Participants:
| Scene Title | Recruiting Poster |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Lynette and Savannah meet over lunch, and Lynette ends up pitching offers. Something's got to stick, after all. |
| Date | December 02, 2010 |
Everything about Piccoli's is welcoming. There's a large, cheerful neon sign mounted on the roof, the interior is brightly lit and spotlessly clean, and the old-fashioned decor is more reminiscent of mother's kitchen than a successful business. Since the doors opened in 1946, Piccoli's has been best known for pastrami, hot dogs, corned beef, and salami. The wait can sometimes be a little long, but the prices are reasonable and the food is always worth it.
There was a bit of a song and dance, Lynette trying to arrange a meeting with Savannah on short notice, but things worked out, as Lynette is sitting in a delicatessen, a sandwich in front of her that doesn't seem to have been touched. The woman looks… well. Worn out. Tired. And her designer clothes have been exchanged for far less fabulous attire. Such is life in the post-November eighth world.
Next to her chair is a box, the flaps folded over each other to keep it closed, but the sharpie sitting on top of it might just give away what's in there. Lynette seems to be waiting patiently, no pauses to check her watch or stare at the door. It is possible she's just enjoying the heat in the building… and a change of food from the standard rations on the island.
And indeed, it seems that Savannah shows up, almost exactly on time. Well, it would have been exact had she not lost track of time in what she was doing. She, too, looks worn out, but her own troubles are the literary variety and not quite the same ones someone like Lynette might face. She offers a smile as she slides into an empty seat, glancing over at the sandwich. "You should go on and eat, you know."
"Hmm?" Lynette looks up, but a smile comes to her face. "Oh, well, I thought I would wait and see if you wanted anything. Thanks for coming, Savannah." She folds her arms on the table as the other woman sits down, leaning just a bit in her direction. "I actually had a few things I wanted to see you over… I suppose I should get this out of the way first… but I and some friends of mine have been putting up some children whose orphanage got caught up in the riots on the eighth and we bought some of your books. I was hoping you'd sign them. I think it might make the children a little more excited about reading," she says with a crooked smile. "I brought a list of their names…"
Savannah offers a smile. "Oh, well, I just wasn't sure if you were in one of those 'I'm so tired I can't even eat' modes, in which I was going to encourage you that eating is good." She looks at the box for a moment, then suddenly grins. "Getting children excited about reading is one of the most worthy causes I've ever heard of. That's not a problem at all. Even better that you've got their names! This is fantastic." She chuckles. "I'm fond of kids."
"It's a pastime I'm quite fond of, actually," Lynette says with a light chuckle. She'll get to the eating, really. When Savannah grins over to request, though, Lynette lets out a relieved sigh. "Oh, I'm glad to hear you say that. I was worried it would be a hassle. But they're all so adorable. I've never really been around children much, so it's a new experience for me." There's a bit of a pause, internal debate going on before she adds, "They're Evolved. It was a SLC-Expressive orphanage."
The authoress grins. "Well, maybe I'll have to come ask them about their lives. My next books are focusing on younger characters… some of them just finding their powers." Savannah gives a smile. "I certainly hope the books help them want to read."
"Is that right? I think that's a wonderful idea. There was nothing like that around when I was young, but I was lucky enough to have a father that understood. I'm quite sure I was in a minority, though." Lynette picks up her drink for a moment, looking at it for a moment before she looks back at the writer. "I hope so, too. I know their caretakers are insistent about their education, but learning that reading can be for fun, too, is what I'm aiming for."
"Well, I'm more than happy to help with something like that." Savannah insists with a bright smile. "Reading for fun was something I did a lot when I was a kid… and even after that when I was in college. So I'm more than happy to help."
"Well, I should hope you enjoy reading," Lynette says with a chuckle as she sets her drink back down again. "I thought… it might interest you to know… there's a non-profit organization just about ready to go live. It's called Liberty. A woman named Adelaide Naimarc is the public face for it… but they're aiming to bring the more recent Evolved laws to the Supreme Court. Registration, and I'm sure the new laws about public transport."
Savannah gives a small smile. "Nice to see that there's a group fighting back, at least. Good on them." She rubs the back of her neck with a free hand, glancing back over to the books and the list of names so she can start signing them. "I'm sure they'll get a lot of press with something like that."
