Summary:Fenris catches up with Zee and finds out some information Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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Finding Zatanna Zatara in New York is sort of easy. She's easily found performing in one of the more upmarket hotels or the likes. However, finding her socially, is a little more challenging - but for those in the know, The Bar With No Doors is one of her regular hangouts.
Tonight she's there, no show to perform, sitting a table nursing a glass of something that's pink and bubbly. In front of her, on the table, is a book - an old one by the looks of it - that she seems quite engrossed in.
Fenris is a regular at the Bar with No Doors and he was already there when Zatanna arrived but otherwise engaged. Now though. a shadow falls over the mage's book belonging to a man with a glass of something amber and his hand in his suit jacket pocket. "How can you read that? There's no pictures."
Zee is young enough that the Old Wolf figures she will get the reference and possibly be amused by it by way of introduction.
Zatanna had noted Fenris' presence - it's a little hard to ignore after all. Given he'd been otherwise engaged, she hadn't sought to interrupt him but now, as the shadow falls and the voice sounds, she looks up and smiles. "I would offer to buy a drink, but I can see you already have one."
Gesturing to the chair opposite, the woman invites the God Wolf to join her. "Well, some people use their imagination." She got the joke, yes.
Closing the book, Fenris can see it's an old tome indeed - labelled "A History Of The Lemuria Witch Scrolls".
"What brings such a dashing and powerful man to my table tonight?" The rumours about the Sorceress seem to be true. Outgoing and flirty.
"Imagination is one of humanity's greatest assets and biggest weaknesses, I have found." Fenris says as he takes a seat. There's a small thump as the Old Wolf sets his glass down on the table. "Witch Scrolls. Interesting choice of reading. Is that book written by one of your family?"
Fenris chuckles. She is outgoing and rather bold. "Powerful perhaps. Dashing?" He lets that trail off for a moment.
"Curiosity mostly. You've turned up a couple of times seemingly by chance. Except you and I both know that where magic is concerned, 'by chance' is rarely what it seems to be."
"Is it now? I suppose you've seen a lot in your time here." Zatanna answers quietly. "It is what keeps the world turning though, isn't it? Our refusal to accept failure - we'll just try and try again. What would you say was the biggest asset and the biggest weakness though?"
Her blue eyes follow his to the book and she nods. "Aziz Zatara, distantly related to my father, several centuries back. The Zatara's are a very long line."
"Yes. Dashing. And you're sure your lady has told you that on a number of occassions." The raven haired woman chuckles. Bold, definitely. "Ah, so the big bad wolf wants to make sure Red Riding Hood isn't the wicked witch in disguise?"
"Your kind dares to think of what may be and reach for it. It is what has allowed you to rise from such primitive beginnings and believe me, that drive is not present everywhere in the cosmos. However sometimes your kind gets so caught up in what may be that they forget to deal with what is."
The Wolf God takes a sip of his drink and smirks. "She has yes, thank you. And yes something like that. Well. I know you're a witch. But are you wicked? That's the question." Beat. "Though I'll admit I cannot remember the last time I saw a witch in fishnets pulling a rabbit out of a hat or sawing someone in half and then putting them back together. They might have been more popular if they had done that."
"That we do. We dream and try to make those dreams reality. For better or worse, unfortunately." Zee takes a sip from the bright pink concoction and considers Fenris. "Sometimes I think we don't want to deal with what is. It's too hard or painful."
"I prefer Sorceress or Magician, thank you. The term Witch has too many connotations. I suppose I can thank shows like Supernatural and Charmed for that - and I see that you noticed the fishnets."
"Am I wicked? I can be, if the mood takes me just right." The saucy wench smirks in return and settles back in chair. "I think, perhaps, that what you are noticing though is that I've been absent from New York for a little while and now I've returned. I'm interminably nosey and when I feel magic in the air, I like to be sure what we're dealing with."
"I think everyone in the room noticed the fishnets, Miss Zatara. And if I do not miss my guess, I think that was the point." That she is self assured and also well versed in the arts of showmanship and misdirection is quite clear. He did after all see her do a few tricks before things went to hell. But he's also seen her do real magic. Fenris is, yes… curious.
"And what is it that you are dealing with, Zatanna Zatara? I must confess you had not come to my attention prior and I have been in New York for quite long by mortal standards." Not very long by his, but they do operate on different scaled.
