Dragon Lady [Jimmy]

[Nina Stenet]

Nina watches the door close behind Edward, then glances at the kid. So she's being left with him today? Yes, a kid who can't speak the language, hardly knows how to use a gun and doesn't want to be here really makes a woman who's been through a lot lately feel safe in China. Especially given that she still can't walk properly.

She does kind of want to see the sights, but she'd rather do that with Edward or at least with Allen if Edward is too busy. Even with her recent feelings toward Allen, at least the can trust that the big guy would not only do his best to keep her safe but is actually largely capable of doing so. Not so much the kid - they'd probably get lost and wander down a bad street by accident. He'd only be better if she wanted to do something dangerous, but she's had enough of dangerous lately. Really, she's better off having a mental break.

"I feel like staying in today," she comments as she crutches over to the couch. A physical break would be nice too. It's tiring not being able to use a leg to move around, and that easily eats at her desire to do much. Actually, she's almost to the point where she can graduate to using something that allows her to gently use her knee a bit and that will be more pleasant. But she doesn't want to push it, not after all the damage she did walking on it too soon.

She reaches the couch and sets the crutches next to it where she can reach them easily, and then sighs as she settles herself down and props her injured leg onto the seat. Maybe later she'll get up and do something more interesting than lounging on the couch, but at the moment she's blaming her leg for her boredom and decides a session of working on it with her power is in order. Which can't be very interesting for Jimmy since for all he probably knows she's doing nothing. Fortunately, it's also familiar enough work that she can do more than just that at once. "So how did you end up working for Edward?" she suddenly asks conversationally.

[jimmyg]

Jimmy too watched Edward close the door, off to do whatever it was he needed to get done. Frankly, Jimmy didn't care what that was. He could stay gone for all the boy cared. His eyes narrowed a bit at the door even after it was closed before he shot a look over at Nina as well, crossing his arms and clutching his fingers to the fabric of his sweater. Not that it was cold in the room; it was decent enough. Actually, he would almost consider it comfortable. Almost.

As for sight-seeing, it's another thing Jimmy doesn't care in the least about. He may be in another country but he is also with complete strangers; other than the fact that he knows they're all criminals. Aside from Nina, who seems to just be more of the enabling type. Either way, he doesn't think his father would approve much of her cohorting around with someone like the Riddler. He certainly wouldn't approve of him diong it either, but. Well, he's a child, and that alone is an excuse good enough for most things.

At Nina's comment that she'd rather stay in, Jimmy just gives a shrug and plants himself down in an arm chair, away from Nina. He doesn't like her, he doesn't want to talk to her. Why Edward felt that he had to stay and make sure she was okay was beyond him. What did he care if she was okay? Aside of course from the fact that Edward would most likely injure or even kill him should something happen to her. Details.

Bringing his legs up in the chair, he rests his chin on his knees and links his hands together across the front of his shins, and again shrugs at her question, offering no answer other than that bit of movement. He's never been a very talkative child, not even much to his family. Let alone to a woman he hardly knows.

[Nina Stenet]

Getting nothing but a noncommittal shrug for her attempt at conversation, Nina frowns just slightly as she comments, "I can see why he likes you. If you don't talk, you don't say anything he doesn't want to hear. That's probably why he hates my assistant so much." There's a brief pause before she adds, "But, for the record, I don't hurt anyone who doesn't try to hurt me first. And I'm harmless in the literal sense - but definitely not in the figurative sense. That's why I don't have a gun. I wouldn't use it, and I don't need one. And you can say whatever you want to me and it wouldn't bother me. Or ask me anything. Worst case scenario, I don't answer."

At the end of that her eyes briefly focus and she concentrates for a moment on the boy. Well, teenager: partly because of where they picked him up and partly because she's a doctor with the ability to see into people when she's curious about them she knows that he looks young for his age. Still too young for the job Edward's given him - but how old would be enough? At least sixteen she's guessing, since those extra two years do make a difference, and that would have to be one who is mature for their age. And she felt that Shawty might be a big young, even with her level of life experience! Of course, Shawty's problems with looking young can be far more drastic than his - she could pass as his little sister if she wore the right outfit.

