(no subject)

[rockabillyboy]

He might have joked about it being a date but, mostly, Jack thinks Valkyrie is pretty cool and he's stoked to get a chance to hang out. He'd worked at the Zen Center bookstore that day and he texts her to suggest she meet him there so that he can buy her dinner. He's even got a rose in water in the breakroom, mainly to amuse himself.

"Poison meeting you, dude?" says the girl he's on with. "Or Kavinsky?"
"Neither," says Jack, enjoying the look on her face as he grabs his rose and his backpack and goes to wait for Val out on the sidewalk.

Comments

[scion_of_ancients]

In a development that manages to, ironically, surprise her with just how unsurprising it is, Valkyrie shows up running a bit late, having managed to get lost not just while finding the way, but then again while trying to re-orient herself. Not her finest moment, but she won't be sharing that one.

She's decided to dress casually for the occasion. After all, it's not a proper date, and even if it were, she's not going to stuff herself into an uncomfortable outfit for it. As always, her coat is present too. She's gotten so used to the weight of it that leaving it out of outfits feels wrong. Upon seeing Jack, she smiles and heads over in his direction, half-tempted to laugh when she realises he's actually holding a rose.

"You're really committed to doing things properly, aren't you?"

[rockabillyboy]

"I blame my upbringing," says Jack, giving her a crooked smile as he holds out the rose to her, eyebrow slightly raised. "You said I Had to bring at least one flower, right?"

[scion_of_ancients]

"I suppose there are worse things you could blame an upbringing for. Manners never did hurt anyone." With a nod, she takes the rose, at first intending to pocket it and then deciding that it would probably be rude to do so. Instead, it gets tucked behind an ear, after checking that it's not got thorns on it.

"So then, where am I being whisked away to on this not-quite-a-date?"

[rockabillyboy]

The artist in Jack appreciates how pretty the rose looks against her dark hair. He smiles.

"There's a pretty great noodle place down the block?" says Jack. "Walking distance?"

[scion_of_ancients]

"Oh, well, I can hardly pass up a meal in walking distance. Who knows, I might have to drive to the next one. If my car ever shows up - maybe yours will attract it; that would be mighty convenient," she says, wondering how that would work. Would someone report it stolen back home?

"Do we hold hands and confuse everyone who knows you, or is that sort of thing reserved for Poison?"

[rockabillyboy]

There are things about Jack's relationship that there's no reason for Val to know yet, so he just smiles and shakes his head before offering her his arm instead.

"Are you, like...thinking of pimping Ghost out? Because I don't know how to feel about that."

[scion_of_ancients]

With a quick nod, she hooks arms instead. Everyone's at different levels of physical comfort, and she's not even sure about whether or not holding hands would've been okay for her either. But it was fun to mention, and that was the important bit.

"Ghost was your car, was it? I'm not sure about pimping it out, but maybe if I spend enough time thinking about cars, mine will appear. If it works that way. It could be worth a test."

[rockabillyboy]

"Ghost is my car. Sixteenth birthday present from my dad. Jillian got a car, too, but she doesn't drive anymore." He tucks her arm in against his side, quite enjoying the closeness. "Is that what you'd want most from home? Your car?"

[scion_of_ancients]

"Right, right, sorry for the wrong tense. Colloquialisms are a bitch, aren't they?" She can't help but keep smiling as they walk on. "I got my car for my 18th. Wasn't nearly as fancy as yours, though."

She shakes her head. "It's not what I'd want most. If anything, I'd like my house. But that would be a hell of a feat, to think hard enough that I can make the mansion appear."

[rockabillyboy]

"Not as fancy as mine, but you live in a mansion?" asks Jack, raising his eyebrows, laughing a little. "I wouldn't say we live in a mansion in San Francisco, but it's pretty close."

[scion_of_ancients]

"It's part of an inheritance. My uncle. I got along really well with him, and the rest of the family less so. So when I came of age, I already had a place to live."

Sure, she could downplay it, but he did have a point. She wasn't exactly short on funds in her life, and didn't even need to spend that much, considering how many people owed her favours.

"Hey, so, while we're talking about our sordid pasts. I should show you something cool."

[rockabillyboy]

"I mean, my dad was the two-time mayor of San Francisco, so I don't know how sordid I'd call it," he says. He raises his eyebrows, looking down at her. "How cool?"

On 9 March 2017 at 22:52, scion_of_ancients - DW Comment < dw_null@dreamwidth.org> wrote:

[scion_of_ancients]

"That's absolutely sordid, and if it isn't, then we're going to have to invent something that is." She grins at that, mind already brimming with ideas of dramatic stories to invent, then checks around to see if anyone was looking in their direction. A few people walking in the area, and though they seem absorbed in other things, it's best to be safe. So she ducks into the next alley, dragging Jack along.

"Just trust me here, I don't want to freak anyone out. We'll head on to food in a moment."

