2024-12-05 - Clipboards, Highlighters, and Magic, Oh My!

Diana stood on the shoreline of Crescent Beach, far enough away from the docks to be missed by curious bystanders arriving on the island. Unfamiliar with her options, the beach felt like the best place to practice her craft away from anything breakable or any people who could get hurt. It might have been December, but it was warm, and she had her toes in the sand while the late afternoon sun warmed her cheeks. The magician was dressed down, in a pair of black leggings and a tight-fitting jacket suitable for most fitness activities. Her sneakers, as well as her bag, were set off to the side while she worked.

Upon arrival at Spellbound, it quickly became apparent that magic, real magic, was a reality she'd need to embrace. It wasn't optional, and like most forces of nature, she could only fight against it for so long before it would ultimately win. So she'd practice. She'd hone her craft. She'd make sure that anyone who came to her show left believing in the unbelievable and in one piece.

Like many magic tricks, she starts with cards, shuffling the deck with agile elegance and precision reserved for only the best. The deck flew from one hand to the other, cascading through the air like... magic. But this was no illusion. This was a skill she'd honed over the course of a lifetime.

Once the deck was warmed up, she took a breath, thought of a card suit, and exhaled. As she exhaled, all cards in the suit of hearts elevated into the air, and a swirl of pink light surrounded her, creating a stunning effect. As she switches from hearts to diamonds the cards fall and elevated and the light transforms from pink to glittering sparkles.

For all intents and purposes, somebody like Oregon Warner is often never alone. He's almost always surrounded by one or a bunch of his siblings. This time, however, he's managed to sneak away for some alone time. Or just some time to actually get some of the work that he's always having to do, done. As one of the stage managers for the Lamplight Ampitheatre, the Warner sibling known more commonly as Reggie, is known to do a bit of over preparing and workaholic-ing.

Hiding from his siblings makes both of those things possible.

His steps along the beach are focused and driven. Sneaker crunch the sand beneath his feet. Dark denim jeans and a black Oregon's Trail custom t-shirt is being worn. A pair of black suspenders are left hanging from those jeans and he's rocking a red button up shirt over top as well. Though, the last bit is left open as if he'd just found out that this was a job for Superman. Hanging across his chest is his very worn and very loved brown messenger bag that's overflowing with clipboards and scripts and whatever else he probably needs to have on him at all times.

Though the steps on this walk are deliberate, there's no actual path that Reggie is following. Sure, it's taking him in the general direction of where the display of magic is happening but he's walking at such a methodical pace that it's super clear that he's focused on something else. Like the script that's in his hands. Every once in a while he takes a second to stop and highlight or make a notation on the script. Which is exactly what he's doing when he catches sight of dancing hearts and pink light. He stares at it for a moment, the orange highlighter tapping his chin. That long moment finally fades to the point that he can't help but to say something.

"Huh."

"Huh." It isn't much, but it does manage to reach her ears over the sound of waves crashing on the shoreline. But she manages to hold the illusion until she's ready to drop it despite the distraction. Being able to remain focused would be necessary if she planned to incorporate any of her new abilities into her act, which she still wasn't convinced was a good idea.

The cards are collected, and Diana turns her icy gaze to the other soul on the beach. "Enjoying the show?" She asks cooly, the hint of a smirk visible on her full lips.

Di's eyes flick to his bag and the highlighter in his hand. "Production," she guesses. "I suppose you could be a performer." She thought she saw a script.

"It's certainly... magical." Reggie offers a solid enough response. He doesn't really seem to have any yay or nay in his voice but he's focused enough to offer that much of a statement. He puts the pencil behind one ear and the highlighter behind the other as he makes his way over in the direction of the woman spinning such magical webs. It's a soft walk in that direction since he doesn't actually want to intrude. "I'll bet it has some usefulness." Of course he's thinking about how it can be used. His brain is always working like that.

