OPEN;

[fishnets]

Characters: sdrawkcabcigam and YOU!
Location: Papercut Books & Antiquities, Bitch's Brew Bar, and anywhere in between the two! Please specify where in the subject line!
Rating: TBA.
Time: Afternoon or early evening!
Description: Zatanna's on the look out for a new manager, but don't let that stop you from bothering her!

Comments

[fishnets]

[If they weren't having their... issues right now and they hadn't met before, this would be their "meet cute." Except they do, unfortunately, have issues. And they have met before. And they've lived together and there has been plenty of avoidance over the past two weeks.

She doesn't quite realize who he is as she just barely manages to brace herself for the fall, hands pressing against the pavement, mop of dark hair obscuring her view.] Christmas is over, there's no need to be in such a rush.

[It takes her a moment to get herself together and to her feet; that's when she sees him and her face turns a little pale. Damn it, if she hadn't said anything, she could have just been on her merry way...]

[fishnets]

Yeah, well, I'm not going to slit someone's throat for a video game or a CD. [She smooths out her coat, hands sliding down to dust snow off the tails. She gives her fishnets a check, since she can't just magically fix them anymore and they're so prone to tears. They're lookin' a-okay.]

Same as it ever was, same as it ever was, same as it ever was. [Quickly, almost in a sing-song voice. It's obviously lyrics. She brushes a strand of hair behind an ear, trying to keep herself from fidgeting.] What I mean is that I'm okay.

barrr

[rudolphofvamps]

[He slides into a spinny bar stool and swings around, waiting for her to take notice of him as he leans forward against the bar.]

I don't see a bendy straw back here, luv.

[fishnets]

[how ~dramatique~ of him. she almost laughs. almost.]

Lucky for you -- [she pulls one out of her breast pocket (neon green, just like she said!).] -- I picked one up along the way.

[rudolphofvamps]

You spoil me, really.

[fishnets]

I try. [She dangles it in front of him, complete with smarmy expression.]

Papercut

[stalwartcane]

[Watson is making his way into the shop -- to buy a notebook, something a little more fancy and... perhaps old-looking -- and is looking around the store curiously. He'd been here once in a while, but back then, he hadn't had the money to buy most things. That's changed now, but it's time that he doesn't have in surplus.]

[He rounds a shelf and spots Zatanna.]

Why, how pleasant it is to see you here!

[fishnets]

[Of course Zatanna's life wasn't complicated enough, so why not have her bump into Watson? She hadn't really seen him since that whole... awkward debacle where she confessed she had feelings for him (which was mostly just a proposal to sleep with him and still keep the benefits of his friendship). Of course that had backfired and he'd been more than pleasant, but... uh. How exactly do you talk to someone after that sort of thing like everything was perfectly fine?

She jumps a little when he speaks to her, offering him a warm little smile.] Hello, John. [She half-regrets using his given name, but no use crying over spilled milk.]

[stalwartcane]

[It was regretfully awkward, yes, but Watson is a gentleman -- more to the point, he's an open-minded gentleman who tries very hard to understand these more modern conventions (like fishnet stockings and the concept of not wearing little anything while in public).

He's concluded that it's best to put it behind them, to resume friendship because friendship is important and what he feels they both need. There are plenty of other men out there who can join her in bed (but only if they aren't terrible creatures, and if they take a bath first).]

[Don't worry about the name; look, he'll use yours.]

It's been a while, Zee. Are you here to look for something specific?

[fishnets]

[If she had known he was going to run into her, she'd have worn a pair of pants. She hadn't honored his unspoken requests in the past just because she hoped to get into his pants. She, too, had her moments of consideration (which were, at times, surprisingly more common than one might think).

She brings a hand to the side of her neck, resting it there. (Okay, so maybe she'll never get over that giddy little feeling when she talks to him. Shut up.)]

It has, yes. I... ah, thought I was, but I tend to find myself wandering. I come with something in mind and want to take half the store home with me. It's a terrible habit, I know. [She crosses the distance, but leaves some space between them.] And you, if you don't mind me asking?

bar!

[superboobies]

[ The most cheerful woman to ever step foot in death city, Rangiku Matsumoto, appears to have been here for quite a while, with the impressive entirely empty bottles she currently has resting on the counter next to her. Of course, her perception and hand eye coordination being off while drunk has no place on her mind as her hand accidentally hits her drink and spills some directly towards Zantanna.

Rangiku just ends up frowning and begins to whine. ]

Argh! Damn it! Why do my drinks always end up spilling?! These things shouldn't happen to good people!

[fishnets]

[Zatanna's at that point in life where she tries not to get too drunk in public. At home, in particular, it means a media frenzy and all the bad PR in the world. She doesn't go out much -- drinking, at least -- any longer. She frowns a little at the lack of an apology, but she figured any other time she'd be that asshole sitting next to this woman, cackling and hoping the bar was full enough that some creep in the corner'd buy them new drinks.

So instead, she waves the bartender over and gets the woman one of those super-huge, sturdy glasses with a straw and fruity drink inside and scoots over a few spots.] It's just a fact of life: bad things always happen to the best people.

I am sorry for this! || 1/3

[superboobies]

[ Rangiku, for some reason, is a lieutenant of an army that guides the spiritual world at large. No one bats an eye at her getting drunk in public.

With her approach, Rangiku first notices the ridiculously over-sized but very sturdy glass. ]

[superboobies]

[ At realizing that it's for her, the only thing she can properly process is whatever the feudal Japan version of this song could be. ]

For me...? [ She takes a sip of it, still with a complete pants-on-head stupefied look on her face. ]

bar!

[want_the_world]

[Dealing with a partner pretending for all he's worth that certain things never happened, and the dawning realization that the person he's aspired to be all his life makes a terrible roommate can take it out of someone. Mello feels he more than deserves a drink or three.

He recognizes Zatanna from her video posts--he gives everything on the network a glance, even if he doesn't reply to most of it.]

Hey. How about that drink?

It's Mello. Not a big believer in the video function.

[fishnets]

[Not quite the same thing she's been dealing with, but similar to a certain degree -- basically in that it's stressful and taking its toll on them. People are frustrating beyond belief.]

Or several, if you still need 'em. [She obviously recognizes the name, greeting him with a smile, gesturing to the stool beside her.] I'm a really touchy-feely sort . I convey myself best with movements, I think. Anyway, good to meet you -- in person, I mean.

[want_the_world]

Heh, more than ever. Whiskey, please. Single malt.

[Mello returns the smile, though it's more an upward quirk of one corner of his mouth for him, and takes the offered seat, sizing her up out of habit. She's quite attractive in person, possibly more than over the network. He's already surmised she wears her heart on her sleeve, which admittedly might be biasing him in her favor.]

Things any better with your partner?

[fishnets]

You heard the man! [She waves at the bartender (who thankfully seems to find her charming).

He'd be right in that assumption. She's that person who cares too much -- and then trouble follows her because of that.] Well, a friend of his called me a crazy bitch and we bumped into one another earlier. He was... pretty cold, to be honest. Thing I'm just going to suck it up and talk to him about it. Maybe punch him square in the jaw while I'm at it.