"Zee, remember." Zee just smiles brightly at Fenris' comment. "Well, most magic is about misdirection, isn't it? So no, you didn't miss the point, not at all. I've spent years practicing and learning to … deal … with people oogling me."
"Dealing with, Fenris? Whatever comes along, of course." She might have left at it that except for his last note. "In all honesty, I'm not sure. Several cursed items have appeared in New York in the last few weeks. At first, I thought they were from an Estate sale. You know, some recluse had gathered relics together and put them on display and then died - the family sells the collection off. But then the artifact in the Met showed up. Those things … that's not usual."
"Zee, then." Fenris says, raising his glass to the young (to him) woman. "You are rather skilled at misdirection, I will say. And your show is quite enjoyable when it isn't being interrupted." Or artifacts being eaten.
"So someone is either deliberately feeding the artifacts into the city or else something else has gone wrong. Yes that is not good news. Not good news at all…" Fenris murmurs.
"Mmmmm. And given what has been going on in the city, it's very ill timed. Tell me, Zee, is this something you feel like you might need some assistance with?"
"Thank you. I hope you and your lady will come one night, when I won't be rudely interrupted." Zee answers. Her eyes laugh at the God Wolf "Speaking of which, have you … passed … the necklace yet?"
With a shake of her head, the mage becomes serious though and takes another sip of her drink. "Not at all, I'm afraid. What else is going on that might impact on this? I promise I won't meddle …" The serious mien didn't last long. "… it will be good to know that I might be thwarted though. And I might. I have a bundle of research to do on the artifacts that I've found so far." She taps the book by her elbow. "And then I'll have to hit the streets and do some real investigation. Does that sound like something that might interest you?"
"I have. I wasn't expecting to run into you though or I'd have it available to present to you." Does she REALLY want it back though? Knowing where it has been? And what it has been through? Or who it has been through?
"Ragnarok." Fenris answers very seriously. "Which I would rather not happen. So yes, I can help you get some answers. I might even know of a few places to ask questions." And Fenris is very good at standing behind someone looking menacing. He doesn't even really have to work all that hard at it.
"I suppose you're wondering if I really want the necklace back. No, I don't. I really don't however, we can learn a lot from the enchantment on it. Unless being digested by you, negated that somehow." Zee sighs at the thought of it. "Put it through your dishwasher a few times on extra heat before giving it back to me…."
She's really trying not to think about how … ick … this is.
"Ragnarok? Not the movie or that dreadful TV Series that Netflix just released, I take it. I wonder if they're related … probably are, but not directly. Someone, or someones, might be sensing the disruption and seeking to hay while the sun shines - quite literally." She muses. "Of course, it might just a thrill seeker who gets off on the mischief that they cause."
"I would certainly welcome your assistance, God Wolf."
"It's not all that bad." Fenris chuckles. "I have ways of making sure such things are sanitary. But no sadly I cannot destroy magic by eating it unless the item itself can be digested. So all of those magical cakes are in trouble, but less the magical orichalcum necklaces."
He had mentioned it was orichalcum. And thus very likely to be Greek or Minoan, actually.
"No, though those things make me want Ragnarok ever so slightly. No I suspect that this is someone taking advantage of my attention being elsewhere and the magical world being roiled." Fenris is aware that BAD THINGS are afoot elsewhere even if they don't directly concern him.
"Perhaps I'll send it to you with a dozen roses, mmm? Would that make it slightly better?" Okay now he's poking fun at her a little bit.
"Well that's good to know. I just hope you don't think eating evidence is a safe way of doing things all the time." Zatanna seems at ease with Fenris. Courtesy, respectful, but not … fearful. "The cake is a lie, anyway."
"What do you know of Orichalcum, now you mention it? I'm nowhere near old enough to have interacted with it personally." beat "And I don't blame you - the movie was good, the TV series … not so much."
"It might, though you are offering me the company of a dashing man to work with. That might be enough to make things better." Roses? Zee *loves* roses. Yellow ones. And those pretty red and cream mottle ones.
"Real orichalcum was a metal in use for a thousand years before I arrived on this world. The Myceneans and Minoans used it. The Greeks used it. Mostly it was confined to… beings regarded here as deific or supernatural. Every once in a while a mortal got their hands on some and then if they could figure out how to work it, they made something unique."
