boxolawyers | Magic shows are meant to have surprises, right?

[Los Angeles was everything Kurt Wagner could have hoped for and then some. True, most of the touristy stuff he had seen and celebrity sightings so far were spotted in the course of work (which in this case involved checking out a potential new student for the institute) so he couldn't exactly spend a lot of time drinking them in. But that didn't make it any less awesome. And now that the work was done, it was going to get even cooler!]

[The others didn't know what they were missing. How could anyone choose to spend the night at some famous restaurant or a traveling production of a play that was better on Broadway (practically in their own backyard!) when they could be here with him instead, watching a teenage magician who was already being billed as one of the best in the business?]

[That was fine. Kurt was having plenty of fun on his own. The magician more than lived up to the hype. And after a show that incredible, you can bet Kurt was going to jump at the chance to volunteer for her final trick of the evening. He probably didn't have much of a chance, given how...height challenged he was compared to the rest of the people clambering for attention around him. But what he lacked in height he made up for with enthusiasm! (And the judicious use of his seat as a step stool.)] Hier! Hier!

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"Can't fulfill all of my greasy Los Angeles fast food dreams by sitting here!" He got to his feet and started gathering up the trash and bowls. The curry udon he handled gingerly, as if afraid the lukewarm liquid might somehow burn his skin if it sloshed over the side of the bowl. (Not an unreasonable concern, he thought, when he could still feel the sting of it on his tongue.)

As his gaze drifted over to the noodle stand and its sour-faced owner, his movements slowed. "Do you, uh...want to grab some lids for these while I finish up?" he asked, doing his best to hide his wariness behind a slightly forced smile.

"Okay!" If she noticed his wariness, it went unremarked, as she bounded back towards the noodle stand.

She returned minutes later with two lids, a bag, and a word of advice, which she delivered with her best sour face and gruff voice. "Mr. Eldoon says, 'Don't try any funny business or you'll never see again!" I asked if he meant see me again," she added thoughtfully, "but he was really insistent that he meant what he said."

The fur on the back of Kurt's neck bristled. Swallowing hard, he dared a glance at the noodle cart, only to find himself trapped by Mr. Eldoon's stern glare boring into his oh-so-tender, vulnerable eyes. Forcing a pained smile, Kurt waved awkwardly at him before tearing his gaze away, returning his attention to Trucy.

"I-it's a good thing I have only the noblest intentions then, huh? Ha ha..."

"That's what I told him!" she said as she snapped the lids onto their bowls and stacked them carefully in the bag. "Besides, even if you managed to fool me, Athena will know for sure if you're hiding something!"

And, as if that were a perfectly normal, not at all stress-inducing comment to make, she linked her arm through Kurt's and smiled up at him. "So. Tacos or burgers next?"

After a statement like that, Kurt found it extremely difficult to give such a crucial question the kind of careful deliberation it deserved. "Uhh... Lady's choice?" His answering smile as she pulled him closer did little to hide how tense his muscles were. Even if he had nothing to hide, the idea of facing off against a human lie detector would not be an inviting prospect. And Kurt had more than his fair share of secrets to keep.

"Tacos it is, then!" She pulled him back towards the entrance of the park, making no mention of his taut muscles or nervous smile. She was confident he was a perfect gentleman, and his mutant status was likely to be revealed to Athena when they told her the news about her own, anyway. As far as she was concerned, there was nothing to worry about. "Ooh, I can show you the Kitaki house on the way!"

It took him a moment to remember who the Kitakis were in that jumbled up series of events she had told him about, but the realization did nothing to ease his anxiety. "The crime family?" His voice cracked a little on the words. "Ehh... Somehow I doubt they're looking to boost tourism to their home."

Edited 2021-05-24 23:47 (UTC)

She giggled. "Don't be silly. Little Plum doesn't mind." And with a wave to Mr. Eldoon, she continued the trek to the entrance, offering a brief respite from her prattling and an opportunity for Kurt to ask further questions, if he had any.

Prompted by her actions, Kurt chanced another smile (which looked more like a grimace) and a wave at Mr. Eldoon. The attempt at reconciliation only earned him an even scarier glare and an angry double-fingered jab in the direction of his eyes. With a soft gasp, he scooted after Trucy.

"So... You stayed friendly with the, uh...family after that trial?" Maybe this wouldn't be as bad as he was picturing. 'Little Plum' sounded like a nice enough name, and by this point he was having trouble believing anyone could be scarier than the proprietor of the noodle shop. If it weren't for the fact that the man was free to serve them noodles, he might have guessed Mr. Eldoon was the real murderer. "That has to be a little weird, right? A lawyer's daughter being neighborly with a crime family."

"They're nice people!" she insisted, as if that was all that mattered. "Besides," she added after a moment, "they're technically a reformed crime family. Without them, we wouldn't have this park!"

"Oh? That's...cool. It's a really nice park." He still sounded unsure, but he was looking around the park with an appreciative eye. At least they had decided to contribute to their community. Even if they were criminals, they couldn't be all bad, right? Surely Trucy wouldn't vouch for them if they were.

He turned his attention back on his friend. "Does your dad often end up defending criminals?" There was no judgment in his tone, only genuine curiosity. He didn't know much about what lawyers did, besides stereotypes he gleaned from shows and movies. Probably not the most reliable source.

She hummed thoughtfully. "Not really," she said, thinking back on the cases she'd witnessed. Of course, there were the cases that preceded her adoption, namely the one with the bigtime Nickel Samurai actor-turned-murderer, but that was an outlier. And... maybe her other daddy turned out to be a criminal in the end, but did it really count if he wasn't guilty of the crime he was being accused of?

Not eager to follow that train of thought, she smiled up at him. "He usually only defends people he really believes in. It's one of his defining traits as a defense attorney!"

Magic shows are meant to have surprises, right?

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