RP With Jonathan Crane | Scarecrow

[whatam_i]

Arkham Asylum.

It's a name that everyone in Gotham knows but also fears, it sits at the edge of town on a high hill that can only be reached by one or two winding, desolate roads. The original contractors probably weren't trying to make it look like something from a Vincent Price movie but over time it has grown to be just that, a place that is dark, haunted, and full of dangerous and disturbed people.

Not that the elected officials would say that, oh no, when they have to talk about Arkham it's always spoken as a state of the art hospital. Full of doctors and therapists who work day and night to help everyone who goes there.

But that couldn't be further than the truth.

Edward Nygma hasn't been in Arkham long but already he knows that this isn't a place where people go to get better, it's a place where they go to be broken.
Forgotten.
Buried.

But he refuses to be one of them, he will escape, because at it's core Arkham is just one big puzzle.
And puzzles are his forte.

Comments

[phobophilia]

Arkham Aslyum was never a place Jonathan Crane had figured he'd be working. Technically, he was moonlighting more than being full-time. He still taught Psychology at Gotham State University and had for the past five years. While his mentor had gotten tenure for bringing on the youngest professor in the school's history, the man had gotten tired of his star pupil when Jonathan's reputation started to outshine his own.

He was miserable, of course, Jonathan loved to teach, but being bullied by coworkers and students alike didn't make for a good environment for one to flourish. Most of the teasing came from his looks, too tall, too gaunt and his creepy blue eyes. People either loved his eyes or recoiled from them. The other factor was his clothes, they never really fit right, and his suits were always outdated, bargain rack items. He made it work, though, even with the air of poverty about him.

He was paid wonderfully, of course, but his little issue of being a bibliophile certainly didn't help, and that was how Jeremiah Arkham got the young professor to work at the Asylum. He only worked about thirty hours at the Asylum, but that didn't mean he didn't take it seriously. Not yet jaded to his craft.

It was a lost bet that had the Riddler's files put in his arms, and sent down to the room for his first real visit with one of Arkham's most famous. The guards opening the door as he stepped inside, waving them off with a look of annoyance. "Please leave me and Mr. Nygma, I do not need your help." The accent sounding perfectly upper crust gothamite. Yet, seemed fake on him. Adjusting his glasses, as he looked from the file to Edward while the door was shut. "Good evening, Mr. Nygma. My apologies for the late visit, I am your new psychiatrist, Dr. Crane." He spoke, offering one of his bony hands over. Those piercing blue eyes trying to read the man before him from behind his smudged lenses.

[whatam_i]

[ooc: this is really random but I have to share my favorite Ed in Arkham moment. XD ]

When Crane enters his cell Edward is sitting on his small bunk, his posture is near perfect and he is fiddling with a paper puzzle that he's made himself. He glances up, his dark brown eyes staring intensely at Jonathan, scanning him from top to bottom. Before he was the Riddler, Ed worked as a forensic examiner at the GCPD, a job he was incredibly good at because of his attention to detail. Details such Crane's suit, the smudged lenses of his glasses, the thick notebook he carries and the type of pen he has tucked into it.

"New? What happened to the other one?" He asks mildly, not accepting the offered hand.

[phobophilia]

[ooc; That is amazing, thank you for sharing! I need to eventually sit and watch more than kid Crow's scenes. I wish they hadn't used the new 52 backstory for him, but otherwise I like him. ]

Jonathan can tell when he's being sized up, but he doesn't let it show on his face. No, he didn't like to give much away if he could help it. He had clocked that paper puzzle as soon as he walked in, and yet he did not comment on it. Despite the notes his predecessor left saying Nygma was not to have puzzles or riddles.

"It would appear that Dr. Young decided to take another position at another hospital." He offered as he flipped a few pages in the file. "Well, Mr. Nygma, would you care to tell me why you feel you are currently in our care?" He asked, closing the file and switching it for that notebook Edward had clocked, opening it. "While I could read all of her notes, I would rather start fresh."

[whatam_i]

[ooc: I wish they had done more with Crane in Gotham, his costume was pretty great but we didn't get to see him that much. :( ]

"Care?" He asks with a slight scoff, raising an eyebrow at Crane. "You must be new here, Doctor. This isn't a place of care, it's a place to stick people to watch them rot."

