2831/Marco Polo and Bat-Dates

Marco Polo and Bat-Dates
Date of Scene:	13 October 2017
Location:	Bludhaven Rooftops
Synopsis:	This is what happens when Bat-peoples don't keep in touch enough.
Cast of Characters:	Nightwing, Oracle

---

Nightwing has posed:
    The city of Bludhaven is a different world than Gotham. Both of them are filled with shadows, dark, and with a heavy atmosphere that often sweeps in off the river, granting the cities fog and a haze that makes it difficult to see farther than a few blocks at a time. But while Gotham is tall, with a myriad of gargoyles, and the lovely turn of the century architecture...
    Bludhaven will always be the run down industrial town that was its neighbor.
    Its skyline is far from as majestic, the buildings tall but almost all to a one retired or converted factories or mills or what have you. So traversing the place is rougher than Gotham, less altitude to swing, less angles of approach... and only a few buildings make good lookout towers.
    Like the one that Nightwing is on tonight, having set up the position to respond from a central location within a moment's notice. He doesn't have a bat cave, but what he does have are gadgets. Remote cameras, a rapid-display HUD in his mask, and instinct. So at this time of night, after he had made the rounds near the riverside... he is here atop this old factory at the edge of the building. Crouched behind the small wall that provides some cover at the edge of the rooftop.
    The young vigilante looks up now and again, frowning to himself. Quiet night, not too much going on. He touches the side of his mask causing another camera to key in on the display. Nothing in Little Odessa either. He even goes so far as to sigh slightly.

Oracle has posed:
Were it Gotham, Batgirl would have taken to the air and simply followed him. Being as this is Bludhaven -- and HIS town -- she didn't. She took her bike, brought it into the 'Haven to a place near where she knows he often parks his if it's out and about, and only then does she take to the rooftops. The down side (in his mind, perhaps) to being a Bat-people is that sometimes other Bat-people find ways to find where you are without having to work *too* hard.
    She doesn't just drop in on him, though -- it's a good way to get her head knocked off, and Barbara learned that lesson a long time ago. So instead of attempting to breach whichever of the three rooftops he might be on -- she figures, knowing him, it'll be one of those three because... he's a freakin' bird. He *always* looks for the high ground -- Batgirl lands on a rooftop that happens to be just south of his hidey hole and lower down.
    Then she cuts loose with a familiar high-pitched whistle meaning //Marco.// It's an old game across the Gotham rooftops, and she knows he'll remember the answering 'Polo.' It will also tell him exactly who's on his turf and where she is.

Nightwing has posed:
    At first his brow knits, confusion reining for the bare moment. But then recognition comes fast on the heels. His lips curl wryly as he sits up, then slowly rises to his full height. From a distance she'll assuredly see him, that dark silhouette against the night sky, blocking out what hint of the stars are in the sky in that direction. She probably can't see his expression, but he shakes his head hiding a smile.
    Then... he /darts/ into motion, breaking cover and somehow disappearing. Though she'll hear his voice upon the wind, amused if a touch admonishing as he offers. "Polo!"
    To the side there's a distant scrape of gravel, as if a footstep was taken poorly upon the sandy rooftop. But there is no sight of him for now, that listening post abandoned. For the moment.

Oracle has posed:
The silhouette brings her eyes around, and Barbara laughs softly. The game is afoot, then! It's been a long time since they ran this way, and he has home field advantage. By the time Batgirl lands on the rooftop she's pretty sure he was heading for, assuming she deduced correctly, there's nothing there. And so again, the high-pitched whistle pierces the air.
    It carries much better than shouting, so she knows if he whistles he's probably farther ahead and if he shouts again, he's closer to hand. The trick will be cornering him. And while she waits for a return whistle or shout... or for him to beat her at her own game and pull a Batman, appearing out of nowhere -- she studies the rooftops for the best routes to move around the city.

Nightwing has posed:
    Those old industrial buildings are far less entertaining than the elaborate labyrinths provided by the contorted rooftops of Gotham City. Bludhaven is all sweeping large metal and rock rooftops, open sight lines, long approaches. Only a few water towers here and there but as she whistles she'll hear the whistle coming back...
    From what seems to be a billboard. A tall sign that proclaims loudly that everyone should use AXE BODY SPRAY! with a huge blonde man advocating it with his smile. But there... from there there's hardly anywhere to hide. So assuredly she may well approach it...
    Only for her to hear the voice of young Dick Grayson as she may pass by, and he is dangling off the side of the building, holding himself there with just his fingertips, but nicely in the shadows. Whether or not she saw him, however... he'll flip up, scissoring his legs as he leaps up and lands light upon the rooftop nearby.
    There's a small smile at the corner of his mouth as he steps closer, "Hey Batgirl." A step, a hand taking hers to give a small squeeze. No PDAs allowed in a hostile environment, just in case. But that's as much as he can manage for now. "It's been a dog's age." He offers.

