[a brand new story!]

[aworthyone]

Not two weeks since Damian's arrival, and already Tabula Rasa has exhausted its nonexistent charm. Between public records and the local newspaper, he's pieced together a working history of the place, and come away dissatisfied. While the dalliance with dull detective work would have surely pleased Grayson, the man wasn't here -- at least, not

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[arrownomore]

It was slightly possible that Cissie had gone overboard with the running but if she and Bart were really going to try to put a marathon together, then she needed to get a better mental picture of the island's layout. Today, she was exploring some of the places that she hadn't really been to much and she stopped at the sight of the kid squaring off against a really weird looking robot.

"Hey," she said cheerfully. "Were you just exploring or did you want something from in there?"

[aworthyone]

The robot is more interesting than the girl, but she's the only one speaking to him. Damian reluctantly tears his attention away from his new opponent and turns it to his unwelcome (but not unexpected) intrusion. He's standing still in the open for longer than a few minutes. Of course he'd be happened upon.

A moment's glance is all it takes for him to both realize he recognizes her from Todd's Cardiovascular Conditioning course (not to mention Drake's old files) and consequently doesn't care for her. The cheerful demeanor on its own would have docked a few points.

"I wasn't aware the two were mutually exclusive."

[arrownomore]

Cissie blinked, a little taken aback. It wasn't exactly the most friendly response she'd ever heard but at least he wasn't diving at her with a knife and shouting about Kali. Once was quite enough, thank you very much.

"Okay, point. I think you'll have to talk to Mr. Stark about getting in there if that was your plan, though. But hey, if you were exploring, that's what I'm doing."

[aworthyone]

It's not the first he's heard of this Stark -- his name cropped up often in the Times, and Stephanie had spoken of a man with a robot suit shortly after Damian's arrival -- but he's yet to actually see the man. That will clearly have to change.

"Then you won't mind leaving to explore elsewhere," says Damian. "This place is spoken for."

[arrownomore]

Cissie raised an eyebrow. She was prepared and even willing to take crap from certain people but not from some little kid she didn't even know. Still, maybe it was just her imagination but she thought there was something going on there - he wasn't just an ordinary boy.

"I really hope you aren't going to go head to head with that robot, because I got to tell you, I don't think it'll end well and I just can't stand by and let that happen."

[aworthyone]

He could beat it. A part of him wants to, even though he knows he shouldn't, for a host of reasons. He's not in uniform. It's not causing anyone harm. It's private property. Still, a part of him would very much like to prove the girl wrong.

"I can take care of myself."

[arrownomore]

"I'm sure you can," Cissie said and the weird part is that she's kind of getting the sense that he actually can. What it is that's telling her that, she wasn't sure but bells were silently going off in her head.

"What's your name? I'm Cissie."

[aworthyone]

"Damian," he replies, reluctant in telling her only because he'd rather not prolong this conversation. His respect as it extends to Drake's friends is nonexistent at best. It's only through working together that Stephanie managed to escape the full brunt of his apathy.

[arrownomore]

Cissie had a feeling her next question was only going to get her more scorn and maybe a kick to the shins, but she had to ask. He seemed like he was just fine out here but she knew she wouldn't feel right unless she asked.

"It's nice to meet you," she said with a smile. "And you're sure you're okay by yourself here? I mean, I'm not saying that I don't think you can be alone or anything like. I just wanted to make sure everything's okay."

[aworthyone]

"Do I look to be distressed in any way?" he asks, the question rhetorical. Barring the company of the robot (if it can even be called company, when it won't let him pass), he doesn't consider himself to be doing anything all that suspect. He doesn't have the appearance of being starved or deprived of anything, and while he certainly does not like it here, he as close to well cared for as he'd like to be thanks to Stephanie's annoying (but occasional) interference.

"Everything is okay. Or as much as it can be, given the circumstances."

[arrownomore]

"No," Cissie was forced to admit. "But I had to check. It's kind of a habit, you know? I check on my friends, I check on Krypto, I check on the kids I see around the scrapyard. Being here can get weird enough without all the other fun things the island likes to do."