[Molly Quincannon] Unlike her first trip to Grant Park, Molly's not frantically running around the place or smacking into lamp posts. Today, she's sitting on a park bench, tapping away at an Eee-PC in an idle sort of way. Certainly not doing anything important, judging by the fact that she's more often than not looking around at her surroundings and smiling more or less randomly - if in a dreamy sort of way. Apparently, somebody's in a fantastic mood.
Molly Quincannon is mid-height, average-looking and a tiny bit sallow, with ragged hair, emo-girl glasses, and big stompy boots. She's dressed entirely in black, and short sleeves show off a fair few tattoos.
[Morgan Lake] Sunday, still during church hours, the park is relatively quiet - this won't be the case for long, though. Before too long, it won't just be the heathens and the unwashed who are out and about, but the families who've spent their morning in the flavor of worship that appeals - already, Morgan can hear the bells. She likes that sound, even if she doesn't really get church (or religion) itself.
She's young, this girl, that much is clear if not much else is; she
might be able to pass for twenty if one weren't looking closely, but it's a stretch. She's in her late teens, certainly, but carries herself with an apparent confidence and authority that not many adults muster, these days. Her back is straight but relaxed as she stretches under the cloudy sky, having just finished a run - a long one, if her clothes and face are to be judged. There's a fountain nearby, large and ostentatious and modern as these things tend to be in this area, and chess tables as well, but Morgan is near one of the benches, using it for balance when she needs to. Red hair shines on the odd occasion the sun breaks through the clouds, glinting in its ponytail.
It's a good morning, so far.
[James Blake] He could be on his way to church right now. The young man strolling through the park is one of the tallest people out today, and probably one of the few who can't hear the sounds of Sunday. His suit is cheap, and looks it. His boots look as old as he is. Guessing his age isn't difficult...time has been no kinder nor crueler to him than anyone else. He looks to be in his early twenties, and that's how he carries himself. With a cigarette in his hand, he couldn't look any more at peace with the world if he were sitting on a beach somewhere.
There is a lot to take in even if he cannot hear conversations or ambient noise. His eyes don't remain on one point to avoid contact with other people. They move, looking at as much as he can before continuing on. More importantly, his other senses are open.
(( Perc + Awareness = 5 ))
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 2, 3, 7, 8, 10 (Success x 3 at target 6)
[Molly Quincannon] [[Awareness roll...]]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 5, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9 (Success x 5 at target 6)
[Molly Quincannon] For all she's apparently distracted by her own delight, the casual-gothette on the park bench is very,
very perceptive about some things today. Over there - she knows that resonance, and that redhead, from her first day in the park. The lamp post incident. She raises a hand and waves at the girl by the nearby bench...
And then there's someone new, someone whose resonance is fairly complicated (...
a tree falling in the forest?) and he also gets a look, and a smile, and a wave. There's something inviting in the waves, for both parties - clearly, if they can identify her as well as she can them, she'd be happy to chat. It's good to get to know one's fellows in the city.
[Morgan Lake] [Aware, why not? =D]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 2, 9, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)
[Morgan Lake] Morgan can, indeed, sense Molly - and what she senses is vaguely familiar, though it takes her a moment or two longer to place the shorter goth girl. When she does, there's a stifled . . . something between a giggle and a snicker, and she finishes the current stretch before closing the distance between them after scooping up the water bottle at her feet. They are, in fact, not that far apart to begin with; Molly is on the other side of the path and a bench closer to where James walks in his Sunday best.
"I've seen you before," she says without preamble and is ever watchful in her quiet, serious way. "Here, wasn't it? With Alex. D'you know him?" That's with a jut of her chin towards the less known of the two.
[James Blake] The man's resonance is like a storm. Some find the sound of rain and thunder soothing. Others are aware of the power of nature to wreck entire towns, to end life with the merest effort. That's the sense one gets when he approaches, is that a storm's coming. It's odd, though. He seems, himself, to be peaceful. He doesn't glower or sigh as he walks. Occasionally, when the sun returns, he turns his face up.
That stops when he realizes he isn't alone. Not in the spiritual sense. He picks up the nearness of two distinct magical fingerprints, one stronger than the other. One of the women waves. He happens to be looking in her direction when it happens. The hand with the cigarette returns the greeting, and then he looks to see who else she was waving at.
And then he looks again.
If he can hear what they're saying, it has no affect on him as he approaches. He holds the cigarette between his lips and pulls a small spiral-bound notepad from the pocket of his suit jacket. A golf pencil is found next, and he writes as he walks. He looks up every few feet to make sure he isn't about to crash into someone. Before he joins them, he takes one last drag off of the cigarette and disposes of it in a nearby bin.
The notepad is handed to the teenager, if only because her resonance is stronger.
My name is James. I'm Deaf...can read lips but easier to write if don't sign. You are both Awake?His brow is furrowed to emphasis the question if and when either female looks at him.
[Molly Quincannon] Molly catches the giggle/snicker hybrid, but doesn't take offence. Instead, she grins when Morgan approaches and says, "Yes, though I didn't know his name when he was picking me up off the sidewalk. I'm Molly; pleased to meet you. And you too," she adds, looking up to face the young man who's approached so he can see her face as she talks. She doesn't actually know he's deaf, but ... well, it's as good a reason as any for Morgan, who doesn't know this man, having been handed a note. She's assuming he lip reads, if he's deaf at all, and is confident, for whatever reason, that she's not going to offend anyone. "Are you new to Chicago?"
[James Blake] (( Can he actually read lips!
