sheridan | [closed] tale as old as time

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[closed] tale as old as time

[After their near disaster of a gala, Damian knew he had to make it up to Midii. Christmas was the best possible way to make it up, he figured. Gifts were a normal part of the holiday season, and he'd gone out of his way to shower his friends with material goods, whether they wanted it or not.

Some of his friends had resigned themselves to the inevitable and asked for reasonable gifts - Jai, for example, got season tickets for the local basketball team, and Iris got one of those fancy Fitbits that could (reasonably) calculate a speedster's rate.

Midii, though, needed something better. After much deliberation and arguing with a local calligrapher + screen printer, Damian ordered two things: one, for Midii to come meet him on the second floor of a coffee shop that his family owned, and two, a set of custom-printed Arabic calligraphy t-shirts. Nothing religious, for the Muslims who might cry cultural appropriation, but cultural sayings & shapes.

He's not expecting her super early, but he's looking a little nervous as he stares down at the gift bag he'd wrapped the latter in. Just once, he wishes the coffee shop could sell boosts of confidence with their lattes. He'd buy their entire stock out.]

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[Damian couldn't remember the last time he'd planned a date. High school, maybe? Wasn't like he could ask his family for help, because then they'd know. They would know, and they would want every little detail. (Honestly, they were Bats. They would get every little detail somehow.)

So he pulled some strings and arranged for a perfect first date at the Gotham Central library. They normally didn't have high tea on this day, but when Bruce Wayne's kid calls in a favor? Magic happens. Sure, patrons are coming and going, but that cafe in the courtyard is open for him and only for him.

He's waiting for Midii right outside the library, leaning against the brick wall as he plays a random cell phone game. If there's a supervillain on the loose, he doesn't want to know, because he's got far more pressing (and important) things.]

[Tea at Gotham Central Library.]

[Midii had so many mixed feelings about his choice of a first date. Granted, most of them were positive. It was a touch more public than she would have initially preferred, but she supposed a public setting was something she would have to get used to. They'd already been spotted together at a Wayne function. Their friends (and his family) were all nosy. Somebody was going to put the pieces together eventually.]

[...unless, of course, she were to arrive--dressed in a simple, blue sundress with matching sandals--and discover that the entire courtyard was mysteriously void of anybody except her intended date for that afternoon.]

Damian. [In hindsight, she should have seen this coming, and sighed rather than frown at him.] You didn't.

[He bites on his lip (to hide that stupid grin of his) as he tucks his phone in his pocket and greets her.] I did, and you're welcome.

[Off to a great start already, and he'd worked overtime to figure out a perfect first date. Because he couldn't ask her to meet her in her private library again, and like he'd ask his family for help. Grayson and Drake were waiting to return the favor for one too many interrupted dates, and Mar'i wouldn't understand what a date was.

(He knew, because she'd handed him the fruit when he asked for the calendar date.)

Reaching out for Midii's hand, he tries to assuage her worries with,] Come on, it's high tea at the library. It was practically made for [you] us.

[Worries? Not so much. It was more like a subtle...exasperation. Because he did, and as welcome as she was for it, that wouldn't change the fact that he was still throwing his money and influence around.]

[...for her.]

'Practically made for us', huh?

[Still, she stepped forward and accepted his hand. Offering hints of a smile of her own. He'd already gone through all the trouble of...having other people go through all the trouble on their behalf. Might as well see just how much.]

I guess...I can't say you don't know me too well.

[He doesn't quite breathe that sight of relief yet, but the tension's gone from his arms as he intertwines his fingers in hers.]

We've been friends for how long? [IE, it would be depressing if he didn't know her inside and out.] You've still got some secrets, but you're also talking to one of the world's best detectives.

[His modesty's getting better: he doesn't proclaim himself the best of the best anymore. But he'll lead her towards the cafe courtyard, where a waiter ushers them into the grand space. It's just the two of them today, and Damian's intent on making the most of it as he accepts a menu.

He doesn't need to read it. He might've come here before, just to make sure it was up to his standards.]

A detective who rarely ever thinks to just ask me up front rather than spend all that extra energy trying to figure things out for himself.

[She was teasing him now; there were things he had asked, of course, and there was never a full guarantee she would answer, besides. Midii rarely lied. Not unless she had a deep, underlying reason to do so. One that usually involved the safety of one or more people involved. But she was very, very good at concealing the truth when she wanted to.]

[She, too, accepted a menu, and was already glancing through the first few entries before they even reached the table. Hey, it was just the two of them, right? No point in playing the role of prim and proper.]

I could, but where's the fun in just asking?

[Damian's teasing too, though his grin seems more like a smirk as he hands back the menu. Most of the menu's fixed - since he did bend a few rules - but the tea's very much her choice.

The waiter goes off to give them a few minutes. Damian sets his menu aside, not even bothering to pretend like he needs to read the options, and reaches out for her hand across the table.]

