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Post by Deleted on May 6, 2013 3:17:39 GMT -5
As Aria steps into the Iceberg Lounge, she takes a moment to survey her surroundings as this is her first time here. She can't say that she's very impressed by it. However, given the long list of more impressive places she's been - many of them no longer in existence and now only mentioned in history books - it's more that her standards are too high and not because of any fault in the facility.
Especially since her tastes tend to lean strongly toward the traditional - while she does her best to keep up with the present and suffers none of the other aliments of the elderly, that doesn't mean that she doesn't remember how things used to be and prefer many of them to what the present has to offer. The fact that she doesn't have to make such an effort to be taken seriously in spite of her gender is a nice improvement, but the advances in flashing lights and loud music as demonstrated in the part of the club housing the dance floor is not. It may suit the current generation of wealthy young adults, but even though it's some distance away from the entrance she has to suppress a cringe and hopes that her meeting with Mr. Cobblepot will take place nowhere near it.
However, she does find the rest of the place to be 'acceptable', as far as she can see at least, which is plenty high enough of an opinion coming from her. She can't say that she's as fond of the theme as the proprietor of the place apparently is, but it does appear to be reasonably 'classy'. Not being one to care too much about hording finery, she doesn't judge the place by the expensiveness of the structure or the things in it directly but the implied amount of influence a person who can afford such things must have. It leads her to believe that the man she's about to meet with may be somewhat like herself - the summary that Pascal gave her definitely seemed to suggest that, though of course Aria herself is much more important than some reformed criminal.
As she ponders the decor, her assistant Ami catches the attention of the nearest staff member and very, very politely requests that Mr. Cobblepot be informed of their arrival. They're scheduled to meet with him at 2:00pm, so of course they've arrived at precisely 1:58pm. And as she expects this meeting to be purely business, she's dressed in a pale yellow skirt suit that celebrates spring while still being very professional. Ami, always refusing to outshine her boss, has chosen a dark gray pant suit that insists that you shouldn't bother to look at her. She's only here to do menial things, like carry around a small briefcase, so that Aria doesn't have to.
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Post by Oswald Cobblepot - The Penguin on May 25, 2013 12:24:48 GMT -5
A general dislike for the loud music, flashing lights and the usual entertainment of the young is truthfully shared by Mr Cobblepot. Someone might then question why he has such things in a club he owns but then everything in the lounge is designed with a purpose in mind, be it to show off Oswald's own wealth or to attract enough people to spend theirs. While a certain level of class is expected even the younger members of high society seem to enjoy being deafened and blinded on a nightly basis.
This of course doesn't explain the décor. While it looks interesting and it's certainly something different from the average club in the city very few people have a great attraction to icebergs and large fish tanks, though the sharks are generally considered rather cool. Like it or not though operating as the Penguin is what made Oswald famous and the theme of the Iceberg played off of that nicely before it made it's own name. That Oswald despises the nickname is no reason not to use it to his advantage.
Business isn't however made easier with an inability to hear ones self think over the thump of some endless repeating bass line so naturally Oswald is nowhere near the dance floor, preferring to put himself several sound proof rooms away from such nonsense though he swears he can still feel the floor vibrating sometimes.
Sat quietly working in one of the meeting rooms Oswald is awaiting the arrival of Miss Lloyd with mild disinterest. Politicians. They were a dime a dozen so he really couldn't care less about the woman, the only use he has for politicians is if they agree to points that would aid with his own goals, or might be willing to pretend they do in exchange for a little help moving up the ladder. If they didn't there would always be another who would be more willing to work with him. Unfortunately to weed out the ones were worth paying any attention to Oswald must meet a lot of them and so today he comes to Miss Lloyd with low expectations and little hope for compromise for the younger politicians have always seemed so keen on their principles and foolish ideals.
As word comes that she has fortunately at least arrived on time Oswald packs away his current workload into a draw under the conference table and sends word for her to be shown to the room.
