Weakness

The following days were a bit of a blur, mostly calm and quiet. Routine carried on as if the mercenaries weren't planning a huge city heist in just a few weeks. Roslyne went about her daily routine-- training with Bane, spending time with Barsad, Mücher, and the girl, Hester, reading. The only things that changed was that she also had to add Henry to her schedule, and she was no longer spending her nights sleeping in the room she was originally put in.

Because of this last change, it shouldn't have come as a surprise when she walked into her old quarters, the room that she had been spending hours in only a few days ago, really, to grab a book out of the crate, only to have two soldiers look up from where they were, one laying on the cot (her cot) and the other at the desk.

"Um..." She frowned, pausing in the doorway. "Um, is there a crate of books in here somewhere?"

The man lying down quirked an eyebrow but still rolled over to reach under the bedframe, pulling out the familiar box and shoving it toward her.

Roslyne looked down at it, wondering why exactly she was so shocked to find her room occupied when she knew good and well that there was no reason it shouldn't be. Room had to be made for the returning soldiers, and it wasn't as if she was using it anymore.

"And, um, are there still clothes in here?"

Both men shook their heads, causing for Roslyne's frown to deepen. "Okay, then. What about drawings?"

Another head shake.

"Great. Thanks," she uttered, then stooped down to pick up the crate, hauling it down the corridors to Bane's quarters and dropping in on the ground when she arrived.

The masked man looked up with inquisitive gray eyes, cocking his head to the side very slightly as to inquire what exactly had her so confused.

"My room has been taken," she told him plainly, brows still knit together.

Bane leaned back in his chair and crossed his huge arms over his chest. "This bothers you?"

"Not really," she shrugged. "It just... I don't know. I wasn't expecting it. It makes sense and all, but... I never even asked you if I could steal your room."

"You can't steal what is offered to you, Roslyne."

For some reason, the statement made her blush, and she looked down at the stone flooring, thinking for a moment before asking, "Are my clothes already in your quarters?"

He nodded.

"So, for the past couple of days, you've just been picking out what I should wear for the day, and I've just been too oblivious to notice." It was more of a realization than a question, and Roslyne still refused to meet his gaze directly. She didn't miss the way that Bane's eyes began to crinkle in the corners.

"I just sort of thought you were being thoughtful and going to my room every morning and fetching clothes for me, but really--..." she smirked playfully, "...--you just like being in control of everything."

Bane chuckled, a sound that was both warm and cold at the same time. "I was waiting for you to notice. Perceptive as you usually are, Roslyne, this took you much longer to figure out than I'd expected."

"Oh, how disappointed you must be."

They were both teasing, something they only did behind closed doors, when no one else was around.

Bane's hidden smile widened, or Roslyne assumed it did by the narrowing of his eyes, and she continued in a mocking tone, "If I'm occupying your room, now, does that mean I get to decorate it any way I please?"

"Absolutely not." His voice sounded even more amused than usual, the high lilt to it making Roslyne grin from ear to ear, and somewhere in the back of her mind, she wished that she was standing closer to him so that she could wrap her arms around his bulky frame, nuzzle into his shoulder, anything to show her complete affection for the man. As it was, she remained standing a few yards away from him, hands on her hips-- smiling.

"If you do wish to have your own room, though..."

The teenager waved him off, shaking her head. "It's fine. Now I won't have to walk all that way to get to the workroom or the quarters. I'll just always be back here. Save for food. I'll have to venture out to eat, I suppose." She rambled for some time, making Bane lift an eyebrow before she wrapped it up, growing a little more serious as she admitted, "Plus, it's nice always being close to you. Makes me feel safe, I guess."

Something flashed in his eyes that Roslyne couldn't quite read all the way, akin to fondness but deeper, and the girl swallowed hard before forcing a small, slightly uncomfortable smile, then turned and announced, "Food sounds great, now," before walking out of the room.

And, that was that.



