Red and Black, Black and Orange_ (Slade and Quinn)

[slade]

Bludhaven. If Gotham was a trash can of human society then Bludhaven was the town dump. Things didn't get thrown away here they were stolen even if they were nailed down. Calling the place a cesspool would be a compliment. There were few things a place such as this could be improved by. Off the top of the travelers head was the application of a can of gasoline and a well place burst of flame. But as distasteful as the city was it was still better then THE CITY. That damnable place... This city was not completely rotten to the core through it's outside was as fifthy as could be... in that respect it was the opposite of that dirty city which presented such a clean picture. The usual pictures flashed through his mind, the usual failures so long ago, the old pains. They were pushed aside. It was not a time to think of that he was not in Bludhaven to sight see. He resumed his vigil as he stood upon the roof top waiting.

It was a simple plan, calculating her last income, calculate her expenses and figure when she would run out of money or run low. Then he had but to figure out where the most likely site of her larceny would be and wait. The stranger stood on the roof top as the rain drizzled down on him as he rested his back against the brick wall behind him. He held still unnaturally still some might say. It was an old technique if you stayed still enough people tended to paint you out of the picture in their head. They made you invisible. They ignored you and that suited his purpose just fine. He wasn't there to chat with a caped crusader or a hooded hero... in fact his interest rested quite squarely in the other direction. He simply stood in the rain, in the shadows... and let it all coat him as he looked and listened.

[quinn]

Ah, Bludhaven. Gotham's wicked little sister city. And probably the worst city in the USA. It was filthy, scummy, and full of rotten criminals. The perfect place for the now single Harley Quinn to go. That... and the banks were easier to break into, of course. Which is precisely why she was in such a bank and almost done. It was late enough that there was only security there and they had been easy to take care of. She had enough money stuffed into the lone bag she carried. The bag usually carried her tricks and treats but today, it just carried a butt load of cash.

With her mallet and money, she left the back the same way she came, through a fire escape near the roof. She never understood why banks needed so many floors. Nor did she care. As she got there and was about to make her way down, she stopped. Her eyes glanced over something. Slight paranoia started to take over her. Was he there? Had he found her? "H-hello? Who's there?"

[/b] she asked, blinking a few times to get anything that may be in them out. Nothing. Huh. Maybe she hadn't seen anyone to begin with. But she could never be sure, so she quietly hide her bag behind a exhaust vent thingie ma whosit and crept around, her mallet ready for anyone.
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[slade]

The stranger watched his target move over the building. He automatically started categorizing her weapon choice, her movements. Agile, decent strength boosted most likely by her own madness. A possibly unpredictable opponent over time but all animals react one of two ways when surprised. Flight or fight and despite her nervousness was he confident in his ability to read her right. As she turned away to hide her ill gotten gains he stepped fro his shadow, the rain running down him. A black trench coat covering much of his armor a good disguise on a miserable night such as tonight... at least at a distance. Up close the orange of his mask was quite visible with it's side being the only side with an eyehole. The eye within it gazed out with a cold dead gaze. The opposite side as black as knight was unbroken and flat except for breathing holes for his mouth. The sound of his voice came out quite clearly as he finally spoke from behind his target.

"Doctor Harleen Frances Quinzel..."

As the red and black figure spun and swung the mallet in her hand Slade didn't blink. Didn't move anything except his right arm which blurred into motion. Moving at a speed as such their seemed to be no time between his arm relaxed at his side and his arm above his shoulder and his hand holding onto the mallet holding it immobile in midswing.

"Resigned from Arkum Asylum in an... explosive exit along with one of the inmates and took the name Harley Quinn... a more charming name I will confess."

Slade's arm twisted to the side spinning the mallet out of the hands of the woman before him. The rest of his body didn't move for this action. He hefted the hammer by the handle and turned his head to look at it, giving it a mini swing out of curiosity. Before returning his gaze to her.

"Hmmmm... now do not panic Miss. I am not here to hurt you nor capture you. I must insist you behave or else I will have to take away your toys. I am simply here to talk. Before you ask I am not here to ask about your... Mr. J. I have encountered him before and find him not worth my time."

Slade turned from her to look at the cityscape below, the hammer clasped behind his back as he looked.

"I am here about you. A woman far more capable then the man she left a promising career for. Tell me Miss Quinn... aren't you tired of this? Tired of being on the run from a man dressed as a bat?... I always did wonder about that. Why so many fear a man dressed as a fairly harmless creature... Aren't you tired of having to rob a bank just to make ends meet?"

He turned back looking at her, his single piercing eye looking at her, his eye giving her his full attention.

"I am not talking about turning over to those hypocrites who consider themselves heroes, who break the law in the name of enforcing it. No I have tired of them long ago. I am talking about the changes in this world, the changes coming. I need people by my side. Dependable people. I have very few people in my life I can trust. People who understand. I need people who..."

He stepped closer to her, a mere two feet seperating them and held out her hammer to her open handed.

"Deserve much more then they have been giving by those closest to them. Those who are tired of the status quo. Are you tired of it Miss Quinn?"

