Peaceful

[whiteraven]

Raven grimaced at his words. He was smart, that much was obvious. And she wanted to know how he knew her name. He wasn't a telepath, and had no walls that she could tell, so without moving, she swiped his brain. Lupine, his 'firm' did indeed work in gothem as he had hinted at, still, his intentions were - cloudy - at best.

"Morals are for hopeless fools who believe the world is black and white." Raven said darkly, turning slowly to face this new advirsary. She took a couple slow steps in his direction, leaving her prisoner dangling in midair, gagged and bound by invisible bonds.

"While I understand what you say, that doesn't mean I agree with him. From the second he crossed the boarder, he was canada's problem. All I want is the information, and then I don't have to give bull about what he does when he's out of jail."

Glowering in his direction, she said, "I may not believe in morals persay, but I have my own beliefs, and turning a man - even a petty thief - over to something resembaling his childhood nightmare, is against them. At least, until he's done something truly deserving it. So here me now, Lupine. I'm going to get what I want from him, and set him loose, if you want him, you can catch him and do what you'de like. Happy?"

She sent another deadly glare in his direction, as if daring him to argue. She was in no good mood after having to follow this wild goose chase in the first place. Her eyes flashed white for a second, and then were back to normal.

[Lupine]

Lupine put a hand to his temples. That had been a sudden headache, but it had abated quickly. Odd...

Lupine's eyes moved to Raven. There had been some bitterness in her statement about black and white morality. Lupine smiled; the Third World War had left a mark on all who had been touched by it, and hardened those who had survived. Lupine spent a moment wondering what exactly had changed Raven: had it been one sudden moment of realization, or rather a slow progress over the months?

Lupine motioned to the man who was now dangling in the air, presumably supported by Raven's powers. "I see however, that your morals do not extend to the comfort of your captor. And, yes, they are morals. Morals are beliefs that something would be wrong to do, as they would cause discomfort for others. And, yes, I would be happy to let you interrogate him before giving him to me. But, tell me, Madame Raven" Here Lupine paused for a moment and walked nearer to the thief, watching his reaction: despite being in the iron grip of Raven's mind, the man still attempted to move a bit further away from Lupine. "How does refusing to give him to me to interrogate differ, morally, from giving him to me after you have interrogated him? Is it that you trust I won't harm him, since he will be useful to me? Or is it that you wish to interrogate him yourself, but require an excuse not to give him to me? I know that this is not precisely what is on your mind at the moment, but it intrigues me. That's what a classical education does to the mind, you see: it makes it curious about mainly useless subjects such as ideological studies."

Lupine watched Raven carefully: If he could find out anything about her morals, he'd know a bit more about how her mind worked. Know your enemy, that was the object. Also, if she was as bitter as he thought she was, that might be a useful tool for something...

[whiteraven]

((Dude, you are really good. I'm loving this, because this is what my family talks about at the dinner table. ))

Raven watched him with empty eyes and an emotionless mask over her face. Nothing got through. However, she allowed herself to feel a slight admiration for this man, his mind was quick and if they weren't on different ground she would have enjoyed talking to him. Pity the world worked as if it were black and white.

"Thank you for the vocabulary lesson," The hooded woman said sarcastically, "But I do already know what morals means." She watched her captive try to flee Lupine's presence but made no move to seperate the two, no harm would come to her thief until she was done with him.

"And to answer your question, I want to interrogate him first because I don't want to have to deal with his ugly snivilling mug once your done with him. Fear should only be a last resort interrogation method, as subjects tend to clam up believing they will soon die. And you will ruin my questioning."

She started to turn away, but changed her mind, walking right up to Lupin, having to look up to meet his eyes squarely. Her manner, however, was that of one looking down upon a lesser being.

"As you are obviously one of great intellect, if not looks, then I will not bother to mince my words. I do not appreciate anybody messing with my buisness, however assanine it may be. Stay out of my way, and I'll be perfectly happy to stay out of yours."