Barsad and Mücher began spending large portions of their days in Bane's workroom, planning with the mercenary their plan of attack. They went over every possible obstacle they could encounter when breaking into Arkham Asylum-- security, dangerous patients, road blocks, the police force, cameras, even their own men. It was all rather fascniating, and blueprints of the building and maps of the city sprung up around the room like daisies in the summer. Roslyne took to studying them closely, keeping an ear open for what the men were talking about and learning that they were planning on pulling the whole thing off with a bang.

Or, really, an explosion.

"An explosion? Blow the place up?" Roslyne questioned, frowning and gaining the attention of Bane, Mücher, and Barsad at the same time. "Don't you think you should be a little more... discreet?"

"We're breaking out a ton of fucking loons," Barsad commented, chuckling. "I don't think discretion is even an option."

"No, no, it is. And, think of it this way--..." She walked over to them, to the table they were all huddled around, and Bane watched her thoughtfully. "You want these people to trust you. In the future-- months, years, however long it takes, you want to be able and step in, save them from whatever misfortunes that have plagued them, and once you earn said trust, you can reign, correct?" A nod from all three. "Well, you can't exactly do that if you don't have their trust to begin with. If you blow the place up, your face, Bane," she looked at him pointedly, "Will be plastered all over the place, and it's not exactly an easy face to forget. I just don't think that a full on, obvious terrorist attack is going to gain you followers."

"What do you suggest then, Ros, since you are, apparently all-knowing?" Mücher said sarcastically, rolling his eyes but straightening visibly when Bane looked at him with raised eyebrows.

Grinning, Roslyne leaned over and pointed to the blueprints of the asylum that were already rolled out on the table. "I suggest we take the place apart from the inside."

Bane watched her and leaned back, crossing his arms. "I've considered this. Unfortunately, speed is all we have on our side--..."

"No," she interrupted, noting his frown and shooting him a silent apology before continuing. "We've got stealth. I know that with the right people, we can pull it off. I know it."

"You plan to help."

She nodded and responded honestly, "If you go down, I'm going with you."

A light flashed in the man's eyes, and his body shook with a quiet laugh. "And, if I don't allow it?"

Roslyne lifted one eyebrow, smile melting away on her face, and she stiffened before challenging, "Try to stop me. Just try."

Bane regarded her for a long while, tension obvious between all of them, Barsad and Mücher included. If anyone was able to talk to Bane in such a way, though, then it was Roslyne.

Finally, he uncrossed his arms and stepped back to the table. "I assume you have at least an outline of a plan, then."

"Right you are," Roslyne smirked again, then smoothed the papers out and began explaining.

"We'll need five key people-- Everybody here right now and someone to take care of tech. I was thinking Henry. Everybody else would be set around the perimeter as drivers and for eventual crowd control."

She went over her ideas, arguing with all of the men every once in a while, even going as far as sizing up to Mücher, who was much larger than her, but Bane obviously saw the girl as more of a threat to his valuable soldier since he quickly stepped over and hauled her back by the waist.

When all was said and done, she left for Henry's room with the mental image of Bane's almost proud expression, intent on filling him in on everything since she had, indeed, convinced the mercenary to let her brother be technical support. He'd always been good with gadgets, and since catching up with him had learned that his talent was being put to good use in Bane's army.

As was becoming routine, Henry ordered his Portuguese room mate (Roslyne never bothered learning his name) out, and the two sat on opposite cots, staring at one another before Roslyne spoke up.

"We've got a plan for Arkham."

"Do you?"

"Yeah, and you're involved."

"Am I?"

Roslyne shot her brother and impatient look, waiting for him to drop the defenses. It wasn't so much that he didn't want to help, she knew, as much as he just didn't like taking orders from anybody. He never had, and his own little sister being higher than him in ranks (in an odd sort of way) more than likely didn't sit well with him.

