A Perfectly Sane Lunch Break [Jason]

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Perhaps one of the fortunate things about Iris's job is that part of her work can be done on her own schedule. She has fixed appointments with her patients, meetings, but it doesn't matter to anyone what time of day she does her paperwork as long as it gets done. This allows her a certain amount of wiggle room in her schedule, so today when she noted that she had some time between appointments around the time of her lunch hour, she decided to turn it into a proper break and compensate for that by staying in a bit later this evening. She might as well - it's not like she has a family to complain if she doesn't get home in time to put food on the table.

And it's easy at a place like Arkham to need a break simply to keep her sanity. She's managing, and a lot better than many of the other members of the staff, but it's real work to keep her stress levels down. Which is why she stopped off at a cafe to get a gourmet turkey sandwich to go, and has brought it to the park. Sunshine and fresh air (or at least, as fresh as the air gets in the middle of a city this polluted) is good for the spirit.

And she brought along a 'good' book to read as she slowly makes her way through her lunch. Beyond the Pleasure Principle by Sigmund Freud is not a good book to read if you want to learn anything that has anything to do with psychology. It is, however, a good laugh for a modern-day psychologist who studies its pages merely to shake her head at exactly how far off the mark he was and perhaps even speculate about what sort of mental health conditions that the author of such a work may have had. So with the book in one hand and her sandwich in the other, Iris is sitting on one of benches just off one of the meandering paths that works its way through the park. She has an amused look on her face as she nibbles on her sandwich and reads the book, appearing on the surface to be fully absorbed in it.

Yet even though she's already multitasking by reading while she's eating, she can't help but glance up occasionally to people-watch. That's actually relaxing to her as well, perhaps because your average Gotham citizen is mentally well. Perhaps not as well as your average person from another city, but certainly better than the patients and even some of the doctors where she works. And there's something pleasant about being able to be around people who don't desperately need her expertise, if only as a reminder that such people still exist.

[jasont]

Jason needed a break. He first realized it while trying to clean up some of his body-armor’s components, such as the lead-weighted gloves, realizing they were too bloody to wear. As soon as Jason opened the uniform locker in his current haven, the sight of torn-up, scratched and bloodied back-ups randomly thrown in there assaulted him with full force. The vigilante stared at it for a few moments before uttering the obvious to the empty room. – “I need a break.”

So the next day he put on a simple white shirt, a dark-brown and light leather jacket, ragged jeans and a pair of black nikes. After a moment’s consideration his faithful Kris joined him in a concealed sheath. And he was off on the Ducati, with a peaceful day at the park in mind. Jason couldn’t even remember the last time he’d done something like that - possibly during his training with the All-Caste where on some very special occasions he’d take the day off to be with Essence. That was almost two years ago. – [Gonna end up turning into Bruce, better watch myself.] – Obsession was a harsh mistress, and few people knew that better than him, even though Jason seemed unable to control his at times. Shaking his head slightly the vigilante-on-vacation tried to push away those kinds of thoughts, instead focusing on the day ahead of him and kicking up the bike’s speed, dodging cars and ignoring lights. The speed brought a smile to his face - one of few that made it out of the helmet – and in response Jason went even faster. – [To hell with the police.]

As Robinson Park approached, he finally got the speed down to normal levels, finding a place to leave the bike before getting off and walking the rest of the way. Jason picked up a soda and chose a random direction as his destination, entering the park towards it. It was still Gotham, but everything looked a lot better when one wasn’t trying to find the criminals in the crowd and could instead see the common people going about their day. It kind of renewed faith in his work. Bruce would buy them many moments like this one, sure, but Jason wanted more - years, decades… Once again this trail of thought was pushed aside as he paused for a second and turned his face up, closing both eyes and feeling the sun warming his skin. He stretched out before resuming the chosen path, keeping a relatively slow pace. – [Alright, guess I can do this until night arrives and Gotham’s less stellar citizens come out. But what exactly? Well, those days with Essence were spent… Let’s not go there right now.] – While Jason wondered, a lone figure caught his attention, sitting on a bench a little off his current path. It was an older woman, probably late twenties to early thirties, pretty cute and professional-looking, seemingly immersed in a book. He discreetly evaluated her for a couple of seconds and would have left after this, if not for the book’s cover keeping him for a while longer. He took a couple of steps in her direction to read it better, slightly raising an eyebrow upon discovering who the author was. – “I’m sure Gotham must look like heaven for psychology enthusiasts, but trust me, it’s more of a two floors down deal.” – The vigilante offered her a smile, though maybe the words sounded a little more sincere than what he’d intended.