The Old Wolf takes another drink and looks at the dark haired mage considering. "If I had to guess I'd say that your piece came from the former. Belonged, I shouldn't wonder, to an actual siren. Or possibly someone overcome with vanity. One of those. The Greeks were famed for… tricks like that."
"Wellll. Perhaps I shall send you some then."
That's enough to bring a faint flush to Zee's cheeks. She doesn't push the flirting much further. There are *lines*. "A supernatural being? That might sense. A jealous demigoddess or supernatural being, who gifted it to someone as pay back. The myths and stories are full of cautionary tales like that."
"Of course, I'd be more inclined to think that the case if it celtic or fae in nature. Then again, there were the Pans from the Met." So many angles to work on this, and Fenris can see the mage starting to work through them.
"Whatever we're dealing with though, it's likely old. Very old. Or at least, the magic being used is."
"Possibly yes. Or someone who wished for beauty and attention and got… that." What happened to the woman in question? Fenris didn't catch it, he was busy scaring people off and being a wolf the size of a small bus. His mind runs briefly through possibilities and there are many but no data really on which to speculate.
"There were. It also may be related to trouble elsewhere in the city. I do wonder if someone is trying to sew magical chaos to further that. Whatever the case, the more trouble here the more risk that something will happen that forces me to respond… forcefully." And that's a problem.
"We are at a minimum dealing with someone who knows a great many secrets. Old seems likely. And I KNOW most of the beings that old…" Though not all of them…
"Hrm. Where is your first stop, if I may ask?"
"So much attention that it nearly killed her?" Zee finishes. "That woman wasn't harmed, though she was rather exhausted … Those around her though, it was like she was trying to drain their life essence. Maybe that's the what the necklace needs to keep the enchantment fresh - and if it doesn't get it, it feeds from the wearer."
It's all speculation though.
"Someone quite competent in the arts, yes." Zee agrees again, finishing that pink swirling drink and gesturing to the bar tender. He brings another. This time purple. And a refill of the Amber drink that Fenris is drinking.
"My first stop? Well, I have a date tonight, so I'm going home to make myself beautiful …" There's a cheeky grin. That's not what Fenris had meant and she knows it. "There's some people in the city that might have heard somethings. I thought I would drop in to see them. A shaman of sorts down in Harlem. Hedge Witch out towards Westchester. A small colony of Hobs just outside the Disaster Zone. That's the leg work - there's a reason I look so good in fishnets. Then my workshop to assess the necklace and the seal - see if I can find some similarities in the spell work and failing that, anything that might give me some insight into who's doing this."
"You should at least give the poor young man a sporting chance." Fenris chuckles and takes another sip.
"That's a lot of visits to make. There are at least two goddesses in town you should speak to as well. I can make introductions." He pauses to consider the various options and then adds. "And the Finder."
He hasn't contacted the Finder in some time but she is a good person to ask. She can find almost anything and always offers a fair trade. Which isn't to say that it won't be expensive but at least she'll tell you what the price is before you agree.
"I'd prefer not to." Zee smirks back at Fenris' comment. "My Dad, and those I studied with, always told me that a level playing field is not something that I wish for. If I'm going to play, I want it slanted in my favour."
"Two Goddesses? I would like that. Who are they?" Zee certainly isn't aware that Sigyn has returned from Hel. "The Finder. Oh yes. The Night Market. That's a trip I should make. If you would like to go with me, I wouldn't object. I confess, I have only spoken to her once before."
"Ursula and Bast." Fenris has been aware of both of their presences for some time. There are others of course, at the Asgardian Embassy and possibly more who have not announced their presence to the God-Wolf. Or been found out by him.
:Well in any case good luck with your hunting. The Night Market, yes. I would be happy to accompany you. She and I are on very, very good terms."
"They're in town. Interesting." Zee will do some reading before meeting the Goddesses. Ensure she understands the protocols, the last thing she wants to do is upset a deity.
"Thank you. To you too, Fenris." Zee raises her glass in a toast. "Now, enough about work. Tell me about one of your adventures…"
"Well." Fenris says, with a grin that might have in previous eras heralded him about to have an unwilling meal. "Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived a wolf in a deep forest…"