10975/Dumpling Meet Up

Dumpling Meet Up
Date of Scene:	04 February 2020
Location:	Hot Dumpling Restaurant, China Basin
Synopsis:	Carrie, Dick, Damian and Stephanie gather at their favorite dumpling place. Damian likes it hot. Dick is a food thief.
Cast of Characters:	Spoiler, Carrie Kelley, Nightwing, Robin (Wayne)

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Spoiler has posed:
It was a simple enough invitation. A picture of the "Hot Dumpling" sign at the little restaurant that the members of Batman's entourage know so well. A place of many late night gatherings and reminiscing for the group. Also a time so people when know to arrive.

Stephanie Brown arrives a little early. She's carrying a motorcycle helmet which means she rode her old bike rather than the nice car that was a birthday present from Bruce. She's still so careful with that about where she leaves it, she probably braved the cold rather than risk a scratch in Chinatown. Or, you know, stolen hubcaps.

Stephanie stakes out their usual table and waves over to the woman. "Order of Crab Rangoon for appetizers? I'm hungry," she tells the woman, flashing her a bright smile. "Oh, and a Coke please?" The Chinese woman nods and gets to work on the food as Stephanie worms her way out of her coat, hanging it on her chair behind her.

Carrie Kelley has posed:
The sign alone was indeed enough to lure out those individuals who found this place to be worthy of visiting numerous times. Really, by now the lot of them were regulars here, though Jason always had been. He was the one who found the place back when he used to kick around on the streets as a kid. Carrie was rather fond of it too for her own reasons, so an invitation to stop by was always welcome.

Lacking a motorcycle of her own she just opts to drive the newer Toyota that Bruce had insisted she have for reasons of not looking as if she were a bum in her old, ancient car. It wasn't the 'other' car. It did the job though.

Ducking through the door with her own coat bundled around her she pauses to stamp her feet on the mat at the entrance while looking toward their 'usual' table. "Hey Steph," she greets easily as she moves further in to claim a seat herself. "It's cold out. Definitely going to need some bao and dumplings. Maybe some soup tonight, too," she reasons.

Nightwing has posed:
It is something of a longer hike for Dick these days, having returned to Bludhaven, spending more time there these past couple of weeks. Traffic is always... iffy at this time, and even setting out early is no guarantee of an on time arrival. It's enough to make one want to take advantage of those extra special resources that exist in their unique worlds. But while teleportation portals or Bat-plances might be handy, they're not always practical. So he settles for his car -- the Nightbird body removed for something a little more blend-inny -- and arriving a few minutes late.

He can't always make these sorts of get-togethers of course. None of them actually can fully commit to that. Of course, if anyone could understand that fact it would be the others who are invited. They really do live in their own little world within the much larger one, don't they? Still, he strolls in only five minutes or so late, again, having little difficulty in picking out those he's come to meet despite the bustling business this place seems to do. "Sorry I'm late," he notes with a grin as he sidles up to the table. "Though not so late that I missed the first round I see. So I guess I could argue that I, in fact, timed it perfectly. Once again," he adds with a wink before sliding into his spot at the table.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     Damian didn't respond, only grabbing the car that was made available to him on nights like tonight. Much to Alfred's insistence, Damian was given every now and again a night off, to socialize and make friends. It wasn't a worthwhile venture if you'd ask Damian.

  Still, the chauffeur dropped Damian off with little fanfare, the black car staying close by to pick him up after the fact.

  He dressed in a green button-down, and a black tie, with a black cashmere coat on to appear like the cold actually bothered him. "Wan shang hao." He greets the older lady that was obviously the matriarch of this restaurant. She was always there, and always manning the front.

  After a brief exchange with her in Mandarin, Damian is shown where the rest of their party was. After taking off his coat, and draping it behind the chair, he took his seat. "What the hell is a Crab Rangoon?" is the very first thing to escape his lips at the table.

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie Brown flashes a grin as people arrive. "No one is late at all," she confirms, sliding the plate of fried up crab and cream cheese towards them to get one to warm up with. "Soup sounds fantastic tonight," Stephanie confirms. "Not the best night for the bike, but not as bad as it has been anyway."

She flashes Damian a grin. "You cleanup so spiffy," she says, her tone and expression a mix of warmth and teasing. "You should have switched to suits long ago. Of course your suit is worth more than my entire apartment's contents." She motions towards the crispy fried treat. "Just cream cheese, crab, some other seasonings, wrapped up and fried," she tells him. "Only appetizer I knew."

