2969/The Worst of Ideas

The Worst of Ideas
Date of Scene:	17 August 2020
Location:	Various places.
Synopsis:	A date goes either exactly to plan or exactly not to plan. Maybe both. The only thing that is absolutely sure is how mad mama bear will be tomorrow.
Cast of Characters:	Valeria Richards, Jason Todd

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Valeria Richards has posed:
This particular bad idea had started with the Gotham Gazette. Specifically? An article on a recent political fundraiser hosted at Wayne Manor for the incumbent mayor. That's normal, really. But Valeria had spied among the text of the article... and then more on Page Six's gossip rages, something that had sparked her interest.

Jason Todd was alive. She had last seen him at his funeral when she was younger, and before that he had been the most... spirited? Is that the word? of her father's private students. By spirited, this means... he had been a wandering ball of chaos and trouble at Four Freedoms while he was being taught by Reed, and at the time, Val had been entertained but mostly ignored him. That was then.

Now? Well, besides the fact that she was genuinely interested in how and why he was back among the living (and, of course, pleased about it), there was the fact that in her recollection, he was two things that suited her purposes: attractive AND absolutely a source of continous frustration for her parents.

So. Several texts to arrange plans later...

...Valeria Richards is sneaking out of Four Freedoms Plaza at just before 10pm on a Saturday night, which normally wouldn't be the easies to do under the noses of the First Family of Superheroes, but Dad's in the lab, as usual, and Mom's... somewhere, but she also probably figures Val is where she usually is around this time, which is in her room taking apart or putting together some engineering project or scrolling what her father refers to as "the Instant Grams". UGH. Boomers.

And, generally, Valeria has been mostly a well-behaved child, which makes this a little bit easier because no one expects her to have reprogrammed her balcony-window to be accessible from the outside, or have built a flight stand (it's really cool, actually, the anti-gravity controls are based on some theories she had about sub-atomic kinetic force) just large enough for her to tuck behind her desk to hide and when in use, toss off the balcony and stand on to be lowered to the ground-- and then folding back up to hide inside one of the fountains in the plaza.

Then, dressed in a halter-top, sweetheart-bodiced cute sundress in Fantastic Blue with matching flats and a tiny purse shaped like a rocketship, she's off towards where she had agreed to meet up with Jason: an address in Midtown. She was actually much happier he had agreed to come up to New York instead of her coming down to Gotham, because while she was absolutely looking for adventure, Gotham might be //too// adventurous.

It's a date! And one that will hopefully put at LEAST a half dozen grey hairs on her parents heads.

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason was glad to be out of Gotham as well, fewer Owl Ninjas out here. At least that was the hope, because as much as he figured this whole outing was going to ruffle some feathers, he didn't want to see Val (or himself for that matter) end up dead because some nursery rhyme crazies had a hard on for the Bat Family.

So, when Val arrives at the address Jason is waiting outside, a Midtown bar he knew about from his forays into New York, not up scale, or as noisy as a club, but a somewhat respectable place to get a drink. If he'd had a better idea of what Val was after, he would have gone way more downscale.

As it was, he was definitely checking off some greyhair checkboxes as he waits in his standard jeans, t-shirt and leather jacket, while a smoke dangles from his mouth.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"It is you!" Valeria actually tosses her arms around Jay's neck in a hug, avoiding the cigarette fairly deftly as she does-- no burnt hair here! It's not exactly unexpected-- they've known each other for years at this point-- but also probably either bets or worst way to open up a date? Still after a quick hug, she pulls away and grins at him, giving him an obvious once over. "The white streak is new. Really punk rock. So cool." She eyes him a bit. "Tattoos? I bet you have a dozen." She's a bit bubbly, but it's from the excitement of being out, this late, without someone glaring over her shoulder.

She glances at the place... she hadn't googled it before coming, but she does frown a bit. "I don't know if I can go in there," she notes. "Don't they card?" Nicer bars tended to, after all.