[jimmyg]

"He doesn't like me." Jimmy says in an annoyed tone of voice, looking over at Nina with his brows furrowed at the very thought of it. No, Riddler couldn't 'like' him. He hated the man. And he expected the feeling to be reciprocated. In fact, he preferred it be that way.

The suddenness of her talking to him at all has the boy on edge, and he lets it show. He furrows his brows even more and tightens the clinging grip he has around his legs in the chair. "..What do you want to know?" He asked, though his tone was still far less conversational than hers. It was clear he was annoyed. Less clear was that he was still frightened. Now not only was he in the company of these people as he referred to them in his mind, but he was thousands of miles away from his father. Despite any bitter feelings he had toward the man, he still loved him and still felt a strong sense of protection having him around.

But now? Now he was all alone. These people weren't going to protect him. They were going to hurt him if he did anything wrong. His mind was full with regretful thoughts, and he thought himself an idiot for agreeing to anything with the Riddler just because the man appealed to his very little rebellious side at the right moment.

[Nina Stenet]

Nina's lips purse slightly at his first statement. Yeah, she can definitely see why he'd say so, but... "Oh, he likes you all right," she says as her eyes shift back away from him and then seem to stare off into space while her attention goes more back to her knee, "Edward thinks that most people are better dead. And even if he decides you're worth keeping alive, that's still several levels below him tolerating you enough to want to hire you. So he has to, at least some degree, like you. He just has what you might call a 'funny way of showing it'. And of course that means nothing if he gets angry enough at you." Blunt, yes, but in her way that Nina's way of being nice. She actually pities the kid - however he managed to get himself into this mess she sure it wasn't pleasant, and he doesn't show any signs of even minimally wanting to be here. If he's going to survive, let alone try to get himself out of it, it'll be helpful if he knows how Edward thinks a bit.

His question get considered for a few moments in silence, as there's a number of ways she can answer that. "Well, I asked how you ended up working for Edward just because I'm curious - I don't really care if you answer that or not. I'm just trying to make conversation because you don't seem to like me - which I don't really care about either, but as long as you work for Edward you'll be around me too and it would be more tolerable if you understood me better," she replies, "See, there's a huge difference between being at his side and on his side. I'm almost nothing like him." There's probably only that they're both intelligent and stubborn, really. Other than those two traits, opposites definitely attracted in this case.

[jimmyg]

Despite Nina's argument that Edward did actually like him at least somewhat, Jimmy still didn't believe her. Plus, it was like he said; he'd prefer that it stay the way he saw it. Edward wasn't someone to look up to, or someone to like either. So, a roll of his eyes was given, as well as a quiet scoff. "The only reason he even has me around is because of who my dad is." He says, shrugging his shoulders again afterward and returning to resting his chin on his knees. He's tired, but he can't sleep. Not only for the fact that he probably wasn't allowed to at the moment but because he was so anxious to get back home.

There's a pause after Nina's last statement, followed by a clearing of Jimmy's throat. "_{I don't care.}" Is his response, wishing that he could just block her out. Ignoring her could work, but people had a way of getting on his nerves and he just had to say something.

[Nina Stenet]

"I'm sure that's a part of it too," Nina responds quietly and more to herself than to him, wondering for the umpteenth time what part that would have to play. One thing she's certain of is that, whether Edward took an interest in the kid by his own merits alone or not, he's unlikely to hire the commissioner's son without taking advantage of that tie somehow. More loudly she adds, "I actually met your dad - the day before I met you. I thought that was quite the coincidence; Edward didn't know I had at the time, and he didn't tell me he was hiring you. He's a good man, Commissioner Gordon."

She'll ignore his remark about not caring. Clearly the kid is uncomfortable, but though she can only speculate about the precise reasons for it that reaction to this whole situation is hardly unexpected. And her free ramblings can hardly hurt the situation, except possibly to annoy him a lot, but if he's okay enough that annoyance is his biggest problem then she knows she doesn't have to worry about him.

[jimmyg]

Jimmy's interest is lost after her response. He looks away from her and glares down at the floor, shifting around in his seat just enough to get relatively comfortable. It's difficult for him though, and eventually he just lets his legs go and slouches in the chair, adjusting his glasses before looking back over at the mention of his father.

