Dinah Laurel Lance (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
raptorcanaria) wrote2013-04-15 10:08 pm
raptorcanaria) wrote2013-04-15 10:08 pm
Entry tags:
Consequences
"Is there something you want to share?"
Dinah has an invoice from a supplier in one hand, and a Pop-Tart in the other when her mother drops that on her. She glances up, confused, and shakes her head.
"I don't think so?"
Her Mom has a copy of The Gotham Gazette in one hand. Folded open to the fourth or fifth page. Dinah can't see the headline from here.
"Nothing about your teammates?"
"Um?"
She's still coming up blank, until Dinah snr drops the paper on the kitchen counter and she can see the headline:
WORLD'S FINEST ROMANCE? GREEN ARROW AND BLACK CANARY TEAM UP IN GOTHAM.
There's a blurry picture of herself and Oliver taking down Tigress, and Dinah raises an eyebrow at it.
"They've captioned it wrong. She goes by Tigress, not Huntress. That was her mother."
"Dinah."
Dinah shrugs at her mother's impatient tone. "No, Mom. I'm not seeing Green Arrow. And believe me, if I was, you would be the last person I would want to talk to about it."
"Then you might want to tone down the flirting in front of reporters."
"Mom."
"I'm serious, Dinah. This job is eighty percent image, and..."
"My job," Dinah says shortly, and her Mom goes pink with anger at being interrupted. "And I don't care who the tabloids think I'm sleeping with!"
"Don't snap at me, young lady!"
If Dinah's Justice League communicator hadn't gone off at that moment, it probably would have escalated to sonic screaming.
And anyway, she thinks as she races to the relativity beam, her mother knows as well as she does that the job is sixty percent trusting your teammates, thirty five percent knowing how to punch above your weight class without breaking a knuckle, and maybe five percent image.
"Dinah Lance Flowers."
"Hey, Junior. Is Senior there?"
"Charlie! You're out of luck, I'm afraid, she's having her hair done. Can I take a message?"
"No, no. Just tell her to call me back as soon as she gets home, okay?"
"Sure thing."
"So I listened to your League's exploits on the TV last night. Sounds like your team is really shaping into something."
Dinah laughs, and takes advantage of a quiet afternoon to chat with her uncle.
The conversation started with a simple inquiry into the whereabouts of Dinah's newest packet of fishnets, and five minutes later she has absolutely no idea how it became a tense argument about picking up after oneself and the general state of the apartment and the responsibility of housework. She's not even sure the state of the apartment is worth the all out shouting match this is about to escalate into, but she's not sure how to stop it.
Until the phone rings, and she answers it, only a little more cheerfully than is really necessary.
"Dinah Lance Flowers?"
"Hey, Junior. Senior there?"
"Oh hi, Charlie. Yes, she's..."
Dinah looks at her mother, who is shaking her head furiously and making 'cut it' motions with her hands. "... she's just stepped out, I'm sorry, Charlie. I'll make sure she calls you back."
"Put her on, Junior."
Dinah holds the phone to her mother, who turns on a dime and storms out of the apartment.
"...Sorry, Charlie. What is this about?"
"Just tell her to phone me, Di."
"Why are you ignoring Uncle Charlie?"
"Have you done your laundry, yet?"
"Don't change the subject. Did you have a fight?"
"We did not have a fight, Dinah. Laundry?"
"Mom. Is it Justice Society related?"
"That is none of your business, Dinah!"
The ferocity takes Dinah back, and before she knows it they're in another shouting match.
And still she doesn't find out why her mother is avoiding Uncle Charlie.
Three days after the first phone call, Dinah gets home to find Charlie sitting on the couch. She blinks at him a couple of times, wondering what it took to get him to actually show up here. He's on the couch, and Dinah snr is sitting stiffly on the armchair. Dinah jnr can tell at once she walked into something, just from the tension.
"And that," says Charlie, getting to his feet when he hears her walk in, "is my cue to leave. Hi, Junior."
He kisses Dinah on the cheek, and waves his cane in the direction of the chair. "Tell her, Senior. Doctor's orders."
Dinah sees him out, and turns back to her Mom.
"Doctor?"
The conversation is long. Voices are never raised.
The word "remission" gets used a lot.
The thing about remission, apparently, is that it doesn't last forever.
The other thing about remission is that Dinah Drake-Lance was in it.