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason does his best as well to avoid hair fires while awkwardly returning the hug like it was some sort of alien gesture. Once it's done he spits out his cigarette and stomps it into the concrete. "Hey, been awhile," he greets with a slightly bewildered look on his face for a moment before the questions and compliments begin to roll in. "Tattoos huh?" Jason asks beginning to get a sense of where this was going. He smirks, "That's just something you'll have to find out about."

He glances back at the bar, "They do," he says, before producing an authentic looking New York State driver's license with her picture on it. "Which is why I made this, figured you might want to blow off a bit of steam. Though if you're worried they won't buy it I know a few places that don't even bother to check."

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val blinks at the ID, her eyes lighting up. "Wooow." She gives him a cheery grin. "I'm down for anything fun," she admits. "I've never really been //in// a bar before, soooo." She glances towards the door. "Do I keep this out and show them when we walk in? Or do I wait for them to ask? What should I drink? What do they even have to drink? Was I supposed to eat something first?" The questions come as rapid-fire as the texts she had been sending him for the past couple of days, barely a breath between them.

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason's brow raises, "First bar, huh?" he says. "Here will work then," he says, those downmarket places could get rough and well this evening was going to be interesting enough. He hands her the ID. "Keep it in your purse, make sure you hide your regular one, this place doesn't have a bouncer, so they won't ask until you ask for a drink. As to what you should drink, well that's part of the fun, finding out what you like, take a look at the drink menu, see what sounds good and go with that, if it sucks, order another one, I've got the tab tonight." His words are more measured, like laying out the plan for a Bat-mission. "Sound good?" he asks.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Uh, //yeah//, I'm only 18," Valeria points out to Jason's 'first bar' question, as if the answer was obvious. She rifles with her purse a bit, tucking her actual ID into one of the interior pockets where it's harder to get to and leaving the new fake one loose along with her debit card. "I probably shouldn't say that again tonight though, huh?" It's rhetorical. Measured, logical, planning? Yep, that's something she's used to, so she doesn't even bat an eye. "Awesome. Ready." She shoulders the tiny, glittery rocket-shaped purse and wraps a hand around Jay's arm.

Jason Todd has posed:
"And?" Jason says, as if that was a reason not to have gone to bars before. "By the time you're sixteen you have no excuse. If you can have a real license you're old enough for a fake one," he chides with amusement. "Definitely not," Jason agrees about mentioning her age, then drawing a cross with his fingers in the air above her head, "By the power of someone about to be legal, I hereby declare you twenty-one for the next twelve to twenty-four hours or until we get caught."

Then Jason lets her take his arm and he leads the way inside. The bar beyond the doors is modern and noisy like you'd expect on a Saturday night, and one of the black clad waitresses passes them by, "Just sit anywhere, I'll bring you some menus in a sec," Jason nods and spotting a high top table not too far from the bar he nods towards it. "Look good?"

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Mmhmm!" Val makes her way to the aforementioned hightop, hopping up on one of the two chairs and immeidately beginning to fidget with the little plastic t-sign with the weekly specials on it while waiting on the menus. "Sex on the Beach... sounds gritty. Brandy Alexander... that sounds like someone's //name//. Caipirinha..." she slowly sounds that one out. "Mm? Pornstar Martini? ...that's... uh."

She doesn't quite finish her thought on that before two drink menus are dropped in front of them, with a promise to 'be right back'. Val flips open the menu (which thankfully, for her, also lists the ingredients where the specials list didn't, not that its much more help). "Ooh this sounds pretty. 'This lavander colored cocktail is made with Crème de Violette, Maraschino liqueur, gin, and lemon juice," she points to the Aviation. "I'll try that."

Because starting the night with gin can never go wrong, especially for someone who, you know, has never drank before.

