11825/Ketch-up

Ketch-up
Date of Scene:	29 June 2022
Location:	Robbinsville - Bleake Island
Synopsis:	When Daniel Ketch wanders into the Wrong Bar in Gotham, it ends up becoming a brawl when Phoebe Beacon is accused of cheating at cards. Cassandra takes a seat at the bar (because it was thrown at her), and the two Gotham Girls have a 'quiet' moment after the fight.
Cast of Characters:	Phoebe Beacon, Daniel Ketch, Cassandra Cain

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Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The place was a bit of a dive, called The Bowl. A joke about the nearby area called The Cauldren. It was in a rough neighborhood and probably used to be some swank place back in the 40's when the area was for Gotham's more affluent 'city homes' -- now a days? Not so much. The seats were ripped and full of cigarette burns. The tables were stained and there were some sticky spots on the floor that just didn't go away.

    The good thing was, on Wednesday nights, they had twenty-five cent wings. The best way to get people in was to sell something cheap, and then mark up their beer by a buck a glass to make up for it.

    All in all, not a place that you'd bring a dat,e not a place you'd bring your mom, definitely not a place for the more genteel of Gotham's population.

    Matter of fact, some jerk just got thrown out the side door for presumably trying to cheat at the pool table in the back. Which was much nicer than the usual stabbing.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
There is something weird about Gotham. Okay, no, there is plenty weird about Gotham. But the point is that the Ghost Rider sticks to New York and rarely goes to the nearby, and infamously far worst city of Gotham, where there are so many wrongs to avenge he might even get tired of doing it.

Kidding, he never gets tired of avenging things. It is like breathing for him.

But the Rider is a rare sight in Gotham. Daniel suspects there is something supernatural, maybe something like an anti-vengeance spirits ward that keeps him away. Whatever it is, he is not affected. Well, no more than any other allegedly sane New Yorker. You don't see many of them in Gotham.

Maybe because in New York people don't throw people like that. Danny -barely- dodges the flying jerk as he steps into the dive. How can someone cheat at pool, anyway?

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    There's lots weird about Gotham, and that's coming from someone who called both this city and New York home at different times in her life.

    The patrons in the bar look a bit rowdy. A couple different gang colors are represented here, the LoBoyz in particular. A couple of people stop talking, pausing to look up at Daniel as he walks in. Someone taps another person on the shoulder. The ancient jukebox in the corner is playing mumble rap.

    It's not even good mumble rap.

    The pool game appears to go on in the back, minus one player. The remaining one-on-two looks rather nervous.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
Gang colors, check. He should have Googled the gangs in Gotham, but he didn't come here for them. He did Google about the Five Families a while ago, but this is not that kind of bar.

His eyes roam over the crowd quickly, but he fails to spot any familiar face. So, instead, he heads for the bar, considering the drinks on the shelves. But no, he just asks for a beer. Both in consideration to his wallet and the fact it is -Gotham- and he is sure the Rider will want out sooner or later. He needs all his wits.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    A cheap beer is poured and set in front of Daniel. "Opening a tab, buddy?" the bartender asks, and then there's a bit of a kerfuffle at the far end. A figure in an orange sweatshirt is grabbed and pinned against a table with an awkward sounding yelp, the hood falling down and the familiar face of one Phoebe Beacon showing, her fingers balling up into a loose fist.

    "Looks like we're gettin' all sorts of cheaters tonight, huh boys? First we have some small jeffe cheating at the pool table, and now we have a little shawty tryin' to cheat my man at cards!"

    Phoebe struggles a moment, looking down the bar to Daniel, and back to the large man accusing her of cheating, mutely taking the accusations!

Daniel Ketch has posed:
"Uh, no..." Daniel puts a five on the bar and grabs the beer. At least it is kind of cool. It is one of those scorching summer Gotham evening. In New York it was merely warm, oddly enough.

But before he can get a taste, his attention is drawn to a cheating person by the poker table. Maybe it is one of those dive bars. And then he spots Phoebe. Phoebe cheats at poker? Wait, Phoebe plays poker? He has a moment of cognitive dissonance, and then he abandons his beer to see what is really going on.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe can play poker. Phoebe does not cheat at poker... often. She winces as the back of the table presses into her back, the eighteen-year-old probably not even supposed to be in here. She gives a pleading look to Daniel again as he stands up, and she turns back to the man, Ruffian Number One, who pulls out a knife from his pocket, and flicks the switchblade up.