Perc + Linguistics = 3 ))
Dice Rolled:[ 3 d10 ] 2, 7, 7 (Success x 2 at target 6)
[Morgan Lake] The notepad is taken with a raised eyebrow and read before she looks back at the young man, surprised at this - but for all the haughty, somewhat arrogant demeanor about her now, underneath it there's the air of a girl who was popular not just because she was pretty, but because she's smart and likable as well. This is, of course, before she's opened her mouth, at least much. "I don't sign," she says as she hands the note to Molly, making sure she's facing James and he can see her lips (which seem like they should be curved slightly upwards, but are so seldom these days). "And I don't keep a pen in my running clothes, so unless we want to trade the pencil back and forth as well, lip-reading will have to do."
She enunciates clearly even under normal circumstances, but this is especially so in deference to the need to read lips - perhaps a bit exaggeratedly so, though she doesn't mean to be insulting. She simply hasn't had much dealing with deaf people.
The question goes unanswered for now - she is wary, and obviously so. She has her reasons, of course, but she's not particularly trusting, this red-headed runner; instead, there's a hint of confrontation in bearing, in expression. She doesn't like not knowing who's asking her such questions and so the question that comes is perhaps an obvious one, all things considered. "James, then. Who's asking?"
She obviously doesn't mean his name, but is turning his question back on him.
[James Blake] The stranger notices the Cultist's lips moving as Morgan is reading. He watches her entire face, not just her mouth, and then smiles when she asks if he's new. Partly out of difficulty and partly out of embarrassment, he doesn't attempt to answer verbally. He waits until he has the notepad back, and then he writes:
I moved here last week.The suit is the flashiest thing about him. He wears no jewelry around his neck or in his ears. On his right thumb is a thick silver band. There is a slimmer one on the fourth finger of his left hand. They're both tarnished and scratched.
The redhead enunciates more than she normally would. James winces, but does not correct her. She asks who's asking. He looks at the darker-haired woman, and writes again.
Initiate of C. Chorus. Mentor/cabal gone. Felt your spirits...wanted introduce myself. Only know a few Awakened. [Molly Quincannon] A study of Molly's face shows a certain attentive friendliness and a very, very good mood. Like Morgan, Molly does not have a notepad and pen. What she has is a little laptop. So she opens up a word processing programme - not because she doubts his lip-reading prowess but because notes are a good way to pass along information without announcing affiliations to half the world - and types the following:
Initiate of Cult of Ecstasy - Dissonance Society. Hi! :)Aloud, she says, "Yeah, I moved here three weeks ago myself, more or less. Haven't got a crew yet, but I think I may have found my nitch in that regard." (Yes, she pronounces 'niche' as 'nitch'. Lip-readers can make of that as they will.) "Not surprising I fit in with the computer-geek types, despite everything. There's a place we can show you but there's someone you have to meet first. People tweak hardcore about it if we don't. So what brings you to this happy little city?"
Then, to Morgan, with a querying little look (but head still tilted enough so James can see what she's saying), "You been around long? I don't think I've heard your name come up, but there's been ... stuff going on. But hey, at least it means I've met more people than I might have if all was chill."
[Morgan Lake] There are thoughts. It doesn't seem right to Morgan to write these things down in public, where anyone might find it, any more than it does to talk about it in public - which isn't to say that she hasn't, and won't, but it clearly makes her uncomfortable. There's a glance around during which she finds the park much as it was when she arrived here at the tail end of her run, and then she points at the pencil with a raised eyebrow, questioning. When she has it, she answers in neat, rounded cursive, somewhere between utilitarian and the cheery bubble script that cheerleaders and similarly peppy types tend to use.
Morgan, Apprentice bani Hermes.Then, out loud and not over enunciating quite as much since noting the wince, she adds so both of them can 'hear', "I've lived in Chicago all my life. But I tend to keep to a fairly small crowd."
She stays where she feels safe - or rather, the company she keeps makes her feel so. She has some issues though they don't seem overpowering, and when all is said and done, who doesn't? Hers are mostly with trust, at least. But then, almost as an afterthought, she adds, "It's a pleasure to meet you both."
[James Blake] The emoticon makes the Chorister grin, as though she had smiled herself rather than via pixels, and then he looks back to the pierced woman. Lip reading is something he has been working on his entire life. The thing is...there are people twice as old as he is who still struggle with it. He has to rely on his remaining senses to survive without his hearing, but James is still very young. He is not the world's most perceptive person. He has to work at it. There's a light frown on his face as he "listens" to the Cultist speak. It goes away when the younger girl gets the notepad from him.
Finding people who sign even in large cities is a chore. He's gotten good at writing legibly and quickly. He doesn't write more than he has to.
Gave 2 people my + to give her.
I'm here b/c of work.
What's your name?James has the build of a natural athlete. At least, so far as they can tell from looking at him in his suit. One could also argue that an active lifestyle and addiction to nicotine helps keep weight off. He smells like he smokes a lot, but smoking is too difficult to do while talking to strangers, so he doesn't. Not that it matters...he's already been spotted with a butt.
When James speaks it's clear why he hasn't been all this time. He can't hear himself, and probably never has.
"It's nice to meet you, too," he says. That's all he's up for. A second later, he writes:
Going to eat. Want to come? [Molly Quincannon] Molly nods and grins. "Oh, hey, awesome. Ashley's really good about that kind of thing, so long as you don't go tromping around Americana-house without her having at least got a look at you. She has the awesome, in spades, probably because of that 'unstoppable force, immovable object' thing she's got going on. And it's Molly; sorry, didn't realise you hadn't caught that from when I was telling Morgan."
In all fairness to Molly, she has at least
mostly slowed down her mile-a-minute, caffeine-fuelled hyperbabble. She doesn't take too much care in enunciation, but she does catch herself and slow down when she notices she might be talking too quickly to be lip-read.