[Lupine]

(( Thanks for the compliments. And I must say that you are great at RPing Raven: you sound like her, right down to the snarky comments.))

Lupine shook his head, smiling, as Raven made her threat to him. It wasn't that he didn't believe she would carry out her threat: the way she said it, more like a statement than anything else; It was because Raven appeared to make a tactical mistake.

Lupine moved quite quickly, grabbing Raven's arm, but lightly. He would rather not provoke her into a fight when she would gladly give him the thief after an interrogation. His voice had a slightly reproving, slightly mocking edge to it as he spoke.

Well, that wasn't quite as intelligent as you usually are. You are a telepath, Madame Raven, specializing in long range combat. Getting this close to a possible enemy is quite the mistake. I'm sure you could do something, but at this range I very much have the advantage. Lupine carefully let go of Raven's arm and stood back. "However, I will not do anything: among with the damage to our deal concerning the thief, it would also be quite ungentlemanly."

Lupine stared at Raven, seeing what effect his actions would have on her formidable composure. Then, as if nothing had happened, spoke again. "You have a disdainful view of Black and White morality, and I can see why. But it does rather ensure a person's moral character if they believe that some things are unforgivable no matter of the circumstances, since they will never break their own code. It still has the tendency to turn people into zealots, but is that too much of a price in their almost unbreakable moral code?"

Lupine paused for a moment, and gave a short chuckle. "Since it is most likely you have read my mind, you will now know that my morals, such as they are, are not what anybody would call white. It is amusing that living rather outside of morals gives you an interest in those who believe firmly in such things as the 'goodness of the human soul'." Lupine cast a hand down at his fur, talons and general wolfishness. "With or without this, I don't suppose I belong in this group, do you?

[whiteraven]

Raven's eyes widened in shock, badly concealing a sudden gasp, as she heard Lupine's first words. She had no chance to move before he grabbed her forearm. She made no move to pull away, though, she had deserved this. He was right, in the moment she had made the greatest mistake she could have possible done.

He let her go and she stepped quickly back to a safe distance, rubbing her wrist where he had held her. Not that the man had hurt her, but to get the feel of his hand off her skin. Not many people touched her. She glared at him, and when he finished speaking, she said.

"Groups exist solely so that the member's may use each other to their best advantage. What this advantage may be is decided by the strength of each members' morals. No one actually belongs, because there is nowhere to belong. You see my point?"

She turned around but kept her attentions focused on the man behind her, he would make no move without her knowing.

"And don't call me madame, I am hardly one to be taken in by flattery and lies."

[Lupine]

Lupine looked carefully at Raven, analyzing her emotional mask. He had heard her small gasp, and seen the quick rebuilding of her emotional walls. "It seems I must apologize, although I do hope that this means you have learned a valuable tactical lesson. Pray remember it."Lupine wondered what would happen if these walls broke down completely: Were these walls repressing her powers, as rumored, or were they just the same protection that any traumatized person might use?

Lupine sighed, as if he had been mildly offended. "Madame Raven, while I will flatter and coerce when it will further my ends, here it has no advantage: You are in fact more likely to act adversely to flattery, and be suspicious of it. But I am a gentleman, a civilized person, and if I believe someone is worthy of a honorific then I will bestow it upon them, whether or not they like it. And I am afraid you have quite the qualities for several honorifics, Madame Raven."

Lupine looked at Raven again, thinking about her recent comment. "Ah, you were one of the Titans, were you not? And from what you have just said it would appear that it was the first life you had that you enjoyed. It seems to have greatly affected your thinking: you would probably operate best in a team. It is curious how your experiences have molded you, Madame Raven. You even think of morality in terms of teams. But answer me this: if a team has similar morals, they become stagnant. They won't easily change, since there will be no catalyst for change within the team. Did that not happen with the Titans?"

[whiteraven]

Raven ground her teeth in the humility of it. First she was caught making a fatal ground mistake, and then her opponant lets her go, choosing to lecture her on at as if she were a disreputable student. Then changing tactics, he spoke to her of honerifics and those deserving them. If he believed she was entitled to anything, it was apparant his information was lacking.

