To the well-to-do society of New York the riots were nothing more than a hindrance in their everyday lives. They were a detour the driver had a take, a canceled show, a missed musical; they were a closed sign on a favorite business, or the sudden quitting of a beloved housekeeper. The riots were outside their front doors, but for many, they never crossed the threshold. But in the wake of tragedy, there were still problems to be solved; buildings had to be repaired, damaged relationships needed to be mended. Whether firm supporters for or against mutants, temporarily it was in their best interest to set aside personal emotions and stand as a united front. They were the societies, the movers and shakers of the world. Others could grapple in the streets and settle this with blood. They had class and could settle it like gentleman and ladies. At least, that was the idea.

It started with an invitation, a formal luncheon in one of grand ballrooms around the corner from Time Square. The invitation came from a known mutant supporter, and his equally activist minded companions. The Summers' debated attending at first, and the strands of gossip knew they had a distaste for anything other than societies best. But finally, they submitted to going, if only to help mend their tattered image that the riots had created. To help improve their standing, they took their daughter Evelyn along.

Evelyn was less than thrilled with the arrangement.

It was all a show. The tinkling of glasses, the swish of skirts, the contained laughter and flattery. She hated parties such as this, especially with the stares that seemed to follow. Her parents kept her out of the public eye as much as possible, and many suspected they were somewhat embarrassed by her. That suspicion was mostly right. After all, who wanted to admit they were hypocritical in their dislike of mutants when their daughter was one of them?

She could search the world for lies, but one of the worst was right there in front of her.

Dressed in a floor length black skirt and a elegant red blouse, Evelyn moved through the party, pale hair white against the top, a red lipstick bright on her lips. A black shawl was draped on her shoulders, the colors contrasting heavily and making a statement. While she may have been an awkward individual at the mansion, here at the party she fell into the footsteps she was trained for. Smile politely, avoid conversation and be a pretty face. Well, that was all good enough, but she had other plans as well.

Her eyes swept across the glistening polished wood floors, looking at the suits and the dresses, and waiting for an echo. Any echo could make the evening better, and could help her from so awkwardly embarrassing her parents as they expected. There were plenty of people she could confront; one of the dignitaries was cheating on his wife with the business owner of a local art gallery, another couple were in the midst of a row but trying to keep up appearances. Those were the average problems she set aside for the moment. There had to be something better. So like a gossip without a story she wandered and waited, listening to the echoes and waiting for the real games to begin.

High society. The people who pulled the strings holding all of the little people in New York. Humans, disgusting. Why, oh why, did humans have to be the ones who held all of the positions of power, where they could just abuse it as they saw fit. It is so.Disgusting. 

Cassandra thought it was one of the most disgusting things she had ever seen, and here they were, throwing a luncheon to discuss how they were going to deal with the fallout that had resulted from the riots. Cassandra knew from her information that a lot of the people there were anti-mutant, and also that a few of the people would be mutant supporters. 

This was most likely a publicity stunt. Cassandra didn't care what they were here for. What mattered was that they WERE here and she could get information from them. She would then be able to study that information and fence it to one of her buyers for a decent price.

Two birds with one stone. She was at the party under the guise of Lisa Landas, rich, high society red head. It had been a little difficult to acquire an invitation, but doable. 

She walked around in an elegant summer dress. With a warm smile on her face. She moved around as if she had spent every day of her life in situations like this, as if she was a member of this life. But really, she was a member of a much more exciting life, and this was a lie, another mask, something to hide from others and use it later on to her advantage. She was Cassandra, she was Lisa. She is Reaver. 

While Evelyn didn't spend much time at parties anymore, she did have one advantage over many of her peers when it came to them. Her memory was undeniably perfect and a name and a face was never lost to her. Whether it was a businessman and his wife or their new child, if she heard it once, she could remember it again, a trait her parents had been appreciative of. There was something impressive about a woman who could wander through a room full of strangers and identify their faces. Most had trouble remembering where they should sit, but she kept her advantage and focused on the information especially for events like this. Perhaps it wasn't a wonder why she noticed, then, a face that she didn't know.

