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[outstandingbalance]

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[devilsavocado]

Among other things. I mean, if you want to call a freak accident being enhanced, then yes.

[ He's never heard of other people with powers besides like, the Avengers, but then again he doesn't exactly socialize within their circles, either. If superheroes have circles. ]

Connor called me that too. [ That makes him smile somewhat sadly. He picks up his drink and takes a long sip, continuing; ] I don't think it counts, personally. My senses make perceiving the world easier, but they're not super strength or agility or anything. The rest I got through training-- I really did know an old man named Stick. He trained me, taught me how to use my gifts like I do. Taught me how to fight... besides boxing, anyway. My dad was a boxer; I got that part from him.

[ Good ol' Battlin' Jack. ]

[outstandingbalance]

I have been informed very adamantly by people who seem to know what they're talking about that you don't have to be super strong or have a flying suit to be a superhero.

Honestly, I'm a little fuzzy on the distinctions myself.

[She makes light of it because she'd rather make light of it than admit that she wasn't much of a hero. In her case, super should really be attached to "spy" or something even less noble.

But that's not how you make a good impression.

Besides, his explanation stirs a professional curiosity.]

This Stick, you know his story? I assume he wasn't exactly teaching karate at the local YMCA.

[devilsavocado]

[ Matt laughs, shrugging in his response. He wouldn't call himself a superhero by a long
shot, but Natasha would seem like she'd know since she hangs out with so many. ]

Not sure, myself. The nuns in the orphanage found him as some kind of blind trainer. I know he has connections to some powerful people, like he was definitely reporting to someone but he abandoned me before he had a chance to teach me anything about them.

[ This time when Matt laughs it's bitter. An old wound that stings with anger, disappointment, and even just your classic abandonment issues. Perfect time to take another drink. ]

He left me alone once I started to get "too attached." I wasn't fit for the life he had planned for me. I was too soft.

[outstandingbalance]

Trust me, it's a good thing to be too soft for someone like that.

[And she wasn't sure she even disagreed with his assessment, per se. not that she thought Matt was soft, but the fact that he had been gave her at least a very basic idea what kind of person or organization he might have been dealing with. Enough that she was confident in believing that a man who'd have an emotional crisis for killing a robber and cry over having to mercy kill his own friend would be destroyed if he'd been brought in. One way or the other.]

So now you use his training to protect a New York neighborhood?

[devilsavocado]

Maybe. He was the closest thing I had to a father figure at the time, it's just a shame he was such a dick.

[ Matt scoffs just thinking about it though, his feelings toward Stick will always be complicated. He can hate him all he wants but he still taught him all the basics of what he knows. Without him, Matt would be God-knows-where. ]

That pretty much sums it up. Hell's Kitchen was hit hard by the Incident. It's recovering, but there's a lot of people moving in, looking to make money off people in need. I make sure those kinds know they aren't welcome in my city.

[outstandingbalance]

[Natasha knew some of that. Not all of it, of course, but she wasn't surprised either. She dips her head a little, wondering how much he blames the Avengers for "the Incident." Obviously not so much that he's not willing to get close to her.]

Not exactly surprising. There are always people who are willing to come in and take advantage of a bad situation. Wolves, only afraid of someone with bigger teeth.

[Her voice is quiet, thinking of the people who told her that.]

[devilsavocado]

That's right.

[ Matt nods. Much as he might blame the Avengers for what happened, they did ultimately save the city. And he can hate them all he wants in the vaguest sense, but he's seen how things get out of line, how quickly good intentions can ruin everything. He doesn't blame Natasha-- she's not the one with a multi-billion dollar company who didn't see fit to do more than throw money at politicians and hope the city fixed itself.

Ehem. ]

That's why I became a lawyer. My dad always wanted me to one, but I wanted to save my home through the law too. At least, until I realized the law had its limits.

[outstandingbalance]

All right, but you became a defense lawyer, didn't you? If you want to save people, why not go to the DA's office, something like that?

[She is genuinely curious about that. There's a certain fascination in her for people who have such a clear vision of right and wrong, how the see their way through moral questions. Figuratively speaking in this case, but he sees it more clearly than she does in this case.

She always feels like she stumbling.

In a way, it's hard for her not to feel like she belongs here. At least a lot more than people like Matt, or Steve.]

Putting criminals away?

[devilsavocado]

The law punishes criminals, it's true. But not everyone who's charged is guilty. Some people need a proper defense, or else they fall through the cracks of the system.

[ Matt should know. He spent most of his young life in an orphanage, likely watching the system ruin a lot of lives. He seems to fall into a more comfortable pace when he starts to talk law, though. He brings his hands together on the table, words flowing naturally now. He really is a lawyer at heart. ]

Hell's kitchen, it... well, it was full of dirty cops, judges and DA's who were eating out of Fisk's pocket. It's impossibly easy to plant evidence and fabricate the facts when you have the system on your side. [ He shrugs, smiling a little easier. This is something he's sure about. Maybe studying to be an attorney taught him loopholes just so he could shut down the people who use them. ] Anyway, I'm more of a defender than a prosecutor. At least when it comes to the law.

