The X-men run missions and work together with the NYPD, striving to maintain a peaceful balance between humans and mutants. When it comes to a fight, they won't back down from protecting those who need their help.
Haven presents itself as a humanitarian organization for activists, leaders, and high society, yet mutants are the secret leaders working to protect and serve their kind. Behind the scenes they bring their goals into reality.
From the time when mutants became known to the world, SUPER was founded as a black-ops division of the CIA in an attempt to classify, observe, and learn more about this new and rising threat.
The Syndicate works to help bring mutantkind to the forefront of the world. They work from the shadows, a beacon of hope for mutants, but a bane to mankind. With their guiding hand, humanity will finally find extinction.
Since the existence of mutants was first revealed in the nineties, the world has become a changed place. Whether they're genetic misfits or the next stage in humanity's evolution, there's no denying their growing numbers, especially in hubs like New York City. The NYPD has a division devoted to mutant related crimes. Super-powered vigilantes help to maintain the peace. Those who style themselves as Homo Superior work to tear society apart for rebuilding in their own image.
MRO is an intermediate to advanced writing level original character, original plot X-Men RPG. We've been open and active since October of 2005. You can play as a mutant, human, or Adapted— one of the rare humans who nullify mutant powers by their very existence. Goodies, baddies, and neutrals are all welcome.
Short Term Plots:Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
The Fountain of Youth
A chemical serum has been released that's shaving a few years off of the population. In some cases, found to be temporary, and in others...?
MRO MOVES WITH CURRENT TIME: What month and year it is now in real life, it's the same for MRO, too.
Fuegogrande: "Fuegogrande" player of The Ranger, Ion, Rhia, and Null
Neopolitan: "Aly" player of Rebecca Grey, Stephanie Graves, Marisol Cervantes, Vanessa Bookman, Chrysanthemum Van Hart, Sabine Sang, Eupraxia
Ongoing Plots
Magic and Mystics
After the events of the 2020 Harvest Moon and the following Winter Solstice, magic has started manifesting in the MROvere! With the efforts of the Welldrinker Cult, people are being converted into Mystics, a species of people genetically disposed to be great conduits for magical energy.
The Pharoah Dynasty
An ancient sorceress is on a quest to bring her long-lost warrior-king to the modern era in a bid for global domination. Can the heroes of the modern world stop her before all is lost?
Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
Adapteds
What if the human race began to adapt to the mutant threat? What if the human race changed ever so subtly... without the x-gene.
Atlanteans
The lost city of Atlantis has been found! Refugees from this undersea mutant dystopia have started to filter in to New York as citizens and businessfolk. You may make one as a player character of run into one on the street.
Got a plot in mind?
MRO plots are player-created the Mods facilitate and organize the big ones, but we get the ideas from you. Do you have a plot in mind, and want to know whether it needs Mod approval? Check out our plot guidelines.
Posted by ashbrooks on Mar 2, 2009 20:15:54 GMT -6
Guest
Ash had a new case, and as such, needed to start his research. Not exactly having as many resources here as he would have had in Dallas, one of Ash's first stops ended up being the Library.
Walking inside, Ash walked around, trying to figure out where he'd be able to find the public documents that he needed. And the more time he was wandering, the more frustrated he got. This library didn't exactly seem to be laid out very well, or at the very least there didn't seem to be any signs or directions to find where things were. And to make things worse, as Ash walked around, he couldn't find anyone there to help him.
Such a huge library, and there didn't seem to be anyone working there.
Growing more and more annoyed, Ash kept walking further down the stacks, looking around for someone who worked there. He saw people here and there, but no one who appeared to be working.
And then, as he glanced down one of the rows, Ash saw a woman on a ladder. Hoping she actually worked there and wasn't simply some college student climbing ladders they weren't supposed, Ash made his way down the row and came to a stop about five feet from the foot of the ladder.
