9252/Sometimes It's Easy Being Green

Sometimes It's Easy Being Green
Date of Scene:	23 December 2021
Location:	Somewhere in Brooklyn
Synopsis:	Meeting over a trio of petty criminals, Gar Logan and Leonardo meet for the first time. They discuss a variety of things circling around the common threads of their lives.
Cast of Characters:	Leonardo, Gar Logan

---

Leonardo has posed:
`Twasn't the night before Christmas (but deffinately part of the same week) and nary a policeman was in sight when a pair of scumbags were creeping though an alley towards a pawnshop that closed hours ago. One was laiden by a pile of bags while the other had a crowbar hanging from their belt and lockpicks in their hands as they approached the locked back door of the shop.

Unbeknownst to the two their presence was observed. Leonardo, the blue bandana-wearing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, had been out "shopping" for hardenable metal in a nearby junkyard when he noticed the pair. For him, tailing the two was easy, keeping his eyes on them does mean that he's got less attention focused on his surroundings -- will he be ambushed, unlikely; could he miss something or someone, perhaps.

Gar Logan has posed:
About a block away, there is something going on that provides unintentional cover for the would-be thieves. Santa Grinch at a toy store, doing photo ops for the kids! There are a lot of costumed Santas out there, and a fair amount of costumed Grinches. None that are quite like this, for this Grinch is real as can be thanks to none other than Beast Boy's amazing abilities! Yes, he's figured out how to become the fictional character, and with it an advertised appearance the green Titan has been inundated with parents and children looking for a unique memory.

There's been mimed stealing of presents from kids, candy, a real Max with a fuzzy antler atop his head, and lots of wide Grinch smiles. As the hours went by, the line and crowd finally, mercifully, began to thin out, and it gave Gar a chance to catch his breath. Only a short break or two interrupted the festivities, and with a free moment he takes the chance to chow down on an energy bar. Not a lot of those left.

Leonardo has posed:
The urban jungle doesn't give the same clues as those of South America Leonardo spent so many months in. Between this and the fact that the duo is actually a trio, the sword-wielding terrapin did indeed miss something leading to the original duo reaching the door with Leo close behind intending to reach out and pull the opener away.

The first warning Leo gets is a squelch from a walkie-talkie in one of the bags. It's not language but it ddefinitely communicated something because as Leo reaches a chain clinks as it is removed from the bag and his target, the "opener" turns and pulls out the crowbar.

Leo has, with that moment's warning, stepped back but his swords are not drawn even as the sound of a switchblade snapping open behind him.

"Looks like we have a freak trying to interfere here," says a gravelly voice behind the ninja which is answered first by the duo's grim chuckles and then by Leo's soft voice saying, "It's not too late. You can just go home and enjoy the holidays still."

Gar Logan has posed:
Right about the time Leonardo is introducing himself to the would-be thieves, the Gar Grinch is finally wrapping things up. Max is led off by his owner, who volunteered in getting dressed up as a member of 'Whoville,' and the last child is now headed back home with her parents, the three of them tired but beaming.

"So, see you guys again next year?" Gar asks, confirming the plans with the manager before he shuffles into the night, not yet dropping the facade. Might as well have a little more fun with it. How often do you see the Grinch just strolling along the sidewalk.

A pause comes in spotting a commotion in the making over at the pawn shop. Naturally, one of the street lights there is in need of replacing. Perhaps that's one reason the place was selected. Better cover. Two people, a third closing in, and..someone else who looks very familiar, in a way. Gar picks up the pace to get over there more swiftly.

Leonardo has posed:
A switchblade swinging open on it's hinge makes an easily recognized sound and even unseen those who are familiar with it cannot mistake it for anything else. Leo is one such personn and he noticed it.

(So, it's three-to-one,) he thinks to himself before saying, "So that's the way it is," as he takes a fighting stance preparing to respond to the trio.

A chain weapon can be the most dangerous if it gets around your neck so that is the weapon he moves to block first: raising his left forearm up and letting the links wrap around his radius and ulna which are protected by the flexed muscles around them.

