On the plus side - Damian's body temperature is higher than most peoples, thanks to his fire powers. It insulates him from the cold and makes the frosty little storage closet a few degrees warmer than it is outside. He's there before Stephen, looking pissier than he usually does. Which is honestly a fucking feat. ]
[ it's fine, he's expecting it. isn't expecting the small raise in temperature in here but that's at least a plus. the cool air swoops in with him, whisks out some of the newly generated warmth, but it'll soon settle again.
more importantly, to business. he wears an expression that makes none of his usual concessions to Hafid's moods. ]
I understand that you'd rather not talk about this now. But you understand that it's necessary. [ or he wouldn't be here. ] Thank you for coming.
I can't speak to the details of her fascination. I only know what I've heard, and what I've experienced. She's after my brothers and I because we pulled one over on her. [ 'we' not jason, pulling ownership over all of them. ] She sent men after us to attack us, put us in our place, and we bested them - now she bets on my fights and sends her goons after me. I've been trying to work my way in closer to find out what she actually knows, but...
[ He blew that, but he couldn't have done it if it meant that he'd give over any sign he'd hurt his brothers to do it. ]
[ yes, actually. no, this really isn't good news for Hafid - Damian... that's another question to ask - and his brothers, but it takes some of the weight off the immediate scope of the problem. ]
So her knowledge of you and your brothers came from an exercising of her resources. [ it's not a question, rather a statement of probability. and then, to Damian proper: ] She didn't know your real name. I'm not unhappy.
[ things are dangerous, but it's not as bad as it could be. maeda isn't imbued with infinite knowledge, whatever her involvement it doesn't run as deep as he initially feared it might. ]
[ There's that, at least - he should've seen if she knew his codename. The name Damian Wayne had ceased to mean anything in his own world. He was Nightwing before he was a person. ]
... There's no way she could have known who the old man was to me without knowing something about who I am.
[ Some of the aggression eases off. He's not giving innate details of the encounter and her issues with them, that isn't fair to his siblings, and he's not sure he wants to deal with Stephen knowing why he'd gone for the dog as a final Fuck You. ]
They mean enough to let us know she doesn't have everything. She didn't have yours, she didn't have mine. You have two brothers she's aware of and she's insanely rich. If there was ever any even slightly publicly accessible sign of a tie between him and any of them, she would've found it, and then she knows he's linked to you.
[ if there wasn't, then we need to start assessing the ins and outs of what she might know and how. but even that isn't as worrying as it could be. there are ways. none of them simple, but they have options. ]
Pretty sure he didn't even leave the safehouse. Matches and Dick aren't exactly going around talking about him. He didn't use his name as his ID, either.
[ ... ]
I should have kept pressing her. This could've lead to something. [ He shoves his hands through his hair, frustration clear on his face. That, and regret. ] I'm sorry.
No. If you hadn't got out I would've pulled you out.
[ so don't apologise, don't dwell on it. they already came away with more than he had any idea they would.
but "don't apologise" is never going to be worth much alone. so he quantifies. ]
Besides, you got plenty. And you gave me time to get what I could.
She doesn't fully understand who or what we are. Knows of the word displaced but doesn't understand its meaning, knows yourself and your brothers and your father but not me, and I didn't hear any other names she immediately associates with us as a group.
It's possible we have or had a leak in the safehouse. Sentiments around us weren't good for a while. Maybe a Morningstar representative or one of the refugees created by the UNA raids picked up a little extra money on the side - if you knew he was here, he must've had some identifying conversations with you or the others. All it would've taken was someone inside primed to keep an eye on the three of you.
If it's more than that, we'll find out. But if whatever it is that we don't know hasn't come back to bite us yet, I don't believe it's an immediate danger to anyone other than you and your brothers. What we have now is a focus for our efforts. It's certainly more of a lead than I had before.
[ If he'd stayed, he would've killed them. Killed her. Killed her guards and dealt with whatever that kind of ego death means in the real world in stride.