"As to food, I could do that. Thanks for the invite. Did you have anything in mind?"
[Morgan Lake] "Ashley," Morgan says, just a bit tight, "is my mentor." At least what Molly's said is all good, and so the tight doesn't last long. Instead, at the mention of food, those lips of hers finally
do curve up in an almost shy smile that lightens her whole face. She really should wear that expression more often - and did, it's quite obvious despite her usual lack of it now.
"As for food, there are lots of places dotted around the edge of the parks, or at this end of the Mile. It depends on what you're into - All-American Diner, French Bistro, Tiny Ethiopian Hole in the Wall . . . there are lots of choices. For the students and business people, you know."
Because Northwestern isn't far, and as much as there are restaurants dotted around the park, there are skyrises full of offices. Then, though, there's a rueful look. "I only brought enough for a smoothie after my run, so I can keep you guys company, but that's about it."
[James Blake] James smiles when Molly gives herself a name and apologizes. He doesn't tell her it's alright. It seems to be implied. His eye color is revealed when the clouds part now. They're blue. It's getting warm...too warm for any normal person to be running around in long sleeves and pants. He isn't sweating yet, but for someone who spent the first nineteen years of his life in Alaska, this heat is brutal. Back home, it's thirty degrees cooler right now. He's not back home, though, and so he tries not to think about it.
Morgan lists their options, then says she only brought enough for a smoothie. James looks her over, closer than he did the first time. She probably stays as small as she does subsisting on smoothies. The page he'd been writing on is filled. He flips to a clean page instead of writing on the back of the old one.
If you want real food, I'll cover you.That bit is only shown to Morgan. Molly gets:
Haven't had brkfst yet. Let's go to a diner.
You talk fast. Where are you from? [Molly Quincannon] There is mention of breakfast, and smoothies, and Molly smiles at Morgan. "Hey, smoothies are breakfast. Or we could take the tack that is 'all table food is communal food' and you can snarf my toast or whatever takes your fancy. So c'mon. We'll work out the food thing as we go. And diner sounds awesome. Are there Dennys' or something? I like the freaktastic names they give the breakfasts."
Then, the note about how she talks fast, which gets a blush. "Yeah ... sorry. I'm sort of used to talking like I type. Which means run-on sentences and mile-a-minute to be heard over the rest of the nattering throng online, y'know? And I'm from ... around, really. Depends how far back you wanna go. Right now ... I'm from here. Pacific Northwest originally. Washington State. Walla Walla, of all the places. How about you two?" Including Morgan in the conversation, of course.
[Morgan Lake] "I'm from here. Have traveled some, but never really
lived anywhere else," she says easily enough - and it's all true, for anyone who's paying attention, though it's a bit on the vague side. "And the only Denny's is down in the Bronzeville area, I think. Here, it's more like a high end Coney, if such a thing exists. Breakfast all day, but no ridiculous names for the dishes."
It's Chicago that her accent speaks of, though it's definitely an upper middle class thing - it's in the grammar, in the way she says -ing instead of -in', in the way that there are no 'gonna's or 'wanna's.
"Apparently, some of the family tree was amongst the founders of the city. And if you really want to feed me, I'll let you." The last is more for James than Molly, but it applies to both. "Though, I feel like I should warn you I've been training for a half marathon and ran the whole thirteen point two this morning. I'm both starving and a little afraid to eat too much right now."
She stays as small as she does, really, by being a distance runner. And also by having a naturally good metabolism, though these two can't yet know that she bakes, or how much of her own product she eats. They'll find out soon enough - she has a way of feeding people, does the young Hermetic.
"I'm still . . . kind of new," she says wryly, of not the city but the whole magic affiliation, though 'apprentice' likely gave that away despite the strong resonance. "I mean, I know a lot of people if not nearly as many as Ashley, but I'm still fairly early in the process of figuring things out.
[James Blake] James puts the notepad back in his pocket. They haven't taken a vote, but he prepares himself to start walking. He waits for Molly to pack up her computer. It's a contraption that he would eye more closely if he weren't watching the younger girl's face. Now that he's decided to just listen, he doesn't care about keeping his hands free. If she's a runner, though, she probably doesn't smoke. Probably doesn't find it appealing in the slightest. He puts his hands into his pockets...but his cigarettes stay out of sight.
He falls silent. Not that he had been vocal before. But he seems content to just observe the two of them as they walk.
[Molly Quincannon] "Ah, so not so new to Chicago, but newer to the wilder, weirder world. I getcha. Means we can trust your judgement on food anyway. Though good to know there's a Denny's in Bronzeville. I live in the area." That's Molly's take on it as they travel. Knowing it's difficult to actually watch someone's lips move while they're walking, she addresses Morgan a bit more than James as they travel, though she turns her head to give James a smile to remind him he's included as they go.
"Me, it's the other way around. I've met a few people here, but not really familiar with how things are run in Chicago. However, I've been figuring things out for eight years. So I've got a fairly good grip on the basics and a few of the not-so-basics. It's good to have so many area-veterans around."
[Morgan Lake] Morgan is of an above average height, though she's hardly freakishly tall - still, a lot of her height is legs, and she has an efficient sort of stride that eats ground. She walks as straight and tall [proud] as she stands, and she, too, makes sure James knows he's included in the conversation in her own way. Makes sure he's between them, for instance, so he can easier tell when conversation shifts from one set of lips to the next.
"It's handy, I suppose, for the people new to the city when there are people who aren't about. Are you planning on staying long?"
The question is for both of her companions, though she only truly expects an answer from Molly, right now. It's inquisitive in a way that doesn't seem to imply a driving curiosity, but instead a desire to keep track of general goings on for some purpose or another.
