Birds of a Feather (Oswald Cobblepot)

Alias

    I arrive back at my apartment to find Oswald sitting down at the small dining table in the near left corner of the room. He's drumming his thumbs on the table, his lips pursed with expectation, and impatience. However, when he sees me, he smiles.

"Finally, you're home," he greets me, before patting his hand on his knee, "sit on my lap."

I need to get information out of him for Bullock, and besides, at this point I'm so desensitized to his sexual demands that I would prefer to sit on his lap in comparison to some of his other requests.

Throwing my police cap off, I turn around and sit on his lap, as he wraps his hands around my waist, "A war between Falcone and Maroni is inevitable. Falcone is suspicious of his own men after I strayed him away from suspecting Maroni. He will start taking measures against his own people, and once his people turn on him, all Maroni will have to do is join the fray."

He leans down and kisses me on the back of the neck, squeezing my waist, "And when that happens, I want you to be by my side, understand?"

"Hmm?" I grunt, as I rest my head on his shoulder.

His voice is soft, but there's an air of seriousness in his tone, "I want us to stay like this, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health-"

I chuckle, "It sounds like we're getting married."

There's a silence between us. I begin to grow uncomfortable, did I say something wrong? I look up, and Oswald wears a dopey smile. He reaches down to run his hand through my hair.

"We could do it, you know," he tells me.

I can't help but raise an eyebrow at the suggestion, "Us? Now?"

He kisses me on the lips, grabbing the fabric on my police uniform to pull me closer, "Why not?"

I freeze. How do I respond without upsetting him?

I smooth my hands down his shoulders, "Slow down there. We've still got our careers to establish, and besides...I'm not going anywhere, am I?"

Oswald's grip suddenly tightens, his fingernails digging into my back, "Perhaps now is not the time."

While he loosens his hold on me, his hands remain firm as he pulls me up to face him, "Of course, you don't expect me to believe that our 'careers' are what's stopping you? Hmm?"

My smile fades, as I search for some kind of answer, "Wha-...what do you mean?"

"Simple. You've never been one to be tied down, that's evident from your job as a CIA agent. What that means for me is that I must...convince you...that being with me is far more beneficial," he explains, his eyes wide with innocence.

I raise an eyebrow, "'Convince me'? How?"

Oswald leans his head in, closing his eyes and breathing down my neck, "I have my methods."

He raises his head up and plants a long, drawn out kiss on my cheek. Letting out a soft moan, I wrap my arms around his shoulders and pull myself into him. Oswald then grabs my hand and leads it down his stomach, grazing over the fabric of his suit until I'm at his crotch.

He stares at me hopefully, and without saying a word, I know exactly what he wants.

I take my hand off of his pants, "First...I need to ask something of you."

At first he seems almost surprised, "O-...of me? Wh-why, of course. Anything."

"Do you know if Don Maroni is in contact with an escaped mental patient known as Jack Gruber?" I ask.

Oswald nods, "You must mean Jack Buchinsky, 'Jack Gruber' is just an alias. But the answer is no. Buchinsky was a former partner of Maroni's, before Maroni betrayed him to the cops. After his escape, we've actually been trying to find his location."

I pout, twisting my lips, "Well, if you find his location...mind telling me?"

A smile creeps across Oswald's face, as he puts my hand back where it was, "Of course...as soon as you hold up your end of the bargain."

I give him a quick kiss on the lips, "Of course."

I lie alone in bed. It's dusk, with the sun halfway behind the Gotham skyscrapers. Oswald just left to meet with Don Falcone, and that means time to myself. It seems almost too quiet, really. Things were so hectic in the hotel room with Barbara and Renee. Not just the fact of living with two other people in a small living space, however luxurious, but also living with Barbara and Renee's own personal chaos. Their relationship is hard enough considering that Renee could be fired from the GCPD if anyone found out, but that combined with their sudden spark of interest in heavy drinking and abusing prescription drugs, does not make a good combination. Renee mentioned that she and Barbara were pretty wild in their college days, maybe they just want to relive that.

From the living room, the phone rings. I get out of bed, throwing on a nearby winter coat before heading out into the living room to answer it.

"Hello?" I ask, picking up the receiver.

"Trix? I-...is that you?" a familiar, timid voice responds.

I recognize the tone immediately, "Liza! Wha-...what are you doing calling-"

"I don't have a lot of time," she explains, "can you meet me at the church by Gotham Central Park? Tonight?"

Liza calling out of the blue, asking for a secret meeting in an old, dark church? It sounds suspicious to say the least, especially considering she could be working for Don Falcone and the Court of Owls. Should I trust her?

"Alright, Liza, I'll be there," I promise her.

She sighs, "Thank you."