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Post by Jordanna on Jun 20, 2007 23:12:07 GMT -5
"I saw him at campaign headquarters before I came over here," Rico remarked. "He was makin' a pretty good show, shakin' hands and thankin' everybody for the months we've put in volunteering. If he was nervous, he wasn't showin' it then."
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Post by skybright on Jun 20, 2007 23:22:26 GMT -5
Daws nodded. "Well, I wish him luck." She said sincerely. "I'm not real crazy about politicians as a rule, but everything I've seen makes me think his heart really is in the right place." And that he's going to need all the luck I can wish him.
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 20, 2007 23:44:11 GMT -5
Alex and Grace retreated briefly to change costumes, then performed one more number. After that, there was about five minutes more of the orchestra, as stragglers drifted in and the rounds of greeting gradually died out. The crowd fell into its natural groupings, settling in at the tables with their drinks and appetizers and cheap Cole campaign party favors.
Henry took the opportunity to insert himself at Daws' table under a ruse, and smilingly approached her. He was unaware that she was playing reporter for Rico's benefit.
"Ah... Miss Dawson, I think? Perhaps you don't recall me--Henry Casselton. You've come to my mortuary a few times to let clients identify bodies." He held out his hand ingenuously, while Rico gave Daws a slightly quizzical look.
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Post by skybright on Jun 20, 2007 23:49:54 GMT -5
"Oh, ah . . . yes. Mister Casselton, of course." Daws thought fast as she shook Henry's hand, then glanced sideways at Rico with a shrug.
"The last paper I wrote for was going to run a series on mutant killings -- hate crime related stuff, y'know. I worked with victims' families for it -- unfortunately the paper folded before I got the chance to write any of it up, let alone publish it." She shrugged. "The newspaper business is like that, unfortunately."
She gestured at Rico, hoping the hastily-pulled-together story had worked -- and that Henry had taken the hint. "Mister Casselton, Rico Sandoval. I interviewed him for a piece on the campaign volunteers earlier this year."
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 21, 2007 21:03:22 GMT -5
Henry blanched slightly as the hint sank in, even while he was automatically shaking Rico's proffered hand. "Oh, um... hello, sir."
He glanced back at Daws, and tried to cover by taking up her cue. "I'm sorry you never got to write that article. It was a very worthy project. I've held services for far too many victims of anti-mutant prejudice."
The undertaker remained standing, waiting for an invitation to sit or a hint to go his way. He had thought his work gave him a comfortably plausible reason for himself and Daws to know each other; but in light of the other man's presence, he was not sure whether Daws would feel that they should be seen together more than briefly.
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Post by skybright on Jun 21, 2007 21:39:49 GMT -5
Daws put on the sort of polite smile she used with people she barely knew, and gestured to one of the empty chairs. "You're welcome to sit here, if you like. It's always nice to bump into a contact again after a while."
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 21, 2007 21:57:48 GMT -5
"Thank you." Henry returned the aloof smile as he seated himself. "I'm afraid I don't really know anyone here. An undertaker isn't generally the sort of company socialites like to keep, you know."
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Post by skybright on Jun 21, 2007 22:02:26 GMT -5
"I can understand that -- I bump into the same attitude in my line." Daws replied with a faint smile. "People don't like to be reminded of their own mortality -- or," she gestured at herself, "Of the secrets they might be hiding."
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 21, 2007 22:16:30 GMT -5
"So you, uh... run that Casselton funeral home?" Rico asked.
Henry nodded, smiling slightly. "Don't be embarrassed if that puts you off a bit. I'm quite used to it. I suppose it takes rather a different attitude about life--and death--to be in my business." His smile became a bit more wry. "At least I have job security."
"Hey, I don't mind it," Rico answered. "I got kinda used to funerals myself. I came up from a pretty tough neighborhood. Lots of the kids in my high school... well, they didn't make smart choices."
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Post by skybright on Jun 21, 2007 22:23:07 GMT -5
Daws quirked an inquisitive eyebrow at him. "Where're you from -- here in the City?"
