2012-07-28 Where Did You Find Her?

Having just finished a snack, Heather is just walking right up to the door of the CMS. She took the subway, enjoying the spotlight all the way here, and then again with a certain... incident out front on her way in. She just reaches for the door. If unlocked, she'll open and walk on in. Otherwise she'll simply knock... either way, she is an attention grabber for sure.
However it is that Dru was once outside and came out, oh, from the Bathroom unnoticed will be something of a mystery, but the employees at CMS should be at least marginally familiar with her. If anyone even notices her right out of the gate. Regardless, she'll drop down into a seat in the lobby like she's been there the entire time. 
The agents on the floor look more than a little annoyed when someone walks in the front door. Second day in a row. Door's open in business hours, the cage--the entry area--is always secured. No going through without a passcode and handprint. Heather's got to wait until someone lets Beth know. 
Beth is up in her office, nose in a book on Norse mythology. Heather's not nearly as stressful an arrival as Loki. Beth comes bounding down the stairs, pausing only to give Drusilla a sideways look, then a brief smile. Note to self--get Drusilla some ID to avoid any Incidents.
"Heather," she says cheerfully as she pops the inner door for her. "If I'd known you were coming, I would have met you at the door. Come on in, it's great to see you."
"Well, kinda wanted to recon the area myself y'know." Yeah. Recon is Heather’s specialty... kinda like saying the Sloth wanted to run the 100 meter sprint. She smiles as she waits patiently to be buzzed in, and then as she steps inside, she asks, "You wouldn't happen to have anything to munch on, would you?" she inquires softly.
Dru flags her fingers in the most adorable little wave to Bethany as she wanders by. She can't help but loooook over yonder as... that gorgeous blonde from the street is at the door. Blink. Dru waves to Heather too, followed with a beautific smile. 
"Of course. Getting fed is just part of the perks of being in the office. And all this decor." Bethany gestures around at the ugly, utilitarian main floor. Everyone studiously avoids staring at the new person except those on HQ security detail today. Drusilla gets a few looks but no one's flagged her as a concern, not that they're letting on anyway. 
A thin man in jeans and a CMS T-shirt comes over to hand Beth a tablet computer and a sheaf of print outs. "Are you good with sandwiches and soda?" Beth asks Heather. "Where would you like to talk? Is one of the board rooms upstairs okay?"
"The food choice will be fine." offers Heather. She glances towards Drusilla and smirks a bit, "As for talking.." she shrugs, "Wherever. I've got nothing to hide really." She lifts her arms in a shrug and looks about the place, and at the people. "You wanted to speak with me, so I figure I'll cater to whatever you had in mind. Long as I get some calories in me."
Drusilla isn't shy about looking. Hey, if Heather is gonna display it, Dru is going to appreciate it. She turns in her seat and kicks her legs up over the arms of the chair in a posture most languid. She maintains a subtle vigil out of general practice, not that it's needed inside the CMS HQ. There are enough eyes around, right?
"In that case, why don't we have a seat down here. Board rooms always seem so formal." Bethany leads Heather over to an empty table surrounded by whiteboards that hold the ghosts of old scribblings. "Sal will bring over some lunch. Can you just..." Bethany holds up a finger to Heather. "...excuse me for one moment? I need a word with the woman over there."
"Take your time." offers Heather as she approaches the table and leans against the table's edge. She doesn't sit down just yet, but just watches patiently, and when the food arrives, she shows off an entirely new skill... one of magic. She makes the food disappear in record time!
Dru's metaphoric spidey sense is tingling. Someone must be talking about her. Or be thinking about talking _to_ her, one. She hadn't stopped watching Heather in the meantime, and one dark brow lifts in a curious arch as the woman with the model body eats like Galactus after a fast. Ahem. Dru's attention shifts between the eating machine and Bethany in equal measure. 
"Fancy meeting you here." Beth smiles at Drusilla--getting in and out places like Drusilla can is going to be very, very handy. "Did you need me for anything or are you just checking the place out?"
Setting the plate down after she's finished eating the sandwich, Heather asks Sal, "I don't suppose you have another?" And she has the grace to blush as she asks it, all while popping the soda open and simply observing the whole situation in the room as a whole.
Drusilla's smile comes evenly and easily. "Kind of. I was thinking about breaking into the security office and getting images from your external CCTV cameras to get a picture of blondie over there, but uh. Lucky us." She gentures toward the model in passing. "...Where did you find her? Sports Illustrated? Playboy? Swedish Bikini Team?"
