13999/Not A Birthday Gathering

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Not A Birthday Gathering
Date of Scene: 19 February 2023
Location: Rosemarino Trattoria, Gotham City
Synopsis: A Very Not-A-Birthday full of meetings and good food.
Cast of Characters: Phoebe Beacon, Talia al Ghul, Robbie Reyes, Audra Meridian, Laura Kinney, Conner Kent, Cassandra Cain, Austin Reese, Tim Drake, Jason Todd, Stephanie Brown




Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The restaurant was called Rosmarino Trattoria, a recently opened Italian and Mediterranian restaurant with a focus on family-style serving, good food and a decent party room located in the back, separated from the main dining area by a curtain with a Venice scene on it, with an exit to the cramped parking lot that tonight was closed for a private party, very exclusive.

    Which is totlly why there was a boom speaker playing lo-fi casual hip-hop beats. There are platters of pasta with red sauce and melted cheese in place, cold charcuterie platters, a variety of cheeses and breads, dipping oils, hot kebab and rice dishes, stuffed grape leaves, and all manner of goodies (including delicious, piping hot falafel wraps).

    Tables were set up, some standing tables for drins, some small four-person rounds for eating, keeping the intimate feel of the restaurant in place, each table having roses that were slightly faded from earlier in the week, but seem to have perked up in the meantime since set-up.

    And who else would be here first to make sure that there was absolutely zero indication of a birthday party but Phoebe herself, wearing a dusty-pink knee-high dress with matte pink heels and a gray shrug over it to hide her arms, her hair pulled back into arching rows.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul has taken her time to arrive there somewhat early - but not entering before the arranged time, that would be rude. But instead she's fully scoping out the area. She's paranoid, just like hte Bats are. All it really takes is that someone knows the Wayne heir is there to make it a tempting target after all. So outside Talia watches fro a rooftop as things get ready, looking for any signs of attackers, traps, or watchers that seem out of the ordinary. Any particular suddenly 'new' businesses or individuals in the area. She's done this for the last three days since the location was given for at least a couple of hours a day. Now that it's time..
    A couple of minutes after the start time she files in. Her gifts had been passeda long earlier since the invitation was rathers specific on the matter, and one goes by the birthday girl's wishes after all.

Robbie Reyes has posed:
Exclusive parties.. are not precisely Robbie's jam. But he's shown up in good faith, and even made himself presentable for once: a shirt with actual buttons that doesn't have any holes or obscure Mexican metal band logos splashed across the front. Dark, fitted jeans -- also no holes! -- heeled boots, and his usual leather jacket in a concession to comfort.

He fiddles with his keys as he glances over the room, searching for a particular face to tell him he's nominally in the right-- there she is. Spotting Phoebe in pink, he flashes her a grin full of dimples and starts angling over.

Audra Meridian has posed:
It was very specifically insisted that this isn't a birthday party, so Audra didn't bother with dressing up. Okay, that's not entirely accurate, just that she didn't bother for anything fancy. She had just traded her usual leather jacket and quippy t-shirt for a comfortable casual blazer and fairly generic blouse. Still jeans and beat-up sneakers though. Getting really fancy isn't really her thing. "Well this is some pretty fancy digs, all things considered." It looks good, it smells good, and is probably a bit more pricey than her usual taste in dinery, so she's not complaining.

A polite wave is made in Phoebe's direction, but she's obeying the 'not a birthday' aspect of the party and not directly calling her out on anything.

Laura Kinney has posed:
Laura Kinney isn't really a party sort. But there are a few people for which she's willing to make the effort. Like her teammates from the Outsiders!

She's done her pre-party paranoia checks as soon as the venue had been shared. Trusting in her nose to alert her to any more immediate dangers. Picked out a practical yet socially acceptable outfit (smart black pants and a charcoal grey t-shirt with a matching jacket that's just roomy enough to conceal a weapon or two). Found a suitably discreet weapon to match with her outfit, apparently it's important to make sure your outfit matches your accessories, and very carefully avoided buying any gifts.