Minutes later Linsey enters the main room of the lounge and approaches Aria, extending a hand for her "Miss Lloyd? Mr Cobblepot will see you now, this way please" Leading the way past one of the bouncers into the back of the lounge the music reduced to barely a whisper once the door closed and it was only a short walk down the corridor to the conference room. Oswald sits waiting at the large, polished oak table until the door opens and finally raises, his best fake smile instantly appearing as he tips his hat "Miss Lloyd, please do come in and have a seat"
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Post by Deleted on May 26, 2013 22:10:02 GMT -5
While they wait Aria can almost imagine the combined system of people and technology relaying the fact of her arrival to Mr. Cobblepot, and his response back filtering back through the same system. In any business of sufficient size the people themselves become like cogs in some giant machine - one designed to make money, or at least that's the hope of whomever is in charge of it. But that's something that has remained unchanged throughout her life - only some of the pieces of the machine have changed. While today they have phone lines to aid communication in a large building, a few centuries ago they had boys who could run fast.
Presently, one of the aforementioned cogs appears - the one that retrieves guests to judge by the greeting. "Yes, I'm Miss Lloyd," she replies with a smile, nodding and falling in behind the woman while Ami takes up the rear. And as they're escorted further in, the reduction in sound is immediately noticed and enjoyed - such soundproofing is one modern invention she greatly approves of!
Especially since she's probably going to need her full concentration for this meeting. It had been a hard choice several years ago when she'd had to decide whether to lean Republican or Democrat. Honestly, her true feelings are quite strongly aligned to the Republican side, but she knew it wouldn't be difficult to present herself as if she supported either side. But it always comes down to money and popularity - the conservative Republican party tends to attract more of the wealthy business people who want to keep their 'rightfully earned' money in their own pocket, while the liberal Democrat party tends to attract the common rabble who think that the government ought to take care of them and make all those people who clearly have plenty of money pay for it. So when it comes to elections the hard part of being a Republican is convincing the common man to vote for you, while the hard part of being a Democrat is convincing the wealthy to finance your campaign. But as all her past experience has focused much more on gaining money than being liked by poor people, she figured that running as a Democrat would work best with her strengths.
But that means she has the tricky business of convincing Mr. Cobblepot to support her in spite of her willingness to raise taxes, fund expensive programs that the poor people like, and (if her suspicions are correct) he may not like that stuff about ending government corruption that she likes to throw into her speeches. With any luck, she can hopefully convince him that the benefits of helping her get elected greatly outweighs the cost. A few of the things she needs to say spring to mind as she's led into a meeting room.
Yet the time for mental preparation ends the moment she spots Mr. Cobblepot, and his smile is met by a smile and nod of her own. "Thank you," she says politely as she calmly takes a seat. Ami quietly sits next to her boss, offering a polite nod if she's looked at, but seems more focused on pulling out and opening up a small laptop than she is in joining the conversation. "And thank you for meeting with me, Mr. Cobblepot. It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person," she says easily - words he's probably heard far too many times at this point, but there's a certain warmth to both them and her smile. Either she's perfected the art of pretending to be completely genuine while speaking pleasantries or she actually does, in fact, feel pleased to be meeting him.
"How's business?" she asks, politely curious, "I'm sorry to say that this is my first visit. Several of my friends have kept telling me that I have to come with them, but they normally come in the evening and my evenings are usually very busy - I get so focused on my career that I'm left with very little free time, I'm afraid. But what I saw on my way in has me telling myself that perhaps I need to treat myself to an evening out..." Of course, the fact that the summer solstice and the associated late sunsets around that time of year is rapidly approaching may have something to do with that comment.
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Post by Oswald Cobblepot - The Penguin on May 27, 2013 16:29:23 GMT -5
Oswald indeed has little concern for the well being of the lower classes. If the world could do without them he truly wouldn't miss them. They never had the money to spend in the club, they had nothing worth stealing and they cost him so much money in these endless schemes to help them out. The only time he considers them at least useful is when they're working for him and even then he tends towards the criminally inclined than the general masses that make up the population. He's a very tough sell for a democrat, he doesn't like to change his ways and cares little for anyone else but he's been happily surprised by the desperation politicians in the past. Though there was also something very satisfactory about watching them jump through hoops for his money.
He only advantage she might have is Oswald knows just as well as her how these politics work. Hate them or not the lower classes have the superior numbers, it was sometimes easier to twist someone they would like to his own goals than it was to get them to like someone he agreed with but finding crooked politicians was a tricky business and certainly not something to be done in the very public setting of the front room of the club anyway.
