2013-01-06 Anyone Have a Quarter?

"You know, Speedy, there's two things to mention about Gotham: One, it's always dark and gloomy, even when it's sunny out. That's because, two: Cap'n Stoneface Bat is always watching you," Roy grumbles, as he perches on a Gotham gargoyle, waiting for Nightwing. "Why you -have- to meet him, I really don't want to know. Got a mystery that need solving, or are you just here to ogle him?"
"Little bit of both, actually," says Mia. "But more with the mystery stuff. I've got a few possible leads that might point to some stuff going down in Gotham, or... coming out of Gotham. And I'd just like to run it by one of its less jerkish protectors before I start poking around in things. /Also/, I really, really wanna make sure there aren't any connection to any of Arhkam's less-than-finest," she answers. "And it's easier to get you to call your buddy than it is for me to try and get Robin's attention again."
"Which Robin? Red or...Traditional?" comes a voice from the shadows. He might have been there since before the two arrived or maybe he was just really good at sneaking about. Stepping out from the shadows, Nightwing grins up at Roy and his perch, "Were you expecting me from the skies somehow?" But back to Speedy, "Less-jerkish, huh? I think I'm flattered. Some might not share that sentiment."
Chin on his hands, Roy remain perched on the gargoyle, dryly commenting, "Oh yeah, the third thing, when you least expect it, they'll pop out of nowhere to try and scare you. I tell you, I think the Bats invented some sort of Star Trek teleporter and isn't telling anybody. I think you're better off just doing a lapdance on Robin's lap, that might get his attention."
Tilting his head at Dick, Roy finally gets off his perch, and moves to put his hand on Speedy's head. "Hey Wingster, meet the new Speedy. Gotta say, she fills out the costume better, eh?"
"Whichever one wears the hand-me-downs from Doc Mid-Nite," says Speedy, miming the way Red Robin's cowl covers his face. "Nice guy, iffy fashion sense, looks like he might be kinda cute under the head-condom," she adds. Tooootally not startled by the sudden appearance of Nightwing. Really. Then, she blinks and looks at Roy, and snorts a bit. "I somehow doubt he's interested. Although that /would/ drive GA up the wall, wouldn't it?" Smirk.
Then, it's back to business, and Nightwing. "I take it you heard the other reasons I got him to call you. Mostly, a courtesy, and also, making sure I'm not going to get myself killed looking in to these guys." She holds out her phone, which has a few files loaded onto the screen, names of a few Gotham criminals she's got leads on connected to some crime rings in both New York and Star City.
"It always works, too...even if people like Agent Harper here, refuse to admit it," Nightwing's grin remains and even grows into a chuckle at the advice to get Robin's attention. "Won't work on the newest Robin...for a kid his age, he's awfully focused. Red Robin...he'd probably be totally interested. He's a playah." Says Nightwing. Looking over the new Speedy, he tilts his head, "So, Green Arrow took another sidekick...and a cute girl at that. Are you sure that's really wise?" He lets Roy think on that as he looks to Speedy.
"You won't get yourself killed by any of us, I can tell you that. Spooked, perhaps...possibly chased away...but we don't kill. That isn't to say that the criminals will be so lenient." He looks to the files, "I recognize some of those names. You want to go after them here? Alone? Or were you looking for some help?"
"Oh, I already thought about that. But whatever happens, at least she got me watching out for her, right, Speedy?" Nudging the younger sidekick, Roy grins at her before glancing. "Eh, she's got a team behind her if that's necessary. Is it, Speedy?"
Speedy raises an eyebrow behind her mask at Nightwing, as if to say 'did you really just use the word /playah?/ out loud?' "Wasn't really worried about any of your crowd, but yeah, I was more concerned about the possibility of one of these small-time low-lives being somehow connected with one of your big-time low-lives. Like Arse-face said, I've got backup I can call on, but I don't think any of us are prepared to deal with the Arkham crowd." She makes a face. "Well. Except maybe Hawkeye. She scares me a little more than some supervillains."
Nightwing's grin fades a bit, "A team? Which team?" He looks then to Roy, "Your team? No. That's not a good idea." He turnes his masked eyes back to Speedy, "Oh, you can pretty much count that even the petty criminals here will have guns and won't be afraid to use them." A hand then gestures to the phone again, "If there's something going down in Gotham and they're still working, then yeah, they're related. I could do a little research to find out how deeply."
