if he would've stopped with just beating up and apprehending the gangers or thieves."

    He looks at his hands; they're shaking. "I don't want to be a murderer. But every time I called on him before. The heat of battle. It's... it's like a red haze covered everything and unless I *knew* it was an ally, it had to be destroyed. Eliminated and unless Don... Dove was there... I wouldn't stop at submission. At simply defeat."

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn's mouth opens slowly in shock as he explains what it is that Hawk does to him. She furrows her eyebrows and stares at the wall. "That's.." She stops speaking and looks at his shaking hands. "A curse. Dove isn't like that. Dove ... I want everybody to understand each other - to a fault. I believe everyone can change their minds and I don't want to stop until they've not just agreed with what I've said, but that I believe they mean it when they say it..."

She twists her lips a bit and says, "And even without calling on Dove it feels like that's seeping in to my life. In fact, tonight has been the first night in a long time where I am relaxing, where every little inconsistency or mistake isn't irritating me."

She points to a spot on the roof, "That tile.. it's rotated the wrong way. Stuck in place. It's wrong. I fall asleep staring at it."

Hank Hall has posed:
    Hank looks up at the tile in question. "I can't tell a difference" he says. "But then again... I feel the need for every tile to be a different color. That would make me comfortable."

    He smiles that same sad smile. "It is a curse. Chaos is uncomfortable, even to us mortals. We don't like it. It's violent, unpredictable, and unchecked leads to utter destruction."

    He looks at her then. "The word for that unmitigated destruction? Entropy. The power that will ultimately lead to the universe's destruction... hopefully not for hundreds of billions of years but... it is a constant that cannpt be stopped. Just as Hawk cannot."

Dawn Granger has posed:
Dawn sighs, "Things we have no control over and can't entirely understand. Entropy, though you're wrong about it." She grins at it, "Entropy is the measurement of order in a system. When a system is fully known it has no discernible energy difference from its environment leading to the theoretical heat death of the universe. Chaos is the lack of understanding of a system."

She shuts her mouth after a moment and says, "You should probably go back out and talk to your friends. Thank you for talking to me. We should do this again. May be not at the tower. I think these people are awesome but they complicate things, trying to sort stuff out.. and yeah, I would like to stretch my wings in dangerous situations again. With you. That'd be good."

Hank Hall has posed:
    "Hm. Learn something new every day" Hank says with a grin. At her suggestion he looks at the door for a moment and then rises. "Yeah. Probably should. I'll... here..." he reaches inside his coat and withdraws a small notebook with an equally small pencil set into the spiral binding at the top of the notebook. He scribbles a number on a blank paper and tears it out.

    "My number. Call me... when you want to meet again?" he asks. It was a question, the uncertainty was clear in his voice. "I'm not far from here. A few blocks really. We can have coffee or... or something?" He's trying to bridge a gap that he is clearly not sure how to approach. After all, she was the personable one. "I..." he swallows, "I'm glad I finally met you. I want you to know that."

Dawn Granger has posed:
Accepting the piece of paper she looks at it with concern and then back to him, "Right. But, you have t-comms don't you? This is fine too." She folds it and places it in to her jeans pocket. "Coffee's good. I'm not twenty one yet so in the USA I can't drink at bars. Unlike in the UK."

She isn't quite there yet, that is, at the stage of hugging the guy but already some of her biggest fears are gone. He is actually a decent guy and she can tell they're going to get along. Now it's just a matter of getting to actually know him. "I'll see you around... Hawk."

Hank Hall has posed:
    Hank looks bashful at the flub about forgetting about his comms. "I do have t-comms in fact... it's just been four years since I even wore it. Today was the first since... before." He smiles. "I like the phone though. A little more private and one on one... you never know who's monitoring these things." He taps at his own earpiece.

    He turns and heads for the door stopping at it to look back in at the woman. "See you around, Dove" and then he walks off.