She seemed confident for her age, (Or at least for what Oswald was assuming her age to be) that could be good or bad. He was already trying to judge her though it would take a little more than a greeting to do so. At least she knew how to be flatteringly polite. Oswald chuckled as he settled once more back into the chair at the head of the table and Linsey took a seat on his opposite side, readying herself to take notes "If the noise from the dance floor is anything to judge by business is going well. If only we could all be so lucky as to spend the nights dancing away like them. You should visit with them. Call ahead, I'll ensure you get a booth for an evening" Or conveniently be unavailable to do so should she prove to be a waste of time "I imagine it is your campaign that has been claiming these evenings. How are you finding it so far?" Naturally he'd researched a cursory glance into her business and the ideas she's been basing things on but it would be easier to tell more about the current status of her campaign from her answer.
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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2013 12:42:45 GMT -5
Aria's age and apparent age are, of course, drastically different. Over six hundred years have passed since she was born, and yet she hasn't aged since a certain incident that happened when she was 21. Though with the right makeup and wardrobe she can seamlessly make herself appear to be in her mid-twenties. The date on her (current) birth certificate would place her at 27 - meaning that she's just starting to look a bit like she might be a bit young for her age. Then again, some people simply age better than others.
"I would enjoy that!" Aria replies to the offer of a guaranteed booth, though of course whether or not she actually does depends greatly on if Mr. Cobblepot contributes enough money to her campaign to merit her patronage. You don't bother trying to maintain the favor of someone who either doesn't expect you to win or is a cheapskate, after all.
Which is why a confident smile is quick to appear on her face when he asks about her campaign. "Well, it's still too early to tell this many months ahead of the election, and of course I can't disclose the numbers that my team gives me, but we certainly seem to be doing well thus far. The populace is crying out for government reform - all I need to do is inform them that I'm the one that will give them that and remind them to vote," she says, her tone just as confident as her expression.
Having been in the other chair, so to speak, she knows exactly how Mr. Cobblepot is evaluating her. Of course he'd prefer to have the candidate that says that they're going to do things that he likes, but he also knows that unless an election is for a lower, local position it would take an absurdly high amount of money to actually contribute enough to sway the vote since both candidates are working with budgets that are in the millions. It's better instead to attempt to determine which candidate will win and to donate your money to them, hoping that your generosity will influence them to do what you want them to do when they're elected. Unless, of course, you don't think that they'd listen to you even then (in which case you're obviously better off hanging onto your money) or if it's difficult to tell which candidate will win and you're not interested in gambling - money donated to a candidate who doesn't win is worthless.
Which is why Aria is so eager to express her confidence in the upcoming election - she's probably not going to get Mr. Cobblepot on her side by convincing him to become a Democrat, but she may by convincing him that she's going to win the election and that his support would be rewarded. And the fact that she's the Democrat in this election makes her more likely to win by default - the voters don't always elect the candidate from that party, but in this state they tend to win more often. "Have you given much thought about who you will vote for?" she asks, as that's far more polite of a question than to ask directly about money, and his answer will tell her just how hard she'll need to try in order to win his support.
Lloyd's Pet Supply is a large, multi-national company started by Aria's father about 40 years ago. But though Aria herself is officially the CEO most of the company's operations seem to be delegated out to other people, leaving her enough time to focus most of her energy on her political career. She is nevertheless credited within the company for making many wise decisions during the several years she's been in charge of it, restoring it to its former glory after the many years of struggle it had experienced immediately following the untimely death of Aria's father in a fire when she was an infant. This is actually her first time seeking a major public office, but she's an excellent public speaker and her platform emphasizing equal rights for meta-humans, aliens, and other unusual persons as well as her proposals to attempt to regulate the masked crime-fighters in order to restore a greater sense of law and order has proved to be quite popular with the general public.