"In the paper," Bethany says cheekily. She sorts through the papers and pulls out a print out of a news article from the Bugle. http://heromux.wikia.com/wiki/2012-07-24_Celebrity_Crimefighter_(Daily_Bugle) "But I had an eye on her before. It's kind of hard not to keep an eye on her. I wasn't going to poach her, but... finders, keepers. If you want to talk to Sal while I'm speaking to Heather, he can get you basic clearance so no one gets startled if you show up while I'm not here. I figured you'd let me know when you wanted in and here you are."
Sal brings Heather a platter of sandwiches without comment. He's a very neutral kind of guy.
"The nature of what I do often involves showing up unannounced, unexpected, and making a mess of routine," Dru beams. She makes a shooing gesture to Bethany, which is kind of comical in the structure of things. "Get to your meeting." She'll take the article for perusing, adding, "I'll do homework."
Well, Heather knows how to be on display. She likes being the object of observation. Spotlight much? She smiles in thanks to Sal before sitting down this time and starting to dig in. She oughta be called Heather 'Billy Goat" Danielson, yeesh. She just knows that she's being talked about somewhat, and waits patiently for her interview.
"I seem to be all about the visitors these days." Bethany slides into a seat opposite Heather and gives her a grin. "So, why don't you tell me what you were up to with Diamond before you decided to help out the FBI?" She puts the papers to the side and taps the tablet to wake it up.
"Well, I had signed a nondisclosure agreement for anything that happened on the clock, so to speak. But I was contracted to escort a congressman to an event where he believed there would be an attempt on his life. Turns out, there was." Heather leans back and takes another bite before adding. "Shotguns hurt by the way. Just so you know." Then she shakes her head and continues. "After it was all over, I found out on my own time that the congressman arranged the hit himself to get PR, and when I started looking a bit deeper into things on my own time, I found information that I couldn't condone... Congressman Mitchell was apparently taking money from lobbyists in the pockets of the mafia, and I took that to the FBI. They took it and ran with it, and I even wore a wire for two of their operations." She shrugs, "I never violated my nondisclosure, but simply managed to work -around- it. I don't put up with people putting others in danger, just for their own gain, or working with crime figures you know. It just... how does Daddy put it?... sticks in my craw?"
"Oh, well we're on the same page there. I feel that putting yourself in danger should be voluntary. That's why I like my work." Bethany filches a sandwich before Heather clears the platter. "Why do you want to continue working in this field? You're independently wealthy, you have a lot of options. Is there something that draws you back to it?"
A sip of soda washes down a bite of a sandwich, and Heather shrugs, "What else am I going to do? Make the scandal mags going to clubs and causing trouble with pop singing stars? Dancing with the Stars? Show up on some paparazzi nipple slip sites?" She snorts and shakes her head, "My Daddy told me that it should be everyone's goal to try every day to make at least one person's day better. I find that's a lot easier when I pretty much as far as I Can tell... can't die."
"You make an excellent close-protection agent. Even without the... potentially not-dying." Bethany takes that in stride. "We do a lot what's often called 'manny-guarding', which is kind of dismissive of one of the most important jobs we can take on, protecting a child. We also do extractions of children, mostly out of country. I try and put my best agents on that work. But you have a tolerance for the spotlight that I appreciate and I can always use someone to assign to high-profile clients in America."
"One thing I've learned, is that in this business, if I can take the attention -off- of the principle, my job gets even easier. Sure, some security specialists like to -not- be under observation, but if potential attackers are the ONLY people paying attention to the princople..." Heather raises her hands as if saying.... there ya go. "I assume that you will not be asking me to protect folks whose necks I just want to wring, yes?"
"That'd be counter-productive. Agents are allowed to decline assignments. Most of them don't, but they can. I don't ask people to compromise their work. It doesn't come out well," Beth says. She finishes the sandwich and flips through the papers. "Non-disclosure agreement here isn't too different from what you'd find elsewhere but let's be honest--if you decide to screw us over, by the time we get into court for breach of contract, it's a little late. If you work here, this isn't the Army but we do have a chain of command which you'll need to follow. We might contract out to lone gunmen but we don't hire them. Let's see... we'll need to discuss compensation and benefits. But that's all paperwork. Is there anything else you'd like to know about working for CMS?"
