tushanshu | Video; In which cold weather is clearly the best!

[Everyone gets to see two familiar faces this time, with a couple of twists. Dick (the elder) is sitting down in the chair, wearing a bright red coat with white trim, a hat of the same color, and of course, a beard to match the whole thing. It’s pulled down, though, so you can see his face. And his wonderful assistant, Zatanna, is standing behind him, dressed up like the most beautiful elf there is. They’re both looking pretty happy about this.]

It’s getting cold out! And what does cold mean? Holiday fun, of course. So I, and my amazing elf assistant here, have decided that Santa Claus needs to come to the turtle. [See what he did there? See it? Okay, good.]

And so it is with pleasure that we let everyone know-- [He gets cut off as Zatanna leans forward, and he looks up at her.]

[The fifteen-year-old elf bends down until she's level with his ear, covering her mouth so she could whisper something secretively to him.]

Really?

[She nods, and offers a playful wink.] Trust me. I know a guy who knows the guy personally.

[Dick looks back at the screen, and his voice drops into a perfect, heavy Russian accent.] Is this better?

[She practically has to bite her tongue to keep from bursting out laughing. Impressive. She should've known.] It'll do.

[Dick grins.] I’d like to invite everyone to come over to the Wood sector, where we have a little holiday party going on.

[He stops, laughing and shaking his head. He has to drop the Russian accent.] Okay, I can’t keep that one up, but I tried! Anyway, we’ve got a small thing going on in a café in the Wood sector, with some cakes and gingerbread-ish things, and some hot drinks. And what would Santa be without his...

[He holds up a huge, red velvet-like bag.] Bag, yes! And it is filled with little odds and ends, so there are presents for all!

[Dick sets the bag down, and pulls the beard back up with a grin.] And to all, a good... day? Yeah, that still works. To all, a good day! Remember, café in the Wood sector, we’ll be here awhile!

[ooc: Action is absolutely welcome.]

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[He's so happy to see you, Damian, you have no idea. Even if it's ending/ended, but Dick stuck around to help clean up. That's just polite.]

It went really well! [Aha! One plate of cookies are left. The plate that Dick hid before anyone else could see them. And he offers it to Damian.]

I was going to stop by, but I forgot that there aren't many fireplaces here, so I was thinking of another way. [He grins.]

[ Damian has the habit of showing up for the cleaning up. It's a thing. ]

[ He eyes the cookies, then reaches for one of them... not very enthusiastically. Yes, you can have the rest of the plate of sugar rush all for yourself, Dick. ]

... Grayson, you know what presents--

[ Except, no. This Grayson doesn't. ]

I apologize. Referring to a conversation you have not had, yet, is probably not good. Mother's gifts to me for Christmas could not possibly go through a fireplace, so that is not requisite. [ Translation: Damian doesn't exactly believe in Santa. Even less so in Dick as Santa. But that's okay. ] But I think you made many people smile, so that is a good thing, is it not?

[He'll take the plate back, but at least he did get him to have one. That's really saying something.

But damnit. Dick always does this. He runs into these things, and sure, it's without knowing it. But sometimes he doesn't know when to shut up. He has a problem with keeping his mouth shut, he really does.]

That is a good thing. People need to smile more, life is more then any bad things that might happen. [His smile isn't as bright, though, and he hauls himself up onto a table.]

You know, we need to catch up some more. We haven't had many chances lately to do anything together. [Especially at night. That doesn't need to be said, right?] We should change that.

[ Look, Damian's trying, all right? See, he even explained what he was talking about, rather than snubbing and snipping at Dick for not knowing about it. It just... comes up. Sometimes. ]

[ And the smiling people thing? Definitely trying to take some of the sting, however insufficient and clumsy. ]

[ The words, though. Robin freezes, not looking at the man there, then resumes his work on tidying up the place, hands working for long moments before he answers, quietly. ]

Nightwing doesn't need a partner.

[Ah. Ah. Now he gets it. Dick should have gotten that one a lot faster then figuring it out right now, he knows he should have. But it hadn't crossed his mind. He was so used to teaming up with people whenever it happened that he never thought about someone thinking he wouldn't want that.

He watches Damian for a moment. He really should have figured that out sooner.]

True, Nightwing doesn't really need a partner. [Now his smile goes back to what it should be.]

That doesn't mean he wouldn't want one, though.

[ Damian's read files and files, back home, while his spine recovered, and while he was healing from other injuries. In the years when Dick had been Nightwing before, yes, he had teamed up. But he'd never asked for it that had been recorded - those had been chance situations, not choice. That was the pattern that he had seen. ]

[ So now he shrugs. This Grayson doesn't really know, not the way everybody's choices turn away from Damian, sooner or later. Old habits dying hard, he thinks it's probably for the better that he doesn't know, too much weakness revealed, too soon. But maybe he doesn't manage to hide it quite so well as he means to, because his voice is way tighter than it should be. ]

If you say so.

[Dick frowns, the energy seeming to take a sharp movement down. There's something, once again, there. He wished he was further along, wished to know all the things that happen. To help Damian, to win his trust, the truth. And, selfishly, he wished he was from further along, because maybe he wouldn't be flailing around with everything.

Everything used to flow so smoothly for him, when it came to certain things. The bumps were jarring.]

Do you think I'm lying about that? Trying to placate you or something? Damian... [I'm trying. I'm trying so hard.]

[ Immediately. ]

I know you're not lying.

[ Not even a shred of doubt. But then, slower, and looking down. ]

I just...

I know Nightwing is what you want. I couldn't see that, before. [ But he's older now. He's also had time to observe the younger Dick. And to think. ] And I have no place beside Nightwing. So I thought...

[ That what Dick wants is more important than what Damian wants. (Wrong conclusion here is only in what he thought Dick wanted.) ]

[ So now he's confused. ]

Video; In which cold weather is clearly the best!

action; later <33333

<33333!

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