694/When hot meets hotter...

When hot meets hotter...
Date of Scene:	22 March 2020
Location:	Planet Herowood - Avenue of Tomorrow
Synopsis:	Fire rips off a Knockout.
Cast of Characters:	Heather Danielson, Beatriz da Costa

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Heather Danielson has posed:
    It's a busy bustling night in Planet Herowood. Customers come and go, staff make the rounds and do their best to keep their guests fed, entertained and happy. But just as if to add fuel to the fire, Heather.... aka Knockout, made her way inside with a group of kids and chaperones. She had reserved a side area for the kids who live in a local orphanage. Okay, so that was a bit ago. The photo-ops are finished, and the kids have finished their dinner. Heather has spent a good amount of time with them and had -one- meal. But she needs more food than most folks. So as the kids leave, and the room begins to get reset for the next group waiting to be served, she takes a seat at a table and orders a half pound cheeseburger and cheese fries with bacon....

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Ugh. Time to face the music if she's going to go active in the JL again. Bea finds herself in Metropolis, and after that flight, carrying her clothes in that spun glass bag for protection, she lands out of sight somewhere and quickly dressed, carrying the bag over her shoulder like an oversized purse. Then it's off to get something to eat. And to check out just how tacky Booster made things since the last time she ate at his place.
    Stepping inside she sighs at two things. First, at how busy it all is. Second at how her action figure doll is at the back of the case and very obviously dust-covered. She's been out of the game too long.
    Spotting what seems to be the only table left in the place with only one person at it, she approaches Heather's table, deftly jumping ahead of a neckbearded guy who's going straight for the newsworthy knockout, and before the guy could speak, asks Heather, "Mind if I sit here? The restaurant's kind of crowded."
    Her thumb is hooked surreptitiously behind her to let Heather know what the other option is...

Heather Danielson has posed:
    Glancing past you, Heather lifts a sculpted brow. Of course, the whole image of sculpted beauty is spoiled by her chipmunk style stuffed cheeks as she chews on a bite of her burger. She starts to speak, pauses, then holds up a hand.
    What comes next is a few chews and a monumentally difficult swallow of her bite before she clears her throat and says, "Well, I would never turn anyone away." as she gestures to the chair. But.. her eyes narrow in some recognition. After all, the modeling world has been a part of her blood for several years. It'd be difficult for her -not- to recognize someone who helped pave the way for super powered models. But she doesn't -say- anything. She just asks, "Sir?" towards a passing staff member, "Can my tablemate please get a menu?"

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Bea smiles gratefully and flashes a more glamourous smile at the server, just so, in her little, subconscious, 'do a bit faster for me and I'll be soooooooooooooo grateful' way. She takes the seat.
    "Thank you," she says, then pressing her lips together in amusement to suppress a giggle as the neckbearded fan looks so clearly disappointed at losing the chance to take the Instagram stealth-selfie, 'Just me and my friend at lunch!' "It was bothering you or joining a family and, well, I'm not ready for a family yet."
    Quip delivered, she tilts her head and surveils Heather. "I've seen you somewhere," she muses.
    Oh, great. Another 'on that news show' routine.
    "You did a show for Janet van Dyne's retrofuture line recently, didn't you?"

Heather Danielson has posed:
    Another bite halfway in her mouth, Heather pauses to flick her blue eyes up your way. Her brows raise once more and she takes her bite to buy time to figure out a response. But then you mention the Van Dyne line and she grins. It looks so much like an amused urchin of a little girl, and not at all like the glamourous model who shows herself off on camera.
    She bobs her head as she chews before swallowing once more and finally replying. "Yes. In fact, I really enjoyed that show. Especially since so much of the proceeds went to help families who lost homes and members due to super battles in recent years. We raised fifteen million." she says, emphatically proud of her contribution, but moreso of the actual helping she was a part of. Such a naive innocent midwestern girl.. this city would eat her alive if it could.
    "But... it is nice of you to notice my amateurish self. That is like the Karate master complimenting the six year old white belt's first combination move. I appreciate it ... sensei." she says with that same grin looking a lot better without a mouth full of food.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Bea snorts, shaking her head. "Busted!" she says, holding out both her arms as if ready for handcuffs. "What gave it away? It was the hair, wasn't it? It's an affectation that gets me spotted too often."
    Sitting back in her seat she looks over the other meta. "You've got the right stuff for the industry, and the right heart for the other one. That's good to hear. Are you in a group yet?"
    The server returns with a menu and a glass of water. Without even looking at the menu she orders a meal, all by Booster Gold's pretentious names, studiously avoiding the ones themed after herself. Don't want to give the newbie TOO many clues. "And deliver a cranberry soda first, please?" she asks.
    Her diet is the more modelesque variety, albeit a model with an active physical life. Mostly vegetables, with enough meet to meet daily protein needs. She stares with undisguised jealousy at Heather's layout.
    "Don't get too close to your colleagues if they catch you eating like this, hon," she says with a wink. "They might try out stabbing you repeatedly to stress test that thing you do."

