That old wanderlust

[fast_thrower]

It wasn't like Owen hadn't enjoyed being part of the Titans, they were a great bunch, but he just couldn't stay cooped up in some HQ all the time. He needed to get back on the road now and then. Even if he wasn't jetting off for some wild and crazy vacation, just to be on the move felt good

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[themightyoracle]

Barbara had taken to being just as reclusive as certain other members of her 'family', especially recently. She could get anything and find any information she wanted directly from her apartment. There were very few reasons for her to leave the house if she didn't want to, which is why forcing herself to take a break from her computers and come down to the library - once her home away from home - was so important.

After saying hello to the librarians and other staff, Babs went and found the books she was looking for and headed to a table. She pulled her laptop from the bag attached to the back of her chair, and set it up, accessing the library WiFi. She'd stay the afternoon and do some research, and who knows? Perhaps she'd actually find what she was looking for.

[fast_thrower]

Owen had some blueprints piled up in his arms, blocking his view as he bumped into something. Something metal and all of a sudden smacking into his shin.

"Oof! Sonnova..." He clears his throat loudly to keep from letting that outburst go any further.

He sets the blueprints down and leans against a chair to rub his shin. He's about to express some reasonably polite annoyance, when he sees what and who he bumped into.

"...hey."

[themightyoracle]

Babs gasped in surprise as her chair suddenly jolted. She'd been careful not to let her chair stick out too far into the aisle, but either she'd moved, or he hadn't been watching where he was going. In the interest of politeness, she took it upon herself to apologize.

"Are you alright? I'm so sorry; I try to keep this thing out of the way, but sometimes I'm pretty certain it has a mind of it's..." looking up at his face, she realized two important facts that superseded all other information she took in at a glance. First: she knew this man. Second: he didn't know her, or even that she knew him.

Babs just barely masked her surprise behind a friendly smile, holding out her hand for him to shake. "My name's Barbara Gordon, or just Babs. Sorry again about the chair."

[fast_thrower]

Owen smiles and shakes his head as he sets his foot down. He shakes her hand eagerly. "Owen Mercer, charmed Babs." He grins. "Sorry about the jolt, carrying too much."

He hesitates for a moment, then nods to the table. "Mind if I join you?" He gathers up his blueprints again.

[themightyoracle]

"Not at all." Babs gestures to the half of the table she wasn't using, making sure her stack of books wasn't encroaching on his space.

"Blueprints? It's good to know someone looks at those. I always wondered if they were of use to anyone, or if City Hall was just using us for extra storage." Frowning, afraid she might have insulted him, she added, "No offense. I used to work here, is all I meant."

[fast_thrower]

"Heh, nah, I'm just a big mechanical design nerd. Got a hobby I do a lot of metal-work for." A pause. "Model planes. Always looking for different places to draw inspiration from." Owen flashes her a particular smile at that, as he spreads them out, pulling out his notebook again.

"And what's the smart lady reading today?"

[themightyoracle]

"Uh..." Babs looked a little embarrassed. This wasn't her usual reading material. "I'm doing some research on magic, actually. And time-travel." She showed him the cover of the books with a self-deprecating grin. "It's a pet project, right now. Nothing serious.

"Model planes? Any particular design, or just whatever interests you? Or do you design your own?"

[fast_thrower]

"Uhh... my own designs. Flying wing type stuff."

Owen looks over her books, smirking. "What kind of pet project? You don't exactly look like the girls I remember being into that stuff in high school." He chuckles and winks at her.

[themightyoracle]

She laughs at his comment, shrugging her shoulders. "I'm exploring the theories of ancient Egyptian time-travel, via the use of magic. I was reading some scholarly essays, and one of the authors put forth a theory involving... well, it's not important. I was just curious about how accurate his information was, so I'm looking things up for myself."

The story is a lie, and she's perfected the bat poker-face over the years enough to feel comfortable doing it, even about a subject she feels so passionately about. But the truth is infinitely stranger than fiction, and she's not ready to share that with most others, let alone... well, he wasn't exactly a stranger, now, was he?

"Anyway, I like to come here once a week to just sit and read, I suppose. Different things. I spent so much time here that it's like a second home to me."

[fast_thrower]

He nods and smiles. "I like libraries, but it's my first time at this one. I've... been on the move for a while."

Owen pauses, then feels the need to clarify. "Not that I'm homeless or anything."

[themightyoracle]

Smiling, Babs shakes her head. "Wandering spirit? I've met a few of them in my time. I myself tend to stay here in Gotham."

She can't help feeling pride for the library she ran for so many years. "Gotham Public Library is one of the best in the nation. We've... or, I should say they've got the largest collection of antiquities and illuminated texts outside of the Smithsonian, and the lending library is second to none." Tucking her hair behind her ear, she feels a moment of embarrassment for her pride, but she can't help loving this place.

"Are you living here in Gotham now, or just passing through?"

[fast_thrower]

"You're a native Gothamite, huh? Tough girl I'm guessing." He grins.

Owen catches those adjustments in her statements, and also smirks as he watches that hair tuck. That's nice.

"Just passing through. This weekend's road trip." He shrugs. "Libraries are usually a good quiet place to relax for a couple hours. Coffee houses have turned into a tactical assault of french vanilla and industrial jazz funk whatever the heck the kids are listening to these days."

He pauses, raising an eyebrow. "Unless you know of some good old fashioned non-trendy non-progressive no-need-to-specify-a-flavor place around here?"

[themightyoracle]

"I'm originally from Chicago, actually. I moved here when I was thirteen to live with my dad. Been here ever since, though. Even graduated from Gotham State University."

Babs' eyes widened in mock horror. "No flavors? Then how will we get a satisfying sugar-high?" Grinning, she continues. "There are probably one or two places I could refer you to, varying in quality. I usually just make my own though."

[fast_thrower]

Owen smirks, feeling bold. "And what's it take a guy to get you to make him a cup? For all I can put together, a coffee-maker still stops me in my tracks."

[themightyoracle]

Babs wishes she were cleverer at this sort of thing, but while she can re-wire a hard drive six ways from Saturday, she's never really gotten a handle on the whole flirting thing. Except with Dick. Especially when the person in question was another superhero... except Dick.

"I don't know... there might be a problem with that. I'm... sort of seeing someone. Sort of." She frowns, considering the nebulous, although recently more formal, relationship that is hers with the former Boy Wonder. "Anyway, he tends to get... grouchy when I invite over strange men I've just met for coffee." She smiles apologetically.

[fast_thrower]

Owen tilts his head curiously. "How much 'sort of'?"