[Morgan Lake] ((Heya. Are you a mage player? That's what these characters all are.))
to Erika Alexander
[Erika Alexander] ((I'm new. Watching for now.))
to Morgan Lake
[Erika Alexander] ((I'm not used to this chat format. I'm watching to get used to it. Is that okay?))
to Morgan Lake
[Morgan Lake] ((Gotcha. Well then, welcome! Mage is awesome. And if you are able, the AIM chat 'chilltank' is where a lot of people hang out, though I'm not in there right now. I was only thrown because it's a character name I didn't recognize. =D ))
to Erika Alexander
[James Blake] He isn't dominating the conversation, and his notepad is back in his pocket, yet James still manages to seem like part of it as they walk. His deafness makes getting to know him more difficult than either hearing woman is likely used to. It isn't that he has to try harder, or be someone who he's not. If he truly had not wanted to approach them earlier, he wouldn't have. Yet he had done so effortlessly. Unlike most men his age would have, he didn't come over to Molly's bench to hit on either of them. Of course, if he
is making an attempt to flirt with them, it's being obscured by the fact that his attention to their faces is fueled by a desire to know what they're talking about.
Being in the middle makes observing their conversation easier, but it makes it difficult to tell if one of them is trying to talk when he is. James glances between both of them before he speaks.
"I want to," he says, in that same toneless voice. The feeling he can't work into his words, which seem like a second language to him, shows up on his face. "I don't like moving a lot. I like to stay in the same place. It's hard, though. Things change so fast, and sometimes you have to go."
[Molly Quincannon] By this time, they have reached the diner, and getting in and sitting down will probably aid conversation somewhat. When they have, Molly gives James a sympathetic sort of smile. "Oh, definitely. What he said," she adds, to Morgan. "I figure I'll be here for awhile, but a lot depends on circumstances. Sometimes, you just have to bail. Particularly with the job market being as it is. Still, I get by, I have a place, I have a job, I like it here. I think I'll stick around as long as I can, or at least until I piss someone off enough for them to ride me out of town on a rail. Not that I'll be
trying, mind you, but ... yeah."
Then, a thought occurs. "So, do we have friends in common? I mean, I know you know Ashley - though I admit I don't know her nearly as well as I'd like. And James, you said a couple of people gave you the number to call; I'm curious to see if it's anyone I know."
[Morgan Lake] It's a table rather than a booth, so there's not quite the same jockeying for position as there might be; again, it's arranged so that James is in the middle and can see both of them easily. The question about who else they know is more directed at James than Morgan, but she still answers, thoughtful and a little reluctantly; she's not a big name dropper, apparently. (Also, she's young and brought up with enough manners that it's difficult for her to call some of them by first names rather than 'Mr. _____' or 'Ms. _____'
"Wharil, Kage, Emily, Riley, Alex, Nathan," there, there's a bit of sneer that only gets worse on the next before drifting away, "Kaya, Basil, Marianna, both Solomons, Malcolm . . ." Basically, Morgan knows almost everyone at least in passing. Some names get a twist of fondness, Nathan and Kaya get disgust, distrust and dislike, but most get relative indifference. It takes her time to give judgment, apparently, though she always does eventually - she can't really help it, even if she wanted to.
"Who is it that you've met, Molly?"
[James Blake] Names are hard to lip-read, particularly unconventional ones. The first name Morgan says doesn't look like any word he's ever seen any English-speaker use, and it's enough to distract him for a few seconds. He finds his notepad, and scratches out an answer to Molly's question.
When the waitress comes over, he waits until Molly and Morgan have ordered before he tries to order verbally. The waitress signs, though. James looks as though he's about to fall out of his chair when she does. His jaw doesn't drop, but it almost does. Their conversation is silent but for the occasional tapping of hands against each other.
After she leaves, he sits quiet for a moment, then laughs. He doesn't explain what's so funny. He just shows puts the notepad in the center of the table for the women to see what he's written.
I've met Daiyu, Owen, Emily & Declan. Daiyu & Owen said would give my + to Ashley. Still waiting for text. [Molly Quincannon] Molly, after ordering, looks over at Morgan, perplexed. "You know, half of the people I've
met in this city who know him get that
look on their face when they mention Nathan. He's one of the ones I've met, and I think he's pretty cool. I get there might be history, and I'd like to hear it when not in such a public venue because, seriously, it
boggles me because he's been almost big-brotherly since I met him. Anyway," she goes on with a smile at James, "Emily's the only one on that list that I've met - she helped me move into my new place; she's pretty cool. From yours," this directed at Morgan, "Riley, Kage and Basil from yours. Also Chuck--" There's a smile there - a quiet, pleased and almost bashful sort of thing. "--Israel and Lara." That last ... well, there's complication there. "There's also possibly some guy named Quentin, but we're not really sure about him. He's ... a grey area. Anyway, seems like I've met more people than I thought I had. Also Alex, from the sound, but it's not like we've had a chance to talk. He probably thinks I'm afraid of him or something, I ran off so fast."
Then she looks at James, curious. "What'd you order? I don't know sign language but it looks like a distinctly awesome way to communicate."
[Morgan Lake] "Basil helps me with things Ashley can't," Morgan says easily - she could be speaking of tutors, or home schooling. "Though he'll be taking over more soon." She's of mixed feelings on this; Ashley's been the one she turned to almost since her Awakening. She and Emily, in fact, and where the two apprentices have gone distinctly different ways and hardly even cross paths any more, Ashley's still there. So, though the reason doesn't come up, there's a subtle wistfulness in both expression and tone.
