16368/Kangaroo Court

Kangaroo Court
Date of Scene:	18 November 2023
Location:	Roof - Titan's Tower
Synopsis:	Wally and Damian play a pickup game of basketball, Jon and Xiomara join in and things get judgy.
Cast of Characters:	Damian Wayne, Xiomara Rojas, Wally West, Jon Kent

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Damian Wayne has posed:
Bounce. Bounce. The basketball is dribbled between Damian's legs, dressed in a pair of workout sweat as he drifts back to shoot for the goal. It hits the edge of the rim before bouncing and falling in.

And with the english he dropped on the ball, it rolls back to him so he doesn't have to go chasing after it before he picks it back up to dribble again.

It's a bright, beautiful, if chilly day on the rooftop, and it's the perfect time to get both exercise and time to work out some thoughts as he adjusts his wrap arounds over his eyes before taking another dribble to prepare to shoot.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Titan Tower roof, one of those places that Crush loved to just sit and chill, do her home work, watch the birds, plot revenge, and a number of other things that had nothing to do with anything important. Today was home work, though it was exceedingly boring, required classes stuff.

Sitting at one of the tables, backwards in the chair, she is typing away on the small laptop she uses for college. Just like her backpack, it is covered in Happy Bunny stickers. On the table beside the laptop is a two liter bottle of Dr. Pepper, and a large bag full of chips and candy.

Wally West has posed:
Titans Tower.

Home sweet home.

Yet, as Wally speeds his way up to the roof, he notices a few things. Firstly, he notices Damian Wayne dressed in workout gear and bouncing his basketball around, no doubt as a workout. He notices Xiomara - AKA Crush - lounging backwards in a chair and typing away at a homework assignment.

But eventually, you have to stop.

Wally stops right in front of Damian in a blur of speed, wearing red sweatpants, a black t-shirt with the Flash's lighnint bolt emblem on the front in silver instead of gold, his rehair a sloppy mess as usual in addition to wearing specially made nike track shoes.

"Heeeeey D-Way! Whats up my guy? Feel like al ittle one v. one action?"

Jon Kent has posed:
    Homework was extremely boring, but a required evil for development of character and the creation of empathic and well rounded beings! At least, according to his mother, who was once quite cross with Jon not doing his homework. Once.

    The wind ripples through his dark hair and the red of his cape as Jon Kent makes his way up to the top of the tower, and alights gently with a tap of his boots.

    "Hey all - oooh, am I interrupting a ... study-and-basketball session?" he asks, raising his hand to wave to the gathering.

Damian Wayne has posed:
Bounce, bounce. Damian was just about to line up to take another shot. The ball is lifted, his fingers brushing across it as he prepares to add a spin to send the ball back to him after the goal - which is what he's practicng, when there's burst of wind and a familiar figure in front of him.

Rook has admittedly shared his identities with a few of the Titans that have been around forever, and are extremely trusted. Jon and Wally are among those. But when it comes to Xiomara, there's still... she's new. Which messes up Damian's aim was the ball hits the rim and bounces off, carried by a burst of wind towards Xiomara!

"Hello, Wally." he greets as he looks from himself to the onlookers that are arriving. "Are you going to use your abilities?" comes the curious question as he is turning to track down the ball. Someone else -- anyone else can get to it before him.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
There was a specific sound that Wally created when he was moving at speeds, in fact all the speedsters made it, and Crush had learned that sound from Irie. Even as Wally came up onto the roof she was already reaching over to pull a king sized Twix from the bag, and when he finally stopped, she tossed it at him. He may not have been looking, but all the same there is a candy bar headed his way at very fast speeds.

Just as she turns back to her laptop there is a new face flying in, and her back stiffens with tension. Every day was someone new, something happening, and she really did not like it at all. She had just gotten used to the unknown teen playing basketball in the same area as her, and now there was a Kryptonian here... which really was the only saving grace for the guy, cause she liked Kyrptonians.

"He's was playing basketball," she points at Damian, then smacks the ball a little too hard back toward the hoops... it may not survive impact. "He just got here," she points at Wally. "And I'm studying. Name's Crush..." she then proceeds to mutter about secret identities and how much horse crap they were.

Wally West has posed:
Sometimes Wally forgets that some things are on the DL. Thankfully, there's so many combinations of the term 'D-Way' that even with that little hint, there's still FAR too many combinations in the entire world - less the Metropolis area - and he's probably okay! All things considered.

Nonetheless, Wally seems happy that Damian doesn't seem too upset by his actions. "No powers. Promise." He smirks at him. "Scouts honor?" Was Wally ever a scout? Probably not.