This rant in her mind was reduced, however, when contenued to speak of her past. Sadly enough, all of what he said was true. She looked down at the ground, saying clearly in her deep voice,

"Your informants are skilled hackers, Lupine. I will give respect where it is due, I had thought the Titan's base files under better security than that."

Three times the titans had been built up, only to fall again. Raven had taken part in the creation of the newest incarnation partly in hopes that this time it would remain, unlike it's predecessors. His words on the fall of the titans fiercely burned old wounds, even more so because once again this man had the truth. Forcing bubbles of anger down deep into her shoes, Raven turned to him with a change of tacticts herself.

"My good sir." She said, businesslike in her tone and stance. "The best teams are made of those who's beliefs and moral stances are as different as you and I. It is this that inspires the member's of the team to grow, surely you must understand this. One of the whole points of working with others is to inspire growth in all forms. Once one has learned all one can from one's teammates, it is time for them to move on."

She paused, searching her enemy for signs. This talk, this banter, could keep on going forever. As much as she enjoyed it, the man had one up on her no matter what the subject. She didn't want to fight him, but there was something so intreaguing about him. How did one such as him come to be of such great intellect. Only her better judgement kept her from scanning his mind again, once had been dangerous enough. A mind as powerful as his would have no trouble understanding what it was sweeping through his mind. Slowly, the Azarathian started to circle around him. Hard, calculating eyes searching for a weakness. A flaw in his stance, a nervous habit. Anything.

[Lupine]

Lupine watched as Raven paced around him, her eyes analyzing him. Lupine's pose was tall, steady, ready for a fight and watchful but very arrogant: He did not truly expect any danger or fight from anybody. That Lupine would refuse to his arrogance being a weakness was a weakness in itself.

Lupine smirked as Raven circled around him. "Madame Raven, are you nervous? Or are you simply analyzing me? Do not worry- I have done the same to you: my hackers have been providing a steady stream of information on your fighting style, among other things, Madame Roth." Lupine watched carefully to see what effect using her real name would have on Raven: Lupine wanted to see how far she would be pushed mentally. " I would prefer if we didn't get into a fight, Madame Raven, for it would be detrimental to future business deals between us. Speaking of deals, what would you like to do with your thief? You do realize that you are wasting your time while we converse. But, in all honesty, I'd prefer if we continued this talk: I enjoy your company."

Lupine paused, mulling over what Raven had just said. "I would agree with you there. While a team with similar morals throughout would find they would work better when recently formatted, they would eventually stagnate, as shown by what has happened to the many heroic teams in our recent war. I believe you have quite an important lace in the Titans: estimation of Nightwing would drop quite if he has not made someone with your qualities second-in-command: You are definitely better than most of the crowd that makes up your teammates. I wonder what plans you have to help the team stay together this time, Madame Raven? Though I do not believe that me and the Titans will be working together anytime in our lifetimes, I might help you there, purely out of both respect for you and intellectual curiosity."

Lupine's eyes had took this opportunity while he was speaking to analyze Raven's stance, to match up what his eyes saw with what he had been told about her. Suddenly, he stopped, as if a thought had come to him.

"Madame Raven, or Roth, whichever you prefer, I would like to make a deal with you. I have been trying to employ some heros to help me protect Gotham, to cut down on it's crime rate, drug use and so on. It is pure economic sense: If Gotham has a stronger economy, then so will my company. Also, Gotham is my city: I do not want harm to come to it. Could you suggest a few names in your line of business that might be interested? We could help each other with our problems. It would be mutually benefiting to us."

[whiteraven]

"Raven." The hooded woman spat at Lupine's words. "Roth is my mother's name." She felt his eyes on her and held herself taller. Her back was straight and there was a stong, proud way to how she held her chin up. Though she appered relaxed to the naked eye, she was wound up like a spring, ready to jump into action at the slightest movement.

"Nervous?" She asked, her words dripped with sinicism. "By the likes of you? Not likely."