"Excuse me, miss," Ash said, his accent not quite as thick as normal since he was trying to keep his voice low. He was in a library after all. "Do you work here?"
Posted by Kealey Shinbo on Mar 2, 2009 20:36:42 GMT -6
X-Men
Team Leader of the X-Men
[color=deeppink]
Straight
Married (Tetsuya Shinbo)
1,656
4
Sept 25, 2024 10:26:05 GMT -6
Jules
She was working again. That's all Kealey seemed to do. The mysterious stranger from the park had never called her, but that wasn't too much of a surprise. Life in New York City was proving to be a little lonely. There were people in the library though, and they needed her. It wasn't the same kind of useful need that she'd felt in the convent, though. IT wasn't a situation where she was really doing good. Kealey was just helping with research, and shelving the books when people tossed them carelessly on a cart.
That's what she was doing now. Kealey wasn't in her area of regular expertise, there was some sort of flu going around and lots of people were home sick. Kealey was helping out today, it was even her day off, but her boss had called frantic and Kealey had gladly answered. Of course she'd come in, she didn't have any friends in town, no prior engagements.
So here she was, reshelving books in the reference section. Not exactly her cup of tea. Lots of newspapers, lots of periodicals. Not that current events didn't fascinate Kealey as much as the next person, but there was enough of that on the news and on the daily papers. IT was in history that Kealey really liked to immerse herself. That was the real...
"Excuse me miss...do you work here?"
Kealey jumped, startled from her thoughts near the top of the ladder she'd climbed to put a particularly large volume of a musical encyclopedia on the top shelf. This had happened once before, and Kealey had caught herself, This time, her foot slipped when she tried to regain her balance and she toppled backwards, a startled squeal erupting from her mouth as she toppled off the ladder and into thin air 7 ft above the ground.
Posted by ashbrooks on Mar 2, 2009 20:55:53 GMT -6
Guest
Ash hadn't thought he'd spoken too loudly, not enough to startle the poor young woman up on the ladder. But apparently he had startled her, because she jumped.
And then started to fall backward off the ladder with a surprised squeal.
Ash's eyes widened as he saw the blond starting to fall. Jumping forward, Ash held his arms out and felt the woman fall into his arms a moment later, something he was sure he wouldn't be fast enough to do if it hadn't been for his years of karate.
"Sorry I startled you, miss," Ash said, standing there with the young woman still being held in his arms. "Are you alright?"
Posted by Kealey Shinbo on Mar 2, 2009 21:12:53 GMT -6
X-Men
Team Leader of the X-Men
[color=deeppink]
Straight
Married (Tetsuya Shinbo)
1,656
4
Sept 25, 2024 10:26:05 GMT -6
Jules
She was falling, and there was nothing Kealey's powers that could keep her from hitting the ground that was quickly approaching. Kealey squeezed her eyes shut and felt the impact...but it didn't hurt.
Eyes still shut, breathing heavily, Kealey couldn't help but wonder for a moment why on earth she wasn't in pain from the impact of the floor that had moments before been rushing up at her. Then she felt it. There was emotion, a myriad of emotion. Confusion, slight irritation, surprise, and very slight amusement. Those weren't the things to be expected from a person who had just witnessed a horrible accident. What kind of man had startled her from her perch?
"Sorry I startled you Miss, are you alright?"
Oh. Well, that didn't sound so inappropriate after all. It didn't, however, explain why she hadn't splattered herself all over the floor after her clumsy slip.
Kealey opened her eyes slowly, first one, then the other and found herself, not on the floor at all. Instead, there was a man holding her, and asking her if she was alright. She looked at him for a moment, simply blinking and trying to sort out everything that had happened.
"I'm..." Kealey said, a deep flush coloring her cheeks as she realized exactly where she was. "I'm fine...and aye...I work here." Her accent was thick with the embarasment of the moment and the excitement of the fall. "Did you need help looking for something?" Well, it was the least she could do, right?
