Rooms

( A special gift for Iris, cut for violence )

[Eddie N]

Welcome back, Jackal.

[Drip, drip. Drip, drip.

Dank, that was the first word Stephanie Brown would immediately use to describe Arkham Asylum. Sure, she had been there before at scattered moments in her life. The last time she had been there? Was to visit Eddie years before when it had just been rebuilt and reopened. When Dr. Leland had still run the asylum and it was more about healing than suppression. Back then, it had been clean, it had been healthy, it had been good. Eddie's recovery was proof of that, of the success of Leland's methods and her version of the asylum.

Now? Well, Stephanie wasn't sure what to think now. Crane was back in charge, and that in and of itself was worrisome. The hotel had assisted with that, she didn't even need to ask anyone to tell her so. No one in their right mind in Gotham would have let Crane back into the asylum without a fight. And that, the fact that he was in charge? Well, that was the main motivation to be there. To keep an eye on him. There was better intentions too, of course. Stephanie wanted to do good in Gotham, and while the clinics were slowly and surely being put back together, she would turn her skills elsewhere. Arkham patients needed someone good to keep their interests at heart. Crane? Oh, she did not trust Crane to keep them safe. So she would look after the men and women locked in the asylum to get better, and she would keep her eye on the good doctor at the same point.

Walking down the hall from her office towards the medical wing, she focused on the echoes of her heels against the floor. Not of the screaming of patients or the strange chill that had settled at the base of her neck since the moment she had stepped in there. Reading a chart for one of the patients in the wing, she still had her guard somehow fully up. Shoulders stiff, ears open (if still ignoring), and on the alert. Something you had to always be in a place like this.]

[After this, in the night - though it takes her a while to calm down enough to write. She has to stand in TJ's doorway and watch him sleep for a while, to reassure herself that he's okay. She knows the clock is ticking, though. And even though she doesn't want to, especially not now, she takes off the charm in order to write successfully on the journals.]

[Bruce W.]
He's looking for us, and he's hurting a woman I used to know because I won't tell him where we are. I've been given [...] less than half a day now, to tell him. If I don't, I [...] wouldn't doubt that he'll send me another video of Abida losing another body part, and I can't keep watching her get cut apart because of me.

[Sam A.]
I don't know if it'll come to this, but if someone starts asking about me, I need you to not talk to him. Please. I can't have you hurt again. I don't know how much he knows about the family, but if he does start talking, just ignore any of it.

[Selina K.]
If I go to him, will you take TJ and make sure he's safe?
[Nothing.]

[Cris M.]
[A little later than the others posts, as she's waiting for replies.]
Can I ask you a slightly philosophical question without you trying to read too much into it?

[Locked to Jason T]
[During this.]

I need a favor, Jaybird. Well, actually, your little nestmate does.

[Call to Cris M]
[Before she hooks up with him to go dancing, during this. Midday. Ring.]

Stay a while, they've said to me.

They don't seem keen on taking 'no' for an answer.

The doors are all locked and they've hid the key from me.

[And watch as I magically retcon and hand-wave the timing of this.]

[Once she'd arranged things with Sam and Cris, and finished talking to Bruce, Iris put down the journal, put her necklace back on, and started moving around the apartment. First her own bedroom, where she had several bags mostly pre-packed, waiting in her closet. She'd had them for years, updating them as TJ grew in and out of clothing. It was a habit she'd started in her other Gotham, just in case, and she'd grown even more serious about it once the hotel deposited her back in this Gotham. Clothing she liked, sets of scrubs, papers, records, and other important things. And tucked in between everything (some in TJ's bag as well) were stolen pieces of jewelry that their Selina had given them. She'd done her best to save all of them and only live off of what she made at her job. Just in case.

Her own room taken care of, she moved into TJ's, where he was playing quietly with his current favorite toy. With his help, they packed his things too. She'd been telling him since he was tiny that someday they might need to go to a different city, so he (mostly) accepted it. As long as he could bring the things he wanted. It made for a few very full bags, but it wasn't too long before she was helping him with his shoes and putting his backpack on him.

The hardest part was explaining how, exactly, they were going to get there. Iris finally ended up using the "magic" excuse, which he seemed to accept. And then, with a look back at their home and not knowing if they'd ever be back, she told him to close his eyes, and she opened the door to the hotel hallway, pulling through child and luggage in only a few seconds before closing the door behind her.]

Who: Graham, Clem. (With Shane later)
What: Graham to the rescue~
Where: TWD.
When: Nowish.
Warnings/Rating: Probs violence, cursing, etc.

( Under the cut. )