"Don't be ridiculous, she wouldn't last a day in -my- team. She'd probably get canned for flipping off Fury the first day," Roy grimaces. "No, she's... here, Speedy, you explain, it's your team. She -could- probably get my team involved if there were international jurisdiction, but I'm not sure if even -Fury- has the brass balls needed to poke around with the Big Bad Bat..."
"Dude, guns I can deal with. Have you seen the family arrow-in-the-gun-barrel trick? We have to prove we can do that before Ollie lets us out of the house," she says. "Arkham level nutcases, though, I'm not as prepared to deal with directly." Pause. "Except maybe the Penguin. I get the feeling the trick to beating him is just running uphill."
"The Penguin's a shrewd businessman. Don't discount him if it turns out that he's behind this," Nightwing points this out quickly. "I've seen the arrow trick. Not so easy to do when you've got five machine guns aimed at you." He gestures for her to hand her phone over though, so he can get another look at the files, "I don't know off the top of my head if it's any of the Arkham-folks...that always takes digging." He asks again, "What team are you trying to bring in here?"
Placing an elbow on Speedy's shoulder, Roy peeks over to look at the files as well. "So where do you plan on starting, Speedy? You planning to start off just by yourself, or hitting it with the team right off the bat?"
"Jeeze, guys, I'm still in the legwork stage here, give a girl a break," Speedy says, and hands the phone to Roy. "I'm still trying to sort out this connection to the gangs in NYC and Star City. I'm still waiting to hear back from a few of my street contacts about what they're even up to. If I need to take it to Hawkeye and the others, I will. And if it turns out being bigger, I'm okay with handing it off." And then she makes another face. "And, I think I might /know/ some of of the assholes on the Star City side of things."
Nightwing's smile is completely gone now as the 'Bat glare' comes out. His arms cross at his chest as he peers down at Speedy, "What. Team. This is the last time I'm asking."
"Whoa. The Bat-face's out. Better tell him, Speedy, befor he sends us to bed without supper," Roy says, nudging the younger girl.
"Just a bunch of us who got into some stuff a while back. Me, Hawkeye, some mutant kids from New York. Not so much a team, per se, really," she says. "And I'm not really sure all of them are comfortable with the idea of having Bat-eyes on them." A pause, and she thinks that over. Not... really an accurate use of bat-appendages there. Bats not being known for 20/20 vision and all. "Friends in tights? Does that work better?"
"Then you don't bring them." Nightwing glances quickly over to Roy before he turns his gaze back to Speedy. "'Some mutant kids from New York' is not a suitable description. If you want help poking about, one of us can help you. If, and only if, we decide that we trust your 'team' well enough, we can let you bring them in. However, until then, you can work with us to find your Gotham link."
"A bunch of allies, then," Roy shrugs. "You want her around with your supervision, or is it enough if I promise to stick with her while she's in Gotham?"
"Man, GA wasn't exagerating about that territorial stuff," Mia stage-whispers to Roy. "I'm not bringing anyone to Gotham, unless it's Roy or Hawkeye. Mostly because I don't trust /Gotham,/" she says. "Honestly, I'd prefer keeping this case away from them entirely." She's pretty sure some of the crime scene photos would destroy that power-booster kid's innocence. "So chill, alright?" she addresses to Nightwing. "If I do have to poke around this city in costume, I'll even take you or Red Robin with me, promise."
"'Bunch of allies' also doesn't work...you know that," Nightwing begins, "But if you're with her, fine." He looks back to Speedy, "If Red Robin is with you, fine...but not a bunch of Titans." His jaw tics once at that before he gestures for the phone again, since Roy had it last. "Do you want us to do the research and let you know if we find connections to New York and Star City? I'd be willing to do that."
Passing the phone back to Nightwing, Arsenal nods slowly. "Well, as long as Speedy has the sense to call for backup, I'm all good." There's a short glance as Nightwing mentions the Titans, but for once, Roy doesn't -comment-.
"I'm not going to turn down help," she says. "And I doubt any self-respecting crime fighter would look at the little tidbits I just showed you and not want to look in to them," she smiles a little. Did she come here /intending/ on trying to pass off a bunch of detective gruntwork to the Bats? No, no she didn't. Really. Promise. "Roy's already got my files in his inbox, I'm guessing he can forward them to you. You know, so you don't have to risk some mere ally getting your contact information."
Nightwing looks at the file names on the phone for a long moment before he finally closes it and hands it back to Speedy, "I have the names memorized now, but I'd appreciate a copy of the files, thank you." He looks back to Roy, "Knowing when to call backup is always a good thing." The 'gruntwork' shouldn't take too long -- between them, they probably have files upon files on these guys if they're at all connected with any of the Gotham baddies.
