singillatim | Look who just walked into the room/ The guilted and faded

Look who just walked into the room/ The guilted and faded

Who: Bruce and Jason (closed) + Catch All
What: Wolf stalking and assorted things
When: October.
Where: Around the church
Content Warnings: Complicated family dynamics. Will edit if needed.

There's a wolf (probably wolf, could be another large wild animal) stalking and snooping around his cabin.

It isn't being all that subtle - the temperatures are low enough that tracks aren't so much a thing, but even without that... not all that subtle.

Also, he's fucking Batman.

That leaves him in a weird position. He's cautious enough and has reason to be - it's a fucking wolf, not a stray dog. But he's also perfectly well aware there's at least one... pet? wolf within Milton.

That has him going outside, but carefully, to stand just outside. He watches and listens, waits and sees, basically. Ignores what the cold is doing to pretty much every joint in his body.

But close to the door so he can get back inside if he has to. ...also with the sharpened metal bat he arrived with in his pocket. Just in case. (And also with the acute awareness doing this is probably stupid, but not quite able to stop himself).

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( it is, in fact, a wolf.

massive and black, with dull grey-blue eyes that follow bruce through the windows of his cabin as he moves within it. not quite staring but more - idly watching. not in the way a wild wolf would, because why would one linger around some randos place of living as if that'll get them what they want.

so he's not being particularly subtle, but it's intentional. dramatic for the sake of being dramatic, as jason todd usually is. not that bruce would suspect him of being a wolf, unless others around town have spilled about what the aurora did to them.

it's when bruce goes outside to stand and watch him back that jason decides, fuck it, he can be a little extra. as a treat.

the wolf saunters out of the treeline. doesn't get too close, because there's only one of him, which is already terrible odds against bruce - but even worse when he's lacking opposable thumbs. instead, his front legs stretch out in front of him, back arching as he stretches out with a yawn that sounds more like a yip than anything else. )

[ Opposable thumbs are a fantastic advantage in a fight. They enable things like grappling and range weaponry.

Also though: that wolf is acting like a fucking dog in some ways. The signals it's throwing read more like diffusing tension. Whether that's actually more or less strange than it being there at all, Bruce still hasn't decided.

...Currently leaning on the 'pet' theory, because it at least half fits? Kind of? (No no one has told him anything about aurora gifts).

He takes a few steps away from the house, crouches down and keeps watching. Tiny mysteries but-]

Is this a food thing?

( ha. good. bruce takes a few more steps out and away from the cabin, and the wolf just - tips his head to the side, ears flicking. there's no sign of aggression in him, not yet. maybe he is just a kept pet, considering the sight of bruce coming towards him has his tail wagging fluidly; a sign he wants to play, in a way, even if he's keeping his distance and dropping down to lay in the snow a significant distance away from bruce.

he's baiting, which is play in it's own way. bruce isn't too far, but jason wants him to come further away from the cabin before he makes a move toward him. )

[ Bruce is one hundred percent aware that the smart course of action is to walk back in the house and ignore a wolf that could rabid as easily as it could be a pet - never mind the assorted (awful) options that are unique to being in this place.

He is also one hundred percent aware that he's not going to do that. He is alone at the moment, largely alone here, and doesn't have an actual kid, Alfred, or the Justice League here to make judgements about what he does.

At least he's armed?

Which means he's going to go right on ahead and move a little further away from the church.]

Fine. You win. Show me what you want.