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Post by Oswald Cobblepot - The Penguin on Jun 23, 2013 15:38:23 GMT -5
Oswald chuckles lightly at her words as he raises from his seat to fetch himself a scotch from a decanter on a side cabinet. Somehow meetings were easier with something in his hands and as he was avoiding his cigarettes once more a drink would have to suffice "The populace has always been crying for reform, if nothing people are persistent in their dislike of anyone in a position of power and yet they lack the foresight to realise what would happen if we were to entertain all their desires" As far as he's concerned the public is an unfortunate but necessary thing that must be dealt with in politics. Fortunately once the desired position in power is obtained they can be largely ignored, at least until it is time to convince them they should vote for you again.
"Would you care for a drink?" Oswald offers as he returns to his seat at the table. While he is more than happy to help himself on occasion he draws the line at serving other people so it's the first time since she sat down that Linsey pauses to look up, expecting to have to get it.
Settled and with the pleasant addition of scotch Oswald at least isn't in a bad mood with the conversation so far, though when it come to the idea of simply giving away money he's rarely happy "The consideration of who to place ones support behind must always be on my mind, we can't simply rely on others to make the guiding choices for the leadership of this country. I as of yet am undecided upon my position of course. While one of your opponents may have many ideals that I believe would be for the best I fear the rumours I hear between his wife and his mistress may rather spoil his chances if they were to become public knowledge" He plays the part of a bored old rich man idly spreading gossip with more thought for his scotch than what he's saying very well. Of course such rumours probably didn't exist before but it was useful to judge reactions and Oswald enjoys having dirt on people, he didn't really like the man or particularly believe he would win anyway. However a fault in an opponent, no matter how ineffective they are, is still a spring board to show just how much better you are than anyone else.
It isn't money Oswald prefers to trade for influence, he doesn't believe in generosity returning rewards. Certainly money is important and cannot be done without but there are many rich people Miss Lloyd will no doubt be meeting and all of them will want something. What most will probably lack though is a way to tip the scales one way or the other. Information was always a most powerful tool and far more useful for blackmailing than donating money to the cause.
Oswald doesn't make note of his own comments, seeming not to notice he made them at all and instead steals a file from Linsey to look over some notes on Aria's campaign as he decides what to address first "These meta-human ideas of yours, tell me about them" If ever there was a chance of a database of meta-humans to be created Oswald wants to see it happen, chiefly because if it exists he has the chance of stealing a copy.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2013 17:35:57 GMT -5
A somewhat amused smile crosses Aria's face at his words, and she comments, "And they only have themselves to blame, really, when they consistently vote for the candidate who makes promises they can't possibly keep over the one whose stated goals are more realistic, and then believe them when they say that they only need one more term to make everyone's dreams come true. But that's become the nature of the game." She shakes her head, willing to admit to the ridiculousness of the very system she's attempting to join.
When asked if she'd like a drink, she smiles and says, "Yes, thank you!" But, knowing how these things work (she wouldn't fetch anyone a drink herself), she then glances over at his assistant to say, "Coffee, black." It's too early in the day for alcohol for her taste, though of course she's not going to tell Mr. Cobblepot that, and something to help her keep alert would be nice - her day starts rather early during this time of year. If anyone bothers to see if Ami wants anything, the quiet assistant would quickly shake her head.
A hint of amusement and surprise crosses her face as he talks about rumors - ones that she hasn't heard. She most certainly needs to look into that, as either proof or even highly suspicious circumstantial evidence would be enough to mire her competition in scandal. Oh, that would be very helpful! Of course, she's not much worried about that herself, and she's quick to explain why, "Hmm, well, as for myself I have little to worry about such things. I knew from a very early age that my interests were in politics, and it's only wise if one is going into such a venture to simply keep one's affairs honest. Is a sordid love affair really worth the damage caused should it be made public? No. I even pay all of my taxes - both my own and my company. And, of course, I'm young enough to simply not have the time to accumulate much of a history anyway." In other words, she defies anyone to manage to find any dirt on her that will make her less electable or damage her reputation afterward.
Though it's not just for fear of public scandal that she's kept her nose clean, but as someone who has had much past experience in the fine art of blackmailing - stretching much further back than she's officially been alive - she knows that a lapse can be costly. At least, in situations where you don't know it will remain secret. Of course, there's always the problem of someone making up evidence for things you didn't actually do, but that's a problem regardless and it's better to avoid giving them something real to work with instead.
