Leather and fine wine

[shardofwinter]

The days are getting darker, the air has started to bite. Naturally this means that a certain Winter spirit is starting to brighten. With Hazel's beautiful influence all around him, he's been spurred on to keep busy and ready himself to do an equally (if not better) job. While people may have seen him marching around the Nexus, often with full arms, today he's taking the time to stay in the Nexus to do a little work. Back on his world the weather took a turn into torrential rain. Here, however, it's dry. Cold, blustery, but dry.

Reynard has his trademark leather coat spread out on one of the tables in the Plaza. Two pairs of boots are waiting on the ground, one pair noticeably newer and smaller than the other. His feathered hat rests on one of the chairs, carefully weighted down with a brush. Perhaps it's no surprise then that Reynard is dressed rather lightly then, with his coat all laid out. It's around this table that Reynard moves, brushing and wiping and occasionally taking a sip from a cup. Those who approach will be met with the rich scent of mulled wine and the more cloying smell of whatever he's using to treat the leather.

Finally he pauses for a moment, thinking over his cup before asking, "What is your least desirable quality? What could you stand to improve about yourself?"

Comments

[sweetcandygirl]

Despite the weather... Harley is still content in her unusual outfit. The cold reminds her of whenever she would go see Mr. Freeze. Cold, enough to get her teeth chattering a bit. But not enough for her to change out of those glittery short-shorts and ripped T-shirt.

When she approaches Reynard, she notices the two pairs of boots. And just breathes in the scent of leather and wine.

"Notta-damn-thing." Harley just had a long talk with one of her dead friends, thanks to Hazel. And so she is not weighed down by 'undesirable' qualities. She loves herself. Just the way she is.

"But there is always room for improvement. Learning a new skill. A new language. Making new acquaintance."

[shardofwinter]

Reynard stays still, watching Harley's approach over the edge of his cup as he sips at his drink. Her answer is… Well. Not what he expected. It shows in his puzzled frown and the way his lips roll shut, open, and then shut again as he works through a few responses.

Eventually he squints at her, leaning forward ever so slightly, "Are you sure that's your final answer?"

[sweetcandygirl]

"Ohhhhh! Is this one of those game shows! Do I get to call a friend and check to see if my answer is okay?"

Harley smiles. Her strange behavior is likely the reason behind why Hazel found the woman to be so vexing.

"See... that is the thing... I could ask a dozen different people. And sure a small handful would say 'Nothing Harley, I like you for you' because they are my friends. But there are those who would say something else."

"Why waste my time trying to fix what they perceive as wrong? It would be endless... you can't make anyone happy these days. There is always something wrong... something undesirable."

"I am the one who has to live with my choice." Harley remembers what her dead friend had said to her very clearly. "I gotta be happy for me. And I am."

[shardofwinter]

Sarcasm is not particularly strange to Reynard. He lives in Scotland. The wettest country with the driest humour. Whether she meant it as sarcasm or not, that's how he takes it.

He watches her with the bemused, pinched smile of a man watching some stranger's child earnestly act at being grown up.

"Confidence is all very… charming. I'm not saying you shouldn't be confident, but people are flawed. Inherently. Everything is flawed. If you don't see your own, then you're blind and that is, in itself, a flaw," he explains without malice. Vague amusement, and uncertainty of her honesty, perhaps. "Being able to see where you can improve as a person is more valuable than proclaiming your self-declared perfection."

[sweetcandygirl]

"But where is it written that I can't be confident with myself, flaws and all? My flaws make me who I am. I wouldn't call them undesirable qualities."

Harley bounces a little, trying to explain her chaotic thought process. "And if everything is flawed... then really there is no way anyone is going to improve everything about themselves. And I never said I think myself to be perfect... because I ain't... but at the same time I am pretty damn happy right now, seeing how far I have come, and how much I have improved as a person."

[shardofwinter]

Reynard stares at her until he's certain she's not messing with him. "Everyone dies. That does not mean they don't do their damnedest to stay healthy and living for as long as possible. Even if they accept that everyone dies. Just like people should strive to improve, even when they know they will never be perfect."

He's a spirit of the Season of death and even he knows this is Human Morality 101. It boggles his mind to hear what he's hearing.

"If you base who you are on your flaws then you should really re-evaluate your perspective." He thinks a moment before adding, "And your priorities." Another moment. "And your values."

[sweetcandygirl]

Harley stares at him for a moment. "You are the one who just said that everything is flawed. Just like... two seconds ago."

"And now you are telling me that I have to re-evaluate my perspective? Because of what? Am I supposed to try to fix all these flaws that are impossible to fix, because everything is flawed."

"To what end?" Harley puts her hands on her hips.

[shardofwinter]

"Basic self-improvement?" He replies, squinting at her in confusion. "Like I said: You wouldn't stop going to the doctor just because you were comfortable with your own mortality. That's what this struggle of life is all about."

[sweetcandygirl]

Harley takes a moment to collect her thoughts. A smile on her lips.

"Well... I am one of those people who don't see doctors anymore. There is nothing they can do for me. And I am not going to waste their time... or mine... trying to find a cure."

She steadies her voice. Her broken Bronx accent fades slightly. "I believe in self-improvement. Like I said at the start, I will keep on learning. Finding a new language to learn. A new skill to figure out. Try not to burn water when I am cooking... that sort of thing."

[shardofwinter]

"You seem to be missing the point of what I'm saying. There's a world of difference between learning a new skill and learning how to grow as a person. You can't grow as a person if you don't think you should change anything about yourself. Knowing your flaws and seeing them for what they are… you seem to think that's a bad thing. That being happy with everything whether it's good or not is the best way to be." He huffs a laugh, "That's like being half a person!"