( bruce starts closer, and there's a gleam of something mischievous behind those blue eyes. still, the wolf waits, tail wagging as bruce starts to get closer. he doesn't get up, doesn't make any moves like he's planning anything, because why would he give himself away that easily? it's only once bruce is far enough away from the church that jason is damn sure he can bolt passed him that he does move:

paws push against the snow as the wolf gets himself up suddenly, intentionally shoving its weight right up against bruce's leg as it zooms passed him and towards the church. not to break in, although he does consider it: bruce likely has several booby traps laid throughout the building, and jason's expertise in disarming his traps and alarms doesn't extend to when he's this - well. shaped. not quite small, but he's not going to be able to find most of them like this even if this shape has several other benefits that do make up for it. like running significantly faster than bruce is capable of with his two legs.

it's when he reaches close to the church's doors that he turns back around, crouches down, and gives a low-pitched bark, ears pointed and teeth bared. the tail wagging may give it away: he's posturing, but he's still playing. )

[ Does he have booby traps in there? Maybe, maybe not. He'll never tell.

...okay, fine, he is predictable and does. The whole place isn't trapped, though, so at least no one's going to wander in and lose a limb to a bear trap or some shit. He still doesn't know whether Tim has bear traps laid out in his place or not.

Meanwhile that wolf is trying to engage him in play. It is obvious. It is overt. It is so obvious and overt it is almost dog like.

He is still hesitant a second after that drive by, but it didn't involve teeth and could have, so fuck it all. He rushes back at the wolf. Does his own peel back and pull away. He doesn't turn his back but more backs up with speed, but there's a definite.. return of wolf-tag going on, on his end.]

( he's such a fucking dork. god, bruce, no one plays with wild animals - but jason supposes, a wild animal also wouldn't be playing back with him in most cases, so that's fair. bruce has taken in dogs significantly more feral than jason is acting. he'd call bruce out on his ability to play tag with whatever furry bullshit wandered out of the forest but he can't take two seconds to take damian to the arcade back home, but - well. technically he is playing with jason. even if he doesn't know it yet.

snark to get into later. for now? he's got a massive, dark wolf running through the snow, less for tag and more for - launching himself straight at bruce to knock him back onto his ass.

he's no longer in feral weird wolf who has wandered too close to town territory, which means he doubts bruce is going to stab him. )

[ There may be something to the lack of Gotham, Batman, Wayne Enterprises, and a Charity Foundation or two involved in just how much availability Bruce has to play.

Also, just maybe, a little, in the lack of all the complications of human interpersonal relationships, at all. Much less the complications layered on with all his kids, and the fact that Bruce is about 3 partial humans and 0 whole ones.

Either way he stands his ground when he's rushed, and falls back under the wolf but isn't quite so far gone into the land of impulsivity stupidity that he stays there. His intent at least is to catch and toss the wolf - playfully - and get back to his... well knees more than feet.

You wanted play? He is playing. And playing hard.]

( jason knows bruce can deadlift him without any issue, especially when he's, what, a good hundred pounds lighter? something like that. he hasn't weighed himself in a while, especially not while he's got four legs, but he feels a lot lighter. or maybe that's just the extra legs. who the fuck knows.

not jason, who doesn't care right now anyway. bruce goes down and tries to get back up, which jason takes as a good enough cue to open his mouth and bite down on bruce's arm.

not enough to rip the fabric, if bruce doesn't move. not enough to actually hurt him, unless bruce starts yanking his arm every which way to try and free himself. but jason does growl around the arm. even if his ears stay standing tall rather than flatening. )

[Bruce is certainly inclined toward both certain types of stupidity and specific sorts of panic --

--but none of those are in play here.

He does not turn his arm into a tug toy, or otherwise thrash around. He does stay still, stay calm and waits. Just to see. There's nothing too threatening here, yet.

...His arm's in a wolf's teeth, yeah, but it's not like he doesn't have another arm]

( who needs two arms. this arm is jason's now. bruce doesn't pull, but nor does he raise his free hand to try and get his arm free. good. because it'd be shit if jason ended up having to shift back out here in the snow. and it'd ruin his game.

he shakes his head - more to get bruce's attention, to make him remember they're playing here, right? one front paw rests against bruce's chest, not pushing weight against him, just sitting there.

is he going to surrender and admit he's lost here, or is he going to make jason yank him across the snow and drag him over to the church first. )

[is... is a wolf telling him to tone his shit down? Because that's pretty much what it feels like.

