16965/A Bird in the Hand

A Bird in the Hand
Date of Scene:	20 January 2024
Location:	Abandoned Amusement Park - Amusement Mile
Synopsis:	Clara and Dinah meet in the abandoned amusement park. Metal and dancing ensues!
Cast of Characters:	Clara Jennings, Dinah Lance

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Clara Jennings has posed:
    It is early evening. The gloom of Gotham is already well on its way from the pale gray overcast of a winter day to the gathering ceiling of blueblack night time. In the ruins of the old park, a young woman with red-brown hair and wearing a blue dress is loitering near the ferris wheel. Next to her is a large creature of some kind, halfway between a wolf and warthog.

    "I am telling you, Dickens, that I should probably open with the influence of Vaudeville on early film, or the audience may lose that understanding. It is why music numbers and dance featured prominently in the cinema. This is my first venture into this particular form of media. I had best get it right."

    The creature... Dickens? is a puppet made of paper, and it looks at her, head-cocked as if listening. After some hesitation, it nods in return. It says, of course, nothing at all.

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance had stopped her motorcycle in the park to tune it up after test-driving through it. She nods as she checks her work over before turning the classic motorcycle back on. She hmmmms softly as she finally hears a voice as she slowly walks over, watching curiously as she sees a woman with some kind of puppet. Very well-crafted too. She decides to watch for a moment, to see what is going on.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    Clara acts as if she were listening to something. But she is not hearing Dinah nor anything else. Except, perhaps, some voice in her head that is responding to her thoughts.

    "I see. That does make sense. The governess does say that a Lady should not hold her audience in suspense. Maybe a bit of both, then. I could have an example of the music play as I speak, and show video of the dance. Sorry, what was that?"

    She is a bit old for imaginary friends, but talking to one's self is a sign of genius, some say. Or madness.

    "Oh!" She claps her hands, delighted. "Of course. I could make it more than just a lecture. I could help the audience experience dancing itself. Though I will need to have something ready for those who are physically unable to join. But I know how to do that, too!"

    The paper creature walks around Clara, then stops at her side, where she rests a hand upon its shoulder. "You know, Dickens, there are many times where I wish you were, well, real. But then you would probably be very bored of my rambling." One almost gets the sense that this is the part where some Disney style song is going to start. It does not, though there is a loud screech of tires from the distant road, followed by shouted profanities.

    "We really need a new place to relax," notes Clara.

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance has a mischevious streak and decides to mess with this woman. That paper construct is walking around so it might be some sort of power. She then grins as she projects her voice to have it, exactly mimicking Patrick Stewart's voice: "You aren't boring me." She then stifles a giggle, but she can't quite control it. Her cover is blown.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    Clara near jumps out of her skin! She spins to the creature, which promptly falls apart. But then there is a giggle. She does not even think to pull on her mask. She is bad at this secret identity thing, okay?

    "Sorry! But unless I miss my guess, that is not Sir Patrick Stewart throwing his voice!" After all, he has never giggled like a girl, as far as she remembers. The sir is important, too. She is British. And she sounds British, too.

    While Clara does not expect this to be an attack (generally people just shoot her in that case), so she simply walks towards the source of that giggle. "Hellllooo?" The paper flutters behind her, not taking a shape, but ready to be used.

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance smiles. Fair enough - it was too funny for her to not do it. Sir in Stewart's voice, "Fair enough. Let me introduce you to my friend." And then Dinah steps out from around the corner, winking. "Hi!" she states in her own voice. "Sorry couldn't resisti. I am a bit of a ventriloquist."

Clara Jennings has posed:
    Clara was not sure what to expect, but she did not expect this. She stops flat when Dinah walks into view and blushes in embarrassment. "Um. Hello. And no, no, that was brilliant. Wow, you are." This unexpected social situation does not fit into any of Clara's carefully designed scenarios. Meeting shockingly gorgeous woman in a dump while being caught talking to her imaginary friend will be added to her practice list, though. For now, it is a first.

    The long pause just drags on, "... incredibly attractive." This is why she needs those scripts. "And you can do.. voices. That is remarkable." She laughs nervously.

    In the moment, her mind drifts. Her hands. She finds herself wonder if this is a handshake situation? If not, should she put them in her pockets? At her side? Behind her back? She finally just.. does something.

    She gestures forward and some of the paper springs forward. It takes concentration, but she shapes it into a rose. With a grin and a bit more focus, she reaches into a pocket, "Color needs some help. Please bear with me..." Red ink? Who carries a bunch of ink? She spills just a bit of it onto the paper. And with her power she makes the petals of the rose red, then floats it over.

    "There. I'm umm. I am Clara. It is nice to meet you."

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance just nods slowly. "I was just tuning my motorcycle. Like to use this place as a test track. The fairways make a good track, and it's an old bike so it needs some tender love and care." She then extends her hand towards you as she sees the paper rose - and your red ink trick to make it a red rose. "I'm Dinah," she states. "I do live around here, but don't often come over here - mostly when I'm just looking to be peaceful. Not a good place to meditate, though... it can be creepy sometimes."

