icebergloungers | Snuggles are for Losers

"Cause we don't make a lot of money? Usually these guys, they do cause they're stealing. How the hell would we afford to pay for them, I am just scrapping by on rent these days." And no, he would not ask Bruce for help, he wanted to be able to support himself. "Bruce could. I guess Bruce does. Technically, we are his henchmen."

Frowning, Dick sat up and gave Jason a look. "Wait, should we be paid for this? Like dental and some hourly rates."

"...damn, you're right." Jason slapped his forehead, then nodded. "We are his henchgirls!" Wait. "Henchmen." Whatever, whatever. "Let's go ask the Riddler's girls how much they get, I feel we need at least double that."

Mostly he just figured they had to make a tidy sum to put up with their job, so it stood to reason. "Smartest thing you ever thought of, Dick."

"I guess he does support us. If we asked more, he'd probably give us more. I don't think he's against it, we just never asked. I mean he offers to help me out sometimes but it feels weird." He shrugged and slowly, he pulled himself up and came back over, watching the door to see if there was any signs of life. "No one wants to live off their parents. Not that he's ... you know. But kinda, he is."

Bruce wasn't his dad but in some very real ways, he felt like it and he never knew how to feel. He just didn't want Bruce to be disappointed in him.

"Yeah, yeah, you are daddy's favourite. We get it, Dickie." Jason rolled his eyes, looking back at the door again. "Though, out of costume, hit up Penguin, I bet he'd be your daddy too."

Yeah, he had to bring that one up again. It was just too entertaining. "You look like at least two of his ex-twinks." He'd be sorry he knew that, but it was kind of part of the business.

"I do not. Stop being gross. I would never even try and he'd never get close, I don't care if I'm his type or not." Dick sighed as he tried not to look at Jay - in fact, he turned his head to the side and looked at nothing so Jason didn't see him blush. It was just weird, he thought about it and now he was feeling all gross and it was all sexual and blah! Embarrassing.

"It's not like you're not his type either." He also liked strong boys so there was that. "He likes the James Gordon type most of all."

"Nah, he likes them clean-cut. I ain't that." Never tried to be either, but Jason was pretty sure he had a good idea of what Oswald was into. Well. Obviously, he diversified at times, but the ones that stuck around longer? He knew the type. "You are all pretty and smell good, so he'd love you."

When had he smelled Dick? Who knew.

"You think I smell good? Aww, you're so sweet. Are you sure that you're not looking to have your way with me." Dick mocked as he gave Jason a playful smirk and winked at him, turning his head back to the club as the door opened and oh... damn it, he thought it was Harvey but it was just Victor Zsasz. Well, just. Not as simple as just, he was still a big player but not the guy he wanted.

"I see Zsasz. I guess Oswald wasn't comfortable being alone with Harvey yet, huh?"

Honestly, Jason was glad for the topic change, he hadn't intended to talk about how Dick smelled.

"Guess if you can have a loyal killer at your side, why wouldn't you?" Jason could see the advantages. He narrowed his eyes to make out what Victor Zsasz was doing. "Looks like he's on the phone. Could be business, could be private."

Huh. "Not sure I wanna know what his private life is."

"I don't want to either. He's strange but then, most people on Oswald's side are just weird. Not like Joker weird but their own brand of offness. Like even that kid of his is weird." Martin was a strange boy, he'd met him a few times and while he was a very talented actor, there was something off with him that made him know never to underestimate or trust him. "I think Tim knows the younger ones better. I'm too old for that generation."

With their memes and toktiks and dabbing. He didn't get them. "I just know that anyone raised in Gotham is weird."

"True that." Jason tried to read Victor's lips, which he expected to be a futile exercise, mostly because the man didn't say that much to begin with. Still, passed the time. "That boy is weird as hell. I guess that's what happens when you're raised by Penguin. I'll leave that kid to Tim, I have enough freaks my size to deal with."

And bigger, like Harvey Dent. "If Zsasz stepped out and isn't calling backup, I'm guessing things went well for Dent."

"He's probably celebrating with a drink. Oh great, I guess I have good news to deliver." Bruce would be thrilled, Harvey was making connections and friends all over the city. This was only going to get worse and worse. "What would you do? If that was your friend and they fell this hard? I don't know what I'd do. Force them to have surgery and attend therapy? Can you even force people to do that?"

He guessed not but he would have liked to. "I never did like to give up on people."

"Get them out of Gotham, probably. Maybe he'd have a shot in any other city. What are the odds of anyone getting better at Arkham?" Slim to none, Jason imagined. He shrugged his shoulders, not sure what to say. "The old man has to learn to give up on people. You do too. There's no hope for someone like that. Just full of anger, ain't gonna live much longer with his face like that."