Which is ridiculous enough to make him laugh, but also relax and sink back to the ground. He's going to regret that and have issues getting up again but... okay. If it wanted him dead, he'd be dead.

And honestly? This was (had been) kind of fun for him. Maybe more so for the stupidity of it all.]

( if only bruce could respond like this with his actual kids, think of how much less maladjusted damian would have turned out. probably.

doesn't matter. bruce sinks back into the snow, and the wolf grips on hard to his arm. still careful not to break skin, but grabbing hard enough to pull. he walks around bruce's body, so he can stand behind his head while still holding onto his arm and - starts dragging him towards the church. )

[At least in these temperatures the snow is more frozen than not, making for an easier surface to pull two hundred and fifty odd pounds?

This is ridiculous.

He has a vivid mental image of how this looks and what it is.

It is absolutely not wolf behavior or normal in any respect, but there's evidence it's not dangerous at least in the immediate moment.]

You know, I could just walk.... [Since his destination is now clear. This is uncomfortable. And... kind of currently hilarious.]

( the snow is slippery enough to give jason plenty of leeway with his yanking, at least. bruce is big, but he's - making progress. ish. part of jason kind of figures - now's kind of a shit time to break into bruce's house and let him know of the thing that he's been hiding from everyone except bigby, but. bruce is trying. jason can try, too.

but he doesn't stop dragging bruce. mostly because of the whole, lack of opposable thumbs and potentially walking into a booby-trapped church thing.

instead, he shakes his head, thus yanking bruce's arm along with him, and keeps on pulling him up towards the church.

jason needs to snag clothes before he can shift back. )

[ well, all right then.

It doesn't take a genius to know something is going on here. That Bruce doesn't feel overly threatened by it is probably some kind of miracle, but he's not. He is a little invested in keeping his shoulder in its socket, so he starts getting cooperative.

Which does not make things less ridiculous, just means that he starts pushing with his feet when the wolf pulls. That thing tries to drag him bodily into the church, he'll protest. Or just climb to his feet and hunch, he guesses.

Meanwhile - pushing.]

( thanks for the hand, bruce. it's appreciated, even if jason doesn't have a way of telling him just yet. instead, he keeps dragging him across the snow until he reaches where the church's building begins and - lets go of his arm with a final shake of his head.

stretches his legs out behind him, as if the effort of dragging bruce that far had been tiring on his joints, then walks his way right up to the door so he can place a paw against the frame of it.

let him in, old man. )

[Bruce is entirely too smart not to be putting this together with some kind of, well given his life experiences and this place, magic and/or trap. There's nothing natural about the wolf's behavior for a wolf.

But the clarity of communication is beyond the capacity for intelligence.

Still not worried though. If it had wanted him dead, it's had more than ample opportunity. Nothing it's done has been really threatening. He doesn't even have broken skin after being dragged across packed ice.

Bruce pushes himself up to stand when he's released, and his knees make a slightly horrifying noise that he ignores in favor of pushing the door open to go inside. He leaves it open for the wolf to follow, if that's the intent.]

( if he could laugh, he would. unfortunately, jason lacks the proper... build to allow for that, so he settles for a bemused little snort. the door opens, and the wolf - takes off deep into the church. bruce wouldn't open a door to allow an animal inside if he thought anything inside would hurt them. maybe he'd do it to jason, but he doesn't know jason's jason currently.

so instead he gets a wolf, pressing his nose down to the ground to try and sniff out wherever the hell it is bruce has been sleeping at night. mostly so he can find his clothes. )

[The door opens into the chapel area of course, and Bruce has changed... nothing at all, that was not already changed by previous residents. He has managed to push things back and make more space in the center by pushing everything not nailed down as far to the outside walls as possible.

