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[fingerstripes]

Voicemail

"You know what to do."


Friendr

	Friendr
«		»
	» Age: 23 » Seeking: Friends, running partners, anyone interested in getting out and seeing the world. » Preferences: any » Interests: trapeze, martial arts, breakfast foods » Bio: Let’s get to know each other. See what we might have in common.
	base code by photosynthesis
	Dick Grayson
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Comments

[contacts]

He was right about that.
Coffee, my treat? Or would you prefer text?

[fingerstripes]

coffee works. how's [some small place near housing ]?

[ ie a public location but one with plenty of back doors and acoustics he's already surveyed. ]

[contacts]

I'll meet you there at one?

[fingerstripes]

I'll see you there. I'm in the Duran Duran t-shirt.

[ No, seriously.

He's there as promised a little before one, stealing a table off to the side where he can watch the door. ]

[contacts]

[lois arrives a little after him, one pm on the dot, looking around briefly before she spots a young man in a duran duran t-shirt. she's in a pencil skirt and blouse, waistcoat buttoned over it, heels clicking on the floor as she makes her way to his table. ]

Dick Grayson? Lois Lane. [ she holds out a hand to him. ]

[fingerstripes]

[ It actually helps to not have to fake a lack of real familiarity here. But Lois has always had his respect. He flashes her a bright grin, sitting up a little straighter as he gives her hand a firm shake. ]

Hey. It's good to meet you.

[contacts]

You, too.

[ her smile is genuine, even if she doesn't have any familiarity with him at all. the name doesn't ring a bell, seeing him doesn't stir any memories; she's never met dick grayson in her life. that doesn't mean much here, apparently. ]

Clark's only told me a little about you. [ right down to business: ] How do you know him? In your universe, that is. [ she's assuming different universes. it could be different times, too, but given where they are, the universe theory is not unlikely. ]

[fingerstripes]

[ He can respect that at least. ]

He's a good friend. We, uh- met when I was a kid.

...Now I've gotta ask, what did he tell you about me? [ He doesn't intend to lie to Lois; his promise to Clark is bond. But alarming her with the wrong kind of talk at the wrong time is probably a bad way to establish two-way trust.

It's important now. Even more than it was at home. ]

[contacts]

[ lois makes a mental note to ask him if he knows jason todd, if there's any similarities. that can wait until later on in the conversation. ]

Only that you know about who he is, that I might like to talk to you myself, and that you help people.

[ not in those exact words, but they are in public. ]

[fingerstripes]

Oh yeah? [ He doesn't know if he should be surprised or not. But it brings a small smile to his face, which he's quick to hide behind his cup of coffee. ]

...I- well, I kinda sprung the whole "hey, we know each other in an alternate universe" thing on him early on. But I thought he, uh- should know.

[ He fidgets, suddenly aware of how that probably sounds.

It means more to him than he can say, that Clark took it in stride. That he'd been willing to be Dick's friend despite decades-an entire universe-of separation. That he'd been willing to even entertain the possibility of trust, when Dick knows firsthand just how difficult and terrifying the hard work of trusting can be. ]

It meant a lot that he didn't just run screaming into the night after that.

[ As if Clark ever would, from anything. ]

[contacts]

How did you get into his line of business?

[ "line of business", like clark opened a coffee shop somewhere, but lois is sure he'll know what she means. and it's a personal question, but lois has never shied away from those. if there's something he doesn't want to talk about, he can tell her that, but this is something she thinks will tell her a lot about who he is. ]

[fingerstripes]

[ The question pins him down, and for a moment he has to fight the feeling that comes with it. Every instinct screaming at him to run.

But he's better than that. Lois deserves better than that. ]

It was in the family. [ As casually as he can. ]

[contacts]

[ for a moment, lois is reminded of the young man she'd met at one of the adult raves, jason who was trained by the world's greatest detective, batman, whatever else he might be called. it's there and gone again, but she files the link away for future consideration. ]

Powers?

[ she asks, in lieu of pushing. this is a friendly meeting, not an interview, after all, and she's pretty sure that answer was deliberately vague. ]

[fingerstripes]

We tend to have other ways of getting the job done in Gotham.

[ And there he hesitates. ]

...Is he really the only one?

[contacts]

[ "the only what?" is at the tip of her tongue, but given their topic of conversation and his background, lois can guess. ]

He is.

[ but - ] Not in your world?

[fingerstripes]

There's kind of a big crowd, yeah. [ It worries him to think of Clark fighting alone indefinitely. It's too much for one man, if their world is anything like his.

But it's a worry he tried to school out of his expression. Lois probably doesn't need any more. ]

He kicked off a few trends, but he wasn't the first.

[contacts]

[ honestly? it worries her, too, and she didn't even know that there was another way before now. she worries about clark a lot and she hasn't even known him all that long.

but it's probably natural to worry about your partner, isn't it? ]

Who was? If you don't mind sharing that.

[fingerstripes]

They called themselves the Justice Society. They kind of started the cape thing. [ At least as a thing people with abilities started to do with their powers. Dick pauses. ]

I always figured that's where he got it from.

[contacts]

[ lois shakes her head. ]

I've never heard of them. I don't think he has, either.

[fingerstripes]

Yeah. He mentioned that. [ With an effort he schools away his worried frown, trading for a small, almost sheepish grin. ]

...Sorry. It's gotta be a little strange to hear about this stuff.

[contacts]

It is, but I'd rather know than be in the dark about it.

[ she'll always prefer being informed, even if it's uncomfortable at times. ]

What about me, in your world?

[fingerstripes]

[ He can't really imagine not feeling the same way if their positions were reversed.

And for a moment he wavers. Truth be told, he doesn't have much more than driver's license facts when it comes to Lois personally. But a lot of what he does know has to do with Clark. It doesn't seem fair to start putting that into context for her when he doesn't really even know what the status of their relationship is here. If it's a complicating factor they're working out on their own. Would it change anything if she knew they were married in another world?

He kicks himself a little belatedly now for not just asking Clark the delicate question ahead of time. ]

She won a Pulitzer last year. For a really outstanding op ed on meta human relations.

[ a definite pause. He runs an awkward hand through his hair. ]

Do you... do you want to know more than that?

About you and Clark?

[contacts]

I won a Pulitzer, but not for that article. Was it her first?

[ but he continues, and lois' lips press together, first in consideration and then to hide a smile. ] So there's a Clark and me.

[ that's already telling. but - ] I don't want to hear about that. [ not yet. she wants to see where this thing with clark leads, first. ]

[fingerstripes]

Fair enough. [ it's the answer he was hoping for, and in a way he admires her all the more for it. It only seems fair, when he hasn't told Clark a thing. ]

And yeah, she's won a few now.

...I was reading her column before I ever thought of putting on a mask.

[ Granted at eight years old he'd been more interested in cutting out the blurry pictures of Superman to paste into his scrapbook, but still. Lois is a presence. ]

[contacts]

A few, huh?

[ that gets a smile from lois, something pleased, a little proud. it's good to know that no matter what the universe and no matter what else goes on, she stays true to herself and her work. it means a lot to her. ]

So when did you put on a mask? How did that happen? [ of course she's going to ask questions. this isn't an interview and it certainly isn't an interrogation, but lois is still lois. ]