Although Phoebe may be surprised to discover she's made a large cash donation to dog shelter. In the middle of the night. Without setting off any alarms and by leaving a bundle of non-sequential unmarked bills in the safe.....

When she does finally slink into the not-a-party itself it's with a minimum of fuss. One minute she's just there. Giving a little nod of greeting to anyone she recognizes.

Conner Kent has posed:
What is wrong with birthday parties anyway? Not that Conner has one, but he enjoys his friends'. Pheebs makes weird decisions, and there might be a conspiracy already going to make sure she has a real birthday celebration.

Meanwhile, the prospect of good food is not entirely unappealing for Conner, who is a known addict to tasty snacks, despite food being almost completely unnecessary for him. Besides, weekends are for Outsider stuff, which not always involves beating up bad guys.

So, he is here mostly in time, wearing casual clothes and his usual leather jacket. "Hey, Phoebe. Hmm, nice place you found," he greets.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
There is a different energy in one guest though, if you can still call Cass a guest. she slips in with a nosebeep, landing it on Conner unless stopped. Oh the horror! But then, she spins on one foot. One one toe, really, her arms held in close. She looks graceful, she is wearing yoga pants and a loose sleeveless sweat-top, and she is dancing.

She steps to Phoebe's side, then draws the girl into her arms. She guides the birthday girl around once, twice, and then lets her settle once again, continuing the spin on her own.

Then she steps en pointe to the snacks, pausing to dip her head over them without slowing her motion. She snags a carrot, then uses it to ...oh, she's got earbuds in. Brought her own ballet track, apparently.

Austin Reese has posed:
Austin had come to the definitely not a birthday party in his pickup truck, leaving it in the parking lot. Chilly weather, he had been wearing a hoodie as he headed on inside. He's not exactly going to be dressed up, he knows Phoebe well enough to know the kind of outfit to wear.

Stepping on inside, he takes a second to move over towards Phoebe after spotting her, waiting patiently for Cass to give her a hug, before reaching around and picking Phoebe up from behind in a bear hug.

Tim Drake has posed:
    It's also with little fuss that Tim arrives, similar to Laura. Well, inasmuch as someone rolling in with a 4.5 million dollar car can be considered "with little fuss." So maybe there's some fuss. A non-zero amount of fuss. Negligible fuss.

    Basically, not at all like Laura. Whoops.

    But he pops into the restaurant casually, wearing a pair of slacks and a dress-shirt, sans tie and jacket, with his sleeves rolled up. Somewhat non-fussy. And despite the whole non-birthday thing, Tim arrives bearing gifts! ...okay it's one single gift, a fairly flat one, rectangular about the size of a sheet of paper if not slightly larger. It's wrapped in that fancy foil paper that rich folks always have their things wrapped in, heavy duty, with a real fabric ribbon bow.

    "It smells amazing in here," is how he announces himself. Well, the gurgle of his stomach announces himself. Trust Tim to get too focused on something to remember lunch... or breakfast. But hey, now it's dinner time! He greets Phoebe with a smile first, and then an up-nod and continued smile for his teammates of both Outsiders and Bat-folk, before he scans the rest of the arrivals. At least until he's stymied first by Talia's presence, and then (less panic-inducingly,) Cass's dancing.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    It's a bit different when the 'exclusive parties' are held in the back of tiny restaurants and are excuses to not have people embarrass her with gifts and singing. And besides, nineteen isn't a landmark birthday.

    Phoebe raises her gaze when Talia walks in first, and she looks genuinely surprised, but gives Talia a warm smile and a wave to the older woman. And Audra as she comes in gets a wave as well, though Phoebe's gaze is drawn to Robbie angling his way over to her.

    He gets a smile that's so big that her nose crinkles slightly as she gives a wave to Conner and Laura's slinking in -- until she's nabbed by Cass!

    Phoebe isn't as graceful as she spins on her toes, giving an embarrassed, unsure laugh as Austin hugs her from behind! She stiffens some what, one hand coming down on his arm to pat him gently.