[phobophilia]

[ ooc; It would have been great, but it's okay, I can just write my own in here! ]

That got a crack of a grin as he shook his head. Motioning to an empty chair. "Do you mind?" He asked, always playing much more polite and personable than he really wished to be. It worked better in his job. "I have been informed of somehow Strange and Young were running things, Dr. Arkham advised me upon it when he asked me over from the university." He offered as if to explain. "So, new to Arkham, but I have taught a few of the doctors here. So, Mr. Nygma, tell me about yourself, not what the papers have told me, but your story."

[whatam_i]

[ooc: exactly! yaaay!]

"Strange was making monsters in the basement." He comments, motioning that Crane can sit if he wants. "Is that something you taught him to do I wonder."

A pause as he thinks over Crane's request and then shrugs, folding his hands in his lap.

"Fine. Why not? Where would you like me to start?"

[phobophilia]

Jonathan scoffed as he grabbed the chair, turning it backwards to sit, the paperwork sat aside. Much more relaxed than it would seem some doctors were, but it's an act. One he perfected in his classroom. Appear relaxed, and others relax. "Pish posh, do I look old enough to have taught Strange?" He asked, looking at Edward over his glasses. "He retired from GSU the year I started collage, Mr. Nygma. He also is no friend of mine. Nor do I have any issue believing he would do such. If monsters were real."

Granted, interest did spark in his eyes, he was going to have to look into that. He hated Strange, the man had tried to get Henry to abandon him when he started teaching, claiming Jonathan's own mental health issues would mar his mentor's reputation if Jonathan ever came off of his medication. Henry had stuck with Jonathan, due to the fact he helped make Henry look good, but he had told Jonathan.

"The beginning I always find to be best in any story, are you inclined to disagree?" Not a drop of that southern draw bleeding through.

[whatam_i]

Sadly the little classroom trick doesn't seem to work on Ed, his posture and expression remain exactly the same when Crane adopts a more casual position.

"No, but appearances can be deceiving."

He's a good example of that, for years he was just another forensic nerd at the GCPD. A person that no one really noticed unless they were annoyed at him, a creepy little loser that was often forgotten and thought of as harmless.
How wrong they were.

"Very well, I was born into low income family. My mother was addicted to drugs and my father beat me daily."

A lie but he's curious to see if Crane will catch it.

[phobophilia]

Crane can see it didn't work, and yet, he keeps it up. Making a few notes as Edward spoke.

"I am flattered you think so." He replied, a hint of amusement there.

Flattered, not really, but he wasn't offended. He would take it. It sure beat being called creepy, ugly and everything else his coworkers and students call him.

Looking up from his notes in a way that has those unsettling blue eyes peering at Edward over the rims of his glasses.

"Mr. Nygma, let's stop there." He spoke, a touch of amusement as much as a bit of annoyance. "I am a student of the human mind and behaviors. Shall I break down how I know that is a lie? Or shall we try again. If you do not want to speak of your past, we can always try something else." A shame that the formula he is making isn't nearly ready for testing yet.

[whatam_i]

Perhaps one of the reasons why Edward doesn't find Crane creepy is that he's been called the same thing by others as well.
Creepy.
Strange.
Odd.

"Just testing you, Doctor. That is what your type so often wants to hear when it comes to people like me, isn't it? Some kind of horrible trauma to explain why I am the way I am." He says mildly, "It eases their own minds to be able to inject some kind of reason."

[phobophilia]

It would certainly give them common ground. Being marked as odd from childhood does leave its own scars.

"Oh, believe me, Mr. Nygma. I know. I have failed quite a few who thought that was the only reason for trauma or mental ailment." He explained a tap of his pen against the notebook. "Truth is, not everyone has a moment, or someone who made them what we are. It is a coin toss of DNA or nature vs nurture if you want to get more into it." It was easy to see why he was good at his teaching job. Clearly passionate about the subject. "We do not always fit in a neat little box. So, tell me what makes you different. I am told you like to brag, so, let's hear it."

[whatam_i]

"I thought you wanted me to start at the beginning?" But because he can't help himself he continues.

"I grew up like most. My parents were completely normal, average people with average jobs. The only difference I suppose was that I knew at an early age that I was smarter than almost everyone around me."

[phobophilia]

"I did, but I am starting to see that your issues may not have been involved with your youth." He offered, before adding. "Or you simply enjoy looking for an easy mark. Which, I, Mr. Nygma am not." So nearly controlled in his every action, despite trying to appear calm and relaxed.

"That must have been frustrating, did you skip grades?" A story he knows all too well. He had been the smartest kid in his town, but his grandmother refused to move him up. It lead to behavioral issues and him nearly dropping out after she visited family and never returned. Realizing college was his only escape was the only reason he had fixed his grades.