Lynette nods, actually picking up her sandwich for a bite. "Hopefully. I'm afraid there's a good number of the Evolved community that doesn't see much hope in that direction." Herself among them, likely. "Miss Burton… I suppose I'm curious as to whether you're… The Evolved, are they more than a device. No offense, of course."
Savannah nods a little. "I can imagine how it might seem a little hopeless… it's good to see someone standing up for things." There's a bit of an eyebrow raised at the suggestion of 'a device'. "I suppose that's a fair question. I'm not really the type of writer to just use something because it's popular and there's a story that needs to be told. One of my best friends was sort of the inspiration for this a number of years ago, before it was public knowledge. He died because of some extremists, though I'm not sure they had any ties to Humanis First back then. I'm not trying to piggyback off of the popularity of the topic, but I'm trying to make the topic approachable by people who may not know what it's like to be Evolved. I can't say I do, but I know what it's like to be different, and I can combine those two experiences to try and make it approachable for everyone. I can say that I'm very sympathetic to the plight of the Evolved and I do what I can to help."
"Call me a cynic," is Lynette's response to that raised eyebrow. "Let's just say… In this climate, it's hard to know who you can trust. And I'd like to trust you, I really would. Because I do think you're one of the few that both claim to be doing right by Evolved and actually do have a positive outcome. And I suppose… I want to know… just how much you really want to know. I know you've said, you want to know how being Evolved shapes one's life… but sometimes it isn't… Well, like your friend. The extremists, they come in any forms."
Savannah gives a bit of a nod. "Another fair statement to say. There are extremists. On both sides of the fence. Granted, I'm siding with the underdog for that reason—the Evolved are the underdog. There's less of a superiority complex amongst the extremists with the Evolved, for one." Her brow furrows. "Well, I guess you could say I'm willing to stick my neck out far enough to potentially put me on Humanis First's radar. From what I've been told… I already possibly am."
"Ironic isn't it? We count among our number someone who can nuke Manhattan, and yet, we're the underdogs. And you're right, we are. And Humanis First… Well, it's more than a little sickening. And if you are on their radar… Well, if I can help you, let me know. But they aren't the only ones. And take those children. They need a new home. But where can they go? People are after them, Savannah… powerful people. People I'm afraid of and I'm a thirty-two year old woman." Lynette spreads her hands there, apparently unashamed to admit that, as her concern for her fellows… or the children… or just the state of things in general seems to trump for the moment.
"The irony hadn't passed me," Savannah agrees, letting out a slow breath. "There are always going to be more powerful people. Anyone who is good at anything is always going to find someone stronger who wants to use them. It's an unfortunate fact of life that won't go away. I can't say I have a solution to that. I wish I could say that I could. I wish I had more resources to help you. The scope of what I can do is limited. I can write and I can speak up, and really, sometimes that helps."
The blonde author sighs, leaning against the table a little. "If I had the resources to find somewhere safe for those kids… I'd find somewhere safe for them this minute." She looks back over. "There is, however, something you can do for me. If I can't get them to cancel it, there may be a charity event taking place on Christmas Eve at d'Sarthe's. If you happen to hear someone talking about going… talk them out of it, if you can. I've been told that there's plans for a Humanis First suicide bomber to attack the function and the more people who know about it, the better. If I can't manage to get the charity to actually be cancelled… the fewer people there, the better."
"You and me both. Perhaps there's a tower somewhere we can stick them until the world's a better place," Lynette says with a shake of her head. "But my point is… these days? It's becoming increasingly common for stories you'll hear about Evolved… to be horror stories. But I think awareness and education may just be the best longterm plan to change things. And I do thank you for what you do, to that end." Lynette tilts her head at the news, a frown coming over her face. "d'Sarthe's, hmm? That… is unfortunate. I'll make sure people are aware."
"We'll kick Rapunzel out and let those kids take the tower instead." Savannah laughs, giving a small nod. "I do what I can. Sometimes I wish it was more. But I appreciate you getting the word out. The more people that know, the better."
