16259/The Badger and The Otter

The Badger and The Otter
Date of Scene:	05 November 2023
Location:	Gotham Zoo
Synopsis:	Gabby springs a surprise visit to the zoo on Damian. They get to swim with otters!
Cast of Characters:	Gabby Kinney, Damian Wayne

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Gabby Kinney has posed:
True to her word Gabby had plans for Damian. In this instance it meant going to the zoo where Bart worked. She's dressed comfortably, casually, and warm enough for the chill Autumn season that had settled on Gotham. Now they stand near the entrance of one of the buildings with a small grin creeping over her face as she turns toward Damian.

"I've got a guy on the inside that helped me out with this. Still cost a pretty penny but I think it'll be worth it," she assures, still not having told him exactly *what* it was. "Are you ready? You'll have to be on your best behavior."

Damian Wayne has posed:
The only question that Damian could get Gabby to answer was how to dress. And that was warmly. Wearing a pair of jeans, with a dress shoes, a sweater over a collared shirt and a woolen overcoat that hangs down to his knees, Damian is walking with Gabby and offers a gloved hand to her.

She can see his expression soften and become a smile as they start to approach the large iron gates of the zoo. "I thought it was closed for the day." he starts to say when he realizes that she's not taking him to the front entrance and she starts to explain how much it cost. That brings a small smile. "Gabs, I'm not going to try to out-money you." he promises her. "I want to experince this, us being together, more than worry about who paid how much for what." He leans in and kisses her cheek. "I appreciate the sentiment." he finally allows.

"I'm sure it'll be worth it." comes his cheerful retort and then a smirk. A playful one, judging by his bright green eyes. "I am always on my best behavior."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney can only laugh at that in immediate response. "Out-money me? Damian, you win that hands down, no competition there. Compared to what you could afford this was nothing. Just..." She can only shrug a little looking vaguely sheepish over it all. "It's the most *I've* spent on a date before." Which meant she was trying to be serious about this. About the dating.

Her hand gives his a squeeze before she tips her head toward the door indicating which way they were going. Her bag is slung over her other shoulder looking just a bit bulky. Given she'd requested he also bring swim wear it was possible this was only the first part of the day as well. "Anyway, yes the zoo is closed today other than special functions... Like this."

Leading the way inside they come up on a desk with a worker there waiting for them with a grin. "Welcome! Are you ready for your one-on-one experience? Our girls are really looking forward to this today. I haven't seen them this excited in awhile." There's a little bit of mischeif int he workers gaze as well as he carefully avoids saying what they were about to do. Instead a room is pointed out, "You can change into your swimsuits in there, and then I'll meet you in the next room through there. Remember, no jewelry right now. If you have any you can't remove please cover them with bandages."

Damian Wayne has posed:
"Okay, good, we're in agreement." This is serious and they're putting the effort into the dating. Damian releases her hand to slip his hand around her waist and gives her an affectionate squeeze. "Though we are probably both going to have some wild ideas on what our dates are." There's a grin at that.

His own bag is carried at his side, the handle hooked over his shoulder as they enter the zoo and she brings them to the desk. And then the worker speaks. They're at a zoo, and now there's a mention of a one on one experience. And Gabby telling him to bring a swimsuit. He is his father's son and he's getting an inkling of what Gabby has planned.

And she will see a bounce of him on the balls of his feet. His grip on her hand gets a little tighter. He turns to face her. She did this? His green eyes are bright with warmth, and his smile is genuine, not the polite one he makes more of the time -- she can even see teeth!

But he tries to play it off. "This is all a ploy to see me in a swimsuit, isn't it?" comes the teasing rejoinder, before he pulls away from her to go to his changing area.

When he comes out, he's dressed in his swimsuit. It's a pair of short-shorts, black in color. They are almost small enough to be a Speedo, but toe along the line of decency.

So he might have had a different idea about where they would be swimming would be a little more... intimate?

Gabby Kinney has posed:
It wasn't TOO hard to figure out now that they were at the zoo at a private experience building. Still, other than it being 'something that lives in water perhaps' there was a good gamut of options for what this could be. Gabby knew she couldn't keep the secret TOO long after all. "Maybe," she agrees with Damian laughing only to head over to the other room so she too can change.

When she comes out she's in a one peice grey bathingsuit with... with what appeaers to be a shark bite cut out of one side showing off part of her stomach and hip. There's little fake 'shark teeth' sewed onto it, and it hangs off one shoulder with a single strap. Grinning broadly she winks at Damian. "Looking good!" Maybe she should have given a biiit more warning. With a bounce of excitement in her step she heads for the door opening it to reveal a wide open area inside the building with a salt-water hot tub. Not too hot, but it would be suitably warm at least.