Heather Danielson has posed:
    "To be honest, if I'm eating bacon, the stabbings will be worth it. Bacon is the candy of meat." offers Heather with a shrug before she giggles, "The hair was a part of it, but trust me... the cheekbones stand out. That and the twinkle in your eye when you think you're getting away with being all sly."
    She grins and unabashedly takes a huge bite of her burger, chewing exaggeratedly before she swallows and adds, "And don't get me started on cheese fries." she adds as she grabs a hunk of them. "Let me trade you jealousies... if I can't get enough to eat, I feel like I am being melted from the inside out. What I'd give to not -need- to snack all day long."
    She skips over the whole... trading compliments thing. "So.." she adds as she gestures about with her cheesy bacony fry. "Back in the old Met huh? No, no team yet. I had filled out an application for the Titans since I am only nineteen, I figured I could still be a -Teen- Titan, but they're like.. still on hiatus. Know anyone looking for a self absorbed blonde bimbo who can lift a truck?"

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    "You have a good head as well. Definitely useful for this biz." Her face darkens a moment, before brightening again, albeit this time the light being more ... artificial in nature. "Titans are a wreck, yes," she says quietly. "They took the brunt of what knocked me out of the biz. Doomsday. And their ties weren't strong enough to stay together, so they spun off in different directions." She sips from the soda slipped in front of her as the pair speak. "There's always talk of them reforming, but honestly, I don't put much stock into it. And if they do, I doubt they'll survive the tensions that already tore them apart."
    She shakes her head then, sending her locks flying in an unruly mass, some of which slips down over her bandana and needs collecting back up to free her face. "Anyway, past is past. I was knocked out of that biz and went back into fashion. And now I'm taking my baby steps back into the League. Zee--Zatanna, I mean--had a little heart-to-heart with me after seeing me in the news firing up and..." She gives a helpless shrug. "...honestly I miss the thrill."
    Another sip vanishes down her throat.
    "There's lots of groups to consider, even as an auxiliary. The key is to find one with ideals that match yours."

Heather Danielson has posed:
    Wincing, Heather shakes her head, "Shit." she says. So eloquent. "I'm sorry. I didn't even realize. I totally forgot... I just... shit."
    She shakes her head and sighs as she sets down her burger. She opens her mouth.. pauses, closes it again before shrugging her shoulders, "Sorry." she adds again. "But.. I can understand the thrill. But.. isn't it all about helping the people? That's why I am trying to get into it myself. So far, all I've been able to do is be on hand by accident when the shit hits the fan." Yeah, she swears like a farmer's daughter. Her midwest accent is also telling.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    "There's a million ways to help people," Bea says with a light chuckle. "Sometimes it's holding or participating in a show for charity. Sometimes it's in taking a chance on a hire that doesn't strictly speaking meet the numbers on the spreadsheet. Sometimes it's blocking what would otherwise turn into an uncomfortable lunch with someone who has no social skills." She pauses to sip again, eyes staring at Heather with an amused twist of her mouth. "And sometimes it's facing danger and death in a straight-up fight. What is it that makes people choose the latter, then, do you think?"
    Another sip.
    "For me it's the thrill."