"I know." He says simply, and frowns. It's pretty obvious by now that he wants to go home, but more than that, he does miss his father. Genuinely, he misses him. Not just wishes that he could come and effectively 'save' him from the situation he was in.

He has to wonder why she met with his dad in the first place, but he doesn't ask. Some things are better left unknown, and again, he just goes quiet.

[Nina Stenet]

Nina's eyes refocus again as they shift over to the kid. "You don't want to be here," she comments, definitely not a question, "Though it kind of funny how you're showing it; sitting there curled up in a ball as if you're helpless to do anything about it. Sulking and waiting to be rescued like a child who has wandered away from his mommy and doesn't know which way to go." Once again, very blunt, though her motivation for saying so is really to help him.

"I know that Edward hired you because you're smart," she continues, "But how smart is it to sit there hoping for the best when you could be doing something about it? Like finding out if and how much I'm willing to help you, for instance? Because if you're not going to lift a finger to help yourself, you can forget any help coming from me. You'll end up like Robby at this rate." An expression of a mixture of anger and sadness crosses Nina's face and she grows quiet at that last part, though only a moment later the bulk of her attention goes back to her knee again. Robby taught her not to get too attached to the people who work for Edward.

[jimmyg]

Casting yet another glare over in her direction, Jimmy listened to what Nina had to say but again, didn't believe a word of it. Having never heard anything of her and not knowing her personally, he pretty much thought of her as the Riddler's henchwoman, of sorts. Bottom line was, he didn't trust her. He didn't like her, and he didn't trust her.

"Yeah, right." He said with a roll of his eyes, and slouched more in the chair, not caring about how sloppy he looked at the moment. "What am I supposed to do? It's not like I can just call my dad and he can come pick me up." He said, and furrowed his brows more at the woman at her implied offer of help. "Why would you help me? And what would you even do? I don't think you can get me out of here."

[Nina Stenet]

"Oh no," Nina replies to the thought of him calling home, a frown quickly reaching her face, "If you're going to quit and keep your life, then you need to find a way to do it that doesn't leave Edward angry with you. Unless you feel like playing even more dangerously than you already are." She's not sure if he's exactly thought it out or not, but she hopes for his say that he doesn't have the childish notion that he simply needs to get home and then everything will be fine. If Edward were sufficiently irked in the process it would take more than the commissioner to stop him from doing something about it.

"I want to help you because you don't want to be here, and you're too young for the job," she replies, "Not that I really like the idea of anyone working for Edward, or even what Edward does to begin with, but at least someone like Allen who likes the money is better. I rather see you replaced, if that's possible without you getting killed - I think that's better for both you and Edward. Though you're right that there's limits to what I'd do: I don't like going against him. I save that for when it's really important to me, and who he hires is his business. But if you want advice, stuff like that, no problem. Perhaps more than that, depending. But no, I won't of myself get you out of this. That's why it has to be your doing."

This time she keeps most her attention on her knee throughout. She knows that the kid doesn't like or trust her, but it's not like it's exactly easy for her to convince him he can trust her if he insists on disbelieving what she says. And it's not like he really should trust her too much anyway - she'd be willing to put him at risk to further her own goals, after all, and it's not like she'd interfere if Edward decided to kill him. But her advice, at least, is something he can trust if he's willing to.

[jimmyg]

This time, Jimmy actually pays attention to what Nina has to say, but it doesn't make him believe her any more or dislike her any less. He just stares at her with an annoyed expression on his face. He had a gun, Allen had given it to him. What made them think that he wouldn't just shoot one of them, he wondered to himself? Probably because if he shot Allen, he wouldn't have anyone to protect him. If he shot Nina, Edward would kill him. And if he shot Edward? Allen would probably kill him. Or Nina. Or, he'd be stuck in China with no way home. None of those options seemed very good to the boy.

"I don't need your help." He said quietly, more than anything just wishing that he had some way to tell his dad that he was still alive. That's what he was most worried about; what dad was going to do when he finally did get back. At this point, if he did get back. As childish as it sounded, yes. He wanted to have his dad here. Jimmy trusted Jim, he could tell him of any problem he had, and Jim would have a solution. Nina was definitely not Jim, and the fact that she was trying to help him only made him more frustrated with his current predicament.