[sweetcandygirl]

"Just because I ain't agreeing with you doesn't mean I missed your point. We are each allowed to have our own opinions. And our own thoughts. That is the beautiful thing about being a person... the ability to think for yourself."

"So what are your least desirable traits?"

[shardofwinter]

"I'll tell you mine when you tell me yours."

[sweetcandygirl]

"I told you what I thought already. I am not going to change my mind because it didn't make you happy."

[shardofwinter]

"You said you had flaws and refused to share them. Don't go getting into a huff because I gave you the same answer."

[sweetcandygirl]

"Actually, you never asked for a list of flaws. You asked what was my least desirable quality. Then had a huff when I said I didn't consider any of my qualities to be undesirable. That I am happy with the way I am, flaws and all. And then I believe you called me half a person, because I was happy with who I am."

"You want to know what makes me... me?"

"I wear revealing clothing. Because I find that I can kick ass better when I don't have to worry about long pants or skirts getting in my way."

"I am whimsical. I believe that yes, there can be a happily-ever-after. But that is only because I have seen enough bad in my life, that I would rather enjoy the whimsy."

"I am open-hearted. I gave my psycho of an ex half a dozen chances to change, he never did. But I am still the girl who will give you the jacket off my back if you are cold. Or open my home to someone if they need a place to stay."

"I am impulsive. I am manipulative. I get angry. I get sad. I get so crazy in my head that I laugh uncontrollably. I am irresponsible. I don't care about money. I am a criminal. I am seductive. I like to be the center of attention. I am annoying to others. I am histrionic. I am very comfortable with people evading my personal space. I am vulnerable. I am athletic."

"So that is me... in a nutshell... Harley Quinn." She bows slightly. And then gestures to him. "Batters up."

[shardofwinter]

What Spring-fever nonsense is he listening to?

"So you have things you call flaws but you think they're... cute? Eccentric? You don't take responsibility for them. Instead you make excuses for them that you think are... what? Endearing?" He tilts his head to see if that's the word which resonates with her.

"And then say you're happy to have these things? That you don't want to change anything? That doesn't come across as wholesome, that comes across as playing at contentment. Badly."

[sweetcandygirl]

"They. Make. Me. Human." Harley says slowly. "You do not know what I have changed over the years. Or what I have done to take responsibility for my mistakes. But you still sit there and judge me."

"And are still avoiding your own damn question."

[shardofwinter]

Reynard's eyes roll all the way round and he counts off on his fingers quickly. "Selfish, Vindictive. Violent. Cold. And so many more."

That out of the way, he continues, "These aren't your mistakes. They're your flawed qualities. Which you brush over. The first few things you said aren't even flaws. Whimsical and open-hearted? That's what you call a child to compliment them. Obliviousness and gullibility, on the other hand... Those are flaws. If you're not going to be honest with me or yourself about them you could at least do me the courtesy of saying 'liar' and be done with it."

[sweetcandygirl]

"Obliviousness and gullibility are traits that you claimed I must have... based off our conversation. So tell me... why do you think I must have them?"

[shardofwinter]

"They're actual flaws that you described as 'whimsy' and 'open-heartedness'. And, let's be honest. If you can't recognise why your own flaws are bad that's got to be some fair amount of obliviousness."

[sweetcandygirl]

"If we are going down this rabbit hole..."

"Every characteristic and every personality trait a person has could either be defined as a flaw or a positive attribute. Some people may call you violent... but there are going to be people who call you powerful. And some people may call me gullible... but there are going to be those who call me whimsical."

"You claim that I don't recognize my own flaws... when I know that I am not the same psychotic bitch I was five years ago. Two years ago. One year ago."

"I don't get as violent as I used to get. I don't trust as easily as I once did."

"But I can't be trying to make other people think of me differently. I don't expect to change your opinion of me. You are allowed to have it."

"I do what I can so I can be happy with myself. And right now... considering the changes I have made in the last year... I am pretty happy with who I am."

[shardofwinter]

"Of course everything has its counterpart, but calling a flaw by its opposite isn't acknowledging it. Nor is recognising what you aren't. You can still be happy with who you are and unhappy with your flaws."

"But pretending your flaws are quirks that are a core part of who you are, to be guarded and defended and fought for as equally as your virtues? That's beyond foolish. That's dangerous. Not for me, who you would rather see as a bully than someone trying to shine a light. It won't matter to me in the slightest. I have nothing to gain or lose here. But the people you care about? It will hurt them."

"Your 'whimsy' will make you blind to people's legitimate pain. Your 'open-heartedness' will invite manipulative people into your life to hurt you and your friends. Your irresponsibility and impulsiveness will get you into bad situations along with anyone who followed you. Your wilful ignorance might bring you happiness. That's fine, that's your choice. Own it. The only cost is the safety of yourself and those around you."

[sweetcandygirl]

"I never called you a bully."

"I am enjoying our conversation. It is a challenge to have a good debate with someone." Harley grins. Even a person who has yet to introduce himself.

"I can see others' pain. My whimsy and open-heartedness makes it possible for me to help them. And yes, I have gotten into bad situations, but I have also saved others because I was there... to handle other bad situations."

"So I guess that for you... your vindictiveness, coldness and violet behaviours makes it hard for people to be around you? That they get hurt too?"

[shardofwinter]

"Not aloud, no."

"You're describing the things you call your flaws as strengths, not flaws. Which are they?"

"It does and they do. Often and repeatedly. It's only my own self-awareness that gives me the ability to make that happen less often."

[sweetcandygirl]

"How many people have called you a bully before, for you to assume it is something I would think about you?" Harley's voice gets soft.