16223/Pick a Card

Pick a Card
Date of Scene:	26 April 2024
Location:	Monarch Theatre, East Park Side (Crime Alley)
Synopsis:	Zee has a performance in Gotham and is met backstage by her friends Nikki, Damian, and Tim.
Cast of Characters:	Zatanna Zatara, Robin (Wayne), Red Robin, Nikki Hawkins

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Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    So admittedly it's not the most normal of shows. Zee uses a lot of card tricks, but she's never done an entire act based on them. But when you use real magic, card tricks take on a whole new twist. A woman picks a card and is trapped inside, only to dealt out to her stunned husband, who has to reach into the card and pull her out. And out she comes, right to full size.

    There are mirrors, there is counting, there is even a card themed water tank which leaves the audience breathless. All this, plus fishnets in an outfit that most fathers would hate. Zee's father? He helped design it! The spectacle is everything.

    Zee earns a respectable four encores. She was ready for six, but she isn't giving them away if the audience isn't fired up enough to draw her out.

    And so it is she is in her dressing room, the door open as she looks in the mirror. She is engaged in one of her classic passtimes: talking to herself.

    "You look exhausted. No wonder they didn't want to see you out there for a few more tricks. You look like you are... forty!" She is really good at beating herself up tonight. But she's also smirking as she does it. "I suppose I should have tried that burning card trick. The explosion last time was mostly under control. It's pretty normal for this city!"

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
One such observer in the show is Damian Wayne.

Son of Bruce Wayne and Talia al-Ghul.

Dressed in a fine pitch-black three piece suit with a fine tie and a silver watch around his wrist, Damian watches as Zatanna pulls off quite the tricks that illuminate the senses. Of course...only Damian is among those in the crowd to differentiate a mere trick of hte senses and genuine magic. Zatanna is an amazing performer.

She wears outfits that draw the eyes. She has a personality that could rally a cult behind her if she wanted. She has the power to perform such feats of magic htat most could only dream of. Yet....as Zatanna finishes her fourth encore? Damian moves from his position in the VIP box.

Meantime, as Zatanna is trash talking herself in front of the mirror? Damian clears his throat, standing a safe distance away to suggest he wasn't trying to watch her change.

"You don't look a day over twenty-two. You're beautiful. Your magic tricks are amazing. You're far too hard on yourself." Damian's voice rings out as he turns to look at her. "I really enjoyed the performance."

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    "Xif ym raih, ecin dna thgiarts!"

    The swirl of real magic flows around Zee and her hair, which was rather frazzled, lays perfectly again. And just in time, too, considering things. It is a measure of luck that the sudden clearning of Damian's throat doesn't make her jump. Instead, she is ready to send whoever it is away, and then it registers to her that she is being perfectly flattered.

    The magician turns and recognizes the young man immediately. "My goodness, of all the people to catch me off-balance, it would have to be Bruce's son!" Her smile is back like-you guessed it-magic. "It's a delight to see you! This reminds me, I really need to stop by the mansion again sometime." Rather than sneak into the batcave or bump into people on rooftops. Family being what it is (and Bruce counts as family), she will walk over and go in for the hug.

    "You are very kind to me. Just like your father is. But I think I look quite a ways over 22 at this point." She laughs and thinks for a moment. "Still, I may just have to believe you for my own good."

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
Damian seems to smirk a little bit at the genuine mystic arts that Zatanna uses to fix her hair into it's usual perfectly rested state. Even still, his training under his father is certainly one of the many reasons why he was able to sneak up on Zatanna. As he steps away from the wall, his hands in his pockets, he steps towards her, only to suddenly be embraced in a hug! A little smile touches his face as he wraps his arms around Zatanna's waist, holding her close in that peaceful moment before he pulls ever so slightly away to meet her eyes.

"I'm my father's son." He smirks. "I'm sure we'd all love to see you. Alfred's asked about you a few times." He remarks to her, though he scoffs at a moment. "Clearly you haven't seen yourself in a mirror, Zatanna." He lifts his hand to move some sparkle-dust off of her shoulder from one of her magic tricks. "I think that might be wise. Besides, it will do well for your confidence. I'm sorry if it was a tough crowd tonight."

