Inquisition [nina]

[vigilant]

Silent as Death, and soft as a feather's landing. That was the perfect way to describe Batman's descent. First he landed on the roof, a shadowy figure that wore the darkness like a second skin. He climbed dexterously along the railings of the building, leapt, and for a second time seemed to slow to a crawl. His body was suspended in mid-air, hand outstretched, cape thrown wide behind him. Over the course of his career, he had practiced this exact stunt a million times. Perfected it, drilled it into his body, forced his muscles to remember when his mind would not. Now it came perfectly natural, as easily as breathing.

His hand closed on the window's ledge, and he pulled himself over. For a second, he allowed himself to breathe. But not for too long. Never breathe for too long. For the Batman, there were no breaks. The window was open, most likely to allow air and Gotham's night-time symphony in. Swinging himself in quietly, before his feet so much as touched solid ground, he blended in the shadows once more, a tall, looming figure that stood against the wall like a gargoyle.

For a few minutes, Batman allowed himself to pause and look around. To soak in the details of his surroundings. To drink up every vital piece of information the room had to offer. Then he turned his gaze on Nina. Perhaps she would feel his deep, brooding eyes piercing into her back, into her soul. Perhaps she could hear his brain churning, ticking, like a mechanical clock working away. But most likely not. She seems... preoccupied, lately. But he wouldn't be surprised if she had been expecting him to visit.

That's often the price paid, when you know you're guilty of something.

"Keeping yourself busy, I see."

A low, menacing growl. Shortly afterwards, Batman emerged from the shadows, a few yards to her left. The cape was drawn around his broad shoulders, and in that instant, he seemed more frightening than ever. Truly a creature of the night, Gotham's Silent Guardian. Prior to now, Batman has never used any of his intimidation tactics on her. Throughout the Riddler incident, he always believed she was decent, a helpless girl drawn into a darkness she knew nothing of and had no control over. But he could see now that, whether it was against her will or not, she would soon cross the point of no return. She was playing with fire, and he was here to stop her.

[Nina Stenet]

It's late, but Nina hasn't noticed what time it is for quite a few hours now. But that's nothing new - she's always been one to spend every spare moment in her lab. The only difference lately is that rather than noticing when the hour gets truly ridiculous for working herself, Shawty has to point it out to her. Otherwise it's simply too easy to stay up all night - for whatever reason the later hours seem to make her feel better.

She's sorting through petri dishes, checking the level of bacterial growth on each and carefully noting down the findings. Standard lab work, really, except for the minor detail that instead of examining them with a microscope she's picking them up with her hands and appears to simply be looking at them. That's her standard method of doing it, actually, at least when there's nobody else around besides Shawty, but hardly standard procedure for any other microbiologist. About all anyone can generally tell from a petri dish is whether or not there are bacteria and whether there's a lot or a little, but not what kind or the density.

There's a slight difference in her appearance from the last time Batman saw her. She looks... tired. Not in the immediate sense of not having had enough sleep the night before, but that world-weary look of someone having a more chronic problem of some kind. And her movements as she looks at the petri dishes are slow, deliberate, and very quiet.

Absorbed in the task, she's hardly going to notice Batman when he enters the room. She's a doctor and a scientist, not the type of person who naturally looks in dark corners. That's Shawty's job, though the people that either of them would really worry about aren't likely to quietly slip through a window - loudly, perhaps, but not quietly. So when she hears a voice in the room she startles and turns quickly, just managing to stop herself from dropping the petri dish in her hands.

But when she sees him stepping into clearer view, she looks a bit relieved and carefully sets down the dish in her hands. "Yes," she says simply, calming herself. It isn't normal for her to worry about anyone sneaking up on her, but she has reason to be so now. But it isn't Batman she's worried about, and the weary expression that had been on her face before he showed himself returns very quickly. "You could have knocked, you know," she adds wearily, turning in her seat to face him, "Which thing are you here for?"

She doesn't look at all alarmed by his presence, but she's quietly unhappy about it. She suspects that she won't like it whatever it is and is therefore preemptively miserable about it. Even though it's possible that he could actually do something helpful this time instead of showing up too late, being useless, or doing necessary but unpleasant things, she's not about to be pleased to see him.

[vigilant]

A million thoughts flashed through his mind at once. He noticed how peculiar it was that she'd rather use the naked eye over a finely honed microscope. Perhaps her mind was wandering, flitting to a distance plane, far away from the familiarity of her white lab coat and sterilized metal prongs. But there was another possibility. One that was was less an educated guess, and more a stab in the dark. She had mentioned, once before, something regarding her powers. At the time, she hadn't bothered to elaborate, hence he chose to not ask. Later, he told himself. But he couldn't help but wonder now if this had anything to do with it.