"Well, I only have one real question. You asked me about my ethics... why did -you- approach me? I'd like to know... I mean is it a PR move? IS there some personal issue?" She asks in a tone of voice that is understanding, matter of fact. She'd totally understand if someone hired her literally just to get a pretty face on the staff for some reason. She might not want to go that route, but she wouldn't be upset at the implication.
"I liked that you went to the FBI," Beth says. "A lot of other companies might not. I'd hope that you'd be able to talk to me if something fishy were going on, but I appreciate someone with ethics. You're a great resource, I won't lie, but I wouldn't go chasing you down if I didn't appreciate your character. That's what Ling and I build CMS on--female agents with skill and character."
Dru has long since set the reading material aside, and has resumed her casual observation as any good field operative should.
"Well, I presume you'll have the industry equivilent of the police obstacle course to run me through to see where -you- think my training and skills place me,” Heather says. “I am trained in Krav Maga, but I've only been doing it for about a year now... granted, it's intense, but I'm no master. One benefit of my weirdness is that fatigue is literally only an issue with the brain, the muscles don't seem to get tired anymore. It really lets me push them and work'em harder than I ever expected as well."
"We will definitely do that. Ling might want to do it herself--she hogs all the fun try-outs, but I might not tell her until after," Bethany says with a grin. "And I can get you some paperwork to look over. We'll finish up all the screening and that rot. Then we'll put you on the board and see what comes up that suits your abilities. If you have any former clients that you'd like to introduce to CMS, you're welcome to have them contact me."
"As for compensation, I really only have one request. I have plenty of royalties coming in for a variety of things." offers Heather. "I will need to be able to pursue a few other things as well. Currently, Victoria's Secret and I are in negotiations for me to maybe be the face of their new ad campaign. But I only ask that you provide a modest salary... and provide it to my parents. I want to let my Daddy retire early if I can you know?" she asks with a grin.
Drew gets up from her seat and paces around the lobby. It seems to be an idle pursuit, but anyone can figure out she's committing the layout to memory. She's probably counting steps and mentally calculating angles too, because that's what infiltrators do. It's second nature, and it keeps skills sharp.
Bethany's expression softens and she nods. "Of course we can do that. Sal will take care of the paperwork. With assignment compensations, your parents should accumulate a good nest egg. It's good to meet you in person, Heather." Bethany offers her hand. "I think we'll get along fine."
Standing up, Heather offers that award winning smile of hers as she reaches to take the hand of Bethany. "You as well. I need to get home, I might have just enough time to shower and get myself all prettified for tonight's date." She looks over her shoulder and then turns to head for the exit, passing Dru on the way, "Nice moves by the way." she offers.
"...Ditto," Dru remarks to Heather about the model's strut. She turns about as Heather passes, and watches the woman exit. She scans toward Bethany once the blonde has left, and exhales slowly. "I think I have a girl crush."
Bethany laughs as she gathers up her papers and tablet. "Yes, she's very gifted that way, isn't she? She can hide in plain sight--all the people see is her beauty, I expect. From what I understand, they don't consider her abilities until it's too late. Now." She rises and makes her way over to Drusilla. "You do make some fascinating entries and exits. If I hadn't noticed before, well, I have now. Is there anything wrong with my security here that I should know about?"
"Tell me that I get to work with her from time to time. Someone who can create that kind of distraction is a good pairing for someone like me - who could never look that good, even at her best." Dru paces around the floor for a few more steps, and lifts her shoulders. "You've got good corporate security, and that's one of the problems. It's good corporate level security. It has system, it has structure, it has routine, it has a well trained staff who act a certain way. So in essence? It's predictable." That smile surfaces again. 
"Well, at this office, anyway," Bethany allows. "It is, after all, official. You're the second person in as many days who doesn't use the door--my people are ready to string me up and I've hardly been in New York for two weeks. And, yes, if we have the right assignments come up and you're both willing, I don't see why I wouldn't put you and Heather on a team. Though I do hate to put all my eggs in one basket, so to speak."
"It's not a talent I advertise," Dru murmurs sub rosa. She finally turns toward Bethany, and sets both hands upon her shoulders. "You should still have a spy or two lingering around to plug the holes of routine. Corporate Espionage is great for fun and profit." 
