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[thetomorrownews]

Confetti, glowsticks, free hot chocolate for all the kiddies, and an awful lot of boys in blue -- it's New Year's Eve in Gotham City. This year, as with most other years, the main festivities are being held at Merchant's Square. Neatly affixed to one of the taller buildings, there's a giant, video screen and throughout the evening there will be

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[goshdarnniteowl]

There may be a few... not-so-official enforcers of justice wandering around, too. At least one, anyway. Daniel -- mouth a thin, serious line, dark circles underneath his eyes -- shivers and pulls his coat tighter, scanning the crowd. Everything looks okay so far, but with this many people...

[hopeyrhappytoo]

Alex decided that it'd be much more conducive to a healthy family mental state to spend new year's eve in the middle of a crowded event than it would be to spend it indoors watching tv. So, she dragged her daughter and godfather out to Merchant's Square and sent them off a'mingling with orders to report back every 30 minutes. (It is Gotham, after all)

Though, given how cold it is, she may regret this decision come tomorrow when everyone comes down with a bug.

[goshdarnniteowl]

Oh, hey, Dr. Drake, look! It's an orderly! Clutching a styrofoam cup full of hot chocolate and looking even more miserable than the cold should probably account for. He waves when he recognises her, though, one thick leather (leather?) gloved hand, and tries for a smile.

[hopeyrhappytoo]

Oh, dear. Well, Dr. Drake will just have to go right over to that orderly and see what's up, won't she? "Enjoying yourself?"

[goshdarnniteowl]

You know, that really has to hurt, pretending to smile so hard.

"Hi, Doctor Drake. I wish it wasn't so cold."

[laughing_magus]

Ah, New Year's. A fine excuse for liquor, frivolity, and sex with a stranger. Two out of three, so far, anyway. John carries his G&T out of one of the bars lining the square and goes back to watching the big tv with the rest of his new town. He should leave. Part of him knows that. But something tells him to stay. There's more for him to do in Gotham, still. Besides, there's still plenty of underground gambling he isn't banned from yet.

Now, where to begin the evening's flirting?

[goshdarnniteowl]

Well, probably not with any of that trio over there, talking a bit awkwardly. Vaguely familiar looking lot, aren't they?

The youngest one, a somewhat 'soft' looking, if rather tall, man, seems to think the same. His eyes land on John, then flicker to his companions. First Walter, then Dr. Drake.

"...um, doctor..." he says, voice low. "Don't look behind you."

[hopeyrhappytoo]

Oh come on, Dan. Now she wants to look behind her. That's like telling someone not to look at an elephant. "Why not?"

[holyrorschach]

Walter glances and his eyes widen. His face even reddens a little. It's only a second before he starts moving towards the escaped patient.

[hedbonesoftruth]

Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird. It's a plane. No..no no... It's a bitter, tattooed, shirtless man in a coat and boxers standing on his apartment balcony drinking out of a bottle of whiskey and smoking like a chimney. He has a shiny, paper top-hat on, guys. It's festive!

"Don't you fuckin look at me like that you wankstain. This is not indecent exposure. You wanna see indecent? Eyes on the show, you bastards!"

[scratch9]

...Somewhere, there may be pointing. And laughing!

[toaskorinquire]

Aww. It's Spider! Query, fairly drunk, waves at him a teeny bit before remembering she's probably not supposed to do that. Oh well. It's only a few moments among the crowd, so he may have missed it.

[scratch9]

So she's spiked her hot chocolate. Can you blame her, in this kind of cold? And it goes so well with cigarettes. Especially the kind of cigarettes in long holders. Which in turn go well with sunglasses, which themselves are really good for covering up the kind of bruising that goes along with getting one's nose broken a few days previous.

She hasn't been in Merchant's Square in so long. It's somewhat gratifying to see that it hasn't changed all that much. More neon, maybe, and more trash in the gutters, but that's to be expected.

She cuts through the crowd like a knife, unconsciously, relaxing into the noise.

[toaskorinquire]

Someone else has spiked her hot chocolate too, and has had quite a lot of it. Query stumbles into Selina due to the over-hilarity of her fellow party goers and immediately reaches to steady the other woman.

"Sorry! Oh, sorry... did you spill anything? You can have mine!" She says loudly and cheerfully, somewhat louder than is strictly necessary to be heard over the crowd. Her coat is half falling off but she doesn't seem to mind, revealing tattoos. "Cool cigarette holder. Thingy."

[scratch9]

She's more amused, than anything else, steadying Query as much as Query's trying to steady her.

"No, no, you're fine. I'm fine. Thanks." Nothing got on her dress, anyway. That's good. Oh, is that whiskey? She was going with brandy, herself. She peers at the girl's ink for a moment. "Oooh, where did you get those?"

[toaskorinquire]

Pleased to have made a new acquaintance, she beams the genial beam of the inebriated and peers at herself as if that will help her answer. "Oh... North Carolina, all of 'em. Heh, not exactly the number one tourist destination, but Jay's Magic and Ink in Asheville is great, if you're ever around."

Ah. A chatty one. She fumbles out a smoke herself, lighting it dreamily. "Man, Gotham rocks." ... well. That's a... special opinion.