Posted by ashbrooks on Mar 2, 2009 21:58:25 GMT -6
Guest
It was taking the woman quite a while to recover after her fall, it seemed. Her eyes were closed, and she didn't really seem to moving all that much. Yes, he had caught her, but had she still been hurt when she fell?
But she was slowly opening her eyes, focusing on him, and seemed a tad surprised at where she was. Then seemed to be rather embarrassed, or at least that's the impression Ash got by how her face flushed.
She said she was fine, but by how he said, Ash really wasn't too sure. Her voice did sound rather...shaky. She had an accent too, Ash noticed when she spoke. Not the Texan accent he was so used to. It wasn't even an American accent. It was Irish, or Scottish, or something like that. Which one, he wasn't exactly sure.
"Again, I'm sorry I startled you," Ash said. He was still holding the woman in his arms, though, even after she had asked if she could help him find something. Maybe she was alright. Setting her back down on her feet, Ash kept his one arm around her waist to make sure that she didn't fall again. "And yes, actually, I could use some help. If you could direct me where I could find the court proceeding records..."
Posted by Kealey Shinbo on Mar 2, 2009 22:18:07 GMT -6
X-Men
Team Leader of the X-Men
[color=deeppink]
Straight
Married (Tetsuya Shinbo)
1,656
4
Sept 25, 2024 10:26:05 GMT -6
Jules
Kealey didn't know how to ask the man to put her down. Mostly, because if she asked him to put her down she'd have to admit to herself that she was still being held by him, and frankly, Kealey didn't know how to deal with that. Already all her emotions were mixing with the ones radiating from the man and she was getting confused. Kealey closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath as the man answered her question about whether or not he needed help, trying to quickly clear her mind and meditate so she could sort out everything that had happened in the last few moments.
Her feet hit the ground, but the man's arm didn't move from around her waist. Kealey didn't know if she was glad or not, and she stepped away from the gentleman as soon as she was sure her heels woulds stay under her, where they were supposed to be.
He did need help, the man was asking about court proceedings. Kealey nodded and frowned slightly at the floor, trying to remember exactly where it was the public records were. The library was quite vast, and while she'd worked in public records a couple times, it still wasn't the most familiar area for her.
"I believe..." Kealey said, pausing for a moment and making sure she knew what she was talking about before giving bad directions, "That what you're looking for is public records. That's a floor down, two wings over and..." Kealey paused and frowned, the directions weren't the easiest to follow. She was still embarrassed, but the man didn't seem to be gloating at all, or unnecessarily congratulating himself on his daring rescue. He seemed safe enough, especially in the heavily populated library.
"I could just show you...you don't seem to know your way around and the directions are confusing. It's the least I can do. You definitely saved me...Mr...." Kealey paused, tilting her head and waiting for his answer on both counts, and almost hoping he'd say that he didn't want the help. "I ended up getting away with nothing but bruised pride." Kealey gestured at the floor, and thus her shoes, they were heels, tall ones too. "I really should find something more practical to wear to work. Especially with all the ladders I climb. I might not be so lucky next time."
Posted by ashbrooks on Mar 2, 2009 22:49:58 GMT -6
Guest
Feeling the young woman step away from him, Ash let his arm fall away from her waist. If she was feeling steady enough, or at least confident enough, to step away, that was going to have to be good enough for Ash. At least he would still be there to catch her again if she fell or stumbled.
After a moment's thought, the woman started giving directions to him, and he listened carefully. Why was he working in New York again? Dallas was so much easier to deal with.
Then she was offering to just show him since the directions were confusing. Ash thought he would probably be able to find his way now that he had gotten the directions, though there was a good possibility that he'd get lost another one or two times before he eventually made it where he was going.
"Brooks," Ash said, giving her a name to go along with the 'Mr.' she had trailed off with. "And a guide down there might be good. I don't seem to have very good direction sense in libraries."