[quinn]

She heard her name. Harleen spotted the man and narrowed her eyes at him, spinning to swing her mallet at him. Too her immediate shock, he stopped it, mid-swing. And quite literally at that. He had moved with such speed... it was just strange. She had never see someone go so fast in her life. She looked at him with confused eyes, though she didn't let her guard down. How was she supposed to. The guy knew her name! And... Wait a second. He looked vaguely familiar. As if she had met the guy before. She doubted it though. Her mind was just playing tricks on her. Anger slowly started to fuel her. No one touched her mallet without her say so. No one! The Joker never even touched it without her permission!

"Hmmmm... now do not panic Miss. I am not here to hurt you nor capture you. I must insist you behave or else I will have to take away your toys. I am simply here to talk. Before you ask I am not here to ask about your... Mr. J. I have encountered him before and find him not worth my time."

"I am not panicking! You. Give me back my Mallet. Now! I do not..."

[/b] she trailed off as he finished speaking. Take away her toys? No. She did not want that. Not at all. This guy knew who she was. She was sure that he knew more than that too. If he knew that she had been here, he had to have followed her or something, right? She didn't want to take any chances. Besides, she needed to come up with a plan and fast before she did anything drastic.

"I am here about you. A woman far more capable then the man she left a promising career for. Tell me Miss Quinn... aren't you tired of this? Tired of being on the run from a man dressed as a bat?... I always did wonder about that. Why so many fear a man dressed as a fairly harmless creature... Aren't you tired of having to rob a bank just to make ends meet?"

She shook her head no. Of course she wouldn't want that. And, well, to be honest, he had a good point. She didn't speak though she did ponder. Ponder on what this man was saying and how she actually agreed with him. He was so right? Why the hell did she have to be the one chased? And why oh why did no one else seem to care? Why was the Bat so feared by those who never even met the guy before? It wasn't fair! It just wasn't. None of it was.

"I am not talking about turning over to those hypocrites who consider themselves heroes, who break the law in the name of enforcing it. No I have tired of them long ago. I am talking about the changes in this world, the changes coming. I need people by my side. Dependable people. I have very few people in my life I can trust. People who understand. I need people who... Deserve much more then they have been giving by those closest to them. Those who are tired of the status quo. Are you tired of it Miss Quinn?"

Harley's anger evaporated as she lightly took her mallet back. She held it at her side. Not going to use it at all, no doubt. There was no point. Her blank expression slowly turned into a mischievous smile. "Yes... I am. I am tired of the stupid status quo. Bein' what Mistah Jay wants when he just up an' leaves anyway. Bein' what society expects me ta be. Just some defenseless, blonde, Jokeh lovin' clown,"[/b] she fumed softly. She took a deep breath in to calm herself down.

"Please Mistah, call me Harley,"[/b] she said with a smirk. "Everyone does."[/b]
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[slade]

Slade smiled under the mask. Letting the smile carry slightly into his voice as he looked at her. Looking at the water run down her he pulled off his trench coat and handed it to her.

"In that case you must call me Slade. It is only fair is it not?"

He indicated the tenchcoat. Despite the rain it was dry and warm inside.

"Please put it on. It would not do much good for you to get sick while listening to me and from the sound of it..."

Slade walked over and peered over the edge of the building.

"Yes. The cops are down there but they appeared to have lost your trail when you went up. I must admit I was pleased at that. I was able to figure out what your most likely escape path would be from traffic, street planing and your file from Arkhum but you deciding to go up was a pleasant surprise. So many of those fools out there just think in two dimensions. I have no use for them. You think in three dimensions. One of the many reasons I decided to meet you. So much more capable and intelligent then that waste of skin you used to spend time with. Even capturing his arch nemesis on your own, you would have been able to finish him off if it wasn't for that man's short sightedness."

Slade returned to look at Harley his one eye peering at her curiously. He paused as he looked at her for a moment. Peering into her eyes. His thoughts rearranged themselves after a moment. Reaching into a compartment in his armor he pulled out a small video screen. As he held it up it lit up and several faces popped up one after another. The faces of young people, teens and children. But odd ones. One was short and bald, another pink haired and wearing purple and black. Another a blonde with a pair of goggles on her head.

"The youth of this world have potential don't you think? They can with training accomplish what we we never dare to try. It is what makes them strong. Makes them capable. They are still unformed so they are not hardened... not obsessed with playing silly games with a man wearing twin spikes on his hood, not trying to prove themselves smarter then a man from another planet, not stuck in endless loops of pointless behavior. They are still unformed and these young ones I intend to mold but..."

Slade began to walk in a slow leisurely circle around Harley. His eye looking her up and down. His feet made no sound as they moved even as they entered a puddle they barely seemed to disturb the water.

"I can't do it alone. Tell me my dear. Have you ever taught before? I believe from reading your Arkham file you would be quite good at it... you know. If they didn't want people to read those files you think they would have better security."

