magician's apprentice | we've come a long way from where we began (rp for the_death_card)

[onebehind]

The place Miranda picks for their lunch date is meant to be neutral ground, Dylan is sure. She has them come out to Chicago, and while she is doing a show here, sometime this weekend, if her website is to be believed, it's still not home, not for either of them. It's also not one of the dozen places around town that might have required a reservation and no escape, if either of them thinks this is going south. No, it's just a diner, a literal hole in the wall, in a strip mall between a chiropractor and -- something else, Dylan's not sure, as he misses the sign, etched into the wall as they head in, but either way, the effort all adds up to a massive relief. He's not sure this will go badly, that he needs to think in terms of advantages and disadvantages as if he was playing chess, considering he's changed in the last twenty years, twenty months, twenty weeks, but still. He lets out a breath of relief, as they step into the building and he takes a look around.

It's a little less reminiscent of a dive bar, inside, even if the floors are bare, the ceiling open, and Dylan takes a certain amount of comfort in that, too. He glances to Jack briefly, to gauge his impression of all of this, and then steps up to the hostess's station as he looks out over the tables, trying to spot Miranda in the dwindling late-lunch crowd. When he doesn't see her, he's not surprised (she never could be on time for anything), and so he gets them a table for three, by the window, and settles into a chair. He expects Jack will take up his side of the table, too, and that's fine with him.

Once he's settled, Dylan pauses a beat, before, "Have I mentioned the part where she'd be late for her own funeral?"

Comments

[the_death_card]

Jack didn't notice, no, and just nods at Dylan's assertion. "I know. I'll stop, like.. building up to freaking out," he assures him, though his grin is still a little self-deprecating. "It kinda helps that you haven't seen her in a while, either, actually."

[onebehind]

"Glad that's working for one of us," Dylan mutters, in spite of himself. If Jack has anything to say in response to that, however, it's lost as Dylan abruptly starts to get to his feet. He's spotted Miranda across the room, you see, and he's trying to get her attention. It works, and she drifts over, her brightly colored gypsy skirt swirling around her as she moves.

Stopping in front of them, she looks between Dylan, Jack and back again, slowly, critically, before letting out a breath. She shakes her head. "God, honey, you weren't kidding."

About having adopted a kid. About being sober. About anything he's told her on the phone since they started talking again. And as good as all this is, she's not sure what to do with it. She was sure Dylan's lot in life was to die young, alone, drunk -- not entirely unlike his father, plus or minus. The means to the end might have been a little different, slower, but he was still headed towards suicide, in her opinion.

"Yeah, no," Dylan answers, shaking his head, too. He pauses a beat, that said, then gestures to Jack. "Miranda, Jack. Jack, Miranda Vale."

[the_death_card]

Jack pushes to his feet, too, when he spots her, again trying to swallow his nerves. It works marginally well, and he doesn't trip over his chair when he goes to hold a hand out to her, to shake. "It's really cool to meet you. I've, uh... I've heard a lot."

From Dylan, he means. He's also watched a lot of her stuff online, but he's trying not to be too obvious a fan here.

[queen_ofwands]

Leaning forward, Miranda takes Jack's hand in hers for the shake. As she steps back, she gestures for them all to sit, and as she settles into her own seat and belatedly, she offers, "Relax. I'm not going to bite."

Whether that's meant for Dylan or Jack is up for debate, but obviously, she's picked up on the nerves radiating off of one or both of them.

[the_death_card]

Jack takes his seat again as Miranda does, looking between her and Dylan as he settles. It wouldn't take much for anyone to notice the nerves, considering how bad they've both been about it all afternoon. "Yeah, uh... it'd be cool to meet you even without you being friends with him, though."

Jack is a fan, is his point, and he's got double the nerves because of it. He's nervous about meeting her as a magician and as Dylan's almost-family.

[queen_ofwands]

"Well, I wasn't going to point out that I picked up on that -- " Because she hadn't wanted to embarrass him. She's not trying to embarrass him now, honestly, it's just that, since he brought up the elephant in the room, she can't help but address it, too. Either way, her tone is gentle, throughout. " -- but I picked up on that."

"Mentalists" Dylan grumbles, waving a hand at her. Miranda ignores him.

"Still don't bite, honey." A beat. "And I'd say 'unless you're into that kinda thing' but you're a little young for my tastes."

[the_death_card]

Despite Miranda's tone and that he's the one that admitted it first, Miranda's response is enough to make Jack blush, red creeping up his face toward his ears as he laughs sheepishly. "Yeah... and you're like my aunt or whatever, so...."

[queen_ofwands]

"That, too," Miranda allows, ignoring the fact that he seems embarrassed, now, too. She's not going to draw more attention to it than she has to. "And speaking of, Jake's told me a little about you and everything that's been going on with the two of you, lately, but ... "

If Jack has anything he wants to say to help her get to know him, now would be the time.

[the_death_card]

Jack huffs out a breath, shooting Dylan a sheepish sort of grin. "There's kinda been a lot," he allows, because it feels like a lot more time has passed since the day Dylan took him in than really has. "But, uh... he tell you I tried to take his wallet?"