    And once she's set down, she gives a huff, and as Tim comes in, with a gift no doubt for her, she gives a small grin to him, and then gestures to Robbie with a nod of her head as she looks to Tim, and then turns back to Robbie with a smile, stepping over to him and bouncing on the balls of her feet a moment.

    "Hey," she greets Reyes, "Thanks for coming, I know this isn't typically your scene, but a couple of my brothers are here, an' it's just an excuse for me to pay for dinner for everyone." she explains.

    A couple waitresses come through to grab drink orders. There is a substantial drink list, something on the menu for everyone.

Jason Todd has posed:
It's interesting how many aren't fond of parties, as many as seem to happen. Jason Todd? It would be simpler to say he's not exactly a people person. Parties, then, fall under that heading by default. Still, somehow in the same month, he has had two social events to attend and it isn't even the holidays anymore.

The party is already underway when Jason arrives. He's wearing jeans, a black Eagles tee shirt from the Hotel Califirnia tour and a leather jacket as he steps inside and glances around. He clearly got the memo there was a Not-Birthday gathering. And yet he carries a package with him, wrapped in simple brown butcher's paper.

Making his way to the group, he nods tersely. Which is as much as a warm welcome from most others, probably. Stepping up to Phoebe, he smiles. "Hey. Happy Un-birthday Pheeb." He holds up the package with an expression that dares her to protest. Ever the rebel. Why would that change now? That rebellious expression at least comes with a little smile, or smirk.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would smile over at Phoebe in greetings as she would enter, then quickly stepping back to let Reyes and Cassandra be the main focus of the entrances. Those are the onest hat have special meaning to Phoebe, after all. Talia goes to blend into the background somewhat purpoesfully. The others still have teh full right to be wary of her after all. So there's no sense intruding on what are meant to be enjoyable festivities. She would bow her head to Phoebe, giving a gentle smile and going to survey the party.

Her gifts-against-requests had been given the day before. What -was- Phoebe going to do with a full closet of Sailor Senshi cosplay outfits?

Audra Meridian has posed:
Audra Meridian laughs at the antics others greet Phoebe with. "Birthday or not kid, looks like you've got plenty of people wanting to wish you well."

Then she glances at Conner. Then at Robbie. Then at Jason as he walks in, also wearing a leather jacket. "Man," she murmurs as she adjusts her blazer, "and here I left my usual leather at home", she mock laments. And some people were rebelleous enough to still bring gifts. Probably just because they were told not to.

Stephanie Brown has posed:
The door to the restaurant opens and Stephanie Brown staggers in. Her hair is mussed up and she's got a small box wrapped in silver foil with a blue ribbon on it in hand.

She takes a few moments to finger-comb her blond locks as near to back into place as she can manage as she looks around to spot the group she's come to meet. The hostess says something to her but Stephanie points their direction and then heads over to join them.

"Hey, sorry, got held up," she tells people, looking about to offer smiles to everyone she's familiar with. And to those she isn't as well for that matter.

Stephanie moves over to an empty seat, stopping by Phoebe on the way. "Ooo, nice dress. Here, I think this might be for you," she says, offering over what looks suspiciously like a present.

Robbie Reyes has posed:
Main focus? Oh, please god no. This, at least, would be Robbie's reaction to wanting any kind of spotlight shone on him. He's peeled himself out of the woodwork because Phoebe asked him to be here, and he can't let her eat all that food on her own, now can he?

Content enough to hang back and let a few of her other friends get in greetings and-- hugs? That makes his shoulders tense slightly. But Phoebe can handle herself.

He'll wait his turn though, trying not to smile in return when the birthday girl turns that stunner on him. "Hey," he returns in kind, a low murmur as he watches her approach. His fingers twitch. And then he asks, with a look askance to one of said brothers, "Can I give you a hug?"

Another word practically popped out there, but he'll keep it to that. A hug.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass puts the carrot into her teeth, then poses with it. She looks maladjusted but healthy, and grins around the carrot before slipping back into a corner. She eyes Austin, then closes her eyes and 'musicbox dancers' for a moment, arms over her head and turning gently, eyes closed and happy.