"I don't want to give up on anyone. I think people can be saved, even at their worst, you can save a sinner. You can't always redeem them but you can change them. People like Harvey Dent aren't bad, they're just sick." And he worried a lot for the empathy of the city that people moved on so quickly and happily denoted a man like Harvey as a villain and not a mentally ill and injured man who needed help.

Not that Arkham could give any. "I just wish there was more than Arkham."

"Y'know, there's plenty of crazy people that don't hurt a fly. Try siding more with the victims than you're sympathising with him." Jason felt Dick could use a pro-tip there. Not that he expected it to help. As lost a case as Bruce. Entirely too much empathy for crooks. "I see movement. You think that's Dent?"

"I feel bad for all of them, victims and villains. I can't help it." He never could. Hell, he felt bad for Jason most of the time and he was such a dick, he killed people and picked fights, he had different morality and attitudes but he still loved him. Of course, Harvey was more extreme but he felt the gist was there. He cared too much.

He watched Harvey exit the club and then nodded to Jason, ducking down a little. "Let's see what direction he goes."

"Now that he's bff with Ozzy? Probably going to hit up the Joker, y'know, gotta make the right wrong friends." Jason had lowered his head as well, ready to see what would happen. Nothing exciting, he suspected, but who knew. Maybe there'd be some action before the night was over yet. "His face does look nasty. Like burned bacon that's somehow also raw."

"Like that time Damien tried to cook for himself, yeah. I know what you mean." God, that had been horrifying. And, honestly, so was Harvey's face. As Harvey started to light up a cigarette, Dick started to move along the roof, curious what was going to happen. "If he gets in his car, it's already tagged so we can track it. Hopefully Tim will know his final location."

Then they could find him and stop him, prevent more damage in the process too. "Huh. It's weird when he smokes. The smoke comes out of his face... ew."

"That's hilarious." Jason laughed, because it kind of was funny. Nasty, but funny. One had to develop a sense of black humour in a place like this. "Wonder what happens when he drinks."

Maybe it was more sad and gross than funny, but he was chuckling anyway. "Guess his wife won't be into all that."

"I assume not. It's hard to be into that. Even if you love someone, that's a big ask." Jumping onto the next roof, he waited for Jason to follow before he peered down at where Harvey paused to talk to some guys, offering out his key to probably sending his goon to go and fetch his car. The sad truth of the iceberg lounge - great location but fucking awful parking.

"I wonder what sort of car Harvey drives these days." Probably on the same old SUV he had. Though that would be funny. "Gangsters always get the cool cars."

"If I was his image consultant, his car would be banged up on one side." Seemed like an obvious one, if perhaps not very practical. "My guess is classic black. He seems to be going very old-school gangster."

Which was strange, considering who his enemies were, but Jason wasn't attempting to understand the guy, he was just watching what was happening.

"It's weird to be what you always sought to destroy. I guess when I go evil, I'll just become whole grain cereal." Darn. That sucked. He would be healthy-cereal man and throw bran and wheat at people. "And I guess you'd become... what do you seek to destroy? I don't think you wanna destroy, you mostly want to pester."

It wasn't better, it was just different.

"Oh, Dick, you sweet summer child. Ask the old man some time. I'm sure he'll tell you that I already became that." What he wanted to destroy. And, yes, admittedly, Jason would be hard-pressed to think of anything he hated more than himself on a bad day. Didn't mean he couldn't reach out to ruffle Dick's hair, before gesturing to the street. "See? I was right. Black."

"Yeah but not long term, that's what matters. You have to become the thing you hate, not just ... you know, dabbling in it." Not to trivialise it. He gently unruffled his hair as he watched Harvey get into the black, shiny car. Well, that was all they could do now. He pulled out his phone and messaged Tim on their private chat, telling him to start tracking the vehicle.

"I don't think there's much we can do now, Batman told me not to engage." So chasing him to his hideout was probably not idea.

"Then, what, we just sit somewhere and play cards?" Not the worst idea, honestly. It was so easy to win against Dick, the boy had never even heard of a poker face. "Or are we calling it a night already? Guess I could get some more training in." Sleep was never high on his list of priorities.

"I don't know, I'll see if the Bat has anything else to do. If not, we could patrol the docks. You feel like taking down some petty criminals and then getting some cheap coffee at the pier front? Tastes garbage but I like that, keeps me awake." He didn't feel like sleeping yet, it was too early and he knew he had things to do. People to stop.

"I'll even buy you one, if you're feeling it."

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lessdickmorejerk - 2021-01-26 20:19 (UTC) - Expand