[outstandingbalance]

I wouldn't have thought of it that way I suppose. [She says, then adds.] I'm smiling, by the way. I suppose you still wouldn't be able to tell that, right?

But that makes sense, I guess. As long as you're not interested in getting a lot of money out of the job.

[devilsavocado]

[ Matt's smile picks up. He's big on justice, big on doing the right thing, and big on making hot women smile. So that's three for three. ]

Unfortunately, no. Used to be able to-- heart rate and things like that, but faces have always been pretty vague.

[ He laughs once she mentions money. Ah yes, money. That thing they never have. ]

Foggy says the same thing. Defending innocent people makes it pretty hard to make a living, but we try to keep our record clean. It depends on who wins out the argument, really.

[ And Matt is really, really good at arguing with Foggy. ]

[outstandingbalance]

[She clearly should have talked to him about this before—but it's different with his secret out. Either way, his passion for the law is exciting to see. She doesn't share it, and she's too cynical to be infected with it now, but that doesn't lessen the fact that it's good to see him warming to the subject.]

There's more important things in life than money anyway.

[devilsavocado]

Exactly.

[ Matt smiles, warmer now. Maybe it's cause he's had this conversation several times before with Foggy-- and even when they disagree, Matt still wins. It's familiar. This time when he pours them a glass, it's a bit more friendly than just mopey. ]

Might not be able to pay the bills with 'truth and justice,' but it hasn't stopped me yet.

[ He's kidding. Mostly. Totally. It'd be kinda sad if he wasn't... ]

[outstandingbalance]

[After everything Matt's been through, Natasha considers that smile a success. She lifts her glass, smiling in return, even if Matt can see either. Then she takes a healthy drink.]

Somehow, you seem like the kind of guy who'll make it work—like someone who's not about to let a little thing like paying the electric bill get in the way of doing what you think needs to be done.

[She really isn't sure how she keeps making this kind of friend. Bad influences all around.]

[devilsavocado]

Well, it's not like I need the light.

[ Foggy and Connor have definitely come home to an "empty" apartment, only to discover that Matt had simply not turned the lights on. ]

But I'm a stubborn sonuvabitch, you're right about that.

[ Doesn't matter how hard you hit him, he'll always get back up. Always. ]

[outstandingbalance]

Stubborn, huh? Well, that is finally something we have in common.

[There's a warm smile in her tone as she says that, mirroring him.]

I knew there was a reason I liked you. Stubborn, and a fighter. You know, I wouldn't mind seeing what you can do.

[devilsavocado]

[ That sets him smirking again, so yeah, he scoots a little closer. ]

Wouldn't mind showing off, if that's what you're into.

[ They could surely mean in the ring but they could also mean not in the ring, if you know what I'm sayin. Cause Matt knows what he's sayin. ]

[outstandingbalance]

[Little of column A, little of column B.]

Oh, I don't know about that. It's only really showing off if I can't keep up.

[She knows what you're sayin' too, Matt.]

You think I can't keep up?

[devilsavocado]

Never said that. Going toe to toe with you would be pretty fun.

[ He raises his glass and offers her a tiny toast, if only because-- really, he'd enjoy that. In both senses of the phrase. ]

I bet you could even teach me a thing or two.

[outstandingbalance]

[She'll raise her glass to click his obligingly. She believes him. And while she offered to come out for him, she finds that this kind of interaction was something she was missing.]

Oh, I'm sure I could teach you a thing or two.

[Humility is for people who aren't world class assassins.]

I'm going to hold you to this.

[devilsavocado]

Bring it on.

[ Matt smirks, confident. He is absolutely sure she could show him a thing or two. He's also sure he's got some moves she's never seen before so he's sure they'd have fun. Oh, and at fighting too, I guess. ]

I look forward to it.

[ Can't say he ever pictured himself hooking up (to fight) with an Avenger before. ]

[outstandingbalance]

[She shifts a little so their shoulders touch as she takes a drink of her whiskey and stays there, not quite cuddling but a companionable contact. It's comfortable.]

Your friends aren't going to come after me for taking advantage of a blind man, are they?

[devilsavocado]

[ Matt barks a laugh, knocking his shoulder on hers as he tosses his head back. He's very expressive when he laughs honestly, ok. ]

Pretty sure that'll be the last thing on either of their minds if they heard about you.

[ Foggy would groan and suffer, Connor would probably want to know if they've banged. So yeah, priorities. ]

[outstandingbalance]

[She laughs at that too, more subdued than him. Mostly because she enjoys his reaction.

He's a lot more expressive than she is.]

I don't know. Your one friend sometimes looks like he's afraid I'm going to eat him.

[devilsavocado]

[ The downside(?) to never seeing your own reflection, honestly. ]

Foggy's just jumpy. He's a big fan of the Avengers, so he probably got all star-struck when he first saw you.

[ As opposed to Matt, who very surely did not admire them. At all. He's kind of a stick in the mud. ]