A hand goes to his bag and he pats it a bit. "Guilty." Reggie admits to her production accusation. "I manage shows over at the Amphitheater." Oregon just cuts right to the chase with all of that. And this: "I'm Reggie. Reggie Warner." He raises the script in hand to give it a bit of a wave of introduction.

Di's head tilts slightly as she watches him tuck the pencil behind one ear and the highlighter behind the other. "Strange jewelry," she jests.

She nods at his observation. "I suppose. It's new to me," she admits. "I'm just trying to figure out what all I can actually do with this... power," she wrinkles her nose, the word feels funny on her tongue. "Then there is the whole question of ethics," she sighs. "Sorry, I'm Diana." She should start there. "I am a new hire. I got here this week." Starting there was likely preferred over thrusting a stranger into a conversation about mixing actual magic and the magical arts. There was a magician's code, after all.

Satisfaction washes over her features hearing that she's right, and she stands up a little taller. "It's nice to meet you, Reggie. I'm guessing at some point we might cross paths professionally." She intended to get her own show one day. Someone would need to manage it.

"Welcome." Reggie offers with a pleasant enough smile. He reaches to touch the highlighter behind one ear. "Gotta' keep 'em handy. Never know when inspiration strikes." Granted, how much inspiration can there be for someone that just manages the stage? Only Reggie can see this kind of organizational madness as a creative outlet. There's something wrong with him. "I'm sure we will. In fact, I'll do you one better and I'll even look forward to it."

Reggie stays far enough away to be personable and not invade any particular space. "It's nice to meet you, Diana." There we go, he's making sure that he doesn't forget her name. Say it and display it. "It looks like you've got a pretty good grip on it, actually." Must be referring to her... power. "I'm no expert but it looked good to me." That's the least he can offer as some sort of gauge to using said power.

"You're on your own with the ethics though. Far above my pay grade."

"Thank you," she says, maintaining her respectful distance from Reggie too. Amusement touches her lips and her eyes flick to his ears again. "Oh, yeah, such a creative," she teases, finding teasing to be the easiest to navigate with those she doesn't know. Maybe there is something wrong with her too. Her hand lands on her chest and those hearts spring up around her again. "Look forward to it? I'm flattered." Dripping with sarcasm, always.

There is a shrug of her narrow shoulders. "Thank you. It's cool, for sure, but we'll see." Much to learn. "Since everyone here is magical, what do you do? Do you turn into a bird like all the other men around here?" Or maybe just the ones she's bumped into do the bird thing.

"I'm sure legal can advise on ethics." Did they have legal?

"I actually kind of am. I love getting to work on new projects. And since you're new..." Reggie holds up his hands in boring stage manager innocence. "You just let me know when they give you the green light. I'll be ready." He's always ready. That's what keeps him in the position he's in.

"We might?" Reggie's face actually falls into confusion for a second. "Never really been one to worry about laws or ethics. Not a big thing my family. So I haven't even thought to ask." And from the way he shrugs, he probably still won't be asking anything. More of a 'deal with the consequences later' kind of guy it seems.

When the question about his own stuff appears, there's an honest to goodness shrug. "I don't do anything special. Not like you can do. Or others." Reggie just nods through that. "Where I really shine is color coding and clipboards. I'm a beast." If one can be a beast at clipboarding!

"Thank you for pardoning my ignorance," she says, offering even a small courtesy. Why did she do that? As she rises again she looks out toward the water and rakes her fingers through her dark mane. When she looks at Reggie again, he might catch a hint of rose on her cheeks.

"I'll look into it," she doesn't expect him to do it for her. She could do her own legwork, thanks.

Her brow quirks. "Nothing?" Considering what she'd experienced so far, that seemed unlikely to her. But she also had been at Spellbound for countable hours at this point. She was far from an expert. Unbridled laughter bubbles from her being, and the sand seems to sparkle around her. "Oh, wow, call legal about that. You're too powerful, Reggie," she giggles. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't... I've been told I can play too hard. I'll stop teasing." But it was funny... to her.

