Barbara Gordon (babsgordon_) wrote in thedoorway, @ 2014-05-04 20:21:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log, barbara gordon / oracle (birds of prey), christopher pike (movies) |
Who: Barbara Gordon & Christopher Pike
When: Saturday
Where: The Mall, Washington DC
What: Patriotism, American history, sightseeing, the Reflecting Pool, and a mildly tense conversation.
Rating: Fine.
Status: Complete.
American patriotism was something that fascinated Christopher Pike. Not just from the historical standpoint (and a curiosity in just how different this Terran history was from his own) but also from a comparative standpoint. After all, Starfleet, though intended to be an exploratory force, was highly militarized and it'd be fascinating to see how the United States' capitol city - with the heads of the government and the military - functioned and navigated that tenuous balance. (And, to be honest, he was wondering whether being surrounded by men and women in uniform would provide him some comfort like it had when visiting the USS Constitution in Boston.) He had been thrilled that Babs had agreed to join him. He had no idea what he was doing with her, and there was no one to smack him upside the head for being an idiot, but it was so easy to talk to her and feel comfortable around her. And that was something he enjoyed. They were walking along the reflecting pool, having visited the Lincoln memorial. He paused by the Vietnam memorial, fingers tracing the names engraved on it as if somehow he could connect to those young lives cut short so many years ago. "You'll tell me if it's boring you, right? All the history and military stuff on my agenda? You're welcome to beg out of it if you want," he said, giving her a half smile. He knew he was an odd one. It had been years since Barbara had been to DC, and of course that was in another world altogether, so she couldn't count on anything being the same. Still, it was familiar enough and the weather was nice (thankfully all that rain from the week seemed to have passed) and the company was good, so all in all she counted it as a nice weekend getaway. She was aware that there was a history between her and Chris, a history that she didn't remember. Despite his suggestion to go back through old network posts, it was her conversation with Jason, when he practically begged her not to get involved again, that kept her from reading them. She didn't need or want anything else clouding her opinion of, well, anything. "If I had a problem with it, I would have said so. As it is, if I get bored now I'll just leave you here and find an art museum to roam around in for a few hours." Christopher held his hands up in mock surrender. "Alright, I get it," he smiled, glad he had company on this trip. "It's just, I can get a little history geek and…" He waved his hand in the air. "Stuck in the past." The past was different now. Babs didn't remember it and he was no longer in a wheelchair, even if he did still use the cane occasionally. He'd been worried it would affect their relationship, but things seemed to be… better now, even if there was plenty of awkward flirting. But he'd gotten her on a horse, and that was a victory. "You come out to the ranch, you come out to D.C. with me, I feel like I'm going to owe you pretty big for this." Barbara smiled. "I don't mind. The best way to learn about the future is to examine our past after all." She looked at him with an arched eyebrow. "Does that mean you'll do anything I want you to?" She asked. "Because I can have some fun with that." Barbara couldn't help the mischievous smile that quirked at her lips. She had no idea what to request but imagined she'd eventually be able to come up with something. "As long as we don't get stuck in the past," he said, turning away from the monument. "I don't know about anything," Christopher answered with a smile of his own. "I think handstands and marathons are out of the question, but I'm certainly open to negotiation." It was nice and familiar, this easy conversation and teasing. "The question is are you willing to put up with me for driving out to Arlington and more importantly, where should we go for dinner?" Barbara nodded, agreeing with his statement but not wanting to get into it. Of course she agreed, but she also knew that letting go of the past wasn't something easily done. Sometimes there were moments in the past, actions took, decisions made, that too greatly affected the present. She agreed because she wished that, sometimes, she didn't feel stuck in her own past. "Tell you what," she said, "We'll start with me choosing the dinner location. I sure hope you have an adventurous palette." "Is that so?" he asked, taking a seat on a bench to give his legs a rest. He hadn't brought his cane on the trip, thinking he'd be fine without it, which maybe was a bit ambitious. But if he wanted to join SHIELD or some other organization, he'd have to push himself again. "Should I just give in and buy you the leather outfit and the crop right now if you're going to start making decisions?" he asked with a mischievous glint in his eye. "I've seen the photos, you do look good in leather." "I know I do," she quipped. She maneuvered her chair so that she was, essentially, beside him where he saw on the bench, and folded her hands in her lap. "If that turns you on," she said, "I'd be happy to indulge." Was that too bold? She thought so but the words were out of her mouth and gone before she could think again. Christopher couldn't help the flush that spread across his face or the coughing fit that suddenly came over him. "Well." He rubbed the back of his neck. He was fifty years old, for crying out loud, he shouldn't be blushing like a teenager. He knew what he liked. (And what he used to like, before the Narada, but there was no telling how that would translate to now and what would be an unexpected trigger.) "I certainly wouldn't say no," he said, meeting her gaze. "Although if we're exchanging turnons, you owe me one of yours." Having always been prone to blushing herself -- read hair and all -- Barbara congratulated herself on making him blush. Pleased with herself, she shrugged a bit, first at his flirting back and then at his request for one of her turn-ons as well. She bit the inside of her lip, only for a moment, before answering. "Salt and pepper hair," she said simply, then reached out to smooth his down around his left ear. Of all the things he was self-conscious about (and there were quite a few post-Narada which was a shift from the pre-Narada days), luckily his graying hair wasn't one of them. He was proud to have survived to get grey hair as a captain (which was not something that had been guaranteed given his propensity for heading full speed into dangerous situation and putting the lives of his crew above his own). He did blame / credit Kirk with causing some of the grey, but it was all in good fun. "Resorting to flattery, Gordon?" he quipped, catching