Every story needs a wild card - a puckish sprite to entertain the masses while the rest of the characters go off and do something actually productive. Zozo's always been that guy at the academy: the misbehaving troublemaker who talks way too much and can't grasp the concept of what's an "appropriate" April Fool's joke. He's extroverted, charming, and wonderfully charismatic. That spontaneous guy you want dancing by your side at a rave? Yup, that's Zozo. The same guy who wakes up in strange places every morning, who once started an indoor soccer game in the middle of the hallway just before class commenced. (You're welcome, Mycroft.) He brightens up a room simply by walking into it. But there's more to him than just being the comedic relief, the manic pixie dream boy, or the guy who always gets the last word...

There's an unsettlingly mysterious side to Zozo Zatara. Interestingly, although it's easy for him to know what's happening inside other people's heads, it's impossible to know what's inside his, or how he really feels about you. Yes, he has been known to befriend people one day and change his mind about them the next. He's a Gemini, sue him. Like a feather in the wind, Zozo is flimsy. Sometimes even superficial. Gossipy. Disingenuous. Ruled by emotions, just like his mother. Some find it difficult to trust him, and rightfully so. He's not ordinary, even in the broadest sense of the word. But he is loyal. The thing is, because he's so magnetic, the layman has a hard time differentiating charisma from true interest. It may seem like you're the best of friends, but in Zozo's head, you're still strangers. The good news is you'll know when he deems you a special part of his life. He has ways of making that clear.

He eats confidence for breakfast, walks like he's in a spotlight. Maybe it's because his mother spoiled him despite their rough situation, or because he wakes up to "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson every morning. (Alarm clocks are earth's most underrated treasures. If you hate yours, it's because you're using it wrong.) Call it selfishness, call it pride, but Zozo's one of those guys who won't apologize for who he is, how he thinks, or who he chooses to love. He wants to be himself, not someone else. It disheartens him to see so many people blanket themselves underneath insecurity. When he is certain someone is hiding their true self, he'll want nothing more than to break through the ice with a pick made of attention. It's like a challenge to him, an addiction. Pulling people up from rock bottom is what he does best. But because he's a runner, he'll often leave his patients in the dust once he's done with them. That's why it's dangerous to depend on him. Zozo is loyal, yes, but not reliable. He may not stay forever. Alcohol is fun in moderation, while too much of its consumption is toxic. The same thing applies to a friendship, romance, or rivalry with Zozo.

Still, he's the most open-minded, tolerant guy at the academy. He doesn't give a shit in the best way. People have flaws, but they're still inherently good. Call it looking on the bright side, but Zozo believes it's just appreciating this little thing called life. Pressure is nothing to him, because he knows its beatable. (After all, he's evaded death multiple times during his shows.) He's like a sour patch kid: tart and vivacious on the outside while sweet and smooth inside. Whatever happens, happens. He'll just keep on seizing the day.

Daddy issues? Never. The love of his mother's life, that guy who so graciously donated his sperm to give Zozo existence, was killed by accident before he got a chance to see his son. So much for a father figure to look up to. Instead Zozo looked down upon his name, etched onto a gravestone in Gotham City's depressing cemetery.

Normal life in a small town and even smaller school? Nope. Zatanna took her little boy with her while she traveled the globe, performing in magic shows to make a living. She told him it was a dream come true and an alternative to working in the Justice League while a babysitter watched tiny Zoltar. It was really just a means for her to rediscover herself and relieve the pains of heartbreak and grief. He learned from a young age that the world was his oyster. After all, he couldn't say he was homeschooled if he didn't have a permanent place to call home.

No one to talk to besides his mother? False. He was an extroverted chatterbox, even as a chubby little seven-year-old. He could make friends anywhere. Strangers on park benches, the guys that worked the lights in his mom's shows, pigeons...he mastered the art of being magnetic at a young age. No wonder why, as soon as he could pick up magic himself, he received raucous rounds of applause whenever he acted as his mother's assistant. Then he started his own magic shows. "Zoltar The Great" was his act, and it was so good, it was broadcasted on national television, on one of those reality shows similar to America's Got Talent. He made some good money for a while and then fell into obscurity once puberty hit, because he was no longer baby-faced. Only pimply and knobby-kneed. God forbid he tried to keep entertaining the masses while sporting a deeper voice and peach fuzz. No other direction to turn, he knew then it was time to grow up.

Hard adolescence? Well, only the later years. College was a bitch, as he expected. Dyslexia made things difficult of course, and then there was the football team, who felt uncomfortable knowing he was screwing the quarterback in the broom closet on Wednesdays and Fridays. Why no one gave a fuck about the fact he had multiple one-night-stands with his Gen Ed professors in order to get straight A's, he never knew. But whatever. At least he was in the theatre geek crowd, and the theatre geek crowd was loving, accepting, and safe. (And gay. Wonderfully gay.) He was the star of every cabaret night, every Chekhov play the school produced. He was famous and infamous at the same time. "Zozo Zatara? Oh he's a prodigy here! A real staple of our school" the dean would say. "Zozo Zatara? He's an asshole. A slutty, lanky asshole," the underclassmen would groan.

Eventually he stopped giving a shit about his comical grades and his real/fake friends and his reputation and just dropped out of college. His mom wasn't too pleased, even though he was spending his essay-less days traveling the country, performing Houdini-inspired acts for the public. Luckily Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark were there to save the mother and son's waning relationship with...an envelope. An invitation rather. To Descendant Academy: a school for superpowered freaks just like him. With this letter came a new purpose, a new pathway for him.

And is Zozo Zatara happy where he is now? No. Not happy. That's not the word he'd use. Rather, delighted would be a more accurate adjective. There are many funny and kind-of-tragic stories littered between the big moments of his life, but it makes him ecstatic to know many more stories will be written at DA. And they'll be better. They'll be out of the ordinary, just like his memories. Just like his identity.