There was a significant chance she’d just assume he was hitting on her, and maybe then kindly point him to the nearest day care. But that was just it. This day meant not caring too much about the small stuff.

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When a young man comes near to her, Iris idly makes a few discreet evaluations of her own. A bit of an odd demographic to be in the park at this time of day; she suspects that most young men his age would have school or work this time of day. Then again, there's always the possibility that he does that later in the day, though then she'd expect him to still be at home this time of day. So either he's in a position to be a lazy bum, or he's actually less lazy than the majority of young men his age. The clothing suggests the former, but the way he carries himself suggests the latter. Interesting...

She half-smiles when he seems to catch an interest in her book, and she shifts it slightly to make it easier for him to see the cover when he steps closer. Mostly because anyone would be hard pressed to not comment on someone reading something by Freud, and that comment is practically guaranteed to be interesting to her. Of course, 'interesting' does not always mean 'amusing', so she didn't necessarily anticipate that and laughs lightly before commenting, "Oh, you don't need to tell me that. My office at Arkham Asylum comes with a lovely view of the Styx."

But no, she doesn't assume that he's hitting on her. It's actually because of his age that she's not about to do any such thing - it's so obvious that she's too old for him that he'd probably have to spell that out for her if he was, and then she'd turn him down as kindly as possible. Until then, she'll just assume that he's the type to be friendly to strangers reading Freud. Such people exist, after all, even in a place like Gotham.

[jasont]

Jason was pleasantly surprised by her reaction - thanking the heavens for finding someone friendly on his day off - and even more when the woman told him of her position in Arkham. Though he didn’t believe in second chances for every single bastard that walked the earth, there were certainly people that deserved to be treated for their demons, so the ones that put hard work into that, like many doctors, had his respect. Especially since they had to be rather brave to take up a position in Gotham’s fine Asylum. Of course there were also the insane, the corrupt, and some who united both lovely traits, but the vigilante could tell with one glance that she didn’t belong in any of those groups. – “Wow. I must say your courage is inspiring. Never thought I’d actually get to meet one of Arkham’s famous psychologists, too bad I don’t have a pen on me.” – He would’ve offered his hand, but she had hers full, so the vigilante half-bowed, feeling it had been way too long since the last time he had spent any time with a normal person without ulterior motives.

“I’m Jason.” – Today he didn’t want to lie if it was at all possible to avoid, so no last names. – “Mind if I sit down for a little while? Been ages since I’ve been to the park, and if there ever is a next time, I doubt I’ll have the chance to inconvenience someone as interesting as you again.” – He was confident she wouldn’t have any problems with it, but still kept a respectful distance while waiting, having a weird sense of fun from enforcing the basic norms of politeness. – [Wow, I really needed this. Hope I don’t start daydreaming about sunny afternoons in the future, definitely gonna have to make some time to relax, maybe one day each month.]

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Iris can't help but laugh at his reaction to her job. "Oh, no, I'm not one of the famous psychologists - those would be the ones that are now patients..." she corrects. Dr. Quinzel and Dr. Crane come to mind... She sets aside her book, as she's hardly going to be reading it while talking to him, and then offers her hand. "I'm Dr. Iris Ledford. And I guarantee you've never heard of me - I'm too new and too sane," she introduces herself with a smile. She has no reason not to give a perfect stranger her entire name, though she does notice that he didn't. But she only chalks that up to him being a bit wary, and that's perfectly understandable.

