All this feels strange and untrue [complete]
WHO: Knives and Future Bat!Tim
WHERE: Rooftops outside Titans ClockTower.
WHEN: Late February 23rd.
WARNINGS: Noooooo?
SUMMARY: Knives is curious about Tim's transformation. Tim comes out to talk to him. They chat.
FORMAT: AIM log.
Knives: *He's still not sure if this is a good idea. He's spent most of the last 24 hours debating whether or not this was the course of action to take, and even now, something tells him he'll only be disappointed. However, after all the times they've argued, the debates they've had over using extreme force in dealing with people like the Joker, he can't help but wonder what would lead to such a radical change of heart. That's why, the night after he learns Red Robin has been swapped, he's standing on a rooftop just shy of Titans Tower. Perhaps he'll come; perhaps he won't. He has 154 years of experiences under his belt -- a few wasted hours isn't going to bother him.*
Tim: *He does come, eventually. Things in the Tower are quiet for now, and the presence nearby has not gone unnoticed. He doesn't recognise Knives directly, of course, but he has spent enough time reading the archives on his younger self's communicator to know the basics. His files were helpful as well, though Tim suspects he left them incomplete. He steps out of the shadows now, all black and cold and Bat, silently regarding Knives.*
Knives: *It's a curious thing to see another incarnation of someone you've gotten to know, particularly when those versions are as different as night and day. He watches the newcomer appear, silently evaluating him, the similarities and differences. They're one and the same, it's true -- and yet so very, very different. He's quiet for a while, as inscrutable as any Bat could ever hope to be. Accepting it, before he speaks: one word, and one word only: * Why? *Not judgemental. Not even disapproving. It's just a question, with no strings attached.*
Tim: *He tilts his head to the side minutely, and his voice is... Tim's, but very much Batman's at the same time. A dry growl.* Being more specific may help. But in general - time changes all things. We adapt or die.
Knives: *The voice is indeed different, but Knives has heard Tim's rendition of the 'Bat Voice' before so it's not hard to place it. What's even stranger is the subject matter of what this Other!Tim is saying and the fact that he agrees with it. It only reminds him more that this isn't the person he knows.* What changed you?
Tim: *The faint smile is humourless, almost as blank as it would have been if he hadn't smiled at all.* The villains took things further. Pushed the lines until they broke. A new breed of hero became necessary to combat them.
Knives: *'Further.' He could ask what that means, but he doesn't really have to. He's broken lines of his own in his day so he already knows exactly what Tim's saying.* He wasn't there to stop you. *It's a statement, not a question.*
Tim: *He inclines his head just enough to count as a nod.* He was among the first to fall. *And perhaps that really explains it - with Batman's death, once Tim picked up the mantle and all the perceptions that went with it... well, it couldn't have been too hard to convince the other Titans to follow suit.*
Knives: *It does explain it. Abundantly, even, and though he's never thought much of 'heroes' and what they're meant to 'stand' for, in general, there's something about this entire affair that leaves a bad taste in his mouth. He doesn't disapprove of the steps this Batman has taken; he can't. And yet, something about it just bothers him, even though he'll never show it.* Was it worth it?
Tim: *He makes a small noise, a simple exhalation of air that's not quite a snort or a sigh - just a forceful expellation.* Yes. If I didn't believe it was, I could not continue this war.
Knives: *A 'war', was it? That statement makes him smile, a humorous, strangely sad cast to it, if Tim bothers to pick up on it.* I see.
Tim: *Quietly* Do you. *More loudly* Is that the end of your questions?
Knives: *Yes, he does see; he sees because Tim sounds like him, and no matter how many times they've argued, that's not something he ever really wanted to happen. He raises an eyebrow.* Do you think I should have more?
Tim: Since I can't guarantee that I'd answer them, no. *He does sound amused, very briefly, but then it's gone.* You won't interfere. *And it's not a question.*
Knives: *He smiles thinly in response.* You'll find no moral outrage from me. *Which is his way of saying, no, of course not.*
Tim: But I doubt you wish to fight alongside me. *He needs allies, but somehow, he really doesn't think Knives will be up for that.* If there's nothing further.
Knives: *Again, he smiles, the expression faintly sad and...ironic.* I don't pretend to be anything other than what I am. *He's no hero; if anything, he's the opposite. Still...* If you are ever in dire need of assistance, I will come.
Tim: *Well, that surprises him a little. After all, he's not the Tim that Knives knows. He nods just slightly.* I appreciate it.
Knives: *He isn't the Tim Knives knows, true, and even though it still bothers him that Tim, of all people, was forced onto this dark path by loss and circumstance, he's seen enough of this one to know they're similar enough.* Take care of yourself. *He'll wait maybe another moment to see if Tim has a response before he takes his leave.*
Tim: The same to you. *He nods again, this time in farewell, and steps back into the shadows.*
WHERE: Rooftops outside Titans ClockTower.