Stephanie looks down the menu quickly to pick out her dumplings to order. "So Dick, glad you made it to this part of town. Sorry it's such a drive for you. How is everything else going?"

Nightwing has posed:
Making room for the latest of their party to arrive, Dick flashes a grin to the spiffily dressed young man, certainly a great deal more immaculately dressed then the jeans and sweater that he himself bothered with. He does retrieve one of the menus to at least give it a once over -- it's not as if they haven't visited this place enough to generally know what they're likely to have when they stop in. But every once in awhile there is a surprise. Like for instance, Crab Rangoon.

Dipping his head behind the menu for a moment to hide his expression at the outburst over the change to the normal routine, the dark-haired young man murmurs, "Hey, sometimes a change is good. Give it a try ," he suggests mildly, lowering that menu just enough to peek over the edge and see just how well that suggestion is received.

For his part, Dick waves aside Staphanie's apology. "Are you kidding? It's nice to have an excuse to get out of town for a few hours. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad to be back a little more consistently and not having to make that commute all the time definitely won't break my heart. But this is a good reason to visit. Keeps me from getting restless," he notes wryly. "And you? Your exame finished off strong I hope?"

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     Damian's ego is certainly stroked when Stephanie pays him a compliment. "It was basically a requirement. It is hard enough to have executives respect me when I was filling in for Father without looking like...a teenager."

  Damian's face turns towards Dick as he talks, almost diving behind the menu as well. "Tell that to Lady Zhang at the front." Of course, the subject of their exchange was the unusual order. "I didn't even know what it was until I got here." Of course, she'd get then whatever they wanted, she just noted the unusual request from this particular group.

  Once that's over, Damian retreats into his own menu, looking for something in particular.

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie Brown eats one of the appetizers and then orders pork dumplings. She is also dressed simply, jeans and a multi-striped sweater, mostly light and dark blues with a few black and purples thrown in there, and a turtleneck underneath. She at least thought ahead before the early February motorcycle ride.

Stephanie gives a commiserating sigh to Damian. "I can imagine. Your father offered me a job at the company but... I don't even know what I want to major in let alone work at," she says. The 21 year old's blue eyes look over to Dick. "Decent. Passed everything. Mostly B's. One A. One C+. Don't tell Barbara that last part," she says.

She slides the menu aside while Damian is digging into his. "I might be looking for some help with Chemistry next semester," she says. Stephanie has turned to Dick before for chemistry help. Though that was when her mixing of the formula for the flash bang pellets wasn't working as it should. A more practical application than Chemistry 103. "If there's a tutor in Bludhaven available, I could probably bring wings with the textbook," she says.

Nightwing has posed:
"It doesn't pay for us to get too predictable. Where's the fun in that?" Dick teases gently, stealing one of the appetizers for himself, sampling it with a small nod of approval. But will that be enough to have it make the cut for their next visit? That remains to be seen. "Working for Bruce isn't all bad. Though, admittedly, having to deal with any of the upper executives is less than fun for the most part. With some exceptions," he conceeds. He doesn't mind the dressing up part so much -- hey, costumes are a pretty core part of his existence whether they are immaculately tailored or designed to help him survive a gunshot -- but the pretenstion? Pass. "You should try to get more involved with the Foundation work. Much more rewarding."

Glancing back towards Stephanie he grins and winks once more, drawing the imaginary zipper across his lips. "My lips are sealed. But if you think she doesn't already know if she wants to know..." he points out, letting his words trail off. There's no keeping secrets from some people afterall. "Mmmmmm, Wings. That's pretty tempting there. I mean, I dropped out before I finished first year Chem, but I think I have enough hands on, practical experience to make up for it."

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     Damian peers at the menu and suddenly his eyes go wide. "Yesss. Szechuan hot pot. Extra spicy."

  Once Damian lowers his menu, he returns to the conversation. "I enjoy the part I play in the foundation. With the animal charities." Of course he would say that, he would protect nearly any animal that was around. Plus the local fauna around the Manor all had names.

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie gives a warm laugh to Dick as he speaks about the environment at Wayne Enterprises. "Ok, there it is," she says, wagging a finger at him and grinning. "With some exceptions," she quotes Dick. "Out with it. What's her name? Redhead I'm guessing. You have a thing for redheads," Stephanie teases.