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    "Oh no! Alfred has been missing me, too? I'll have to bake something before I visit to make it up to him." Zatanna grins, "Not to worry, though, I won't be using magic for that. One can never be sure just what might happen with my particular brand of... performance art."

    She has to imagine that Damian has heard all about her. Or not, considering Bruce's way of distributing information can be... interesting at times. "And it is alright. They weren't that rough, really. I think Gotham is just a very demanding crowd. Considering the environment, it can take a lot to get people to let down their guard. Honestly, for a while I was afraid I might have to greatly change my act in the middle of the performance. Which is a lot, even for a seasoned performer."

    She looks over Damian slowly. "You do look the part. Strong as a bull, I suppose, too. I'm going to show you something I don't do on stage, though." She playfull reaches out behind Damian's ear. As her hand draws back, there is, sure enough, a coin, but with a snap and a murmur, "Nioc semoceb gnilims selbbub!" it bursts into a hundred silvery bubbles, all reflectin Zee's grinning face.

    "That was the first real magic I ever did for your father."

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
"Yes, you will. And that's right, no magic whatsoever." Damian agrees with Zatanna in that moment. "Magic is always unpredictable - always extracting a price. While I'm certain your...baking magic would be delicious, I'd hate to see Alfred bloat up like a balloon and sail away." Damian remarks with some grim humor, though most certainly Damian has heard of her. More along the lines of her father Giovanni, the man who taught Bruce the arts of escape artistry and theatricality.

And of course, that Zatanna and Bruce have been fond of each other in the past.

"They are. If it makes any difference, this is a difficult town to live in. Hard to walk across the street without a virtual army of thugs trying to hunt you down." He remarks ever so slightly. "And if you had to change your act, I doubt it would've been too difficult for you. You've always been able to think on your feet, far as I know." In fact, she's famous for it.

He doesn't seem to mind Zatanna's analyzing gaze. "Well, thank you." He stands there then, watching as she reaches behind his ear and unveils a coin. "That one is a classic." only to watch it suddenly burst into a hundred bubbles, all revealing Zatanna's face. "Hm. I imagine he was charmed." Like he seemed to have been by the basic spell.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake has taken Nikki to see Zee's show tonight. He got tickets other than the normal Wayne box as he heard about the show a bit late and did not want to have to try to get access to the box. So, now after the show, he leads her "I am not sure if she is doing a meet and greet after but we can see."

Nikki Hawkins has posed:
Nikki nods and smiles at Tim, and of course, enjoys the show. Magic is real! At least to her mind it is. "It's okay if there's no meet and greet. Nikki is just happy to be out doing stuff with Tim!" She says, perhaps a little overstimulated, but that's almost normal in her life - and maybe Tim is at least somewhat use to it now. "Didja see when she put the woman INSIDE the card? Like.. how does one even DO that? Omigosh, and then the husband had to pull her out again like.. ..Nikki thought the woman was going to be a card for the rest of her life!"

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    While there is no meet and greet per se, Tim will have no trouble getting backstage, where she is speaking with Damian. The magician looks up to briefly provide direction to one of her assistants, "You can go ahead, we'll do the walkthrough tomorrow morning. I'm with family tonight." The response seems to surprise the young woman receiving the order. She hesitates for a moment, but then is grinning. "Glad to hear that, Zatanna. We'll get it all cleaned-up."

    The woman (perhaps about 20 herself) looks at Damian with a grin. She is ready to give Zee a playful look only to be met with a glare. "I think you are going to have a busy night, Mikey," Zee says very calmly. Too calmly. When that woman is gone, Zee sighs. "Incorrigible. Completely incorrigible."

    Meanwhile, Mikey bumps into Tim and Nikki and with a smirk waves them back towards Zee's dressing room. "The more the merrier!" she says. Quite the cheeky thing, and it gives one the idea that her mind is full of inappropriate thoughts at times. That is the right impression.

