tampered | Log; In progress

Log; In progress

When; Saturday evening (September 20th), post-pirate curse
Rating; PG
Characters; Sasha Nein

monochrome_mind and Doctor Jonathan Crane (Scarecrow)

is_fear_itself
Summary; After having multiple conversations over the Network, a face-to-face meeting between two psychological geniuses was bound to happen.
Log;

Even though he knows there is a possible risk involved by associating with Doctor Crane, Sasha has never been one to step back in the face of possible danger. In fact, no matter what anyone has said over the Network, he feels a strange connection between himself and the good(?) doctor. After all, it's not everyday that he can meet a person who shares similar interests and also understands the desire for knowledge. And for those reasons alone, he's chosen to ignore the rumors, in order to try and establish an acceptable friendship of sorts.

And so, on this fine Saturday evening, Sasha finds himself sitting at a table in the far back corners of the Cat's Eye Cafe. He casually smokes on his second cigarette since coming here, mentally prepared to stop once his guest arrives. Thankfully, the place is quiet, which reassures him that conversations will go easier. In the long run though, he hopes that nothing bad happens, but it prepared for such an event if it occurs. Until then, he remains calm and undisturbed, sunglass-covered eyes occasionally glancing up at the door.

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Given the option between engaging in direct, bloody combat with the Batman, and trying to feign normalcy with someone he almost desperately wanted to impress, Jonathan Crane would take a bloody nose and broken bones from the Bat every time.

He adjusts his sweater again, and then smacks his own hand away from it. Argyle! He curses his own judgement for a moment and pauses outside the door. Mental pep talk. If this other man--intelligent and rather decent, as far as appearance went--decides to judge him on the appearance of his sweater, well.

Steeling himself against the fear that he is the master of, Jonathan Crane enters the Cat's Eye Cafe, looking around for the hopefully-soon-to-be-good-friend Sasha Nein.

First appearances are noteworthy to Sasha, but not in a terribly important way. He's seen worse, and Jonathan's simple sweater is actually liked instead of hated. There's not even an inkling of hesitation in Sasha' mind that this is the man he's been talking over the Network with.

He stands, brushing off his own striped sweater and jacket lightly with one gloved hand. Putting out the cigarette in the nearest ashtray comes second, before the stoic German walks towards his companion calmly. It's obvious just by his looks alone, that Sasha prides himself on being accurate and presentable.

"Dr. Jonathan Crane, I presume? It is a pleasure to meet you in person finally. I'm Sasha Nein."

Jonathan's first impression of Sasha is that the other man is incredibly composed; he doesn't bother (or isn't able) to conceal a rather impressed expression at finding what appears to be actual sanity in a place like the City.

"Yes--" He scrambles to remember the proper social conventions. It happens to be far easier sending the masses scrambling in terror than to have a direct, one-on-one conversation, at least as far as Crane's concerned. "Ah, the pleasure is mine, Sasha--may I call you that?"

[ooc; late tag is late! My apologies.]

"You may call me by my first name. And, if you prefer, I can do the same as well." He nods lightly, while taking mental notes on how Crane reacts to his words. So far, he seems like one of the very few intelligent people in the City.

Once the initial greetings are over, Sasha gestures lightly to where he was sitting beforehand. "Perhaps we should sit down before getting into any further discussions. I don't wish to keep you standing here all evening." And with that said, he calmly walks back to the table calmly, waiting for the good doctor to follow him, before sitting down.

((ooc: You're alright. I'm pretty easy-going with tags and such.))

"Wonderful. Yes, please." Almost like having a real friend. How novel... Well, not that Crane hadn't made his share of friends in Arkham, but--a real, sane friend. At least, he hoped.

"Oh, certainly--" And Crane moves quickly, lankily, and only slightly clumsily to sit opposite him. "So!" He doesn't intend for it to sound quite so cheerful, as too much enthusiasm could be alarming, but he can't quite help himself, "Tell me more about yourself."

Valiantly he resists the urge to fiddle with the salt and pepper shakers.

[ooc; Whew. Thank yooou~]

"Of course." He follows beside Crane at a brisk pace, taking the seat across from him calmly. It's no surprise to be asked the first question either, and Sasha seems more than willing to talk. With the exception that some details might be omitted for personal reasons, like his psychic powers.

"Well, I suppose I should start with the basics. I've been here in the City for almost 5 months. Before I came here, my former job consisted of working for the government, while also doing scientific and psychological research." It's a start, albeit a very detail-lacking description. Sasha rests both of his hands on the table calmly, while keeping his gaze level with Crane.

"What about you, Doctor? Would you be willing to tell me a bit about yourself as well?"

((ooc: No problem :3))

Crane seems to be taking a genuine interest, letting his expression drift into curiosity. "Almost half a year, then." He doesn't press for more detail, at least not yet.

"The government, hm." And he can only imagine what that entails, but it's an alluring thought.

Back to reality, however... "Oh! Yes. Ah... I was employed at a university, as a professor of psychology, specializing in phobias." He adds after a moment, "All good things must come to an end, however, mustn't they. Did this place help your circumstances, or hinder them?"

"You are correct." Sasha nods lightly in response, while taking a moment to glance over at one of the few staff members of the cafe. Conversation is nice, but he also prefers to have something to drink while sitting here, like a cup of coffee.

"I won't deny that the government of my world has special divisions for unique situations and missions. Things the police and FBI wouldn't even be able to handle." It's a white lie, but Sasha still feels a need to omit the whole 'secret psychic agency' concept. "I can't say anything bad amount them though, since the job gave me a chance to learn things I could have never done on my own."