She gets another bite of the appetizer, tearing it gently in half to get two bite-sized pieces. "I think I'll enjoy college while I can. You're only this age once after all," she says. Well, unless you go into a Lazarus Pit and then you're that age for a long longer than once.

"Speaking of, is the foundation doing anything special coming up? That auction seemed like a very cool thing. A lot of money for that stuff too," she says, shaking her head and grinning about some of the celebrity things auctioned off at it.

Nightwing has posed:
Having apparently decided what he will have, Dick sets aside his menu for the moment, reaching for that glass of water nearby, idly drawing a pattern with his thumb through the perspiration that beads the glass. His fellow Robin gets a ry smile and a shake of his head at his enthusiasm for the spicy entree. "You'd think that you would get enough excitement in life without wanting to go around setting fires on your tongue and in your stomach," he teases mildly. "And yes you're right. Some of those animal charities are very rewarding to work with," he agrees. It's probably a minor miracle that the Manor isn't overrun with animals of all sorts. He suspects that Alfred has put his foot down. Perhaps threatened to cut off the chocolate chip cookie supply. Mmmmm, chocolate chip cookies.

Turning back to Steph, the dark haired young man feigns shock at the accusation, holding a hand up to his chest. "I can't believe you'd suggest such a thing. Like I am incapable of resisting an attractive redhead," he says with mock-indignation though his eyes glint merrily. "But no, I was more thinking about Lucius, actually," he notes with a smile. He does nod however at the mention of events. "It's not quite as full a slate over the next couple of months, but once we hit spring they have some really nice ones planned."

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     "Do not insult the hot pot. It's delicious." Plus, with the things he has had to eat in the past...this is nothing. "Excitement has little to do with it. the chili flavor is excellent."

  Yup, Damian had animals, batcow, Abbadon...no dog, yet. "I haven't heard much from the Foundation since I stepped in at Wayne Enterprises. That should be corrected soon now that he is back in the chairman's seat."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie takes a sip of her coke as she listens to the two Waynes. "Glad to have him back on his feet fully," she comments with a smile. "So are you continuing on helping at the company then?" Stephanie asks Damian. "I'm sure there's a lot of places they can use the help."

Stephanie leans back in her chair, glancing over at the men playing mahjong. One of them clearly wins a game from his grin and the groan from the other player, and Chinese is exchanged so rapid fire that Stephanie probably couldn't follow it even if she spoke the language, which she definitely didn't. She calls over to the man though, "Are you going to let him win one sometime?" she asks with a small grin, recognizing the men as those they've bantered with in the past.

Stephanie looks back to the table as the food is served up. "oh this smells divine. I should have got a second order to take home,' she says as she breaks open a dumpling to help let the insides cool enough she can eat it without burning her mouth. "I think Damian's mouth is made of metal, with some of the hot stuff he eats," she tells Dick. "Or maybe his mother squirted some of Victor Fries's stuff in there when he was a baby and he's still trying to warm it back up."

Nightwing has posed:
They are hardly the only regulars who drop in here so it is no surprise to find familiar faces amongst the patrons. The place is certainly popular. And with good reason. There definitely is nowhere like it back in Bludhaven, which, of course, gives him just one more reason to pop by now and then. "You could probably do worse as far as a late afternoon activity goes. I mean, most of the interns are college aged but I don't think that's exactly an issue for you," he says with a nod towards Damian. It is, afterall, hard to imagine him deciding to pick up a sport or the like.

"Put in your order now. It'll be ready by the time we're done. That's the only flaw in coming here instead of getting delivery. No leftovers," Dick agrees with a grin, not hesitating to dig into the food as it is delivered to the table. He also does not hesitate to steal liberally from Stephanie and Damian's selections either. Hey, he was born in a circus. It's an excellent excuse for any number of displays of lack of manners. "That," he says with a frim nod, gesturing towards the blonde with one of his chiopsticks. "That is exactly how it works. A+ Ms. Brown. Go to the head of the class..." he agrees slyly.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     Damian turns to ask for the hot pot as he wanted, looking to the waitress with a smile. "An internship...seems a little low rent considering I saved the company from taking a nose dive after Father was injured." He says with a sigh. "Too smart for school, not sophomoric enough for an internship."

