"No, nothing in my ear." He's firm on that front. "I do wear gloves, yeah. I can show you the suit later, if you want. It might help you figure out some of the logistics of improvements." Obviously they have crossed the Rubicon when it comes to sharing about themselves but he doesn't let just anyone have access to the suits that he wears. It's a measure of trust, but they're probably well beyond that point anyway.
Matt just laughs and ponders his options.
"I like charity better as a concept and I'm told that I look okay in a tux. I've been on a yacht before but that was with my ex-girlfriend. It was an alright time, but we didn't really leave the cabin so I don't think I got the full boating experience. Which is to say that I'm open. This is more your wheelhouse than mine so I'll leave that up to you. Just tell me where I have to be and the dress code. Though...I'll probably need a new tux."
Bruce is... completely comfortable with this. Bruce has gotten all his defensive hackles out of the way during being pulled into at least the occasional team pursuit. That they have very different cities, but similar ethics and goals? Even backgrounds in many ways, and a side of 'mutually assured destruction'? Helps.
Meanwhile. "I'll look at it. What will work best is probably burying the actual device somewhere around your knee and the switch to activate it in one of your gloves. I use a similar set up to activate my cape." He still likes this train of thought more, but.
"Let's do the yacht. You can get your designer friend on getting you outfitted with a tux. I'll make sure he gets paid for it and then we can do the more taxing event. On the yacht we'll have the option of staying in one cabin as much as we want, and letting assumptions as to why provide some space if needed."
Matt has the added advantage of knowing that this isn't a lie because nothing has made Bruce's heartbeat falter or quicken in their discussions. They're both all in, he thinks, and that helps a lot. He's done the diligence that can be completed on the cursory level of what Batman has done for his city, splashed across headlines, and they might come at this from different angles but they're aligned in more ways than they superficially differ.
"Okay," he agrees. He's happy to leave that work to Bruce to figure out.
"He'll love the idea of doing a tux for me. But really--he owes me, so don't worry about the cost this round. Next time," he says with a laugh. It's true though; he's provided enough legal work that it's a more than equitable trade and he's been offered 'real' suits in the past. "Shit," he says after a pause, "Problem with the yacht. If the photographers are using anything that can pick out detail, I'm kind of a tapestry of scars. Particularly across my chest. I don't know how visual they appear but I assume it's not great. Is it going to appear unusual if I wear a shirt for this endeavor?" These are the little details in Matt's life that he considers near constantly.
"No." It's a touch dry, and the tone is laced with self-depreciating humor. "I am also a scarred up mess, though the highest concentration of mine are on my back. I'm typically bruised to hell and back, too. I usually wear a shirt, even around the pool." Which is just standard for him.
"Probably more importantly you don't have a reputation with these people yet, and you're a Catholic man in a gay relationship. With me. You can craft any level of 'modesty', shyness, you want - or go the opposite and blame masochism and kinky sex- to explain anything you need. If you turn up with facial bruising, though, I will be putting make up on you." those are much harder to explain away.
"You have the excuse of extreme sports and wild sex as a background and your back is a more expected place for those kinds of scars, but a shirt is probably the play for me here," he agrees. "As good as my abs are, I don't think they need to be splashed in tabloids along with questions about why I have six inch scars all over me." Pragmatically, it's the easiest solution to just wear a shirt or tank and call it a day. He just didn't know the apparent dress code for such endeavors so now that he does, it's one of those concerns that can get filed away.
Between bites, he flashes a smile at the suggestion of makeup. "I can go along with that. It was always more a practicality issue than anything else." He can't really apply it himself, for one thing, and he always felt like asking Karen to lend a hand just opened him up to more concerns and worries. "What other parts of your daily activities end up in the press that I'll need to slot into?"
"You can come up with any excuse you want. They don't know you well enough to think anything is implausible, but the shirt's probably the easiest option." Also, though. "Don't think what's going on with my body can actually be explained by extreme sports or any level of sex. At least to anyone who isn't so used to thinking I'm out of control and self-destructive."
It's... bad, actually. Also not really an important consideration at the moment, or possibly ever.
"I don't think anything except possibly getting involved in some of the Foundation - that's the charitable work - applies. Maybe the occasional shared vacation. No one is going to expect you to turn up at a board meeting, and while I run Wayne Enterprises, I do it mostly as a shadow figure." He frowns, just faintly, trying to think. "Maybe the occasional theater or dinner date."
"True, but it's also a matter of crafting an image that I can maintain the easiest, and that's just a shirt," he grins back. There's no need to entirely reinvent the wheel if clothing wouldn't pose any kind of question. "Yeah, that's the other thing. There's not a good story for me, even if I did have traditional vision. It's all kind of a...chaotic tapestry of violence that's too deep to have ever been anyone's idea of a good time." He knows people are happy to ignore things just so they don't have to deal with them, and that has certainly helped with the mild injuries.
