Work Text
Metahuman! Reader who's hiding out in Gotham despite Batman's 'no metahumans rule.' Because when they originally put down roots in Gotham, they weren't a meta nor did that rule exist yet. That and with all the villains in Gotham, rent had become rather cheap. Not the cheapest by any means but when compared to Metropolis or Bludhaven, they didn't exactly have the financial means to move.
So they stayed put, learning how to deal with their new metahuman abilities in secret. Thinking they had been good at keeping it on the down low until they received a knock on the door. Reader, looking through the peephole of their apartment door, hissed under their breath. 'Fuck me.' The man's attire immediately screamed detective, if not cop.
Taking a deep breath, they opened the door. Meeting the man's intimidating gaze. 'Can I help you?' Keeping their tone neutral, not wanting to come across as defensive. 'I'm detective Dick Grayson, with the GCPD. Mind if I asked you some questions?' Dick, while conducting research for a Nightwing sting, found pockets of metahuman activity. Tracking said activity to be near places Reader frequented. All within a 50 mile radius with their house at the epicenter. But unknown to Reader, Dick was recruiting for his team, the Teen Titans.
'Uh, sure. Come on in.' It'd all go well if they just kept their emotions in check. Otherwise, their physical features would shift. More accurately, dripping candle wax that would solidify into different shapes, colors, structures even. It would then be sucked back in the skin. 'I promise to make this quick.' Dick said, pulling a folder out of his bag, rife with papers. 'These are pictures taken from the CCTV cameras down on 4th and main on June 11th.' Putting down 2-3 photos from different angles, showing them with a hoodie.
'Not to assume anything but it seems like you were running away from someone or something. Which is concerning when you factor in how you look to have burn scars on your face and body.' Pointing at the areas of skin that their clothes didn't conceal. 'This was also the same night that the first power outage of the summer happened. But you never called anything in, why?'
'Not reporting something isn't a crime.' Reader shortly responds. 'Am I being charged with something?' Subtly asking if they were being arrested or if they'd end up in the back of his cop car, on the way down to the station without using the word 'arrested.' Taking a deep breath to calm their anxieties. Looking down to see if their arm was still solid. Dick shifted to a softer approach when he noticed this, sitting across from them at the small coffee table. 'Have you ever heard of the hidden figure of crime?'
'The what?'
'The hidden figure of crime or the dark figure. It's the term for the amount of crimes that go unreported. Kinda makes our job difficult. Sometimes it's because the victim experiences intimidation tactics by the perpetrator. Other times, it's because the victim doesn't recognize they've been victimized. Does that sound familiar?' Dick coaxed, using it as a leading question. Even though he technically wasn't supposed to do that. 'No, I don't think that's the case. Me not realizing I'm a victim.'
Pulling out a map with marked locations in orange sharpie. 'Okay. Well, this here is a map showing all known metahuman activity. Does anything about this data look familiar to you?' Recognizing that they weren't responding how he wanted to his questions, Dick turned up the heat. It was at this point that Reader froze, internally screaming that he knew. He must know. If he didn't, it definitely became apparent as their emotions triggered their abilities. Out of control, they now looked more akin to a Picasso.
'That's uncanny.' Dick's pristinely crafted worksona broke. Unable to continue on with the script he was following. Now assessing if Reader's ability could be of use to the team he was still building. He had to find some way to help. Beyond acting like a benefactor to get them to Central city but that'd equate to abandonment which Dick refused to do. Even if they didn't end up as a member of Teen Titans, he could at least help them figure out how to stabilize their ability. Especially with it being tied to their emotions. 'Come with me.'
Noting their confused look, as the dude literally just spent half an hour making them think he was going to arrest them, clarified. 'I'm not arresting you, this is just my day job. Pack a bag, I'll explain everything in the car.' Pulling open the blinds to show that he hadn't even driven to their apartment in a cop car to begin with. Their face having slowly shifted back to normal.