Next thing he knew, the woman was indicating the floor, which she had almost fallen onto, and Ash couldn't stop his eyes from dropping as she pointed, and noticed her shoes. Shoes that were far from practical, far from what he would have expected to see pretty much anywhere other than in a club.
"I'm not trying to be rude or anything, Miss," Ash said, his eyes turning back up to the woman's. "But different shoes would probably be a very good idea. I'm actually surprised you haven't fallen before today."
Posted by Kealey Shinbo on Mar 3, 2009 8:37:01 GMT -6
X-Men
Team Leader of the X-Men
[color=deeppink]
Straight
Married (Tetsuya Shinbo)
1,656
4
Sept 25, 2024 10:26:05 GMT -6
Jules
Indecision, indecision and slight frustration, no doubt with the situation the man had found himself in. After all, it wasn’t every day that women fell out of the sky and into your arms. It was like something out of a sappy romantic comedy, not real life. Kealey couldn’t tell if the sudden impatience and frustration she was feeling was his or hers, but it was there nonetheless and she fidgeted with her hands slightly, toying with one of the bangles she’d slipped over her wrist that morning.
The man gave his last name as Brooks in reply to her open-ended address to him and Kealey nodded, then internally winced as he agreed that a guide down to the public records section would be helpful. She wasn’t used to situations like this, where she’d been embarrassed then required to spend time around the person who’d witnessed the embarrassment. A large part of Kealey had hoped he’d decline her offer, he hadn’t though, and truth be told, she reminded herself, she owed him. It was her duty to repay the debt.
“This is more than a library…” Kealey commented, trying to put the man at ease with his unfamiliarity in the library, “At times I think it’s part museum. Something like the library in Alexandria must have been before it was burned.”
"I'm not trying to be rude or anything, Miss, but different shoes would probably be a very good idea. I'm actually surprised you haven't fallen before today."
He looked back at her and spoke and Kealey couldn’t help but laugh at herself and shake her head, he spoke like someone out of the old movies. The movies where the men held doors for women and put their jackets down in a puddle to keep their shoes dry. “You’ll be shocked and alarmed to know Mr Brooks, I have fallen before. I just can’t seem to learn my lesson…or get over my adoration of heels that make me feel like I’m taller. Now, let’s find the public records section and hope that no other damsels in distress fall on our heads as we walk. Also, you don’t have to keep calling me Miss. My name is Kealey.”
They made it through their current floor of the library with no further incident. The stacks were impressive, books stretching almost as far as the eye could see. Down the large staircase they went and around the corner, and down the hall, and around another corner, and Kealey couldn’t help but think that it definitely was for the best that she’d brought the man down here instead of sending him on his own. “It’s a bit of a labyrinth too…I half expect the pagemaster or David Bowie to pop out from around these corners when I’m walking alone.” Small talk usually left something to be desired, but this man’s sense of purpose and single mindedness had Kealey on edge and she felt the need to dispel some of the nervous energy she was feeling.
Soon they were in the public records room, though it was only slightly less intimidating than the rest of the library had been. “Here we are…” she said, glancing around and wondering where exactly court proceedings would be and realizing that all the attendants for the room were busy with other people, “I fear you’re going to have the same problem you had everywhere else. There’s a flu sweeping through the staff like wildfire and we’re terribly understaffed. You said it was court proceedings you were looking for?”
Small talk. Not exactly what Ash would have expected from the young woman showing him to the Public Documents room, but then again after that fall, she was probably feeling more than a little self-conscious around him. Maybe the small talk and guided tour was her way of dealing with that.
She had fallen before today, and still she wore those kind of shoes to work? Ash couldn't help it, he glanced down at the woman's feet as they continued on. Honestly, he didn't know how women even managed to stand in things like those, never mind walk and work. It was a mystery, one which he would likely never solve.
Lifting his gaze again, Ash shook his head. "You probably should wear other shoes to work," he said, trying not to sound like he was telling her what to do. "Wouldn't want you falling again when there's no one there to catch you."