"I'll speak to Ling about it. Did you work anything out with Sal? I'm sure you can take care of yourself, I just know a few of my people are jumpy, especially if I'm not around. If I'm here, they know I'm probably screwing up all their careful security measures when someone new shows up." Bethany makes a wry face. "And that way I don't have to do your assignments and pay by hand. Otherwise you're relying on me not being on assignment myself."
"I only accept cash as it is," the operative beams readily. Her hands slide down Bethany's shoulders to her upper arms, and then released. "And, no, I didn't speak much to Sal. He had paperwork. I'm allergic to paperwork. I break out in hives. Now, if you would like a _closer_ look at what your investment can do, we need to go somewhere quiet and without cameras." 
"Then you take your chances with my schedule." Bethany hands the papers and tablet off to... Sal... who is suddenly there, just passing by. He's good at that. "How much space do you need? There are a few places we could go, including the lower levels here. Cameras on the way in and out but not inside some of the rooms. If we need them, we bring them in."
"You think too hard." Drusilla gestures to one of the places that does not have cameras: The Bathroom. "Got an urge to powder your nose?" 
"It's kind of... small." Bethany makes a face at that. "But, as you wish." She leads the way. It's a single-toilet unisex bathroom just off the main floor. At least there's some room in case someone wanted to change their clothes. "The locker rooms are bigger, the staff use those, but here we go."
"It's kind of... small." Bethany makes a face at that. "But, as you wish." She leads the way. It's a single-toilet unisex bathroom just off the main floor. At least there's some room in case someone wanted to change their clothes. "The locker rooms are bigger, the staff use those, but here we go."
It will suffice for this purpose. Dru follows Bethany into the bathroom and casually closes the door. "Architects are lazy," she notes as she turns around to look at Bethany. "They're remarkably uncreative when it comes to structural design. They may be artsy when it comes to aesthetics, but the basic foundations of buildings have not changed since the days of ancient Greece. We just... have standards now. Wall studs, 18 inches apart. 24" between floors in standard houses, sometimes more in commercial properties." She gestures to the bathroom, and then the ceiling. "Bathrooms are almost always put near a load bearing wall or on the outside; different sex bathrooms are in close proximity, and almost always stacked atop of each other. IT makes plumbing simple." Drusilla cants her head. There's no sound, but the current of air changes. Behind Bethany, a reddish, oscillating 'window' has opened. Looking through one sees... the street outside. "Turn around."
Bethany takes a look and is quiet for a moment. "That's... an excellent talent. How far can you make them go?"
The Window Closes without so much as a sound. "Anywhere within my line of sight, but I do not actually have to see where I'm placing 'em. But do you fully grasp what I can really do with it?" Dru takes a seat on the counter. "In combat, for instance. Shooting at me is kind of like shooting at yourself. Standing in my line of sight means I can drop you through a window and you're suddenly a few thousand feet in the air in freefall. I do not have to crack most safes to get inside. I do not need cameras to do spying. Nor do I need... doors."
"So you can put these wherever you want, the opening and the terminal point? That's fantastic," Bethany says slowly. "Well, I guess you can pay yourself out of the safe then." She grins at Drusilla. "That's rather fantastic. I can see how you stayed out of sight so long. And possibly why. It's a powerful ability."
"Not really all that powerful, but highly utilitarian." Drusilla literally falls through the counter, and drops from the ceiling to land right where she was: A pair of windows opened, one beneath her and one over her. They both closed in her free fall. "They're two way. I do not have any control over that. But, when you can bend the direction and angle, you can get creative." Grin. "Now, I've taken enough of your time. I'm sure you have a million other things to do than sit here and chat with me, as pleasant as I am." 
"I'd love to... well, if you ever feel like playing tag in an abandoned factory with me some time, let me know. Because I would love to learn to work with you." Bethany offers Drusilla a handshake. "But I think it's going to raise suspicion if we stand here in the bathroom all day. It was good to see you again."
Drusilla accepts the gesture with a bright smile. One gate opens just to Bethany's right, and seen through it, there's another bathroom. Possibly on another floor by the look of it. "Sure. I've no doubt that we can hammer out a mutually beneficial arrangement." She gestures to the new window, "That should take you to the third floor. Be careful, it's not exactly flush. You may need to step up... or step down." 
"Mind the gap?" Bethany laughs, then hops through, keeping that in mind. She recognizes the bathroom as part of her building, or else she'd be a little less eager. "Take care!"
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