    "So anyway," Zee says, back in the dressing room, "I am really happy you made it to the show. It's nice to have a friendly face to talk to. If not for you, I'd probably be doing something exciting like testing the oil on hinges and making sure all my card decks are properly organized." She's serious. "I can count a deck of cards and check to make sure it's complete in record time. Literally." She loves bragging about her dumbest skills.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
Damian raises a brow at the woman, tilting his head as if questioning what she was implying would occur between himself and Zatanna, green eyes shifting from Mikey to Zatanna as a little smirk rises into his features. "Hm. Seemingly as incorrigible as the main attraction." he teases Zatanna lightly, a confident little uptick to his lips as the assistant makes her way out.

He does overhear a 'the more the merrier!' from said assistant. "I think we'll have more company." Damian suggests, but otherwise keeps his full attention on Zatanna.

"I'm happy to have made it. Course, happier still to hear of you. Don't get me wrong, I'm certain hinge and card deck checking is truly the entertainment of legends..." he chuckles faintly, a low sound in his throat.

"I can cut through solid wood with an accurate throw of the cards. It's all in the wrist." he banters with her on 'useless' skills.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake looks over and says "Well it seems you will get to meet a few people tonight hon." He walks on over towards the group, with his arm around Nikki, and says "Nikki, this is Zatana, the master of magic, and this is Damian Wayne, my little brother." He then looks to the others, and says "And this is Nikki, my girl friend." He introduces them as he walks up "You did a great job out there Zee."

Nikki Hawkins has posed:
It's immediately into introductions, and Nikki is all smiles and beaming hyperactivity. She gives a little wave as Tim introduces her to to the two. "It's good to meet Zatana and Damian..." Saying this and then her attention is almost all on Zee. "Yeah! You were amazing! Nikki would love to know how you did all those tricks, but she also knows that a true magician never reveals their secrets...but the thing Zatana did with the woman and the card? Fantastic!" She's almost tightly clinging to Tim's side even as her child-like wonder tries to take over her skittishness at meeting new people.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    Oh now this Zee wants to see! She's grinning at Damian. "Do you need just normal cards? Or anything special I have this uhh.. present that could use your target practice." Zee laughs and waves a wand (a gift from her father) and says, "Tsrow tfig fo eht raey, emoc ereh!" And right there, on the small table in her dress room, appears a wood statue carved in the shape of Zee. Not just any Zee, though. Not even a very accurate Zee. It is her in her 'work clothes' and the creator took certain, erm, liberties with her proportions.

    "Honestly, if you could put half a deck of cards into this and then smash it to bits you would be my hero, Damian."

    This is when Zee looks up to see company. More company! And really, not just company. This is more like family. "Tim! Wow, this is truly a wonderful gathering, now." She will step away from that 'lovely' statue some fan gave her and seek out hugs!

    "Nikki, it's so wonderful to meet you!" Zee is all positive energy now. This is making her night so much better. The show, successful to most others, just... didn't sit right with her. "Damian has been trying to cure me of my disappointment. And you are the reinforcements, it seems. I'm so glad you enjoyed it. I think perhaps people are rather uninterested in card tricks as a concept. Perhaps I'll go back to my usual mix. They all love it when I nearly drown! Nut seriously, thank you all for being so kind to me."

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
Damian seems pleased to have Zatanna's rapt attention for what is otherwise a near useless skill. His training with shuriken made Damian train with other items to practice his marksmanship purely out of boredom, playing cards his favorite amongst them. "A present? Well, I'll see what I can do." He looks then at the...unique carving of Zatanna as he tilts his head at it, considering his words for only a small moment before he looks at Zatanna. "I prefer the genuine article." A little flattery, in that same moment of deliver?

His hand is quick. The only place Zatanna is likely to keep a deck of cards is in her jacket. Deftly, his hand slips into her jacket pocket, barely detectable, as he attempts to retrieve a stack of cards from her. "Any card in particular you'd like to see cut the statue?" He asks, before Tim and Nikki arrive, causing Damian to turn away from Zatanna's eyes to regard them.

"Hello Tim. Good to see you out of the Manor." But rather than focus on Tim, he looks at who he came with. "Nice to meet you, Nikki. Tim is one of the good ones. I hope you two are enjoying your night." Seeing Nikki act much like a giddy child makes Damian's features soften. Genuine joy was nice to see. Course, he'll be quiet now so fans can fan over Zatanna.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake looks over and smiles at Nikki and says "See, she has all kinds of interesting tricks, and I would rather you not drown. It gets messy and water all over the place. " He smiles as Damian talks well about him. "I am the lucky one Nikki is great, smart and sweet. She is a robotic expert, and a professional gamer."