Batman noticed, too, how haggard she looked. The dark pouches under her eyes, the wanton pallor to her skin. All of which were telltale signs of late-night escapades, night-time adventures, or an agitated nerve. Perhaps something was keeping her up at night; some inexplicable worry that hovered over her, like a ghastly specter. Now it was just a matter of confirming which one it was, then drawing possible conclusions regarding the cause. Batman couldn't help but think, too, that it was related to her recent breakup with the Riddler. Perhaps she was depressed, and struggling to make sense of the disarray left in her relationship's wake. Broken, shattered pieces, like glass, fragile and dangerous, scattered across her psyche, waiting for time to work its magic.

"What things could I possibly be here for?"

He nearly snarled at her. Perhaps he was thinking of their little incident with Catwoman. Since their return, things had been awkward between them, and it's been weeks since he had laid eyes on the feline fetale. Perhaps that played a role in his grouchy, and overall no-nonsense mood. He leaned over, broad figure towering over her, like a black panther on the verge of attack. Then, as though checking himself, he relaxed and pulled his cape closer around his body defensively.

"You're not the only one who's been missing sleep."

He indicated the chair with a stiff nod. It was the closest he could get to being amiable, especially with the merry-go-around she's been throwing him into. At least he was trying, though. If she was a real, hardened criminal, he would have pounced on her a long time ago. Still, he could feel his paranoia gnawing at the edge of his senses, and he had to repeatedly remind himself that she was just a scientist, a young woman dragged into circumstances beyond her understanding. But truth be told, he didn't trust her. Batman hardly trusted anybody.

"Where is the Riddler? Why are you meeting with Scarecrow and Penguin? Where is Catwoman?"

[Nina Stenet]

"There's always something, I'm sure," Nina replies with a quiet sigh, her lips pursing at that. She knows perfectly well that she hasn't done anything criminal recently, not unless there's something illegal about advancing medical science. Yet after the whole incident with the FBI she's less likely to be surprised to have wild accusations thrown at her, and there's always the possibility that she happens to know something that Batman wants to know.

However, aside from those words she doesn't react much to the way he looms over her. Between her relative innocence, her power, and the fact that Batman ought to know full well by now how reluctant she is to make anything physical she really has little to fear from him. She can understand that she's probably rather irritating to him due to certain choices that she's made, but she wouldn't think that it's to the degree to set him off and if it is then she'll defend herself. And win, most likely.

She gives a faint "Mmm..." of understanding when he comments on missed sleep. Yes, she can empathize with that feeling. It seems like she's exhausted whenever she should be awake and restless whenever she should be asleep anymore. But so long as he doesn't dump another bucket of cold water on her again she's not going to be bothered with his mood. Having met him a few times before, she gathers that's just the way he is.

The string of questions he asks now are answered easily, with little pause for thought. "I really wish I knew, but I don't. And there are certain people you don't refuse when they ask you out to eat for fear that they'll choose a less civilized way of contacting you. And she's been out of town until just recently, if you want to know what she's been up to I suggest asking her," she replies, but then her eyes give Batman a significant look as she sarcastically asks, "I can't imagine why she would want a break from Gotham, can you?"

Meanwhile, from her place behind the reception desk up front Shawty can hear the sound of quiet talking. Which she instantly realizes is an odd sound since she and Dr. Stenet are the only ones who are supposed to be here, she's been sitting by the entrance this entire time, and though Dr. Stenet makes a number of assorted noises while she's working she isn't prone to talking to herself. So Shawty quickly but quietly slips away from her desk and sneaks over to the doorway to the lab, her hand ready to draw the concealed handgun hidden in her waistband if necessary. She's actually rather good at sneaking - probably not quite enough to go undetected by Batman, but any ordinary person would certainly miss hearing her. Though the moment that she sees who their visitor is, she straightens and her hands shift to hang loosely at her sides to show that she means no harm. Batman is definitely a Dr. Stenet problem and not a Shawty problem.

And when Nina spots her young assistant in the doorway, she glances up. "Oh, Shawty, say hello to Batman. Batman, this is my assistant, Shawty," Nina introduces quickly, sounding totally unconcerned. She doesn't keep many secrets from the young woman, and the fact that a visit from Batman was likely to happen sooner or later wasn't one of them.

And the diminutive young woman stares at the dark knight in silence for a moment before simply saying, "Hi." Sheesh, she's betting the guy is three times her size, if you include the armor.

[vigilant]

Batman wasn't someone most people could just brush off. But Nina wasn't in the least intimidated. She had mentioned once that the Riddler was interested in her because she had shown no fear in the face of his insanity. Batman saw a glimpse of it for himself now, in her crystal clear eyes and calm, cool voice. There were only three distinct possibilities. One, that Nina was very foolish, and thought herself capable of taking Gotham's Silent Guardian head on. Two, that she knew intimidation relied solely on the victim being scared, and so opted to not show it. Three, that she had an ace up her sleeve; some hidden talent that she believed could give her an edge. For some reason, Batman thought all three sounded perfectly viable.