"And yes, feel free to have a seat," she says with a vague gesture at the other half of the bench, "And you really shouldn't think of visiting the park as an 'if' - it's good for the soul when you live in the city. I don't think that I come here myself near often enough." And if anybody knows a thing or two about what's good for the soul it's Iris. That spark of well-being she possesses doesn't merely exist simply because she hasn't had her current job for long enough yet.

She takes a bite of her sandwich before commenting, "Hmm, but I don't think that it takes a lot of courage to have my job. Partly because they don't trust me with any of the more dangerous patients yet, but partly because it isn't difficult, as a therapist, to stay on their good side and to make sure they don't feel the need to use you to entertain themselves. Those who get themselves hurt are the ones who do stupid things like let the Ventriloquist have his doll. No, the brave ones are the orderlies and the guards - the ones who are supposed to stand between the more violent patients and the outside. I'm surprised that anyone ever applies for either job." She shakes her head and takes another bite of her sandwich.

[jasont]

Jason smiled as the woman’s laugh brought about the exact feeling he was looking for when deciding on a park for that little holiday. – “Touché.” – He noticed how she set aside the book, shaking the woman’s – Iris’ – hand and makes a mental note on her. Always important to know who’s who in Arkham, and didn’t hurt to keep tabs on the decent human beings in Gotham, at least as far as he was concerned those were a rare group. The vigilante then took the seat next to her when she didn’t oppose, still keeping a little distance so as not to offend her or anything. Jason smiled following the psychologist’s next statement. – “Well, my work keeps things uncertain enough that I wonder if another chance will come.” – Wow, that sounded totally depressing. Luckily there was another topic at hand, and he listened with full attention, thinking about her words for a few seconds.

“Still, any rioting, escape attempt or outside attempt to break anyone out would target the whole staff. And I simply don’t believe all of them would care enough to differentiate between the people that are on their good side or not. Trust me, you’re a hero just for working there.” – He raised his soda in a “toast” then, drinking some before going on. – “As for the ‘physical’ part of the staff… I’m not their greatest supporter. Don’t get me wrong, but the frequency some of those lunatics escape…” – Of course, the one in his mind at that moment was obviously the greatest bastard the world had ever known, that bastard known as Joker. Jason tried to shut that anger off, however, he wasn’t there to explode at people, even Arkham’s guards. – “But maybe I can say that only because it’s not me dealing with what they have to.” – A small smile made its way to his face then, the ‘joke’ being completely lost on Iris. He turned to face her more directly then.

“But tell me, why don’t you come here often enough? Sounds like the perfect place, and looks like it too.” – The vigilante looked around, appreciating the view, the grass fragrance and the abundant lighting. – “Or is there something like other relaxing activities to choose from out there that a person who’s lost their sense of fun simply can’t conceive?” – The tone was amazed and playful, though it had been a while since the last time Jason made fun of himself and it felt kind of new. A lot of things were invoking that feeling, actually. He liked it.

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"Oh? What do you do?" Iris asks him curiously when he mentions his work. Must be something unusual to make a visit to the park again that uncertain. But she's only asking out of idle curiosity; it's in her nature to wonder about people - it's why she's a psychologist.

She listens to him explain why she's a hero with a vague smile on her face. While she still doesn't agree that she's in that much danger of dying in a riot or escape attempt - simply a matter of keeping on your toes in either case - she does find her job very fulfilling and hopes that it's of use to society. The 'toast' causes her to laugh lightly, though she's quick to object to his next comment. "Oh, I wouldn't be so quick to judge them. People escape from Arkham for two reasons: some of them are just that clever - there's no such thing as a perfect security system and some of the rogues are good at spotting the flaws. And the other reason is, like any organization in this city, there's a lot of corruption - especially people who care more for money than their neighbor's well-being. But it's not really worse than any other business in this city, and if the vast majority of the staff weren't so dedicated the problem would be much worse. No, I have a great deal of respect for that portion of the asylum's staff," she says mildly. Of course, her opinion on the other portion of the staff - her fellow psychologists and psychiatrists - is completely different.