Nikki Hawkins has posed:
Nikki blushes bright red. "Nikki liked the card tricks... but Nikki likes all kinds of magic... she thinks it's interesting." Saying this much before her attention moves to Damian as he addresses her in regard to Tim. "Damian is the second person to say that Tim is a good person... actually third if Nikki counts Doctor Quinn..." She thinks on this a moment and then she's right back to beaming a smile until Tim offers his own words in regards to her. "Nikki is also weird, Tim won't say so, but Nikki knows she is..." Then a sudden idea finds her. "Oh! Next time Nikki should bring Squishy! Squishy would love to see the magic!"

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    "How about you start with all the spades and go from there," suggests Zee to Damian. She does not notice him taking the cards. Damian's got good hands, clearly. She does realize they are gone after the hugging is done, though. And then she turns to see Damian has them. "Ohhh, you have quite a few tricks up your sleeve, don't you?" she asks playfully. "I have a feeling Alfred didn't teach you that one."

    She is dividing her attention neatly enough. "So how did you two sweethearts meet?" she asks suddenly, her eyes going from Tim to Nikki. "Oh, and I'm sure that Squishy would be most welcome! Is this a friend of yours?" Part of Zee suspects it is an unusual friend, but honestly, who is she to judge? Some of the company she's been keeping lately might draw some eyebrows to raise.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
"Many." Damian admits to Zee after their embrace. "I'm sure you'd like most of them." He winks at her, drawing numerous cards from the deck to rest between his fingers. "Spades first." he confirms, looking at the gift that Zatanna seems a monstrosity as he starts throwing cards at it. At the velocity of the card itself mixed with the torque of the throw? Damian throws the card with such precision that the first throw completely decapitates the statue. The next whittles away at the...er...exaggerated proportions of the Mistress of Magic. The next then shaves off one of the arms.

"Do tell me when to stop throwing." He suggests to Zatanna, his eyes turning to look then to Tim and Nikki. "A robotics expert and professional gamer? Exciting. Have you been in any of the recent tournaments, Nikki? I rarely watch those events, but I hear they can be intense." He's gauging /how/ skilled Nikki is now. "Oh, you met Harley? She can be a handful." Ge turns his eyes then to Tim, tilting his head at the man.

Sanity to let her meet Harley is questioned, but not too judgmental.

"Everyone is a little weird, Nikki. If everyone was normal, we would all be boring."

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake smiles and says "We actually met, when I was out head hunting for some talent for Wayne Tech R&D. I knew I had found a great talent, but then I found out I had met someone who was special to me." He will lett her explain squishy.

Nikki Hawkins has posed:
"Squishy is Nikki's robot companion! Nikki tried to make one that could help with chores around the house and carry things... but Squishy wound up with some bad coding so he can't hold onto anything...but Squishy is very dear to Nikki and sometimes Nikki takes him places, but sometimes she has to keep him home..." Nikki...likely says that all in one breath and then has to keep breathing. Tim has spoken about how they met, and that makes Nikki blush once her brain catches up to things, but her brain is also in a couple different spots and it's making things go a little sideways. Subtley she's using her free hand to tap against her leg for a moment and her eyes shift to look down at the floor.

Though when Damian's questions about gaming finally find her again, she looks up. Still tapping fingers against her leg but she smiles. "Oh Nikki is a member of Team Triage. Have you heard of them? We've won a few tournaments..." Namely very recently winning a global event that was hosted in New York of all places. "She mostly plays Smite and Heroes of the Storm with her team. We're going to Germany in a couple of weeks. Tim's coming along... we're making a whole vacation out of it. Nikki thinks it'll be super fun...and..." Then she squeaks and bites her lower lip before tucking her head against Tim's shoulder since his arm is around her. Effectively likely trying to hide her face suddenly.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    When the head falls off that vile statue, Zee grins. It takes all her self-control not to cackle with glee its doom. "Tell you when to stop? I am trying to recall where all the other decks of cards are, Damian." When a considerable bit of bosom is knocked away she finaly has to laugh a bit. "Now that's just what the doctor ordered, there."