Oracle has posed:
She follows his merry chase, going exactly where he expects her to -- it is, after all, a game -- and lands on that horrible billboard. When he flips up to the rooftop from the edge of the building, she whips around with a grin and drops from the board to the roof with the same grace and expertise he has.
    "You are a horrible, horrible brat to stop here, of all places. Didn't you used to bathe in this stuff?" she asks, amusement clear in her tone as she holds that proffered hand for a long moment, squeezing back and releasing easily. She drops to a crouch at the edge of the roof where they can see his streets below, a pose as familiar as breathing, and keeps an eye out while they talk.
    "You don't call, you don't write," Batgirl teases. "I'm starting to think we got dumped. And you know how Alfred worries." Yep.. she's taking the butler's name in vain. But her tone is gentle as she admits, "I just wanted to see for myself that you're all in one piece up in this cesspool."

Nightwing has posed:
    "Who me? Wha? Never." Is the answer given as he leans back against the supporting beam that holds up that still smiling blonde guy with the body spray affectation. But Nightwing, for his part, smiles wryly, folding his arms over his chest and looking at her sidelong as she crouches there, keeping an eye on things.
    "Besides, don't think you should get me started on crazy smelly things. Didn't Bat give you a talking to about perfume once?" Alright that might be made up, but Nightwing does tend to try to give as good as he gets. That having been said he pushes off the beam and drops down to crouch beside her, lightly touching one of the small remote cameras that's keeping an eye on the waterfront cargo lot.
    Back to her he listens to her give him a smidge of a hard time and he lifts a hand to rub at the back of his neck, knowing that the hard time she's giving him is entirely rightly earned. "I know, I know. Things went down with Batman. I sort of took off. But things are better now."
    There's a pause.
    "Mostly." He appends.

Oracle has posed:
Barbara's had a birds-eye view, pun intended, of the relationships between Batman and the guys. It is this one, though, that she had the front-row seat for. "Mostly," she murmurs in response. Pulling in a breath and letting it out slowly, the redhead looks out over the city. It's always been easier talking up here, like this. It felt safe in the darkness.
    "You know... I kept thinking eventually you'd come back." There's a hint of sadness to her tone, but not as if he's done something wrong. More a nostalgia. "It's a little harder up on those rooftops without you. The boys are good." Batgirl flashes him a smile. "They may have your old name, but they don't have the same pizzazz. So ... it seemed time to come take a look at your new life. The place is a pit, kinda smelly... do you get any good villains?"

Nightwing has posed:
    A short chortle comes from him. "Somewhat. Kinda. And hey, I'll be in Gotham now and then. I just sorta..." He lifts a gauntleted hand and waggles it back and forth, "Have to split my time. And oh!" Something seems to occur to him, but he lowers his voice as he remembers where they are. Wouldn't do to have someone overhear them.
    He goes on, "Did you hear that I am joining the police academy here?" For a moment he touches a fingertip to the side of his mask, tilting his head as he scans the rooftops, perhaps making sure they're clear of potential eavesdroppers. But that settled he nods to her. "Long story. But crazily enough the police here don't have a good commissioner to hammer on the corruption. So thought I'd..."
    A wave of one hand is made, as if gesturing at the city in general. But then he takes a breath and answers her last question. "Not really, not of late. There were these two high rise burglars that were interesting. Acrobats, old high wire act."

Oracle has posed:
Behind her mask, Barbara blinks. And she can't help it, her hand comes up to cover her mouth. "No," she says around the beginnings of stifled giggles. "No, I did *not* hear that. "How did He take that one? Lord.... " She's always cautious about names in costume, instead simply using a title. Or just 'He' for Bruce. "You know the Commissioner would facepalm, if he had a clue." Because now BOTH of them work for the police. Barbara has to wonder if Bruce is ready for that. It makes her laugh harder.