He knows a thing or two about being self destructive so he lets it go. He doesn't want to have to answer for his own.
"I'd be happy to assist anywhere you'd like me to with the charitable foundation. I did some reading on that. The occasional vacation or date is obviously fine. I would posit attending a symphony might be a better look for you to be seen as someone who is accommodating your blind boyfriend." He finishes another slice of pizza and goes back to the box since, apparently, he's skinny and needs the calories. "I like the botanical gardens. A wine tasting might be another good idea."
"The place this facade will most likely show cracks on my side will be remembering to accommodate you in public," he muses. It's not a memory problem- he's never forgotten anything in his life, unfortunately. It will be a strong divergence from the pattern they're already establishing, which is to leave Matt to it unless asked for some form of assistance (brail clothing tags). "Fortunately, my reputation as a slight asshole should cover that."
It's just sharing his thought process, so Matt stays with him. He doesn't do a lot of that for many people, but it's... nice to do. he also keeps eating his pizza, taking a pause to wipe his hands on a napkin.
"I'm willing to do all those things. We can do the Botanical Gardens before I leave. Visit something similar in Gotham. You might actually enjoy the grounds of the Manor. They're... nice, albeit none of them have anything to do with me or my work." The wine tasting he'll just..not actually drink (or taste) the wine. He's good at that ruse.
"Most people don't really know how to and plenty slip up so it's not a big deal. People live a certain way on default and accommodation is always a bit of a curveball in that," Matt assures him, though he's certain that Bruce doesn't really need any of that from him anyway. There is also the wrench of how Matt's actual abilities that he's made clear so far are different from the ones that often require the accommodation but he's good at filling in that gap and knowing how things will appear from the outside.
It makes sense. The pieces are falling into place and it's strange how this doesn't feel like a strain. In some ways, it feels like a reprieve from the phony image he's been playing at for so long while he just attempts to be the old Matt Murdock. Being something new and different somehow feels better.
"That sounds good. Museums are also a possibility. They do a lot to make those accessible. Walking around grounds of a manor is an idea that still takes some getting used to but I'm sure it's lovely. For as miserable as you make some of the tasks of being Bruce Wayne sound, you might end up enjoying yourself now and then."
Maybe you need some more people in your life, Matt, and something going on that's not law and crime fighting on your own.
When Bruce Wayne has that thought about somebody, it's quite possibly a tell.
"The accommodations would be a curveball. Accommodations that you don't actually need are a downright trip hazard." There's a flash of a grin to go with that. "I don't dislike most of being Bruce Wayne. I just have an incredibly limited social battery, and turning on enough to play the role exhausts me. What about being on the grounds of the Manor is going to take getting used to?"
Matt's life is typically a trashfire in one way or another and it just seems easier to go to work, come home, put on the mask and lather, rinse, repeat. He's cut himself off enough that people have noticed, and sometimes he has to answer for it, but he does so with an affable charm and hopes that's enough to cover for the things he doesn't really want to answer for. It's lonely sometimes, maybe even a little hollow, but he can set those feelings aside when there's a job to do.
"Yeah. I'll correct you where you need it, don't worry," he smiles back. A limited social battery makes sense. Matt's seems like it might have more capacity, given that he spends so much time working with people, but he can imagine the scenarios are very different. "The quiet. Nothing is ever really quiet for me, exactly, but it's not the same as a city. This is a world I'm familiar with where there's a constant hum of people and everything they use to live their lives. On a manor, I imagine it's just nature and a lot less voices and heartbeats."
"Exactly what both Bruce Wayne and Batman are known for: accepting correction with grace." That too is just more dry, self-depreciating humor, while he eats more of his pizza.
"You're nearly certainly right about the level of quiet, especially with the level of soundproofing," and he means 'Superman can hear loud things and Matt will probably catch some things, but it's a lot, "around the cave. On the other hand the building and grounds aren't all public and imposing. Alfred and I, and occasionally one of the kids or a guest, have to be able to live there comfortably, too."
"I'm thirty years into this whole blind gig, so I'm pretty good at giving people polite correction about things," he answers with a faint smile in return. He's finished with his part of the pizza, he thinks, and sets aside his plate with the last piece just half eaten on it.
"Soundproofing makes me feel like I'm in a coffin, but I'll manage," he counters. "It's all kind of hard to picture. The whole stately grounds sort of thing. I'll figure it out pretty quickly once I'm actually there and can experience it myself. Until then, the level of sound or what I would expect to pick up is all just kind of abstract. I don't think I'm overly concerned about that part. I'm pretty adaptable. I have to be." It's just the nature of his life, both in dealing with how his senses function in the world and the fact that he gets himself into implausible situations like arranging a for-show relationship with Bruce Wayne.
