Caffeine and Bound Pages [open]

[jonathancrane]

Jonathan Crane Was lingering in the Coffee shop portion of a local book store in the City. It Was Normally empty at this time of day, No one wanted to be stuck inside when the sun was shining and the temperature was fair. He Was sitting in the Back of the Shop Reading the newest horror novel. It was supposed to be better than The Shinning, Though he Highly Doubted that.

He Was loosing his interest in it Rather Quickly, though he was throughly enjoying the coffee, but the silence most of all.

Crane Lowered His book as someone Entered, but only Slightly. It was rare to See another in at this time of day. He shook his head and when back to his novel, He already figured out who was responsible for the Creature. He Was losing interest and Fast, It was about time to find a new book.

That Was it, This Book was going back to the Shelf. Crane Stood, walking towards the horror Section. He turned down the Isle towards the Row of shelves and Spotted a student, Oh for the love of Fear, Can I not Get away from these people, He thought to himself as he turned on his heel taking the different route to the horror section.

Crane Seemed to have dodged that bullet for now, He Finally reached the horror Section. He placed the book back in its proper place before scouring the shelf for another one. It was starting to get crowded in here, Well crowded for his taste at least. He Was Standing to the side should anyone else pass through.

Finally another book caught his eye, 1000 hair raising horror stories. Something, At least one of them was bound to be good. He removed the book and headed back to the table he was claiming as his own at this point in time.

[manhunter]

John Jones homicide cop for the Gotham City Police department. Slipped quietly into the bookstore/coffee shop. Reaching back behind him to grab the door. To slow it so it didn't bang and disturb anyone that might be reading. As he made his way inside he could tell not many were in here. For he could tell by more then just seeing them.

He could hear every mind in the bookstore and out on the street. An through years of practice knew where every mind was, but to do this. He would have to concentrate harder. In the relaxed state that his mind was currently in. He could only pick up surface thoughts of those within a few foot of himself. He was making his way to the Science Fiction section of the store.

He loved reading how wrong or how right. An author came to what was really out there when he heard. Oh for the love of Fear, Can I not Get away from these people. What a strange thing for someone to say out loud. He looked about and saw only what appeared to be a college student. He listened to his thoughts and no the pitch was wrong.

He could see no one else near by so the thought. Had come from somewhere else he scanned the bookstore. Finding Jonathan Crane's mind, but pulling himself out rather quickly. If John scared easy the man's mind would of terrified him. If he had known all of Batman's enemies he might guessed this mind. To be the mind of the Scarecrow, but he had never met the man.

Under either of his names so he simply got his book. An made his way to the coffee shop to get his coffee and do a bit of reading.

[jonathancrane]

Crane sat down as he began to idly flip through the table of contents, scanning the names of the short stories until something caught his cold blue eyes. He leaned back in the chair kicking it back on the back legs with his own long slender ones.

So far nothing caught his eye, Crane figured that best not judge the stories by their names an start from page one.
He maned to get four pages into the first story before he decided that it just didn't have anything better than a lamely written ghost story. Real fear was caused by much more than spooks in sheets.

The next was of course another of supernatural nature, vampires.. He flicked the pages to the next story, hoping that maybe it would meet his standards for decent horror.
He looked up momentariness from his novel to see who had entered the building.

It didn't look like anyone of importance.

[manhunter]

J'onn was reading or trying to at least, but from the back of his brain. He could feel a strange prickling thought or rather many thoughts. An extremely dark mind was in here, but he hated. Entering a mind unless he had to and this man. Whoever this man was, he wasn't doing anything wrong. So there was nothing he could to him legally for giving him the creeps.

That was the human expression wasn't it? The man very simply was giving J'onn the creeps. He could just block him, but that idea bothered him almost as much as fire did. So the only other idea was to try and change his thinking. He closed his book and sipped a bit of his coffee. Before glancing at the title of the book he was reading and moving toward him.

As he got closer he smiled with a light chuckle. "Horror was one thing I could never get into being a homicide cop."

[jonathancrane]

Jonathan was continuing to grow fed up with the poor content of this book in particular. He placed the book on the table an rubbed the bridge of his nose. Crane hated no longer having the ability to feel fear.

He hated it more than he hated the so called night terror of the Gotham criminal underworld, the batman.

However he noticed the man that was approaching him, it was the same that had entered only mere minutes ago.

"Pardon?" He asked not really catching exactly what was said other then that he was a homicide cop. This is not my day at all Crane through, knowing that he had the sweet shroud of anonymity around his true persona of scarecrow.

[manhunter]

"Pardon?" "Oh excuse me I only noticed what you were reading." This is not my day at all. Hearing this in his mind shocked him, but he had learned to not let it show outwardly. This man is clearly a criminal possibly even a killer, but he could do nothing. Sure he could reach deeper into his mind.

Find out not only who he was, but what he had done or was planning to do. Of course there was more open ways to maybe find out who he was at least. "John Jones a detective for the GCPD I could leave if I'm being a bother?" If the man did tell him to leave he would of course go, but only as John Jones. The Martian Manhunter though would follow him the man was clearly up to something. Maybe not right now, but soon he was going to kill someone.