Sighing and rolling his eyes, he motioned for her to continue. "Go on, then. What is it I've got to do?"

Reaching out, Roslyne took his hands and squeezed, grinning, then went over everything again, arguing over some of the same points as she had in the workroom and doing her best to convince him that they could pull it off, that she could pull it off.

When she had wrapped it up again, Henry laid back on the thin mattress, staring at the ceiling and asked in a low voice, "You're sure you want to get involved in this, Rosie?"

"Positive."

There was no question about it in her mind. It was almost her duty. She had to be productive. She had to be useful. She had to earn her place at Bane's side. Most of all, she had to have his approval, earn his pride, his affection. Everything.

"I'm absoltuely positive."

Henry stood up then, rolling swiftly to his feet and pulled Ros up with him, wrapping wiry arms around her and muttering in her ear, "S'nice to have you back around, sis."

She grumbled indistinctly and pat his back, then backed away and left the room, no intentions of getting sentimental. She still felt too much resentment for that.

On her way back to Bane's room-- her room (their room?)-- she ran into one of the women, nodding politely at her and brushing past. She clucked her tongue rudely and continued walking, and Roslyne rolled her eyes, telling herself that if her only purpose at the compoound was to get the soldiers off, she wouldn't be very pleasant either.

Much to her surprise, upon entering the room, Roslyne found Bane lying down on the cot in only his pants and mask. His eyes were closed, but he still looked too stiff to be fully asleep, hands clasped together on his stomach, breathing evenly but not deeply.

Roslyne idly wondered if he ever looked to be at peace. Even resting, his face was not relaxed underneath the mask, though she could still appreciate the moment. It was easy to guess that, the rare times that Bane did attempt to sleep, he did not do it in the company of others. The fact that he knew that Roslyne could walk in at any moment, having every advantage, and was still comfortable lying down actually meant a lot to the girl. He trusted her. He knew her loyalty, and that was more than he could say for many of the soldiers who had been following him for years.

Smiling softly, she approached the bed on silent feet, looking down at the mercenary and not being able to deny how much she cared for him. She'd go to the ends of the earth for him at this point.

Roslyne reached out slowly, barely brushing her fingertips over the exposed skin of his cheekbone, moving closer to his eyes, where the crinkles appeared when he smiled.

He was dangerous. She knew. He had killed people, and there were others out there who wanted to kill him, probably within his own ranks. He was a threatning figure through and through, but to Roslyne...

He was her savior, an unconventional friend, and in some ways, something of an owner or master. She followed him where he led her and would continue to do so no matter what.

Roslyne's breath hitched in her throat when Bane's eyes fluttered open, revealing a blue so light that it was more gray than anything. He didn't look angry, or even surprised for that matter, but the girl still felt uncomfortable just standing there.

"Sorry, I--..." She tried to let her hand fall to her side only for Bane to reach up and place his over hers, pressing it to his cheek once again.

"You may stay, if you please." His voice, mechanized and slightly accented, was as soft as it could be.

She felt her face heat up and looked away, chewing on the inside of her lip as she let the pads of her fingers graze over his skin. It felt nice, the physical contact. She loved the private moments they shared, the actions that no one else saw, and there was a special little space in her memory where she filed all of them away for later perusing.

Exhaling heavily, she smiled again and shook her head. "It's fine. Just wanted to see what you were up to. Sorry for disturbing you."

Bane blinked and squeezed her hand before clasping his own together again on his stomach, letting Roslyne drop her arm. She tried not to feel too disappointed.

"I'll just be in the workroom, then, going over the blueprints."

The muscled man stared at her for a few seconds before giving a slight, sudden nod and closing his eyes again.

"Very well. Do as you please."

As she walked from the room and toward the worskspace, she worried over her lip and tried her hardest to ignore the little voice in her head telling her that Bane's casual send-off looked and sounded almost as disappointed as Roslyne felt.

"God dammit, Ros. Pull yourself together."