This way, we can check out the regular library later.

[After debating between a few choices for a moment longer, she made her choice and also placed her menu aside. Signaling to the waiter, whenever they returned, that she was ready to order.]

That sounds goo--

[She felt his fingers brush against her hand and--reflexively, habitually, flinched back. Before realizing her error and quickly returning her hand, allowing her fingers to gently lace with his before looking up with an apologetic smile.]

Sorry.

I'm just...not used to...this.

[Physical affection. Not just from him, although that was still so new as to feel foreign as well. In general.]

Too soon?

[He loosens his grip, careful to keep his voice calm rather than concerned - because he is. Damian's not exactly a cuddle monster, but time with Mar'i and Grayson has made him far more open to the idea than before.

But if it's too much, then it's too much, and he'll let go, no questions asked.

If the waiter's noticed their touch, they make no notice (or attention) of it. So Damian goes ahead and orders,] Um, jasmine tea for me.

[She shook her head, but didn't protest the loosening grip. Yet...she also didn't pull away again.]

No. Not too soon. Just...different.

[Once Damian's order was placed, she turned and offered hers:]

Chamomile Flowers, please.

[The waiter nods, taking the menus from them - everything else is fixed - before heading out.

Damian waits a couple of seconds. Just long enough for them to be out of earshot.]

Good kind of different, I hope.

[A nod. Followed by a sheepish look. Not quite embarrassed, but ...well, Midii had always been rather self-aware. If not about her own feelings in any given moment, then at least a good understanding about why she was the way she was. Why she reacted the way she did.]

Defeinitely a good kind of different.

It's just... [She hesitated, biting her lower lip. This...wasn't easy for her to admit, but Damian deserved honesty.] ...I'm...not used to being treated this way.

[Not kindly, which--hopefully--Damian would understand. They shared a lot of the same friends, after all, and every single one of them had always treated her well. As had the majority of her acquaintances over the years. No, it was more...being treated like a princess. Like she was momentarily the center of someone else's universe. Like she was...was...]

Like I'm...special.

[It would be even more telling, given that...Damian was not her first relationship.]

Oh. [That's not a good sign. Damian sits up straighter, keeping his face as neutral as possible. He's not amazing at this dating thing. He'd only been in two serious relationships, including his current one, but if there's one thing Grayson taught him?

It was to treat every woman like a princess, especially those he loved. Grayson and Kori emulated that every time Damian saw them, and well - it wasn't hard to take notes. Not when that kind of love permeated Wayne Manor, or hell, even the other Bats' relationships.

So when Midii admits it, he's torn between pride (see, Grayson, he's got this down) and rage (gotta go punch that ex). Except hurt takes over, because well, his princess should always have been a princess.]

You're always special, though. Even when I'm not around.

[...please don't punch her ex, Damian.]

I don't suppose that's a point I could argue by mentioning you might be biased.

[It was...difficult for her not to argue. She knew he was right, but it was still such a new feeling, she wasn't sure what to do with it.]

But I... [And, somehow, this part was even more difficult.] ...I think you're special, too. More than you know.

Huh? [His entire train of thought's derailed by that one sentence. She thought he was special? Like sincerely, genuinely special?

That's a new one. Most people considered him an oddball, a bundle of rage waiting for the right target, or worse, some kind of enigma waiting to be unraveled - but when Midii says that, it feels like a compliment.

Damian doesn't get a lot of those either. Not sincerely.] Th-thanks. Really.

[The tables had turned, and she was ready to use this to her advantage.]

Amazing.

[A hint of teasing, but she also knew she wasn't saying anything that wasn't true.]

After all this time...all the things you've seen...[this part, she deliberately lowered her voice to avoid eavesdroppers:] ...all the villains you've faced...[Then back to her normal volume.] ...and I can still disarm you with a single kind word.

What would your archenemies think, Damian?

[She didn't know if he had archenemies or not. It sounded like something a vigilante superhero would have.]

[What would they think, indeed. Damian has to mull about that for a few seconds, before giving Midii a slow smirk.]

They wouldn't. Most of 'em don't last very long when I'm around.

[Okay, so he's exaggerating a little. Only a little, because he has to actively hold himself back for fear of accidentally killing one of them. League training runs too deep, even if he's been trained more as a Bat. Some habits never leave, no matter how much he wants them to.]

But if they were? I'm sure you'd leave them all speechless.

[She...tried not to think of the more violent implications of that statement. But, in the end, she knew who Damian was. What he did. And she'd long ago learned to accept that part of him, too.]

I suppose it wouldn't be the first time.

I've always been drawn the to quiet type.

[Meant to be a humorous quip, though she...unintentionally referenced that ex of hers again. As well as Damian, to a degree, though he was far more talkative.]