She does pause to give Talia a slight glance, but with a shrug she goes back to dancing. Can you conduct an invisible orchestra with a carrot?

Yes. apparently you can. But you almost hit Tim with it when you try.

Don't hit Tim, people. He's nice.

Austin Reese has posed:
Austin is already letting go of Phoebe after the first tap on his hands, letting go quickly, "Sorry wanted to just say hey." He says, not meaning to make her react that way. Also he does have a gift but it's digital so the next time she checks her email it'll show that somebody donated to a fund to help clean up the Gotham River in her name.

Boy that's a lot of zeroes.

Austin does find his way over to Audra, "Hey, glad to see you're in town. Don't worry about not having any leather jackets. I think we can get access to an emergency store room of them when needed."

Conner Kent has posed:
Conner responds with the mandatory flailing at the nosebeep he absolutely never sees coming. Not the first time. "Geez, Cass is in good mood today," he mutters to no one while perusing the drinks menu.

And some people break the rules. He never expected that from Tim! "Timster, you unexpected rebel person, what did you give her?" He mock-demands sliding behind the other young man. "Also, translate this menu for me, willya?"

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul goes to pick up a small packet of gummi bears and a twizzler. She moves to the side to then take out a small thing of fruit juice and goes to mix the things together and then some chocolate chips and syrup before going to take a sip of it.

Apparently there are junk food equivalents of pineapple and anchovies on pizza after all, to the hideousness of others. She would go to look around, humming while glancing about

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe leans slightly into Robbie's space, giving a small uptick of her lips, staying close to Robbie.

    "Hey Jason-- dunno why you're carrying in stuff. This is definitely not a birthday party. Absolutely not, but I'll take a look at them lat--" she begins, and Steph comes over as well, and she accepts the box.

    "I swear to god, this family." Phoebe murmurs, and she turns up to Robbie again, her lips drawing up as she gives a nod.

    "Absolutely you can. I alredy told you... you've got blanket permission." she states to him in a quiet tone, ears and cheeks darkening.

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Stephanie Brown grins over at Jason as she sees he also brought a gift against the strictures. "Just consider it retaliation," Stephanie kids to Phoebe, who was quite generous on Stephanie's own recent birthday.

She settles into a seat, a waitress coming over to get her drink order. "Glass of red wine please," she says. And promptly has to pull out her ID and show that she is, in fact, 21 now.

Stephanie gets a menu and starts skimming over it. She looks up to see Cass spinning like a music box dancer. Stephanie starts humming the song softly to herself. That's Music Box Dancer by Frank Mills. Not the Tiny Dancer song by Elton John. Though that's a good one too.

Robbie Reyes has posed:
For a moment, Robbie's wholly focused on the girl leaning into him, smiling that enigmatic smile his way. But with permission (re) given, he slides his arms around her, and gives her a squeeze hard enough to lift her toes off the floor for a second or two. Something's whispered in her ear before he sets her back down, and an absent brush of a fingertip along the curve of her cheek and jaw, pausing at the tip of her chin.

Then he winks and eases away, to go see about grabbing some food while she entertains her other suitors.

Laura Kinney has posed:
Laura Kinney sweeps her gaze around the party. Nods to Conner, Tim, Cass and Jason. All people she expects to be here. Audra, Talia and Robbie get looks that are more suspicious but not exactly hostile. A sniff of the air. Checking for guns, bombs and poisons.

"Conner if you didn't expect Tim to break the rules and get Phoebe a gift you don't know him very well," she notes with a shrug. "Also isn't it usually the socially accepted norm that when someone says 'don't get me something' it means they actually want a gift?" She blinks a few times. "Perhaps I should have got something after all. Do you think a flashbang would be a suitable stand in for some flowers?"

Tim Drake has posed:
    A carrot goes flying past Tim's head, and he turns to look behind him, before shooting a puzzled glance in Cass's direction before he's being questioned, and all he can do is shrug. "I've had this gift in the works for a while now," is his explanation, and then the drink menu is in his face. So he trades Phoebe's gift to Conner for it, perusing it with a blank stare. "It's alcohol." Tim's not much of a drinker himself, so it's the blind leading the blind.