Once they're out of sight of passers-by, she unlinks arms, takes a few more steps ahead, and turns around. With a wink, she begins to concentrate, and moments later lifts off, hovering roughly a metre off the ground. Just for added effect, she gathers a fistful of visible white energy in both her hands, letting it crackle a bit, and then lowers herself again, dissipating the magic once both feet are on the ground. Maybe she's gone a bit overboard, but anyone who'd been at that Valentine's party shouldn't be taken aback by that kind of display. Another idea seizes her, and after a moment's search, she picks up an empty can of Coke from the ground.

"Pretty cool, huh? Now try throwing this at me," she says, holding the can out towards him.

[rockabillyboy]

"Can't do anything too sordid when Google's a thing," says Jack, grinning as Val starts to drag him off the sidewalk. "Thankfully, nobody here gives a shit who I am." He leaves it there; she doesn't need to know what he gets up to, what he's into. His eyes widen at the light between her hands, the obvious magic of it. Dee's powers screw with electricity, sometimes, but this is totally and palpably not the same thing. He looks at the can in his hand for a moment, and then at her. He shrugs and then throws it.

[scion_of_ancients]

By the time he starts moving to toss it, she's already holding out a hand, and the can bounces with slight shimmer off the barrier in front of it, landing with a dull thunk. Valkyrie relaxes again and moves toward him, smiling wide.

"I'm magic, basically. I wasn't going to tell you at first, but that Valentine's thing was so abuzz with weird stuff, and you didn't seem bothered by it at all. So that's me, the sorceress supreme," she finishes, holding out her arm again.

[rockabillyboy]

"Okay, that? Is really, really cool," says Jack, grinning broadly at her. "A lot of weird stuff happens around here. You kind of learn to take it in stride? Poison's kid, Dee, can charge a cellphone just by holding it, so." He takes her arm, tucking her in against him again. "I'm suitably impressed."

[scion_of_ancients]

"Man, that sort of thing must be useful, controlling electricity. You wouldn't even have to hide it, really, if you just use it for a few basic things here and there. Oh man, the money you could save on charger cables alone!"

She's a little giddy here, mostly with relief. The chances of revealing her powers being a mistake were always there, no matter what, and even if she could relax a little more in Darrow, she'd never be able to shake off the slight paranoia.

"Impressed is good. Better than afraid by a long shot."

[rockabillyboy]

"Especially useful when your phone runs flat at a concert or a bar or something," he says, because he'd always hated that. He'd even had Ghost retrofitted with a USB charging point when he first got her. "Nope. Definitely not afraid. A little turned-on, maybe." He flashes her a grin to show he's joking.

[scion_of_ancients]

"I sure hope you don't just bring this Dee kid along as a portable battery; that would be so rude," she says, stifling a laugh at the image of someone being handed phone after phone to recharge. "I'm a terrible person sometimes. I think you should know that."

[rockabillyboy]

"You don't really bring Dee anywhere," says Jack, laughing a little. "You just sort of...follow in her wake. They're like that, as a family."

[scion_of_ancients]

"You make it sound like they're some sort of hurricane. So I've got to meet them sometime; that sort of chaos is the best fun you can have, really. But to get back on track - so your dad's the mayor of San Francisco? That must be pretty cool."

[rockabillyboy]

"They're pretty great," he says, and his love for both of them shines out of him. "You'll have to meet Jillian, too. We're about as identical as it's possible for fraternal twins to be." He glances at her. "You can't get away with anything when your dad's the mayor. Or, at least, you have to work really hard for it."

[scion_of_ancients]

So much of the time over the past few years has been dour, dangerous, and sometimes downright miserable. This, the whole idea of just downright positive interaction, it's pure therapy for her. "I'm going to have to write a list at some point. A hurricane family and your twin to start with - at least it won't be boring."

She grins at him, a cheeky sort of look, and says, "That's one way to teach someone the value of hard work, I guess."

[rockabillyboy]

"Nothing about them is," says Jack, and his love for them shines out of him for a moment. "Or it makes them really, really good at telling lies when it suits them."

[scion_of_ancients]

"Just so long as it doesn't get overwhelming. I'd only recently managed to go back to a normal pace, before I got to this place."

She gives him a once-over in response, the grin still in place. "Mr. Jack, the master liar. Now that I'd have to see. You don't strike me as the criminal type, you know."

[rockabillyboy]

"Victimless crime only," says Jack, putting one hand on his chest and giving her his best, innocent smile. "Buddhist, remember? Do no harm."

[scion_of_ancients]

"If the graffiti's any indication, I'm inclined to think your crime may even be beneficial. It's a far cry from the misshapen genitals that seem to be a universal feature in so many places."

[rockabillyboy]

"God, don't talk to me about genitals," says Jack, grimacing. "I'm taking life drawing at the moment. Not my favourite."