"Ah...So that explains the question you asked on the Network a few weeks ago, along with your job offerings." He's good a remembering critical details, it seems. "This place actually hindered me greatly. I was in the middle of an espionage rescue mission. For now though, I don't complain like some people do. Instead, I'm trying to learn as much as I can about the City's workings and the Deities."

Jonathan follows his gaze quickly, and musters up a moment of boldness, to make a come-here gesture at one of the staff--no reason they shouldn't earn their paychecks, after all.

"I understand perfectly," Jonathan assures Sasha, while not quite understanding at all. "Unique is practically a synonym for Gotham City."

He pauses, surprised and flattered that Sasha took notice, and remembered. "Yes. Ironically people seem rather frightened of a specialist in fear." He pauses to order a cup of tea, and then nods sympathetically to the latter comments. "Your proactive approach is admirable. And you will tell me if I can help in some way, won't you?"

Jonathan's gesture gets an idle smile out of Sasha, while only lasts for a few seconds. He's already finding an unusually good amount of things that allow him to relate with Doctor Crane easily. From his words, gestures and intelligence; Sasha almost wonders why he didn't ask to meet with Crane earlier than this.

"Gotham City? I apologize, but I've never heard of that place before. It's your home, I take it?" After Jonathan orders his tea, Sasha follows suit behind him, ordering nothing more than black coffee. Nothing against tea drinkers, of course, but this is what he prefers. He continues the conversation normally once the two of them are alone.

"Because people can't comprehend or control their own emotions. I believe most people express fear when they find someone stronger then themselves. They fear for their lives, or maybe something else. Either way, to be controlled by such emotions is a sign of weakness." He gestures lightly to Jonathan with one hand calmly. "I respect your skill deeply, as it is very rare to find someone who understands the workings of fear and human traits. Even I am not a master of such skills. As for the City research, I will keep you updated when I find out anything interesting. So far, it's rather difficult with the Deities present."

For his own part, Crane's amazed nothing terrible has happened yet. Every time he leaves the safe refuge of his books and papers, usually, he finds cause to regret it. This outing, however, is cautiously shaping up to be tolerable.

"It doesn't seem to exist in many of the common-Earths I've discovered here." Jonathan licks his lips, trying not to squirm too much, not wanting to betray any nervousness. It was so easy with the mask, and the other persona.

"Well... True." Jonathan resists, just barely, talking at length about his very favourite subject in the whole wide world, and then blinks in astonishment at the compliment. "You--do? ...Hnn... I mean, well. It's rare for me to find someone who can appreciate the field." He smiles shyly at Sasha, still earnestly refraining from expounding about fear, and then nods to the latter part. "Capricious creatures... They seem almost like children with toys."

"Ah, then it must be a rather unique place. Your thoughts on the City thus far?" He doesn't seem to be paying much attention to Jonothan's idle gestures right now, which is a sign that he's easing up a bit.

"I wouldn't lie to you. I've spent many years conducting psychological research, and none of my co-workers ever focused deeply on primal human fear. In the near future, I would like to hear some of your theories and discoveries, if permitted." He smiles for only a few seconds, only to hide that look upon the arrival of drinks. Sasha gives a bitter look at his coffee, and musters up a weak response. "Indeed, they do seem like that. Babbling on about turtles, no less..."

"I dislike it." Jonathan decides that to be honest here loses him nothing; he accepts his tea as it comes, wrapping his hands idly around the cup as though someone might try to take it away, and then looks to Sasha again, "From the way people vanish, friendships could last only days... or years, at the whim of this place, and we've no way of telling."

He listens intently to the other man, a faint grin playing about the corners of his mouth at the thought of a captive, intelligent audience. "I would like to discuss it with you very much." He pauses, reading the cues as a doctor, instead of a friend, and leans forward to put his elbows on the table, frowning at Sasha. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

"We share mutual feelings there, my friend. In this place, time means very little to most, until we start losing people and things." Sasha nods lightly, while resting one hand on the handle of his coffee. He doesn't drink just yet, more concerned with finding the right words to describe his thoughts.

"I spoke with a Deity once. The way he talked with me was simply disappointing. It was as if I looked like a dog to him, for asking questions and desiring knowledge. He ended the chat with a tale about a woman and how she thought the world rested on the back of a turtle, whom is standing on the back of many other turtles going downwards." He pauses to take a light sip of coffee, continuing shortly afterwards. "Here, it's turtles all the way up. That's what he said to me."

Sasha glances up at Jonathan calmly, changing the topic back to his earlier statement. "I apologize for rambling on. Like you stated before, I would enjoy more conversations like this with you in the future."

"Absolutely." Jonathan examines his cup, taking a drink as he listens to the deity story--he hasn't had direct experience, but that sounds more than enough to dissuade him from trying.

"Bullies. That's all they really are... Pawns playing at power." That's what everyone is who's cruel to Jonathan, after all. He's something of a black-and-white thinker.

"We could make it a... a weekly thing, perhaps," He ventures, knowing it's a weakness, but not being able to prevent himself betraying it, "I would--I mean, besides one individual from my home, you're my first friend here." He smiles hopefully.

"Indeed. I will not bow before such people. The only things the Deities have that I want is information, none of their 'special' curses." Even though they are interesting to chat with, Sasha feels a deep resentment towards his captors.

"That can be arranged. I work here in the City during the week, but the weekends are my free time. We could meet up in the evening for a few hours and chat. Or whatever time you prefer." Sasha manages one of his rare smiles, feeling content with the whole idea. "I must confess, I haven't made many friends here as well. Most of them are just work acquaintances."

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Log; In progress

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