If she didn't know, they had never met, which was something very difficult indeed to manage.

Tagging the figure with her eyes, she migrated towards the door for a moment, and politely asked the doorman to peek at the list. Her eyes skimmed down it, finding the name of the young girl, the name that didn't match any of the others. Still, nothing came to mind. How could a stranger appear at this party with an invitation and a name she didn't recognize, yet look so casual about it? She didn't sound the alarm though, not yet. First rule in any good game was to keep your cards close to your chest until you knew where you stood. They were still dealing this hand, and there was more investigating to be done.

"Evening Mr. Stantenn, how's your wife doing? Better?" She exchanged pleasantries and waited to see what the clever intruder would do.

Cassandra drifted across to someone she knew. One of her contacts. He had gotten her in. For a price, but he had gotten her in... He wasn't such a bad guy, for a human. Eric Laire. She moved across with a smile. He knew her as Lisa, and he thought she simply studied people and sold information, nothing illegal. 

He was helpful. But that didn't mean she trusted him with her identity, only one of her many aliases... Not that Cassandra was her real name, but it was the one she used. The man smiled as the (Currently) redhead approached. "Hiya there Lisa. See you got my invitation." She moved towards him with a high level of grace. As if she was at these parties regularly. 

She smiled back at the man. "Yes, I did. Wonderful of you to invite me." she gave the man an enchanting smile. How handy it was to have someone she knew who could get her into places like this. It made things much easier.

She noted a white haired girl near her... Interesting. That hair colour certainly stood out among the others at the party. She subtly gestured in the direction "Who is she?" she said to the man, with another smile.

He smiled back. He thought that even if this woman just pretended to be part of this society to get information and gossip. She was enchanting. "I believe, it may be the daughter of the summers, but I don't attend these parties as regularly as some of the others here, so I'm not entirely sure..."

The red head gave him another smile. She didn't expect to get any information from that woman... Unless she is loose tongued with her families secrets... Then, Cassandra would have fantastic reason to attempt to 'Befriend' her.  

Evelyn soon left Mr. Stantenn, and made her way around the arc of the room. Her curiosity was peeked, which was a dangerous situation for her to encounter in the best of times. There was something the echoes were picking up on, but she wasn't able to directly identify it. Something was wrong about the girl. Oh sure, she did all the right actions, her movements weren't flawed, but what her powers were picking up were beyond human level of observation. A gaze that lingered longer on certain individuals rather than others; flattery that didn't stay when she turned away. Had she super sensitive hearing she could add the information from the conversations she chose to her mental notebook, but that she unfortunately lacked.

Lisa spoke to Eric Laire, whom she arrived with. Their nature was friendly, yet not so much it particularly warranted the invitation. There didn't seem to be a familiar nature between the two, it was casual almost as if they were just friends. [Talked companion into invitation to event. Eric Laire - less wealthy than many of his peers, influenced by the promise of money, lingers around the upperclass to try to raise his own standing.]

He could have been bribed, knowing the man's nature. He was often trying to raise his standing among the elite and didn't shy from an opportunity to make a few dollars here or there. The possibility the woman had paid him for admittance was plausible, but they seemed to have a pleasant enough interaction all the same. That took a bit of charisma, for Eric Laire was not someone who made friends easy. The woman was skilled, certainly. She may have just passed through this party without alarm had the Summers not invited their daughter.

Yet, that was not the case. And their daughter was very much aware of the wolf in sheep's clothing.

Once there was a break in the conversation, and an opening to approach appeared Evelyn made her way casually over to the woman's side. There was no one within earshot, but she kept her voice low and her expression blank other than the smile that crossed her lips. "I hope you're finding what you're looking for, Ms. Landas." She spoke, directing the echoes to the conversation. They would wait, and take not of her companion's reactions, and perhaps she could decipher why the woman was here.

Cass smiled to the woman who had walked over. When she spoke, a small part of Cassandra's brain panicked. Then it was drowned out by the more dominant parts. Meaning the thoughts that reminded her that she knew exactly how to deal with this sort of situation, Anna had thought her how to deal with this.

