Wanna hear a secret?

cissie offers a sheepish smile to the other “ my face ? oh no no, don’t mind that. everything is just dandy, don’t think of it. ” she chuckles awkwardly “and why would you judo throw me out of the way? there’s nothing to be concerned over, maybe a little burnt cake. ”

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Dinah listened to her for a moment before her eyes narrowed. “Yeah, I’m not buying it, kid.” As she mentioned that there may be a burned cake, Dinah sighed and shook her head before raising her brows to the younger woman. “You know, I’m not one to judge someone and their cooking. I am however, very good at calling people out on leaving a mess.” Dinah told her before looking her in the eyes. “How bad is it?”

           SHE  SHRUGS  AT  HER  QUESTION  .  “  i  did  modeling  at  the  time  and  the  purple  just  felt  right  .  unfortunately  there  isn’t  a  lot  of  symbolism  behind  it  ,  ”  betsy  laughs  .  “  and  i’ve  stuck  with  it  ever  since  .  guess  you  could  say  it’s  part  of  my  brand  .  but  i  can’t  blame  you  .  the  blonde  looks  great  on  you  .  ”  she  reaches  for  her  drink  ,  nodding  .  “  i  wouldn’t  say  this  bar’s  all  that  shitty  .  they  overcharge  on  drinks  but  what  bar  doesn’t  ?  but  if  it  pays  well  then  it  pays  well  .  the  things  a  woman’s  gotta  do  ,  right  ?  ”

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“Really? I did cyber crimes and forensics. Not a lot of mainstream, stereotypical officer work.” Edward responded. Outside of solving crimes that most officers were too inept to figure out, most of his days were spent in some back room, closed off (literally and figuratively) from the rest of the precinct. “I agree. Good on you for getting out. I- tried. A few times, but Gotham has a horrible habit of dragging me back.” Edward had tried to leave so many times, first to Star City, and later Keystone, but it seemed Edward was made for Gotham. He was a reflection of the city and all it’s eccentricities and oddities. “Crime changed? What do you mean?”

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“Yeah. Detective though he isn’t, er...not around anymore.” Dinah finished saying. Her father died when she was much younger. She felt she didn’t even have the time to really get to be with him. She hadn’t even discovered her metagene before he passed. “I mean, I visit. I have connections there but Gotham is one hell hole that I am happy to leave to the Batman and everyone else.” Gotham always just took from people and you either survived or don’t. At his question, Dinah looked over to him. “I don’t know. Not really. My mother, she never wanted me to do any of it. Said that back in her day, sure, she risked her life but everything has gotten more...deranged and dangerous. She was right.”

          IT  HAD  TO  COME  out  one  way  or  another  .  and  oliver  doubts  either  option  would’ve  been  easy  to  process  .  he’s  glad  dinah  was  the  one  to  break  the  news  to  him  .  “  there’s  not  but  i  think  the  most  important  step  should  be  actually  remembering  it  ,  ”  he  can’t  help  but  joke  .  what  ?  it’s  just  how  he  processes  his  trauma  .  lips  curl  up  into  a  small  smile  as  he  nods  sympathetically  .  “  i  get  it  .  this  world  isn’t  exactly  like  ours  .  ”  he  hesitates  ,  unsure  of  whether  to  acknowledge  the  grieving  part  .  it’s  …  weird  .  he  doesn’t  remember  dying  and  he’s  very  much  alive  now  .  “  have  you  seen  the  others  ?  ”  roy  .  diggle  .  emiko  .

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Dinah folded her arms as she let him process the information given. It wasn’t like this was a daily occurrence and they had seen some strange sights but this wasn’t something that had to deal with intimately. “Maybe it is for the best that you don’t.” She admitted before slowly shaking her head. “I am sorry to tell you this.” She said softly, looking up at him. “Tell me about it. Everyone and there cousin is wearing a mask. If anything, I kinda took a step back from being the Canary since I came here. Doesn’t seem...vital.” As he asked about their makeshift family, Dinah shook her head. “No. Not yet. To be honest, trying to find people here is like finding a needle in a stack of mines.”

❝ and why do i get the feeling you’re talking more about powers than actually being gifted at singing ? ❞ her tone is quiet and hushed. the other might have a secret identity that they want to keep, well, SECRET. emma will not be the person who exposes them after all. but if they’re willing to openly hint at it in public, maybe it’s not so much a secret. ❝ ah. ❞ blonde looks over to her boots and moves them about. ❝ well i did get these at fifth avenue. but none taken. you’re right this isn’t my scene but these places have a weird charm to them i like. ❞

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“Because everyone has some sort of power these days, right?” Dinah chuckled. “I mean, I find with all this happening in the world, you meet more people with powers than without and then even when they don’t, they have some sort of trick up their sleeve.” She commented. “Is this when you drop your keys into a bowl with a couple of the other patrons? A walk on the wild side?” She humored a little, poking fun at the other.