He's not sure where to start. That seems like a good place.

[queen_ofwands]

Miranda shoots Dylan a look that manages to be both amused and searching, somehow, and in response, he shrugs, clarifies, "When we first met."

"Funny that you didn't mention that, honey," Miranda tells him. Never mind the fact that, while she and Dylan took some time to catch up, on the phone, there wasn't enough time to sum up all of the last however long. He mentioned taking Jack in, but not exactly how they met; he mentioned getting sober, but not how close he came to death to get there. And so on and so forth.

Either way, when she turns back to Jack, she asks, "How'd that go for you?" Better than he thought it would, she imagines.

[the_death_card]

Or not as good, considering how much luck he'd been having with other people. "Uh, well, he caught me? And I was pretty sure he was going to arrest me. And then he showed up with my case worker and I was still pretty sure I was screwed," he admits. "But, uh, yeah. Obviously it turned out good."

[queen_ofwands]

That all earns Dylan another look, still amused, but also almost exasperated, now, somehow. Never mind the fact that, yes, this all seems to be working out for the both of them and better than anyone here would have imagined, but -- really, Dylan? You really stalked a kid, just because he tried to steal your wallet?

"He caught my attention," Dylan offers with a shrug, almost helplessly. A glace to Jack follows, as if asking him to help bail him out.

[the_death_card]

Jack blinks at him, something baffled in his expression. He's not sure what or how much to say here, either, but if Dylan's going to keep being vague, he'll just keep going until he tells him to stop.

"Uh... apparently I did magic?" he adds, looking back to Miranda. "Like, in getting through the crowd and everything?"

[queen_ofwands]

Miranda shoots Dylan another look, this one decidedly less unimpressed -- now, that makes a little more sense, is more justified in her opinion. She looks back to Jack, that said and done. "Probably an illusion, honey." A beat, then if he didn't catch that look, the implication, "And that is impressive."

[the_death_card]

Jack grins a little at both parts of her assessment, pleased by the compliment. "Uh... I'd say thanks but I kinda didn't know I was doing it. But thanks anyway?" he says after a moment, grinning crookedly. "And yeah, he's explained a bunch of stuff about it and about the Eye and stuff."

[queen_ofwands]

Miranda gestures in his direction, as if to say that's part of why it's so impressive, and then, as Jack continues, hums, amused. "He tell you most of the stuff you're going to find on the internet is bullshit, too?"

She's more up-to-date than Dylan on the current usual rumors. Mostly because, whenever she needs a laugh, she goes looking purposefully.

[the_death_card]

Jack looks a little more pleased with himself for the gesture, resettling in his seat a little - and then nods. "Yeah. And he's already told me some specific stuff I've found that's bullshit. Like, uh. There was something about them only adding people once every a hundred years or something?"

[queen_ofwands]

"You see the one that says we sacrifice babies to initiate new members, yet?" she asks, that usually the next step from the once every hundred years thing. She's not sure which is more ridiculous, and therefore more amusing, but both are near the top of her list of favorites, mostly because it makes the whole thing smack of being a cult.

[the_death_card]

Jack snorts softly even as he nods again. "Uh, not specifically babies? There was some stuff about blood sacrifices and stuff, though. He already told me about, like... the part about having a big thing to follow through on without question being an actual thing, though."

He's pretty sure murder isn't an actual part of it, though.

[queen_ofwands]

Miranda hums to the affirmative -- and then makes another small noise, this one amused. "Hope you don't get me as your patron, when it's your turn, honey. I'm not sure what I'd make you do, but I do know I'd make you wear a hooded robe or something, the entire time."

To go with the whole cult, baby-sacrificing image and all.

Dylan, meanwhile, groans. "Don't. Don't do that to him."

[the_death_card]

Jack snickers at the two of them and at the mental images she's brought to mind with that. "I don't know, I could rock that," he tosses back, grinning at Dylan.

[queen_ofwands]

"You're fun, I like you," Miranda declares, her smile taking a step towards warm, rather than just amused. She manages to hide some, though not all of it, as she glances back to Dylan. "Him, on the other hand ... jury's still out."

[the_death_card]

Jack snickers again at Dylan's expense even while he's also a little pleased by Miranda's approval. "He's not bad," he allows lightly, and his smile turns a little more real as he looks to Dylan.

[queen_ofwands]

Dylan returns the smile, something fond in his expression. Miranda, meanwhile, glances between the two of them, reading them both, before finally humming. "I guess not."

Maybe Dylan really has changed. Something has, if nothing else, Jack clearly good for him, and vice versa, near as she can tell without a baseline to compare to.

"But either way," she continues after a beat, not willing to dwell too long on that, right now, for any number of reasons, "what are we eating?"

[the_death_card]

"Oh, um," Jack begins, reaching for one of the menus that he's barely glanced at before now. "Ooh, cheese sticks," he says, catching sight of them on the appetizer menu.