[whatam_i]

"So you keep saying, but you'll excuse me for wanting to check."

Edward nods. "I did, I graduated high school early and went to college. I was the youngest person there."

[phobophilia]

"I can not fault you, no. Even if it is rather annoying. I conceed to these little tests."

He knew it was the man's compulsion anyway. "Lucky you, did that help with the boredom?" He inquired. "And when did riddles come into play?"

[whatam_i]

"Is it actually annoying or do you secretly like it because it gives you a chance to prove your intelligence and craft?"

Ed lifts an eyebrow, "You're projecting Doctor. I never claimed to be bored, I always found a way to test my intellect. Riddles were the best and I started doing them when I was young."

[phobophilia]

"Clever boy." He spoke with a shake of his head. "I will leave figuring that up to you."

Yes, it is a yes.

He shrugged his bony shoulders then. "Simply offering my point of view in the question. However, I can see your point there. A shame you are not allowed any puzzles or games here." He decided he would sneak in a word find or something for him. Good behavior should be rewarded.

[whatam_i]

Ed chuckles to himself because he's already figured it out, it's a yes.

"I have plenty up in my head, Doctor. This place strives to take everything but they can't take that away from me." He says and then leans forward a little, looking into Crane's eyes.

"But tell me, did you get frustrated when you got bored in school?"

[phobophilia]

He was indeed clever.

"I rather see no point in taking from you. I would rather see what makes the Riddler tick. To learn you so that I can help you without hindering that brilliant mind of yours." He was no Hugo Strange, but he was not a saint either.

"Absolutely, Mr. Nygma, my guardian would not allow me to skip grades. I was utterly bored. Fair is fair." He didn't say parent, but it was enough.

[whatam_i]

"Brilliant mind hrm? If I didn't know any better, Doctor. I'd think you were trying to flatter me." Which will work of course, he is a sucker for praise and flattery.

"Why didn't they allow it?"

[phobophilia]

"Flattery is not the way I work, I only give credit where it is due. I have read your file after all. Half these fools couldn't figure out these riddles. I did."

Jonathan had always enjoyed challenging his mind though, it was part of what kept him as sharp as he was.

Watching him over his glasses as he pondered ignoring it.

"Overly religious guardian, felt that if I moved ahead it would be against 'God's plan'." He rolled his eyes as he said it. "That is all you get of me, until I hear more of you." Well he was definitely going to have a cigarette once he was done here. He hated thinking about his abusive great grandmother.

[whatam_i]

There's a small lift of Ed's eyebrow when Crane mentions that he solved all the riddles in his file, his interest piqued a little more about the man sitting across from him. It's rare he finds anyone who is both willing and smart enough to match wits with him.

"God's plan hrm? Interesting." Is all he says about that and then shrugs nonchalantly. "Very well, I went to college where I became interested in perusing a career in forensics. The work appealed to me because it wasn't about good or bad, it was about solving puzzles."

[phobophilia]

Noticing that lifted eyebrow, he said nothing, still studying the other. Mentally building his own file on the Riddler.

"Not one I subscribe too, I assure you." Jonathan was a stanch atheist, but that came from his youth and scientific outlook. "See, now that I believe to be true. There is a conviction in your voice when you speak of puzzles."

[whatam_i]

"I wrote several forensic articles while in college and graduated with honors which allowed me to get a job as a forensic expert at the GCPD which is where I worked until I turned thirty."

A pause and he sneers slightly, "While I enjoyed my work I didn't much like my co-workers, cops are brutish, hypocritical idiots who never gave me credit for my work and seemed to actively enjoy harassing me."

[phobophilia]

"Interesting, and did you attend GSU or elsewhere?" He asked, making a note, why yes. He was going to look up those papers and read them. "Sounds like quite the career."

He knew a but was coming and nodding. There was a look of almost empathy, a moment. Crane wouldn't admit it to a patient, but he knew that all too well. One would think Academia would be safe from bullies, but no. Jon was taunted every day for his ill-fitting suits and the way he looks, his creepy eyes. All of it. "You have my sympathies." Crane spoke, keeping that tone fully professional. "That must have been hard for you to deal with."

[whatam_i]

"GSU." He confirms with a nod and should Crane ever look the papers up he'll be treated to such gems as 'What’s Wrong With This Right? Preventing False Positives at Crime Scenes.'

Ed nods again but then pauses, his own eyes looking away and something in his face softens.