The employee is there again and he gestures to a table set up with a slew of toys in plastic see-through jars. "Take a jar each, get comfy. These will allow them to play with you and help enrich them as well. Though," he adds with a laugh, "They're probably going to be just as interested and curious about you two."

Then, once they get settled into the large tub, two other empoylees come out carrying two otters each. "These are our Asian Short Claw Otters. They're warm climate otters and enjoy the warmer water like what you're in now." The small bundle of wriggling otters is set down and they know exactly what they're doing. They BOUND toward the hot tub and clamber up the steps to dive in joining the pair.

Damian Wayne has posed:
When she comes out in her swimsuit, Damian's smile tells Gabby she was on point. "And you do as well." he manages as he walks into the experience area, Damian's hand finding Gabby's again for a squeeze.

The warm smell of the salt water comes into Damian's nose and he can hear the faint squeaking of the otters as his attention swivels to where they are and to the instructions of the zoo attendant. He moves to look over the jars to find one that he wants to use before he settles into the tub, feeling the warmth wash over his legs and up his body as he settles in, the jar in front of him. Then the otters come out.

And Damian melts a little. "Oh my gosh, look at them, Gabby!" he exclaims, that so worked on exterior gone, and she gets Damian just wanting to be human. Normal. And doing things he never got to do when he was young. "They're so adorable. I saw some when I travelled with my Mother and Grandfather, but never seen one this close."

He looks over to her and mouths a quiet 'Thank you.'

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney picks up a container herself rather quickly. It only took a little sniff to sus out which one had the most 'otter' scent on it so she figured it was either picked often or preferred by the otters. That meant she could lure them over! And share them, too, if any where avoiding Damian. Sometimes animals didn't like those who had killed though it seemed her own family seemed to be okay with most animals. They kind of respected them.

She sinks down into the water quickly with a little slosh and laugh as she holds the container in both hands to ensure she doesn't spill the toys out just yet. Already the otters were diving in earning a broad grin.

At Damian's remark she just watches his reaction happily. "You're welcome," she murmers back quietly, warmly. "I thought this might be fun, and cute too."

Even as she says it one of the otters has clambered up onto her shoulders while another has situated itself in Damian's lap trying to grasp hold of the toy container with several interested chirping sounds.

Damian Wayne has posed:
"It is cute. And you have set the bar high." Damian is totally teasing her, but clearly there are going to be more dates between the pair. He was about to say more when suddenly he's ambushed by an otter and finds it in his lap.

He reaches for a moment for the otter to sniff at his hand, but corrects himself. They want the toys, don't touch. He looks briefly disappointed, but his attention turns to offering the container and tipping it just a little, as he mimics Gabby's movement to see which toy that the little one might want.

His attention turns to Gabby. "Do you know if they have names?" he asks her. Once the otter has a toy, he watches the little creature play, just as pleased as he could be about how this has all turned out.

And in turn, he scoots a little closer to his girlfriend, just to be within her orbit.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Hand? Hand! The otter suddenly loses interest in the toys when Damian's hand is there because that's FAR more interesting. It reaches out to catch his hand between both of it's paws with a squeak when he looks away to ask Gabby about if they have names or not. In it leans, sniffling and snuffling at his hand before just FLUMPING it's head against his palm like saying 'PET ME' in the most obvious way possible.

The third otter sneaks up at this point to clamber over Damian's bent elbow trying to vie for attention as well while reaching over it's sibling to go for the toys.

"Yep! There's Momo, Mai, Babette and Reeree." Just as Gabby says 'Reeree' the fourth pops up from swimming with a cheery 'reee!' squeak as if she knew exactly who they were talking about. Somewhere in the fray of the clambering and exploring and sniffing and begging for pets they manage to get a few of the toys out. A few sink to the bottom, and others float, which gives them options for diving or just flipping over on their backs to grasp at it. They do seem to appreciate getting to hold hands with the humans while on their backs though!

Gabby doesn't mind the shift closer at all, as she turns to lean and press a quick kiss to his shoulder gently. Not trying to start anything just... Easier to reach than his cheek. "We've got forty-five minutes with them," she explains, "Before we get to feed them and then wrap things up."

Damian Wayne has posed:
When he's mobbed by the otters, Damian can only laugh, a cheerful little noise. Not his chuffs or 'tt's that he usually makes. It's a warm laugh. Animals are his wheelhouse. It makes sense he would be so close to a woman that calls herself 'Badger'.

Then she is making the introduction of the names. His eyes follow where she's pointing and he nods. "Hello, Momo, Mai, Babette and Reeree. It is a pleasure..." Another laugh as his introduction is interrupted for demands for pets. They all get a turn while they are in his range, gentle ruffles, little playful splashes and pushes.