Which, obviously, means that there was a point before being in remission.
And now there's a point after.
Dinah misses when they used to lie to each other about magic bars and men.
Dinah has an invoice from a supplier in one hand, and a Pop-Tart in the other when her mother drops that on her. She glances up, confused, and shakes her head.
"I don't think so?"
Her Mom has a copy of The Gotham Gazette in one hand. Folded open to the fourth or fifth page. Dinah can't see the headline from here.
"Nothing about your teammates?"
"Um?"
She's still coming up blank, until Dinah snr drops the paper on the kitchen counter and she can see the headline:
WORLD'S FINEST ROMANCE? GREEN ARROW AND BLACK CANARY TEAM UP IN GOTHAM.
There's a blurry picture of herself and Oliver taking down Tigress, and Dinah raises an eyebrow at it.
"They've captioned it wrong. She goes by Tigress, not Huntress. That was her mother."
"Dinah."
Dinah shrugs at her mother's impatient tone. "No, Mom. I'm not seeing Green Arrow. And believe me, if I was, you would be the last person I would want to talk to about it."
"Then you might want to tone down the flirting in front of reporters."
"Mom."
"I'm serious, Dinah. This job is eighty percent image, and..."
"My job," Dinah says shortly, and her Mom goes pink with anger at being interrupted. "And I don't care who the tabloids think I'm sleeping with!"
"Don't snap at me, young lady!"
If Dinah's Justice League communicator hadn't gone off at that moment, it probably would have escalated to sonic screaming.
And anyway, she thinks as she races to the relativity beam, her mother knows as well as she does that the job is sixty percent trusting your teammates, thirty five percent knowing how to punch above your weight class without breaking a knuckle, and maybe five percent image.
"Dinah Lance Flowers."
"Hey, Junior. Is Senior there?"
"Charlie! You're out of luck, I'm afraid, she's having her hair done. Can I take a message?"
"No, no. Just tell her to call me back as soon as she gets home, okay?"
"Sure thing."
"So I listened to your League's exploits on the TV last night. Sounds like your team is really shaping into something."
Dinah laughs, and takes advantage of a quiet afternoon to chat with her uncle.
The conversation started with a simple inquiry into the whereabouts of Dinah's newest packet of fishnets, and five minutes later she has absolutely no idea how it became a tense argument about picking up after oneself and the general state of the apartment and the responsibility of housework. She's not even sure the state of the apartment is worth the all out shouting match this is about to escalate into, but she's not sure how to stop it.
Until the phone rings, and she answers it, only a little more cheerfully than is really necessary.
"Dinah Lance Flowers?"
"Hey, Junior. Senior there?"
"Oh hi, Charlie. Yes, she's..."
Dinah looks at her mother, who is shaking her head furiously and making 'cut it' motions with her hands. "... she's just stepped out, I'm sorry, Charlie. I'll make sure she calls you back."
"Put her on, Junior."
Dinah holds the phone to her mother, who turns on a dime and storms out of the apartment.
"...Sorry, Charlie. What is this about?"
"Just tell her to phone me, Di."
"Why are you ignoring Uncle Charlie?"
"Have you done your laundry, yet?"
"Don't change the subject. Did you have a fight?"
"We did not have a fight, Dinah. Laundry?"
"Mom. Is it Justice Society related?"
"That is none of your business, Dinah!"
The ferocity takes Dinah back, and before she knows it they're in another shouting match.
And still she doesn't find out why her mother is avoiding Uncle Charlie.
Three days after the first phone call, Dinah gets home to find Charlie sitting on the couch. She blinks at him a couple of times, wondering what it took to get him to actually show up here. He's on the couch, and Dinah snr is sitting stiffly on the armchair. Dinah jnr can tell at once she walked into something, just from the tension.
"And that," says Charlie, getting to his feet when he hears her walk in, "is my cue to leave. Hi, Junior."
He kisses Dinah on the cheek, and waves his cane in the direction of the chair. "Tell her, Senior. Doctor's orders."
Dinah sees him out, and turns back to her Mom.
"Doctor?"
The conversation is long. Voices are never raised.
The word "remission" gets used a lot.
The thing about remission, apparently, is that it doesn't last forever.
The other thing about remission is that Dinah Drake-Lance was in it.
Which, obviously, means that there was a point before being in remission.
And now there's a point after.
Dinah misses when they used to lie to each other about magic bars and men.