0027 - [Video]

[keeps_a_cool_head]

[Finally - after having his room stripped of supplies twice, after the Mirror Barge nonsense and allies lost and warden annoyances - Scorpius is holding in his hands the sum of the hours he's spent cooped up in his cabin.

He stands up from his work desk, holding what looks to be a ridiculously sharp and extravagant blade to be fitted over an arm. It has other uses - to pick up delicate things, to turn doorknobs and so on - but the chief inspiration seems to come from excessive weaponry.

Scorpius fits it over his own arm, and with a heave, turns his arm to cut into the wall next to him. The blade embeds itself into the wall some three inches deep before stopping. Satisfied, he pulls it free and sets it back on the table]

I believe your replacement is ready, Horatio.

Comments

[keeps_a_cool_head]

And yet aside from you and Horatio, it has happened to every person I have managed to..

...I hesitate to use the word 'befriend', for obvious reasons.

You must admit it's been a poor string of luck.

[ichoosefight]

[ She smiles, pleased by the hint that he likes her. ]

No, I can't really argue with you there.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

[You're annoying and perky and you don't like science, but...damn, Steph, you're stern but fair. Fairness isn't something he sees a lot of, and he's grown attached to that, at least]

What will you do, when the time comes for us to unpair?

[He leaves the question of whether he will graduate unanswered. It's more likely he believes that either he or Stephanie will leave not of their own will]

[ichoosefight]

You mean when you graduate?

[ She raises her eyebrows at him, unwavering in her conviction that he will eventually graduate. ]

Head home for a bit then come back, I guess.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

[Jesus, Stephanie, stop assuming that's ever gonna happen. Scorpius turns an unamused look back at her]

You would continue to warden?

[ichoosefight]

Of course. This place is as much home to me as Gotham ever was.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

...Stephanie, I wish to speak candidly with you for a minute.

You are young. And while you have much more worldly experience than nearly all people your age, you are still young, and already at the risk of becoming jaded before your time.

If the Barge is as much a home to you as Gotham, go to Gotham. You may not be aging physically while you're here, but too much time spent in a prison will age your mind and your emotions, even if you have the option of leaving.

Something to consider, while we wait out our time here together.

[ichoosefight]

[ It's always a little startling when he's sweet. For once she doesn't grin like an ass, because he does make a good point. ]

I'll be okay. I lost my chance at a life once. I'm not going to let it pass me up again.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

[He's a real schmoozer when he wants to be]

You realize you're already making a contradictory statement.

[ichoosefight]

Life is full of contradictions, my friend.

[ Ok but brushing aside concern... aside... ]

I'm getting Mom and me out of Gotham. That's my deal. This time, anyway.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

You need an unlimited, reality-breaking deal with an interdimensional being to secure a transport vehicle and two dozen storage containers?

[ichoosefight]

To clear up legal complications, pay off debts, and raise enough money to move right away without resorting to food stamps for the next ten years?

[keeps_a_cool_head]

And here I imagined you to be far more resourceful. Money should never be a limitation for those who are both ruthless and clever.

[ichoosefight]

I'm not that ruthless.

For that matter, I'm not that clever either. And I don't want whatever Babs would have to do to make it happen. I just want a clean getaway.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

This would be a lot simpler for you, if you were to leave your mother behind.

[He's looking more alert now, and curious. Scorpius is usually this cold and ruthless, but mothers...well, they tend to be a different topic altogether, with him. He's goading Stephanie purposefully, to see what she'll say]

She's much older, and less likely to find work in a new field, if she works at all. She's a liability you may not be able to afford, and you are almost an adult - entitled to your own life away from your parents.

[ichoosefight]

[ At first she just stares at him, trying so hard not to take the bait. But, alas, she's always worn her heart mostly on her sleeve. ]

She's my mom. We take care of each other.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

Have you ever wondered why that is? Or whether it could be different?

At what point does your own life take precedence over your mother's?

[ichoosefight]

Because--

She got it worse than I did, with Dad. When she finally sobered up it was just me and her. She took good care of me. The least I can do is return the favor.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

Yet you are under no obligation to sacrifice your way of life so that she can make a poor adjustment somewhere else.

[ichoosefight]

Uh, yeah. It's called love.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

[He gives a slight smile, lips pressed together to hide his fangs]

I'm glad to hear you admit it.

[ichoosefight]

[ She restrains a snort. ]

That I love my mother? At least you're easy to please.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

You would have no idea, of course, but you don't have an appreciation of how rare that connection is among certain species of both my galaxy and, I'm assured, other worlds.

[ichoosefight]

I'm from Gotham. I've seen just about every variety of fucked up family that there is.

[keeps_a_cool_head]

Do you know that in some subspecies of alien, it's routine for the infants to consume their mothers as a rite of passage in order to emerge into the adult world?

And for nourishment, I imagine.