her hand in his own. "I would have thought you more original than that. I'm sure there are some devious desires inside that head of yours." Barbara laughed. "Flattering that I find your hair a turn on? You know, not everyone has to have some kind of kink, you know." Though she did. But it wasn't something she'd regularly admit to, most importantly because it meant admitting to something else that she kept hidden deep down inside of her. But if he was insistent, she was sure she could come up with something. "You know," she continued after a moment, "I've always gone for older men who are a bit arrogant and definitely stubborn." "I suppose not, but I've found that many people do. Especially those I have… chemistry with." He laughed. An honest to God, laugh. "Arrogant and stubborn? I think that's a fairly generous description of my personality. I've definitely heard worse." "That's certainly an interesting descriptor of anyone you've been involved with before," she said, pursing her lips for a moment. Honestly, she wasn't sure how to take that, but she imagined it was meant to be a compliment. Or it was meant as nothing at all. "By all means," she said, "what adjectives should I be using instead?" He ran a hand over his hair. "I would think you've figured out by now that relationships and talking about them and feelings is not part of my skill set," he joked, in part to diffuse the situation. "I was a no entanglements man for many years until I got involved with Phil and somehow that got serious without us killing each other. We were together for fifteen years before it fell apart. Since then, well, it hasn't been since I arrived here that I actually started to 'date' if you'd call it that. And there are times when it's hard for me not to remember what we had before, you and I." He sighed. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wax on about the past. My cadets and my superiors tended to call me a pain in the ass. The latter usually added something about being a reckless, insolent, self-sacrificing ass. And that's the mellow version of me. I was worse when I was younger. Now? Well, ornery, crabby, stuck in my ways, you know. The usual. My medical team always has quite the colorful adjectives to describe my reluctance. " There was a smile on his lips though as he took Babs' hand and nipped at her hand. "Probably kinky, but that's not something that's in my personnel file." At least he'd had a history of commitment, unlike her. She hadn't been committed to anything except Gotham in her entire life. Maybe to her girls, sure, or to the cause, but in a relationship? She didn't even know the last time she'd flirted with someone this much. Maybe with Dick, but that had been ... well, it had been a long time before the Joker has his way with her. "I'm sorry that I can't remember anything about the two of us. I can tell that's tough for you, and I know it's pretty inexplicable, but … I don't know. Not much of this makes sense and to be honest, I haven't had a relationship that went past a few dates in, well, ever, really. And since --" Barbara motioned at her legs and wheelchair. "-- definitely not." Her breath caught when he grabbed her hand, and she smiled. "I'm used to being around difficult men," she said. He smiled, his hand still holding his as it settled on the arm of her wheelchair. "There's no need to apologize. Besides, it just gives me a leg up in guessing what you like - even if there's no guarantee it's the same." He studied her, not sure how much to tell her about their past here. Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead. Hadn't he used Nimitz's motto to justify his actions before? This seemed as good a time as any. "When I first came here, I was in a chair with almost no use of my legs. And despite that, you and I managed a physical relationship. It took some creativity with positions at times, but it certainly didn't make it any less feasible or enjoyable. There's no reason your injury or the chair should stop you from enjoying anything or pursuing something you want." Barbara pulled her hand away from his and straightened. It seemed to her as though his former disability, no matter how former it was, ought to have been something he brought up to her. Just based on her own situation. She felt the muscles in her shoulders tense up, and she tried to relax. She didn't want to get angry, but her cheeks and her neck felt hot. "I think I know my limitations well enough, Chris. I've pushed myself to them for years now." Not all risks pay off. He knew this. And this had been a big risk. "I didn't mean to imply that you didn't. Just-" He didn't quite know how to phrase what was on his mind. "I was never as good about accepting my limitations, even when they were temporary. I didn't cope well and I nearly gave up a few times. Having you, well it helped. You showed me that being in a wheelchair didn't mean my life or career was over. It took me a long time to learn that lesson. Too long, I think. And I was lucky. Damned lucky." He paused as a memory came to the forefront. "The first steps I took - before falling flat on my face - I didn't tell you about because I thought it'd upset you or something. When I finally did, you were happy for me. I.. I didn't understand how you could manage that. I- I thought that everything would be better once I could walk again, but being able to walk didn't solve any problems. And some of the lessons I learned from you didn't get through my thick skull until after you'd left." Barbara nearly laughed, but she didn't think it appropriate so she swallowed it. She had come to terms with her inability to walk years before, even if she was pushing herself to the brink. It was only because she wanted to be able to do those things that were out of reach because of her limitations. And here he was, telling her that things she said to him helped him get through a temporary problem. She always had been good at doling out advice or what have you when necessary. Still, there was something about his expression, and his tone, that gave her pause. "The physical rarely solves problems we have somewhere else inside of us." He snorted. "Understatement of the year." He thought about how bad it'd gotten again, staring off into the distance. He didn't want to rehash that, didn't want to admit how poorly he'd coped with things, just wanted to move on, keep moving forward - even if he still didn't know what direction to take with his life here. He pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned his attention back to Babs. "So, anything else you want to see in this area before we head to Arlington?" Ah the old change of subject. She didn't mind. She was about to do it herself. "No, I think I've seen everything," she said. She smiled at him and wheeled forward so she was in front of him. "Unless you don't mind just one more stroll around the reflecting pool." "One more stroll is completely doable," he said with a smile. |