5600/Breakdown

Breakdown
Date of Scene:	19 October 2018
Location:	Rural New Jersey
Synopsis:	Mercy comes to Bruce's rescue in the backwoods.
Cast of Characters:	Batman, Mercy Thompson

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Batman has posed:
    On the side of the road, way out in the parts of New Jersey that don't get a whole lot of visitors, sits a very expensive car. A multi-million-dollar Lamborghini - just one of several in the rather expansive garage of Bruce Wayne. Now, however, the supercar is not worth what was paid for it. The engine compartment towards the rear is open, and steam pours out into the air. Nearby stands Bruce Wayne, staring into the compartment with a determined and impassive expression. Not the Bruce people are used to seeing - smiling and debonair - but entirely cold and calculating. The Bruce of when people aren't watching. He shucks the suit jacket he wears and rolls up the sleeves of his shirt. It's still light out, but the sun is beginning to set, and Gotham is still several long miles away.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
The buzz of a much smaller engine precedes Mercy's arrival. She's driving out of town. She sees the car on teh side of the road, starts to just keep on going then does a double take..you don't see many Lamborghinis, and never on the side of the road. And...well, it's usually the guy to the rescue but he's worth stopping for. She pulls in just in front of the Lamborghini and stops, gets out and walks back toward the broken car. She does sniff at the air a little, and looks around just out of her usual caution. "Umm, I suppose asking 'car trouble' is sort of cliche and obvious? How about 'need some help'?"

Batman has posed:
    Behind the opened door of the engine compartment, Bruce's face immediately shifts from impassive Dark Knight to the smiling and cavalier Bruce Wayne. It is an instant gear shift that has become like breathing to him over the years, and when he leans back out to see Mercy he is one again entirely his alter ego. His expression is a mix of exasperation and someone who is simply going with the flow - the flow have deposited him on the side of the road without a working car: "Oh! Yeah, I think so. Know much about engines? I'm a bit at a loss myself. You'd think you shell out seven figures for a car it isn't going to die on you like this, huh?" He moves towards Mercy and extends a hand, "Bruce Wayne."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
Mercy takes the offered hand. She hesitates...even she's heard that name, and he is handsome, so... "Ahh." And 7 figures for a car? "Mercedes Thompson, Mercy," she introduces herself. "And you're in luck, I'm a mechanic." Which he might notice are definitely mechanic's hands, with grime ground in and under the nails. "I've never worked on a Lamborghini but I'm willing to look." She's babbling a little, realizes it, and shuts up. Still holding Wayne's hand.

Batman has posed:
    Bruce doesn't appear awkward at the prolonged handshake. In truth, he doesn't look like he's ever been awkward in his life. He simply gives her hand a couple more shakes and disengages neatly. As he does, he gestures back towards the car, "Well, Mercy, please do take a look. I can change a tire if pressed but taking a look at the engine it feels more like rocket science than anything else. Let me step aside for the expert."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
Mercy flushes slightly when she realizes what she was doing, mutters something that might be 'get a hold of yourself girl' but might be 'you're on a roll here whirl.' She simply nods, brain now engaged, and goes to look at the engine bay. "Wow." Well the smell of antifreeze is a dead give away. "You stopped right away I hope?" she's bent over, one hand braced on the car, the other poking at the hoses to see if she can find the one that let go. "If I can find the hose I might be able to get a generic one, and coolant and get you on your way. Or I can call a flatbed for you...I know lots of the tow services. I have no idea about warranties on something like this," she warns him, looking over her shoulder, then turning back to keep looking in the car.

Batman has posed:
    "I was thinking of calling an Uber or something," Bruce admits, glancing down at his phone in his hand for a moment before tucking it back into his pocket, "But I couldn't find any out here, and it'd probably be a bit of a shame to leave a car like that out here by the side of the road. "And yes, I stopped straight away. I was hoping I could fix things and get back in time for a dinner ... " He glances at his watch, sighing. Surreptitiously, he taps a button on the face of it and several miles away the Batmobile - homing in on his signal - slows down and steers off into a quiet side road. So much for /that/ plan.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
"Well," Mercy says, standing straight, and lookig around. "I found the hose. It split at a bend. And it's not going to be easy to get to," she smiles crookedly. "Best bet is a tow truck. You can take my car," she waves at the VW rabbit. "I can wait for the truck and ride in with the driver," she offers. "That'll get you home for dinner."