    He flaps the menu a few times and then gestures to Stephanie, who's ordering herself some alcohol. "I'll have a glass too," Tim adds, and sidles up alongside her with a quick smile and a "Hey," to provide his own card for identification and age verification purposes. Before he's back to Conner. "We should go say hello to Robbie," and then that's what he's headed over to do. Phoebe gave him The Signal, after all.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass' eyes look around, and she grins so hard her eyes scrunch up at the way folks are loving on each other. She even meets Laura's eyes, happy to see the ninjette still around. She slips around Robbie then, giving him a kiss on the cheek, then ...?

Then she's face to face with Jason. She grins again, a suddenly apologetic smile, and wraps her arms around Jason's waist. Then she dances with him, her own music matching nicely with Stephanie's music.

It's odd, but she actually looks good with him. If not romantic, she never really is romantic, she at least knows how to dance. And apparently she'd happy to teach our socially-inadept warrior here as well. If he wants to or not.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would muse to herself, more than anything else, "An eclectic group for family." That's mostly musing to herslf then and spoken quietly as she takes her candy spiked fruit juice and seems content to watch. There's no real itneraction with the rest of the group, no real approaching them, or any signs of her moving to integrate with them. For this even, she is the outsider after all.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The Totally-Not-A-Birthday-Girl is lifted by a hug for the second time tonight, though this one she doesn't tap out of as she's lifted up, and then gives a slight sound of what might have been a squeak at the whisper, ears and cheeks darkened again as she's set down, and she has to rub at the back of her neck in a flustered motion, though she gives that nose-crinkle smile again, and lets out a breath, glancing around the room, shoulders rising up a bit.

    Best part of this not being a birthday party (in spite of the fact that she currently has -two- gifts in her arms, and she gives a quiet 'arrgh' sound as she goes to find one of the high-top cocktail tables.

    "It would have to be, I've walked a lot of circles." she states to Talia as she sets the gifts down. "... but it's a nice night, and some of us don't get the chance to be outside the mask." she adds quietly, and she looks out over the crowd.

Audra Meridian has posed:
If there was anything for Laura to sniff from Audra it was more likely from the residue of someone that works with electronics a lot than anything that could be considered a weapon. Silicon and soldering material. Seeing as she builds most of her own equipment. For both of her 'careers'.

By the time Austin wanders over to her Audra has already helped herself to some of the snacks, but she gives him a nod all the same, and a smile. "You think I'd miss out on giving well-wishings and free food? Especially of not the kind of dining I can usually afford on a regular basis." A pause as she noms of a stuffed grape leaf. "Quite the crew you two hang out with."

Robbie Reyes has posed:
Robbie, oblivious little street punk that he is, is loading up a plate of what looks like various types of fruit dipped in chocolate. And who doesn't like fruit? Or chocolate? Well, except for that melon slice there. He dodges that one, and-- is promptly kissed on the cheek by someone he doesn't know. Cassandra gets an owlish look, which follows her as she keeps going, and slings an arm around Jason. Like he's half-certain this is a case of mistaken identity. Easy to get confused: dark hair, leather jacket.

Shaking his head, he goes back to his grub grabbing mission, oblivious to Phoebe's brother over there with a bead on him.

Austin Reese has posed:
Austin turns around after reaching Audra, having picked up a plate and a drink on the way over. He chuckles at Audra's reply, looking out over the crowd for a moment, "Yeah trust me, if you'd told me a couple of years ago I'd be doing this I'd have thought you're crazy."

He watches Phoebe for a second as she tries to navigate all the people ignoring the no gifts rule, "It's nice to just kick back once in a while, you know?"

Conner Kent has posed:
Conner seems to be in mild shock when it looks like Tim doesn't know something. Maybe disbelief. "I'll ask for a soda," he decides, because most wines just don't taste very good to his uneducated palate, and getting drunk is not an option.