Kealey. Definitely an unusual, unique name, Ash thought as they were making their way to the stairs to move downward. It definitely matched that accent of hers. But then, who was he to talk about unusual names? Just look at him and his brothers, Josh was the only one who had managed to come out clean.
But the further they went, and still hadn't reached their destination, the more Ash was glad he had asked Kealey to actually show him the way rather than simply giving directions. He was sure that he would have gotten lost and turned around again by this point if he had been on his own down here. Yes, Ash had a decent sense of direction, just not in libraries, it seemed. He'd had the same problem back in college, too.
Then they were in the Public Documents room, and Ash stopped just inside the door, his eyes scanning the room. Yes, Dallas had a rather large section for Public Documents, but it had nothing on this room here. Once again, Ash found himself wanting to be back home rather than stuck in New York.
Maybe once he was back in Dallas, Ash would get Angela, one of the firm's more recent hires who was much more computer savvy than he was himself, to try and dig up this information for him online. That had to be easier than what he was faced with in this room.
But he wasn't in Dallas, and Ash needed to have some work to show for the time here before he caught his plane back home. There really was nothing for it, he was going to have to dive in head first.
"Well, thank you Kealey," Ash said, finally turning to look at the young woman once more. Then he gave a slightly teasing smile. "You've saved me from getting lost among the stacks again back there and startling someone else off a ladder."
Posted by Kealey Shinbo on Mar 5, 2009 9:58:27 GMT -6
X-Men
Team Leader of the X-Men
[color=deeppink]
Straight
Married (Tetsuya Shinbo)
1,656
4
Sept 25, 2024 10:26:05 GMT -6
Jules
Kealey was not adverse to good humor, and that’s what seemed to be radiating from Mr. Brooks as he pointed out that she really should wear other shoes to work. Good humor and slight apprehension. Kealey assumed he was worried about sounding like he was minding her business, so she waved a slightly dismissive hand, trying to push off the apprehension she was feeling as a result, “Actually, the only other time I’ve fallen there was someone there to catch me.” She said, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks at the memory, “Though you’re the first one who’s actually had to catch. I managed to grab a rung last time.”
Kealey paused, thinking as they walked, “I have a tendency to get lost in my thoughts when I’m on a ladder in the stacks.” There’s hardly ever anyone around, and I can sort out what I’m actually feeling… she added internally, then out loud, “So I get easily startled. I think I just need to keep my feet on the ground.”
She could see it on his face, Mr. Brooks was impressed by the size of the public records room. It made sense, when one thought about it, there were so many people in New York . It would require a room of this size to hold all the records. The room was absolutely opulent though, it looked like something out of a Russian palace as opposed to a simple public library.
Mr Brooks was thanking her then, and Kealey just nodded her head, an unbidden smile crossing her features as he teased her. Kealey did her best to ignore it, but there were so many people in this room, so many other emotions, that she took the mischief she was getting from Mr. Brooks and was pleased that it was easier to latch onto than the despair that one of the people nearby was feeling.
“I’m glad I could help.” She said honestly, looking around the room and frowning slightly, she could feel obsession and anger radiating from the guy two tables over who was browsing through records. Suddenly, she wanted to hang around a little longer to see if she could figure out what he was obsessing about. Kealey looked up at Mr. Brooks and shrugged her shoulders, “I don’t usually work here, public records are not my area of expertise. I might be able to help you hunt down the court proceedings though...Let’s start over there.”
That said, she moved towards that table, and that side of the room. It wasn’t every day there was an opportunity to help, “So what are you browsing the records for…if you don’t mind me asking, Mr. Brooks? Business or pleasure?”
Posted by ashbrooks on Mar 5, 2009 19:34:08 GMT -6
Guest
She knew that her job entailed climbing ladders, she knew that she tended to get lost in her thoughts while she was in among the stacks, and she knew that she tended to be easily startled at those times. And yet Kealey still seemed to prefer fashion over practicality. Even when she had fallen off a ladder before that day too.
