Characters: Slade Wilson (Elenaphant) and Robin (Silv) Setting: The park, late morning/early afternoon, on a Saturday. Previous Threads:Nuisance at the Bank Plot Summary: Robin runs into Mr. Wilson in the park.
Some days were just too beautiful for bad things to happen.
Today felt like one of those days and so far the Titans hadn't gotten any calls to the contrary. It was a beautiful day to spend outside, and Robin got to enjoy it a little as he helped a local girl scout troop with self defense training. The other Titans had been invited as well, but the Titan leader hadn't passed the invite along. Even if his team would have been great with all the exuberant little girls. Even if they all knew how to defend themselves without their powers. He hadn't wanted those same powers to be a distraction to teaching the girls anything lasting. Or, at least, that's what he told himself after every session.
It was a six week long course, the same time and place every Saturday, and they were already halfway through. Instead of staying inside the civic center they used to practice, the girls had begged their troop leader and Robin to let them go outside. The Boy Wonder caved easily, and the two-hour long session progressed at a rapid pace. Maybe it was a good thing Beast Boy wasn't here to joke about how he was training an army of mini ninjas. Not that any of the little girls were even close to ninja status. They were trying, though, and hopefully what they learned in this class would help them in the future if there ever was a time a hero couldn't get there.
The Boy Wonder waved goodbye to the kids at the end of the class, telling them how impressed he was with how far they had come, before he headed back towards his motorbike. He'd left it back by the civic center, which was a mild stroll from the grassy area they'd taken over in the middle of the park. To get there the Titan leader had to pass a seating area with benches and chess tables. Normally Robin didn't waste any time watching the chess players beyond giving them a cheerful greeting, but one of them he recognized from another encounter.
"Morning!" he greeted as he made a beeline over to the one eyed man he'd helped during a bank robbery. Or was it afternoon yet? Sometimes the class session went later than he realized when the kids begged him to teach them new moves. "Good to see you, Sir," Robin said grinning cheerfully. "How have you been?" and the Boy Wonder could only help that suffering side effects from your flashbang was not the answer.
Post by Elenaphant on Apr 19, 2016 12:58:02 GMT -6
Two older men sat at the park playing chess. One was a well dressed man in a dark gray, everday suit. It was the sort that gentlemen used to wear on the regular a few decades ago. The man was Mr.Wilson, an infamous criminal unrecognizable in broad daylight. The other was his opposite, in baggy sweatpants with holes at the thigh, a plastic looking jacket that was likely picked at an outdoor market for under ten dollars, and a faded baseball cap of a team that's updated its logo twice since. That was Mr.Wilson's informant. They played a game that was quickly reaching its conclusion, especially as a young man in a suit that could be seen for miles was coming straight across the park toward them.
Mr.Wilson's one eye turned to look at the boy, then back to the board. The corner of his bearded mouth tugged in a smirk. "Is this what you teenagers call morning?" the man asked with his voice rough with age.
He moved his chess piece across the board. "That's checkmate, pal. It was a good game." The other man nodded and reached over to give his hand a shake. Wilson took it, and beneath the very eyes of the Titan leader the two exchanged a piece of paper that would aid Slade in villainous endeavours. The man stood up and took his leave, and Mr.Wilson nodded to the empty seat, inviting the boy to take it.
"Do you play?" he asked, as he reached into his suit jacket to pull out a handkerchief. The incriminating information replaced it with an easy sleight of hand. He wiped his nose a few times, as though bothered by the pollen in the air, and returned it back with a sniff.
Last Edit: Apr 19, 2016 12:59:59 GMT -6 by Elenaphant
Robin's cheeks tinged a slight pink and he managed something of a shrug in response to the older man's question. The Boy Wonder turned his masked gaze to the chess board, finding refuge in the game, as a chance to refocus the attention elsewhere. It seemed he'd missed most of the game, though, because before he could really begin to idly spectate Mr. Wilson had already won.
The Titan leader was adorably oblivious to what was going on right under his nose. He shot the informant a cheerful grin as the man left, before turning his attention back to Slade. Robin took the offered seat and reached out to help reset the board. "Not often," the boy admitted as he set up a row of pieces. "My friends don't really..." he trailed off with another noncommittal shrug. The Titans usually preferred games where five people could play them, and that were generally not too intellectual. Bruce hadn't had time for him, but when he'd still been with Batman, he'd sometimes played with Alfred.
Post by Elenaphant on Apr 23, 2016 21:46:30 GMT -6
As they reset the board together, Slade listened as he vaguely answered about how his friends didn't really play. It wasn't really a surprise, with the five of them together in that tower. In his opinion, they didn't quite seem the type. "Hmph, it's only fun when you're playing against the right opponent anyway," he said, with his eye fixing on the boy across from him with some amusement. "Sometimes it can be entertaining, vastly outmatching your opponent... but all this set up to beat them in a few moves can feel rather pointless." He glanced down to the board, considering it for a moment before his eye flicked back up. "I prefer a challenge."