He can't take the praise. Or the good will. Because his mind is occupied - not knowing who the leak was, not knowing if it could be one of their own - because it very well could be. People will do stupid things to get ahead. ]
Maybe.
[ He doesn't know. And it bothers him. ]
The fact that we don't know is precisely why we need to become self-sufficient. I'm not worried about Maeda, I'm worried about what kind of influence she might be exerting on the people of this world and what they'll do to us to get her favor.
[ a grim turn of his mouth, conceding on that point. ]
We're well on our way. It won't fix all our problems, but it'll buy us some time.
[ it's not total separation and they'll have far from fallen off the grid, but it's something. no more third parties wandering through their midst. no more strangers who aren't in the same boat. ]
And I'm going to follow up with Maeda. [ they made a solid start. he doesn't intend on leaving it there. ] I know you will too. But you need to be careful. If the things that have changed since we've been back are anything to go by, she's going to be after you more than she was before.
[ maybe him too, by extension. but she only knows his face if she remembers anything about him at all. that's something to work with. ]
[ Damian's voice comes out hard and short, jaw setting. He can't tell him to keep his hands off - that's just not possible, so after a second he relents. ]
Before you do anything, you tell me. [ ... ] The more upset she is, them more likely she is to go after my brothers. I don't care if she comes after me, there's not a lot she can do to me that I can't walk off - but them?
[ They're already so damn angry at him. At each other. He doesn't know how to even begin fitting the pieces of their trust back together, and this whole thing going beyond him? Beyond them? Running the risk of other people pissing her off or getting too close, and her deciding to take it out on them? ]
And all four of us need to co-ordinate or things are going to go very south very fast. We can't afford to be blindsided.
[ it's a fair point that he'll concede, though there are levels to it that need discussing: how the reverse needs to be true. how if he'll hold off on their account, they can't go off and act without him either.
first, though, a moment of quiet as he considers something else. ]
In what way are you any less vulnerable than your brothers?
Damian considers him for a moment. Weighs what to say carefully. ]
They're formidable. But I was raised by my mother. I was holding a weapon before I could hold my head up, fighting as soon as I could stand, and she didn't believe in training wheels
I don't doubt your skill. But this isn't our universe, let alone our city, and you don't have the resources I'm sure you had once. The person you're going up against can use anything and anyone she needs. She has the money and the standing for it. She may not come at you with physical harm.
You have to consider yourself just as much as you'd consider them. If I can't trust you to do that, I can't trust you to keep me fully informed and there's no point in us trying to work together.
You saw the world I came from, Strange. If I didn't consider myself, I wouldn't be alive. This also isn't the first time I've had to deal with an enemy like her while having nothing to my name.
To be clear, I don't expect to be actively included in whatever it is you three choose to do. I know our approaches differ and I highly doubt your brother is going to like the idea of involving me in your personal business.
[ this one time in stopping loki from murdering ojiro camp, I spoke at his brain and we haven't really had a reason to talk since
which brother? he's not saying the name "Matches" out loud that's an affront to his own self respect ]
But if an opportunity arises for me to get into her head, it's in everyone's best interest to facilitate a way for me to take it.
Besides that, I'm the only one of you she doesn't know. If you need that, and so long as I can fortify against it jeopardizing the security of anyone else if I'm compromised, I'll do what I can.
[ he's going to go ahead and assume jason, because jason is the one who likes to make enemies. dick makes friends who would gladly die for him and can't stay out of his business. ]
That's my intent. I'll keep you informed of anything you may need to know.
[ He folds his arms. Hesitating a moment before he says anything else.]
