excellence is doing ordinary things

[eastending]

WHO: "Janet Black" and Mitchell Hundred
WHERE: City Hall, Hall of Records
WHEN: Monday, 7/2
WARNINGS:
SUMMARY: Selina dons an alias and a disguise and starts her first day of work at City Hall.
FORMAT: Brackets? If that's okay?

[ Selina and aliases go together like peanut butter and jelly. It's a lot easier than you'd think, balancing identities and keeping one step ahead of everyone else. Especially now when far too many people are more acquainted with her to her liking. Besides, given the motives for this particular job, a new identity just makes sense.

And so Janet Black attends her first day of work, long blonde hair falling in a sheet down her back and square, stylish glasses completing the newly cooked up persona. The matching ID badge is nice, thank you Eddie. Overall, it's nothing extravagant, but it should do the trick. Sometimes you just need to keep it simple.

Her morning has passed somewhat uneventfully, as eager as she is to dive right into blueprints and other goodies, she's spent most of it pacing between the shelves, learning the proverbial lay of the land. She emerges from a particularly musty section, gaze sweeping deviously over her seemingly empty surroundings.

Maybe now she can start having a bit of fun. ]

Comments

[viced]

[ He laughed, waving his hands and backing from the table. ]

I did, but I was shit at it! I tried the whole superhero bullshit before I figured out I was better at smiling in front of a camera and directing policy.

[eastending]

[ Her laughter is genial and amused, right along with his. ]

If you ask me, clean politics is a superpower in and of itself.

[viced]

Believe me, in the political sphere? It practically is. [ He says it with a small laugh. ] I would've traded that for any other superpowers, but maybe I'm just a stick in the mud. [ Well, Mitchell was a stick in the mud, but that was a given. ]

[eastending]

If caring about your city makes you a stick in the mud, a few more people could stand to get stuck.

[ There's a bizarre feeling at this turn in the conversation, as her own experiences with crooked politicians and her foray into politics resurface. She shakes the thoughts off, continuing smoothly. ]

But hey, you shouldn't sell yourself short. [ She reaches towards him, letting her hand brush against his elbow briefly, a light, slight touch. ] You're better company than filing cabinets.

[ Although if it were just her and the filing cabinets, she could be photocopying museum blueprints right about now. But how could she possibly turn her nose up at this interesting opportunity? ]

[viced]

[ Oh. New people. Mitch looked away, back down at his blueprints, feeling that awkward bubble of how to do this gracefully yet again, his old habits of avoidance and playing off every show of affection was almost ingrained. Looking away was easy, but it gave him the distance he needed to back off. Except...

Shit.

He'd promised that he'd take care of it. That he'd make sure that this bullshit wasn't going to come up again, and Janet Black was coming on so hard even Mitchell noticed. There was that sick feeling, the one that cropped up whenever he lied, but this one was an integral one. It wasn't like he was legalizing gay marriage within the week. He knew better, he knew how to make this work better, didn't he? ]

Er, thanks. [ He managed a small quirk of his lips, a motion that probably looked more flirty than he felt. ]

I'll admit it, you're not bad company down here, Miss Black.

[eastending]

[ She's watching him carefully, gaze half hidden by the fake glasses slipping down the bridge of her nose. Men, to her, are open books, easy to read and even easier to predict the ending. There's only been a few that have ever given her trouble, and at the moment she doesn't expect anything unusual from Mitch.

So all continues as normal. ]

Thank you. [ Her voice drops, and she steps closer to him. ] I realize I'm not much more than a lowly paper pusher, but if there's every anything I can do to help...

[viced]

[ His level of comfort was dropping by the moment, each tick of the lone, analog clock's voice sounding out while he considered going forward, and that sickening free-fall in his stomach continued. Employee. The tradeoff was worth it. The capital he had to spare could take care of any concerns on that front, and everyone in the City knew the Mayor practically didn't leave City Hall.

He let his mouth spread into a boyish smile, the politician's smile. ]

I'm sorry, this is probably forward of me. [ He leaned against the table in a show of very fake, but a very good fake of comfort. ] Shit, it's really forward, but how would you like to go to dinner sometime?

[eastending]

[ There we go. Selina lifts a hand to her face, seemingly out of embarrassment, but it's more to hide the qccomplished smirk on her face. He has his motives, and she has hers. It's a fair trade. ]

Mayor Hundred... [ She sounds giddy, left breathless. ] I would love to.

[viced]

[ He held up his hands, eyebrows quirking. ] Well, after hours you can just call me Mitchell.

[ After hours. Shit, he couldn't believe he was doing this. ]

So. I'll call you sometime. Maybe later this week? Get things set up? Are you staying at the MAC?

[eastending]

Alright, Mitchell.

[ She doesn't bother to hide the coy smile on her face. ]

That should work. I'm planning a move but I don't quite have the funds yet, so I'm still at the MAC.

[viced]

[ Mitch's smile is bright, feigning excitement, but not exuberance. He looks happy enough, and in a way, he is, but not exactly for the specific reasons. ]

Well then, I'll call you. You don't mind if I get your number from your phone, do you? It's easier than awkwardly asking for the fucking thing.

[eastending]

Of course not.

[ She's already managed to lift a second communicator for "Catwoman", if she ever finds herself needing it, but both of those are quite safe at come. It would be somewhat compromising to be caught with a communicator that isn't "Janet's". Instead, all she carries with her is a simple, regular old cellphone. ]

Let me just get my phone from my purse.

[viced]

[ He waited politely for her to bring it, hand back in his pocket, fiddling with his Blackberry in his hands. He could just pull it from her phone across the room, but he was trying not to answer any awkward inquiries about his powers. Give the illusion of bringing all your cards to the table, and then nobody asks any other questions. The only person so far who's been able to see through the façade has been Edward. In all of his years, there's only been one person so perceptive. ]

Of course. [ He paused, and listened, phones gave up their numbers so easily. Really, they gave away way too much information. Messages, e-mails, calls. Janet's was surprisingly quiet. ]

Thank you, ah, Janet. I'll call you later this week, okay? We'll do dinner. [ He looked over at the blueprints. Oh Christ, he still needed to gather those together. He made a shuffling motion, trying to roll them back up together to take them up to his office and get a good look at them up there. ]

[eastending]

[ In a way, Selina is just the opposite. She likes the air of mystery, to make it clear that there are unknowns, things about her to puzzle over and be left wondering about until she tells you otherwise. ]

I look forward to it, Mitchell. [ She pauses, gives a purposeful glance towards the ticking clock and smiles. ] Mayor Hundred.

[ She leans to assist him in gathering up the blueprints, ready to see him on his way. There are other matters to attend to. ]

I'll be down here if you need me. Enjoy the rest of your day, sir.

[viced]

[ He gathers them up quickly enough, and nods, a small smile on his face. ]

You do the same, alright? I'll talk to you soon.

[ And off he went for the rest of the hardcore mayor work that he was going to get back to. ]