"Robbie? Oh, we meet him last year, right? Motorcycle guy, friend of Gabby's. You were on caffeine overdose that day." He points out some details. "But sure, lead on."

Laura Kinney has posed:
Laura Kinney flicks a glance at Robbie, then Phoebe and back to Cass when she meets her gaze. Her eyebrow raising just a fraction, then she shrugs. It's probably the closest the two get to exchanging gossip. But the situation speaks for itself.

Still it'd be rude not to help herself to some food. Maybe a drink of two, not that she can get drunk, and a little conversation. Mingling as they call it..

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Stephanie Brown grins at Tim as he also provides his proof of age. When the wine arrives, she offers to tap her glass against his.

"Hey there, I'm Stephanie," she says towards Robbie and Audra. It's also offered to Laura, though the latter looks familiar if Stephanie can't place from where.

It's not Stephanie's fault she's hazy on that memory. It was literally fuzzed over by M'gann to protect the secret identities of a few of the Outsiders who outed themselves at a pizza night.

Conner gets a wave hello, another person she doesn't see that often but recognizes. "So what's good here?" she asks, looking over the menu.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Laura is recognized over by Talia, even if the two have never met in person. Now that's someone she didn't expect for PHoebe to be on a contact level wtih. There's definitely some followup inquiries to be made. One thing already gained from tonight's meeting. A glance in passing is given to Conner as well, even as Talia goes to finish her drink and goes to get a bit of ice cream. Oh yes, this is turning into an informative night.

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason Todd dropped off his not a gift and drifted away only to be face to face with Cass. She gets a genuine smile and then? A laugh.

He steps up with Cass and dances. Because he can and he actually looks like he's enjoying it, and he knows how to dance too. No issues with two left feet, actually rather graceful.

But it ends as quickly as it started. An absent gaze catches on to the undertones regarding one Robbie. The smile fades briefly before he looks back to Cass and it returns. He leans in to talk quietly to her before he steps away, offers her a flourishing bow.

Amidst the gathering he's gone as quickly as he arrived, or something. It's like he knows someone who can disappear in an instant for a living.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Everything's good, Steph." Phoebe replies, and motions to the food already set out "We have ziti in red sauce, rigatoni, spaghetti and meat... I think it's actual meat. I can't have any of that --" Phoebe states, "and the falafel is *awesome* and has pistachio bits in it. If you like pistachio anyway."

    She looks pensive a moment "... man I hope no one's allergic."

Audra Meridian has posed:
Audra Meridian chuckles a bit at Austin while watching the going-ons of the younger folk with the not-birthday girl. "Could say that about a few things in life, but yeah. It's nice to get to unwind." She accepts a glass of wine brought to her by a waitress. It's an authentic Italian resturant. So of course she got some authentic Italian wine to go with the occasion.

When Stephanie introduces herself she smiles and nods back, her hands full of drink and snack and making a wave difficult. "Name's Audra." Phoebe mentions the food, and she looks at the end of her stuffed grape leaf. "Well, whoever handled the not-meat did a great job, I can't tell if this is or isn't." And plops the rest of it in her mouth to make the point.

Tim Drake has posed:
    *Clink!* goes Tim's glass against Stephanie's, and then Tim takes a sip. He's no wine connoisseur himself, though in contrast to Conner he has at least developed a palate for it, so he's fine with a little wine.

    "Hey, Robbie," he says once he's made his way over, having paused to make sure he took his gift back from Conner on the way. He tucks it casually under one arm and then surveys the food options available, but for now he seems content to drink his calories. Food's for later, after mingling--or after the mission he's been entrusted with by Phoebe. "How's it going? Glad you could make it out. I know Phoebe was excited to have you here."

    Hey, it's maybe not the most engaging of discussions, but when he's not pretending to be a Wayne corporate exec-in-training, Tim's just Tim. Semi-regular person. Trying to be a good big brother!

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cassandra Cain looks annoyed. Did you see that? Jason ghosted me, mid-dance! She harumphs visibly, saying not a thing, but steam almost comes out of the top of her head. Which is when she winks, then goes back to dancing solo. Unless someone wants to join her, she's an absolute machine when it comes to her practice.