[quinn]

Slade, Slade, Slade... Now how did she know that name. It sounded so familiar. It was right at the tip of her tongue yet she couldn't quite think it. Why? "Yeah, I guess I could call ya Slade,"

[/b] she giggled before a shiver went up her spine. The rain was soaking her costume and he greasepaint was slowly starting to go soft, it seemed. That was when he took off his trench coat and handed it to her. Her eyes grew slightly wide as she looked at him. Was he really... offering her his coat? She took it, placing her mallet on the ground just next to her foot, and put it on, wrapping her arms around her front to keep the warmth close to her. "Gee... thanks," she said, rather sincerely at that.

"Yes. The cops are down there but they appeared to have lost your trail when you went up. I must admit I was pleased at that. I was able to figure out what your most likely escape path would be from traffic, street planing and your file from Arkhum but you deciding to go up was a pleasant surprise. So many of those fools out there just think in two dimensions. I have no use for them. You think in three dimensions. One of the many reasons I decided to meet you. So much more capable and intelligent then that waste of skin you used to spend time with. Even capturing his arch nemesis on your own, you would have been able to finish him off if it wasn't for that man's short sightedness."

She listened, looking at him curiously. She was surprised to hear what she did. Because, well, she had never heard anyone say that to her... in her life. She couldn't even pretend to not know what he meant. It was probably the strangest... yet, somehow, nicest thing she had heard in... well... months! Seriosuly, months. "Well, with all them cops on tha outside, the only logical thing ta do ta get outta this place is go up, right?" she asked, putting on her dumb blonde facade. She didn't even catch the fact that he had just said something about her Arkham File.

He pulled out a little video thingie, that she was quite curious about, and saw the faces that popped up. 'who're they,' she thought, asking herself. Well, she should have asked this Slade guy. But, hey, she'd just wait for him to tell her first.

"The youth of this world have potential don't you think? They can with training accomplish what we we never dare to try. It is what makes them strong. Makes them capable. They are still unformed so they are not hardened... not obsessed with playing silly games with a man wearing twin spikes on his hood, not trying to prove themselves smarter then a man from another planet, not stuck in endless loops of pointless behavior. They are still unformed and these young ones I intend to mold but..."

Harley nodded her head, though she felt a bit uncomfortable. At least, she started to feel uncomfortable when he started to walk circles around her. Maybe it wasn't the cirles that made her feel that way though. It was more of the fact that he was so quiet about it. "Well... umm... who are these kids exactly?"

"I can't do it alone. Tell me my dear. Have you ever taught before? I believe from reading your Arkham file you would be quite good at it... you know. If they didn't want people to read those files you think they would have better security."

Now, this time, she caught it. "Wait, you've read my files?" She asked. Now that was a whole new level of creepy. It was kind of cute... but... creepy. In that stalkerish way. Then again, why the hell weren't her files under better protection. God, Arkham was horrible, wasn't it. It couldn't do anything right! "No, I ain't eveh taught before. Not in my life. Psychologists and Psycho's don't really need ta teach. Heck, I haven't even eveh had an intern ta teach when I was workin' at Arkham." Harleen paused for a moment. "Why do ya wanna know, anyway?"
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[slade]

"Because my dear, you have alot to offer these kids. They need guidance to grow into whatever they need to be. Not what I want them to be, not what others want them to be. But what they need to be."

Taking the screen again he brought up Jinx's picture and data. He showed her picture to the woman near him.

"Jinx, master acrobat, powerful, smart and cleaver.... but almost became something she wasn't just because a guy showed up in her life. A 'hero' who tried to brainwash her. Made her abandon her friends, her makeshift family, all for him. She found the strength to leave that relationship but I do worry about her backsliding. She needs someone to talk to, someone who has been there."

Slade looked out of the corner of his eye and Harley, knowing he probably had her utmost interest at this point. He brought up the next face.

"Gizmo, brilliant mind, a bit on the vulgar side but his bright and shiny face more then makes up for it. But insomnia is tarnishing this brilliant mind. Too much screaming at the night and his mind will find itself quote... gone."

He brought up another face, his own apprentice.

"Eliza, also known as Broodmother. She has the mother of all mother issues. Smart, capable. Her future is so bright she needs to wear shades."

Turning off the screen slade gestured at it. Taking in all of what he had showed her.

"I can be what they need on one side, I can be the disiplinarian, the task master, I can push them to their limits and help them find their potential. But I can't do that and be their bestest best friend. I don't have that in me. I know my limits and in all modesty I don't have many but I know them. I can't be the one throwing birthday parties for them, or cheering them up, or having heart to hearts to them about boys while painting their nails. But... you..."

Slade looked at her, taking her all in.

"You are intelligent, cleaver, daring. Friendly almost to a fault. You have managed to make friends with one of the gotham regular's whose biggest goals is the eradication of the human species. That Ivy... quite the wildflower... and your education makes you well suited to deal with some of the problems my students are having. Will you help me help them? Though..."

Slade took a couple of steps closer to her, a little to close for most people. He bent down a bit to better look her eye to eye.

"In honesty I might have... my own alterial reasons for wanting you around."