The crowbar is the next closest weapon and could break bones, but he has a special advantage against it so he steps back and throws a kick toward the watcher's knifehand, it's a relatively light contact to the wrist but the weapon is fumbled and clatters to the pavement even as his half turn causes the swung crowbar to miss his head and instead connect with his shell with a loud cracking sound as minor fractures cause some of the scutes to crack, half of one of them flying off from the contact.

Leo grunts from the contact and in his head he is already calculating what the next steps in the fight have to be for them not to be able to overwhelm him with even their scant numerical advantage on him.

Gar Logan has posed:
"They can't be so stupid as to...yeah, what are you saying? Of course they can be that stupid," Gar is saying to himself, under his breath, as he crosses the street. It still looks a little funny to see a Santa-suited Grinch approaching the scene of a fight unfolding, but there it is. Halloween is not the only time of the year to see strange things. Especially when you're a ninja turtle.

He calls over, "Hey! I'm not great at math but three on one is a little unfair, don't you think? I mean, for you guys in this case. But, you know what? I'm feeling generous tonight. I'm in a giving mood. You might even say my small heart grew three sizes today! So, tell you what. Let's have a little fun!"

If you've never seen a Grinch coming in with a martial arts style kick, consider your life now complete as he leads in with one toward the side of the one with the chain. "Hiii-yaaa!"

Leonardo has posed:
The kick connects with the intended bagman who, in reaction to the impact into his ribs, releases the chain as he drops to the pavement.

The watcher, disarmed, reacts like any rational person facing a humanoid turtle and a Grinch would: he turns and runs.

Leo, using the momentum from the kick that disarmed the runner, steps into another kick that sends the crowbar flying and its former wielder reacts by raising his hands up in front of his face and saying, "I give! I give!"

Seeing one compatriot giving up and the other running, the guy on the ground says, "Me too!" real quickly as Leo resumes a full, two-footed, fighting stance in front of him with the chain dangling from his arm and his teeth gritted.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan begins to chase after the first one who's running. "Yeah, that's right! You get on out of here! You don't want none of this! AND STILL Street Wrestling Champion, the Grappling Grinch!"

He plays like the crowd is going wild as he goes through a series of Hulk Hogan poses in an imaginary ring. Yeah, that's happening.

Turning back toward the two who are now waving the proverbial white flag, he flexes one more time. "Oh, are we done so soon? Gonna tie them up? Hang them from a traffic light? Atomic wedgies? Hey, wait. You look familiar." A slightly furry green finger extends to /POINT/ at Leonardo, though in a much less dramatic way than it sounds.

But who the hell is the Grinch guy?

Leonardo has posed:
Keeping a wary eye on the Grinch, Leonaro unwraps the chain from his arm and, after dropping it on the pavement next to him, pulls a length of cord from one of the pouches on his belt.

"Keep an eye on the one you downed for me," Leo says in a polite tone that shows he's accustomed to those he works with taking his directions as he begins to apply hojojutsu techniques to bind the former wielder of the crowbar in a way that would make a westerner refer to him as having been hogtied. "Don't fight against them, you'll only make it harder on yourself," he says to the crook as he places the crowbar in front of the youth's knees.

After putting the lockpick kit on the crowbar Leonardo says, "I intend to do the same to the other if you'll step back and hold yourself steady," to the Grinch while keeping an eye on the crook on the ground as well as the green being.

Gar Logan has posed:
The Grinch acts like he recognizes Leonardo, but when would the turtle have ever met someone like that before? It defies logic and sense. A clue begins to take shape, however. As the ninja is getting to work on subduing the two that remain, the Grinch jerks a thumb in the direction of the one on the run. "I was thinking we could reunite this little trio, since that one is clearly having a reaction to his friends like trying to put the same polarity of a magnet together."

Letting Leonardo chew on that, the Grinch undergoes a sudden change, turning into a parrot in order to fly off in pursuit. This takes him around a corner, out of view for the moment. If the teenager is listening closely enough, he might just hear a similar voice, in a chiding manner after a yelp and grunt, say, "Okay, fun time is over. Time to get you back!"

Leonardo has posed:
Between the voice and the shapechanging, the identity of the Grinch becomes obvious to Leonardo. As he binds the downed criminal he says to him, "You should be proud, not every two-bit crook gets kicked by an actual Titan y'know."

