(no subject)

[brushoff]

WHO: Dorian Gray & Matt Murdock
WHERE: Heropa Jail? whatever the name of imPort jail is
WHEN: earlyish September, after Dorian's post.
WHAT: a lawyer/client relationship where the lawyer ends up wanting to strangle the client. Fun times!
WARNINGS: none, will edit if needed.

As odd as it was, Dorian was actually looking forward to this visit. The imPort jail was an imPort jail. And there were two to three imPorts in the jail at a time. And, unsurprisingly, the warden didn't want Dorian talking with his coconspirator in the bank robbery. So he was dying for company.

Matt would have to do. So, Dorian was sitting down at the table that the wardens had pointed him towards, obviously antsy, obviously wanting any sort of company. Come on...where was Matt? This was ridiculous, he just wanted to talk to somebody.

Still, the time to himself was giving him enough time to plan. Kate had told him a bit about Matt, mostly that his "charms" wouldn't work on the man. Which, honestly, sounded like a challenge to Dorian. If sexual or romantic didn't work, he was fairly confident he could wear the man over with his personality.

Unbeknownst to Dorian, he was going to fail miserably.

As the door opened, Dorian perked up, looking more like an excitable twenty-something clad in prison orange instead of a bank robber. "Matt, right? Glad to meet you in person."

Comments

[notdaredevil]

If Dorian Gray had intended to give an abysmal first impression, then surely he'd managed to succeed. It was bad enough hearing from Kate that she'd volunteered him to defend a friend who robbed a bank for fun and profit-- which calls into question Kate's taste in friends (said the man who hooked up with the Black Cat and numerous women who tried to kill him.) And that was before Matt had ever talked to the man, who seemed more like a spoiled teenager than anything else. He doesn't even have to walk into that room for the headache to start, a sharp stab between the eyes that says this is going to be a long, long afternoon.

Still, he likes Kate, and it's out of consideration for her (young and reckless and foolish as she can be, which makes Matt want to strangle her in this moment) that he bothers to go at all. It's nice to see it confirmed that this isn't going to be a pleasant visit. Matt, really? His eyebrows are halfway to his hairline before the door has even properly closed behind him.

"Matt Murdock, yes," he says, in the sort of intensely professional voice that says he can't outright express disapproval of such familiarity but he damn well isn't impressed. Unfortunately the sight of Dorian is completely lost on him, which might cut out some of his ability to be endearing. But even if his client doesn't take this seriously, Matt himself does. He shows up in a suit, just like always, the picture of clean-cut professionalism in bright red shades. The cane taps against the chair, just for show, before Matt takes his seat across from his rather unwanted client. "And you must be Mr. Gray."

[brushoff]

As Matt entered, the first thing that Dorian noticed was his sunglasses. The second thing he noticed was his cane. Dorian had expected to coast by this with equal parts his good looks and pleasant personality. If this man was blind, then that essentially took out half of his strategy right there.

Motherfucker.

Still, Dorian could adapt. After all, wasn't that what he had been doing for so long? Simply adapting. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Murdock," he responded, in a slightly sheepish tone, trying to give off the impression that yes, he knew he goofed up there. "Kate's told me great things about you."

[notdaredevil]

There are many things that Kate may have failed to warn Dorian about. The blindness is just one; the built in bullshit-meter might be another. It makes Matt at least a little immune to charm...from seemingly young men, anyway.

Matt's not sure if he's pleased or merely exasperated that said young man at least seems to be taking his advice at attempting to display something like remorse. It's the age-old problem with being a lawyer; he tries not to take cases like this, but he also has a problem with saying no, and the end result is dealing with a client he already knows he isn't going to like.

"That's kind of her." As though that doesn't play to his ego a little bit. Kate's probably caught on to that by now, but whether or not she'd share that information is another matter. "She only gave me the barest outline about you, but I am profoundly curious to know how a friend of Kate's ends up robbing a bank."

Unless it's Loki. That speaks for itself.

[brushoff]

The barest outline...that was good. That meant that Dorian could decidedly not tell Matt certain parts about his life, as well as try to find a way to tailor 'I did it for shits and giggles' to sound a bit nicer.