He watched her, perusing every nuance of her body with a sharp, inquisitive eye. Batman was well-versed in kinesics, the body's method of revealing truths the voice would not. He watched for an aversion to meeting his gaze, a stutter in her voice, crossed arms or closed palms. For a second, he even considered the possibility that perhaps she was knowledgeable in the field herself, so he counted how long their eye contact lasted; too long, and she was probably faking it. Next, he glanced at her nails. Any signs of biting, a jagged edge from a nervous mouth. Split ends in her hair. Anything that might indicate anxiety, that worry's tiresome presence was hanging over her like a wraith.

He could tell, however, that she was being honest. Initially, he was grateful for it, until she mentioned Catwoman. For an instant, he considered Catwoman escaping Gotham because of him. This made his teeth set on edge and his nostrils flare. Anger burned in the pit of his belly, like tiny embers. But from the way Nina spoke, it seems as though Catwoman had spoken to her of him. Girl talk. So if he were to explode now, to show how Nina's words had plunged into him like a knife, she would likely tell Catwoman. No, he wouldn't give the feline that satisfaction.

Then he heard movement. His hand flashed towards his belt, but he remained calm. He had done extensive research on the building, the workers' schedule, Nina's schedule. The only other person in the building was Nina's secretary, Shawty. He knew she wasn't a threat, but still, one could never be too careful. With the batarang between his fingers, Batman turned to face Shawty. An enormous figure, an absolute titan, in black armor and dressed like a predator of the night. Few could lay eyes on him without reeling back in shock, and indeed, he saw the surprise register on the young woman's face, while Nina introduced them.

Nina tried to keep it friendly, to make it casual; something Batman didn't approve of. He knew the power fear had on the minds of criminals and non-criminals alike. Truth has a habit of spilling out, like blood from a fresh wound, when someone felt terror's deep pangs against their chest. Without so much as a nod, Batman turned back to Nina. For a second he was silent, making it a point that he was not their friend; not even an acquaintance.

"Why have they been inviting you to meet with them?"

[Nina Stenet]

Search as he might, Batman isn't going to find more than a trace of nerves around Nina. She certainly isn't hiding her fear, she's not feeling it to begin with. While she's hardly immune to it under the right circumstances, she's a naturally calm person with her emotions carefully ruled by her logic. It's her logic telling her that she has little to fear here, so she fears very little. And that's even further muted by her current state of depression that tends to make her even more fearless than she would be simply because she's not willing to try so hard to prevent bad things from happening to her.

And she certainly doesn't know a thing about kinesics. Quite the opposite, actually - she's not a very hard person to read and not overly sensitive to the subtle signs of others. So instead of fear, she shows other emotions. There's a certain deep sadness around her that she carries with her everywhere anymore, though it's tainted by anger. Edward is never very far from her thoughts, never mind that it's been months since she last saw him.

But perhaps it's her foul spirits that causes her words about Catwoman to be so sharp. Though admittedly it's also a bit of empathy for the other woman. She didn't have to be told about much of what happened between the Cat and the Bat in China - she witnessed at least the signs of most of it. Her chats with Selina merely caused her to be fully aware of exactly how the other woman felt about it. In fact she's already planning of informing Selina of Batman's visit the moment he leaves, simply because she knows how much Selina would want to know.

And she remains unbothered even though her little introduction got minimal response from one of them and none from the other. She actually thinks that the two of them are a lot alike in some ways - sure Shawty's skills don't really compare, but Shawty protects her while Batman protects all of Gotham. But she ignores her assistant now as the young woman simply steps just out of the doorway and into the room, keeping close to the wall where she can observe the conversation from a distance without intruding too much. Actually, she probably doesn't need to be here at all, but she knows that Dr. Stenet won't mind her presence and it's not like she's about to go back to her paperwork knowing that Batman in in the building and talking to her boss.

But Nina doesn't take Batman's point. Whether either of them really like it or not, she's tangled up enough in this stuff to consider the man to be an acquaintance, though not exactly a friend because he distrusts her a lot and she distrusts him a little. Yet she's more on his side now than not, thanks to Edward being out of the picture, and she's naturally friendly to anyone but an enemy whether Batman likes it or not. He may wish her to fear him instead, but he'll probably just have to learn to live with the fact that she's more inclined to treat him just like any other pushy acquaintance that she has - by remaining firm. Because if he ever did push her to the point of fear, things would have to get very ugly between them indeed.

