[CLOSED] So a couple of thanatotic teens wander into a cave...

[pummelgranite]

WHO: Nico, Persephone, Batman, a large number of Virginian Big Eared Bats
WHERE: A cave with bats in it . . . some kind of bat-having-cave
WHEN: December 1st
WHAT: an HONEST MISTAKE
WARNINGS: discussion of bad mental health junk likely


[ So it starts like this: she knows she's been spending all day and night and day with her pantheon mates, and in particular adult activities, so it was time to spend some quality time with the kid.

It helped that they shared a rather specific idea of a good time: exploring anything interesting things they could find deep underground. So Nico made a pack with water bottles and snacks (though either one of them could have returned them home instantly) and set out. The rules they set for themselves were fairly straightforward: Persephone would tunnel them to the nearest traversible place, and from there Nico would only use his power to maintain their path forward and she would only use hers to mark their trail with faintly glowing pink blossoms, blooming perpetually and impossibly in the pitch black.

For a while they didn't find much besides rocks and darkness and silence (which there was nothing wrong with, mind you). But eventually Persephone caught scent of something alive, not so very far off. Following that, it was impossible not to notice artificial light somewhere up above them, but still well below the surface.

So that's why there's a latticework of bright green vines and glowing pink flowers growing up from a chasm and over the ledge, and two teens who absolutely do not have clearance are climbing their way up towards not the bat cave, as in a cave with bats, but rather The Bat Cave, which is something a bit more specific. ]

Comments

[the_caped_crusader]

[Thankfully, he was only just recently back from patrol when this happens, so he's in full regalia and doesn't need to leap for his cowl. He is, however, alerted by the silent alarm on his computer and has plenty of time to react before they reach the top of the cliff.

Recognizing the vines, he takes a step over to the edge and waits for their heads to pop up, standing there draped in black, looking thoroughly unamused. He gives Nico a look, mostly because he's the one who knows who he is-- and right now, he can't be sure if he decided to tell Persephone he was, in fact, Bruce Wayne.]

The two of you look lost.

[pummelgranite]

Huh? Oh. Hey. Hiya.


[ So probably the reaction Bats is looking for here is not an immediate brightening of her expression. She lets the vines grow up behind her so that she can sit back off the ladder to look up at him casually. It's a sort of relaxed carelessness she's never shown to Bruce- or to much of anyone on the surface for that matter. It's like all of his scowling and looming just came across as a warm, friendly welcome. ]


Nah. We don't get lost. Not down here.

[abandon_hope]

[ This kid looks lost. And alarmed. And - okay this is the Batcave. He slips back into Angry Hell Child mode upon seeing Batman, but - as always - the bravado is undercut by nervousness. And chagrin, in this case. He did not mean to break into the freaking Batcave.

(Also, he kept your secret, Batman. He really did.)

He scowls, faintly, turning his face away. ]

That doesn't mean we were trying to get here either.

[the_caped_crusader]

[Boy is he annoyed with that. He doesn't let it show, though, and he's careful not to move much to let them pass.]

That's good. It means you can find your way out the same way.

{LEAVE, CHILDREN.]

[pummelgranite]

[ hahaha, wow. look at that scowl. She is honestly pretty impressed that a mortal is putting that much work into his underworld grimdark vibe. It is one of so many unexpected things in this world: that a full grown man could speak such fluent edgelord. But here he is, lord of the edge. It's obvious chthonic posturing, and she is far more endeared than intimidated. But it's because she's so endeared that she surprises herself by feeling a little disappointed to be met with such a chilly reception. She thought they were cool?? For just a moment, there's a small look of hurt across her face.

But, if she was going to respect his vibe then she wouldn't do it justice by bringing something as uncool as feelings into the equation. If he's going to be cool, she will be cool too. That's literally the only polite thing to do here. ]


Nice to see you too. Christ.