Once the pair are bound Leo carries them, one at a time, to the opening of the alley. They are possitioned so that their weight is on their lower legs which they are "sitting" on in a kneeling; arms bound behind their backs and legs bound into position. Their weapons are again positioned on the ground in front of them and the lockpicking kit resumes its position proped against the crowbar.

Having situated the pair, Leo takes position a few yards deeper into the alley from where he can keep an eye on them while waiting for their fleet-footed partner to join them: he's as confident in the abilities of the Grinch as he is in his own deduction of the green being's identity.

Gar Logan has posed:
"No! Don't eat me! Aaaahh!" the guy screams, and for a moment one might wonder: will he?

No, of course not. "Oh, shut up. That is /so/ outside the boundary of what's acceptable. I'm just bringing you back to your buddies, but if you try to get away again, I might just bite you."

After a few more moments, the sight of the foiled robber being dragged by an arm can be seen, and the one doing the dragging is a full-sized green tiger, the arm held in his powerful jaws. This is not something one sees every day. He's also humming 'Eye of the Tiger.'

Leonardo has posed:
Stepping out of the shadowy nook he'd sequestered himself in, Leonardo reaches for the small bundle of cord in his belt pouch. "Care to call the authorities while I bind him up?" the turtle asks the tiger. "I figure your call will be taken more seriously than an anonymous one from me after all," he explains as he begins the practiced motion to draw forth the correct amount of cording.

Gar Logan has posed:
The tiger unceremoniously dumps the last one at Leonardo's feet, looking up before casually brushing past him enough that the tail would come into contact unless the ninja moves. Nobody saw that, nope! "Well, it's a little hard for me to use a phone like this," he remarks, but that particular complication is dealt with shortly afterward as he flows back into his usual form. Yes indeed, it is Beast Boy of the Titans.

He's in costume, hands at his hips as he watches Leonardo at work with the binding. "I'm gonna throw out a totally random guess here, but you've probably dreamt of doing that once or twice to some of your brothers." After the response, he calls in the attempted robbery and checks the street signs to give an accurate location.

Leonardo has posed:
Leonardo hehs and then says, "No comment," as he binds the third of the trio.

"Need to retrieve that illegal knife," he explains before dashing off in the direction that the switchblade had flown when its wielder was disarmed. Returning a few moments later he has the knife, bound itself with a small amount of cord he sets it on the pavement inches from the third of the trio's knees. He doesn't say anything until Gar finishes the call and then says, "We can watch from a rooftop but be far enough away that we don't have to directly interact with the authorities." Yeah, the turtles may be allowed to be seen by their sensi but the years of hiding is ingrained in their behavior.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan is watching Leonardo closely as he operates, leaving him standing off to one side as the switchblade is retrieved and the three are set up with their weapons laid out before them, like they're all presented on display. "So what's with that?" he asks, gesturing to the way the trio ends up positioned. "Is it like a ritual you do when you catch someone?"

He's got an earpiece in place, probably part of a comm system not too different from the Turtlephones invented by the more techy of the terrapins, and as the rooftop is suggested he flashes a thumbs-up and says, "Race ya up there!" This is easy for him to do, as he simply turns back into a bird - this time a hummingbird - and darts upward.

Leonardo has posed:
This is not fair. But commenting on that will do Leonardo no good so he doesn't say anything. No tortose here, he's fast on his feet, but the straight path of flight is not one he can follow, instead its a jump to the top of a garbage can, then to the bottom of a fire escape ladder. After a brief climb its a jump from the second floor landing into a corner from which he jumps and pulls himself up to a third floor window. Using the windowsill as a ledge and the stonework above the pane for leverage he is able to get a bit more altitude from where he then leaps up and grabs the edge of the rooftop.