"I appreciate that you think there's any chance that Batman would care how polite you're being." That's still just being a smart ass. He is, at least, just about finished with his eating, though.
That he's slower on that one than Matt is mildly amusing. He's going to blame Alfred, just because he can.
"I really want to get you out there, sooner rather than later. I know it's more complicated, but I can explain the cave and Manor until I turn blue: it won't help you as much as getting a literal feel for it. However you do that, exactly." The cave is an entire system. And it's open. Soundproofing is there, but not to the degree that Matt may be thinking. Or it might be. "did you ever figure out what I look like?"
"Well, I figure flies and honey and vinegar is an adage for a reason and being a dick about it myself isn't going to do anyone any good," he replies, smirking back.
He offers a nod while he gets up from the couch to start picking up everything to put the dishes away and to put the remaining few slices into the refrigerator. Depending on what, if anything, he does out in the suit tonight, sometimes he shoves some food in his face before he falls asleep. "I don't work weekends--during the day, anyway. So I can come out. I might lean on you to arrange transportation. I don't really leave the city much unless I have to so whatever you think is the most pragmatic way." The question sparks another short laugh. "I know what you look like in a way that's hard to describe easily. Every movement you make, every sound that's in the room, it all bounces off of you. Like an echo. It paints a picture of you, like you're made of flame. Everything in my world 'looks' like it's on fire. You included. Do you want my observations?"
"You mentioned disliking flying." Which makes sense given Matt's senses and echolocation. "That leaves the train if you're being stubborn, a private car and driver," or him, "if we're trying to be discrete, or a limo if we want it to be very visible."
That out of the way and onto more interesting things. While he stands up and moves the coffee table back to its original position. "Would you recognize me based on that imprint alone, or would your other senses need to be in play?"
"The pressure is hard for me. The popping sound that you feel, or the way that it muffles your hearing? Multiple that by a hundred," he explains with a shrug. "I'll leave that up to you as far as private car vs. limo. I can avoid the train and not be stubborn in this scenario." He thinks, anyway. He's been around money before with Elektra so it's not wholly foreign to him and she would have sooner lost a kidney than taken a train.
"Once I'm familiar with someone, I can recognize their heartbeat, for one thing. What their skin and hair smells like. The rhythm of their breathing. But yes, if I were to come across you on a street surrounded by strangers, I would be able to pick you out. It's not sight. It's like radar, I guess is the best description."
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Matt just laughs and ponders his options.
"I like charity better as a concept and I'm told that I look okay in a tux. I've been on a yacht before but that was with my ex-girlfriend. It was an alright time, but we didn't really leave the cabin so I don't think I got the full boating experience. Which is to say that I'm open. This is more your wheelhouse than mine so I'll leave that up to you. Just tell me where I have to be and the dress code. Though...I'll probably need a new tux."
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Meanwhile. "I'll look at it. What will work best is probably burying the actual device somewhere around your knee and the switch to activate it in one of your gloves. I use a similar set up to activate my cape." He still likes this train of thought more, but.
"Let's do the yacht. You can get your designer friend on getting you outfitted with a tux. I'll make sure he gets paid for it and then we can do the more taxing event. On the yacht we'll have the option of staying in one cabin as much as we want, and letting assumptions as to why provide some space if needed."
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"Okay," he agrees. He's happy to leave that work to Bruce to figure out.
"He'll love the idea of doing a tux for me. But really--he owes me, so don't worry about the cost this round. Next time," he says with a laugh. It's true though; he's provided enough legal work that it's a more than equitable trade and he's been offered 'real' suits in the past. "Shit," he says after a pause, "Problem with the yacht. If the photographers are using anything that can pick out detail, I'm kind of a tapestry of scars. Particularly across my chest. I don't know how visual they appear but I assume it's not great. Is it going to appear unusual if I wear a shirt for this endeavor?" These are the little details in Matt's life that he considers near constantly.
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"Probably more importantly you don't have a reputation with these people yet, and you're a Catholic man in a gay relationship. With me. You can craft any level of 'modesty', shyness, you want - or go the opposite and blame masochism and kinky sex- to explain anything you need. If you turn up with facial bruising, though, I will be putting make up on you." those are much harder to explain away.
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Between bites, he flashes a smile at the suggestion of makeup. "I can go along with that. It was always more a practicality issue than anything else." He can't really apply it himself, for one thing, and he always felt like asking Karen to lend a hand just opened him up to more concerns and worries. "What other parts of your daily activities end up in the press that I'll need to slot into?"
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It's... bad, actually. Also not really an important consideration at the moment, or possibly ever.
"I don't think anything except possibly getting involved in some of the Foundation - that's the charitable work - applies. Maybe the occasional shared vacation. No one is going to expect you to turn up at a board meeting, and while I run Wayne Enterprises, I do it mostly as a shadow figure." He frowns, just faintly, trying to think. "Maybe the occasional theater or dinner date."
