The bridge of the Aerie One

[galwonder]

Sparrow doesn't like this plane. It's too big and too comfy and not at all what Heroes like Dick says Barbara is should be flying in. Also, she doesn't really like the fact that she slept here, and not on her own plane. Sure, the sofas are more comfy then in her cape on the floor, but her cape and costume are on the other plane and she feels undressed.

BUT. These computers she's found are awesome. So because no one's told her what she is and isn't allowed to touch, she's having a nosy.

And she still hasn't taken her shades off.

Comments

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"I wish," Barbara sighs dramatically. "I designed the Aerie One as a mobile command center, but it was intended to access my ground-side servers." She shrugs, "I suppose I shouldn't complain too much, I did get the plane, after all. It's just that in a lot of ways I'm crippled out here."

[galwonder]

Furtive glance towards Barbara's chair. Was that a joke? Should Sparrow be laughing? SHE DOESN'T THINK IT'S FUNNY.

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

Barbara gives no sign that she was being ironic, but she's good at controlling her expressions so that doesn't mean much.

She sits and watches Sparrow in silence, eyes clearly considering... something.

[galwonder]

Sparrow stares back for a couple of seconds, then turns back to the computer screen. But before she can do anything, she breaks.

"What?"

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

A tiny smirk creases Barbara's face. "I've got a file on you, you know."

[galwonder]

Without another word, Sparrow's fingers dart across the keyboard, with the full intention of operating a full-system search.

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

Babs simply leans back and watches as Sparrow encounters the first layer of security. She wants to see just how good this girl really is.

[galwonder]

She's pretty good.

Sparrow frowns. That means this layer of Security is fiendishly difficult and most above average crackers would just bounce off it.

The frown is the only sign of a challenge as she breaks through, well aware she's being tested.

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

The girl is good. At least as good as Tim. He'd helped design that layer, after all.

But that's the easy layer. Barbara leans forward almost imperceptibly to see how Sparrow handles the second layer, which does its level best to look like full system access without actually providing access to anything important.

[galwonder]

It may look like it, but Sparrow then fails to find her own file - searching under her codename, of course. She almost types in her real name but then gets a clue from something else, and looks deeper. Cracking this layer takes much more time, and concentration.

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

Barbara nods to herself, the girl is good. At this rate it won't be long before she hits the third wall, which is simply a brutally difficult series of cyphers and encryption levels. If the girl gets through that then she'll hit the first level of actual Oracle files and Barbara won't even have to tell her who she is.

[galwonder]

Sparrow still doesn't say anything. She doesn't even look at Oracle, even as the minutes draw on in deepening silence. Even as she draws her fingers away from the keyboard and tap the table irritably. Even when it looks like she's about to give up.

As so often happens, it's a brainwave that hits with each progressive cypher, and then she begins to get back into her flow.

And then, when the face appears on the screen, she starts back suddenly.

"Woah!"

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"What?" Barbara asks, a slight edge of challenge in her voice. "Find something you didn't expect?"

[galwonder]

"Could've told me that's who you were!" Sparrow says, turning away accusingly.

Then, with some frustration at herself, "that's where I've seen this plane before."

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"Would you have believed me if I had?" Barbara asks, half-teasing and half-serious.

[galwonder]

"Barbara Gordon?" Sparrow waves vaguely at the screen "Oracle?"

Then, honestly. "No way."

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"Which is why I didn't bother trying to tell you," Barbara grins. "But now you know, and I've got to wonder: do you trust me more or less now?"

[galwonder]

It's a tough question.

"That," Sparrow says, waving at the Oracle face again, "I trust less. You," the woman in front of her "I respect more."

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"Hey," Barbara says easily, "You know all about secret identities. Mine's just a better-kept secret than anyone else's."

[galwonder]

"Not on my world," Sparrow repeats, because her world is the only real one anyway.

"Nothing you people have ever done me and Claw haven't cracked into."

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"That you've found, at least," Barbara suggests, perhaps a bit smugly.

[galwonder]

"Yeeeeah no," Sparrow says, firmly. "We're not that sloppy."

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"Well, you certainly don't have a problem with confidence," Barbara says, voice ever so slightly hard. "It's arrogance like that which tends to get you into trouble when it comes to information warfare."

[galwonder]

The last part of Sparrow's smile goes away.

"Look," she says, "I don't care that on your world you're this hot shot computer wiz and Bruce Wayne's doing Dark Claw's work for some reason or other. On mine you're just another S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who thinks shooting people solves everything."

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

Babs twitches, forces herself to sit still for a silent count to three, and leans forward dangerously. "Whoever you have this problem with? I'm. Not. Her." Her tone has dropped several degrees.

Of course Sparrow hangs out with Dark Claw, a cold tone probably doesn't mean much.