6814/Crimson and Computers

Crimson and Computers
Date of Scene:	08 March 2019
Location:	Markovia Station - Old Gotham
Synopsis:	Jason reveals key parts of his past. He and Kitty come to new understandings.
Cast of Characters:	Shadowcat, Red Hood

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Shadowcat has posed:
The lights are on in the re-purposed subway station. Kitty worked most of the night. Hacking into the computers there had been difficult, if greatly helped by the fact she had physical access to the hardware. Even with that? Whoever put that system together was -good-. Had anyone been present to overhear, they would have hard words, and groans, of respect given a number of times before Kitty finally broke in and was able to install the new hardware. Not as big of an upgrade as she'd imagined she'd be able to give Jason, but an improvement. In particular, included were some circuit boards she'd constructed herself to optimize some of Kitty's internet search algorithms and hacking tools.

But now, she's working on something else. A few other computers are set up by the Crimson Dynamo armor. Some are plugged into the armor itself. Others into removable hardrives. Kitty has a box of Crunchberries sitting nearby, and an empty bowl and a half-gallon of milk which has about enough for one last bowl in it. Also the coffee pot has a fresh brew in it from the looks of it.

Red Hood has posed:
The rumbling of a garage door opening is the first sign that someone is returning to the cave, station, whathaveyou. As the truck pulls in, it's tagged as belonging to 'Fondante's Inferno'. After shutting off the engine, Jason climbs out, taking off that familiar red hood and running a hand through his hair.

"Hi honey, I'm home." he announces, clearly not expecting anyone to be there. He's used to lonely nights in the cave. Pressing a little button on his utility belt, he requests, "Continuing playing 'The Great Gun Game'." he asks, as he heads for the kitchen, opening the door. "Dammit Roy, I told you not to drink all the milk without letting me know!" And then he smells fresh coffee.

Wait. That's not a day or two old. That's fresh.

His hand moves from the computer remote towards his gun holster - he wasn't expecting company.

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty Pryde sits up as she hears the garage door open. She hadn't explored the station well enough to even realize there was another entrance than the one she'd followed Jason down originally. The voice that calls out is one that she thinks she recognizes at least.

Roy? Kitty glances about. If Galina is here, perhaps there's someone else as well. "Jason?" she calls out. "It's Kitty. I'm over by the Russian armor." She swivels in her chair, looking over towards the kitchen area. She had found that, at least.

The computer beeps and Kitty turns back to it to read the monitor. Compile: 100%. All packages successfully built. Kitty gives a little fist pump and then fires off the installer to move the new OS over to the test area in the armor's hard drives for the next test run. She swivels back in her seat to look for Jason again.

Red Hood has posed:
Jason pales when he hears the voice. The one he wasn't expecting. "Kitty?" he asks, voice catching as he heads over to where he heard it - finding her in a chair, looking like she's been at all night. He frowns. "What are you doing here? You shouldn't be.." he trails off. Not sure what to say.

He didn't want her to find out about this place, just for this reason. Because she'll want to help and get involved. And then something back will happen to her and it'll be his fault. "..Kitty, you can't just.." he starts, trying to find the best way to try to chide her without flat out yelling at her.

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty Pryde rises from her chair. She goes over to pour him a cup of coffee, preparing it as he prefers it then bringing it over. If he doesn't prevent it, she leans in to press a tender kiss to his lips. The kind of soft, lingering kiss that might forestall what she hears in his voice. That's not the only reason for the kiss, of course. She -wants- to kiss him.

It's just an added benefit.

The coffee is offered to him. "I wanted to surprise you. I brought a few components of my making for your computer set up. Some search tools I think you'll find useful. Also some hacking tools. Some of the better dark web stuff, but also a few zero day exploits I've come across on my own. Best to save the latter for when nothing else works. The more they are used, the more someone might catch them and alert Microsoft, Redhat or Apple so they can be patched," she tells him.

Red Hood has posed:
The kiss is returned, but Jason sets aside the coffee. He takes Kitty's shoulders gently. "I didn't want you to get involved in all of this. I tried to keep you away. You can't get involved." he says, eyes searching hers. That worry shows there for a moment before it steels over.

"There's some nuts out there. Things out there that won't hesitate to hurt you. Or worse." He lets out a breath. "And I appreciate you wanting to help.."

She can hear that but in his voice if she wants to interecpt him before he continues.

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty Pryde does interrupt him. "Jason. I'm in harms way, whether I'm here, or not. I'm not just a mutant. I'm a... a hero." Kitty gives a sigh and blows a puff of hair at some hair that has fallen free of her pony tail in front, dangling down across her cheek.

"That sounds so corny to say aloud. But, you know what I mean. Shadowcat. That's my name. And... yesterday I killed a Sentinel that attacked me and my friends." She leaves out the part about holding her friend she thought was dying. Because Jason -really- doesn't need that to add to any argument he wants to make.

"I'm out there, now. Making a difference. Because people need me." She gently brushes off his shirt and shoulders, not that they need it. But it's a gentle and loving touch. She looks up into his eyes. "Do you think you can l-... that you can still care for me, knowing that?"

Red Hood has posed:
She speaks up. And she tells him the truth. The whole truth. And he listens, considering her words. And weighing them as he does so. Did he know? She is a powerful mutant. He's seen hints of her skill. It wouldn't have been hard to put two and two together at some point.