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason takes his seat and can't help but chuckle at Val's choice, "How far are we from Four Freedoms?" he asks her sizing her up, "If it's ten blocks or less I say go for it, I can carry you at least that far," he says with a grin. "But seriously, try it if you want, what was your dad always told me when I was learning from him, progress requires the courage to experiment?" Totally not how Reed meant that.

Valeria Richards has posed:
When the waitress comes back, Val puts in her order, fumbling a little with her ID but it seems to be overlooked given how tiny the purse is-- this stuff happens often enough. She takes Jason's order as well, asks if they are setting up a tab, and gets all that handled before sweeping back off to the bar. Val continues to peer at the rest of the menu, somewhat fascinated at the variety while all that's being handled... and after a few moments and they are 'alone' again, she leans forward with a grin. "So, what have you been up to lately? I mean, besides scowling at photographers for Page Six-- that picture was really annoyed looking, but ugh they can get sooooo aggravating. Mom put one in a box once."

Jason Todd has posed:
"Definitely," Jason says about the tab. Before he orders, "A scotch on the rocks," he says before watching Val wonder at the menu for a bit with a shake of his head. "So, this is really your first time in a bar huh?" he asks. "Like ever?" the notion seems both alien an amusing as a bemused grin settles on his lips.

As for his activities since his return? "Gettng back into the family business, actually never left, just back to doing it with the family again," and without a body count. "Other than that, bugging Tim about his new girlfriend, she's a bit more intense than I figured the little nerd would go for, did he have to be wrestled out of Four Freedoms when he finished studying with your dad?"

There's a pause as the drinks come and Jason picks his up and holds it out to be clinked. "To experimentation or just to booze?"

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Adventure and experiments," Val replies, clinking her glass to Jay's. "Wait, Tim has a girlfriend? Since when?" She makes a skeptical face. "Are you sure he's not just telling you he has one and she lives in Canada?" She takes a sip on her drink and looks thoughtful. "Huh. Tastes kinda flowery." She shrugs, taking another sip.

"And yes, it is my first time, and this doesn't seem nearly as dangerous as I thought it might be," she looks almost disappointed. "I thought they were all like... super shady or something. I mean, bars that aren't, you know, clubs like the Hellfire, which is sooo sterile." At least in the areas Val goes to, when she goes, which is usually under adult supervision.

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason clinks glasses and finishes the toast with a quick swallow of liquor before setting the glass down on the tabletop. "See that's what I would have though too but I knew her before they were dating, so I can guarantee she's a real girl, even if the why is a fucking mystery," he shakes his head. "Actually if you hadn't started your text with 'Hi Jay' I would have thought you were aiming for Tim and hit me by accident."

"Some are," Jason says of bars. "Night's young, we'll see how these drinks treat us and if you're up for shady we can do that."

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val wrinkles her nose. "Oh no. No no, I was //definitely// looking for you." She takes a more experimental, larger drink of her purple cocktail, only slightly making a face at the sudden harsh aftertaste. At the idea of seeing more shady areas, she perks up a bit. "I am up for //anything//. Do you know how often I get out without someone over my shoulder?"

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason seems to file that reaction to Tim away for future amusement and when it seems Val is eager to hit up some of the divier places he knows he can't help but grin. "I'm guessing almost never," he says. "By the sound of things, I feel like I should be shocked I didn't need to climb your hair to take you out tonight."

He seems to consider things for a moment before he eyes her drink. "Think you can down that quick?" he asks, finishing his drink and fishing for his wallet. Clearly the party is on the move!

Valeria Richards has posed:
Lifting a perfectly-sculpted blonde eyebrow (I mean, ragged is SO obvs in selfies), Val nods quickly and downs the rest of her drink in two gulps, though she shakes her head afterwards, making a face. "Oof, if you drink it fast it tastes different," she notes aloud, getting to her feet as Jay settles the tab, and lets him escort her out the door onwards! Which she seems curious and excited about.