    "Be a shame to mark up your pretty face, girlie. So you just drop the remainder of your daddy's money an' maybe we'll let you leave with just a little something to remember us by." he suggests. Two and Three begin to laugh, Four -- who's a bigger guy, six six and built like a fridge stands up, putting his cards down.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
One, two, three... he can handle three thugs. Four, five and six... big sixth too. Daniel is -not- that good in a brawl. However, he has some very self-destructive impulses, which maybe explains why he grabs the Ruffian One's wrist and pulls him away from Phoebe. "How was she cheating? She is just a kid, you asshole," he grunts. "C'mon, step back and let her breathe," he yells the others.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Oh. This was going to be a brawl. There's already anger and aggression in the air, and as Ketch reaches to grab the wrist of the knife hand, One turns to try and coldcock him on the face.

    "Get back to your beer man, you don't want no trouble with us!" he warns. Two reaches over to try and push Daniel away at the same time as three reaches for a heavy bottle someone abandoned on the counter -- only to find it quickly snatched.

    Phoebe turns the bottle over her hand, grasping it by the handle and uses a backhand blow to try and take Three by surprise. Four, Five and Six throw down their cards and aren't about to let one of their teammates get messed up by a *girl*

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Back to back (metaphorically speaking) Daniel and Phoebe find themselves up against too many. There's a lot going on, so happily the antagonistically oriented group do have time to glance around.

One, one of the more alert ones, pauses. He's seen something that makes him blink, and which flips his personal panic switch. He says, "Um, guys?" But then his face drains of all colour, as he reorients on something a bit scarier than the ones he and his buds were about to shit-kick.

Because without any warning, someone has appeared on top of the bar. Hunched down low, the girl's face is an advertisement for death. Cassandra Cain hasn't even moved and she's already taken out one of them. With sheer attitude alone.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
Daniel manages to half-block the punch to his face with his free arm. He is still momentarily stunned, so Ruffian One pulls free. "Yeah, I want no trouble, lets chill, I can pay you a round and..." he starts as the two men push him away.

And then Phoebe grabs the bottle and cracks it on number three. Right. And she seemed like a nice, quiet girl. "Ah, to the hell with that," he aims a right hook at Ruffian One. Mostly because he still has a knife. Also, they are all looking the wrong direction and getting pale? That helps.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe gives an awkward smile. They had her with a knife, she wasn't about to go down that easily.

    Her head tilts back, her eyebrows drawing up, her lips pulling into a bright smile as she sees Cassandra Cain has joined the fight. Oh, well, this is both good and bad news!

    Three goes down. ONe takes the right hook to the face and gives a grunt as he tries to blindly slice at Daniel's chest. Two is also trying to grab at Daniel.

    Six is caught in the staredown and is drawing backwards. Five and Massive Four look ready for a fight though -- Four picks up a barstool and slings it at Cassandra, while Five attempts a haymaker at Phoebe!

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass isn't moving. She keeps the two in her peripheral vision, actually able to keep a pretty good eye on the entire room like that, but keeps that one guy pinned with her death stare. It's as if a person can see into your body, with every instinct seen before you can do it. It's the fear of a lion looking down at you, knowing that if it's hungry, you are done. And hoping that it's already eaten.

The barstool makes her turn away. She doesn't evade though. Catching it well enough, she takes the momentum and steps back off of the bar-top, taking her feet as if she'd planned it all. Then she looks at the stool, held in her hands, and back at the guy who threw it.

Clearly taking it as an invitation, Cass smiles evilly and places the stool down. She then begins to walk around the bar, toward the man. As Daniel and Phoebe handle their own in a much faster paced fight.

Cass plans to enjoy hers.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
This time Daniel manages to catch Ruffian One's arm more firmly, and use his impulse to maneuver him in the path of Number Two. Long enough to break his wrist. The knife falls to the floor, and One screams in pain, and Daniel manages to shove him away just as the second thug tackles him against the wall from a side, making him grunt in pain.

Bad position for Daniel, who has his head smashed against the wall a couple times before he can duck and kick the legs of the second thug under him, sending him to the ground.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The barstool is caught by Cassandra. She calmly puts it down, evocative of a certain movie regarding robots that travel through time to kill people named Sarah Conner.

