entrancelogs | [ c l o s e d ] fill the glass cuz the last few days have kicked my ass

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[ c l o s e d ] fill the glass cuz the last few days have kicked my ass

Who: Oliver Queen and Natasha Romanoff
Where: the bar
When: a non-party evening
Rating: idk PG-13 to be safe? there are two tormented souls involved.
Summary: two superheroes walk into a bar...
The Story:

[ weeks have passed already. every day, oliver has to work a little less to mask the pain of his injury, and that is the sole benefit the passage of time has had to offer him. he's gathered some basic information, but it's all common knowledge to the population of wonderland, he's yet to find one scrap that could get him one inch closer to getting back home. it takes time, he knows, and patience, it always does - but he's got neither to spare.

nothing life shattering has happened today, but it's a bad day nonetheless. it's a culmination of the past couple of weeks, of living with the fear ra's al ghul put into his heart, the concern for his family, the frustration of being trapped, again, of having to start again. he could drink in his room, he knows. it seems like all the produce of wonderland comes from the same magical source anyway, but he has an image to uphold - the normal oliver queen would have frequented the bar every single day. and the club. and made a fool of himself.

he doesn't go that far; no one here knows the way he used to be anyway and it's been a relief to step away from that persona back home, he has no interest in going that far backwards. but he does make an appearance at he bar. it's a good place to gather intel, anyway. still, he can't resist muttering anatoly's toast to himself before he downs his drink ] Prochnost. [ he needs all the strength he can get here. ]

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[Natasha notices Oliver as he sits nearby, not specifically but in the way she catalogues and files away everyone in the vicinity. On some level, she marks them as potential threats. It's habit. Just like it's habit to keep an ear open.

It's his toast that catches her attention, his Russian accented by clear.

She's close enough to look up when she hears it and cock an eyebrow.]

Ваше здоровье?

[To your health. It's not a personal tost for her, but a test, curious if he responds.]

[ he has no reason to hide his fluency in russian. maybe his chinese should still stay under wraps, but for the moment the search for potential allies seems vastly more important than hiding every last ability he has in case someday it will come in handy to have it unknown.

he looks up at the woman who responded to him, and taps the bar for a refill. once it's provided, he holds the glass up to her, before offering another toast. ]

Будем здоровы [ to our health. he gestures for her to join him if she likes. ]

[She has to smile at that. It's a good answer. It's also an answer that removes any doubt about his understanding of Russian.

Natasha accepts his silent invitation, raising her glass as she sits beside him.]

Not many Americans speak Russian. Your teacher would be proud?

Ouch - that obvious?

[ he smiles; his russian used to be atrocious, but he's come a long way. not as long as he has with his chinese, though - when he speaks chinese without being seen, he will always be confused for a native. ]

I think he's just happy I graduated from fake Russian.

[ he could use anatoly's advice right now. any of his mentors, really. he's lost. ]

No, no. Not that obvious.

[Somehow, Natasha's reassurance doesn't seem entirely convincing. But her good humor.]

But I've got a good ear.

Natasha Romanoff.

Oliver Queen.

[ he offers her his hand. ] Nice to meet you.

[ he's looking closely at her reaction to his name; too many people have found it familiar in this land, and not for any reason related directly to him. how many other hims are out there? how many people know them? how do they feel about them? they're too many variables, and they frustrate him to no end. ]

[There's no recognition. Not from him when she says her name, and not from her when he introduces himself.]

Nice to meet you, Oliver.

[So not from the same world.]

Been here long? I don't think I've seen you around.

[ she could be very good at masking her reactions so oliver doesn't draw conclusions just yet, but he's relieved at least to be spared the need to deny and refute. ]

Feels long - [ a small commiserating smile; he sure she can relate. on the island, every day stretched into an eternity until he met yao fei and later slade and shado. he's not alone here, but every day still feels like an eternity not knowing how his family and friends are faring without him. does ra's al ghul know that he survived his blade? is he looking for him, hurting the people he loves to bring him out of hiding? and what is malcolm merlyn's next move?

a minute in wonderland is too long for him right now. and it's been weeks. ] it's been a couple weeks. You?

A few months. It's funny how it works. Somehow it feels like it's been both longer and shorter than that.

[Because things happen fast, and because the space between them feels so empty. Just the formula to play with a person's sense of time.]

I guess that's a long time, but there's people who've been here a lot longer. It gets hard to have a sense of proportion.

All part of that Wonderland charm, isn't it? Everything's supposed to be crazy - time perception included.

[ there's a dry edge to the word charm there. if there's one thing oliver doesn't have to pretend about in this dimension, it's his reluctance to be in it. ]

Maybe time perception in particular. [Oh, her response is just as wry as his, her lips quirking before she takes a drink.]

I take it it's not quite your normal scene. No?

[ he mirrors the action, drinking just as much as she is. it became almost a reflex in the bratva. ]

You're saying it's yours? [ with a quirked brow. he was under the impression they're all abductees here. ]

[Don't think that goes unnoticed, either. Well. He's a big boy. She figures he can keep up.]

Oh, of course. Don't I look like a fairy tales and nonsense type of girl?

[She definitely doesn't.]