Jason Todd has posed:
The tab is settled with fifty left on the table before Jason takes Val's arm and leads her into the New York night. The wonder of Midtown was you could go from safe and upscale to divey and downscale in a handful of blocks. The night is mercifully cool after a sweltering New York day, but still Jason shifts in his coat uncomfortably before finally pulling it off and tucking it under his (so far) tattooless arm. Their destination? The Black Door, a dingy little place on the edge of Hell's Kitchen. With it being summer some of the festivities inside have spilled onto the street, a few men drinking and shouting by the eponymous black door.

Jason looks Val's way to guage her reaction. "Still up for it?" he asks a hint of challenge in his voice.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val's eyes glitter with barely restrained glee. "Let's do it." She is probably not wisely dressed for this sort of venue... but she is on the arm of someone who is quite capable and likely willing to break a face or two when the inevitable happens.

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason's expression goes from confused to amused at Val's reaction. "Cool, let's do it then," he says and makes his way forward. The men outside seeing Val, who's hard to miss because of a) her outfit and b) she looks like a young Sue Storm look about ready to cat call before they see the look Jason gives them and they think better of it. But then there's a reason these ones are drinking outside the guys have to worry about are inside.

Jason pushes through the door into the sweaty interior of the tiny hole in the wall bar filled with local lowlifes of every sort, none of whom have dresses in Fantastic Blue or rocket shaped purses that sparkle. They get looks and Jason seems to shrug them off after a quick glance to guage how bad of an idea this is, about medium is what he decides as he passes a table of some local gangers and grabs a booth in the corner. "This more like what you had in mind?" he asks over the blaring rock music coming over the speakers by the bar.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val actually looks... thrilled. You see, someone with //sense// would be worried. But Valeria is used to being in a very nice protective bubble (also, often literally at that, thanks Mom!) so she may not really quite grasp how utterly bad of an idea this is, and how much she is NOT fitting in. Or how much attention the sparkles and bright colored dress draws in such a grungy place.

"This is //perfect//," she gushes. "Everything is so dark in here... actually, the speaker sounds like it could use some adjustment, I could just--" she reaches for the omnitool that isn't there, and stops a second. "Right, not here for that. Um... so..." she looks at the booth, which has the stains of a hundred spills and the nicks, carvings, and salacious writings of a hundred prior drunks marring the wooden top. No menus.

It's dive bar. Those don't really do... menus. It's expected that one knows what they are there for: usually cheap beer, standard shots of single liquors in dubiously clean shotglasses, and occasionally those same shots mixed with simple mixers consisting of either cola or clear citrus soda.

Jason Todd has posed:
Yeah, Val is all sorts of trouble, that much is clear to Jason as he studies her exuberant expression which is as much out of place in this dive as her clothing. Still he slides into the booth close to her so they can talk over the music. When the waitress arrives, Jason handles the ordering. "Tequila, bring the bottle, two shot glasses, salt and limes." She gives Val a skeptical look before shrugging and going off to the bar with her tray to get the order. "Trust me you'll like this more than gin," he promises.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Ooh." Val does look more curious than skeptical... she did catch the waitress's look but shrugs it off. She has questions, but she is virtually sitting on her hands instead of asking them rapidfire... why salt? why limes? The whole bottle? Isn't that a lot? Or... is it not? She's practically vibrating with unasked questions as she attempts to not look way too young to be in here. (She's not as successful as she thinks, but largely the clientele and staff don't actually care.)

While they are waiting, she does peer over at his bare arm, somewhat disappointed in the lack of tattoos she was absolutely certain had to totally be there, and she does run a finger down his bicep as if she might will one into existence. "This seems like the sort of place Uncle Johnny probably goes," she notes cheerily.

Jason Todd has posed:
Chuckling Jason says, "Go ahead." He can tell what's got Val looking ready to explode. Though before too much time for questions passes the waitress is back with her tray, a bottle of not-horrible tequila, two surprisingly unwithered limes, and a tray of salt. He gives a nod of thanks and a twenty, after shooting a glance to guys in gang colours they passed on the way in. Yeah, best to pay now.