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He knows a thing or two about being self destructive so he lets it go. He doesn't want to have to answer for his own.
"I'd be happy to assist anywhere you'd like me to with the charitable foundation. I did some reading on that. The occasional vacation or date is obviously fine. I would posit attending a symphony might be a better look for you to be seen as someone who is accommodating your blind boyfriend." He finishes another slice of pizza and goes back to the box since, apparently, he's skinny and needs the calories. "I like the botanical gardens. A wine tasting might be another good idea."
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It's just sharing his thought process, so Matt stays with him. He doesn't do a lot of that for many people, but it's... nice to do. he also keeps eating his pizza, taking a pause to wipe his hands on a napkin.
"I'm willing to do all those things. We can do the Botanical Gardens before I leave. Visit something similar in Gotham. You might actually enjoy the grounds of the Manor. They're... nice, albeit none of them have anything to do with me or my work." The wine tasting he'll just..not actually drink (or taste) the wine. He's good at that ruse.
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It makes sense. The pieces are falling into place and it's strange how this doesn't feel like a strain. In some ways, it feels like a reprieve from the phony image he's been playing at for so long while he just attempts to be the old Matt Murdock. Being something new and different somehow feels better.
"That sounds good. Museums are also a possibility. They do a lot to make those accessible. Walking around grounds of a manor is an idea that still takes some getting used to but I'm sure it's lovely. For as miserable as you make some of the tasks of being Bruce Wayne sound, you might end up enjoying yourself now and then."
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When Bruce Wayne has that thought about somebody, it's quite possibly a tell.
"The accommodations would be a curveball. Accommodations that you don't actually need are a downright trip hazard." There's a flash of a grin to go with that. "I don't dislike most of being Bruce Wayne. I just have an incredibly limited social battery, and turning on enough to play the role exhausts me. What about being on the grounds of the Manor is going to take getting used to?"
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"Yeah. I'll correct you where you need it, don't worry," he smiles back. A limited social battery makes sense. Matt's seems like it might have more capacity, given that he spends so much time working with people, but he can imagine the scenarios are very different. "The quiet. Nothing is ever really quiet for me, exactly, but it's not the same as a city. This is a world I'm familiar with where there's a constant hum of people and everything they use to live their lives. On a manor, I imagine it's just nature and a lot less voices and heartbeats."
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"You're nearly certainly right about the level of quiet, especially with the level of soundproofing," and he means 'Superman can hear loud things and Matt will probably catch some things, but it's a lot, "around the cave. On the other hand the building and grounds aren't all public and imposing. Alfred and I, and occasionally one of the kids or a guest, have to be able to live there comfortably, too."
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"Soundproofing makes me feel like I'm in a coffin, but I'll manage," he counters. "It's all kind of hard to picture. The whole stately grounds sort of thing. I'll figure it out pretty quickly once I'm actually there and can experience it myself. Until then, the level of sound or what I would expect to pick up is all just kind of abstract. I don't think I'm overly concerned about that part. I'm pretty adaptable. I have to be." It's just the nature of his life, both in dealing with how his senses function in the world and the fact that he gets himself into implausible situations like arranging a for-show relationship with Bruce Wayne.
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That he's slower on that one than Matt is mildly amusing. He's going to blame Alfred, just because he can.
"I really want to get you out there, sooner rather than later. I know it's more complicated, but I can explain the cave and Manor until I turn blue: it won't help you as much as getting a literal feel for it. However you do that, exactly." The cave is an entire system. And it's open. Soundproofing is there, but not to the degree that Matt may be thinking. Or it might be. "did you ever figure out what I look like?"
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He offers a nod while he gets up from the couch to start picking up everything to put the dishes away and to put the remaining few slices into the refrigerator. Depending on what, if anything, he does out in the suit tonight, sometimes he shoves some food in his face before he falls asleep. "I don't work weekends--during the day, anyway. So I can come out. I might lean on you to arrange transportation. I don't really leave the city much unless I have to so whatever you think is the most pragmatic way." The question sparks another short laugh. "I know what you look like in a way that's hard to describe easily. Every movement you make, every sound that's in the room, it all bounces off of you. Like an echo. It paints a picture of you, like you're made of flame. Everything in my world 'looks' like it's on fire. You included. Do you want my observations?"
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That out of the way and onto more interesting things. While he stands up and moves the coffee table back to its original position. "Would you recognize me based on that imprint alone, or would your other senses need to be in play?"
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"Once I'm familiar with someone, I can recognize their heartbeat, for one thing. What their skin and hair smells like. The rhythm of their breathing. But yes, if I were to come across you on a street surrounded by strangers, I would be able to pick you out. It's not sight. It's like radar, I guess is the best description."