"Precisely. She's got a prince anyway, she can go move into his castle." Lynette smiles a bit there before she nods to the woman's latter words. "Absolutely. One can hardly sit by and do nothing, hearing something like that." Setting down her sandwich, she gets a more serious expression on her face. "Savannah… if you ever want to get in a little deeper to help out… to find out more, to see how being Evolved changes things… let me know. I know a lot of people the need help, and so few good people willing to help them. It's a risk… but hey, you've already/ got people trying to throw suicide bombers at you. It took me //years to reach that kind of attention," she says, a smirk coming to her lips there.
Savannah snorts. "Well, provided I don't die on Christmas Eve, I'd be more than happy to help. Kam won't like it much. He's convinced me to go with him to Prague for Christmas instead of being around here. Doesn't mean I won't try and stop the bomb before then… but if it makes him feel better with me being that far away? I'll do it. Kinda hard to say no to a guy who wants to whisk you abroad for the holidays, huh?" She thumbs through one of the books for a moment before she sets about signing. "You tell me what I can do to help out, and I'll do my best to try."
"That is difficult to say no to. I say go. Do what you can before hand, then run off with your very handsome agent and have a wonderful holiday. It won't help any to be there when the place is supposed to get bombed." Plus! Lynette might just know people who specialize in this precise sort of thing. Those last words get a bit of a crooked smile, though. "Well, Miss Burton, how badly do you feel about bending the rules?"
Savannah chuckles. "Yes, very handsome agent is an apt description of Kam. Hard to say know." She can't help but grin a little bit. "Well, I'm all for a little bending provided it's for a good reason. Especially if the rules being bent happen to be ones that I'm opposed to in the first place."
Lynette can't help but chuckle, nodding her head to the first point. Ahh, handsome men and how they turn you upside down. It's lovely. "Basically… we hide people. Or help get them somewhere… safer. I suspect getting people out of the city will be the top job in the near future. The Eighth was… hard on us. We lost people. And we're trying to be… more careful with who we bring in. But we're struggling, frankly. It might take some juggling, to get you in, but if you're interested, I'd be happy to do so. If you're not, no hard feelings or anything." The reassurance comes with a light chuckle. "And you'd never be asked to do more than you're willing to or comfortable with. I mean, every little bit helps."
"I wouldn't mind helping," Savannah says again, a small smile on her lips. "I'm not sure how much help I can be, but… I'm willing to at least give it a shot. Again… in some ways, it can be difficult. People know who I am. I'm assuming that you've got ways around that, though, since you are in the habit of sneaking and hiding. I can't promise I won't turn down something that's a bit too dangerous, though. I've got an agent to keep happy."
"Yeah, don't worry. Your name and face are something no one wants ruined. We'll work something out during all the juggling," Lynette says with a crooked smile. "But this Liberty group… they aren't with us, but still. That might be a good, legal, uncompromising way to help that would keep Kam happy. Just food for thought."
Savannah grins a little bit, giving a nod. "I see. I might just have to get in touch with them, see what help I might be able to lend there. I'm sure that would keep Kam appeased." She notes."
"Although, something riskier might keep him whisking you off to foreign lands," Lynette comments, her smile crooked. "But Savannah, even if it's just for signing these for the kids, thank you. It means a lot."
"Point. I'll have to make sure I get plenty of trips abroad at this rate.." Savannah looks at the books, reaching for one to sign, making it out to one of the kids on the list. "But I mean it… if there's any way I can help these kids more, you let me know, okay?"
"I will mention it to their caretakers. As I understand it, they are looking for people to help out." Lynette looks down at her sandwich, and ends up just wrapping it up. It's a meal on the go now. "I should be heading out. As much as I would love to be a lady who lunches for a while longer, there are a lot of errands to be done and such. But I appreciate you seeing me. You'll hear from me again soon."
"I certainly look forward to it." Savannah finishes up with the books, sliding them all into the box, giving her a small nod. "Alright… you take care, understand? I'm around if you need anything. Just ask. I'll make sure Kam doesn't hassle you too much if you call."
"I do, too. It's refreshing to find someone in the public eye who hasn't let it all go to their head." Lynette picks up the box, looking over at Savannah with a smile. "I'll see what I can do about the d'Sarthe party crasher." Her goodbye turns out to be a little wink this time, as her hands are full of box at the moment, but it's a friendly gesture before she slips out of the restaurant. She's got a schedule to keep, after all!