"Yes, I suppose it was but luckily there are more than just cops down at the GCPD and eventually I met someone....special."

[phobophilia]

Oh, he would be looking into those when he has to return to GSU for his next class. He would have a copy of the paper on his desk before the end of the day. Jonathan liked to handle business quickly, lest it slip his mind.

"I see, and when did you attend? I do wonder if we attended at the same time." It was a silly thing to ask, but given he still teaches there and had been so very antisocial when he was a student outside of trailing behind Professor Henry Pigeon, he doubts he would have noticed Edward anyway. Still, he was curious. Jonathan had attended in the early 2010s.

"Do go on, I would like to hear more about this special person." He could read the file, but he would rather hear it from his patient.

ooc: I have no idea the year Edward would have gone to school XD

[whatam_i]

"It's likely, we look to be similar in age although I would guess you are a tad younger than I am."

Ed's eyes flicker up for a moment as if he is realizing something, "There were two actually. Both of them I met through the GCPD although Oswald didn't work there, he came in one day to speak to someone and I noticed him right away. Already he had quite the reputation and I couldn't resist saying hello to him, I guess that's where our friendship started."

Although Oswald wasn't friendly towards him at first the two quickly became close, especially after Ed found Oswald badly hurt in the woods and helped nurse him back to health.

"The other was Miss Kringle. Kristen."

A pause and he looks down at his hands. "She was a very beautiful woman, kind too."

ooc: Im super bad about going deep into details lol

[phobophilia]

"And how old do you think I am, Mr. Nygma?"

A touch of amusement, he was pretty young for a professor, of course, but he might actually be younger than Edward, but he doubted it. He should have read the man's papers.

"Ahh, yes, that I was told about. Your friendship with Oswald Cobblepot, I would like to dig deeper into that in another session."

Making a note as he looked back at him. "Well, tell me about her. "

XD

[whatam_i]

"I'd place you around 28-30 years old."

Part of Ed is relieved to hear that Crane wants to dig into his relationship with Oswald at a later date, a date he hopes will never actually arrive since his relationship with Oswald is....complicated to say the very least.

"She worked in records for the GCPD and after months of admiring her from afar I finally got up the courage to talk to her." A pause as he makes a slight face. "She didn't seem to like me very much at first, I think she thought I was weird and she got very upset when I tried to reorganize her filing system."

Another pause and he looks at Crane, "I was just trying to help. It was flawed and I knew a much better way of doing it."

[phobophilia]

"Thirty five, but thank you for the compliment."

He meant it too, while he didn't look his age, his gauntness didn't often help. It was possible that Edward could keep him distracted from ever actually asking, but who knew. If he caught a hint of fear he would zero in on it.

"Sounds like a real peach." He spoke, sounding a little bored, but not judging. That was just his normal tone. His eyes showed he was not as bored as he sounded. "I can see where you would think that would help. Remind me to let you into my office next time Jerry gets on me about filing." He added playfully. "However, professionally I should say it was an invasion of privacy to do that, somehow I doubt that was your intention."

[whatam_i]

"Really? Well, that actually makes you a year older than me."

He admits with a little chuckle.

"And no, it wasn't my intention to upset her. I thought that if I helped her she might like me a little more but it didn't really work."

[phobophilia]

Jonathan managed to smile at that, which did wonders for him, a shame he has that resting bitch face going on most of the time. The smile makes he looks almost handsome. "Well, clearly we must have gone at the same time, just didn't cross paths, a shame that."

Nodding some as Edward explained. "Well, sadly, we cannot control how others perceive our actions. In the future, I would say, as your doctor, to offer before doing."

[whatam_i]

"A great shame, it would have been nice to have someone intelligent to talk to back then."

But at least they're talking now.

"Oh I don't bother offering anymore, but with Kristen I wanted her to like me. I thought it was a lost cause but eventually after I saved her life, she warmed up to me."

[phobophilia]

"Indeed." It would have been nice to have someone besides his mentor worth talking too.

"While I see what you were trying to do. It is best to remember you cannot force people to like you. Even by doing them a kindness. As we cannot control other thoughts, they may not understand what you were meaning." Jonathan offered, one more note jotted down.

"Well, these sessions are always too short, same time on Friday?" He asked as the guard was rapping on the door to signal, leaning a little closer as he stood. "Stay out of trouble and I will bring you a crossword. We must keep that mind sharp."

[whatam_i]

ooc: shall we end this thread here?

[phobophilia]

ooc; sounds good!