[abandon_hope]

[ Meanwhile, Nico's thoughts: Batman Batman Batman. ]

I - uh -

[ Can he find the way out? He can alway teleport, but by now he's tired and his hands are getting kind of see through as a result. ]

Which way is out?

[the_caped_crusader]

[God they just... walk past him? Like he isn't justice and darkness incarnate??? His whole body tenses up at the sheer disrespect, in his own home no less, and he has to keep himself from doing something impulsive. His previous question of whether or not she knows his identity is answered, however, by her more than comfortable answer to his question. He can't, however, just walk them out through his front door.]

You'll have to excuse me if I'm not hospitable. I'm not exactly comfortable with people breaking into my home.

[pummelgranite]

It's fine, Nico. I can- . . . wait. Your home? Really?


[ She doesn't quite walk past him. Doesn't even leave her perch on the vines, as it sways gently over the abyss. But she does try to straighten up a bit, to see if she can look behind him. ]


First of all the last thing we broke was at least a couple kilometers back. And besides, maybe I'm not "exactly comfortable" with you dropping your bachelor pad down in my kingdom.

[abandon_hope]

[ Well, it is underground. But also still Batman. ]

Um - Batman lives in a cave.

[the_caped_crusader]

My apologies, your highness. [Said with some noticeable amount of sarcasm.]

An unfortunate state of the modern age when the world transitions from a commercial trade economy to a capitalist one. These days you'll find that possession is nine-tenths of the law.

[pummelgranite]

Wow. Sassy, aren't we? For someone basically claiming Squatter's Rights, anyway.

[the_caped_crusader]

I'm afraid the almighty dollar rules these days more than the antiquities of divine law, Persephone. But for the sake of hospitality to royalty, [Still with the sarcasm...] and because you look tired from your sojourn, I'll extend this invitation.

[He moves out of the way, allowing the both of them to enter.]

For now.

[pummelgranite]

[ She really is impressed with his bit. The loom, the voice, the unironic cliches. She wonders if this is what Baphomet is going for in his constructed persona. He's on to something with the shirtlessness. This guy should be shirtless too. ]


Why good sir, you do us honor.


[ Only at his invitation does her perch bring him up to his level. But she does extend a hand (and a few vines) to Nico. ]


Kid?

PREVIOUS TO BREAKING INTO THE BATCAVE

[pummelgranite]

[ Persephone peers down the fissure that her vines opened up in the rock. She can't explain, exactly, how she knows it is safe, but she does. She could put her fingers on the walls and tell you how old the stone is, what it's made of, how well it likes the other stone around it. The sense is not touch, not really, a bit more like scent. Sight is quickly becoming less and less relevant. ]


Doesn't seem like much alive, this way. Might be some water-ways, or big caverns? Still sound OK?

[abandon_hope]

[ Nico, meanwhile, bends his head in closer himself. Dangerous places tend to have spirits about ... Or at least they would if they were home. But still, he doesn't sense any residue so to speak. ]

All clear. The shadows go in pretty deep too.

[pummelgranite]

[ It would be impressive, if any mortal had managed to make it down here without divine assistance. But hey, humans manage to die in all kinds of crazy places. Who knows. ]


Sounds like we have a winner, then.

[ And down into the abyss she hops :> ]

[abandon_hope]

[ After a moment, he follows. ]

What are we looking for?

[pummelgranite]

[ It's even colder down here. Seems damp, but that's more the temperature than anything else. ]

Dunno. Anything cool I guess. There's supposed to be lots of fossils in America, right?

[abandon_hope]

Yeah, I guess. Dinosaurs and stuff.

[pummelgranite]

Dinosaurs are cool.


Hey, are you OK without light?

[abandon_hope]

Huh? Oh, yeah . I can see in the dark pretty well.

[pummelgranite]

[ she nods ]

I don't think I actually need to see, anymore. Not down here.

[abandon_hope]

... What, like you're feeling your way or something?

[pummelgranite]

More like I already know it.

[abandon_hope]

[ Oh. He brightens a bit at that. ]

Yeah ... I get that too.