Cassandra's smile widened. "I'm afraid I haven't. Ms Summers. Otherwise I wouldn't be standing around here, now would I?" She smiled to the woman who was standing before her. She wondered why she had never seen Evelyn before.

She had been to a couple of parties with these sorts of people before. You tended to pick up all sorts of gossip from the people that were attending. She had never seen or really heard of Evelyn though. And this was... a PR stunt to make it look as if all of the attending groups supported mutants...

After all, otherwise why would they have invited mutant supporters. Something clicked. Evelyn hadn't been seen before. And her parents were here, most likely had brought her with them. She knew that there was a possibility she was wrong. But she had a hunch she might not be.

Cassandra spent a moment or two looking Evelyn over, clearly. And then smiled. "Must be pretty annoying that your parents only bring their mutant daughter out of hiding to show her off as a PR stunt, huh?" She grinned. Now to wait and see if she hit the mark.

The girl kept her face straight, that was either a mark of innocence or of good training. Evelyn's echoes guessed it was the later. Their was something in the smile that was perhaps too warm, easy to miss for the quick moment it was shown. Were she not a mutant, Evelyn wasn't sure she could have caught it. It was clear she would have to be on her toes for the duration of their conversation.

The girl was young, probably twenties, not likely she was much older. Having any form of skill in this sort of deception would take years of practice, and she could only imagine the girl started at a young age. Trained by a relative, perhaps, or someone else who would see the benefit in having someone infiltrate uppercase society. Thief? She didn't really seem like a thief... she wasn't paying attention just to the wealthiest party goers. Information... that seemed much more likely. Her brain flickered through the information quickly, and her response wasn't delayed by thinking.

"It's a long evening. Perhaps once the wine goes along loose lips will aid you." A subtle enough remark, but a light warning. She was watching the girl, and getting information would not be that easy.

Evelyn's face curled into a smile at the girl's remark. While it may have stung a little, she was well groomed in her social skills enough not to show it. She chuckled slightly, and raised her chin a little in pride. "My parents don't keep me hidden because I'm a mutant." She remarked. It was truthful enough. Her parents kept her hidden because of her lack of tact in using her abilities. If she were just intelligent, they could use her abilities to awe their friends and coworkers. But Evelyn didn't always play by the rules. She tended to bring up more personal tidbits, and her presence could ruffle feathers. Having her here right now was risky, but they felt it was worth it. They didn't want to give anyone the impression that they were prejudice of mutants. That was a little truth they tried to keep out of the limelight.

Cassandra smiled again, this time a more knowing smile, with a subtle hint of threat in it. "Ah, I know Ms. Summers. In fact, I am counting on it." She continued to smile at Evelyn. She was certain whatever Evelyn could do, it wasn't a major threat to her. 

In fact, Cassandra was not going to be doing anything illegal tonight. Or at least, she wasn't planning on doing anything illegal. If it came to it and Evelyn confronted her in a semi-private area she would be able to cause her pain, without laying a finger on her. 

She was feeling very confident about that. And even if Evelyn said something about her not being who she said she was, she doubted people would care. She had a ticket, she knew how to play the high society social game. And a lot of them would try to play her, while she played them.

Old men may try to flirt with her, woo her with their wealth. It wouldn't work, even if they thought it might. Cassandra took a small sip of wine herself, barely anything, clearly nursing the glass. "I myself am rather looking forward to mulling around with some wonderful company and helping them enjoy themselves. I appear to be helping you as well. Are you liking having something to do other than put on a pretty bow and play the role of show dog for your parents?"

Evelyn's calm smile turned rather smug for a second, and she laughed lightly at Lisa's question. "Dear, if you think all I do is wear a pretty bow, you're not as clever as I first assumed. I hope you enjoy your search." Then with the flash of a smile she moved back towards the rest of the crowds, greeting another figure by name. She was watching Lisa from then on with her echoes though. She listened to the distant voice, let the images in the corner of her eyes register to memory. Whatever she was up to, Evelyn would find out. She was more than a pretty bow or a show dog. At this party, she was a guard dog.

