9461/Nightwing Night

Nightwing Night
Date of Scene:	07 October 2019
Location:	Apartment 3A, 1013 Parkthorne Ave.
Synopsis:	Stephanie and Dick discuss Batman's impending fight with Superman, and how they can pick up the slack in Gotham for him.
Cast of Characters:	Nightwing, Spoiler

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Nightwing has posed:
    Dick Grayson continues his tradition of mixing physical training with digestion of pop culture. Evidently at this point in time, he's fully consumed the available episodes of another binge session, the splash screen of the television recommending some other shows for his possible selection. The original Robin has a towel wrapped around his neck and is picking from a bowl of puffed chickpeas. His tank top and gym shorts sweaty from his efforts on the nearby yoga mats. He takes a rare moment to close his eyes and just let his mind wander, as his jaw works to consume his protein-rich snack.

He growls lightly as an image of Batman getting vaporized by Superman haunts him. A similar image of a motionless Superman with a chunk of green ore embedded in his chest, Batman's head hung in grim resolve. Nightwing lobs his bowl at a nearby wall and clutches his head. "What a nightmare..."

Spoiler has posed:
The systems that Dick has set up tell him of Stephanie's arrival long before she makes it to the door. Her car, a birthday gift from Bruce, stowed in the garage. She puts a cover on it even when it's in inside, trying to keep it from picking up even the slightest scratch.

The door opens, the sound of Stephanie's keyes in the lock jingling as she pulls them out and pockets them. She is just in time to catch the bowl bouncing across the floor after the impact, a few splashes, remnants of what it contained, upon the wall and floor. She closes the door behind her and sets down a bag from the grocery store on the table.

The blond moves over to Dick. She's wearing a t-shirt that fits her body just snugly enough to be quite flattering, and then a pair of comfortable fitting denim jeans. Stephanie slides her fingers along Dick's back and then up into the back of his hair as she moves to the front of him to press against him in a hug. Offering comforting, not saying anything, as she can likely guess at what has him on edge.

Nightwing has posed:
Dick leans into Stephanie and offers a sigh against her shoulder. He's quiet for a long moment as he regains some of his composure. "Steph.. I'm worried something horrible is going to happen. I'm Nightwing because of both Batman and Superman, and I do not know what Earth would do without either one of them. What the Justice League would be like. Those two have... survived so much, but I'm not sure.. They can survive each other. I've never been more scared for either of them."

He sits up and rests his forearms on his knees. "And.. I feel completely helpless to do anything about it."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie's eyes drift across Dick's countenance, arms folded gently around him as she provides him what comforting she can. "I know this may be the toughest thing he's ever had to do. But he always seems to have a way of finding a path through even the darkest times. I have to have faith he's going to find a way to help Superman regain full control of himself," Stephanie says, trying to imbue the words with more confidence than she truly feels.

The thought of anyone going up against Superman is not a very reassuring one. "Best thing we can do, is take care of Gotham so Bruce doesn't have to spare any time or thought on her," Stephanie says. "Why don't we go out on patrol tonight together?" she suggests towards that end.

Nightwing has posed:
Dick sits up and kisses her on the forehead. "That.. is a really good idea. No point in sitting her and sulking."

He pats her on the leg and then stands with a stretch before he pads his way into the bedroom of the apartment. There's the sound of running water as Dick wets a wash cloth and begins to wipe down his forehead and arms. He calls out of his shoulder, "There's always a risk someone will try to take advantage of the chaos this creatures. So we should be on heightened alert. No obvious alarms on the police scanner though. So either something is brewing beneath the surface.. or its a night of foiling petty crime."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie goes over to wet a rag and clean up the aftermath of the thrown bowl. "I haven't heard anything of Harley since the bombs she planted at that Metropolis fair. It's about time I'd expect her to pop her head up again," Stephanie says.

"Not that I want her to, mind you. Just, want to be on guard. I'm not sure why her remote failed to detonate them. I was tied up fighting the mobsters she'd lured there and used that psychotic episode gas on. I was so afraid of what was going to happen but couldn't do anything to stop it. I really wish I had Barbara's skill with technical things. It just... isn't me though," she says with a sigh. "Maybe I could get her to make some sort of... can there be a signal jammer that just takes out everything, for a moment like that where you have to stop a detonator?"

Nightwing has posed:
Dick returns feeling a little fresher and frowns as he realizes Stephanie is cleaning the spot on the wall. "Hey, you don't have clean up after all my emotional messes, Steph."

