Unexpected visit [rp thread for a_carrion_crow, knowthenbreak]

[gothams_dent]

Harvey puttered around the house, waiting for Nadine to wake up from her nap. He wasn't sure when she'd be up -- it seemed like she slept in longer intervals lately -- and there wasn't a lot to do. No leaky faucets or broken doorknobs. If Dalia were still at home, he'd talk to her...but she'd moved out months ago and hardly visited - at least

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[a_carrion_crow]

Joshua looked around as he walked up to the door of the suburban house. He looked slightly out of place, and felt it. Why Nadine and Harvey chose to live here was beyond him. Surely they could afford better, but he supposed their plebeian tastes wouldn't allow that. Well, as long as he didn't have to interact with their neighbors, it wasn't so bad. He was only here for a short visit.

Knocking once, he stood back and waited.

[gothams_dent]

Harvey got up and went to answer the door. He opened it, and it was with some surprise that he took in the sight of Joshua standing there. "Joshua..." He ran a hand through his hair. "Afternoon...can I...help you?" His tone wasn't hostile - mostly confused. His grandson rarely made appearances at their house. He was wary, though - Joshua was still a Crane, who took after his father much more than his mother.

[a_carrion_crow]

"Sure, Harvey. I'm selling magazine subscriptions to work my way back through medical school again." He grinned, Jonathan Crane's nasty mirthless grin all over again. "I was in the area, and thought I'd say hello to you and Grandmother Nadine."

[gothams_dent]

Harvey sighed, tiredly. "She's napping right now..." He opened the door a bit wider. "Come in, if you'd still like."

[a_carrion_crow]

"Wow - asleep again? She's doing that a lot lately, isn't she?" Without waiting for an answer, Joshua walked in as though he belonged there, taking a seat in the middle of the couch. "The lawn looks...good. Isn't that what you say around here?"

[gothams_dent]

Harvey walked across the room. "Suburbs still aren't my thing, even after all these years, to be honest," he admitted. "Do you want something to drink?"

[a_carrion_crow]

"Sure I do." He looked around the room, then back towards Harvey. "Then why stay here? It's not like you don't have the resources to go somewhere else."

Smirking, he added, "I'm sure my mother would love to have you living closer. You could keep an eye on the Wayne place, too."

[gothams_dent]

"We wanted Dalia to grow up somewhere safe," Harvey said quietly, going toward the kitchen. "What do you want to drink?" he asked a little louder.

[a_carrion_crow]

"What have you got?" he moved to lean in the kitchen doorway. "Safe? You don't get safer than the Palisades. Or is that some reference to my father's "unsafe" presence?"

[gothams_dent]

"Water, juice..." He went for the fridge. "I've never been a fan of the Palisades. And--no. We just wanted to be away from the seedier parts of the City. We regretted not doing it when your mother was growing up."

[a_carrion_crow]

"Water. Yes, I gather there were a lot of regrets all around. So, what, you'd rather be back in the Narrows than in the Palisades? Odd choice. I mean, why bother to steal all that money if you never did anything with it?"

[gothams_dent]

"I didn't say that," Harvey said, getting the glass of water. A moment later, and without answering Joshua's second question, he handed him the glass. "What've you been up to these days?"

[a_carrion_crow]

"Not much. My mother made me promise not to kill anyone the last time I went to Europe, so I gave it a miss this last time when she and Dalia went." It sounded like he might have been joking.

[gothams_dent]

"How are your studies?" Harvey asked. "What, uh--degrees do you already have, again?"

[a_carrion_crow]

"I'm hurt. I thought you sent cards after my graduations. You could have attended a few." He began ticking off names with his fingers. "Sorbonne, economics, Gotham U. Neurology and Psychology, Heidelberg, Biochemical Research. Plus, you know, poisoning people and scaring them to death as a home study."

[gothams_dent]

"We did...we did." Harvey sighed. "I'm an old man, Joshua. Don't remember everything like I used to." It wasn't entirely a lie. He was usually still pretty sharp. When it came to Duela and her family...there was a bit of deliberate forgetfulness on occasion. And sometimes...it was easier not to know, not to remember.