“…not quite.” Edward said, choosing his next words carefully, “I used to work for the GCPD. I interacted with the capes and cowls a few times.”. Edward should probably be slightly more offended that she didn’t know who he was, but in this particular situation, it worked in his favor. There wasn’t a single doubt in his mind that if Dinah knew who he was,then he would be in jail by this point in the conversation. Or on the losing end of a fight. It made him almost…giddy. Like he was undercover on a mission, and could pretend to be normal for a while. “It must be wonderful, to have it all figured out from the beginning. Or perhaps, slightyly suffocating?” Edward questioned. He tried not to dwell on the obvious implications on his life, that his family were all criminals, and Edward grew up the same way. “At least you have music to give you a respite. I couldn’t imagine crime-fighting 24/7.”

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Dinah’s brows raised before shaking her head. “GCPD. My dad was in that unit.” She said before scoffing. “All I can say is Gotham is some miserable ass town and I am glad I got out of there when I did.” She had no regrets about that. Though born and raised in Gotham, it took so much from her as it did with everyone and Dinah was not prepared to continue paying to price just by being living in Gotham. “I don’t know. I thought I had it all figured out but crime changed. I changed.” She said with a slow nod. “Music pays the bills. Crime fighting is what I was born to do but it doesn’t pay rent.”

@theblackcanarybird···

“You were great up there,” Kate said. The bar was loud, a little bit grimy, more anonymous than not. Her favorite kind of place: booze (not cheap, because this was New York, and nothing was cheap, but not the worst in the city), secrecy, live music by a hell of a singer. “Almost made me forget this place is a shithole.” She ragged on it, but she smiled, raising her drink in salute. Shithole, affectionate. “Can I buy you a drink?”

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“ there’s nothing to worry about, but I’d stay out of the kitchen for a while."  //  @theblackcanarybird·

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Dinah leaned on the doorway as her eyebrow quirked. “The look on your face doesn’t assure me there was anything to worry about.” She admitted as she watched the other blonde. “You know, I could just Judo throw you outta the way and see what you’ve done, right?”

“Right you are! Amazing how slang comes about. Linguistics, wordplay are such a beautiful example of how language can evolve.” Edward rambled on. Despite having an alias (a nom de plume, considering that his crimes were basically high art) that was often made fun of, he found it so interesting how people got their aliases. A first impression to make on someone, to start anew under a new name. Edward chose his during a rather… chaotic period in his life. Sometimes he missed the simplicity of ‘Enigma’, but it was altogether too obvious of a name. “Or, if you were more of a pessimist, there is always the ‘canary in the coal mine’, a sign that bad times are soon to follow.” Edward leaned onto the counter. “But i’m assuming it’s from the slang term you mentioned?  What came first, the singing, or the crime fighting career?”

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As he continued to speak, Dinah raised her eyebrows as she looked at him. Certainly awkward. Smart and awkward. He reminded her of Barbara but she was also baffled as to why something didn’t sit right with her. She wasn’t sure what it was but she couldn’t put her finger on it at all. As he mentioned a canary in the coal mine. “Well, everything is up for interpretation, right? I like to think I am both.” She said with a slow nod before sipping her drink. “Crime fighting.” She answered. “It is all I ever wanted to do. I raised around nothing but supes and officers. Guess you could say it runs in my blood.” She then laughed to herself. “Ran out onto the streets at 18, thinking I knew how the world, bright eyed, with an ass that you could bounce a quarter off.” She looked back to him before tilting her head. “Do you follow all supes around?”

          SHE  THANKS  THE  BARTENDER  .  hand  moves  to  grab  the  glass  and  take  a  sip  .  she’s  not  entirely  sure  how  she  feels  about  all  the  portal  people  .  and  adding  resurrections  to  the  list  ?  it’s  hitting  a  little  to  close  to  home  for  betsy  .  “  thank  you  !  ”  she  chuckles  at  the  compliment  .  “  i  guess  you  could  say  that  .  i’ve  been  coloring  my  hair  purple  for  as  long  as  i  can  remember  .  ”  and  that  didn’t  stop  her  when  she  was  in  kwannon’s  body  .  “  are  you  new  here  ?  i’ve  been  here  a  couple  times  and  never  seen  you  around  .  ”

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the great thing about being at some seedy bar like this is that emma manges to go under the radar. slightly. the white clothes, the perfect hair and manicured nails give her away but unlike some other places, nobody even tries to bother her. maybe she should start coming here more often. ❝ you’re welcome. ❞ she hums as she grabs her drink and takes a quick sip. ❝ i personally, always appreciate good TALENT. ❞ blonde takes another sip. ❝ agreed. nicer venues but you have to make do with what you’ve got. ❞

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Dinah ran her index finger around the rim of her glass for a moment as the other woman spoke. “More so a gift than a talent.” She admitted. Dinah made no secret of her power. She just tended to rely on it less than others. She always wondered what would she did if she lost her Canary Cry so she made sure that if she did, she wouldn’t be stranded and left behind. Become burdened to anyone. “So, I work here sometimes but that doesn’t explain why someone who looks like that shop on Fifth Avenue is here. No offense.”