Part of him kind of wanted to cry, a little bit. He was still a kid, after all. A scared kid with issues already, with no way out of a strange country with dangerous people. By all accounts he was doing astonishingly well with his lack of completely breaking down during their time here, but he'd had enough. He hadn't actually cried over being scared or having a major problem in a long time, and dad had always told him that it was okay to cry if he felt like he needed to. But again; no one here was dad. So when he felt his eyes begin to water, he quickly brought his knees up in his chair, huddled himself up into the curled up position he was in before, and wiped at his eyes quickly.

[Nina Stenet]

"You probably need all the help you can get right now, including mine," Nina replies to that quietly. He may not like her, but she does know that her advice at least is worth something. If he's willing to listen to it, of course.

A moment later she glances up because she caught the movement of his arm in her periphery. Is he? Oh, dear, he's crying... Nina sighs as she picks up one of her crutches, then uses it to slide the box of tissues on the coffee table to the end closest to him in case he wants one. Then she puts the crutch back where she got it from and comments, "For what it's worth, whether you want it or not I'll be keeping an eye on you and doing what I can to protect you. There's a definite limit to that too, but..." Not knowing how to finish that, she simply shrugs.

Then she goes silent, knowing that what she just offered can't be much comfort. What what else can she do? Tell him it's going to be okay? Both of them know that she can't know that. Nor can she promise to do more than what she just said: that would also be a lie. Really the kindest thing she's doing at the moment is by not telling him to stop it since it's making her feel bad. Because it is: she's a genuinely nice person who can't help but feel some compassion for him to begin with, and even more so with that hint of his feelings on the surface. It makes her feel sorry for him and want to help him more than she's already offered to, but she can't and that bothers her.

She frowns and turns her attention back to her knee, guessing that a boy his age is probably somewhat ashamed to be crying to begin with and therefore would appreciate less attention paid to it rather than more.

[jimmyg]

In fact, Jimmy did feel ashamed of himself for crying. He hated the feeling of it. His eyes burning, the puffiness in his face. The last time he'd cried was because he'd gotten physically hurt and it was the response that the body brought up, not so much that he really wanted to. Even so, a part of him felt a little better when he slumped his shoulders and let himself cry for a few seconds.

Glancing out the corner of his eyes that were already red, he ignored her offer of tissues and instead just wiped at his eyes with his sleeve again. He might have needed her help, yes. To stay alive and to stay on Edward's good side, perhaps. That didn't mean he wanted it, though. He wanted his dad to be here. He wanted someone that dad worked with to come and get him, but he knew that no one knew where he was. Dad might have even thought that he was dead.

It takes another few minutes, but eventually Jimmy is able to cease his very quiet crying, and looks up and over at Nina.

"..when are we going back?" He asks, feebly. He's aware she probably doesn't have an answer to that. If she did, it was probably one he didn't want to hear. Regardless, he nudges his glasses up with his fists curled, rubbing at his eyes a little more before returning to his sort of fetal position in the chair.

[Nina Stenet]

The few minutes that pass before Jimmy says anything are hard for Nina. She keeps on wanting to say something, but no - there's nothing she can say that will make it better. Instead she gives the kid time to collect himself. When he finally does say something, she takes it as a good sign: it's a question and a hint that he's recognized that talking to her isn't completely useless.

"I'm not sure - eventually," she replies, "He and I both would rather be in Gotham, but it isn't a pleasant place to be with the F.B.I. there. They're the ones who did this to my leg, by the way. So it may not be until they leave, one way or the other, and that could be a fast or slow process, depending. I don't think even Edward has a solid timetable. And that's assuming he doesn't get caught - though Batman or whomever else had better hurry if they want to do it in time."

She gives the kid a sad smile when she adds, "At least if that happens you'll probably be fine - I'd probably be in trouble unless Batman lets me go again." She frowns, and shakes her head. Really, the best outcome on her mind is if Edward is stopped, but not caught. Which would make him very unhappy, yes, but it would be better for everyone.