    Six squeaks, and makes the wise decision to Get Out Of The Bowl.

    Four, Six foot Six and huge, crackles his knuckles as he looks at Cassandra.

    "Normally I don't hit girls, but it looks like it's Lady's Night tonight." he snarls, and as Cassandra makes her way to him, he gives a roar and just tries to tackle her into the bar, to use his bulk against the smaller fighter.

    Phoebe had ducked the haymaker Five threw at her, and she comes in low, back-leg sweeping her ruffian before tossing a handy pool-cue to Cassandra.

    One and two are definitely not having a good day. One's wrist is broken and he screams out, and Two THOUGHT he had Daniel on the ropes until he ALSO went down, hitting the floor hard with a grunt -- and grabbing someone's discarded beer bottle he tries to sling that at Daniel's face!

    "Shoulda stayed outta our business!" he snarls, as if his side was winning.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass has a moment to glance at Daniel. He seems like he could use a hand. It's only a moment though, as some guy is making wordbabble at her. His body language is hostile, if a bit worried deep down.

She lifts her right hand and the pool cue slaps into her hand, just as Wordbabble Guy launches himself at her. She didn't even LOOK. No fair.

Ducking low, Cass actually plants her feet hard in the corner where the floor meets the bar. She extends her left hand, a footballer's press, slowing the guy just enough that he doesn't slam his own face into the bar and really hurt himself. But then she finds herself basically in a bad position, grappled by someone who outmasses her by ten stone.

No matter what the movies tell you, that's a bad situation to be in for a smaller person.

Cass snaps the pool cue in one hand by snapping it out and hitting the guy in the kidney. She uses the shortened club to rifle off shots at the knees, elbows, and organs. But all the time he's crushing her against the bar.

If it didnt look as if she was having fun, it'd be ....well, it's weird. Just go with that.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
Daniel back-pedals a few steps, his head is ringing after the smashing. But this is hardly his first bar fight, the other man coming with a bottle is a classic. Oh, and Danny knows some Judo. Enough switch track and rush forward to step inside the second thug guard as he swings his bottle. Catch his arm and throw him on the pool table.

Then he smashes the bottle himself. With his elbow. While the guy still has it in his hand. So the glass shards go into his hand, not Daniel's head. "Shoulda stayed chill and not started a fight," he retorts. "And trust me, it is better if you lose this one," he glances at Phoebe and her friend. Things don't look good, and the Rider is getting restless.

Seventeenth Century gentleman, he is, the Ghost Rider response to seeing grown men trying to beat teenage girls is BURNING THEM WITH HELLFIRE.

Although that is his response for most things.

Definitely 100% better for the thugs to lose this fight.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Admittedly the girls are handling themselves pretty well. Cass's kidney blows make her larger opponent go down, and pretty soon five out of the six are left on the floor (or pool table), groaning and in pain.

    Phoebe walks over to One, and pulls extra cards from his sleeve, looks at them, and then tosses them over his form. She mutely looks over the club as she pulls her hood all the way back, showing the wide strap of leather at her throat hiding gauze padding beneath it, and she gives a shake of her head. She sets some money on the counter, and then points to Daniel.

    And then she looks to Cass with a small smile, and a sheepish little wave.

    The Bowl goes a little quiet after the trio of strangers turned it into a Blood Bowl.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Given that Cass had planned to do a lot more to folks, she allows the guy to slip to the floor. It's cool, he earned a nap. But when he moves from her line of sight she's got her eyes on both Daniel and Phoebe.

She's frowning, as if this was not supposed to be happening. And her eyes linger, on Daniel's own. And then on the gauze around Phoebe's neck.

That, that gets a little bit of eye-narrowing.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
Daniel is wary of the thugs he injured, but they beat a hasty retreat when they see most of his friends are unconscious. He checks himself, a head bump and a bruised jaw. At least he wasn't cut.

"You alright, Phoebe?" He asks, coming closer to the girl. "What was all this about?" He adds in a quieter voice. Then he looks at Cass, nodding once. "Friend of yours?" Or maybe Cass is the bouncer... no, it would be too weird even for Gotham.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe takes a breath, and holds up her hands, and points to her throat. Then makes a slash over it, and a shrug. She's not talking. She points to Cass, and then just looks over at her, and gives a slight smile, and then points to her own mid-chest. Right over her heart. She keeps looking at Cass, and then points to Daniel, and then to her own face and traces a friendly smile, seeming more casual than in a moment previous.