He looks back to Val. "So, want me to set you up?"

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Um," Val looks at the 'build your own' drink tray brought, then to Jason. "Um yes. Please." She folds her hands on the table politely, awaiting some instructions. She is at least attentive, though, and oblivious to much of what's going on around them.

Jason Todd has posed:
Nodding Jason sets to work putting the salt around the rim of the glasses, pouring the tequila, and pushing the shot and a lime wedge on a bar napkin towards her. "Okay, how it works is like this, you down this shot in one go, and once you do put the lime in your mouth and squeeze out a bit of the juice, it makes it taste better. It's like... science drinking." Or something!

With the instructions over, Jay shoots his shot like a pro and reaches for his wedge.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Valeria watches Jason and nods slightly, then follows suit-- coughing a bit after she downs the tequila shot, biting down on the lime after... and coughing a little more. "Oof." She wipes her mouth of a bit of the salt and lime juice lingering there. "That burns," she notes, as if they were back in the labs of Four Freedoms and she was observing some experiment. "...does the taste on this also change based on how quickly or slowly its drank?"

Jason Todd has posed:
"There is sipping tequila that basically tastes like water with the same kick but I've never tried it, mostly do the shooting kind, but four-five shots in, it doesn't burn so much," he says with an amused expression. "But basically no," he answers her question. "So, another?" he asks, already pouring his own.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val bites her lower lip. "Sure." She's game. It wouldn't do to chicken out after all. And besides, he says the burning goes away after a couple rounds. She takes the next round at the same time Jay does, with slightly less coughing but a longer time with the lime against her lips. She flushes a bit, the drink from earlier already hitting her system, and the tequila threatening right behind it.

"So," she asks with a grin, "What was that about carrying me home?" She reaches for the bottle and carefully mimics Jays earlier actions to set up a third round. She gives him a look that is playful and wicked at the same time, which has a odd but probably way too attractive appeal on what should be entirely angelic.

Jason Todd has posed:
"You saying you're drunk enough to need it?" Jason says meeting that look with a slow grin, just the sort you'd expect from your typical streetwise badboy, three drinks wasn't enough to get him really wasted but it was good enough to get him to play the role he was pretty sure he was chosen to play tonight. Even for just a few moments.

He downs the offered third shot, then takes his turn setting up the next, "So why was it /definitely/ me you texted the other night, it's been what, like five years?" he asks as he pours their next round of drinks.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Mm. I mean, I waaas curious about the whole..." Val considers. "Um, being dead thing. I mean I went to your funeral and everything." She takes the fourth shot... wow, it really doesn't burn as much now... and blushes a bit as she fumbles the shotglass back to the table. "Ugh. Slippery. Um. So. But..."

She turns to face him in the booth a bit. "I mean, also... you're... you know. Hot. And it would soooo... so annoy Mom and Dad..." she trails off, reaching over to fix a fifth round. She is very slow at it, trying not to spill. "So... um." She toys with the lime wedge. "I thought we could maybe... do stuff."

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason takes his fourth as well but still has the reflexes to reach out to stop the shotglass from falling, or at least until Val's got it at which point he pulls back his hand, "Yeah they get that way three four drinks in."

No comment on the death thing yet.

Though he does ask a question about the rest, "So, I'm hot, you want to piss off your folks with us doing stuff," he grins slow and smug. "What sort of stuff?"

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Mm." Val draws herself up onto the booth and turns towards him, leaning over and kissing Jason-- slightly hesitantly, but more in an 'unsure what she's doing' way than unsure about doing it. There is still lime and salt on her lips.

Jason Todd has posed:
While that was the answer Jason had more or less expected it wasn't /how/ he expected Val would give it to him. There's a moment of surprise, as he tastes that lime and salt before he kisses her back, with equal enthusiasm and but a greater measure of confidence, taking control if she'll let her, guiding them through it until a someone clears their throat behind them.