... I hope it goes without saying that what you saw while in my dream - or in my head - stays between us.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2019-04-30 12:17 pm (UTC)[ it's outside of mealtimes, ought to buy them some small privacy ]
no subject
Date: 2019-04-30 12:20 pm (UTC)On the plus side - Damian's body temperature is higher than most peoples, thanks to his fire powers. It insulates him from the cold and makes the frosty little storage closet a few degrees warmer than it is outside. He's there before Stephen, looking pissier than he usually does. Which is honestly a fucking feat. ]
no subject
Date: 2019-04-30 12:26 pm (UTC)more importantly, to business. he wears an expression that makes none of his usual concessions to Hafid's moods. ]
I understand that you'd rather not talk about this now. But you understand that it's necessary. [ or he wouldn't be here. ] Thank you for coming.
no subject
Date: 2019-04-30 12:32 pm (UTC)Might as well barrel into it. ]
I can't speak to the details of her fascination. I only know what I've heard, and what I've experienced. She's after my brothers and I because we pulled one over on her. [ 'we' not jason, pulling ownership over all of them. ] She sent men after us to attack us, put us in our place, and we bested them - now she bets on my fights and sends her goons after me. I've been trying to work my way in closer to find out what she actually knows, but...
[ He blew that, but he couldn't have done it if it meant that he'd give over any sign he'd hurt his brothers to do it. ]
This is my problem. Happy?
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 08:32 am (UTC)So her knowledge of you and your brothers came from an exercising of her resources. [ it's not a question, rather a statement of probability. and then, to Damian proper: ] She didn't know your real name. I'm not unhappy.
[ things are dangerous, but it's not as bad as it could be. maeda isn't imbued with infinite knowledge, whatever her involvement it doesn't run as deep as he initially feared it might. ]
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 09:01 am (UTC)... There's no way she could have known who the old man was to me without knowing something about who I am.
[ Some of the aggression eases off. He's not giving innate details of the encounter and her issues with them, that isn't fair to his siblings, and he's not sure he wants to deal with Stephen knowing why he'd gone for the dog as a final Fuck You. ]
Names mean a lot less than people think they do.
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Date: 2019-05-02 09:15 am (UTC)[ if there wasn't, then we need to start assessing the ins and outs of what she might know and how. but even that isn't as worrying as it could be. there are ways. none of them simple, but they have options. ]
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Date: 2019-05-02 09:20 am (UTC)[ Damian takes in a breath. Lets it out. ]
Pretty sure he didn't even leave the safehouse. Matches and Dick aren't exactly going around talking about him. He didn't use his name as his ID, either.
[ ... ]
I should have kept pressing her. This could've lead to something. [ He shoves his hands through his hair, frustration clear on his face. That, and regret. ] I'm sorry.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 09:35 am (UTC)[ so don't apologise, don't dwell on it. they already came away with more than he had any idea they would.
but "don't apologise" is never going to be worth much alone. so he quantifies. ]
Besides, you got plenty. And you gave me time to get what I could.
She doesn't fully understand who or what we are. Knows of the word displaced but doesn't understand its meaning, knows yourself and your brothers and your father but not me, and I didn't hear any other names she immediately associates with us as a group.
It's possible we have or had a leak in the safehouse. Sentiments around us weren't good for a while. Maybe a Morningstar representative or one of the refugees created by the UNA raids picked up a little extra money on the side - if you knew he was here, he must've had some identifying conversations with you or the others. All it would've taken was someone inside primed to keep an eye on the three of you.
If it's more than that, we'll find out. But if whatever it is that we don't know hasn't come back to bite us yet, I don't believe it's an immediate danger to anyone other than you and your brothers. What we have now is a focus for our efforts. It's certainly more of a lead than I had before.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 09:47 am (UTC)He can't take the praise. Or the good will. Because his mind is occupied - not knowing who the leak was, not knowing if it could be one of their own - because it very well could be. People will do stupid things to get ahead. ]
Maybe.
[ He doesn't know. And it bothers him. ]
The fact that we don't know is precisely why we need to become self-sufficient. I'm not worried about Maeda, I'm worried about what kind of influence she might be exerting on the people of this world and what they'll do to us to get her favor.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 10:05 am (UTC)We're well on our way. It won't fix all our problems, but it'll buy us some time.