A slight smile comes to her face as he asks about meta-humans - a talking point she's well used to addressing by now. "Well, to put it simply, I'm planning on introducing legislation to explicitly give them the same rights and protection under the law as everyone," she summarizes, "Because, under current law, the question is ambiguous and anyone with meta-human abilities must live in fear that they'll be persecuted and exploited if they make their abilities known to the public."
Which is not necessarily a bad thing to some people, she's well aware. Many of the wealthy really do enjoy having underclasses to exploit, and with race and gender now legally off the table there's always the search for something else. To take meta-humans off the table as well would seem like a bad thing to such people, but in case Mr. Cobblepot is one of them or simply donates based on what's best for his bottom line she does have a few points she could argue about why it's actually a good thing. "If the meta-humans felt it was safe to be public about their abilities, it would cause many changes in business. Picture, for example, reading a resume with some abnormal ability listed among the person's skills," she comments, pausing for a moment there to gauge his reaction. How he feels about that could vastly change which further points she should argue, as she has some rather good ones either way.
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Post by Oswald Cobblepot - The Penguin on Jul 2, 2013 10:56:40 GMT -5
With a lack of coffee in the room Linsey reaches for her phone and simply adds the order to the bar in the lounge with instructions to bring it to the meeting. As far as she was concerned she already had Lola's manipulations to deal with, if she could avoid it she was unwilling to give two more women the potential to catch Oswald's eye.
Oswald meanwhile can all most feel that challenge to find dirt and is sorely tempted to try just to see what there is. No one is completely innocent and everyone has something that can be used against them, if they go to length in denying it it's usually something good. Whether it's worth the time or cost of digging into her private life is another matter, Oswald doesn't need to blackmail people he doesn't care about.
On general principle Oswald considers everyone exploitable and below him, race, gender or meta regardless. If anything he considers meta-humans better than the average people, though naturally still far below himself. Finding them has always been a problems, sometimes they turn up in the underworld, sometimes they approach him but more often than not he must go to great lengths to discover them, a problem which is even more irritating if someone else gets to them first or they try to work against him. He shows interest in the idea of it appearing on a resume "I imagine that would be highly sort after by any employer, even the government. It would be worth quite a sizeable pay bonus dependant on the nature of their abilities" He's all for meta-humans provided they're willing to work for him. He doesn't believe for a second that every meta-human would want to be known though and that it would go down well with all the normal people either. There's also some concern that if there is a list of people with unusual powers it would become harder to disguise such people within his organisation but he has all the experience of changing people's information, there would always be a way "I presume your standing on aliens is along similar lines?" There was no denying such beings existed, not with Superdolt flying around Metropolis on a daily basis.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2013 4:34:01 GMT -5
With the man's assistant now worrying about getting her some refreshment, Aria gives him her full attention as she watches his reactions. She can't, of course, tell that he's exactly the sort of person who one should worry about prying into her personal affairs, but then again that's one of the reasons why she overpays Pascal; if anyone can find anything either on a public or private server that she doesn't want them to see, then she deserves to get caught. Harder for her to police is someone finding out something using means that are not computer based, but that's where she simply has to be very careful.
But such thoughts are quickly driven from her mind, as Oswald's comments on metahumans swiftly drive that fragment of the conversation out of her mind. So he likes that idea, does he? Well then... "Yes, and it would be so much easier for an employer to find someone with skills that suit their business. I've heard that some metahumans manipulate ice - can you imagine the potential such a person would have to entertain your guests? And that's just one example - if put into effect nationwide, the ripple effect would be enormous. And quite profitable, for those who position themselves take advantage," she says with a smile. She's not sure whether or not Mr. Cobblepot can figure out how to arrange his affairs to take advantage of the metahumans coming out in to the open or not, but she's guessing that he thinks that he does.
And she's quickly nodding when he asks about aliens, "Of course! They too have beneficial skills that could be useful if they could freely use them. Of course, with aliens it becomes a bit more complicated - much like immigrants, there's the problems associated with integrating them into our country. But on the other hand, beyond whatever inherent abilities they may possess, their knowledge of things not yet found on Earth could provide many advances - and not merely in technology." She smiles, hoping that he'll find some of these ideas just as intriguing as she wants him to.
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