That didn't seem overly intelligent to Ash, but he wasn't exactly about to say anything to that effect; at that moment, Kealey appeared to be the only one available to help him search through the public records for the court proceedings he was wanting to look over, so he wasn't about to ruin that help. Even if he did think she might not be the smartest because of her choices of footwear.
"Yeah, that would be great," Ash replied instead once he heard her offer to help, and then followed Kealey to one side of the room.
Only to have Kealey ask him a moment later why he was looking through court proceedings. "Honestly, I don't see this being something most people do for pleasure," Ash replied, his face taking on a much more sober expression. Which pretty much made it automatically business, not only for him, but everyone else looking through court proceedings.
"So yes, business, and you can call me Ash if you'd prefer. I'm a P.I., but I'm based out of Dallas, so I'm not exactly familiar with all the resources here."
Posted by Kealey Shinbo on Mar 5, 2009 19:57:56 GMT -6
X-Men
Team Leader of the X-Men
[color=deeppink]
Straight
Married (Tetsuya Shinbo)
1,656
4
Sept 25, 2024 10:26:05 GMT -6
Jules
Disdain. That was really the only way to explain what she was feeling from the man, from Mr. Brooks. Kealey's eyes drew together as he looked at her shoes again. He was obviously not impressed with her explanation of her reasoning. A blush was spreading across Kealey's face again and she almost felt the need to fan herself, "Mr. Brooks." She said, "You're not thinking me shallow, are you?" she asked, slightly aghast. "I'll admit that the clothes are my vice, but I was incredibly...restricted in my wardrobe for years and I find things like this...liberating."
Kealey stopped, she was going on a monologue. She took a deep breath, trying to push off the disdain and feel her own feelings, which were slightly piqued by his attitude. "After two slips, though, I'll seriously be considering more practical foot wear."
Feeling slightly vindicated after her speech, and not realizing in the least that she'd just chastised the man for feelings he hadn't voiced at all, Kealey set her mind back to helping him find the court proceedings. He was so serious now, when moments before he'd been teasing her about the stacks. Kealey could feel it as he explained that he couldn't imagine someone doing this for pleasure.
"Actually...in this city you'd be surprised." Kealey said softly, his somber mood pulling her's down with it. "Ellis Island was here, you know. All the records are in duplicate here. People find out amazing things about their history here all the time. Maybe not in the court proceedings, but in this room anyway."
Ash. His name was Ash, almost as unique as her own name. No, more unique than her own. Kealey's curiosity was pushing her to ask more about that, but again the somber mood her companion had taken on made her hold back. He seemed glad for the help though, so Kealey made her way around the room. The cataloging system here was very similar to what they used elsewhere in the library, then something Ash said stuck out to her.
"Dallas? Texas, right?" she said, "That would explain the accent." Her eyes were scanning the tomes as she spoke and suddenly she stopped, indicating no fewer than fifty or sixty of the large, paper bound volumes, "What year were you looking for? Here's everything for the last fifteen years, it looks like they're arranged by circuit, then district, then by date."
Posted by ashbrooks on Mar 5, 2009 20:21:17 GMT -6
Guest
Kealey started talking. And talking. Defending not only her choice in footwear, but also her choices in clothing. Because apparently she had been restricted in what she had been able to wear for years. But that wasn't the part that caught Ash off guard, that wasn't what surprised him about her almost lecture. He hadn't said anything about it, he'd simply thought about her choice in shoes there. Really, if she was this upset by what he had said, why had she waited this long to respond, especially like this? Why had she offered to help him find the court proceedings now that she had helped him find the room they were in?
The more Ash thought about it, the more confused he got. The only explanation he could come up with as to why Kealey had gone off like that was if his face had betrayed his thoughts. But that couldn't be the case, either. If he was that much of an open book, he wouldn't have been able to keep his mutation a secret, even from his family, for as long as he had.