But, all the same, he turns his head towards Xiomara. "Crush. Suuup." He fingerguns at her. "But let us know if we're going to just be in the way of your studies, mmmkay?" He looks back to Damian.

"Alright buddy, let's GO!"

Then a candy bar hits him in the head! "OH YEAH!"

Jon Kent has posed:
    "I'm... um... Superboy. Which also belongs to another Superboy. There's several superboys. And Supermen. Supermans? But I'm -- complicated...." he trails off, and then winces as the candy bar hits Wally's head.

    "Well. That was... sweet." he trails off awkwardly, and rubs the back of his head as he looks to the grouping, an as Wally' s boinked, he heads over to Crush.

    "What're you studying? Maybe I could help?" he gives a bright smile.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Crush doesn't seem at all troubled that she his Wally in the head, she's been working on her ability to pull strength and not kill people with objects that weren't intended for that purpose... like candy bars.

Her attention snaps back to Superboy as she realizes he is walking toward her. It's nothing personal really, it's not specifically him, it's the not knowing him that causes her to sit up straighter and focus all her attention on him with her red eyes.

"He likes candy," she offered quickly to the Kryptonian and then something crosses her mind that makes the situation just a little worse for her... what if this Superboy knows who her father is? What if he was secretly judging her right now?

"Just English and Calculus III, an some social crap I don't really like." She finally added, attempting to remain social and not just jump off the roof.

Damian Wayne has posed:
Finally finished with his stretching, Damian hears a familiar voice and his attention turns to Jon. "Hey!" he greets, his usual neutral tone and expression disappearing into something more friendly towards the Kryptonian. "I thought you knew everyone here." he admits.

"Superboy," because again secret identities are important. "...this is Crush. She's been around long enough to..." And he's reminded. Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out a key and tosses it at Xiomara. "Next time, you could just ask." he says with a snort. "Make sure you repaint the bike. I've already replaced it." It means a lot to her, to him, it's like writing off a batarang.

"Alright, Wally, I think I might be ready."

Wally West has posed:
"Superboy? Hey hey! Welcome to the tower, man. Dunno if we've officially done the meet n' greet stuff." Wally jerks a thumb at himself. "I'm the Flash. You know, Fastest Man Alive?" Wally smiles at him and he shoots a fingergun at Xiomara. "Thanks for the candy!" He zooms real quick to pick it off of the ground and he's biting into his chocolate bar.

"Mmmm, delicious."

He looks at Xiomara, a smirk on his face. "Calculus? You know, I'm taking calculus in college too and I'm acing the class. If you need any help or walkthrough or something, I could help? Granted, Cait is the real calculus genius, but I'm open too!"

He looks back to Damian with a big smirk on his face. "Alright man, let's see whatcha got!" He gets low, like he's ready to move. But he already promised he wouldn't use his powers, so no way he's going to just zoom the ball into the hoop like five times, right?

Jon Kent has posed:
    "I know so many people it's hard to keep up. Everyone knows me!" Jon complains in a friendly tone.

    "Calculus is just rocket science." he states with a grin to Crush, and he gives a wave to Wally.

    "We might've. I've been so wiped out from classes. It's hard to keep up even for me!" he gives a friendly grin, still flying in the air as he looks over the court, and then he leans over to Crush.

    "... I bet two snickers bars that Rook's gonna have Wally on the ropes."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
No, Crush does not punch the son of her mentor, Superboy.... she does think about it for a split second when he leans in, but when he just offers a candy wager she sort of nods with a, "Sure... king sized though."

Thankfully she can distract part of her brain now with college, "Oh the works easy, that's why it's so fu...ricken boring." She assumes that since Superman doesn't like swearing, his son won't either. "They're all required to get to the classes I actually want to take, so I'm trying to blow through them.... Flash, no powers?" Yep, she changed the subject back.

"Even without powers, Flash has this."

Damian Wayne has posed:
See, Damian knows exactly what Wally can do. He can move so fast that Damian would not even realized he moved. So when Damian moves to pass the ball to Wally in a gesture that he can be the first with the ball, saying, "You can go first.", he sleight-of-hands a small item into Wally's pocket hopefully.

And what devious device did Damian plant on Wally that will keep him in check, that will keep him honest and grounded?

A pedometer.

Settling back in place as he hears the friendly banter and betting on the game, he chuckles at Xiomara. "I wouldn't bet on me either, Crush." he offers casually.

Wally West has posed:
Wally is ready.