"And as for Nathan . . . well. I suppose he means well enough. Most of the time. Also, I've met Declan, and is Daiyu the Chinese girl?" She could have said 'the Akashic', given that not many would recognize the word, but doesn't - and she's only met each of them once, so doesn't have anything to offer. "If Ashley hasn't texted you soon, let me know. I see her every second day, if not more often."
Her breakfast, after checking to make sure it's alright and assuring that there'll be reimbursement, turns out to be a 'big breakfast special' (hash browns, one pancake, three kinds of meat, three eggs prepared as she likes them) with an extra side of bacon and a side of toast - not terribly expensive, all told, but a lot of food for a girl who likely 'stays as small as she is by subsisting on smoothies'. She's loading on both carbs and protein, apparently, and after a thirteen mile run, who can blame her?
"A lot of people are afraid of Alex, though - he just feels creepy. Once you get to know him, he's not so bad."
[James Blake] When his phone goes off, it is not with a ring tone but with powerful buzzing that the women can practically feel from arm's length away. The Chorister does not flinch. He's used to this happening. He pulls a clunky black cell phone out of his pants pocket and opens it to read the message. What he sees makes him frown. He glances between the two women, then reaches for his notepad.
"Work," he explains. "I have to go."
The same thing is written out twice and handed to each of them...his full name, and his phone number, which has a Chicago area code. He specifies "text only" next to the phone number, as though they're going to forget that he can't hear.
He doesn't forget that he offered to pay for Morgan's breakfast. As he stands up, he takes a tenner out of his wallet and puts it in an out-of-the-way spot on the table. Somehow that's better than pushing it into her hand. Wallet, notepad and phone are returned to their rightful pockets. He smiles as he steps back from the table and pushes his chair in. He makes no attempt to be quiet.
"I'll see you," he says, and lifts his hand in a wave before he goes. He glances back, once, when he reaches the front door, and then he disappears into Sunday morning foot traffic as though he'd never been there at all.
((Thanks for the scene, ladies! (drags carcass to bed) ))
[Molly Quincannon] Molly waves James a good-bye as he vacates the table, taking the paper and adding his details to her iPhone. She'll text him later, so that he has her contact details stored in his phone, and to welcome him to Chicago.
Then, to Morgan. "Nathan does seem to mean well enough, and I understand he's been through a bit of a life-altering experience lately. I imagine I met a very different Nathan than some. Which I can't really complain about, because I think he's quite nice. As to Basil ... I haven't spoken to him much, but judging from what I saw, I'm just glad I'm usually pretty polite to people. I'm a veteran of a thousand flame-wars online and I am
not used to being the peacemaker, and yet..." She shrugs. "It seems an interesting bunch, and I hear you've had quite the time of it up until recently. Picked up any other news from the Americana-house lately?"
[Morgan Lake] Morgan, too, waves, and this is with that shy hint of smile - he's the first somewhere near her age boy she's talked to in awhile, not counting the idiots on campus when she went for orientation. She finds him intriguing for that, and watches him go before returning her attention to Molly.
"I'm not part of a group," she says with a shrug, "so my access is limited. I heard a bit about Lara, and I know Ashley's Deacon. I know a little bit about some trouble with that Lara girl you mentioned but not much. I follow the politics, but am not yet immersed in them - so on some fronts, you may know more than I do at the moment."
This is vaguely bothersome for a moment, but then there's a shrug - that will change when she joins a cabal and becomes more established, she feels. And if it doesn't do so naturally, she'll make it happen. Goodness knows, she has the determination. "But we are an interesting bunch, yes. Some more so than others."
[Molly Quincannon] Molly winces at the mention of the Lara trouble. Breakfast has arrived (though whatever James has ordered will have to be taken away; Molly, who cannot or does not cook such things for herself, has eggs, sausage, hash browns and toast) and Molly picks up a piece of her toast, looking at it in a thoughtful way before reaching for the butter. "Yeah, there was some trouble. Now we're hoping there won't be any more. She kept some pretty serious information to herself when she shouldn't have, but it's out now. Ashley and Israel know about it, as do I, but I imagine it's not an over-breakfast conversation."
After a dunk of her toast crust into the yolk of her egg and a munch on said mouthful, she asks, "So when you're not running with the interesting bunch, what do you do with your days? I mean, mundane life, y'know? Job, school?" Molly's curious - friendly and curious.
[Morgan Lake] "Mr. Galloway - Malcolm - is of the same branch as James, and a private investigator. I intern with him, currently, and in September I'm starting pre-law at Northwestern." There's one of her eggs (she ordered poached) but on a piece of toast and the whole lot eaten with a fork, with soft, still runny yolk dripping from it; and she doesn't push the Lara question. It'll be interesting to know the precedent later, but it's not hugely important to her with the limited knowledge she has of what happened on that front.
"So I study a lot, on both fronts. Practice on the less mundane. Run at least three miles a day. Cook and bake. Um . . . whatever seems interesting with any free time that comes up, I guess. What about you?"
[Molly Quincannon] There's a dash of salt for the hash browns and a liberal spray of pepper for everything as Molly replies. "I'm a codemonkey. Well, technically my job is to code, debug and improve email encryption systems for a bunch of utter putzes, but in reality - and the reason that I call them putzes - my job is not only to code, debug and improve email encryption systems but
also to debug other people's code, set up the company firewall, maintain bits of the company
website and, on the not-nearly-rare-enough occasion, do the physical maintenance on the servers because the
actual hardware people know jack all and at one point actually let a server halfway
melt. I wish I was kidding or exaggerating. Really." Hash brown gets comprehensively
munched. "But at least they don't have so much a dress code so they never complain about my boots or my T-shirts. I think they're afraid I'd quit if they did, and then they'd have to hire, like, three people to take my place."
