10360/An Oblivious Clown

An Oblivious Clown
Date of Scene:	08 December 2019
Location:	South Hinkley, Old Gotham
Synopsis:	The Joker meets Lady Shiva... or does he?
Cast of Characters:	Joker, Lady Shiva

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Joker has posed:
The buildings of South Hinkley were not like North Hinkley. These ones were mostly crumbling and dilapidated, while those in North Hinkley, North Hinkley... there didn't seem to be a North Hinkley. Ah well, must be one of those geographic quirks lost to the annals of history. No matter. On this day, well, night, it was pitch black outside, on this night, a man walked the streets, humming a tune. He was carrying an umbrella that just didn't go with his suit. He also had a large beige bag with a black dollar sign written on it. If that wasn't enough to signal that something was very wrong with this picture, he had alabaster white skin, green hair, and wore a purple suit, with an orange shirt. Yeah, either he was the Joker, or somebody had really bad tastes for a costume party.

Lady Shiva has posed:
Shiva was back in town as she'd heard the Batman was dead. Only it seemed rumors of his condition were being greatly exaggerated. Instead, he was recovering. Thus, she was spending time around. In the past, she had helped teach him to fight. Yet this time, it seemed he chose Amazonian assistance instead of martial arts. Certainly the princess could fight but he was human. He had human limitations and his instructor did not.

If they wanted help, the Red Robin had a way to reach her. She wasn't expecting it. Instead, she just was watching as his minions tried to keep Gotham from sinking under the criminal element, just as had been going on in Metropolis.

It was entertaining for her. That's all it took for Shiva to stay somewhere, something to pique her interest.

Speaking of, she was walking to a hiding place she used in this area when she spotted the garish figure coming her direction. She pauses, black trenchcoat settling around her. This could be interesting.

Joker has posed:
The Joker looked to be having a blast, all by his lonesome as he walked up the street, whistling and occasionally singing, "I'm in the money, I'm in the money; I've got a lot of what it takes to get along! I'm in the money, the night is shining; Old Man Bats, you are through..., you... done me wrong!" But as he sang, his voice sunk, he seemed to be genuinely sad, tears welling up in his eyes.

He slowed his pace, letting down the heavy sack that he had been carrying over his shoulder, so that it rested on the ground. He let go of it for a moment, balancing himself on the closed umbrella. It wasn't raining, but he had an umbrella on this night. A good one too, it looked sturdy, with the nice polished handle, and some kind of mechanism near the handle.

Reaching into his breast pocket, he took out a handkerchief, blowing his nose, which made a streamer like sound. He must have had that hidden inside the handkerchief or he was just really good at noises. To no one in particular, he said in a loud voice that echoed through the deserted street, "o Batsy, Batsy, wherefore art thou Batsy? Deny thy maker and refuse thy death. Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I'll no longer be a Clown."

This had the unintended side effect of waking a drunk nearby, who moaned, "cut out that racket!" Setting the Joker on edge, he shouted back, no longer doing his attempt at theatre, but instead being the very angry lunatic he was, "Everyone's a critic. There's no accounting for taste, anymore."

Lady Shiva has posed:
"The bats have already made their pass through this part of town. It is unlikely they will return tonight," Shiva said simply. Her speech was precise, no real accent but she was obviously of Chinese heritage by her features. She was wearing an Asian style shirt in red over a pair of simple black slacks and slippers. Then black lightweight trench over the top. The weather didn't seem to be an issue, despite the lack of thickness to the coat.

Her gift was the ability to read the body language of a person like a book. It allowed her to anticipate what a person was going to do before they did it. People thought she could dodge bullets. It wasn't true. She could read the movement of the muscles and tendons in their arm to know they were pulling a trigger before they completed the movement, allowing her to get out of the line of fire.

The Joker was unusual, to say the least. Reading him was more difficult.

Joker has posed:
Picking up his bag after giving his nose another blow, the Joker began to walk further down the street, singing an entirely different song, one far more cheerful, "oh the night that Batsy Manny died, is a night I'll never forget. Some of the boys got loaded drunk, and they ain't got sober yet; as long as a bottle was passed around, every man was feelin' gay, Mirror Master came with the bagpipes, some music for to play!"

He seemed to be into his own song. He even started to dance as he walked, doing a few spins. For most people, body language was consistent. It stayed the same. There was a pattern and probability. But for the Joker, well, he'd already gone through several abrupt changes, and more looked to be on the way. At a certain point, he stopped, both the singing and the walking. He had to put the bag of what was apparently money, down, so he could tap at his lapel, his waist pockets, the inside pockets on his jacket, and finally, those over his bottom.

Finally finding what he sought, he clicked a remote control clicker, the kind usually reserved for a car, except this one had a garage door programmed. One of the delivery doors opened, revealing a pink European sports car with green accents. The engine even started to hum from that single click. "Well, toodles." He said, but did he know he was being observed or was that to the few drunks or homeless people strewn about. He seemed to be ready to drive off into the night, unless of course somebody was going to stop him?

Lady Shiva has posed:
When he just continued on his way, singing to himself and ignoring her presence, Shiva's interest in him was lost. Life was simple for her. It was seeking challenges and knowledge, to add to her already deadly skill set.

This one had nothing to offer for either. His body would start one way then shift, leaving him as mostly unpredictable. No patterns but little things she could get.

He opened his door and she continued her walk down the sidewalk the opposite way, not making a sound as she did so.