"Oh no. You're right. Don't joke, the power behind a clipboard can be stronger than you think. I've been here about three weeks and I've already been to four meetings I've had no business in." Reggie offers a quick wink in Diana's direction. Here's to hoping she keeps that under wraps. "All I needed was a tie and a, you guessed it, clipboard." His hand even goes down to the messenger bag that's resting against his hip so that he can pat the the ones nearest to the leather.

"Wait 'til I get a few more keys on my ring. Then we'll really be in business." Is that some sort of organizational threat? Maybe someone should call legal on this man!

Reggie follows all this up with a good natured smile to show that he's all for the teasing. "Don't worry about it. I come from a family of people who fire stray pot shots at me just for waking up. I think I can handle whatever the magic beach lady can dish out."

"Four meetings," Diana fans herself. "You really know how to make a girl swoon. The sheer power alone is making me weak at the knees," she says, wobbling a bit for comedic effect. "You better keep those other bad boys holstered."

Another laugh falls from her lips at the continued organizational humor. "Well, I'm terrified. Thank goodness I'm on your good side." She assumes she is, at least.

He has an easy smile, the kind that makes her feel at ease. "Big family then?" She asks. "I don't have siblings, but always thought it sounded fun."

"You're a lucky woman. I'll remember that when I order my label maker." The things that Oregon can do with a label maker are probably things that don't need to be imagined but now that he's brought it to the attention of others there's a good chance that it'll be hard not to think about.

"Yeah, there's a ton of us. Just ask around. You'd be hard pressed to not bump into a Warner Brother or Sister if you're here." Reggie doesn't even know how he feels about that. That much is kind of obvious from his facial expression when explaining the family dynamics here at Spellbound. "If you do run into any of them, make sure you tell them that I gave you Two Thumbs Up. That'll keep 'em from dragging you into too much of their chaos." Oooh. Reggie's trying to flex some of his familial clout.

"Will you label me lucky?" She smiles wide and bright, and that damn sand is sparkling again. These illusions may be clinging slightly to her subconscious thoughts, which... isn't great.

A brow quirks in amusement at the revelation that his whole large family was here, too. "Oh, or what? You'll smack them with a clip board?" Just can't let go of the admin jokes. "That's really cool though even if you don't look so sure." Yeah, she caught his expression.

"I can do that. You're on the list." Of things for him to label?! Man, Oregon takes this office supply stuff a little too serious. How can one tell? He's writing down Diana's name and 'Lucky' on the back of the script that he's carrying around. She asked for it, so shall she receive! He even turns the script out so she can see he's not messing around. He's on it.

Reggie spots the sparkling sand and just continues to smile through this meeting. He's obviously making a ton of mental notes though. Never know when a feature may come in handy for a show in the future. "Hey now, my clipboards are not to be used for violence. That's like-- a sacred rule or something." That he totally just didn't make up. Honest. "I'm just saying, I'll put in a good ord for you with those losers. They'll show you a good time. It's what they do."

Di fiddles with her deck of cards and smiles to herself. What was she? 16? She wasn't seriously getting all bashful for label humor, was she? What was this place doing to her?

"Yes, the stage manager's code of ethics," she says with a serious nod. "I've heard it's up there with the Hippocratic Oath." A bright grin cracks her sober expression. "But thank you. I don't know many people here, and I need all the help I can get... what kind of a good time?"

"Just under, actually." Reggie's quick enough on his feet to lean into this Hippocratic Oath remark. "It's doctors, stage managers, then shrinks. It's really a very niche oath." Reggie adds a playful smirk to this next bit, "Sort of like the Magician's Code. But way more important." Oh, there's some teasing shots fired in the direction of the magician.