This must of been the prickly feeling he got from him, but he could still not bring himself to enter the man's mind."I just got the feeling something was the matter and I am here to protect and serve as they say."

[jonathancrane]

Crane nodded hearing the declaration of profession, "Professor Crane, Abnormal Psychology Teacher, Gotham U. An no I was quite finished trying to read that book" He looked down at the book for a moment. "I think the book store would be the last place trouble would occur at."

Not enough people to run a trial of anything an get consistent results, not going to be any issues from me He thought but of course there was always for the sadistic pleasure of it all. Once again not enough people to make it worth it.

"Just a bit of paranoia thats all, nothing giving any inclination that something would happen, But I suppose that happens a lot to people in your profession."

[manhunter]

John moved to a chair at the next table from Crane. Choosing this instead of sitting at Crane's own table. They had only just met and he guessed humans. Would frown at his being so open as to sit so close. So soon after meeting another male if he had been in a female form. He guessed it would of been a different story all together.

Looking back to him after setting his coffee cup down as he heard. "Professor Crane, Abnormal Psychology Teacher, Gotham U. An no I was quite finished trying to read that book." It made sense now it had been Crane's mind. He had heard when he saw the college student. He guessed the man got bothered with constant chatter.

If any of his students spotted him off campus, so he had apparently been avoiding the student, when he had heard the thought. John smiled and nodded at the introduction."So I'm guessing this is your escape from the class room. An your way of ditching the constant questions of grades and all?" "I think the book store would be the last place trouble would occur at." Yes even he had thought that once, but crazy things did happen.

"You would think so, but people kill or die in the strangest places. I remember reading about a case in a New York bookstore. Where a riot broke out over someone leaking one of the death's of a character. In that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book and two people died. Of course those were ruled accidental, but the police still got called out. Not enough people to run a trial of anything an get consistent results, not going to be any issues from me.

He thought, but of course there was always for the sadistic pleasure of it all. Once again not enough people to make it worth it. John dropped the smile hearing Crane's or rather the Scarecrow's thoughts, but he hoped. Crane would figure he was frowning for the deaths he had just mentioned. He might of never met Professor Crane or the Scarecrow, but he had read about the Scarecrow. So he now knew who he was dealing with, but he still couldn't do anything.

There weren't any laws being broken here. An he would have to reveal himself to take him in for any past deeds. An doing that would mean a fight and innocent people would be hurt. No he would have to let him go for now, but he could mention. That he thought he had seen a likely suspect matching Scarecrow's height and build. "Just a bit of paranoia that's all, nothing giving any inclination that something would happen, but I suppose that happens a lot to people in your profession."

He nodded again and finished his coffee. Frowning a bit. Seeing that it had gone cold he hated cold coffee."Yes I've seen cop's that have been on the job to long. They start seeing killer's around every corner."

[jonathancrane]

"I would probably recommend taking time off then, If something like that becomes that bad to the point one cannot have a normal day without thinking about such things. I take pleasure in my profession, Its not meant to be a cage" Crane retorted to the comment about seeing killers around every corner.

Though he himself was probably classified as one if he was seen in his mask, though he wasn't killing for the pure pleasure of it. It was more along the lines of Kevorkian, putting down the lame horse sorta speak. Except in Cranes case, the lame horse wasn't a horse at all, but a test subject that had gone beyond the threshold that the mind could take. Beyond healing, he knew that he would not want to spend the rest of his life, should he ever be rendered to such a state of a blabbering human vegetable.

So he extended the favor to the people he rendered to that condition an pulled the trigger, much to his displeasure he would have to clean up the resounding mess of the human mind left on the walls of his laboratory but such was the price for lab work.

He Looked at the man that was conversing with him in an emotionless expression.

"your right, Stranger things have happened in cities, but this is Gotham. When is a day not strange"

[manhunter]

To say John was not a bit freaked out by this man. Would of been bold faced lie, but with his mental abilities. It was easy enough to hide he drank his coffee and looked to Crane's on cup. From where he was he couldn't see inside of the cup. So he glanced to it and smiled at Crane. "Would you like a refill it's on me?"

"your right, Stranger things have happened in cities, but this is Gotham. When is a day not strange"

As he waited on a reply on rather he wanted a refill. He nodded his head at the man's last statement. "I guess any place with it's on asylum and a man that run's around dressed like a bat. Is bound to have it's problems an to think. I actually requested to be stationed here in Gotham City. Cause of all the talk I heard about this Batman character.

You ever seen him I've heard a lot of stories of Batman sightings."

[jonathancrane]

Jonathan shook his head "No, but thank you for the offer" He said rather politely. A clear contradiction to the true nature of his mind. That batman? nothing but a thorn in the side of my research He added mentally as his blue eyes narrowed just a bit for a moment in slight disgust of the man.

"He is a rather interesting Figure," He commented lightly" just what Drives a man to dress up like a nocturnal flying mammal an Do what he feels like to the city. Here's a bit of incite on Gotham city, There would be no masked criminals dressed to the nones in their Halloween's finest If he would have never Dawned cape an Cowl. "

Crane stated confidently knowing just how true that statement really was.