Batman has posed:
    "I couldn't do that," Bruce says with a shake of his head, moving back over to peer into the engine compartment with a sigh, "You've got somewhere to be, too, or else you wouldn't be driving." He crosses his arms over his chest, blowing out his cheeks and shaking his head, "No, no, I'll call the tow truck. Thanks for the help, though, I appreciate it."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
"Tomrrow," Mercy says, tossing him the car keys, and dragging out her phone. "You may be Bruce Wayne but I can probably get a truck out here faster. Unless you call something from Wayne Enterprises, of course. I was on the way to an auction that starts tomorrow morning...car auction," she explains. "They have some old VWs for sale there. I restore them, and sell the restored ones."

Batman has posed:
    Bruce seems genuinely torn for the moment. Internally, the dialogue is fairly straightforward - he could get back to Gotham much, much faster in the Batmobile but Mercy is offering her car and he can't just leave it by the side of the road. He weighs it up carefully in his mind, and ultimately makes the only viable decision: "If you're going to insist, I can't knock back a good deed like that. But at least let me reimburse you ... and we'll need to work out somewhere for you to pick up your car if I'm going to borrow it."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
Mercy smiles a crooked smile, "Oh, happily let you reimburse me. I'm sure you can afford it. Pick up the car, hmmm<" she frowns and looks down the road. "Well, Wayne Manor? I assume that's where you're going? And where do you want the car taken...if it's there then my car'll be tehre and that's easy. I can get a taxi if you want it sent to the lamborghini dealer." She shrugs. "I'm flexible."

Batman has posed:
    "Alright, Wayne Manor it is," Bruce says with a nod, "I've got to head into the City tonight, but I'll take you car home afterwards." He can only imagine the kind of questions Bruce Wayne getting about in a Volkswagen are going to raise, but that's a problem for another time. Now, he reaches into his pocket and produces his wallet along with several crisp hundred dollar bills to hand to Mercy, "That should cover the tow? And we'll arrange the rest when you come to pick up your car?"

Mercy Thompson has posed:
"Uhh, yeah," Mercy says. "And then some. I'll get the truck..." She heads to her car and snags her purse and a small daypack out of it. "She's not fancy, but she is reliable," Mercy nods to her car. She grins a little. "Drive safe," then rolls her eyes. "Wow I sound like a soccer mom," she mutters, mostly to herself.

Batman has posed:
    "Hey, I drive /that/ monster around," Bruce says, gesturing to the Lamborghini, "I need all the advise to drive safely I can get." That said, he heads over to the other car and sits in the driver's seat. It is almost a bit absurd to see him behind the wheel, as he checks a few things - even going so far as to adjust the mirror and the seat along with his seatbelt. He then opens the window and leans his head out, "Are you /absolutely/ sure. I mean, this feels like the disgusting height of billionaire privilege: 'You there, give me your car so I can get to my next monocle cleaning on time.'"

Mercy Thompson has posed:
Mercy laughs and waves him off. "Go. You'll get a bill for it, never fear. YOu can tell them I forced the car on you. Heck, 'maybe she's trying to blackmail me.' Or 'fangirl' which might almost be true. Or 'what a mercenary. She charged me a thousand dollars.'" She grins. "Don't even try to give me that much. That wouldn't be honest."

Batman has posed:
    "I'll be paying a premium for this," Bruce answers as he starts the car, rolling out onto the road and pausing alongside Mercy to speak out the window again, "Just be safe out here, okay? I mean, you're about as far from civilization as it's possible to get in Jersey but still." Somewhere, hundreds of miles above, a Wayne Aerospace satelite surreptitiously changes alignment in order to observe Mercy and the car from orbit. Bruce's hand moves away from where it rests over his watch and returns to the wheel, "I'll see you later, then?"

Mercy Thompson has posed:
"Sure thing," she tells Bruce, and waves him out onto the road. Once he drives off, Mercy gets on the phone and calls the tow driver she uses down this way. Tow truck on the way, Mercy leans a hip against the Lamborghini and waits. Derek's at least an hour out.... She nods to herself and shifts. Between one blink and the next she's a coyote. Mercy shakes out of her clothes, tugs them together next to the 'ghini and trots off into the woods to look for a rabbit for dinner.

Batman has posed:
    Miles away and beneath the Earth, Alfred Pennyworth makes preparations in the Batcave awaiting Bruce's return. As he sets up a tray alongside the Batcomputer, he peers at the satelite feed Bruce has - to Alfred, at least - inexplicably centered on a broken down car on the side of the road somewhere in the rural backwoods. For all his unflappable English-ness, his eyes can't help but widen as he watches the young women turn into a coyote and disappear into the woods. Slowly, he reaches out to pick up the phone and dials a number.
    Behind the wheel of the Rabbit, Bruce's face is once again an implacable mask. When his cell rings, he takes it out of his breast pocket and holds it to his ear: "Alfred?"
    "Master Bruce. I - you're going to want to see this, sir ... "