tushanshu | 001 ≅ [TEXT] / [ACTION]

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001 ≅ [TEXT] / [ACTION]

[TEXT]

[Donatello decides to stick with text, because he doesn't entirely trust himself not to give away his barely restrained panic right now if he tries anything else.]

So forgive me if this is a stupid question, but is there anywhere I can find a map or something?

...Or even a help center for the unfortunately half-drowned? Travel agency? A Guide to the City, perhaps? The welcoming committee was helpful, but not that helpful.

Thank you.

[He's pretty sure if there is a place to collect information - and they sure made it sound like this happened often, so he'd surprised if there wasn't - he could slip in and steal their pamphlets or...whatever it was they had, without too much trouble. Still. If there's an easier method, he'd prefer it. He didn't want to go venturing out into the open half-cocked and alone.]

[Speaking of...he'd given up audio, so he'd also given up the chance of one of his brothers recognizing his voice. He'd have to think of something-]

[Ah.]

And if there's a place that sells pizza, I could really go for that right now.

[Not perfect, but it would have to do.]

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[ACTION]

[No matter what happens during the day, once it hits the darkest hours of the next morning Donatello is going to brave heading up to the roof of his building {ME-2A} in the Metal Sector and start poking around the area. He'll be sticking very close to home and keeping it quiet, but if your character might have the skills and inclination to notice an extremely nervous ninja turtle, then by all means!]

[He'll be distracted by the different constellations in the sky and occasionally be stooping to investigate the material the buildings are made of. He'll keep reaching up to check that his staff is still there. Don't get too close or he will probably try to smack you with it.]

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"Taking in the sights," Tim said with a little grin. He relaxed slightly, letting his hand fall away from his staff. Now that it seemed like they were going to talk like grown-ups, it looked like there was no need to pick a fight.

For now.

He tilted his head a little in an approximation of a raised eyebrow. "So what about you? This isn't exactly a pedestrian highway."

Donatello scoffed slightly before he could stop himself and gestured to his plastron with some self-deprecating wryness. "Do I look like a pedestrian?"

Then he froze. And belatedly dropped his hand from his staff.

"Uh," Stupid. It probably wasn't the best idea to go around pointing that out. "I mean, I'm not really...good with public streets. Besides, exercise, right? Got to keep in shape. Good cardio, the...jumping thing."

"Do I look like a pedestrian?" He grinned. The banter maybe needed a little bit of work, but he was doing all right. He just needed to relax a little bit. "Great cardio," he agreed. "So's the staff. Any good with that?" The answer was almost definitely yes--this turtle guy didn't seem the type to carry a weapon he wasn't familiar with. Very much serious business type.

"I'm all right, I guess."

The reply was automatic, his hand twitching more out of habit than anything back up to his staff, but Don was mostly just staring right now. He wasn't even bothering to slip into a more defensive stance.

This wasn't computing. "Do you...You can see me, right?"

Don was honestly wondering if Tim was blind behind that hood of his. It wouldn't be the first time it had taken a blind man to accept him or his brothers.

'All right.' Tim watched him twitch toward his staff and smiled a little. He kind of wanted to see that in action--if only to get a good spar in. Maybe later--if they ever managed to trust each other that much.

He grinned a little at the question. It seemed a little odd, but not that odd, considering. "Giant turtle, walking on two legs with a staff and a purple bandana? Yeah, I think I can see you."

"And that doesn't bother you?" he blurts out. "Really? No...screaming or trying to kill me or threatening to take video and put it up on the internet?"

Donatello dimly realized his incredulousness might come across as insulting, or at the very least annoying, like beating a dead horse, but he didn't care. He was also keeping an eye on where Tim's hands were. He knew better than to talk up his own skills, especially without his brothers around, especially when the only reason he can think for why anyone would question his combat skills would be for some kind of threat assessment.

The idea of sparring with anyone who wasn't family was so alien as to not even cross his mind.

Tim bit down on a laugh--he didn't want this turtle-guy to think he was making fun of him, but... "My best friend is a half human, half alien clone hybrid, another of my friends is a martian, and I have another friend who uses alien tech to turn into a giant blue beetle. Giant turtles don't really scare me." He gave him a wry grin. "And I'd be just as pissed if you put me on youtube as you would if I did it to you, so why don't we leave the webacms out of it?"

He kept his hands--and his body language--relaxed. While he might be interested in a spar--both as thrat assessment and just to play--he didn't want a fight.

And with that, whatever guard had been left in Donatello's stance just left, and Don was left standing like the shell-shocked fifteen-year-old he was.

(Also, Martians, what. But Don decided that if Tim wasn't going to start questioning Don's oddities, it wouldn't do for Don to start questioning his friends' differences.)

"Oh. I- Okay. I guess it's good to meet you, then?" He wasn't entirely sure what to say. Usually this step was skipped with their human friends back home. Having to save their lives usually took priority.

What a switch.

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Red Robin." Because--masks always meant code-names. He settled himself a little more comfortably. If they were going to talk, then he didn't need to be poised and ready to go at any minute.

"So, where are you from, and do you do the rooftop creeper thing often?"

Don hesitated, then cautiously folded himself down on his knees. He had been planning to make his excuses and slip out (not stutter out something incomprehensible and run away, thank you), but apparently that wasn't going to happen.