[scion_of_ancients]

"I'm pretty happy to leave the topic of genitals out of just about any conversation in general, thanks very much," she responds, mimicking the grimace. "Guess I won't be offering to drop by at your school anytime soon."

[rockabillyboy]

"I'm pretty sure art school's art school wherever you find it," he says. "I'm on a graphic design pathway, but my professor thinks I need to learn people for...my edification? I don't know."

[scion_of_ancients]

With a shrug, Valkyrie says, "I've never been to any art school yet. Hell, I barely remember what school is like. LIfe's taken some funny turns."

[rockabillyboy]

"Yeah... I'm starting to figure that out, says Jack, grinning. "You want to tell me more about it or shall we just let you be Clark Kent?"

[scion_of_ancients]

The temptation to start telling him everything is there, but it seems like that would just be way too much for a casual dinner. No, right now, she doesn't want to talk about serious past.

"I'll be Clark for a while longer - sorry. Right now is too nice to be bringing my own sordid history into things."

[rockabillyboy]

"That's okay," says Jack, immediately, because he'd never push. "We can focus on me, if you like. Though, like I said, I was pretty well behaved in San Francisco."

[scion_of_ancients]

"For now, how about we just focus on that it's a nice day, I have a flower in my hair, and it's going to be a nice, pleasant evening. No monsters, no criminals, no anything of the sort."

She almost starts to skip, because it's so very true. It's just such a pleasant time right now.

"But it would be cool to hear more about your adventures."

[rockabillyboy]

"It is a very nice flower," says Jack, grinning. "I don't know if they can be called adventures? I manage not to get arrested?"

[scion_of_ancients]

"You realise that I'm going to keep on demanding flowers now, right? You've set a precedent, and now you can't back out of it anymore. The next one should be chrysanthemum," she says, naming one of the few flowers she can remember off the top of her head.

"Adventures are still adventures even if you don't get arrested. Though I guess that makes me the criminal element here, which is a bit weird considering my day job."

[rockabillyboy]

"Chrysanthemum," says Jack. "Right. Making a mental note." It feels good to just hang out with her, flirt a little and know it wasn't going to go anywhere because he's got Poison at home. "I was briefly pretty notorious for the art, back home."

[scion_of_ancients]

"I was notorious for...well, a number of things, depending on when we're talking about, but a lot of it boiled down to me and my partner knowing better than the people in charge."

An idea strikes her, one that she's not sure she should approve of. "Round here, I'm not notorious for anything yet. I kind of miss it. How hard is it to learn graffiti art? Hypothetically."

[rockabillyboy]

"Well, I don't know," says Jack, considering the question for a moment. "How artistic are you? At, like, a base level?"

[scion_of_ancients]

"Uhhhh. I mean, I am amazing with the vision part. But not so much the execution of it; that part tends to get away from me. It's one of those things that I never had the time for."

[rockabillyboy]

"If you've got the ideas and you're ready to practice, I could probably teach you?" says Jack, eyebrows raised as he steers them towards the restaurant he had in mind. "Not promising anything, though."

[scion_of_ancients]

"I'll keep the offer in mind," she replies, heading in and looking around for a table to sit at. "Maybe you'll have competition one day. Is that a thing? Competing graffiti artists? Do you have epic spray-can duels with strobe lights going off?"

Spotting a clean and comfy-looking seat, she sits down and sheds her coat. "I never did tell you about my day job, though, did I?"

[rockabillyboy]

Jack huffs a laugh as he shrugs out of his jacket, draping it over the back of his chair before he sits down. He shakes his head, reaching for a menu. "No, you never did."

[scion_of_ancients]

"Anything you'd recommend here? Or should I just order a smorgasbord?" She's got her menu open, but her eyes aren't entirely focused on it, and she's taking her time looking through.

"I, uh. I fight crime?" she says, searching for better ways to explain it, and then gives up. "All right, time to level. I'm a detective. Investigation and arresting. The partner I mentioned, I didn't mean romantic partner. Detective partner. Like the Morgan Freeman to my Brad Pitt."

[rockabillyboy]

"Seven is a great movie," says Jack, flashing a grin as he pages through the menu. He glances up at her. "So, should I be regretting talking to you about my habitual vandalism?"

[scion_of_ancients]

"Agreed. They should make more films like that." She shakes her head, smiling in return, and scoffs lightly. "No, no regrets needed. It's not like this city employs me. And I was more concerned with errant sorcery, not street art. Magical community has enough of its own issues."

[rockabillyboy]

"I bet it did," he says, laughing. "But we're not talking about that today, right? You're Clark Kent and that's the story that we're sticking to."

[scion_of_ancients]

"Now all I need is a pair of glasses. And that makes you, what, Lois Lane? I might have some trouble carrying you to safety though." She closed her menu and set it aside. "I'll have something simple. Chicken and noodles, I think."