Nothing at all in there looks like living space, or personalized. There is a path toward another door, leading to the living quarters associated with the church. His scent's much more concentrated in that direction, of course.

There he spends more of his time. For one thing heating the smaller space is more efficient. For another, there's a kitchen and bedroom and some office space back there. His clothes are in the bedroom closet. Including the cape and gloves he arrived with.

Past the living area is the interior door to a cellar space. And that scent trail certainly leads directly to that, too.

Meanwhile? Bruce just watches the wolf with some bemusement and no alarm. He is not worried about an animal tripping any kind of trap. Mostly because nothing here is heavily booby trapped. ...alarmed in assorted ways, sure. But nothing dangerous -- and that's pretty goddamn intentional.

]

( now would be a great time to go snooping.

he could head to bruce's closet and give him shit. but by that time, bruce will have figured out who jason is and would, likely, try and keep him out of his shit. he follows the scent trail right through the living area, nudging open doors with his snout when he can or going up onto his hind legs to shove them open with his front paws when needed. notes down the location of the closet in case he opts to come back this way later, and then -

heads on past it, towards the cellar. what is bruce doing down there, building a new cave? )

[That door Bruce both blocks and holds closed. Nothing else, just that one. particular. door. The stairs are trapped, though likely not lethally, and he certainly does not want to have to haul a wolf - or whatever this hell is - up with a broken leg or worse if he fails to navigate them correctly.]

( well. so much for that plan. fine, bruce. he'll be good.

but not before turning his chin up at him and huffing, like he's put out. jason runs back off in the direction of the room where bruce keeps his shit and -

before bruce has the time to catch up to him, there's the grotesque sound of cartilage cracking, bones shifting under flesh as canine turns to man in front of the closet. jason's down on the floor, shaking his head out and running fingers through his hair before getting up onto his knees and - stealing a pair of pants.

these are his pants now. bruce isn't getting them back. but he did pick out a pair that looked a little more worn out. more a habit than anything else. )

You really shouldn't let weird dogs inside, B.

[ He isn't far behind the wolf, but he isn't breaking into a run to beat him into his room, either.

Not that it's far.

Certainly he hears the change, and intuitively understands what it is.

He doesn't expect to see Jason, but he isn't surprised by it, either.]

Let's an interesting word.

[But maybe for the first time in a very long time when it comes to Jason, he sounds...warm. Amused, impressed and a little proud, but there's warmth there. Because hey. Jason got in here and took him by surprise, even after all that. He... doesn't hate it, actually]

( jason probably shouldn't be able to turn into an animal. probably. out of the numerous robins they have here, he's - the second worst choice for being given abilities beyond what a human being should be capable of. first being tim, who jason imagines would likely use it to avoid having to people for the rest of eternity.

damian's already rabid enough, it wouldn't change shit for him.

regardless, these are his pants now, and he's also snagging a shirt from the closet because it's less cold way back here, but it's more cold the closer to the door they get. and he intends to wander. )

I could have been a spy.

[ His eyebrows actually go up, but only a tiny bit at Jason stealing his clothes. He's not actually bothered, at all. It's more that it's... weirdly endearing for him, and even more weirdly reassuring? satisfying? Something like one of those.]

There's nothing here I'm worried about hiding. [Even downstairs, actually, though his cape and the gloves to use it - and their batteries - are down there, too.] Breaking in and stealing me blind might be inconvenient. [At worst]

...You should probably add socks and shoes to the outfit or you're going to get frostbite trying to leave.

I'll shift back before I head out. ( no frostbite for his toebeans. jason's got his things stashed elsewhere, which he'll return to when he's done bothering bruce. coming in hadn't been the intention - if it had, he would've carried his things along with him. ah, well. it's not a huge deal. )

Stick around long enough, and this place might just gift you with some fucked up ability you never asked for. ( though now that he's thinking about it, ) I don't know if Timbers and the brat ended up with anything.

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Look who just walked into the room/ The guilted and faded

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