Slade is good at asking the vital questions, applying deliberate stimuli to acquire desired results, but this, as in any true jackpot win, was down to sheer good fortune.
Unbelievable good fortune. Jump City has pushed an unsupervised telekinetic into his path. For a second, the second Ness’s attention is diverted, his eye widens; he stares at the laces tying themselves and doesn’t dare to blink.
When the second is over, his unimpressed appearance slides back into place. It’s a practiced shift, and, to his mind, it has all the significance of a starting flag: race conditions optimal, grand prize waiting, on your mark, get set…
There’s a telekinetic fifteen-year-old who talks like he’s five years younger, minimum, brazenly showing his powers to a stranger. Where is he headed? Are there parent or guardian figures in the picture? How deep does the naivete run, assuming it’s not an act; does it dampen his fight-or-flight instinct? (Do the Titans know him? Could this all be a very unlikely trap?) If he’s not careful, he will bring those answers down on himself in the worst possible way. Best to keep the ‘reasonably concerned adult’ act going for the moment.
"Hmph." Sounding too dismissive might push the boy away, so he balances the rumble by making it sound considering. Slade grips with his captured hand, makes an impromptu handshake out of Ness’s overeager gesture.
"Slade Wilson. Not ‘Mr. Fox’, though I’ve been told I’m crazy like one." Small talk tastes almost as saccharine as those ridiculous hooting laughs—he’s going to put a stop to those, if the kid comes to work for him—but it’s a necessary evil. Countering the possessive urge that’s already sprung up, he breaks the handshake. (Though if Ness wanted to keep hold, he wouldn’t have to try too hard.)
Now, the vital moment. Phrase this question wrong and it’s all over. “Ness. Should I be worried that your mother’s about to come around the corner, furious that you’ve run off?” He keeps staring the telepath down, direct, stern, but his words are conspiratorial, punctuated with the beginnings of a smirk.