""Hey, you two going to come up for air?" asks one of the gangers who had vacated their table and came over, he had something wrapped in a napkin in his hand. Jason breaks away from the kiss to look over at the guy, "Fuck off," he says.

The man grins, mirthlessly, "Whoa, man, what's with the hostility, we want to talk to your girl not you, man," he says and then the ganger, turns dark eyes towards Valeria, studying her. "Holy shit, it's really you," he turns to one of his friends who joined him in clustering around Val and Jason's little booth. "You owe me twenty bucks, fucker," he says giving the other ganger's shoulder a punch. He turns back to Val. "You're really little Valeria from the Fantastic Four aren't you? Man must have been wild tagging along with the Fantastic Fucking Four, right? Can I get your autograph? My kid brother's got a huge crush on you." The ganger was likely no more than twenty-one himself.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val goes through a myriad of emotions very quickly, her control of those greatly lessened by the amount of alcohol coursing through her system with no experience on how to handle it. The kissing was even better than she had expected, and there was a reason their new "friends" had to interrupt: when he had started kissing back she had no interest in stopping any time soon.

So hormones and pleasure suddenly gave way to disappointment, then embarrassment, and with the words 'little Valeria', anger. "Do I look like a little girl to you?" she snaps angrily. "And if by 'tagging along' you mean 'stuck at home with a babysitter'..." she huffs, shaking. She eyes the guy asking for an autograph for his little brother. "If he is younger than you, how old is he anyway, twelve?" she does not reach to sign the napkin.

Her mother would be upset about this too. We should always be kind to the fans.

Jason Todd has posed:
"Why you got to be a bitch about it, just sign an autograph, who cares how old my kid brother is," the ganger says reaching for Val's arm to press the pen and napkin into it. He doesn't get that far, Bruce never taught his Batlings to be nice to the fans, and besides, Jason was the family 'badboy' decking punks in bars was part of the territory. Plus the kiss had him riled up and punching was a good substitute.

The guy never sees the fist coming, or the secon that follows, as Jason hops over the table and pushes the guy back towards his friends dazed and stumbling. "Val, grab my jacket and head for the door," he instructs calmly while facing the men down in a relaxed and ready stance.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val's eyes widen as the guy reaches for her, but then there is chaos and punching and Jason telling her to grab his jacket-- which she does, shrugging into it, oversized on her slender form-- and head towards the door... which she does, though for some reason she feels like the ground keeps shifting on her and everything is moving. So her progress is not the quickest, though she does duck a large form that reaches for her as she passes (more out of a lucky drunken stagger than actual skill) and when she jostles into another of the bar's clientele, he actually laughs and pushes her towards the door.

That is luck.

But Jay is still inside, and the couple of jerks from earlier are still outside. When she stumbles out onto the street, she feels a hand on her arm steadying her, and another on the small of her back. "You look like you had a bit much, girl," one of the guys earlier cowed by Jason's glare says. "Where's the boyfriend?" asks the other. "He bore you already? I bet we'll be more fun."

Jason Todd has posed:
The three four gangers in the bar aren't the real problem around these parts, that guy is in the back not bothering with this piddly shit, Jason locks eyes with the man and nods, and the man nods back. Respect's been paid, time to walk away slowly while nobody wants any more. He grabs the bottle of tequila as he goes, and makes passes through the door to see the losers hassling Val.

"Son of a bitch," Jason mutters. "Guess what boys, the boyfriend," he makes a face at that word, "Is back and there's gonna be trouble," he says. What? He has eclectic tastes in music, it can't all be Shinedown and Audioslave.

The lame quip is barely out of his mouth before Jason's moving. Dick and Tim have a bit of acrobatic flare to how they fight, not so with Jason, he fights with efficient brutality and minimum concern for the well-being of his victims. As a result a few seconds after Jason's through the door the tequila bottle is broken in his hand, and the four guys outside are all laying on the ground clutching various broken bits of anatomy.

