Truthfully, it’s been years since Matt has visited the aquarium. The last he can recall was a charity trip at the Catholic orphanage when he was a child, and at that time, he’d been too busy guarding his mind to fully appreciate it. Now such control comes with much greater ease unless he’s seriously injured, which thankfully he isn’t right now. There’s a black eye and busted rib or two, but that’s just par for the nightly course with him. He’s body is less temple than it is boxing ring, but he’d have it no other way. Perhaps that is the devil in him.


He’s dressed casually for him, in a nice pair of jeans and well-made button down shirt. He can afford a bit of comfort, at least as far as materials go against his skin. He’s waiting outside the aquarium for Dawn, cane settled at his side, head tilted a little as he listens. He knows when she’s approaching and he half-smiles in her direction. “Don’t know about you but I can smell the saltwater already.”

"In some parts of the city, I'm sure you'd be glad not to have my nose," he teases back as he leans into the hug, giving her cheek a kiss in greeting. Her sweet scent is even stronger now, lingering in the air and on him when they part. Not that he minds. "Thanks for inviting me. I think we could both do with relaxing to the sounds of the ocean or trickling ponds or whatever they have going for us." He offers her his arm. "Shall we?" It's both to be a gentleman and to keep up appearances. When he's in a public space, it's easier to stay together when the sighted person he's with gently steers his arm or elbow. Foggy still does it sometimes out of habit, even though in reality Matt doesn't need it. "What exhibit do you want to see first?"

"Works for me." He lets her escort them first to the ticket line and then to where the jellyfish were housed. He can hear the rustle of workers and families, but he's lived with his powers long enough that the city is manageable for him unless he's injured or there's a riot. "When I was really little I used to think jellyfish was where we got jelly. My dad was very confused at my peanut butter sandwich requests until he realized what was going on."

"That's true. Unless you grow up going to a farm, knowing where milk comes from isn't intuitive." He can't recall when he found out that little gem of knowledge. Likely from a television show or movie, or perhaps a book. One of those ubiquitous pieces of information that's hard to pinpoint. "Which might be a good thing, I might not have been as into drinking it when young if I had." Not that he really had the privilege to be picky back then.

"Oh yeah. Peanut butter and jelly was a staple in the Murdock household. At least until I... you know. Got some elevated tastebuds." Meaning his powers. "Then the processed kind tasted awful. What about you? Any childhood favorites?"

He pauses when they reach the jellyfish tank, quietly listening.

"Yeah. Lots of bloops."

"I know a place in the city that does an English breakfast. Well, I'm sure there are a lot, but there's one that Foggy's mentioned. You know he takes meat being cooked well seriously, so I trust him when he says it's good." It isn't the sort of breakfast Matt usually has, but he can see the appeal. At least it does sound hardy. "Not at all the same, but one different thing we used to do with baked beans was put them on hot dogs. Not have with hot dogs, but put them on them."

"See, now you're learning how to speak their language." He smiles down at her, then tilts his head back in the jellyfish direction. "This reminding you of your friend?"

"Yeah, exactly like a chili dog. And while he eats a lot of crap, I will say that Foggy does seem to know his meat. ... which sounds like the setup for a joke but it really wasn't. He's from a butcher's family." Hardworking people that have adopted Matt into their family too, and whom he loves.

He lets the moment play out for a moment before furthering the line of conversation that sparked them making this trip to start.

"Clownfish, huh? So I take it that he knew his way around a joke?"

"It is, but I think that's partly why we bonded at Columbia. Neither of us came from a family of professionals or money. I like to think we didn't forget our roots."

At least he hopes that's always the case. He still considers himself that orphan first raised by a boxer, and he keeps an ear out for the cries that come from parts of the city that most ignore or forget.

"Ah." That method of flirting made him smile. "I have to say, that's pretty cute. Hope she appreciated the effort." Which isn't the same as reciprocating if she wasn't interested, but still, one could show appreciation for the intent even if not reciprocating the feeling. "Sets the bar for the rest of us when we're trying to impress our crushes."

"We certainly try. There's enough lawyer jokes out there without adding to it. I might know of one more, but she doesn't work in New York." He did think that Jen Walters had the right mentality for a good lawyer, and a moral one, but that still wasn't batting great odds. Dawn had a point, and Matt wanted to buck the system and earn the privileged position he has these days.

He lets himself be steered, head tilted as he smiles. "There's a few more in this tank. Smaller, too. Babies?" Or adolescent at least.

At her question he laughs that turns into a covered up cough. "You think I have a set list of moves, Ms. Granger? Hm. Not sure whether I should confirm or deny."

"They sound a bit different, depending on size. Glad it was that they were young and not some miniature breed." He does love hearing her laugh, his smile creasing up the corners of his face hearing it. "Also not surprised if you wanted to linger looking at the cute baby ones."

Like he doesn't awe at little puppies or cats when he gets the chance. His nose can't abide living with a pet no matter how clean, but that doesn't mean he doesn't like playing with others who have them.

He lightly bumps against her at her teasing.

"I just like to treat my dates to the pleasurable life experiences they deserve. Which... sometimes involves inviting them into a ring of sorts. In your case, sometimes that ring's been literal, too." He does enjoy a good sparring match, then working out that tension afterwards.

"I dunno. Some of the human ones feel pretty wrinkly. But I guess once you get past that stage they get pretty cute." He hasn't done much mentoring himself, but Matt does have a soft spot for kids. Especially kids who are in tough places.

"There's a satisfaction in flexing one's skills against another. Be it on the mat, in the courtroom, or... elsewhere." He can't deny he enjoys the pleasure of a little heated competition, enough so that it remains when he loses as well as when he wins. Though he can absolutely be a bit smug when he wins. It's all in good fun.