"I was desperate and made a bad decision," Dorian simply explained, trying to put as much of a tentative tone as he could in his voice. "I knew that sooner or later I was going to get fired from the job the government assigned me--I was a terrible fit." And that much was true. Surprising no one, Dorian Gray: peer tutor worked out horrendously.

"I guess I panicked. I didn't know what to do." And that? A goddamn lie. He knew exactly what he was going to do, he was going to rob a bank so he could get rich.

a billion and a half years later

[notdaredevil]

Look at that blank face. Does that appear to be a face impressed with this kind of story? There's no hint of sympathy on Matt's even expression, no indication that he feels anything. Because, as good of a liar as this boy might be, Matt can still hear the tells. He's not Natasha. He's not good enough to fool hypersenses yet.

"Fascinating." It sounds so flat, so unconvinced. "And now I'd like to hear the real story." Matt doesn't even want to pretend that he can't tell. This is already headache enough without letting his client bluff him along with a string of bullshit. This client he didn't even want and never would have chose for himself.

/loves you anyway

[brushoff]

Dorian's used to people believing everything he says. People hanging onto his every word, listening to him, paying attention to him. Matt isn't. And that's really pissing him off.

"That is the real story," Dorian snapped, obviously annoyed. What was it with this guy? Why wasn't he believing him, why wasn't he lapping up Dorian's every word? "You want it bluntly? Fine. I'm just your average twenty-two year old bank robber who decided he wanted to live the high life and had enough initiative to go out and get it."

All of which was the complete truth...except for one little part. The only part of that sentence Dorian rang false on was his age.

you are so kind

[notdaredevil]

One day, he needs to have an (extremely hypocritical) talk with Kate Bishop about the company she keeps. He even likes Loki better than this. (That isn't meant to say how odd it is that Loki seems to be strangely likable, although still not trustworthy.)

"Better," he says, dry and still unimpressed. "At least that's the truth. Terrible and selfish, certainly, but the truth. You're lucky the damage could have been worse. And hopefully, you're lucky that this looks too stupid to be really dangerous, even if juries aren't necessarily sympathetic to dumb kids doing dumb things."

[brushoff]

"Do you think acting reckless and immature on the stand would help my case?" Said as utterly sarcastic as possible. If Matt wasn't receptive to his nicer efforts, Dorian felt absolutely no shame in being more of a little shit.

[notdaredevil]

"By all means, if you're becoming attached to prison, and feel like extending your stay. If not, contrite but clueless will look much, much better."

He can't advocate that the man lie, not really, and he feels no inclination to help Dorian fudge the truth, either. Matt does suspect he's clueless about something, anyway-- like how to be a decent human being, possibly, which is neither charitable nor arguably fair to his client.

"And if it wasn't your idea to begin with, we'll have to run with that for all it's worth."

[brushoff]

"It was both our ideas," he admitted, obviously sulking. "Shade and I were bouncing around ideas of things to do and we settled on robbing a bank." Which, there was some truth in that statement. Both immortals were utterly bored and Dorian loved trying new things. Robbing a bank was a new thing. So it was something he would try!

Spoiler alert, Matt: Dorian is that much of a shit.

"And I think I can pull off clueless. After all, let's be honest: I wasn't that much help during that superhero fight."

[notdaredevil]

Ideas. Of things. To do. Matt turns that sentence over in his head, pulling up his best poker face imaginable. He can think of several categories of people who rob banks just as things to do, and they all fall into dangerous kinds of sociopathy or mental illness. At least he would have been understanding if he'd said he'd done it just because he needed the money.

"It's a juvenile mistake and it won't happen again."

And the look Matt directs his way, as though he could look, seems calculating anyway. All the more so for the blankness of his glasses, obscuring the blankness of his gaze.

"Right?"

He expects a lie.

[brushoff]

"Oh, definitely." And it was kind of true. Robbing a bank wouldn't happen again. But making other boneheaded moves that would bite him in the ass later?

No promises.