sheridan | [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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[It was like ~movie magic~]

[Ironically, she found his lack of "proper" manners in the moment--or, rather, the handfuls of popcorn and eye-rolling--almost endearing. Moments when he not only acted just as any teenager would, but moments when he was acting like himself. At ease and neither filtered nor in need of putting on an act.]

Admittedly, they're not as much fun as when we were younger. Trailers back then were a much better game to play.

But sometimes, there's still enough to be learned from the ones that play now.

Like what? [ It's a genuine question as he crosses his legs and kicks against the seat in front of him. As no one's in front, it's far from rude. Impolite, and rough, but when it's just them? He doesn't see the point in a filter. She knows what she's gonna get. ] What the editors felt like prioritizing?

Or what they think will sell seats?

[She absolutely knows. Although sometimes, she wondered if Damian knew what he would get from her in return. Or if he was still learning.]

It's a mixture of both, really.

Once in a while, they even succeed. But the rest of the time, they miss the mark so hard, it's almost funny.

Oh, like the one we're currently watching?

[ He laughs, gesturing towards the screen where the trailer's cut as if it's ostensibly a rom-com. Guaranteed to be the love story of the year, etc.

Except it's a Simon Snow movie. AKA an actual fantasy novel where the romance is almost always in the backseat. Damian rolls his eyes, but truthfully, he'll probably be in line opening night.

Kid never gave up on a good fantasy. ]

[Damian and his fantasies. For his sake, she hoped that movie was nothing like the trailer was presenting it as.]

Unfortunately.

See, this is what happens when people in charge of all this think they'll get more women at the theater if they highlight the romance. But at the same time, they risk turning away the very same people a movie like this would be written for. Including women who might not care about the romance. It's...pretty dumb.

That's what you get when you think of money, not the reason you're telling a story to begin with.

[ He sounds more like Grayson (and Kori) than he realizes, but Damian doesn't pay it much mind as he helps himself to some more popcorn. He's got his favorite person in the world next to him. He doesn't need to put on an act. Might as well let all those unfiltered thoughts fly out the door. ]

You wouldn't see it, right? Based off that crappy editing?

Based on the editing, absolutely not.

[Although, here, she hesitated. It was clear she had more to say, but was debating whether or not she should. Until finally she sheepishly slouched in her chair and admitted:]

...but I did read the book. [Surprisingly, perhaps, if only because it wasn't her usual genre of choice.] And it was really good.

Really? [ He sits up now, spilling kernels onto that dark movie theater floor. While he and Midii often read the same novels, it's not because their tastes overlap. More often than not, they didn't. So for her to admit that she liked Simon Snow as much as he did...

Well. Damian's just glad the theater's too dark for her to see how red his face is. ]

I've got the rest back in the Manor, if you want to borrow them.

[She weighed the pros and cons of telling him she'd only read it in the first place because she'd learned it was one he'd liked. And not recently, either.]

If you don't mind.

How many are there?

Five. [ and just because he's already excited, he'll spill the beans on what he knows about the next: ] She's working on the sixth right now. It's supposed to be twice as long as the last.

[It probably was a good thing he had bought out the theater after all. They were nearly speaking at full volume now, and the next preview was all but forgotten in favor of the spontaneous topic of conversation at hand.]

I'm assuming the last one was pretty long already. [Not that she minded. She did enjoy reading, and if the later books were as good as the first, she knew she would enjoy them.] When would be a good time to stop by the manor? Or should we go after the movie?

[ Damian snorts, having sincerely forgotten about the screening he bought out - ] You know my family. Anytime's fine.

[ Hell, Brown had jokingly yelled for Midii to stay "forever" one time. Damian has never let her forget it, terrible reference to a Disney film aside. ]

Assuming I don't have to patrol, we can go after.

When will you know for certain if you have to or not?

[Because, fondness for Stephanie and Dick in particular aside, she was absolutely not going to the manor without him. The former might actually try to kidnap her and keep her, and the latter had every chance of being an enabler in the matter.]

After the movie. Knowing... my associates, they're trying to be "polite."

[ He's probably openly talked about the Batfamily also being his family, given how much he cares for Midii, but there might be onlookers. Or kids sneaking into the theater.

A Bat can never be too paranoid. ]

If your associates--[She picked up on his continued insistence on remaining vague, despite the fact it was just the two of them. There could have been someone in the projector room with good hearing, she supposed, or an usher around the corner awaiting the needs of a Wayne, just in case.]--wanted to be polite, they should give you more advanced warning for these things.

[Which isn't to say she didn't understand. She did. Sometimes, these things were entirely contingent upon Gotham's nightlife. If activity was slow, they really wouldn't know until after sunset at the earliest.]

Yeah, well... I'm operating under the assumption that I have to.

[ He reaches for some more popcorn, feigning nonchalance. Now, he kind of gets why Grayson and Drake didn't want to go every single night. Maybe it's payback for how often his younger self was racing to fight crime - but at ten, he didn't have an inkling of what (or who) could be more important.

Family. Loved ones. A semblance of a normal life. Even these quiet moments were more than he'd ever known, and he can't quite help reaching over with his free hand and trying to sling his arm around her shoulders.

At least they've got this movie - and possible inaccuracies to whine to Diana about later. ]

[She might not have been as close to Diana, but she was already prepared to mentally take notes on the film to discuss later. With Damian, but with Diana if she were invited into that conversation.]

[In the meantime...she felt his arm oh so subtly sneak up and wrap itself around her shoulder. She, in turn, chose to not mention or indicate her awareness of it in any way except to maybe lean a little closer against him, reaching for her drink to sip on as the last of the previews faded away and the indication that their Feature Presentation was starting.]

[Dim as the lighting was, Damian would still be able to see her face break into a wide smile of excitement.]

[closed] tale as old as time

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