Nightwing has posed:
    "Ah, about that." Nightwing sort of smiles at her a little awkwardly, one hand lifting to rub at the back of his neck. He looks away, then back to her, those irisless eyes scrunching up a bit as he murmurs to her absently. "I sort of, maybe, haven't... told him yet."
    As he says this he sort of leans away from Babs because he knows such an admission might trigger a particular physically applied admonishment. "Technically we work together. He's not my boss, as it were. So I don't /have/ to tell him."
    Which is assuredly the reason he hasn't. No other one.
    But then he looks back to her, "In any case, things have been going well. Had some problems with... Robin." He says, probably meaning the youngest, Damian. "But that has resolved well."

Oracle has posed:
That abruptly stops her laughter. Batgirl's mask doesn't show expression too well, but the 'O' shape that her lips form is quite telling. Had he not leaned back, he might indeed have gotten a Gibbs-slap upside the back of his head -- the tone of sheepish 'I didn't tell him yet' definitely has the ring of the young Dick rather than the man who now holds his own city.
    "You what?" she hisses. "Ohmygod..." Barbara keeps her voice to the barest whisper -- because not only did they learn years ago that sound carries in the dark, but sometimes Batman was listening! "You haven't told him? Of course he's not your boss... he's your //family//. Geeeeeeeeez!!" Although.... to be fair, she does understand that he doesn't want to rock the boat when things are going well finally.
    Breathing out a huff of exasperation, she mutters under her breath in that whisper that carries only to him, "OK, well, *I'm* not telling him." That's just final. "And you gotta keep in touch better," she demands in a quiet whisper. When she finally turns to look at him, letting him see the worry behind the teasing and the mask, she says softly, "You won't get a lot of sleep in *either* job at that point. If you don't keep in regular touch... I'll come up here. I swear it. And... and if you get SHOT, I will never forgive you."

Nightwing has posed:
    If anyone was able to inflict this feeling of remorse upon him, it was Barbara. Perhaps Alfred a close second, but ever since he was a teenager, Barbara's approval meant a lot to him. She can see the cloud that settles on his brow as he looks to the side, features tensing as he looks down at one of his gauntlets. A moment, then he looks back to her. "I know, BG. I know. It's just... sometimes it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission."
    Not that that point of view hasn't caused problems with them before.
    He flares his fingers a bit as if trying to grasp onto the ephemeral answers and failing. He looks to her sidelong. "I'm not doing this without forethought and planning. I have it set. Things may be tense for a time while I'm in the Academy. But after that I'll have a beat and the shifts can be long but the hours not so much."
    He definitely has thought about this. But then she makes her threats and he smirks faintly. "Alright, I promise." And that said, despite the stricture against PDAs, he'll lean in and touch a small kiss to the side of her mask. Just enough to let her know that he'd missed her and it was good to see her again.

Oracle has posed:
She watches him closely, and as he talks about having planned and put things in place for the Academy, Barbara nods. "You're a grown man. For all that I think it's silly that the two of you play this game, well... pfft." She rolls her eyes behind the mask. "Don't think my father is any better about it or that I don't occasionally pull the same stuff." After all, her father has no idea -- at least as far as Barbara knows! -- that she's Batgirl!
    The only indicator that she's really really worried is that she tips her head against that light kiss with the gentlest of pressure -- a way to let him know that she appreciates the physical reassurance. Then she offers with a small grin. "*And* if you want me to cover for you, you owe me a favor. A big one. That I get to call in whenever I want."

Nightwing has posed:
    A small scoff comes from him as he settles back down into a seat on the edge of the rooftop, legs dangling a bit as he eyes her sidelong. "Why do I have the feeling you already know the favor you want to ask and are just waiting to make me do it?" But that having been said he agrees anyways with a nod, "Alright, alright. If I ask you to, I'll owe you. Promise."
    That said he turns his head to the side, a small signal coming across the monitoring channel as he touches a hand to his mask. Frowning he cycles through a few read outs, but then shakes his head and turns back towards her. "Alright, spill it." He uncurls a hand, as if that would be enough to make her do so. Which is rarely true.