He's crouched. He's careful.

He meets Damian's eyes. "I can go first? Well, since you insist-" Wally's been playing this game with metahumans since he first set foot in the Tower. Hell, he's one of the OG's! Yet, as he gets the ball, Wally immediately moves forward, taking a strong step forward to try and trick Damian into taking a step back to give him some room. Win, lose, or draw in that effort, Wally immediately takes a step back at the three-point line and sends it!

The ball is about to go sailing through the air and judging from the angle, might just get into the hoop unless Damian gets that shit out of his house or manages to tilt the ball in just the right way for a steal!

Despite the confidence, it's still anybody's game as far as Wally's concerned.

"I dunno man, I'm clumsy! I could twist my ankle or something-"

Jon Kent has posed:
    "I dunno. Rook's kind of my best friend. He's a Bat. They're all pretty darn smart. And almost language. Tut." Jon's blue eyes look over to Crush as he gives a smile, and then leans back in the air to watch the game. "I'm pretty sure he's got like, at *least* six ways to ruin Flash's day stored in his head." he explains, crossing his arms over his suit as the wind changes, and sends his cape flying into his face.

    "ACK!"

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
He had been so majestic floating around and then he became a normal guy in a matter of seconds. Cape over the face, that is something so teenager that Crush busts up laughing hard enough that she nearly falls off her chair. She had a counter argument ready, even if it was all lies because she knew nothing about Wally other than he was fast and like Twix... it was hard to rebuttal when laughing so hard, but at least the tension was gone.

"Okay," she breaths, looking over at Jon. "You ain't so bad. I mean sure, Rook's got your back, so I'll have Flashes back... not that I know him any better than the rest of you."

Damian Wayne has posed:
Dammit, Jon, you're not supposed to be adorable when Damian is trying to be serious! Wally takes the step in, and the youngest Batling looked ready to counter it - right until Jon's 'ACK!' draws his attention and he's looking that way, expecting trouble. But no. It's just Jon proving why Edna says 'NO CAPES.'

Wally's shot swishes through, thusly, giving him the three point lead. "Not bad." he comments as he retrieves the ball and goes to the half-court line to start his turn. While Wally is finesse and speed, Damian is used to being small. Being compact. And he's very physical. He turns, using his hips and back as weapons along with the occasional elbow feint to keep Wally in check as he moves the ball closer to the rim. And then he innocently asks Wally, "How's things with Caitlin going?"

When he finally reaches the range of the rim, he twists and tries to power his way past Wally so that he can launch the ball into a layup.

Wally West has posed:
Wally sinks it!

"BOOM!"

Wally grins big and wide, his arms going just as wide as if he just made a classic Kobe Bryant shot, but he stays in the game. Keeps his focus. He passes Damian the ball with a bit of a smile. He gets low, hands on his knees, ready to cut Damian out at the legs with a pick if he needs to. Fouls exist in 'street' basketball right?

Eh, maybe it's prison rules.

Though just as so, Damian says the cursed words that ALWAYS put Wally on the backfoot: the highly complicated situation with Caitlin. "What-!" His cheeks flush pink. "I, I-mean I'm trying to be respectful and give her space but-OOF!" Wally falls to the ground as he steps poorly when Damian manages to finally outmaneuver him. He'd been able to keep Damian blocked the entire time, until that. fucking. moment.

Damian is easily able to sink it and Wally sits up. "Not fair!"

Jon Kent has posed:
    Jon is adorable. If he knew Damian thought he was adorable he'd probably turn bright red and have to fly around the planet or something to look for trouble.

    The Super-Lad pulls at his cape and throws it behind him, clearing his throat and giving a soft 'huff'.

    "Of.... of course I'm not bad. Can you imagine the kind of trouble I'd be in if I went bad?" he asks quietly, and then looks rather alarmed.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Getting herself settled again, Crush turns her attention back to the game between two Titans. Listening to their banter, her heart thumps one time too hard in her chest as a lump appears in her throat. Outwardly, she just frowns.

Looking back over at Jon, she chooses to shove things down for now. "I don't trust easy," she explains. "It ain't about being bad, like robbing stores... just don't know you, but yeah. Don't think you could get away with being any kind of bad."

Damian Wayne has posed:
Yeah, it is a little unfair.

Not that Damian is taking it back, instead, he reaches his hand to help Wally up. "You good?" he asks. Things between Caitlin and Wally have been rocky at times to say the least. But now instead of the game he's concentrating on someone that he considers a friend.