But it is refereshing to hear the words from her lips. And then she continues. She changes up her words at the end. That strikes home. Because he knows that behavior - it's the same one that he has been using on her in all of their conversations. It's been his way of trying to compartimentalize his feelings.

First, there was Jason Todd - the adopted son of Bruce Wayne. The sometimes serious, sometimes not young man that Kitty Pryde had first found herself draw to in the park. That part of Jason that could have been had he not found out Bruce's secret and became part of the cape and cowl.

Then there's the Red Hood. The vigilante. The troublemaker. The one that does his own thing, and damns the consequences. The one that he was reluctant to allow Kitty to find. Until he showed up in the park, with blood on his hands - and an undeniable proof that he could not hide from her, even had he wanted to.

And finally there was that final bit of him. That street rat that was still a punk. The one that knows to keep a hard heart and a sharp mind. The one that knows he should never let Kitty get close to him. People that get close to him get hurt. Barbara was shot, his father killed by Two-Face. His mother..

..and yet Kitty is still there.

"I died." he finally says. "Joker killed me. I was dead for.. I don't know how long. I was a madman. Then somehow, I came back. I don't know how. I barely remember digging my way out of my own grave. But when I came back - I was full of hate. Vengence. I had been forgotten. I was an afterthought to those I thought cared about me most. And I lashed out. I murdered. I took lives. I was broken - whatever had brought me back to life left my soul in pieces. I ended up in Arkham because of it."

He lets that sink in, before he continues. "Then I was rescued. It was one of Batman's enemies brought me back to whole. Because she was in love with him. And she wanted to prove that love to him by bringing me back. But not only that.. she took me from being an angry, hate-filled man.. into what you have now. She gave me a chance to live because of her love for someone."

After several beats of breath, he finishes.

"I'd be a fool to squander that gift on not returning your love for me."

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty Pryde takes Jason's hands in hers partway through, squeezing them. Letting him feel her there as Kitty listens. Did Jason ever imagine the faces that Kitty might make when she learned this about him? A look of horror? A shaking of her head, unable to accept what he told her?

If so? She makes none of those. Her eyes are gentle as Kitty listens. "I think I owe her a debt then, that she helped you return to being the man that I love," Kitty tells him. A tear rolls down her cheek as he speaks of returning her love, both eyes glistening a little wetly at hearing him speak like that for the first time.

Kitty leads him over to a couch, assuming there's such furniture there, so they can sit together. She lets him sit and then presses in against him. Only to find Red Hood's body armor is in the way, keeping her from getting against his body. Kitty gently takes hold of the body armor and then pulls it through his body and off of him to remove it.

"Better," she says as she can feel his body now when she presses in against him. "I know what it can be like, to have such darkness inside of you," Kitty says. "And it doesn't always go away, and we have to live with it. And the memories of what it made us do don't go away. We just have to learn to live with them too." She reaches up to touch his face. "I'm here and I'm not going away. I love you the way you are. And if that darkness is still there, we'll deal with it together."

Red Hood has posed:
He didn't know what to expect, honestly. Probably for her to run screaming. She probably would have when they first met. Instead, now he finds himself on the couch, and he blinks when she uses his power to strip off the armor. "That'll be helpful in the bedroom." Some of that humor returning to his voice.

And then she's pressed against him and Jason slips his arms around her in response, pulling her close. "There's a lot we still need to learn about each other. You may come to regret those words, Katherine." he says quietly.

"I hope not, though."

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty Pryde leans her head in against Jason's, her forehead to his. "There's a -lot- we still need to learn," she agrees with him, and given the one word extra emphasis. "It's ok that it comes out a little at a time though," she tells Jason. She reaches up and softly brushes her fingers through his hair. "You aren't the first person I know who has come back from the dead. You aren't even the..." Kitty says, and pauses, going through the fingers on one hand and then the other. "Let's just say? I've had a strange life, Jason," she tells him before breaking out in a soft laugh at the absurdity of it all.

"We'll get through it together though," she tells him. Kitty reaches up, holding both of his cheeks as she kisses him, slowly and tenderly. She finally pulls back and smiles at him. "So... while it is on my mind? The Sentinel I killed yesterday? I think the Batman was there too. A jet, shaped like a bat. Used some missiles to blow up one that was chasing me. Galina was there as well, helped with both of those Sentinels. She doesn't know that Kitty is Shadowcat though. Just thinks I'm a friend who is rewriting her suit's programming. It's like... 1990s coding," Kitty says, giving a little shake of her head.

Red Hood has posed:
"We both have. And we're going to have time to discuss it." Jason responds. Then she mentions Bats. "If it's a Batshaped anything? Probably his." he says with a little chuckle. Then she's starting on Galina. "I took one of her armors to a friend of mine. You'll probably be meeting her soon." After all, Kitty just messed with her computers.

"But we can discuss that later. For now?" He stands, taking Kitty's hands. "I just want to see what I have left in cereal and spend some time with the woman I love."

Shadowcat has posed:
"If she's the one who did our computers, I look forward to it. I figured it would be a simple thing to install my upgrades. Took a really long time to hack in though," Kitty tells him. "A /really/ long time, by my standards. Military networks are not that tight," she says.

Wait, how would she know...?

Kitty rises and slips her hand into his. "I have a box of crunchberries. I've been eating all the gold parts and leaving the berries behind so it's just a box of berries now. Thought you might like them," she offers as they walk over together to the kitchen.

She left him -all- the crunchberries? Oh yeah. It's love.