[Him, quiet? Damian raised his eyebrows unintentionally because that's the last word he'd use to describe himself. He didn't have the gift of gab or anything, but reserved and quiet wasn't... his wheelhouse...

Did she mean the ex? That didn't sit too well with him. Which is why he's so grateful when the food finally arrives. Saved by the promise of savory and sweet things, thank God.]

If that was a hint, Midii... [He's teasing, though it's harder for him than usual.] I'll keep it in mind.

[She was usually so careful about her words, to have a (not so) minor slip of the tongue like that...]

[Fortunately, the food arrived in time to save her from having to dive into less than pleasant territory. Even more fortunately...Damian--either not wanting to talk about it either, or genuinely misunderstanding--was giving her an out. One she was a little too eager to take.]

Not that I don't enjoy your stories from time to time, of course. But sometimes, a girl does enjoy some peace and quiet, even in the company of others.

[With that, she reached for what looked like the cup of tea she had ordered. It's aroma was mouth-watering.]

Then again, the two of us combined could never talk anywhere near as much as Jai does.

Gee, for some reason, I never noticed.

[He takes a sip of his tea, if only to prevent him from smiling. It must be a good day if he's laughing at his own (lackluster) attempts at a joke. Which only becomes a full-blown laugh when he hears his best friend's name.]

That's because Jai's made it his life goal to talk a mile a minute. Why say two words when you can say twenty two?

[For all she still didn't know or sometimes overlooked about the boy...she made up for with what she did know of him. As such, she could only smile as the expected reaction was given.]

Twenty two words...and, half the time, almost none of them actually make any sense.

[Not that she didn't adore Jai in her own way. He really was a good friend. Just...a very verbose one. And she had been serious about her wanting her quiet time ever now and then.]

Your friends... [She said your still out of habit, as they had technically been his friends first, even though she considered them to be her friends as well now.] ...to this day, I'm still not sure I've ever met a greater contrast in personalities. And that includes my brief time in the system.

They're your friends too, you know. [A few months ago, he might've glossed over the truth, because who wants to admit that they were forced together? Grayson and Wally were best friends. Ergo, Damian and Jai needed to be best friends too. Ditto for Chris and Irey and basically any legacy he'd stumbled across -]

But they're also old family friends. I would've spent too much time with them anyways.

[Still, his tone's light and teasing, because he knows. Under normal circumstances, he would've never sought them out. Jai was a motormouth; Irey insisted on poking her nose everywhere; Milagro had her pride; and even Chris had his moments of judgment. Save for Colin, he hadn't wanted their company. Not at first.

Then a few months had turned into years, and well? He stopped minding their incessant intrusions, and in turn, they changed him. People change people. Wasn't that how it went?]

Edited 2016-07-16 17:30 (UTC)

...yeah. I know.

[And she smiled. Soft, warm, and genuine. The kind of smile that Jai would have teased her for if he'd caught sight of it. Her eyes looked to the ground, thoughts flooding with some of the more pleasant memories she'd shared. Because he was right. Sure, she'd met them through Damian...but over time...]

[Jai had been the first, of course. Eager and ready to accept her. Something about anybody willing to put up with Damian the way she did must have had the patient of a saint. Which, of course, meant he could ramble to her all day long without fear of revenge.]

[Spoilers: no, he couldn't. But it was sweet of him to try. The first three times. After that...well...]

[Irey was always the one to call her out on her sober moods, but Midii would forever be grateful for the way she was able to keep her brother in line. Chris was...nervous around her sometimes. Or maybe just unsure what to say. Though that hardly compared to the tension between her and Milagro, because of...certain reasons...but whatever silence those two often carried, Colin would make up for it with his cheerful self. Jai had made the first attempt to welcome her, but Colin's had been the most sincere.]

Come to think of it, though...I haven't really seen them in a while. Not together, I mean.

[She'd seen the twins around, and Colin occasionally checked in on her. They even had breakfast together a few weeks back.]

I guess everyone's been so busy.

[Now that she mentioned it, they had been pretty busy. Normally, Damian would chalk it up to world-saving shenanigans, but that couldn't be it. Aliens hadn't tried to invade the planet in at least half a year (and even then, the Lanterns had that on lockdown).

Damian was prepping to inherit Wayne Enterprises from Father - or handle more business things than Father did, and if he had post-college plans? Surely everyone else did too. Brown had told him that it was a natural part of growing up. Your friends would always be around in your heart, even if they weren't physically capable of dropping everything.

He sips on his tea, mostly to gather his thoughts.]

I guess. We're... growing up, right?

[It's with reluctance that he admits it, because he'd never imagined them feeling or looking so old. Grayson and Todd were always big brothers. He never dreamed of reaching their ages, not when he was ten years old.]

It's only natural that we're getting bogged down with our own things... even us.

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[closed] tale as old as time

first date!!

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