"I'll get it taken care of," Arsenal yawns, before nudging Speedy. "Is that all you have, or was there something else you wanted?" All of this really could've been taken care of on the phone, so... what was up?
"I dunno, how cranky is he gonna be if I ask if I can settle a bet I have with Hawkeye?" And then, she looks down at her lack of pockets or utility belt. "Nevermind, no quarters on me anyway." Don't ask, Roy. Just don't ask.
"Now, wait a minute! I'm not cranky..." Nightwing insists before he looks between the two, "Quarter?" He then asks, seeming two relax, "So you two came all the way out to Gotham to ask me to look at a couple names and to ask permission to poke around?"
"Well, she insisted," Roy shrugs. "Hold on, you need a quarter?" Fishing around in his pockets, Roy tosses Speedy a coin. "I'm afraid to ask, but I'll guess the Wingster's sense of humor might not be the greatest. I mean, look who his mentor is."
Speedy pockets the coin. No good can come of continuing that gag from there, lest she find out of superheroes can sue other superheroes for sexual harassment. "I didn't insist so much as politely ask you to set up a meeting for me /some time/" she objects. "But prettymuch yeah, just checking in before any official investigation in the city is needed." Then, as her brain goes over the past few minutes of conversation. "Hey, did you really mean it when you said I was cute?"
Nightwing continues to look between the two as they discuss just why they're here in person. When Speedy changes the subject, he points out, "See? Are you -sure- that this is the best idea? Her with Green Arrow? Or her with -you-, for that matter..."
"Oh yeah, despite how she sounds, she's no valley girl," Roy grins, stretching. "Want to put her to the test? Put an apple between your teeth, and let her shoot it. I'll bet you she hits it."
"Okay, first off," says Mia to Nightwing. "Ew. Make that kind of suggestion about me and GA again, never mind Roy, and I will find the most creative arrow in my quiver to lodge in your throat," she says, in a tone far more syrupy-sweet than the words have any right to be. "Secondly, Roy, are you really gonna hand me a straight line about mouths and shafts? Because really. You should know better by now."
Nightwing quietly contemplates Speedy's reply to him. He finally adds, "Yeah. Should you come here for any sort of investigation, I recommend leaving your pointy-arrows at home. Killing isn't tolerated very well." Just in case she didn't know. He then looks back to Roy, "No need to play William Tell's Son, thanks."
Roy really wasn't in a position to be self-righteous about the comment either, considering he'd made a similar remark to Ollie the first time he met Mia, so he leaves that remark to Speedy to handle. Instead, he grins back at Mia. "Hey, you were supposed to hit -that- one out of the park. Not my fault you let that by for a strike."
Patting Nightwing on the shoulder, Roy grins. "Relax. She knows. Though maybe a puncture wound or two..."
"Yeah, they do kind of have that rule against killing people in other cities too. Murder's pretty frowned upon in most parts of the country, not just Gotham." She smirks a little then, maybe even enough to bring to mind /certain/ other Robins that are not Dick, Tim or Damien. "But don't discount the non-lethal and extremely fun uses for pointy sticks. Can you pin a guy to the ground through his gauged piercings with a Batarang?"
He's not even going to touch their banter about shafts. Not going there. Nope. Not at all. Nightwing just looks at Roy, "Puncture wounds are fine as long as they're not lethal..." but he says she knows, so he'll leave it at that. Eyebrows lift under his mask at Mia's question, "Yes, I can. Depending on where the piercings are. Are we really going to play this game now?"
"Relax, Wingster. She's not gonna play measure-the-shaft," Roy shrugs. "Nothing's gonna be bigger than the sticks up the Bat-clan's butts, it's just her mouthing off. You can live with it. C'mon, Speedy, you've made your point, we've got what you wanted. That's it, right?"
"Not now, but if you do wanna play later, you know how to find me," she says, because even if he is kind of a dick, he's still the older brother's hot friend, so flirting in front of Roy /has/ to be done. "I'm good to go if you are, Arsenal. Unless you want me to head out on my own so you and your boy can bro-bond or whatever."
Nightwing just shakes his head at the bantering between the two. "All right, you two. It was very nice to meet you, Speedy, and I do appreciate you asking before you started snooping around. It just saves everyone a headache." He then looks to Roy, "I hope she's not and you have no room to talk, Agent Harper of SHIELD. At least I'm no longer owned by the government." He does grin at that, teasing a bit.
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