Then she chuckles. "Heh; I actually spent a fair bit of last night listing what I like to do in my spare time. More coding. Logic puzzles, crosswords, sudoku, stuff like that. Dancing - thinking I might start taking real lessons, but mostly Dance Dance Revolution." She does not assume that Morgan knows what DDR stands for. "Practice on the less mundane - which actually fits with the coding and the puzzles more often than not. I like movies and TV, mostly the freaky Asian stuff or the sci-fi, but other things as well."
Then a thought occurs, and more curiosity, and she asks, "So ... what's the appeal of cooking and baking? I ... it's not that I don't like to eat, but I never really got my head around cooking. I don't know whether I
can or not - I never really tried - but I ... just ...
don't. But I know some people really like to do it for its own sake rather than just self-feeding so I wondered ... you know, what the appeal was."
[Morgan Lake] "I'm more for baking than cooking, honestly, and I guess it's because it's all very precise. If something goes wrong, you generally know what and why, though there's the odd time your flour might be too old and produce chewy cookies instead of crispy, or your yeast might be off and not rise a loaf properly or what have you. It's just . . . relaxing," says the girl who resounds of
withering and
discernment; it's an odd sort of juxtaposition, this homey hobby of hers. And then, an admission. "My mom taught me, when I was little - she bakes, and Daddy cooks. So we spent a lot of time in the kitchen as long as I can remember."
There's something there, subtle, but then there's a smile and moving on - there are other things to talk about, more interesting than bits of Morgan's family history.
"I know DDR, a bit. Not really a big one for video games, but I had a friend who was really into playing at the arcade. That, Guitar Hero, Rock band - anything where she got to put on a show. And I like crossword puzzles, but the rest kind of baffles me."
[Molly Quincannon] "Ah!" This while sawing at a sausage. "Well, if you want to get into it and also want to save the cost of playing it at the arcade, let me know. You're welcome to use my set-up. I've got it a bit hacked, though - I play on PC, which took some doing but means I have some really decent songs on it. Never tried Rock Band or Guitar Hero, though - I guess if I'm going to learn an instrument, I'd like to learn an
actual instrument. I'm thinking drums, if I ever do. I have a pretty good sense of timing." (Of
course she does.)
The smile she gives about the baking and cooking and family history is complicated - not quite nostalgic, not quite rueful, but a little of both. "I think I get what you mean. Homey stuff was never my deal. But I had my skill set and I have worked with it, and it's all gone well. So, pre-law, hmm?" Munch on sausage. "Actual going-to-be-a-lawyer, or going into the PI business? How's the interning going? What does being a PI
involve, really? I try not to go by what I see on TV."
[Morgan Lake] "Actual going-to-be-a-lawyer, and eventually judge, and eventually more. State senate, maybe, then national, then who knows?" She certainly doesn't lack ambition, this girl. "And for Mr. Galloway, it mostly seems to involve adultery cases. They're only interesting for the previous real cases they mention - Jones vs. State of Illionois, Harper vs. Harper, that sort of thing. But it's handy to see at least some of it from this angle, I suppose, so I have an appreciation for it in the courtroom when I get there."
No lack of ambition, and no lack of confidence that she'll do exactly what she sets out to do, it seems, and an under-riding determination that indicates what she says will come true.
"And Rockband and Guitar Hero aren't learning an instrument any more than DDR is actually learning to dance. If anything, the latter is a little more so, given that it makes you actually move. I never really got into any of it, but Val - and to a lesser extent, Bryan - were fantastic to watch."
[Molly Quincannon] That gets a ponder. "Adultery cases, huh? Iiiiiiiiinteresting." Not for the usual ways, to judge by the look on her face, but... "I bet a lot of the evidence comes from emails and call logs and stuff." But she shakes that off and goes back to the main topic. "Ah, so you want to work in government? I guess I can see the draw - change the system from the inside. I ... go at it a different way. But I wonder, how are you going to get past the fact that in order to actually get any power, you have to not only tell the people what they want to hear, but
be told that you're not actually able to change anything because trying to switch from one system to another without a slow transition process is an open invitation to chaos? And then how do you handle getting re-elected when the people complain that the changes you promised to make - the ones that you can't make because there isn't the budget or you'd lose your much-needed support in other areas - isn't coming fast enough?" Apparently, Molly pulls no punches
whatsoever.
The rest gets a snort. "I
know that. Though arguably Rock Band is closer on the drums element, as you are actually having to hit things with sticks rather than trying to mimic chording with buttons, which never works. But I'd disagree with you about DDR. It might not teach you dance like salsa or tango or what have you, but it gives a very good grounding in how to move your feet in time, how to keep to a specific section of floor while your feet are moving, which helps when you don't want to step on a partner's toes, and once you're practiced enough at it, the simple foot-on-arrow thing gives way to actual full-body dance. It's kind of like a tutorial, I find."
[Morgan Lake] "Guitar Hero has the full band element now too, or at least one of the . . . expansions or whatever does. World Tour, I think it was. Anyway, I'm not one to argue for their virtue on the 'teaching to do real things' front, and I suppose I never looked at DDR that way even when people
were fantastic at it. Just not my thing, you know? But then, neither is dancing in general, which isn't to say I don't do it occasionally and have fun - or rather that I haven't - just that there are generally other things I'd rather be doing. And politics . . ."