    Her face turns from wrecked carving to Tim and Nikki. "Oh wow, so it was a kind of chance meeting, then. I was curious if you had used one of those dating apps. I've heard a lot about them." She shudders to imagaine what would happen. Probably a devil would drag her out on a date. Who knows, she might like that.

    When Nikki explains some of her exploits, Zee is rightfully impressed. "Oh wow, I don't even pay attention gaming and I think I've heard someone mention that. Two of my crew are gamers. Never talk about anything else. Except swords, that is. And hey, Germany should be fun. I just did an act in Berlin a day and a half ago. My old favorite setup. Berlin, Reykjavik, and Gotham. Or New York. Thankfully I decided not do LA, or I'd be on my way there already." Nikki's apparently shy behavior is noticed, and gets a warmer smile from Zee. It's hard not go verbalize the 'Awwwww!' in her head right now.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
"Find me the ammunition and I'll keep feeding it cards." Damian smirks at Zatanna. When the statue's bosom is considerably smaller after a good card throw, Damian looks about to make a joke but he stops himself. "So it would seem." He smirks softly to himself, the card flocked in his hand as he sends another card sailing! "Would you like to try?"

Looking towards Tim, he smiles a little. "Some times, accidental meetings are the most impactful...the ones with the most capability to be deep and meaningful. I'm glad you found a diamond in an unexpected place." He compliments Tim, turning to look upon Nikki as she speaks.

"So your robot is an advanced attempt at a personal companion/assistant? Interesting. I think it shows great potential. If you like, I can look at it or call upon a friend who happens to love stuff like this." he smiles when Nikki lists her achievements and that she's part of a team. "Germany is a beautiful place...and that sounds like an incredible time.I wish you luck."

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake nods, and says "We have made a nice progress on another robot, it is going through testing through wayne tech right now, we will be producing it, but Nikki gets credit for most of the creation." He admits. He smiles and as she hides her face he rubs her back and says "Your doing fine hon." He says to reassure her.

Nikki Hawkins has posed:
Nikki just nods her head a little as Tim explains about the new robot they have going through testing. She doesn't add anything to what he's said about it. There's a glance to both Zatara and Damian as they each respond to things she's said and a smile is offered but then she looks up at Tim. "Thanks...but Nikki's...starting to not feel well." The smile tries to stay as she glances to the other two. "Sorry. Nikki sometimes gets a little overwh..overhea..." She grunts cause she cannot say the word and just looks at Tim once more. "Can we go home?"

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
    "In moments like this, I think we may need to bring out something of higher caliber," Zee says to Damian. "But you've actually improved the aesthetics of it greatly. While I doubt the original artist would appreciate the.. hm. The truncation of his work! I can assure you, this is much better. This wooden nightmare no longer bears my face. That is so pleasing."

    Her expression grows concerned. "I understand, Nikki. There are things that I cannot handle, as well. It's nothing to worry about. Tim knows how to get in touch, and I am a former regular at Wayne Manor. I may just renew my membership, after I bake to the best of my ability. I must offer penance to Alfred. He was always kind to me, and I have not been terribly thoughtful when it comes to staying in touch. I will do my best to remedy that."

    She sighs and shakes her head slightly. "I need to get back... hm. Maybe not Shadowcrest tonight. San Francisco sounds heavenly. I had best get home, in any case. It was so good to meet all of you! I must find my pillow. I will be back soon, though."

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
Uh oh. Did Damian overwhelm Nikki? An apologetic look befalls his expression as he looks between Nikki and Tim, though with the former asking to leave? Damian sure won't stop either of them. "You two stay safe, alright?" He looks at Tim, giving him a silent nod that requires no spoken words to understand.

Meantime, he turns to look at Zatanna. "Heh. Perhaps something in the basement would do." He smirks at Zatanna in that moment. "But, I'm glad I was able to make it into a much more pleasing depiction." He can't help but smile then.

"I'm afraid I ought to leave as well. I have other matters of import to attend to tonight. Zatanna, keep in touch, would you?" He turns to Tim and Nikki. "And you two stay out of too much trouble." He smirks, before he turns to start walking away.