At his words, she turned back to the thief. Entering his mind, she caused a burst of dopamine to be released into his system. A calm, happy, look appered in his face. She spoke softly into his ear. Drugged as he was by his own traiterous brain, he had no problem giving her the address to his apartment.

Turning around she walked a couple step away from the two men. Releasing the captive from his invisible bonds, he fell heavily to the asphalt, coughing and trying to catch his breath. Raven didn't turn around, she didn't want to see his face when Lupine approached. Head bowed, the woman squeezed her eyes shut, she knew there had been a time when she never would have turned that man over. What sort of monster had she become?

Standing alone in the middle of the deserted street, she suddenly felt so very small, so very alone. Her cloak covered her whole body, hiding her from the prying eyes of the world. There was a crackle and a snap. The bud in Lupine's ear sparked then fell apart on the cement, broken into many pieces.

Taking a deep breath to steady her shaking hands, Raven said."I am better than no one, the Titans are my life, I owe them everything. And for that I would make a final deal with you." Another deep breath, and she was back in control. Standing straighter, she stared down the street. Not a single child dared to peek out of the shudders. "I would make a final deal with you. I like the way you work, that and it's been a long time since I've had some intellegant conversation.

Not believing she was about to do this, she unhooked her Titans communicator from it's clasp. With a switch of a flick every last bit of information on it was deleated. She could always get a second one, saying it was destroyed in a fight. Using her powers it flew across the street, landing at Lupine's feet.

"Keep in touch. Like you say, we can help each other."

As she walked ever so slowly toward the apartment, she felt that every step was taking her faurther and faurther from who she had been, and she wasn't so sure she liked who she was becoming.

[Lupine]

Lupine sighed. It seemed that the conversation ended there, but at least they would carry through with their deal. Lupine watched as Raven did her interrogation of the thief: a inventive and extremely efficient technique. Perhaps he'd look for a mercenary telepath: one of those would be very useful.

Lupine watched the thief dropped onto the ground. He took a step towards the man, watched him try to cower away, took out handcuffs from his belt and handcuffed the thief to his own claw. Low-tech, but very cheap and effective.

Lupine winced as the bud broke in his ear, sending a sharp electrical impulse to the microchip in his brain. Lupine covered his temples with a large claw, and growled. He stared at Raven, analyzing her, and saw no aggressiveness in her stance. She would not be one to harm out of spite, only when needed. Most likely she would not have known about the pain her action would've caused.

Lupine bent down to pick up the Titans communicator, and, as a afterthought, reached into his suit and picked out a small card and flicked it to Raven.

"My personal contact number, Madame Raven. I shall tell my company to allow any calls you have for me through in the future. I have enjoyed talking to you: you are intelligent, perceptive, polite and a great many other things. Please, do not reject the honorifics I give you. You have a flaw of underestimating yourself, while many have told me that I have the opposite problem. Madame Raven, I shall keep in touch. I enjoy your company. I shall call you when I have some plans for your team to share with you." Lupine gave Raven a last bow, and turned away, dragging the thief almost off his feet with him.

There was a whimper from the man at Lupine's side. Lupine gave the man a look so full of comptempt that he shut up, not daring to make a sound. "Stop wimpering. I will only harm you if you give me reason to. So do the work I have for you and you will get your payment. Unless you have something to say, Madame Raven, I shall take my leave of you. Farewell."

[whiteraven]

Raven had nothing to say. Pocketing the card, which she had deftly caught with her powers, she teleported away from the area with haste. Arriving in the man's apartment she took no time retrieving the stolen valubles. After that it was a quick matter to return to her home country.

However, she couldn't help but wonder about this man she had met. He was a criminal to be sure, yet as she had stated not too long ago, the world was hardly black and white. All that he had said about her, though she didn't agree with all of it, she believed the return and decided that - though her teammates would certainly not agree - she would no doubt find herself in Gothem soon.

The flight home was long and tiring, yet Raven wasn't truely anticipating her arrival.