Hmm. Who to dance with?

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Stephanie Brown realizes the food there is communal and not someone's meal, when Phoebe points it out. "Ooo, have to try a little of everything," she says. She gets her plate and gets a sampling of each dish on it before settling back and moving her napkin to her lap.

She has already picked up on the vibe going on between Phoebe and the Latino sitting with her. "So how do you guys know each other?" Stephanie asks Phoebe before she gets a meatball on her fork and gets a taste of it.

She glances over at Cassandra and her dancing. Seeing herself express herself in so many ways brings a smile to the blond's face.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Oh, an dthere is Cassandra all on her own. Talia goes to muse then. The others seem occupied.. So she goes to waltz her way on in towards Cassandra. Even if the girls' enver danced before she should be a natural. Being able to so rapidly read any moves would let her replicate it flawlessly. And so, Talia goes forwards to offer a hand to the other girl.

Robbie Reyes has posed:
Robbie glances up from stuffing his mouth with food as someone invokes his name. And finds Tim Drake looking at him, with a not-gift tucked under his arm. "Hey," he greets with a little upnod. Like they're bros, and everything is cool here.

"Uh, it's--" His mismatched eyes flick to Phoebe, then back to Tim. "Goin' fine. Glad I could make it. Lots of people." His ears are red, and the rest of his freckled face is threatening to follow. "You're her, uh. Her brother, right?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe's ears go a little dark. "Ah... I met him during some business in New York last year. We kinda crossed paths every couple months until I ran into trouble with my bike during a bad rain storm." she explains, turning to watch Cass and Talia for a moment, her eyebrows rising up, before she watches Tim come up to Robbie.

    "He's a really interesting guy. Fantastic mechanic. Got my old grandpa bike working good as new. And he's very sweet..." she trails off a moment, giving a soft little smile. "He got me lotus seeds. They're kinda sacred to Egyptians, so now I've got an excuse to ask for a greenhouse from Bruce."

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass doesn't actually like Talia. So, this intrusion on her dancing zone is met with a slight frown. But, this is a party. She isn't going to ruin it. She looks at Talia's hand, then glances at Steph and Phoebs.

Then she takes it in her own, and slips in close to Talia al Ghul. Her face isn't as happy, more of a rigidity to it, but she takes the moment to challenge Talia's skills. With softness, she lifts a hand and twirls the older lady softly.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
And Talia is able to recognize that subtle shift in body language. She's made her approach, Cassandra's not happy about it, so it's hurting the other girl's fun. So best to keep this quick. She moves over to let Cassandra lead the dance. She mimics the other girl's posture and matches as best she can to it. Same angle, same position.. Off just a little bit. Due to differences in height, build.. And that no one moves quite the way Cassandra does.

No one but one

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Stephanie Brown makes a soft, "Ooo," noise as Phoebe mentions about the possibility of getting a greenhouse. "Really? Well, you should open that," she says of the wrapped box she gave Phoebe. It's a little bit bigger than a thick book, not all that huge.

"Awesome to meet you Robbie. A lot of motorcycle enthusiasts at the table here," she tells him. "For the longest time I had an old Yamaha I was struggling to keep going. Though got another bike as a gift for my high school graduation. Still always have a special place in my heart for the old bike though."

Audra Meridian has posed:
Audra Meridian watches the two ladies dance. "I can't move like that, and I took ice skating lessons." Well, she can't move like that on her feet on the ground at least, but that's a different story.

Austin Reese has posed:
Austin seems rather content to lurk around the edges and move in to grab food here and there. Watching the dancing, he grins a bit, "Hey trust me, I can't dance like that either." Comes the response to Audra, as he sips some of that wine, "Takes way more coordination than I got."

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass turns her back to Talia, leaning into the woman. She folds her arms and lets Talia hold her up, but there's always just the slightest bit of control kept to herself. That move is normally a power support play, letting the other person hold you. Cass isn't.