Focusing on his question, she frowns a little because the answer isn't completely clear even to her. "Well, Mr. Cobblepot merely seemed to be curious about me - it seems that he somehow got vague wind of a few of my adventures and wanted to see who I am. In particular he knew about Luthor's attempt on my life, which I thought was interesting when so few people know about that. He also voiced a few vague threats, but I'm somewhat certain that he wasn't serious and was merely testing to see how I would react," she explains, her voice thoughtful, "But it's Crane that I'm more worried about. What he said seemed to hint that he's working on some sort of plan and is going to insist on my involvement somehow. He was being very vague though - I think he was trying to scare me more than anything. Oh, and that young woman he kidnapped a few months ago was with him." Though she says that she's worried about Crane, the amount of worry in her expression is quite low until she mentions the girl - whatever is happening there is actually a bigger worry to her than what Crane has in mind for herself.

[vigilant]

Batman listened silently, but intently. His mind was already churning, like the brain of some immense supercomputer. Connections were made, conclusions were drawn. He figured if Nina had reacted to them the same way she had done to him, then they wouldn't be satisfied. They were bullies, yes, and their power relied solely on intimidation, and the victim's tenacity. But they were also deranged, walking a dangerous line between sane and insane. With those types of bullies, Nina's sense of calm would only deter them momentarily, before they return with a bigger gun. But at least that bought them some time.

"As full of secrets as Gotham is, you'd be surprised at how often they are revealed."

This made him wonder, briefly, when his secret would be made public to the world. Like her, he was just buying time. That was why he made it an unspoken mandate to cut off as many ties as possible, so his enemies couldn't use them against him. Still, somewhere along the line, he had erred. He had a family, a group of likeminded individuals brazen enough to change the world. Often, he would ask himself if it was indeed a mistake, or one of the greatest things he's ever done. But with the recent death of Jason, it became an increasingly difficult question to answer.

"They're planning to use you as a pawn. If you want to win, to survive, and to protect those precious to you, then you must find yourself an ally."

At the mention of VerMillion, Batman narrowed his eyes. He had done a complete background check on her once, after hearing her insult him on Gotham's radio. She was a pest, and he found her insults aggravating. But he figured it a necessary evil as Gotham's Dark Knight. That was the price paid for justice, for bending the rules so he could better enforce them. There were even times when he found her amusing... But things began to take a serious and rather dangerous turn, when he realized she had been kidnapped by Crane.

"You don't trust me. But you seem to trust Catwoman. You trust in the things I've done for Gotham. The best thing you can do now is to gather information, so it could lead us to Crane and Cobblepot's plans. Just be careful."

Then he was gone, a dark figure that dove from the window like a ghostly apparition. There was no sound of impact; no crunch that marked his landing. True to his namesake, the Batman slipped quietly into the night, carried away by the wings of purpose. Soon, his chiseled armor became one with the darkness, fading from view, without ever having left a trace that he had visited.

[Nina Stenet]

Nina's lips purse at Batman's first comment, but she says nothing to that. She doesn't actually mind someone else knowing about the attempt on her life by itself, but the fact that Oswald does is perhaps a bad sign. And her expression hardly changes when he talks about her being used as a pawn. That's something she's well aware of, and she hates the idea of anyone seeing her that way. "I'm not as helpless as I look," she remarks, "But you're right. And I... appreciate that you're still looking out for me." Which is actually a hard thing for her to admit, since she likes to feel like she can protect herself.

But she is, honestly, exhausted. When Edward so carelessly removed her from his life, it struck a very hard blow to her. She feels like she's barely hanging on after that, and then having to deal with these threats on top of that... It's too much. So yes, it's some comfort to know that Batman's still keeping an eye on her, since Edward isn't. Even if Batman seems to keep bouncing back and forth between watching her because he suspects her and watching her because she's a possible target. Point is, if he's watching her then he might actually be able to stop someone before she has to.

At his last words, she simply nods and says, "I will." There may have been times in which she was purposely unhelpful to Batman in the past, but all of them had to do with her not betraying Edward. She has no such bond with the criminals bothering her now, so he'll get nothing less than her full cooperation. As long as he doesn't see the need to dig into her past, anyway.

The moment he's gone, Shawty walks over to the window and peers out of it for a moment before closing it tightly, "So that's Batman? ...He's fast for a freakishly big guy."

Nina can't help but give an amused smile. She can always count Shawty to cheer her up - at least in any situation where cheering her up is possible. "Jealous?" she asks as she picks up her cellphone and sends Selina a quick text.

Shawty snorts at that, double-checking the latch. "Of course not! You know how big of an advantage my size is," she says immediately, omitting the fact that she certainly wouldn't mind having that kind of speed, though. Satisfied with the window, she turns and starts heading back to the reception desk, "We're leaving in an hour, so you'd better hurry up."

"Yes, boss," Nina says sarcastically as she turns back to the petri dishes she was examining. Though she doesn't quite realize it, her mood has been slightly improved overall due to that interruption.