Pulling himself up to the roof, Leo glances about for Beast Boy -- obvoiusly knowing that he had been bested -- and says, "Not a ritual, no, just a useful skill being applied where it was needed. There's a less practical form that I've only ever read about also, but this one dates back to antiquity while the other form was developed in the Edo Period."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan is sitting there by the time Leonardo shows up. He's atop an HVAC unit with one leg tucked beneath him, the other draped over the edge. "Oh, hey," he waves with one of those winning Beast Boy grins that have been seen on social media, television, and so on. "What do you mean about it being a useful skill? I don't really get that. Also, are you guys still in the abandoned mall, or have you gone back to the other place? I heard from a friend about being forced out at one point. That must have sucked, like, a lot."

If it sounds like he knows a thing or two about Leonardo and his brothers, there's a very clear and obvious reason for that. How the turtle responds and potentially asks further about things will likely reveal more, there.

Leonardo has posed:
"Yeah, it was our childhood home," Leo says as he hops up onto another corner of the HVAC. "So yeah, we're still occupying ye old Landmark Mall," he explains, adding, "My part is more a personal dojo than a home. It's where I've been training Terry after all," almost as an afterthought.

Gar Logan has posed:
"Do you think it'll be safe to go back sometime? Sort of have your, uh, shells in both places? Or would that be more dangerous? I haven't been to either place. I've just heard about it from..yeah, from Terry," Gar explains, watching Leonardo from his own spot. "He's told me a few things. I knew he's April's cousin, and he was trying to learn some stuff from you. I met a couple of your brothers at different times, but only once."

Leonardo has posed:
"Apparently when we stopped fighting for it the lair became less appealing to the Rat King so... I've gone back and have it as a stash for gear and some bedding," Leonardo admits. "Occupying it full time would be dangerous, we especially have to keep Spliniter from residing there what with the Rat King's abilities." He becomes whistful for a moment over the lair and also the mention of his brothers. "We aren't as cohesive a group as we've been in the past to be honest," he explains stating, "I've been trying to think of a way to correct that."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan adjusts his position no more than every thirty seconds or so, like it's hard for him to sit still for an extended period of time, or even very long at all, without fidgeting. Lots of energy, probably. He turns an ear toward the streets below, waiting for the sound of sirens, and he takes in a breath before letting it out, showing in the cool night air.

"I don't really know much about that, just that I guess he was able to control your, uh..that's it, your sensei? And you had to leave. Titans Tower is over in Metropolis and it's just this big T-shaped building, but we have good defenses. That doesn't mean it's indestructible, though. And we've been through some stuff in the past, too. Losing a few members, breaking up, trying to do our own things, getting back together again. I like it a lot more when we're a close team, like a big family."

Having been looking out into the near distances, he shifts back to face Leonardo. "You have to stay hidden a lot, don't you? Is that causing some of the problems?"

Leonardo has posed:
In contrast to Gar's fidgety nature, Leo holds himself still on the tips of his toes managing to balance with his lower body motionless while only occasionally gesticulating as he continues the conversation. And no sign of problems with the cold -- he's a turtle right? But not cold blooded?

"Yes, Splinter. He's our father as well as our sensi," he confirms about the queston asked before the talk about the big T over Metropolis. Almost on point with the question about hiding, he doesn't address the situation at the mall -- security or otherwise -- but he does answer the rest of the question: "It was a requirement imposed on us as children, yes. It's been greatly abridged in the past couple of years though. Just an ingrained habbit really from all the years in the past where it was necessary."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan doesn't appear to be struggling with the cold, though the costume doesn't do much to conceal anything. It's possible it provides some insulation where it covers, but his arms are pretty bare. "That's..special, yeah. You want to protect that, but it's gotta be hard to always have to be trying to keep from being noticed, training or not. I can't really do that, so I gave up on trying. Besides, we're pretty public as a group as it is. It sort of comes with the territory."

He runs a hand through his hair, working at an itch behind an ear to the point his eyes go half-lidded for a moment. "The impression I got is you had to learn about the world around you without really being part of it, but there are a lot of people out there who look different. Maybe it'd be okay for you guys. So..how are things going with teaching Terry things?"

Soon, a couple sets of sirens start to approach. Cops on the way.

Leonardo has posed:
"Yeah, when we were growing up I think that Splinter was sure we'd end up being vivisected in a laboratory," Leo observes. "Now a'days I'm sure that most people just assume we're mutants in the x-gene sort of way."