She does continue through though, letting her eyes go back to Talia's own. Then she nods, allowing that she's danced and that's enough. Which is probably around when Talia was going to stop anyway, so she looks as if she was just going along with the lady's plan.

Of course, she'll just go sit with the crowd afterward. The mood's gone.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
It's control. Ever so slight. Cassandra doesn'tl ike her, and Cassandra has little faith in her. That's very fair given life experiences though. And over at Cassandra's finish, Talia goes, "Thank you for the dance." Her tone is overly formal and to proper etiquette.

Then almost immediately Talia herself is gone, heading out through the back to not disrupt further. Her life choices have consequences.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "You know, I specifically asked for no gifts, because... there's the gamut here. Billionaires, assassins, superheroes, some with less access to funds. Last year I got a ten dollar gift card to a coffee shop I liked and like thousands in other gifts." Phoebe smiles, looking at the box that Steph's gotten her, and running her fingers over it.

    "So I try not to open them in front of everyone. I remember the first Christmas I spent living in Tim's basement, after my house burned down. I didn't have much, so I made hand-made stuff. And when you can only give ten, twenty bucks worth of items and everyone else is gifting rare swords or first edition books, you kinda feel..." she looks over to Cass as she sits down with them, and she gives the girl a bright smile.

    "You were doing great out there!" she checks her vibe immediately, changing to something more upbeat.

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Stephanie Brown gives an understanding nod to Phoebe. "Oh yes, I can definitely relate," says the girl from the wrong side of the tracks in Bristol. "Just it turns out to have a bit of a synergy with something you mentioned was why I mentioned it," she says. "I've spent a lot of time just focusing on things that I figured would mean something to someone, yes. It's a bit of a change, this family."

Speaking of, Stephanie looks over to Austin and flashes him a grin. "You're going to need to learn. There's a lot of charity and social events with dancing in your future as Bruce Wayne's ward. Just try to avoid... who is the lady with the white hair who always pinches the boy's cheeks?" she asks.

Audra Meridian has posed:
It's probably to Audra's advantage that she doesn't know why there's a bit of animosity between Cassie and that other woman. That and she's paying more attention to enjoying the offerings. Authentic Italian food and wine.

She's all for changing topics though. She gives Austin a nudge with her elbow, and wanders back over to join the others chatting. "Yeah, I get it. I'm better off than your typical shock jock internet vlogger storm chaser as I'm an actual licenses and certified meteorologist... but that's not exactly a career you get rich off, either."

She smirks at Austin again. "Boy I'm glad I don't have to deal with that level of upper crust stuffiness," she teases.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass watches Talia a bit longer. She looks almost as if she's lost something, but there's so much more to this than just that simple an offering. She gives the lady, Talia, a nod just as she's leaving.

But then she turns to Phoebe. The one who spoke to her. And she takes a breath, before saying, "I have a lot to learn." Which is basically an epic speech, in Cassandra-land.

Maybe she does nod at those who were admiring her motions, but she's got a lot on her plate too. Apparently.

"Happy Bir-day Phoebe?"

Okay that's adorable.

Austin Reese has posed:
Austin laughs in response to Steph's comment, "Oh yeah, Bruce did warn me about that." And who can forget the 'Get out of a gala free no questions asked' reward for the Christmas nerf battle.

"Oh trust me, I'll have to learn to be on my best behavior." He responds to Audra, "And probably will end up learning to dance against my will."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "It's not so bad once you get used to it. Except being hit on by creepy-ass guys running for senator." Phoebe comments to Audra, and then she gives a slight smile, before giving Talia a nod, and then turning back to Cass. She looks around, noticing the thinning crowd, but that still gets a half-smile. They were there.

    That's what mattered.

    And Cass catches her attention. She gives a bright smile at the statement, and then she gives an approving nod -- who doesn't have a lot to learn?

    And then Cass tells her happy birthday. And Phoebe pauses. Her shoulders relax, and she gives a bright smile and leans forward to forehead-bump against Cassandra Cain, if she's permitted to headbutt gently the one who could most definitely kick her ass.

    "Thank you, Cass." she whispers gently, and then... boops Cass's nose!