"Oh, a way better time than I've ever seen." Reggie remarks still rocking a smile. "If you ask them, I'm the boring one. And I'm not even the one that has a degree!" Reggie shrugs off that sibling label fairly easily. "But hey, you got this. You can make things float and sparkle. Something tells me you're going to fit right in around here." That part sounds sincere and earnest.

It's all fun and games until he tarnishes the Magician's Code. Di's mouth falls open, clearly offended. "And to think! I was starting to think I'd made my first friend," she gasps, clutching pearls that aren't there. Her expression cracks into another bright smile.

"Psh, a man with a bag full of clipboards and two writing utensils tucked behind his ears boring?" She considers it a beat. "Yeah, they got you there, Reggie," she winks. "If you're the boring one you must have superlatives for the others. Who is the fun one then? The best looking? I need to get my Warners straight early if you're half the population of Spellbound."

"Friend? Frenemy? I'm an enigma wrapped in uncertainty." Reggie just offers a grin. "Pay no attention to the fact that I'm merely lashing out verbally due to my inability to gain access to the Magician's Code despite how many clipboard's I've purchased." This is followed up by a finger snap of mock disdain for the security of the Magician's Code.

"Oh no. I'm not giving you the dime tour. That's how I end up the target of their retaliation. And I've been that enough growing up." There's a slight shudder that goes down his spine during the quick flashback that happens in his head. "As you run the Warners Gauntlet, you'll see who's who. And you'll see why each who is who. And then you'll come and find me and beg me to take you back to Boringville." Reggie lifts his head up a bit, tilting that chin to pretend he's found haughtiness. "And it is at that point I will laugh in victory at your newfound chaotic plight."

Her cheeks are starting to feel sore from the giggles, and his utter offense due to his denied access to the Magician's inner circle isn't helping. Whatever his brand of humor was, she seemed to share it, at least partially. "Luckily, you won't be rejected entirely from the brotherhood. We are often able to invite plus ones to our clubs." Yes, there were magicians clubs. They exist all across the world. "If you're nice, I'll bring you to the Magic Castle one day." Which did exist. You must also be invited by a magician to go, which is very exclusive... or you can pay. Magicians can be bought.

"Oh, come on!" She whines, their invisible boundary crossed as she steps closer to him. She rolls her eyes and shakes her head. "They're right, you are boring. Won't even give me the run down out of fear." Never mind if he had points. "I think the truth is you are hoping for my demise for your own twisted entertainment. And here I supported you and your many clipboards," she tsks, her eyes flicking over his form and lingering on his well loved bag. "What are you doing on the beach with all that today anyway?" A stark change of subject brought to you by ADD.

Oregon offers one of the most clever smirks he's had since this conversation was started. He's totally enamored with this idea of the Magician's Secret World now and it kind of shows on his face. The way his eyes even light up a bit at the thought of becoming someone that's been given even temporary access to that world. "Who knew that I'd earn such a lofty title as Eternal Plus One in such a short time? I dare say it must have everything to do with the promise of my label making. People often underestimate the good use of an office supply but not me. I've managed to score a forever invitation into the Brotherhood of Magicians and I don't even know if I can shuffle playing cards correctly." Reggie reaches up to pretend to brush the stank of awesomeness off his shoulder. "Damn, I'm almost too good." Of course, this is all an elaborate teasing ruse that he's using to get close enough to prepare for an almost-whispered mini-roasting, "It's not really called the Magic Castle, is it? That seems a little too on the nose for some so-called Masters of Misdirection." Shots fired at the Brotherhood that he seems to want to be a part of! Pew pew!

Invisible boundaries have been crossed by the both of them and Reggie even raises his hands up. "I can't help it. Fear is law in my book. It keeps me both alive and out of trouble. Which circles back to why I'm the boring one." At least Reggie seems to know his place and it also kind of looks like he's okay with it. He even shrugs off this second helping of realizing just how boring he truly is. Though, his eyes do get a bit wide as he hears another shot taken at his precious clipboards. "Hey. Hey." He snatches his highlighter off his ear and points it at Diana. It's an almost threatening point -- or would be if it wasn't Reggie and he wasn't trying to force a threatening face that doesn't work because he's trying not to smile. "You leave my clipboards out of this. They have done nothing to you!" He can't even say that with a straight face. He's about to laugh or chuckle or something akin to that when the ADD topic change saunters in and saves him.