Clara Jennings has posed:
    "I was warned that some dangerous people occasionally try to use it for bad things. But that just strikes me as a reason to make it a regular haunt." A pause, another blush and a nervous laugh. "Not that I would want to fight, or think to scare someone off! It is just that, well, having people around makes it seem a bit less attractive for that sort of thing."

    "Oh, and it is very nice to meet you, Dinah." She pauses, visibly struggling to think of a good topic.

    "Do you dance?" she asks suddenly.

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance nods. "Fair enough," she states. "But don't worry - if anyone bad shows up I can kick their ass." She grins widely as she tucks that rose behind her ear. "Thank you for the rose. So - you control paper? That's an interesting skill. And yes, I do like to dance... but would need some music to do-se-do properly. And no, singing it myself doens't really count."

Clara Jennings has posed:
    Clara grins at Dinah's statement. "Well, that is good. I rather find that I am not so good at, well, kicking someone's ass. I am prone to panic."

    The mention of the rose makes her a bit flustered. But the question helps her recover from it. "Oh, yes. I can do a bunch of things with it. If I want I can even fly. It is very helpful in making a quick get away. And I can drag others off with it, too! That has been useful in getting people to safety. Especially when they really do not want to go to safety."

    She hesitates, but finally says, "I actually have some music here. I mean, like speakers. I am sneaking in some practice. I want my next lecture to have some surprises, so I cannot do it just anywhere, or people might figure it out ahead of time. I am told that surprise is the key to wonder, and wonder is one of the most beautiful of human experiences."

    She pauses, looking at Dinah. Then with a bit more concentration, she makes a flock of birds out of her paper, about twenty strong, and sends them flying in a circle around herself and Dinah.

    "I like this idea. Wonder. Like what you gave to me, really, by surprising me here. Who would ever have guessed I might meet someone like you in this place? I like to think that it is a healthy thing to bring its spirit back. No doubt so many experienced this emotion here before."

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance smiles. "Yeah - I really should mount a radio onto my Harley, but for now... what music do you have?" she asks curiously, glancing around at the birds. "Ah - canaries. My favorite." She decides not to mention her identity. Easier that way. Plausible deniability. "Hopefully something LOUD." She grins widely. "I love loud music the most. Wtih a lot of bass. Metal."

Clara Jennings has posed:
    "Oh, I see. Well, I can find that, I think." She will rely on one of those fancy digital assistants to achieve it. First, she goes around a corner to open a briefcase. Inside she has paper and a bluetooth speaker. It's not huge, but it appears to have some power to it.

    "Let me see." She opens her phone and says, "Please play metal with a lot of bass."

    She grins at Dinah. "You know, I do not know how to dance with these kind of songs! I am curious how that is done. I have been taught other styles, though. I just suspect this will be... very different."

    It seems that the phone has opted for Tool. Clara laughs as the music starts. It is LOUD. She has to raise her voice. "So is this good?" she asks loudly.

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance grins widely. "Excellent!" she calls out, shooting a glance at the bluetooth speaker and the phone, but not sayihng anything. "Mostly just move to the rhythm - it'll be a bit spastic - it's not admittedly the best dancing music, but most people don't seem to care too much." She starts to do an erratic solo dance that almost looks like some kind of martial arts posturing as she half-closes her eyes. "Score one for modern tech, I guess," she states softly, probably not very audible over the music.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    And so it is that Clara, in her neat dress and with a grin, joins Dinah in this entirely new dancing experience. She gets the idea after about ten, twenty seconds. She unlocks the power of head banging, violent swaying, kicks, jumps, and many arm motions. Once she sees it, she adapts and learns. Thank goodness she is free from that terrifying worry about her hands.

    "This is so free and different!" she shouts out.

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance nods as she smiles. "It's always a winning formula - especially with nobody around..." she states, as she continues to dance in that frantic metal-style, seemingly rather enjoying it. She moves a bit closer as she dances, but is still just mostly dancing for herself, but enjoying the company.

Clara Jennings has posed:
    Clara gets curious, so she mingles in a few random things here and there. She has learned a variety of dancing styles. Why not try to mix in a bit of ballet, jazz, or latin elements? It is fun. Just make it more violent, faster, and it works! Probably. She sees Dinah moving closer, so she moves too.

    Eventually, though, the song ends, and there is silence. And the first drops of rain are felt. Clara looks most disappointed, honestly. Crestfallen.

    "Oh, here!" She quickly digs out a card. It has her contact information on it, of course. Her profession is listed as 'Guest Lecturer' at Gotham University. "I fear the rain is coming, so we will hopefully just meet another time."

    She can never be sure, of course. Dinah is fun, though. Clara is hopeful they can hang out again sometime.

Dinah Lance has posed:
Dinah Lance gets a card of her own out - it has 'Sherwood Florist' written on it, with 'Dinah Lance, owner' on it with a pattern of a mutlicolor rose boquet background. And her contact information as well. "Yeah - it wasn't supposed to go for a few hours. Getting home is going to suck in the rain but oh well...." She smiles. "See you later, Clara." She then walks back to where her Harley is, hurrying to not get rained on.