WHEN: Late February 23rd.
WARNINGS: Noooooo?
SUMMARY: Knives is curious about Tim's transformation. Tim comes out to talk to him. They chat.
FORMAT: AIM log.
Knives: *He's still not sure if this is a good idea. He's spent most of the last 24 hours debating whether or not this was the course of action to take, and even now, something tells him he'll only be disappointed. However, after all the times they've argued, the debates they've had over using extreme force in dealing with people like the Joker, he can't help but wonder what would lead to such a radical change of heart. That's why, the night after he learns Red Robin has been swapped, he's standing on a rooftop just shy of Titans Tower. Perhaps he'll come; perhaps he won't. He has 154 years of experiences under his belt -- a few wasted hours isn't going to bother him.*
Tim: *He does come, eventually. Things in the Tower are quiet for now, and the presence nearby has not gone unnoticed. He doesn't recognise Knives directly, of course, but he has spent enough time reading the archives on his younger self's communicator to know the basics. His files were helpful as well, though Tim suspects he left them incomplete. He steps out of the shadows now, all black and cold and Bat, silently regarding Knives.*
Knives: *It's a curious thing to see another incarnation of someone you've gotten to know, particularly when those versions are as different as night and day. He watches the newcomer appear, silently evaluating him, the similarities and differences. They're one and the same, it's true -- and yet so very, very different. He's quiet for a while, as inscrutable as any Bat could ever hope to be. Accepting it, before he speaks: one word, and one word only: * Why? *Not judgemental. Not even disapproving. It's just a question, with no strings attached.*
Tim: *He tilts his head to the side minutely, and his voice is... Tim's, but very much Batman's at the same time. A dry growl.* Being more specific may help. But in general - time changes all things. We adapt or die.
Knives: *The voice is indeed different, but Knives has heard Tim's rendition of the 'Bat Voice' before so it's not hard to place it. What's even stranger is the subject matter of what this Other!Tim is saying and the fact that he agrees with it. It only reminds him more that this isn't the person he knows.* What changed you?
Tim: *The faint smile is humourless, almost as blank as it would have been if he hadn't smiled at all.* The villains took things further. Pushed the lines until they broke. A new breed of hero became necessary to combat them.
Knives: *'Further.' He could ask what that means, but he doesn't really have to. He's broken lines of his own in his day so he already knows exactly what Tim's saying.* He wasn't there to stop you. *It's a statement, not a question.*
Tim: *He inclines his head just enough to count as a nod.* He was among the first to fall. *And perhaps that really explains it - with Batman's death, once Tim picked up the mantle and all the perceptions that went with it... well, it couldn't have been too hard to convince the other Titans to follow suit.*
Knives: *It does explain it. Abundantly, even, and though he's never thought much of 'heroes' and what they're meant to 'stand' for, in general, there's something about this entire affair that leaves a bad taste in his mouth. He doesn't disapprove of the steps this Batman has taken; he can't. And yet, something about it just bothers him, even though he'll never show it.* Was it worth it?
Tim: *He makes a small noise, a simple exhalation of air that's not quite a snort or a sigh - just a forceful expellation.* Yes. If I didn't believe it was, I could not continue this war.
Knives: *A 'war', was it? That statement makes him smile, a humorous, strangely sad cast to it, if Tim bothers to pick up on it.* I see.
Tim: *Quietly* Do you. *More loudly* Is that the end of your questions?
Knives: *Yes, he does see; he sees because Tim sounds like him, and no matter how many times they've argued, that's not something he ever really wanted to happen. He raises an eyebrow.* Do you think I should have more?
Tim: Since I can't guarantee that I'd answer them, no. *He does sound amused, very briefly, but then it's gone.* You won't interfere. *And it's not a question.*
Knives: *He smiles thinly in response.* You'll find no moral outrage from me. *Which is his way of saying, no, of course not.*
Tim: But I doubt you wish to fight alongside me. *He needs allies, but somehow, he really doesn't think Knives will be up for that.* If there's nothing further.
Knives: *Again, he smiles, the expression faintly sad and...ironic.* I don't pretend to be anything other than what I am. *He's no hero; if anything, he's the opposite. Still...* If you are ever in dire need of assistance, I will come.
Tim: *Well, that surprises him a little. After all, he's not the Tim that Knives knows. He nods just slightly.* I appreciate it.
Knives: *He isn't the Tim Knives knows, true, and even though it still bothers him that Tim, of all people, was forced onto this dark path by loss and circumstance, he's seen enough of this one to know they're similar enough.* Take care of yourself. *He'll wait maybe another moment to see if Tim has a response before he takes his leave.*
Tim: The same to you. *He nods again, this time in farewell, and steps back into the shadows.*