Her pride could get the better of her in a situation like this, so she was careful. She still hadn't taken the self defense classes at the mansion, although Maya mentioned them, so she hoped this would be a battle she could continue playing. She could fight all day when it came to intellect, but she didn't need a scuffle at a formal occasion like this. Not that many of these people really deserved protection. Some of the richer men could get robbed and used and most would agree that served them right. But Evelyn had met people who stole information before. She confronted a teen who broke into her apartment, and tried to blackmail her into working for her employers before. That confrontation had started with information, and ended in blood.

The problem with people who wore masks was they fought hard to keep them in tact.

"I hope you're enjoying the evening dear." Her mother remarked lightly as she approached. Evelyn gave a light nod of her head, and an ever so subtle glance in the direction of Lisa. It was barely a gesture, but even with their strained relationship, Mrs. Summers knew what expressions like that meant. "We'll keep an eye on her, thank you. Would you like a glass of wine or anything?"

"I'm fine. I like to keep a clear head on nights like tonight." Then again, she liked to keep a clear head in general. She avoided drinking for fear of what it'd do to her powers. Living with voices in your head was one thing. Getting them drunk was a whole other story.

Lisa wondered for a moment what Evelyn meant. Then she realised. Evelyn didn't have a physical mutation, unless you counted the hair, which could be a simple case of dye. Everything began to roll together. A party of people who were mostly not really supporters of mutants, thrown mainly as both a PR stunt for them and a way for them to decide how to best manage the fall out from the riots...

And then there was the Summer's mutant daughter, Evelyn. She could easily be a psychic, no... It was probably not that straightforward, she hadn't known Cassandra's plans right of the bat, she had seemed curious. She had noticed that Cassandra was slightly out of place, considering how good Cassandra was at blending in... It was a feasible explanation to consider.

Evelyn wasn't a show dog, she was a guard dog, and she was probably good at reading body language or emotions or something. 

Cassandra moved across to a man in an extravagant suit. He had no date, probably planning to attempt to pick one up at the party. Cassandra decided to strike up some conversation and see what Evelyn would do. "Why hello there, how are you enjoying this fine party?" [/color] She could see that he was already starting to get tipsy. 

The man gave a smile to Cassandra "Hello there... Lisa is it? You came in with Eric. Nice lad... And my you are a beauty." He was clearly attempting to flirt with her, she let him.

From the corner of the room, Evelyn politely stood next to her parents while they conversed with a few old acquaintances. She recognized them, not necessarily the wealthiest family but they had powerful influences, which gave them leeway. The woman had a slim figure, wore too much makeup and she tended to keep to herself. Her husband was a judgmental man, defensive and he seemed to be even jumpier since the riots. Their daughter, was someone Evelyn had only recently re-encountered. Just the short conversation with them was revealing enough about her location though.

Accusatory, frustrated, but not saddened. The echoes suspected the girl got locked up for all the trouble she'd caused during the week. Somehow, she suspected this gathering was partially, if not fully, their idea. They spoke with the Summers with an almost earnest manner. It was clear they felt the two should be closer, considering they shared the same family 'secret'. The summers would never admit Evelyn was a mutant, but it didn't stop people from guessing.

Across the room, she watched as Lisa spoke with the more extravagantly dressed man. Employed by Mr. Trump, he was certainly someone to talk to if you were a gold digger looking for more money. Evelyn smirked slightly and shook her head. He wasn't exactly supportive of the mutant cause, rather, he was motivated by money. He got his wealthy by siding with the powerful, and now he kept it by siding with the rich. He didn't mind mutants if they had the right sort of 'connections'. His lawyers could wipe records clean easily, but with a price. How well they got along would tell a bit about the girl. If she was firmly a mutant supporter, she might fight such behavior offensive.

"And what about you Evelyn? How are you enjoying the party so far?" One of her companions asked. Evelyn gave a small smile, and shrugged her shoulders.

