16244/Night Life

Night Life
Date of Scene:	03 November 2023
Location:	Chelsea - Miagani Island
Synopsis:	Kate meets a familiar face while out clubbing. Who is the white-haired girl called Qira?
Cast of Characters:	Kate Kane, Qira Quest

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Kate Kane has posed:
Most people imagine Gotham in the Pinkneyesque style that dominated the entire preceding century and the years prior to No Man's Land. While Gotham's 'Little Bohemia' certainly sports its share of baroque parapets and scowling gargoyles, the street level entertains a more avant-garde aesthetic.

Those old buildings that haven't been converted into apartment living for the artistically inclined house everything from microbreweries to bookstore coffee shops. Here and there, a nightclub benefits from students at Gotham University who don't want to wander too far afield for a night on the town.

That's where Kate Kane finds herself tonight.

Out of uniform, she's just any other socialite. Not quite famous enough to catch the eye of anything but the most militant tabloid reader, she leans against the brickwork of an old wool warehouse turned dance club. She wears a velvet jumpsuit with plunging neckline that clings to her figure, intricate beadwork shimmering along the sleeves and collar. Over it, a tailored blazer with satin lapels cut to accentuate her shoulders and waist.

She lazily checks her phone, yawning as she does. At her feet is a sleek black guitar case, a Gotham University sticker plastered on one side.

Qira Quest has posed:
Qira is not normally one to hang out in the more populated areas. Not because she's dirty, but because the younger, hipper crowd tends to be hard to mimic and blend in with. She can looks the part from a distance, but the speech, the slang, the mannerisms... much more difficult.

Tonight, however, she feels like trying to belong. At least a little bit. Be around people. She's in simple clothes, black jeans, boots, a ripped up 'sweater' over a camisole. That long white hair just streaming down around her, very nearly to her hips.

She moves along the sidewalk, at the back edge of a crowd of young people, her eyes darting here and there, watching their faces, their expressions... listening to them talk. She can't seem to move with the same carefree insouicance, however. She moves like an assassin.. quiet, economical, always knowing exactly where and how to step.

She also seems.. cagier.. than the people she's around. Very situationally aware, always watching her peripheral, alert to new noises and people. She moves like one of the Bats.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate doesn't look up from her phone, apparently in the middle of a lengthy text message, but in reality she's watching her surroundings. That's how she was trained, and no matter how much she may seek to let her hair down it is difficult to completely switch off the outside world.

That's how she comes to notice the figure moving differently than the rest. One perfectly sculpted eyebrow raises, her head tilting to the side as she hits send on the message. She keeps an eye on Qira for the moment, masquerading it as blank-eyed people watching.

None of the ones she knows. He could conceivably have brought in someone new, but she knows enough about his process that they wouldn't be likely to be out roaming the streets in or out of uniform.

There's also something else. A twinge of familiarity.

"Hm," she mutters to herself through pursed lips. When Qira passes nearby, she places one long leg in front of her guitar case: "Hey there. Love the hair."

Should Qira look in her direction, she winks and smirks back at her. Her voice may have a twinge of familiarity, but the modulator she wears as Batwoman would keep it from being an easy comparison.

Qira Quest has posed:
She sees the leg being extended. Something's out of order here. Out of place. Glancing up when she's called to, Qira blinks at Kate, taking in the outfit, then the guitar case, then back to Kate. "Uh.. thanks? I.. use a creme rinse..." She'd heard one of the other girls talking about a salon trip, that seemed to make sense.

Glancing ahead as the group of kids enter the club, she lets out a breath and looks back to Kate, tucking her hands into her pockets. "So.. you in a band? Playing tonight somewhere?" She nods to the guitar case. The voice behind the mask was muffled... but it could be the same girl.

The eyes, though. They give Qira away. The color is just too unnatural to belong to anyone else. She can't do anything about that, but she also generally doesn't run into people in AND out of mask. Still, she has no idea, so she keeps trying to play off as being 'normal'.

Kate Kane has posed:
"Nah," Kate answers with a shake of her head, following Qira's gaze down to the guitar, "Not much of the 'band' type. More a solo act. And I already played. Just did a little acoustic set. These kids go crazy for a few Orville Peck covers and a tired ass rendition of 'Hallelujah'."

Kate's eyes meet Qira's and she makes the connection in her head. She doesn't mention it outright, though she tucks her phone away in her bag with that same self-assured smirk.

"Why? You like musicians?"

She waves a hand through the air, laughing to herself: "You shouldn't. Do you go to G.U.?"

Qira Quest has posed:
Qira just gives a blank stare at the mention of Orville Peck, and the rendition of 'Hallelujah'. Most of the music she's been introduced to has been through Conner, so heavy metal, punk rock, rock.. some other stuff too, but mostly newer groups.

"I... don't know. I've never met one until now." She lifts a shrug and glances down at her feet in a bid to hide the odd appearance of her eyes. "Just figured, y'know.. you have a case.. standing outside a club.."

Glancing back up at the question, she shakes her head, "No. I was.. homeschooled. Now I just.. survive. Sometimes I hang out around here, when I want to be around people..."

Kate Kane has posed:
"Survive?" Kate makes something of a face at that, fetching a pair of aviator sunglasses from somewhere on her person and putting them on. Now, most of her features are concealed save for her nose and mouth. Her hair is shorter than Batwoman's, and perhaps a little lighter than the vigilante's crimson red. It's cut in a bob.

"That's all any of us are doing, but thriving's an option, too."

She drums a finely manicured nail against her angular chin, looking thoughtfully towards the night time sky as though pondering something deep and meaningful.

"You ever seen Gotham from the top of the Kane Building? Let me answer that for you - you haven't, because I own it and I don't remember seeing you up there. So, let's change that. Club sucks after midnight anyway."

Qira Quest has posed:
Qira's glance narrows a touch when she sees Kate put on the aviator shades, watching her for a long moment, studying her face. That familiar profile. Her head cants to one side, and the action is familiar, one she did the other night as well.

"Surviving is all I know." Not quite the only thing, but close. She is definitely geared for survival.

Both brows lift up as Kate asks about the Kane building, shaking her head even as Kate continues on. Qira studies Kate for a moment or two longer, then gives a nod. "Alright. I don't.. go inside the clubs anyways. The lighting bothers my eyes. A birds eye view sounds more interesting anyways."

Kate Kane has posed:
"Yeah, well, I wasn't talking about doing recon," Kate replies, laughing with that carefree throwing back of the head that only the wealthy and the permanently fabulous seem to be able to muster.

"C'mon," she says, reaching to pick up her guitar case and in the same gesture taking several steps backwards while extending a beckoning finger to Qira, "I've got an Uber around the corner."

She tilts her head, peering over the top of the aviators to wink before she turns back around to walk down the street with the percussive click clack of her stilletos on the pavement.