This gets a shrug. "If I keep looking at the way things are done now as truth as opposed to reality -
is as opposed to
seems - I won't be able to effect it at all, will I? But politics weren't always the way they are now, and won't always be. So why shouldn't I be the one to start it forming into something better? I mean, there were something like thirteen presidents of congress before the Articles of Confederation, and then seven presidents of the then defined United States before Washington and the Constitution as we know it came about. Obviously there was huge change enacted there - someone said, "But this is the way it is," and someone else said, "Maybe, but this is how it's going to be." And the second person was strong enough to make it happen, with other people who believed the same way. I'm strong enough too."
For all the subtle arrogance, the last is matter of fact, not haughty - it's just what she sees.
[Molly Quincannon] Putting aside the matter of Rock Band and DDR for the moment, Molly addresses the other, more important element. "Keep in mind that at the time, the ... elements backing the status quo weren't quite so ...
empowered as they are now," she says. Yes, she is referencing the Technocracy. She also seems very intimately knowledgeable about how this works, from a somewhat different angle than Morgan's. "I mean, seriously, don't let me discourage you, because the world needs more of that kind of thinking - but this kind of thing takes more than one person, and a viewpoint that takes into account that for every
one who's pushing for change, there's a hundred or so who just want things to stay nice and familiar. There..."
There, in fact, she hesitates, puts a bite of hash brown into her mouth, chews thoughtfully, then swallows, apparently having made a decision.
"There are some things you ought to read, if that's your goal. So you know what you're up against. What you're fighting. I'll have to have you over and show you the ... well, let's call it 'private investigation' that I've done on my own time. Also, I've got a contact who does sysadmin work in DC I can hit up for info closer to the time if you want it. I hold it out there because ... you know. If you're going to fight the good fight, you need the weapons."
[Morgan Lake] "I know about
empowered. They're part of what solidified my desire, actually." It's more intimate than it should be for an apprentice just starting college in September; the capital letters War has boiled down to something more like the Macarthian fifties, at least for now, most of the time. That doesn't mean there aren't actions taken on both sides, and apparently the girl knows at least a little about it on a personal level. "And their status quo can fuck them sideways, if you don't mind the vulgarity. "Before, I'd have been happy as a judge, or even just a lawyer. But they don't get to have their people in the upper echelons and leave us with no say."
Yeah, there's history there, and an exposed nerve, but Morgan breathes, holds it for a moment, lets it out, takes a bite, chews and swallows all before she speaks again.
"I'm not foolish enough to think I could do it on my own. But I've years to build the team that'll help me do it - I've only just turned eighteen."
[Molly Quincannon] Molly laughs. "I like you," she says, with no apparent preamble. "You've got moxie, I'll give you that. And I don't mind the vulgarity at all." She shakes her head and, after folding up half her egg and spearing it with her fork, she looks up at Morgan and says, "What surprises me, I guess, is that you're willing to wait that long. You're het up over it, I can see that. I don't know why and I can probably live without knowing, but while I really laud the effort and damn, seriously, go for it? I ... just hope that you don't mind if some of us old fogies make a few pre-emptive strikes in the meantime. And I guess I wonder what happens if we fogies change the world before you graduate. To your ambition, I mean."
[Morgan Lake] "Then you'll have someone with the education, background, backbone and sheer stubbornness to help it stick, to help refine where needs refining, and to make sure our side doesn't get out of hand any more than theirs does. Balance. Justice. It's important." As are things like reparation and restoration, like establishing codes for everyone to live by, like making sure all sides are upheld and that action - of the stringently legal variety - is taken when necessary. Codifying
everything. And so on. "Which isn't to say I mean to be idle while pursuing degrees and passing bar exams and the like, because I don't. Neither set of study will eclipse the other, and there are a great many important contacts to be made in both . . . spheres of influence."
It's one heck of a project, but it sounds like she knows that - and a good deal of what it'll take to do it. It sounds like she relishes the thought, and intends to 'go big or go home', as the popular phrase says.
[Molly Quincannon] Molly swigs coffee and then smiles at the girl. "Just don't work yourself to death before you get there," she says, quite friendly. "Also, remember that when you talk about 'balance', there's an 'all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy' thing to consider. And I'll stop providing advice now."
There's a toast-munch, then, "So, what would you tell an outsider to do and see in Chicago? Besides have breakfast with bright, ambitious pre-law Senate hopefuls?" She chuckles. "I am
so new, after all."
[Morgan Lake] "The Aquarium, Theatre on the Lake, Maxwell Street Market, Millennium Park, the Art Institute, the Skydeck - only that's called something vaguely different now - the water tower, the various historic districts, Adler Planetarium, Blackstone Library, Bronzeville Children's Museum . . . oh, I don't know. There's a lot, you know? Depends on how touristy you want to be, and when, and if there are events going on or not, I suppose. Grant Park - the actual big park, not just the general area that gets called that - gets a lot of concerts and performance art. The various campuses are great for almost anything you could want to find."
She shrugs, and she loves this city - that much is clear - whatever else it might hold for her.
[Molly Quincannon] Molly smiles. "Well, true, but asking
you gives me an idea of what
you're interested in doing in the city. I'm curious about that sort of thing but not everyone likes that kind of question, so asking you what there is and listening to the first things you think of..." She shrugs. "Didn't know about Maxwell Street Market, though. I'll have to check that out. If nothing else, might have some things for me to decorate my place. I ... had a moving-related setback. Well, I had a punks-in-Bronzeville-related setback. I still haven't bought much in the way of furniture. And I need posters. And better curtains. And other ... you know, decoratey-stuff."