  "Yes, made of metal. Able to eat chicken bones and the like. And drink lava." Damian kids, picking up a dumpling with his chopsticks like it was nothing and stuffing it in his mouth. "So good."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie Brown doesn't do nearly as well with the chopsticks. She picks up the dumpling she broke open. Then drops it. Picks it up. Drops it again. Dick reaches over to pilfer it and she gasps, trying to use the chopsticks to give the back of his fingers a gentle whack.

She goes back for another dumpling, finally managing to get a bite of it. "Mmm mmm mmm. sho gewd," she says while still chewing, though covering her mouth with her hand at least. "So good," she repeats after swallowing it. "Could I get a second order to go? Of the pork?" she asks the woman. Thankfully it's a small enough place it isn't like you have to get up to place an order.

"Damian is a charm for ordering Asian though," she says. "He steered me well at that new place by campus. Except for the little hot things that sent me running to stick my mouth under the kitchen faucet," she says.

Nightwing has posed:
"Fair," Dick retorts with a grin for Damian. "I was thinking more of the social aspects. Not to mention that you know the top of the business, but there is something to be said to have a feel for all levels. The view might be nice from the top of the mountain, but it gets a little hard to make out all those trees waaaaaay down there at the base," he points out. "I don't think the challenge for you would be to find a way to excel at the top. It might be a little harder to blend in while in the middle. And hiding in the shadows, or the back of the copier room doesn't count," he pronounces glibly.

Yes, Dick is a ruthless thief when it comes to dumplings. And many other kinds of food too. No one's perfect. "Mmmmm, pilferred food is the best kind of food," he says smugly, leaning in to lick the food stain off the back of his hand where her chopstick connected. "See, that was your rookie mistake. Water just spreads the spice heat. You need to go for the milk," he says with a knowing nod.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     "Mmm, pass the hot oil, please." Damian asks, eventually spooning it over his food, bits of fried chilis and garlic glistening over the dumpling wrappers. To which he places one in his mouth and shows no signs of discomfort.

  To all those who tempt to take from Damian's plate, the spice is intense, but not unbearable. A solid 4/5. "You May be right. But if I were to participate in social activity, I don't think it would be genuine coming from people who know I am Damian Wayne. They'd be mired by wanting to get the job after their internships are over."

Spoiler has posed:
Stephanie Brown passes over the hot oil to Damian and then she waggles her chopsticks at Nightwing. "And that's your rookie mistake. Thinking any milk in my fridge can be approached in anything less than a full hazmat suit," she counters before taking another bite. "Mmmm."

She swallows and dabs a napkin at her lips. "I thought we were taking a stand on the other side of that whole pilfering thing? I mean if not, probably that Penguin guy has a killer dental plan," she says, making sure she keeps it light hearted enough it doesn't sound like anything other than random banter.

Stephanie continues eating, making her way through steadily. Keeping a suspicious eye on Dick, while watching for moment she can add extra hot oil to Damian's plate while he's not watching. Eventually she leans back in her chair, plate empty. "Glad you both made it," she says, for the moment thinking very consciously about how nice it is to be part of the family. The woman brings her to go order over. "Thank you," she tells her paying for it.

Nightwing has posed:
"Some of them definitely would," Dick conceeds without hesitation. The business world can be a ruthless place and internships at Wayne Enterprises are fiercely coveted. Especially if they lead to permanent positions. "But a couple of them might surprise you." What a surprise. Dick would push the good in people point of view. "Just so long as you find something that suits you. Wait too long and you might find something assigned to you," he notes.

"The no stealing thing doesn't apply to food," Dick insists glibly. "Sorry... it doesn't apply to food when amongst friends and family. Perhaps even casual acquaintances if what is available is particularly tempting," he insists with a resolute nod. Perhaps someday he will fully flesh out the 'Rules According to Grayson'. No doubt they will all hold their breath in anticipation.

Finishing up with what is in front of him, the dark-haired young man eyes what remains before the others but evidently decides he has had enough. Instead he pulls out his wallet and leaves enough on the table to cover the bill for the group. "Thanks for the invite. One of these days maybe I'll find something passably edible out in Bludhaven and be able to play host," he suggests with a smirk, rising from the table. "I will catch you both again soon," he says with one last grin as he fetches his coat and rises to his feet. Given that this is Gotham, that could be as soon as a couple of hours if the night does not go well. It would hardly be the first time.