[ it's not total separation and they'll have far from fallen off the grid, but it's something. no more third parties wandering through their midst. no more strangers who aren't in the same boat. ]
And I'm going to follow up with Maeda. [ they made a solid start. he doesn't intend on leaving it there. ] I know you will too. But you need to be careful. If the things that have changed since we've been back are anything to go by, she's going to be after you more than she was before.
[ maybe him too, by extension. but she only knows his face if she remembers anything about him at all. that's something to work with. ]
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 10:19 am (UTC)[ Damian's voice comes out hard and short, jaw setting. He can't tell him to keep his hands off - that's just not possible, so after a second he relents. ]
Before you do anything, you tell me. [ ... ] The more upset she is, them more likely she is to go after my brothers. I don't care if she comes after me, there's not a lot she can do to me that I can't walk off - but them?
[ They're already so damn angry at him. At each other. He doesn't know how to even begin fitting the pieces of their trust back together, and this whole thing going beyond him? Beyond them? Running the risk of other people pissing her off or getting too close, and her deciding to take it out on them? ]
And all four of us need to co-ordinate or things are going to go very south very fast. We can't afford to be blindsided.
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Date: 2019-05-02 10:55 am (UTC)first, though, a moment of quiet as he considers something else. ]
In what way are you any less vulnerable than your brothers?
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Date: 2019-05-02 11:07 am (UTC)Damian considers him for a moment. Weighs what to say carefully. ]
They're formidable. But I was raised by my mother. I was holding a weapon before I could hold my head up, fighting as soon as I could stand, and she didn't believe in training wheels
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 11:19 am (UTC)I don't doubt your skill. But this isn't our universe, let alone our city, and you don't have the resources I'm sure you had once. The person you're going up against can use anything and anyone she needs. She has the money and the standing for it. She may not come at you with physical harm.
You have to consider yourself just as much as you'd consider them. If I can't trust you to do that, I can't trust you to keep me fully informed and there's no point in us trying to work together.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 11:34 am (UTC)You saw the world I came from, Strange. If I didn't consider myself, I wouldn't be alive. This also isn't the first time I've had to deal with an enemy like her while having nothing to my name.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 11:43 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 12:00 pm (UTC)Fine.
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Date: 2019-05-02 12:06 pm (UTC)You are not expendable to the people you're trying to protect. You need to be aware of that and respect it.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 01:11 pm (UTC)[ he resists raising his voice. ]
Look - I know what will happen if I die. Even if I was brought back. I will live at all costs, and I know how to. Which is why I'm less vulnerable.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 03:24 pm (UTC)Alright.
Then the four of us will co-ordinate.
[ he won't go off on his own and leave them with the consequences, there's his word. ]
no subject
Date: 2019-05-02 04:16 pm (UTC)Agreed.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-03 09:53 am (UTC)[ this one time in stopping loki from murdering ojiro camp, I spoke at his brain and we haven't really had a reason to talk since
which brother? he's not saying the name "Matches" out loud that's an affront to his own self respect ]
But if an opportunity arises for me to get into her head, it's in everyone's best interest to facilitate a way for me to take it.
Besides that, I'm the only one of you she doesn't know. If you need that, and so long as I can fortify against it jeopardizing the security of anyone else if I'm compromised, I'll do what I can.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-03 10:17 am (UTC)That's my intent. I'll keep you informed of anything you may need to know.
[ He folds his arms. Hesitating a moment before he says anything else.]
... I hope it goes without saying that what you saw while in my dream - or in my head - stays between us.
[ being a criminal himself and all. ]
no subject
Date: 2019-05-04 08:22 am (UTC)It does.
[ hafid it is, then. but there's also a peace of mind to lay down - ]
And for the record, I wasn't in your head any more than I needed to be to hear and be heard.
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