[ a big boy indeed. not that he'll go on to inebriation; much as he could use the time away from what passes for reality now - the costs are likely to be much steeper than the benefits. ]

I don't remember much about Alice in Wonderland, but wasn't one of the morals 'looks can be deceiving'?

Probably. That sounds like the kind of thing that kids' stories tend to teach.

[She sets her drink down, crossing her arms on the bar and lifting her chin slightly.]

I admit, I never read it. Saw the cartoon once?

My sister was obsessed with the flower song - how'd it go - something something - in a golden afternoon? [ he half sings the golden afternoon part of the sentence, just a little bit of melody inserted into an otherwise regular speech.

people here know him, they know about him. using his personal life is a powerful bonding tool, and thea is constantly on his mind. it's nice, to think of the innocent, sweet parts of her, it's a reminder of what he's fighting for (not that he ever forgets, but still). ]

Must've fallen asleep in the part that mentioned mass-kidnappings.

[It's an interesting choice. Personal. The kind of thing that inspires people to respond in kind. She also believes him.

The song is a nice touch, but it's the way his expression softens just slightly as he talks about his sister that convinces Natasha.]

Something like that. I saw it with a friend of mine's family&meash;I'm sure his kids could tell you for sure.

[It's not as personal, but it's still something personal, a gesture toward reciprocating.]

I'm sure you're right.

[ kids and disney songs - it's a tale as old as time, or at least as old as the company.

he takes another sip of his drink, letting her dictate the direction of the conversation for now. ]

[She keeps pace out of habit, smiling slightly over the rim of her glass. Thinking of Clint's family is a little bittersweet, seeing as she won't be seeing them for the foreseeable future.

The fact she won't be missed isn't much comfort.]

So should I ask where you picked up Russian?

[ knowing that he is missed isn't much comfort either, for whatever that's worth. ]

I grew up with a Russian housekeeper, [ true, but not at all where he picked up any of his russian. ] and did a little travelling.

[ if pressed, he can also play the queen consolidated russian holdings card. ] What about you? American by birth or immigration?

I immigrated as an adult, but I'd already spent a lot of time there.

[Which is entirely true, though it avoids any of the details about why or how the story went.]

A friend of mine got me a job there, and I took the opportunity.

I can hear it.

[ her accent is pretty spectacular, indicating a long immersion. he offers a little complimenting smile. ]

What do you do?

[She imagines her answer will lessen his impression of her. Again, it's already public knowledge. Better to control the narrative now rather than get caught in a lie later.]

The short answer? I'm in intelligence. [A half smile.] Probably not what you're picturing.

What about you? Family business?

[Considering the the answers he has given.]

You're good.

[ he nods. she read his accent from a few words and read his - well, he never actually did much with the family business but still - former profession.

there might be potential there. of course, there might also be a problem. he'll have to wait and see. ]

Queen Consolidated. In between jobs at the moment, though. [ he hasn't seen mr. palmer yet but he's heard of his presence. it can easily be learned he no longer controls queen consolidated. ]

[Russian housekeeper, traveling... Natasha figures he's not telling her everything. Seems unlikely that he housekeeper taught him drinking toasts like that.

But the math isn't hard to do.]

Between, hm? That can be an interesting position to be in. Anything you're interested in?

[ the housekeeper didn't teach him anything. well, maybe hello, good morning, good night, that sort of stuff. but it sounded like a better story to start off with than I was imprisoned with a russian mobster on a ship, and we've kept in touch.

pointing at that question, as if she figured out the million dollars question. ]

Figuring that out. [ he desperately wants to figure out a way to be something more than just the arrow, but with the threat of the league and malcolm merlyn...and there will always be another threat, wouldn't there? he doesn't want to die alone under what's now his sister's club. he doesn't want to live there, either.

but what other choice does he have? ]

Well, as it turns out... you have some time to figure it out. Can't promise you'll remember when you decided when this is done, but...

[But plenty of time.]

Maybe you'll come up with something.

Maybe. Though from what I hear, events are usually more time consuming than having to brush cookie crumbs off of everything.

[ time he needs to use to train for the inevitable rematch against the league. against malcolm merlyn. against whatever comes next, if he survives that long. ]

Oh no. Normally they're messy in way that are a lot harder to clean up.

[Too much mind control, too many secrets coming out.]

Though that one still had some surprises. I spent about an hour six inches tall courtesy of a poorly chosen cookie.

Nice to have something to look forward too.

[ he shakes his head. ]

Not the worst outcome for intelligence, if you take Hollywood's word for it.

[Natasha leans a little closer, mock conspiratorial as she tells him:]

Don't take Hollywood's word on anything.

[The big secret there.]

There's an argument to be made that Wonderland encourages people to do things like that. A nudge in the right direction.

There's an argument?

[ he pretty much assumed it's a given, how else would so many people - some of them surely rational - make such poor decisions? ]

I suppose the disagreement is less to do with if and more to what extent.

So what side are you on?

Do I have to be on a side? Maybe it's more a sliding scale.

Who said a sliding scale can't be a side?

Depends on how far you tip.

Depends on my alcohol content.

[ raising his glass in salute ]

Suppose we'll see where the night takes you, then.

[salute, and doing the shot]

[ he mirror the action, again ]

Hopefully nowhere weirder than here.

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[ c l o s e d ] fill the glass cuz the last few days have kicked my ass

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