Heather Danielson has posed:
    Nodding her head, Heather smirks a bit, "I won't lie. It is fun. I mean sure, pain is a constant these days for me. Seriously, I'm not super tough. I just heal so fast that it looks that way at times. But that means I feel it every time I get shot, stabbed, punched, thrown through a car... whatever."
    She shakes her head, "But it's still fun and a thrill, yes. Knowing what I can do and why I do it... it helps. But I do have a lot of fun. Even the pain is something that reminds me that I am still alive and could be a lot worse."
    That said, she shrugs and reaches for her burger once more. She can't stop herself. She's hungry as hell.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    "I wasn't always the hottie I am now," Bea says, winking. "Did stuff that hurts. Broke bones. Got cut. Got shot, even. But damn was it hella fun!"
    She pauses a moment to let her meal get delivered. A salad wrap with sliced grilled chicken, sauce served on the side as a dip. A dip she uses sparingly for her first bite. Chewing daintily she carefully minces the food in her mouth before swallowing it. All the little tricks to minimize how much you wind up eating.
    "It was kind of inevitable I'd wind up getting meta... Metastasized? No, that's not the word. Whatever. Turned into what I am now. I just ran headlong into so many things. It was going to catch up with me some day."
    Another dainty bite with protracted chewing follows.
    "Now it's a different game entirely ... yet it's so familiar. I missed it."

Heather Danielson has posed:
    "My daddy is a firefighter. He's a real hero. I just play at it. I cheat. He does the real work but... you know what he said to me when I talked to him about doing this whole spandex thing?" asks Heather.
    She pauses and smirks, "I mean before he suggested I wear something not quite so skintight and revealing. He said... some people are just constitutionally incapable of standing by. And he told me a famous literary quote.. I forget who it's from.. Yeates? Not sure. But.. all that is required for evil to win, is for good people to do nothing."
    She chimps a fry and shrugs, "I can't do nothing. I can't stand by and watch. I have to poke my nose in and at least -try- to help. So... any chance the famous Fire can help me do that? Maybe give me an intro? For double professional courtesy?"

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    And at that, as if waiting for a punchline, Fire starts giggling. And coughing as a bit of food goes down the wrong pipe. Then it's back to laughter.
    "I've been waiting all this time for you to ask that question!" she hoots (quietly, so as to not attract attention from the gloryhounds). "Sorry, just, the ... wait was worth it." Her eyes twinkle merrily as she regards KO. "Girl, I'll see who I can introduce to you. Maybe Zee would be a good start. She has a good eye for people's hearts and souls. And if she doesn't like them, she eats them. (The souls, I mean.) She's sort of the one who's putting together the band again, so she's probably the one to talk to about at least associate status with the League. And if the League's not for you, I'll gladly just work with you, if you like, helping you leg up into the biz."

Heather Danielson has posed:
    Hearing the laugh, Heather stops, freezes actually. But then the coughing fit makes her wince. She gets half out of her seat before you recover and she flops back down. "Well... you could have said something." she offers with a smirk.
    "I suppose it must have been for the entertainment value. Do yourself a favor, don't watch the cable movie my agent talked me into. All I got to do was smile and die a half hour in." she adds as she shakes her head.
    "Zee?" She asks, "Oh, Zatanna, she's..." She inclines her head, "Tophat, fishnets. Right?" Of course she remembers the look more than the power-set.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Bea nods at the description. "Top hat, fishnets, the kind of full-figured body that isn't suited to being a clotheshanger like most of us in the other biz, but certainly fills more than a few nocturnal dreams. Oh, and arguably one of the most powerful beings in the world. Supes himself was afraid of making her mad at him."
    Finishing off her last bite of the salad wrap, Bea roots around in her spun glass bag and pulls out a clasp. From this she finds a business card and a pen, the latter of which she uses to write a number on the former. The former is then passed to the blonde in a double-hand clasp. "It's been a real pleasure to meet you, Knockout," she says, winking as she uses Heather's press-supplied code name. "That's how you can get in touch. I'm in NYC, but I can fly really fast, so if you'd like to do a joint op, or just want to train or even chat, drop me a line, K?"
    With that she stands up, preparing to leave. "But I've also got business with the League to sign back up."

Heather Danielson has posed:
    And thus Heather is left sitting there with a card in hand, and a mostly eaten burger and cheese fries on her plate. She looks down at the card and then back up to the departing heroine.
    (Shit. I didn't give her -my- number.) O O o o . . is the only thought that runs through her stunned brain before Fire is gone. Without conscious thought, her hand lifts the last bite of burger and she finishes it off before shaking her head like trying to knock loose cobwebs from a right cross. "Okay. That happened." she mutters as he lifts a hand, "Check please!" She says, planning to pay for both meals.