Mr.Wilson was the side that made the first move. It was how it usually went with their dynamic anyway, despite Robin's great initiative when it came to all things pertaining to his masked alter ego. "What do you say, boy? Think you're good enough to keep this old man awake?"
Robin nodded in agreement with the older man's assessment completely oblivious to the amusing double meaning. A smile split across Robin's face at the challenge. "Bring it," the youth replied confidently, sitting up slightly in his chair. Winning was the only thing that mattered, after all. The Boy Wonder watched curiously as the man across from him made his first move. He leaned forward as he moved his first piece before settling back again, The start of the game could move quickly, but the strategy had to start here too, or the game would be the sort that put old people to sleep.
"Do you usually play chess here on the weekends Mr...?" the Boy Wonder probed conversationally. All he knew about this stranger was that he had unfortunate timing with his bank business, was cool under pressure, and played chess in the park. Not that any more was necessary to play a simple game of chess.
Post by Elenaphant on Apr 25, 2016 20:45:35 GMT -6
Slade would disagree on the necessity of knowing your opponent well during a game of chess. It could reveal much about the playing style, and make picking one of the many strategies available a more sure choice. Those eager to prove themselves, for instance, tended to make bolder moves rather than playing safe. An eagerness to win could turn an opponent cocksure or frustrated, depending on the amount of pieces being snatched. A simpleton wouldn't be able to see what was coming to them and any strategy requiring half a brain to deploy would be enough. Ah, but an opponent with potential... with the right wit, needed sneakier, hidden moves. "Wilson," Slade finished for him as he moved the piece and then leaned back, waiting for the response. "I play when it conveniences me," he said, which really meant whenever he needed information or when high-ranking chess players were known to be in the area. "Only recently I've been given more time to do the simpler things," he said, but the phrasing was, like most everything he did, quite intentional. He had been literally given more time once he was brought back from the dead, and Trigon banished from this realm. "So it could very well become a weekend sort of activity," he finished, and casually moved again.
He had already decided how he was going to play. Slade didn't need to win this time. He might decide to pull the rug beneath the boy at the last minute, to show off his skill and catch his attention at least in this way. However, he was more interested in watching Robin use his pieces when his morality wasn't in the way. In chess some pieces had to be lost to win the game. They were only objects to move around a board, and he hoped to entice some of that ruthless strategy that Slade knew Robin was capable of if only he didn't tether himself. That's why chess could never replace the real game that Slade was almost addicted to playing. Put faces to the pieces, and he felt Robin would spare even the pawns from certain death. Silly on a board, but apparently 'noble' in war between good and evil. "And you?" he asked back as he watched the board with far more interest than he had his previous opponent. "Living up to your name and fluttering through the park on a sunny day?"
Last Edit: Apr 25, 2016 20:49:19 GMT -6 by Elenaphant
Wilson. He filed the name away, listening as the man said that he wasn't a park regular. The Boy Wonder didn't give too much thought to what Slade was explaining. Old people had a lot more free time when they retired or switched to part-time jobs, and some of them didn't take it very well. He nodded as if he understood.
"Yup," Robin agreed with a smirk, tilting his head slightly in contemplation as he moved another piece. "Gotta get here early or all the worms will be gone," he joked wriggling the piece he was holding between gloved fingers like it was one before setting it back down on the board. Robin had heard just about every bird joke imaginable since he'd first appeared as Bruce's sidekick. From the villains it was pathetic, and from his friends it was just annoying, but civilians got slightly more leeway. Especially old people and children.
"I've been helping some of the local girl scout troops get their self defense badges, and it was such a beautiful day they wanted to practice outside," Robin explained the real reason, having nothing to hide. The Titans were the sort of heroes that operated openly. Everyone knew where their base was. Anyone could follow them on social media. But, of course, the only information put there was what the teens wanted Jump to see. Mostly civic minded things like helping in the community garden, or volunteering at the nursing home. Nothing that could compromise identities, or give the villains an upper hand.
"I hope they never have to use what I'm teaching them," Robin admitted as he absently straightened one of his knights so the horse pointed perfectly forward in it's square, before surveying the board with masked scrutiny one more, "that there will always be heroes to help them, but it's good for them to know anyway."
Post by Elenaphant on Apr 29, 2016 19:01:50 GMT -6
He offered the boy a wry grin when the piece was wiggled before him. Why couldn't Robin always be in this good humour when they were together? If only he was willing to look past the mass endangerment his plans often entailed, he could see how alike they were. The piece was set and an explanation was given. What a good little boy scout he was, helping little girls defend themselves with basic techniques. It was good to teach children something, even though they would need far more training to face the real threats that could potentially get them in the end. It brought to mind another young girl...