Oracle has posed:
His movement indicates that he's settling in for an actual hang-out night. Oooh! It's been forever! Shifting her weight, she throws her feet over the ledge and joins him comfortably. "All we need now is popcorn!" Batgirl quips. But she goes quiet as she sees his body language -- she's well aware of what he's doing when he goes still like that. The HUD is one she helped design. When he merely shakes his head and remains settled in place, she relaxes.
    "Nope, not this time," she replies to his query. "This one is open-ended." That might not bode well -- the last time he owed her an open-ended favor, it resulted in some rather embarrassing hijinks. 'HE' was less than pleased with either of them. But they were just kids! Barbara grins cheekily. "It's just a favor for sometime in the future when I have need of it. BUT...."
    Considering things for a long moment, she asks, "I would like something from you that's not a favor." Barbara's tone isn't teasing. "I know you've begun to wire up Bludhaven the same way we've got feeds in Gotham. Let me help you do it so that you're more fully set up before you're a cop both day *and* night. Then when I'm not on the streets, I can help you monitor." She hasn't told him that she's been taking a lighter role on the streets. It's not like they've really talked too much lately, so the news is her own version of 'oh by the way, I'm going to the police academy.'

Nightwing has posed:
    There's a furrow to his brow, as he eyes her askance, as if trying to puzzle out what she might have intended. But when she elaborates he doesn't lose that look of curiousity. Instead he quirks an eyebrow and tells her levelly, "Sure. I mean, if you want to." He looks back again for a moment at one of the feeds in his mask's HUD, then uncurls a hand in her direction. "I haven't given it too much thought, I've been setting things up temporarily or setting it in an as needed basis."
    That said he draws up one leg, resting his hands upon his knee as he looks across the distance of Bludhaven itself, the clouds still rolling in on the city from riverside. Then sidelong to her he'll say, "What have you been working on lately? I mean I haven't heard anything from you either." There was a pause, then he added. "Well sorta, I mean I've heard some noise from the others. But nothing staggeringly detailed."

Oracle has posed:
Blowing out a long, slow breath, she nods a little bit. "I do want to," she assures him. "He's as successful -- if we're calling it that -- as he is because He's got an infrastructure in place. You're up here alone, no team, no partners." She obviously does *not* like it. "I can monitor both places."
    Barbara's quiet for a while, her hands on the ledge next to her hips while she leans on them, rocking just a little. It's a familiar pose - she often did it when she had things on her mind when they were younger. "I don't know how much longer I want to keep on the streets," she finally admits quietly. "I'm okay for right now, but... I watch Him sometimes. He's young. But he hurts. You can see it in the way he moves. And sometimes I can feel those same hurts, you know? I don't train as hard as either of you ever did... and I don't want to ultimately end up crippled because of this job. So... I've slowly been putting things in place to eventually step back." She glances at him and smiles faintly. "Not yet. It's not time yet. But.... when the time comes, I'd drive myself crazy if I didn't know what you were doing out here, so I'm asking to be the bird on your shoulder when that time comes. I'll help with eyes and ears instead of fists. If you want me to."

Nightwing has posed:
    That seizes his attention and has him turning to fully face her. But at first he listens, giving her that respect, to hear her out before offering his two cents. She can read his thoughts in the way his features shift subtly. No poker face of his ever survived contact with her, even as she tells him what she plans to do. She can read the trepidation, the concern, but there's also... acceptance and trust.
    "Well," He begins, brow furrowing. "It sounds like you've given this a lot of thought." He lifts his hand and rests it on the side of his mask, but this time for no reason, as if using it to avoid the situation. But he rails against that and grimaces then looks to her, deciding not to hide the thoughts or feelings. "If you think it's for the best, Batgirl. But if you wanted to devote more time, more focus to the streets, I would spend that time helping you train further if you wanted." Perhaps just so she knows she has options.
    "But you helping with information and all, funneling data. That could be a big deal." Since really, the police have been doing that for years.

Oracle has posed:
His full attention coming down on her like that is something Barbara braced for. She stiffens just slightly, as if uncertain how he's going to react and expecting... something. He's occasionally been the one to kick *her* butt into gear when she needed it too. It's why they've always done well together. But as she talks and his expression offers the same trust he's always had in her, she visibly relaxes.
    One hand comes up to absently push a lock of red hair behind her shoulder -- in civvies, she would have tucked it behind her ear. "It's a plan for the future," she tells him easily. "Nothing I'm going enact right now. Or even soon, I don't think. Just... thinkng ahead." Something Batman himself has always admonished, though perhaps not along these lines. Despite the long-ingrained habits of no-PDA-allowed, she reaches out to touch his hand where it still rests on top of the upraised knee. "And since you're asking, I would *love* to run the Bludhaven streets with you -- I'm still not nearly as good with sticks as you are, and it'll give me the chance to keep practicing."
    She's teasing him. Or... sort of. Did she just invite herself to be his Bat-date in Bludhaven? It surely looks that way!