He drops the broken bit of bottle still in his hand and turns to Valeria. "You okay," he asks, calmly, but with eyes positively shining with the afterglow of violence. He holds out a hand. "We should get out of here. Cops don't come this way often but there's always more scumbags."

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val takes his hand, a bit wobbly, and then moves in against him for a moment. "I'm fine. Ugh, he //touched// me," she groans unhappily. The violence that had played out was... not entirely registering. It had been more like watching a movie or something happening to someone else.... which is likely why she is as calm as she is. "I'm okay. Just everything is a little... weird." She tilts her head, looking up at him. It hits her. "Oh. This is drunk." A beat. "Faaaascinating."

She leans up and steals a kiss again. Those had felt good and she was all about going back to that portion of the night. "Mm, where to?"

Jason Todd has posed:
The violence barely registers for Jason besides the savage thrill that runs up his spine, he'd spent the last five years immersed in it away from 'normal' people and it shows as he steps casually over his foes to come to Val's side. He helps her stand as she leans against him and definitely not resisting when she steals that kiss, even as he was chuckling at her declaring being drunk 'faaaascinating'.

When their lips part, he smirks, "Well, could carry you back to your place," he offers. "I think we're good for bars tonight."

Valeria Richards has posed:
Val's eyes light up a bit with mischievousness. "I mean I can walk." She considers. "Maybe. But yes. I've got this neat way in that totally bypasses security." Probably NOT for much longer after tonight, though...

She does let him lead her... or carry her... towards Four Freedoms, snuggling into his jacket and mostly observing the city with only quiet, drunken observations about various things they pass between the bar and the outside of the Fantastic Four HQ.

She does, with a bit of fumbling, get her anti-grav lift out and unfolded, setting it up to lift to her balcony window.%

Jason Todd has posed:
Jason splits the difference carrying her for half a block out of commitment to the joke before letting Val down and leading the way, largely letting her do the talking.

When the way up the tower is revealed, Jason smirks, "Well you've got my bedroom bat rope back at the manor beat by a mile," he says admiring her escape lift before stepping on board and holding her close as it rises, up, up, up to her balcony letting her lead the way once they arrive.

Valeria Richards has posed:
She gets the window open, and steps off the lift into her room... well, the 'playroom' half of her bedroom suite. In one corner, a mostly dismantled Doombot in glittery blue instead of green leans, powered down. There are shelves of toys and Fantastic Four collectibles, and her workbenches are covered in an assortment of things that defy any quick explanation or guess at what they are. The room, only lit by the light of the plaza outside for now (she hasn't bothered turning on the lights), looks fairly busy with the posters on the walls and the scattered engineering equipment.

She turns around and slides her arms around Jason's neck after he's stepped off the platform, leaning up and kissing him. The platform floats inside and settles to the floor of the room as the balcony slides shut and returns to being just a window. "Um," she glances towards the door to her actual bedroom. "If you want..." she begins.

Jason Todd has posed:
A flash of tension goes through Jason at the first glance at the Doombot chassi, not registering it's dismantled until a second later and then he relaxes moments before Val kisses him again, he lets it linger, his mouth tasting of liquor as he does before he parts and considers her question for a second.

"Sure," he says with a little nod. "Just let's take it slow, we're both," okay, mostly she is, "A little wasted. Alright?"

Valeria Richards has posed:
Valeria nods, making a slight face. "Just a little," she admits as she leads him into her room, which is dimly lit from the glow of the hardlight bulletin board on the once wall and a strange lamp like object on her nightstand. She kicks off her shoes and sinks down onto the edge of the bed, still wrapped up in his leather jacket. She frowns a bit. "There is probably like... a way I'm supposed to do this but I dunno," she admits, leaning back on her hands. "Slow is probably good?" She had put just enough thought into this to be dangerous but not really worked out too many details, assuming they'd just... work themselves out.