    And then she sheepishly gives another shrug, then pulls out her phone and types in:

'I caught him sliding a card up his sleeve.'

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Well, obviously. Cass' raised eyebrow says it all. I saw that in your actions earlier, and you really can just relax. She upnods a little towards Daniel, her clearly now relaxed posture announcing that she's cool with him.

No sign of a bouncer at all at the moment, but it does seem that Phoebe knows Cassandra. Who leans off the bar a moment, extending a hand toward Daniel. To shake, not to attack.

He's earned it.

Daniel Ketch has posed:
Daniel looks at Phoebe's neck and frowns, opening his mouth to ask further. Then closing it. What happened? "I am sorry," he murmurs.

Probably makes Cass wait, too. It takes him a few seconds to notice the offered hand. "Ah... hello, I'm Daniel," he shakes Cassandra's hand, somewhat distractedly.

He has a lot of questions for Phoebe. But she can't exactly answer them easily. Instead he sighs, "I better check with my motorcycle. I left it in a bad place," beat, "we should leave anyway." Before someone else tries to kick them off. Pretty sure he is not going to be welcomed in this particular dive for a long time.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe, unfortunately, can't answer safely, especially not in the middle of a dive bar that they kinda wrecked.

    So she motions upwards to Cass, and then makes a quick exit after Daniel. Down an alleyway, hopped up a dumpster, and then swinging up to a fire escape, she starts to climb, glancing back to see if Cass is following her.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
As Daniel moves off to look at his 'bike' which it totally isn't, Cass puts her fists on her hips and looks at Phoebe. If there was ever a worried-mom pose, that is it. And she has it absolutely down.

Then she's pursing her lips, watching the girl exit and turning to follow. She walks, not runs, because Phoebe isn't used to this not-talking thing yet.

Regardless of the fact that Phoebe is finally getting an idea what life's like for Cass 24/7, she's still waiting for an explanation. She reaches the roof, then rounds on Phoebe before reaching out and shaking Phoebe by the shoulders. Gently. No huge recriminations here.

Damnit, you worried me girl.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Up on the rooftop Phoebe takes a deep breath. She breathes out, closing her eyes a moment. She's had three whole weeks to get used to not talking. It hurts still. And she occasionally still cries out.

    As Cass reaches out and shakes her, Phoebe gives a sheepish look, and then gives a nod.

    She then points to herself, her expression still sheepish, and then motions outwards. She's here now, though. Silence and all, following Cassandra's worried-mom pose.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass leans her head forward, pressing her forehead against Phoebe's own. Not the submissive one where you put your head on their shoulder, but something that lets her close her eyes and just feel that they're together.

She...her fingers tighten for a moment on Phoebe's shoulders, then she straightens up. She clearly needed a second, just to calm down. To know that it's real. But the look in her eyes says that she's good now, even if there is a hint of tears in the corners.

Releasing Phoebe Cass allows that she may never know the details. That's how it works for her. But she sits on the edge of the rooftop, legs dangling, and motions with a tiny jaw motion toward the place next to her.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe lets Cass press their foreheads together. Cass is one of the few people she would permit to be this close. They were together, here. It was real. No dreams, no masks, no cloaks, and Phoebe opens her eyes to look to Cassandra's face. She's not nearly as good at reading the body language of the other, yet, but those tears in the corners -- oh, those hurt.

    Phoebs follows. She could explain. Or give a vision. Draw a picture, but instead she simply hops to the side of the rooftop, taking a place next to Cass as they look over the city together for a moment. Phoebe rubs the back of her neck a moment, all her kinks and curls gone, replaced by a buzz cut that's had a week or two to grow out.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Sitting there, Cass smiles a little. She's simple, she likes the little things. Like, slowly letting her fingers trail up Phoebe's back, to touch into the shorn fur at the back of her head.

That spot's always ticklish after all, and she's always wondered. But even now she won't be that cruel. Just a touch, or two. Then she lays her head aside Phoebe's, keeping her warm in the cold winds of the city.