"If you want to talk about it? Not that I have the experience." he admits with a frown. "I am on my second time attempting to date Honey Badger. It went... weird our first time." There, he shared a little. That's good, right?

There's a glance over to Jon and Xiomara and he rethinks that though. "Or we can talk about it another time." he offers as he helps Wally up before going after the ball.

Wally West has posed:
Wally had been sitting htere for a moment, shaking his head. 'That was a low blow there, Rook." Wally lifts his hand though gratefully, grabbing Damian's hand and hosting up to his feet, brushing off his sweats. "Yeah, I'm alright. It was a good play." He remarks softly, though Damian's questioning of Wally in case he wants to talk about it, he shrugs. "I mean...it's..." he sighs. "She wants space and without pressure, so I'm trying not to pressure her. Thoug hI can't help but feel like 'no pressure, ok?' feels more like 'don't talk to me ever'."

He shrugs. "It'll be alright though. Eventually. Doesn't matter how it turns out, I feel what I feel." and he hears about Damian trying to date Honey Badger. "Hey, look at you with a girlfriend." He winks at him, though Wally has the ball this time around! He turns his attention to Jon. "Deep!" Wally calls over to him with a laugh, his attention shifting to Xiomara. "You can trust us! We're cool. He seems cool too, ain't that right SB?"

He returns his attention to Damian, trying to refocus and he starts dribbling, trying to get into Damian's threatened range, using his free arm to see how far he can push Damian, how much ground he's willing to give as he tries to get close to the rim.

Jon Kent has posed:
    "Don't know me yet." Jon gently reminds Crush. He registers the heart thumping in her chest though, and his eyebrows rise up. He takes a deep breath, and then... sits cross-legged in the air.
R    "You going to be all right? I heard a sudden 'thump' against your sternum. I won't tell anyone." he states, and looks back over to Crush with a bright smile. "Your secret's safe with me."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
"Mind ya business SuperBOY," Crush bites out, then realizes just how mean it sounded so adds in a slightly nicer tone, but only slightly, "I... I'm fine, none ya business though... but uh, sure... thanks or whatever."

Shoving things down, locking them up, acting like all is wonderful, Crush had become an expert at doing it when on the streets, so it was cake now. Finally reaching over to pick up the key Damian tossed, she gives herself a moment to smile at it, then realizes all the connections.

"Hey, it was just parked on the streets... in the middle of night... with no one around it," she retorts as the key goes into her vest pocket. She wasn't giving it back, she'd stolen it fair and square and already 'modified' it.

Damian Wayne has posed:
"It always seems when someone says 'no pressure' it really is just more pressure. Because you don't know what that boundry is. Or when you may cross it. And then all that pressure blows up in your face." Damian admits as he shrugs. "She helped me find an antidote to Professor Pyg's mind-control formula the other day. She seemed pretty chill."

"You're amusing." comes Damian's comment as he sprawls his hands to his sides, not interested in giving up much to Wally as he moves his feet, trying to mirror the speedster step for step. But again, he's playing as if he's small. And he's not, that not anymore. Which gives Wally an advantage. And the whole reason he was out here practicing in the first place.

Then Jon speaks, and Damian pauses. It's enough for a speedster like Wally to realize the opening for what it is. But it also doesn't take a detective to realize what just happened.

But Crush switches the conversation and Damian frowns. "Do you make a habit of taking things that don't belong to you that you like? Don't try to justify what you did, accept that I'm looking past it. Everyone gets one."

Wally West has posed:
"Yeah. She's...incredible, but I'm worried this is more of a play to keep me away. If she doesn't feel the same, then I'll just...I'll deal with it. But if it's just a game to her, then I'm not interested in playing, you know?" Wally tells Damian, but in that distraction?

Wally's reaction time is one quintillionth of a second. It's as much torture as you might expect. But it means that he can see things very quickly and react to them just as quickly. As soon as Damian pauses, Wally is curling himself low, tucking himself underneath Damian's arm and getting around him, leaping up into the air and straight up *dunking* the ball through the hoop! His fingers still holding onto the rim.

"Woo!"

Wally lets go, laughing a little bit. Though he looks to Crus hand Damian. 'Woah, easy guys. I'm sure it's all just a biiig misunderstanding."

Jon Kent has posed:
    "Yep, you're absolutely right, not any of my business." Jon states in a friendly manner to crush, and still sits in the air.