An actually skillful twirl of the highlighter back between his fingers and he slides it back behind his ear. "Oh, I'm just going over the shows for this weekend. Gotta' make sure everything's perfect. I can't have a bad show." That last bit almost sounds like some kind of demand he puts on himself. "Not with my name on it." Oh the self-inflicted pressure that Oregon has created for his lonesome. "So I wander the grounds, doing run throughs in my head, looking for ways to make the shows better." He nods a bit to affirm his actions. And to distract from the next bit of minor roasting that he's about to aim in her direction.

"Or in the case of magic? Make it tolerable." Pew pew! More shots fired! Grin.

"Woah, there," Diana laughs, raising her hands up in defense. Eternal Plus One?" She scoffs, allowing him to continue on the Oregon steamroll of excitement. She laughs as he continues to filibuster about label makers, the hint of pink touching her cheeks again. "Or perhaps it's so on the nose that no one suspects a thing," she counters. "You get one invitation, maybe. Eternity is a tall order for a man I just met who only has office supplies to dazzle me with. I might ditch you for one of your more exciting siblings," she needles playfully.

The threatening highlighter has her taking a step back for her own protection. "Threatening a lady with a weapon! How dare!" She gasps. "Your clipboards have gone to your head. Total power trip."

Di is happy to drop the bit, genuinely curious about why he was out there and why he needed so many supplies. "It sounds like you have a big job then. There are a lot of shows at Spellbound," she comments. "I don't know how you could possibly keep them all straight."

Reggie's little quip is met with a wave of her hand and that highlighter behind his ear is snatched by the wind and held several feet over his head. "Say it again and your highlighter meets a watery grave."

"Come on, do you really think you'll find someone more skeptical but open to being proven wrong than me?" Reggie's out here staking his claim to that Eternal Plus One status. But even with that, he's willing to concede just a bit. Or at least negotiate. "Two invitations and I'll learn a magic trick to help seal the rest of the deal." Reggie waves a hand dismissively. "Forget the fact that I have absolutely no talent in that department whatsoever." Reggie's not even sure he has an actual talent in the first place. But that's a discussion for another time.

"I'm mostly in charge of what goes down over at the Amphitheater. But I've been thinking about trying to help out wherever else they'll have me." Reggie shrugs just a bit since they seem to be getting down to brass tacks about whatever his deal is. "Allegedly, I've got an eye for this kind of thing so I try to stay on top of it. Keeping them all straight is madness but the shows must go on. So I gotta' make sure they're ready to." The way he speaks about this stuff, there's a tone to his voice that shows just how serious he takes it. And thus why he's always working.

But then his highlighter is threatened and he's got his hands up like some sort of hostage negotiator that's come to a situation unarmed. "Okay, okay. Nobody needs to get hurt here. We're all on the same side." Reggie keeps his hands where they can be seen. "I take it back. Just... don't hurt the highlighter." Somebody's been watching way too much police procedural television.

Di considers, and shakes her head no. She doesn't think she'll find another Reggie. But then he's still pushing his luck, and he is met with a deep eye-roll. "Two, huh?" She doesn't sound all that impressed. "Oh, I know you have no talent." Pew pew. "But, for the plot, sure. Two invitations and a Reggie magic show," she grins. "I can't wait to watch you work a crowd." Because she would be inviting an audience.

She nods as he explains what he actually does, and she picks up on the ambition in his tone. "I could never handle that kind of pressure.... too many moving pieces. I suppose growing up in a big family lends itself to being able to keep many plates spinning." But that's just an assumption.