The toys are freed and his attention turns back to Gabby when she kissed his shoulder. "Hi." he greets her with warmth in his voice. "Forty-five minutes?" He'll make the best of it, since that's what they're going to do. But she can tell he's excited about feeding them. And he knows she's not trying to start anything, but he can't help but to wink at her. "You might get lucky tonight."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney finds herself laughing as well as one of them tries to wriggle it's way down her shoulder only to flop into the water right in front of her. She 'rescues' it with a little pat along it's back to ensure it's all right, though it is. It recovers quickly and opts to grab one of those toys to start flipping it around between the paws. They play with each other, but also with the pair of humans in the tub with them. Gabby tries tossing a couple of the toys further away causing at least two to rush after them with eager squeaks and splashes before they return.

"I think I'm already pretty lucky. I thought I should repay you for introducing me to Goliath." A pause comes, and she adds, "Okay I already wanted to do this too, but I wanted to share it with you as well."

The worker nearby who was meant to keep an eye on things pipes up about now with a few standard warnings, "If they climb up on you that's okay but please don't try to pick them up entirely yourself. Also, just a fair warning, if they sniff at your mouth like they want a kiss do not open your mouth. They *will* stick their head in there, especially if you've eaten anything recently and they want to find out what it is." Also a few generic facts about otters in general, their habitat, etc. "And of course like all our animals at the zoo we need to provide enriching experiences for them. So while this is an experience for you both, it's also their entertainment for awhile."

The play with the otters continues for quite awhile until the workers return with the food for them. It's a selection of fruits, vegetables, and of course plenty of fish because they do love that as well.

Damian Wayne has posed:
"I wanted to introduce you to Goliath because if we are going to be serious, you should know as much as you can about me." Damian says sensibly. A momentary return to what Gabby is used to seeing when she's with him. The interplay between the otters is utterly fascinating to Damian and he's enjoying every moment he can get with them.

"This was an excellent choice, Gabs. I have no complaints." But then here comes the worker with the warnings and facts. "No frenching the otters." he says teasingly to Gabby, but he's taking it all seriously, enjoying facts that he may or may not know.

When the food starts to come out though, Damian realizes that their time is nearly up. He starts to do some light policing up of the toys that are not being used to put them away as he seems curious about what it is that they are eating.

"Did you want to get something to eat after this? If you have other plans, I'll let you lead." he asks Gabby curiously.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"I thought we could decide where to go for food together. Unless you have an idea. I'm open to most anything food-wise." Gabby allows herself a grin as she recalls, quietly, "Food was one of the first things I got to really enjoy when I gained my freedom. I had my first slice of pizza at fifteen. It was amazing... Probably wasn't the greatest pizza, but it was my first and the best. Since then I like to try anything new I can."

She picks up a few of the toys herself to pop back into the jar which seems to INCENSE one of the otters who swims up and squeaks digging it out again like a toddler angry to be told play time is over.

Damian Wayne has posed:
"When I was young, my Grandfather did not spoil me. I had to earn my food, and if I failed, he would make sure I went without." Damian had made sure noone but Gabby could hear him as he explains that. "It was only when I joined my Father that I got the chance to enjoy a different variety of foods." he admits and then snickers when one of the otters starts chewing Gabby out. "I do not think Reeree appreciates your efforts to clean up." Said with amusement, he takes a moment when he is otter free to kiss Gabby's cheek.

"Maybe we can just get burgers, or dumplings?" he suggests to her. "It doesn't really matter to me, as long as we are in each other's company." Though he is getting ideas. "I suppose it is time for us to get out of the pool. And in case I didn't say it, your swimsuit is daring and I like the way you look in it." A slight blush offered.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney wags a finger at Reeree but that only earns a grab of her finger before another toy is stolen out again. The sheer silliness of it earns a grin again even as Damian points out the irritated otter. "Yeah. We didn't have that, but we had... 'Nutritionally perfect' meals. Lots of vitamin pills, energy bars, and oatmeal." Her face scrunches at that. "I hate oatmeal." With that uttered she focuses back on the here and now.

"Either one sounds good to me. I know you want to try to get that Robin figure at Batburger," she adds with a knowing grin. Tim and Phoebe also had brought that up numerous times. Before she can think more on that though, he mentions the swimsuit. Though she gets a little red-faced, she grins easily. "Thanks. It's one of my favorites. Even wore it when swimming with Namor once."

Damian Wayne has posed:
"I will secure that figure yet." Damian says flatly, his look reflecting his tone and then smirks. "But I'm not married to the idea of going to Batburger." A smile at her.

"I'll make sure I never offer you oatmeal. Especially an oatmeal raisin cookie. They are gross." He smirks and then shakes his head. "Is there anything you haven't done yet?" he asks Gabby playfully as he starts to move to leave the pool.