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 21, 2007 22:41:16 GMT -5
Rico nodded. "Oh yeah. I'm just lucky I got out of my old neighborhood--and you know something? My mutation helped me do that." He smiled slightly at Henry, unabashed about admitting it, then glanced back at Daws. "The skin pictures, you know. That and liking art is what got me into the tattoo business. Well, I guess it's not the best kind of art in the world, but it's a pretty good living."
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Post by skybright on Jun 21, 2007 22:49:03 GMT -5
Daws shrugged good-naturedly. "Hey, I've heard people argue that graffiti is a form of art -- and I figure what you do is a lot closer than that."
She spread her hands. "And hey -- if you can make a good living doing something you're good at, that's a kind of art in and of itself."
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 23, 2007 20:19:34 GMT -5
Rico shrugged. "I guess so... Now, knowin' how to use words--how to make people think about new things, and maybe change their minds, the way you journalist types do--that's what I really call art."
"She's giving me some new ideas right now," Henry murmured wryly, giving the "journalist" a sidelong glance.
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Post by skybright on Jun 24, 2007 22:28:12 GMT -5
Daws grinned crookedly and ducked her head. "Ah, it's really nothing special. Anybody with some luck, common sense and stubbornness could do what I do -- and if you're long on stubbornness, you can even skimp a little on the common sense and get away with it."
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 24, 2007 22:38:12 GMT -5
Henry managed to turn a violent attempt to suppress a chortle into a polite cough. The orchestra wrapped up their blaring at about the same moment, as Sid took the stage with his affable-host smile.
"Well folks, I guess you're pretty much on your own from here. Foxy an' Grace'll be out ta lighten things up now 'n' then--but fer now, we'll leave ya ta the election returns. Good luck!"
He bowed his way offstage, and the local news anchors faded in on the big screen, as their election coverage was just beginning.
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Post by skybright on Jun 24, 2007 22:50:26 GMT -5
Daws lifted her punch glass. "Well, now all we've gotta do is listen to the news anchors yammer on and on, punctuated by a hot-air-bag political pundit or two -- and then we'll finally get around to finding out if this party is a premature one or not."
She lowered her glass with a wry smile. "All the same, I hope we end up with something to celebrate."
Even if it means poor Cole ends up havin' to wrangle with Tiernan on a regular basis.
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 24, 2007 23:00:31 GMT -5
"He's a pretty good bet," Rico mused. "Things looked a little more iffy a while back. But then Mister Cole got an endorsement from that pro-mutant gazillionaire Nicholas Tiernan, and he started pickin' up in the polls. I guess our kinda people started supporting him after that."
Henry's frown expressed his unspoken remark quite clearly: And the people Tiernan intimidated into supporting Cole were probably a great help, too.
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Post by skybright on Jun 24, 2007 23:09:39 GMT -5
Daws flashed Henry a brief glance of unspoken agreement and then turned her attention back to the screen -- where, as she had predicted, a political pundit was weighing in on exactly what a victory for either side would mean for the city's political climate. Daws rolled her eyes.
"I'll never figure out how it is that people like that," she nodded at the screen, "Manage to sucker TV stations into paying them to run their mouths. Makes me think I'm in the wrong business altogether."
The coverage played on, with the anchors interrupting the pundits whenever more returns rolled in. The vote count, which had originally been fairly evenly split between Cole and his opponent, gradually rose in Cole's favor as the night wore on, until he had a sizeable lead.
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Post by Jordanna on Jun 24, 2007 23:22:06 GMT -5
When there was a long enough lull between updates of the poll numbers, Foxy and Grace would occasionally pop onto the stage for a brief skit or song. The rest of the time they had spent roaming between the tables, giving the guests a bit of personal entertainment. Alex happened to come upon the table where Daws, Henry, and Rico sat. He studiously did not acknowledge the fact that he knew either of the former two--but he gave them a wink, and a faint expression that said he was only doing his job.
"Hi, folks! How're you doing tonight?"
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Post by skybright on Jun 24, 2007 23:31:41 GMT -5
Daws grinned faintly. "Just hanging around and waiting to see if they were lyin' or not when they said our votes would count." she replied blithely.
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