"It's not a creeper thing," he protested, waving one arm around. "It's a 'not trying to get shot' thing. And- and it's faster, we save at least ten minutes in any direction when we're not confined to streets. It's easier to see down alleys. It's not like anyone ever looks up so-"

It's creepy.

"It's very different," he finished firmly. "It's not like anyone's usually up here. Aren't you doing the same thing?"

Okay. So he was pretty sure Red Robin was teasing him and he shouldn't be taking it seriously, but maybe if Don could get Tim to focus on this topic, Don could get away without giving his name. He hadn't thought a masked human would offer a name at all, but apparently they did, and he didn't know if he was obligated to reply. It wasn't like he had a code name. If Red Robin was a code name. Maybe that was an actual name where he was from.

Oh, man.

Tim couldn't help laughing this time. "Yeah. I'm doing the exact same thing. And you're right--about all of that. The not getting shot and the saving time, and how no one ever looks up."

He grinned. "But it's totally a creeper thing. Give in. Embrace your inner creepiness."

And he was totally enjoying the name question--which was fine. Giant turtle? Probably didn't have a code-name. He probably tried to avoid people at all, given how he was reacting to Tim.

Red Robin was doing a very bad job in his role as a scary stranger. Don grinned too, just a little. 'Ninja,' would have been his first reply if this had been April or his brothers, but...well, what could it hurt to try and be friendly?

"Hey, okay, it's not our fault people leave their undergarments to dry on rooftops. That is creepy."

Okay, not so much here. But back in New York? You'd think people would be afraid of getting them dirtier than when they started.

Tim snickered a little. "No kidding. Or strung up between the buildings where everyone can see? I don't know. I think they're probably exhibitionists or something. So, where are you from?"

"...New York," Donatello offered after a very obvious hesitation. It wasn't like it would matter much, right? Maybe Red Robin wouldn't even know a New York.

Unless this was a Kraang trap or something and Don was hallucinating this entire thing and they had implanted a friendly suggestion into his brain that would get Don to confess everything-

But even Don would tell that was paranoid. That didn't keep him from rapidly trying to turn the conversation around, of course, but he remembered what had happened the last time a human had seemed so friendly right off the bat. He wasn't going to pull a Mikey and put their entire family in danger.

"What about you? It's not like you're a giant turtle like me, right? Why all this?"

He shook his head, smiling. "Nope. One hundred percent human, last time I checked." No, actually, he really does occasionally run blood tests on himself, so that's not as ridiculous as it sounds. "Why--you don't think the mask is cool?"

"You look like you're wearing armor."

And he did. It was the way people held themselves in clothes they fight in, the way it fell, obvious to someone looking for it even in the dark. Like the Foot. Except less with the whole, 'I will kill you and everyone you love,' thing.

Not to mention he picked up on Don's presence in the first place. It wasn't meant as an accusation, but a human in full costume skulking around on the rooftops for no reason? Why? Cool, maybe, sure, but if he wasn't an outcast from general society, then why? Superheroes were more Mikey's thing, and they didn't exist where Don was from.

"Good spot." He was definitely wearing armor--as a squishy human, he'd be stupid not to. He wasn't afraid to admit it--though there wasn't a chance in hell he'd actually get into the specifics about it.

He was looking on this turtle guy as a potential ally, but he wasn't going to lay all of his cards on the table.

That Don couldn't tell the make of the armor was enough to peak his interest. It wasn't exactly like what Foot wore, he could tell that much, but it was all he could make out in the dark - or even in the light, possibly. Alien material from another dimension? Or custom? Not that Don could just ask. Even if Red Robin answered, that just gave him permission to ask questions about Don's equipment - if he ever saw it - and Don knew he wouldn't be so generous.

"Is it really all that dangerous around here?"

Tim blinked a few times behind the cowl. The armor was part of the costume. It just was. He'd feel pretty naked, doing this without it. He hadn't considered the question of whether it was necessary here--though he tended to think that it was.

"Well, it's not safe. There's some violence--gangs, things like that."

"So...just like home?"

Donatello shifted for a moment before he stood, slowly, and dusted off his knees. He isn't exactly being careful to broadcast his movements, but he's not rushing anything, either.

"I should actually head back. It's a bit cold tonight for me, you know?"

Not that it bothered him much, but most humans would - probably, he assumed - take him at his word and his physical appearance. Him and his brothers weren't endothermic, but they were an odd blend of human and turtle and it left them higher functioning at colder conditions than their non-mutated turtle brethren. Ectothermic by classification, but...weird. He hadn't quite figured out the extent of it yet, but he would. He would.

It was a good excuse, at any rate, and Red Robin probably had places to be.

"It was...nice meeting you?" And Don wasn't actually lying about that, either, which surprised him a little.

He nodded a little. He had no reason to think that what he was saying wasn't true--he supposed it did get a little chilly out here at night. He gave him a little grin. "It was nice to meet you too. If you ever want a rooftop buddy--look me up. I'm usually out here at night."

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001 ≅ [TEXT] / [ACTION]

[Action] I love this so much.

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[Action] I'm so sorry Don's just...a terrible conversationlist right now

[Action] Well, Tim's kind of killing his paradigms.

[Action] shattering his entire worldview here tim

[Action] He'd be sorry, but he doesn't realize he's breaking his brain.

[Action] it's beautiful

[Action] HILARIOUS.

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[Action] I am so sorry about Tim.

[Action] never apologize this is magnificent; don is just a paranoid freak

[Action] So is Tim. They're gonna get along so well.

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