The answer to his question is easy. "Work," she answers simply, but adds, "I have my doctorate but I still have a long ways to go before I get the required hours for my license. And since I want to get that over with as quickly as possible, and I don't have a lot of other things to spend my time on, I work as many hours as they'll let me." Which means that she has precious little free time, normally. "But I find ways to relax - yoga, meditation, crafting, singing, reading..." she replies, glancing at her book, "I'm not much use to the mentally unwell if I'm mentally unwell myself."

[jasont]

Jason let Iris’ question for later, working on his answer as he listened with seemingly full-attention to her opinion on the staff. He still couldn’t agree with her, though, as any flaws should be upgraded as soon as the criminal exploited them, meaning the more human villains should never be capable of escaping more than once. But then again, a lot of it could have something to do with that corruption she spoke of, and that immediately reminded the vigilante that he’d have to work on getting rid of those kinds of people too, maybe they weren’t getting enough of Red Hood’s attention. – [Day off, man. Focus on the nice lady.] – While trying not to look too disagreeing, Jason waited a moment before answering. – “Didn’t mean to offend, I’m sorry about that.” – He didn’t retract any of it, though. Iris’ answer to his next question was kind of bland, so he waited a moment thinking of how to respond before she thankfully went on.

Jason tried to stop a smile, but was unable to and quickly beaten, as she listed her relaxing methods. – “Singing? If I was only a little more inconvenient I’d definitely ask for a demonstration.” – Not that the indirect way the vigilante had just used wasn’t good enough, of course. – “And that was kind of anti-climatic when you first spoke, although I understand your focus on work.” – Maybe he understood it a little too well. – “And I agree. Just don’t overexert yourself, that can be just as bad.” – He had genuine concern, part of it being translated into his voice. That woman was just extremely pleasant and likable, it’d suck if anything bad happened to her. – “I mean… You’re one of the nicest people I’ve met in a while, and I can tell that from just five minutes into meeting you. And about my work…” – Jason looked down for a moment, thinking of how to present that. – “I’m a businessman. Have some shares in big companies. And I know, looking at me you’d probably doubt that, and you’re right – I only got in through a close acquaintance. So I travel all over the world when I have to, spent the last two years away from home.” – There was a lot of truth in there, and just enough that if someday he needed to, he could just tie “Jason” in to Jack Redford and say he had to protect his identity. – [Ten paranoid steps ahead, huh, Jason? Bruce would be proud.]

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Iris half-smiles at the apology, "You didn't really offend, but you're talking about the people who protect me from my patients." She's not about to get her pants in a twist over someone stating an honest and understandable opinion, but on the other hand she's not going to let that opinion be stated without stating her own. The difficulty of keeping the patients within the asylum is something that can probably only be appreciated by the people who attempt it. So many people in Gotham seem to think that they just let them all waltz out whenever they please, but they really are doing their best.

She laughs when he comments on wanting a signing demonstration, but though she considers herself to be decent at it she's not one to break into song at the drop of a hat. Especially when she's not partway though a rather delicious sandwich... "Oh, don't worry, I won't overexert myself. I'm a strong believer in the idea that you have to take care of yourself before you can take care of others," she assures him.

As he goes on to explain his work, she tilts her head curiously. He's right, he definitely doesn't look like a businessman. And his body language is uncertain enough that she wonders if he's not being totally honest, or at least omitting something. Then again, that could literally mean anything, or even that he just doesn't like his job. Hmm... Really, she should just stop trying to analyze people who aren't her patients, because people who aren't don't generally enjoy answering prying questions to confirm or disprove her suspicions. Not that most of her patients enjoy that either, but she's actually supposed to be asking them those questions as a part of her job in that case.

Instead, she sticks to more appropriate comments, "Oh, that sounds exciting! But I bet it's good to be back home after being away for that long."