"That's good of you," he said, almost as a throw-away compliment that he didn't really mean. "If war taught me anything, it's that there will always be people willing to fight for a cause," he mused as he made his move again, keeping his eye to the board. Depending on who you asked, those people were either heroes or villains. "But there will always be victims who outnumber them."
The piece clacked down on the square. Even as a civilian Slade had a way of sucking the hope and joy from a beautiful afternoon. "My apologies, young man. Some scars run deeper than the skin," he said, gesturing to the half of his face that was covered by a patch and some unfortunate scars around the eye. "I can see that you spend a great amount of your time trying to keep that number down, and that's gotta count for something."
Trying. Failing. The futility of it all. His smile hid his real opinion on the matter of his heroics.
Robin realized he was staring at the man across from him and quickly lowered his gaze back to the neutrality of the board. As a child soldier in Bruce's war against crime there were some things that the Boy Wonder understood very well. He couldn't fault the old man's negative world-view because sometimes, in his darkest moments that he'd never admit to, Robin felt the same way about it.
When Mr. Wilson put down his piece and apologized Robin quickly shook his head. "It's okay," the Boy Wonder assured in a half-mumble and a quick smile. He snatched up a piece as if to change the subject, before putting it back down again after a moment of thought, and moving a different one. He pressed his lips together, in a thin line, and glanced hesitantly at the man across from him as though weighing the words he was about to speak.
"You don't have to say, if it's crossing a line, but..." he gestured vaguely to his own masked eye, "what happened? ...during the war?" It was obvious curiosity trying very hard to still be respectful.
Post by Elenaphant on May 11, 2016 21:35:05 GMT -6
Slade anticipated the question as Robin hesitated. The inquiry was obvious on his expression, and the older gentleman patiently waited as Robin gathered his nerve to ask it. The pause gave him time to go over the documented version of his injury, which had no relevance to the truth. Explaining why his one true love felt compelled to grab a gun and shoot him in the eye was a lot more involved than the version of the story he was about to deliver. "There was a big explosion--grenade, and I was too close to the blast. Shrapnel tore into this entire side, including my eye. Left me with some nasty scars and a limp," he said, playing with the handle of his cane. "However, I came out alive which is more than I can say for everyone else who was caught in it."
He let out a deep throated sigh and looked sombre at the memory, but it passed and he made his move. "What can I say, Robin. War is grim business." Mr.Wilson sat back and then looked out to the children playing contentedly. It seemed to warm him, and the grumpy man dared a fond smile. "Still, we must learn to navigate in the dark toward prosperous tomorrows."
Then, as though remembering something, he reached into the coat of his suit. "Ah, I nearly forgot." He took out a pocket sized planner and flipped through. "There is going to be a formal function for veterans a week from today. Not quite your kind of uniform, which is a shame," he said, nodding toward the boy. "Though perhaps they can make it an exception. If not, if one of your benefactors would be interested. We could always use the support," he said, and plucked a card between the pages with the event details to hold out. "I won't hold you to anything, of course. You're fighting your own war."
Robin frowned sympathetically as the man across from him explained what had happened. It must have been difficult, the Boy Wonder decided, because on top of getting hurt Mr. Wilson probably had to deal with the same survivor's guilt that both he and Bruce struggled with. The same guilt that fueled the anger they directed towards criminals.
He had no room to talk about war being grim business. The war on crime was a different sort of battle than the old veteran was talking about, and Robin understood that. The boy did manage a shy smile, though, when Mr. Wilson's tone switched to a more hopeful one. Robin turned to the board again for his turn, studying the pieces intently, and picking up his bishop when the man across from him mentioned something he'd nearly forgotten. The piece froze in the boy's hand as his masked gaze tilted up to regard Mr. Wilson curiously.
"Sure!" Robin replied easily with a chipper smile. He set his piece back down from where he'd picked it up, and reached out to take the offered informational card. He scanned the card, trying to remember if they'd already had anything planned, before glancing back at Mr. WIlson still grinning. "We're always willing to help. I'll talk to my team and see what we can manage. Maybe we'll be lucky and all the criminals will take next Saturday off," he joked.
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Alviss: Darn doesn't show the pic
Apr 18, 2019 7:10:17 GMT -6
force: miss this place. if anyone comes back and sees this, i'm force, i was kid flash here once. you can find me on discord at rook#9485
Jan 12, 2023 13:11:35 GMT -6
The roleplay takes place after the series end of the original Teen Titans animated show, but does not include the movie Trouble in Tokyo. Since then Robin has been on something of a recruiting spree, and many new young heroes have found themselves a home in Jump City as well as Titan Tower.
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