She laughs as she watches horror shine in Reggie's dark eyes. "Oh, now you want to be reasonable?" She tsks like some villain. The highlighter flies through the air and lands in Diana's hand. She uncaps it and closes the distance between them. "Hand," she demands, and reaches out to take it. If he lets her, she will write her phone number on his palm. Good luck reading it.

If there's one thing that Reggie's good at, it's knowing what he's good at and knowing what he's not good at. The latter he's come to realize is most things. When what he's good at basically amounts to reading scripts and telling people when to cue spotlights, there's not really much room to be confused about any other possible skills or talents. His claim to fame might be his clipboard collection, though. He has far too many. And a lot of souvenirs from shows past. He doesn't realize until after the agreement's made of what he's just talked himself into. "Wait a minute, what do you mean a crowd?" And that's a gulp right there.

Luckily, he can stop thinking about that in favor of another trip down familial memory lane. "My siblings are a lot to wrangle. I'm honestly surprised they let me wrangle them at all. But we all have our parts to play. One day they're going to stop humoring me though and then I'm going to have to find something else to pretend to be good at." Reggie's self-deprecation always comes with a smile. It's almost as if he doesn't even notice he's doing it. Weird.

"I don't know what came over me. I rebuke all former harsh words used against magicianry." Oh now he's just making up words to try and keep his highlighter from becoming a casualty in this war of words. When his hand is demanded, there's absolutely no hesitation in him offering it up. When the number hits his palm, Reggie uses one of his more rare skills: Highlighter Translation. A master of all office supplies, Oregon Warner is so very well versed in reading all writing instruments. Talk about a party trick.

He's not really sure what to say after the digits acquisition and just looks back up at her from his hand with a smile.

As Reggie's eyes bloom with realization, Di's smile grows. "Oh, yes," she practically purrs. A crowd. You're a magician now, after all. " Oh, this is too much fun. "Don't worry; we'll practice."

"It sounds like they need you. Without a common good, they'd cannibalize," she wrinkles her nose. "Ok, maybe not that, but implode in some way. They need a voice of reason," and it sounded like Reggie was it. But all of this was theory for Diana, she didn't know these people. "I'm sure you're good at other things too."

She laughs as he pleads with her to save his beloved highlighter. But the bit doesn't go on much longer. Once he has her phone number, she gives him the marker back. "Text me if you're interested in getting together sometime. Maybe you can show me what all you can do with your label maker," she can't help but joke. "I should get back. I have a shift tonight, and it takes a lot of time to turn into a Victorian enchantress."

"Did I just get a Magician's Assistant?" Reggie would be looking at the fourth wall right now if one of those exists but at least he's got a new thing to research and practice on. He's got two invitations to magician locations to figure out how to do magic so he's got some serious work cut out for him. Thank goodness there's YouTube. He's going to need it.

"Maybe." That's all Reggie really has to say about the family needing him. "But don't sell 'em too short on that cannibalism. You might actually be on to something there." He knows what it is like during some of the more mass hunger times with the Warners. It can get bitey.

With his highlighter returned, another skillful twirl of it and it is slid down into the messenger bag this time. Those words from Diana hit him and he almost breaks into a blush. He manages to cover it up with another one of his banterish comments. "Sounds like a plan. I'll definitely be ordering it tonight. I got a guy at FedEx. It'll be here before you know it." Of course he has a guy at FedEx.

"It was a magical meeting you, Diana." Reggie even offers whatever he figures passes for a Victorian bow to the soon to be Victorian enchantress.

"You might have," Di chuckles as she gathers her sneakers and the bag she'd brought down containing her props, keys, and the like. She snorts a laugh at the mention of his FedEx guy. "Of course you do." He seemed to be the kind of guy who knew a guy for everything. "Well, I look forward to it." The label maker.

His little bow is returned with a just as historically accurate courtesy. "It was nice meeting you too, Reggie. Text me." She says, and with that she's making her way down the beach.