Matt shrugged. “People always say shit like that.” He took a swig of his drink. “It doesn’t really mean much. I mean, it does define me, right? And it always will. But it’s not the only part of me. That definition isn’t the only thing that matters.” Matt had long since learned to live with—and even appreciate—his disability, but that didn’t mean that the trauma of the disabling accident just went away. It would always be there, right next to losing his father and now the snap. 

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Dinah nodded as he spoke about it. “I get that.” She agreed with his sentiment. “It is not exactly the same but, for some people, the colour of my skin defines what I should be. What I can do.” Dinah admitted. She looked over to Matt, letting the moment go quiet before she spoke. “But it is only a part of me. That definition isn’t the only thing that matters, right?” She chuckled at the end of her sentence, repeating his earlier statement.

          HE  WANTED  TO  DENY  IT  .  but  the  more  he  processed  dinah’s  words  ,  the  more  it  made  sense  .  now  he  can’t  help  but  wonder  .  what  happens  to  him  when  they  go  back  to  their  world  ?  will  he  stay  dead  ?  he  knew  that  the  day  would  come  .  he’s  not  a  god  .  he’s  not  an  alien  .  and  he  sure  as  hell  isn’t  a  metahuman  .  he  survives  .  that’s  all  he  ever  does  .  he  sighs  and  shifts  his  gaze  away  from  her  .  hand  moves  up  to  pinch  the  bridge  of  his  nose  .  “  of  course  i  die  and  i  can’t  even  remember  it  ,  ”  he  comments  facetiously  .  “  i  mean  i  have  to  admit  ,  i  knew  that  i  might  die  going  into  it  .  i  just  never  expected  to  forget  .  and  on  top  of  that  get  thrown  into  an  entirely  new  world  .  ”  eyes  trail  back  to  dinah  .  “  but  how  are  you  ?  ”

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“what, i don’t make a terrifying bodyguard??” he question, mouth dropping open in shock as a hand settled over his chest. trying to be as dramatic as possible, of course. he most certainly did not look terrifying, that was for sure. hand dropping away, peter chuckled softly, giving a shake of his head. “nothing of the sort. former thief, actually, but i’m reformed these days. i’m with the guardians of the galaxy, we do… a lot of different things, i guess. mostly saving the galaxy. but that does end up putting us into some trouble from time to time. or, more often than not.” 

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Dinah watched him for a moment before bursting out with a genuine laugh. “Sorry.” She managed to say as she caught her breath, looking back to him. “I am my own security so don’t sweat it.” She assured him as she then raised her eyebrows. “Guardians of the what?” She repeated, finding it all quite farfetched but who was she to judge? “So, galaxy boy, what happened to get you grounded down here with the rest of us?”

“fair enough. not sure i can really deny that one.” pulling his hand away, a shoulder lifted into a shrug, reaching once more for his drink. “i dabble. mostly construction work, though. can’t really help your hands getting rough with that sorta work.” considering her words, frank took another sip of the drink. she was certainly interesting – not quite what he had initially had in mind. he’d more than give it to her. “you know what you’re about. can’t help but respect that.” lowering the bottle, he let out a soft chuckle, a hint of a smile growing on his features. “shit, you caught me. hanging out in a bar alone has always been my life long goal, what can i say. but, nah, i usually go solo. don’t have any other reason not to. jus’ grab a beer or two and head out on my way.” 

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“Don’t sweat it. I have been doing this long enough to know what these kind of places are like.” Knew them well enough that she had a couple of bar fights in her time. Nothing hit quite like kicking someone’s ass to a great tune and smashing them into a jukebox. Juvenile maybe but still fun. “They say the same about fighters.” She commented. She had met many and fought many more. They had their traits. As he spoke about respecting her statement, she shrugged with a sigh. “Is what it is. We all can’t be gods right?” She swirled the amaretto around her glass, watching it coat the sides. “Right. The back to an adventurous day of construction I take it?” She humored, offering half a smile.

          JAW  CLENCHES  AT  THE  REVELATION  .  head  turns  away  for  a  brief  moment  .  he  was  dead  ?  that  can’t  be  right  .  someone  had  to  have  gotten  him  out  of  there  .  right  ?  oliver  queen  has  cheated  death  one  too  many  times  .  certainly  this  time  was  no  exception  ?  he  turns  back  to  face  dinah  ,  cognac  colored  hues  locking  with  hers  .  “  i  died  ,  ”  he  repeats  ,  taking  in  a  deep  breath  .  “  no  .  no  .  ”  lets  out  a  humorless  chuckle  .  and  when  she  says  she  watched  him  die  ,  there’s  a  sharp  pang  of  pain  in  his  chest  .  “  someone  had  to  have  gotten  me  outta  there  .  how  else  would  i  be  here  ?  ”

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