He cracks a grin at her and snatches the rag from her, so he can address mess himself. "I'm pretty sure I've seen Bruce use one of those before. It's definitely possible. It has the drawback of affecting your own equipment, but it's handy, especially if you are dealing with drones or some quack's army of evil robotic henchmen."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie cracks a crooked grin towards Dick. "I think dealing with emotional messes is in the top five duties of a girlfriend," Stephanie teases Dick. She does surrender the rag though, standing up and reaching down to tease her fingers through his hair as he's wiping up the floor.

"It might be worth having one, at least on my Batcycle," she agrees of the jammer. "I'm sure I'd be hated, taking out everyone's phone and... I don't even know what else. But if it saves a Ferris wheel's worth of people? Worth it," she says. Stephanie sighs and shakes her head. "Harley... really gets to me in particular. Since that stupid interview," she says. Stephanie was an idiot, participate in an April O'Neil interview. Spoiler and Harley Quin at the same time. It took her awhile to earn her way back out of Bruce's dog house after that. But she did it, enough to be trusted with the Batgirl legacy.

Nightwing has posed:
"Harley terrifies me. She's smarter then she lets anyone realize, and I still cannot understand what kind of psychotic break one has to have to pal around with the Joker." He finishes picking up his mess and grabs the bowl carrying it over to the sink. "As for the interview, part of learning is making mistakes. I've certainly made my share. Bruce has made plenty, too.. Even if he almost never admits to them."

He walks back over to Stephanie and rests his hands on his hips. "My advice for dealing with Harley.. is just getting the drop on her. Don't let her know you are on her trail. Never give her a chance to prepare a trap, and never give her enough time to speak. I personally favour a swing-by kick to the back of the head and a long nap for that basket case."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie gives a little shiver at the mention of Harvey. "I could tell how smart she is. And, charismatic too. I sounded so bad in comparison," she says with a sigh, remembering the question that brought up Harley's fan websites. Fans of a psychopath.

Stephanie smiles as Dick comes back to her and rests his hands upon her hips. His touch is always the best balm for whatever is bothering her. "That sounds like a great idea. Or a batarang to the head," she says with a little grin. Stephanie reaches up to rest her palms flat on Dick's chest. "So you know I did my first HALO jump with Bruce not too long ago. I wonder if he'd let us take up the jet for some more training in that," she says. "Maybe a nice flight at sunset, see the sun go down from above the clouds? Then... jump out of a perfectly good aircraft to fall at a hundred and thirty miles an hour?"

Her idea of a good date.

Nightwing has posed:
"That's not a terrible idea. Despite my efforts on the nightcar and the nightcycle, I do not yet have a 'nightjet'. It's been awhile since I've needed to HALO. I should probably do a refresher. Same with SCUBA actually. We should set a schedule so we can train together on activities that work better with a buddy system." He tilts his head and offers the glowing Grayson smile. "Hell of a way to experience a sunrise too. Nice having a girlfriend who doesn't mind jumping out of a perfectly good airplane.. and even encourages it!"

Spoiler has posed:
The blond up and coming crimefighter grins and Dick and moves her hands to rest on his arms. "I kind of like the buddy system when it involves you," she says with a playful grin. Stephanie goes up on her toes to brush a kiss to Dick before sinking back flat-footed and resting her head against his chest.

"Barbara would probably tell you my problem isn't the being willing to jump, it's the being smart enough not to," she says, giving a little self-deprecating laugh. "And I haven't done much underwater training. I'll brush up on the training programs before we go. Though I really think I need a bikini-inspired costume for it instead of the full-on wetsuit," she says with a grin.

Nightwing has posed:
His eyes widen, "Oh, I hadn't considered a bikini. Let's skip the HALO and the SCUBA and just head for the beach once all this mess is over with. That sounds like a slice of paradise."

He chuckles and runs his hands through her hair coming through the blond strands with his fingers. "Yea.. That's a very distracting though." he later adds then hums, "Sure Barbara has said the same about me in the past. I know Bruce has. It takes awhile to learn how to clear your thoughts when the adrenaline starts pumping."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie breaks out in a warm laugh, nuzzling her cheek against Dick's chest as she hugs him. The fingers in her hair make her sigh with contentment as she closes her eyes. "It's a date," she says, tightening her arms around Dick in a warm hug.

"I need to drop in on her, haven't seen her in a few days," she says of Barbara. "Maybe she'll be free to do some overwatch for us when we go on patrol then. I always feel better knowing she's there. But don't you dare} tell her that or I'll never live it down that her voice is so comforting," Stephanie says with a warm laugh.

Nightwing has posed:
"I won't dare.. but you should tell her. I bet Barbara would appreciate knowing how much she's needed and wanted. You might just want to struggle living it down." Dick kisses her on the forehead. "Well, you should probably go get suited up. I'll see you out there, Batgirl. We should get to making the streets safer before the idea of you in a bikini causes my priorities to change." He waggles his eyebrows.