    "Just ask her point-blank what she wants. Set a time limit. She's allowed to have boundaries but you're allowed to have yours too. You need good, clear communication. Trust me. My parents? Great communication most of the time." he calls back to Wally and Damian regarding the issue at hand. He gives a slight smile.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Whatever it was that Crush's problem was that Jon had detected, it was shoved down so fast that the Kryptian could feel the heat of the red hot temper suddenly rising off of her like heat waves off the desert sand. Her breathing went even, specific depth of breathes pulled into her lungs as she turned her entire body toward Damian.

"When ya live on the streets, and don't got a BatDaddy to pay for everything, ya do the best ya can which means takin things that don't belong to ya ta survive!" she snaps at Damian. "I was gonna sell it, make money to live off... then I figured out who it belonged to, thought it was better ta not be selling off his technology. You don't get to judge me little man, I been judged by far bigger heroes than you and I already made my amends!"

Turning back to her laptop she slams it should before picking it up to shove into her backpack. The soda and bag of candy are left sitting on the table as she moves to stand up. She was done, it'd been a mistake to even stay, to try, it always turned out the same.

Damian Wayne has posed:
Damian doesn't go for the ball this time, his jaw set for a moment in time. "I have never known Caitlin to 'play games', especially when it comes to the heart. Jon's right though. You should have a heart to heart with her." And that's when Xiomara sets off on her path.

"I have heard that so many times. The cry of the criminal - you're so rich, you made me do it. You know nothing of me. Of any other to use the name Robin. But you're so quick to paint us all with a wide brush. You don't deserve what you took. You're not going to get an apology from me because of your bad behaviour. Or my pity."

"You should be fortunate that I didn't use your little stunt to keep you off the team." Snatching up the ball, he tosses it at Wally. "I'm done." he comments as he starts to walk off the rooftop, simply dropping off the side and a batgrapple later, he swings in through an open window.

Wally West has posed:
Hearing Jon's advice really starts that change in Wally's mindset. Yeah, he doesn't have to just sit on hte sidelines waiting for all of eternity. Wally just starts nodding. "Yeah...yeah I think that's a good idea." Wally remarks, turning his attention to Damian. "Me neither. But...she hasn't really done relationships before and neither have I." Wally admits. "I'll try to talk to her. It's been...interesting to get her attention." Wally shrugs, though he hears Xiomara and Damian's tit for tat, Wally just kinda frowns.

He doesn't get involved.

He doesn't speak up for anybody.

Damian takes off and swings through an open window, Wally's hand coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose after catching the basketball. "Well.."

He looks at Xio. "You okay?"

Jon Kent has posed:
    "Um... Rook? ... FLash? ... Crush?" Jon states, and then he gives a soft 'tt' sound, in imitation of Damian and crosses his arms.

    "This is what you get for not being present, Cornfed. No context." he imitates Damian, and then he slacks his shoulders.

    "Thanks for letting me hang out and watch you guys play ball." the friendly Kryptonian states, and then he pauses, and gives a smile to Crush, ad offers his hand.

    "I'd like to be friends, if you can ah... excuse Rook."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Deep breaths, hard and deep, into her lungs, not that Crush even needs to breath, but it was part of the anger management that Stadler at taught her. Deep breaths, think good things, focus on something else, do not kill anyone.

She looks between Jon and Wally, she wants to rage a little more but neither of them did anything so she focuses on something more pleasant... being friends with another Kryptonian. It's not a big deal, and most people likely wouldn't think anything of it, but for her Kryptonian's were the only people similar enough to her, save they would blend in.

"I don't give a fu...rick, damn it," she snorts, shaking her head and not even realizing that she blocked a curse just to curse anyway. "I don't care bout Rook, he can fly off a roof without a safety net..." she stops again.

After another deep breath she finally says, "I don't think right when pissed off. I... I can't think straight at all. I'll be fine Wally, just... he don't know shit bout me, I don't know shit bout him... probably gonna stay that way."

A couple more deep breaths and she looks over to Jon, and tentatively takes the offered hand, "We kin be friends... Rook's actions don't change that. I just... yeah, I don't need ta excuse him, he's partly right... and partly wrong."

Wally West has posed:
Wally turns his attention to Jon, giving him a big smile. "Heh, it's alright man." He pats the Kryptonian on the shoulder. "Anytime, man. Literally, any time. We're always around unless we're out on a mission. So if you want? More than happy to be friends with ya." He then lets him go talk with Crush, who...speaking of which, is currently undergoing some classic anger management techniques to not freak out. Wally looks as if he's ready to run at any moment.

Another day in the life.

"You never know. Sometimes you find some strange commonality." Wally remarks. "But...maybe you two can talk peace over a good meal?"