[Morgan Lake] "Oh, you could have just asked my favorites," she says with a grin. "I mean, you're new, so I'm going to come up with the stuff that most new people want to see. Of that list . . . oh, the aquarium, Theatre on the Lake, Maxwell Street Market, Adler Planetarium and Blackstone Library apply. Also, Navy Pier in general - that's where the aquarium is. And the Grant Park concerts, and some of the Movies in the Parks. I think I might go see "Where the Wild Things Are" on Tuesday. For decor shopping . . . I'm a bit more Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma than Maxwell Street, but there are fantastic food vendors and there's someone busking on every corner and the atmosphere in general is great."
[Molly Quincannon] "It sounds like a smaller-scale version of San Francisco," she says, answering the grin. "I might get more behind the planetarium than the aquarium. Also fewer sea lions," she adds. "And there's nothing wrong with Pottery Barn, but ... well, look at me. I'm not even sure I'm this
planet, never mind Maxwell Street. But I'd be more likely to find something at a market than an actual store. Unless I modified it or something. Hrm. LEDs and bio-sensors." She munches on a bit of breakfast while she ponders that, in that way that likely makes people wonder if she's actually
serious about her Trad ... or maybe not, considering the subject matter.
Then she pulls herself out of it and says, "Well, the fact that you obviously love the place so much speaks well for it. And since, as I said to James, I plan on staying until I've worn out my welcome or unless something cataclysmic happens, any good recommendation is heartening. Might have to check out 'Where the Wild Things Are' on Tuesday myself, actually. I saw it in the theatre when it first came out - I am such a sucker for that book - but somehow it'd be a way cooler experience seeing it
outside. Wonder if I could score the costume."
[Morgan Lake] "I'm sure you could somewhere. Try University of Chicago's theatre department - ask for Liza Canyon. If they don't have something similar, she'd know where to get it without having to pay an arm and a leg, or ship it from Hollywood. Or both." How a Northwestern girl - who hasn't started college yet - knows this is anyone's guess, and Morgan's not explaining - just offers the information, with an add on of, "If she has questions, tell her you know Eric Geraint and he suggested you ask."
Then the first registers and gets a furrowed brow of not-connecting-the-dots. "LEDs and bio-sensors for what?"
[Molly Quincannon] That gets a raised eyebrow from Molly. "Huh. I may have to do that. Thanks! Friend of yours, this Eric Geraint? Family? Significant other?" Some people, she'd tease about 'boy-toy' or similar, but decides not to in this instance.
...At least partly because there are interesting things to talk about. "For
decoration! I mean, wouldn't it be cool if you had funky LED patterns that lit up depending on where you were in a room? Or chairs that lit up when you sit in them? Shouldn't be too hard; heat sensors would probably do, strategically placed in spots where there's not much weight, or a well-spread net of pressure sensors... Possibly a keypad sort of thing in an armchair arm to actually switch the colours and the patterns of the lights with just a touch..." Then she chuckles. "Stuff like that, you know? I," she adds, with a bit of a bashful chuckle, "live in a disused auto repair shop. There's a
lot of blank wall to cover. And since I don't paint, I need to find a different way to get creative. Tech's my medium."
[Morgan Lake] There's a flash of keen wishing that she hadn't mentioned the name, but then Morgan shrugs. "Someone I used to know. He's my parents' age, certainly not a significant other!" The last with tones of 'eeeeeew, gross', and then moving on to the rest, which is significantly more comfortable (and had been even when she'd assumed the Cultist must mean for less . . . innocent uses) topic of lights and sensors.
"Oh, that would be kind of cool. Like the 'Smooth Criminal' video, or whatever, but not a sidewalk. I guess it could be interesting - I just wouldn't have thought about it." Then there's a shrug. "I can paint a room, but I'm no artist. I took piano and violin for years and forgot almost everything I learned within a week after I stopped, can't draw or paint, don't dance - what you call 'all work' kind of
is play to me. I don't think I suffer for it."
[Molly Quincannon] Molly chuckles and leaves the 'Geraint' thing alone. She has her answer, and if there's more of a story behind it ... well, sometimes Molly
can let things go. Instead, she says, "I think it could be too. I'm sure I could come up with something for the floors too; possibly animal footprints or something. Though I'd have to overlay some Plexiglass over the concrete, but then I was thinking about carpet anyway. And if your work is play ... well, you're not
that much different than me. I mean, I go to work, I code, then I go home and code some more. As long as there's some variety, I guess. And even then, if it's cool for you, then do it, y'know? Just don't like to think of you getting bored and overworked. Which I suppose isn't going to happen if you're running off to 'Where the Wild Things Are' on Tuesday and have, like, libraries and that."
Molly flags down the waitress and asks for the bill - they've been eating as they talked, of course. "I," she tells Morgan, laying down some cash (and no, James' ten dollars is not being used for the breakfast - Morgan can keep it or return it as she chooses), "should probably go shopping for those furniture bits now. You're welcome to join me, unless you wanted to get changed or had better things to do than listen to me yammer about what kind of armchair would be best for my little light-show furniture project. If that last, I won't take offense, by the way; just say that it was nice to meet you and hope I see you again sometime. You're awesome to talk to. Oh! And I should give you my number or something, maybe? Contacts are good things to have."
[Morgan Lake] "Of course," she says and pulls out her own phone to put in both James' and Molly's information - the former with a note about texting only, and she gives hers over as well. The phone is a Blackberry of some variety, something sleek and chick rather than the utilitarian and businesslike models that Blackberry is better known for. "And thanks. I like to think I'm not too bad, though I suppose I have my moments like everyone else does.
The bill comes, Molly pays, and Morgan raises an eyebrow as she takes up James' ten to return to him next time she sees him, as she no doubt will. "Next time is on me - you'll just have to catch me when I'm not at the end of a workout. Thank you - as for shopping, I'll take a rain check. My shower is calling my name. Enjoy the market, or wherever you end up!"
