Late Night Banter (Jim)

[Lavinia Howards]

Although it was late, early morning in fact, Gotham was still very much alive. Car horns were beeping, white lights luminated the city, people were still bustling their way in and out of resturaunts, clubs and bars.

She took a deep breath, sitting on the front porch of her house, clutching her warm hot chocolate that was sending coils of steam in to the atmosphere. Odin was at her side, his head lying on her lap as he snored lightly in his sleep. She envied him. It had been one night of many that she hadn't been able to rest, ever since she heard the Greys were alive. That Logan was alive. She would toss and turn on her bed, flip-siding the pillow every half an hour, fully knowing her actions were aimless in the long run but never the less, she tried.

The night was cloudy, just how she liked it although it did bring on a breeze- she didn't mind. She was wrapped in a dressing gown, blanket and bunny slippers. Warm enough. Carefully taking a sip of her drink, she tested the temperature- she hated it when drinks were piping hot. Her eyes analysed over the scene in front of her, run down buildings, smoke coming out of every chimney, washing lines hung between windows. It wasn't much but it was a shelter; mediocre food, springy bed and small television. None the less it was home and a vast improvement to the Facility.

Lavinia sighed, causing Odin to twitch, she ignored this once sighting a GCPD vehicle approaching. It wasn't blasting off it's sirens, Jim no doubt.

[Jim Gordon]

A meeting with Elizabeth Connery and plenty of paper work meant one thing: a long day. He was glad when he saw his house and spotted Lavinia outside. As he pulled out outside his house, he smiled at her, glad to see that her dog was, seemingly, okay. He'd heard about Odin's jabs and was glad that the dog wasn't too mentally harmed by the vet.

Climbing out of his car and shutting and locking the door afterwards, Jim walked over to her as they hadn't spoken for a while. He was smiling as he reached her porch.

"Hello, Lavinia." He said softly, stopping at the edge of her porch and eyeing Odin. "How're you?" He asked, looking at her now as he asked that question. His smile was still on his face, a soft, friendly smile.

[Lavinia Howards]

"Hey, Jim."

Lavinia smiled as he stood on the porch, they hadn't spoken in a long while due to his late nights at the Police Department and her recent long shifts at the resturaunt, she was happy to even see him, she couldn't remember the last time she had.

When your neighbouring someone you grow a custom to seeing them everyday, either smile and wave- fake or real, it depends on the relationship or ignore them completely. Lavinia was usually the one to put on a real smile and wave, she was hospitable and friendly to new people, always wanting to make a good first impression that would last. Her ears perked up a little, hearing his question.

"Okay, a little bit frustrated. Can't get to sleep." She replied, wary of the bags under her eyes. "How're you? I heard about that raid with the Two-Face guy and someone dressed as a bat or something?"

[Jim Gordon]

When he heard her saying that she couldn't get to sleep, Jim gave a small frown of concern but didn't speak until she'd finished.

"Why can't you sleep?" He asked her before answering her question. He nodded. "I'm fine, bit of a long day but I'll live." He tried to decide on the best way to talk about the bat guy... "He- uh... He came to visit me the other night..." He decided on saying. Say it slowly and carefully, making sure to pick his words with care so he didn't seem like a loony.

[Lavinia Howards]

"I just heard from some people that two friends of mine, who I thought had been dead for the past five or six years are in fact alive." She thought nothing of telling Jim the truth, after all he'd been like a second father in her years of living here. She nodded at his reply but choked at what came after, coughing couple of times.

"I bet that was interesting." She slammed a fist at her chest in hopes of clearing her throat.

[Jim Gordon]

"Really? Who?" Jim asked about her friends. He wasn't sure whether they would be someone he'd met or not but it was always good to know and she was kind of like a daughter to him. Her comment about the visit being interesting made him smile a little but the smile disappeared at her choking and he stepped forward, ready to help her if she needed it. "Interesting's one word for it... Are you okay?" He asked gently, concern and worry in his voice with the question.

[Lavinia Howards]

"Yeah, just a little surprised." She smiled, her cheeks a faint red colour, contrasting with the bruise.

"I'm not sure if you've heard of them lately, they're one of Gotham's richest; Logan and Amelia Grey." She answered Jim's question, looking down at her mug. She didn't like talking about it, talking about them, not knowing for sure whether they were alive, maybe Matthew and Ryan were messing with her. No, surely not but then again this was Gotham City. That seemed to be Lavinia's answer to anything that sounded remotely evil or unkind.

[Jim Gordon]

Ah, the Greys. Jim gave a small nod looking at the floor before looking at her and frowning at the bruise. He'd only just noticed it properly, before he'd assumed it was just a shadow but when she moved, it moved.

"I've met them... What happened?" He asked, indicating to her bruise gently with concern. He hated to see friends injured but if they didn't want to tell him, he wouldn't force her to. He would just like to know, is all. His eyebrows had pulled into a frown of worry as he'd asked his question and he stepped forward a little, merely so he could see it better.

[Lavinia Howards]

A look of surprise laced Lavinia's features once she heard he met the Greys. It seemed everyone she'd talked to lately had met them, it was a small world after all. She took another sip of her hot cocoa then answered Jim's question, noticing the look of concern.

"There was this brawl at a resturaunt, I asked the guy to leave and he didn't. Asked again and the next thing I knew I was a 50's housewife who forgot to clean the house." She chuckled ever so slightly, feeling the urge to rub her cheek but deciding against it.

[Jim Gordon]

Jim nodded in understanding. He'd seen a few fights in restaurants and the victims were often less lucky than Lavinia.

"At least you only got a bruise." He decided on saying, smiling at her description of what happened all the same. His gaze moved to her dog and he felt his smile grow, wishing that he'd had a dog as a child. He began wondering if his wife would mind them getting a dog now instead, the kids kept begging for a pet...

[Lavinia Howards]

Lavinia smiled. She liked how Jim always found a way to see the optimistic side of a situation. Noticing his stare moving to Odin her smile grew ever so slightly, she looked down at her lap, where Odin was currently splayed out on his back, paws in air. She sctratched his belly then looked back up at Jim,

"Would you like to hold him?" She offered.

[Jim Gordon]

Jim looked at her for a moment before nodded softly and stepping forward a bit more.

"How is he?" He asked, remembering the jabs he'd been told about again. He didn't think that it would've been easy to get the dog to the vet for the jabs, but from what he'd heard the animal had needed them.

[Lavinia Howards]

"Oh, he's fine. It was just a booster shot against parvovirus. Better to have him whining a little bit now then getting the disease for the rest of a short life." She smiled, picking up Odin and giving him to Jim, he was still snoring.

"So what did that Batguy say to you?" She asked. From the newspapers she heard a lot of vigilantes were coming on to the scene; that Night-something-or-other and was it Red Wood? She couldn't remember their names exactly, all she knew was that Red was a little more... unmerciless with his victims.

[Jim Gordon]

Taking the dog, Jim stroked him without thinking and looked at her before answering.

"He said about saving this city. About how the public needed a face to look up to and how, now Dent's gone, that face was me..." He said softly, looking at the sleeping animal in his arms while stroking him.

[Lavinia Howards]

Lavinia nodded then took another sip from her mug.

"I heard about Harvey, it was a shame what happened. I thought he was going to save this city." A little look of remorse laced her features, "But then again, all these district attorney's come along, enforcing belief that they can make a change when nothing really happens. I'm starting to think the only way to actually save this city is to rely on people like the Bat, Night-whatever and you."