"The entertainment has improved as the conversations progress. I look forward to dinner."

Cassandra was vaugely aware of Evelyn observing her in the background. It didn't matter. She had come her for a reason, to see if she could pick up any information. Even if simply found out which individuals were less inclined to mutants it would provide useful insight into many of the current power players in New York.

Cass smile and nodded as the man spoke, rambling about his various estates. He was filthy rich. Not that Cassandra was actually particularly interested in becoming rich. She did her job for a reason. It needed doing, and there were very few people capable of actually doing the job.

So she would press on, feign interest and gather information which may be sold onto more pro-mutant factions, or it may even come in handy to her in a later mission.

She continued to give the man an enchanting smile, he would recieve one for several hours, as he was one of the easiest marks. He asked her "What is your opinion on the mutant... condition?"

She responded with a sweet smile. "I think that they are people who have special abilties, I'm not really an expert on them." she said, showing embarassement.

He laughed and responded "Ah, no matter. I wouldn't expect a treasure such as yourself to waste your time worrying about such matters." he said, again in clear flirtation.

Truly, Cassandra was disgusted. But she had years of practice dealing with people like this and she had gotten extremely good at staying in character and not breaking her cover in the slightest when having such conversations.

The announcement for dinner was made, and groups gradually shifted towards their tables. There were three long tables for the evening, and Evelyn and her family migrated to the first one. The head of the table was her parent's family friend, confirming at least a bit of her suspicions he had been partially responsible for the gathering. Evelyn took her seat somewhere near the middle of the group, glancing around for Lisa. Presumably still attached to her newest companion.

The attitude in the room was fairly calm at the moment. Few people really discussed the topic of 'mutants', most shying away from the topic and going with more familiar things like money and estates. But it was bound to come up eventually, as was clear when the food was set before them and the man at the end of the table opened up.

"It's a civil rights issue. I think mutants are just looking for recognition that they are still human and deserve to be treated as such." He argued with the man to his left.

"The problem is they need to be controlled. You give someone the power to level the city, they need accountability for that ability. Some of these mutants don't respect authority, or the people around them. Let them have jobs where they're useful. But don't through a pyromaniac in a paper mill." His companion countered. Evelyn listened in quietly as she started eating her pasta salad.

As the dinner announcement was made, All participants took their seats, Cassandra made sure that she, and her companion, were seated at an are where she could easily lean across and listen into the main table, or try to get under Evelyn's skin, to see if she could get any information out of her about her parents or anybody else here.

Cassandra decided that she would actually give Evelyn a bit of a break, even if she was a member of one of the high society, power playing human families, She was a mutant and had to deal with more than most humans did as it is.

She had been raised under some seriously harsh conditions, moving from area to area, false names, dead parents, and a lying aunt who had manipulated her into the position that she had ended up coming into now.

She listened in, intently into the conversations going on around her, taking in as much information as possible, if a definitive plan was come to, she would be one of the first people to know about it, and that information would be worth a lot, to the right people.

She leaned over to Evelyn, at the table besides her and subtly murmured "So, what do you think of the topic? Interesting conversation, is it not?"

"If someone is gifted with a high level of intelligence, are you going to regulate what they do just because they happen to be smarter? If someone is a good painter, are you going to control what they paint? Trying to control someone's natural abilities just seems like it's going too far to me..."

"Do we regulate things like batteries? No. But nuclear reactors? Yes. It's the level of power they have..."

The echoes stopped listening for a moment as the movement behind her drew attention. She didn't look at Lisa, but shrugged a shoulder slightly in acknowledgement. "Each side has a valid point. I think sometimes what makes a conversation interesting is watching from both sides without letting your own personal opinions get involved." She mused aloud. While she was a mutant, and she could understand the desire to be treated 'normal', she also understood that she was not normal. The mutant rights issue was something that was complicated and filled with too much grey to really draw a line.

She had a feeling that her companion didn't feel that way though. Something about the female seemed like she would have a clear line of black and white.