And the sirens blare all the way up to the entrance of the alley. As they come to a stop the officers turn on their spotlights and focus them on the trio of criminals still crouching on the pavement. At that moment one of them sneezes and looses his balance, falling over into his neighbor and toppling them all like a tiny row of human dominos.

"He's doing well. We've been working on the basics and applying his unique power to those," the blue banded terrapin says about Vorpal.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan sniffs. "I'll bet some people would have liked to get me in a lab when they saw what I could do. I just had some bad guys making me help them break the law at one point until they turned on each other," he explains. He still looks fairly young, barely out of his teens if that, and he's been around the Titans for a few years now, in acting even before that. Just how long ago is he talking about?

"So that's kind of something you guys have to figure out sooner or later. Do you keep hiding, or do you go more out into the open? That doesn't mean you're just gonna lead everyone back to where you live if you need to protect that, but I can't tell you what you should do. I haven't dealt with the same stuff," he explains.

Then it turns back to Vorpal as he hops off the HVAC to peer over the edge of the building as the losers are rounded up below. Lowering his voice, he wonders, "What kinds of stuff are you teaching him, anyway?"

Leonardo has posed:
For a moment, Leonardo sounds totally serious as he says, "Well, I don't know if I can do that, sensi-trainee confidentially and all that, you know..." and then he cracks a broad grin showing that he was joshing.

Down on street level the police are arresting the delinquents based on Gar's telephoned in testamony and their possession of an illegal weapon (the switchblade) and burgulary tools (the lock picks). The two shops they brought are sufficient to transport the three back to their presinct so the scene is cleared relatively quickly and the police drive away during the conversation.

"It may seem odd, but at first I had to break some habits he's developed. In the process I've got him falling well -- that's harder than you'd think for most people -- and he's less reliant on his cat-reflexes for stealthing now also." Leo sounds less like a teenager as he explains this and more like a professional critiquing someone he's mentoring. "We've also had a couple of outings together. Nice to be able to walk about among the people and all due to his ability to give me a... more socially acceptable complexion I guess you could say."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan backs away again as the guys below are rounded up and packed into the squad cars to be taken off and processed. In doing so, he squints Leonardo's way before the grin gives away the joke. "Ahh, you almost had me there for a minute."

Walking about now, pacing slowly, he listens to things about habits, falling, working on stealth in ways that don't include the feline side...then he nods slowly. "Oh, you should see some of his other habits," he says in a conspiratorial fashion, as if there's a big secret he could reveal. "And you mean he set up an illusion for you? I guess that's one way to go around without being stared at, or having someone try to attack you."

Leonardo has posed:
Leonardo nods to answer the question almost in an "Is that not what I said" kind of fashion but he doesn't verbalize the thoughts on that. "I've seen his place... course he was injured at the time so I don't know that it's fair to judge based on that visit," he says.

With the cops gone Leo hops down off the HVAC and looks into the alley. "Doesn't look like they forgot anything, that's good," he observes before saying, "I should get moving," and then, "I figure you know this already Garf- ... Gar... I'm Leonardo, I believe you met my brothers. We should hang out more. I'm sure it'll make Terry nervous." That last is said with a grin that shows he, like his brother Mikey, has a playful side -- even if he doesn't let it out near as often.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan does his best not to laugh. "Ahh, I should tell you about the time he almost got me eaten by a sea monster and ended up looking after /me/ in his place." This, he shakes his head at slowly, amused. "We have an apartment together now."

"Ahh, yeah, I need to pick up something. I only had a few energy bars while I was being the Grinch all evening, but it was for the kids, you know? And you can call me Gar, or Beast Boy, or whatever else pops into your mind as long as it's not too humiliating. I did meet Donatello once, and Michelangelo once too. He's a little like me I think, and that both scares me and makes me feel like we had a kind of instant understanding. Maybe we should do a pizza party sometime. Just get in touch with Vorpal, or call Titans Tower and ask for me. I'll see you around!"

With a wave, he takes a running leap toward the edge of the roof, pretty much just showing off as he jumps and falls out of view only to soar back up into the sky after a moment as a hawk.