"Ah, but see," Ash replied, after Kealey had seemingly calmed down, explaining about how so many people seemed to come there for personal reasons rather than business. "Looking through the court proceedings is very different than looking through all of that stuff. Those can be very useful, too, but the court proceedings don't tend to be even half as interesting."
Dallas explained the accent, she thought? Yeah, that's what a lot of people thought outside of Texas. Really, it was the small town that Ash had grown up in that explained the accent. Yes, there were a lot of people in Dallas who had accents, but there were also a lot of people who had accents foreign to Texas.
"Actually, I'm not entirely sure, part of the fun of the job," Ash said with a bit of sarcasm colouring his voice. "Figured I'd start with 1997 and move out from there.
"But what about you?" Ash asked, turning to look at Kealey for a moment before he started searching for the first book he'd pull off the shelf to search through. "What's the explanation for your accent?"
Posted by Kealey Shinbo on Mar 5, 2009 20:35:59 GMT -6
X-Men
Team Leader of the X-Men
[color=deeppink]
Straight
Married (Tetsuya Shinbo)
1,656
4
Sept 25, 2024 10:26:05 GMT -6
Jules
Confusion, confusion mixed with surprise. Kealey frowned, not understanding suddenly how to handle her own confusion mixed with Ash's. Then realization dawned, she'd spoken of things he'd never verbalized, and her analysis of his feelings must have been even more on target than she'd though.
"I can tell by your face..." she said, quietly again, frowning slightly as she started pulling books down from the shelves and laying them on a nearby table. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your feelings...but it's not something I can control."
Ash pointed out that the court proceedings he was getting into weren't nearly as interesting as the family research that people might do for pleasure and Kealey smiled slightly, "That's why I stick to the religion and philosophy section." she said, "Nobody even ventures through there unless they're interested in the information they seek."
He was a P.I. from a firm run out of Dallas, yet his was here in New York working on a case, Kealey gave Ash a searching look before she spoke, "So if your business is in Dallas, what are you doing in New York City? It's an aweful long way to travel for a single case...or does the company you work for have a branch out here?" Small talk made the research easier, she though, as she flipped open the first book.
As Kealey looked at the first page, she realized two things. First, she didn't know what she was supposed to be looking for, and second, she hadn't been asked to help at all.
Just in time, Ash asked about her accent and Kealey really smiled. He was curious, she could feel it, and that was an emotion she was comfortable with. "I'm fresh off the boat from Ireland." she said, "That explains my accent. I'm thinking of getting a shirt made with that printed on the front!." she added with a grin.
"There's a lot to go through here..." she said, taking a glance at the books she'd pulled from the shelves, "And this is only a couple of years." A quick glance at the watch on her wrist confirmed Kealey's thoughts and she looked back at the man in front of her everything she'd felt from him so far had been positive...except for his disdain for her shoes, "Since you're not so familiar with the catalog system here...and it's all I know. I could help. I'm off in ten minutes anyway...and I still feel like I owe you."
Posted by ashbrooks on Mar 5, 2009 21:57:04 GMT -6
Guest
"Eavesdrop? What?" Ash asked, even more confused now after what Kealey had just apologized for. Eavesdropping on his emotions? How was that even possible, Ash wondered.
Then she was asking the question, the same question Ash asked himself almost every day: why was he in New York if he lived, and the office was based, out of Dallas?
"If they pay well enough, it's worth the trip," Ash replied, his voice subdued. "And then, since I'm already here, I may as well take this other case, and then we have a referral by that client.
"Yes, it's a long way, but some people prefer it for the extra anonymity despite the extra cost."
The books were pulled by this point, or, at least the first ones for Ash to start looking through. Hopefully he'd find what he was looking for before he had to go through too many of the books. He was just sitting down in a chair to start to work when Kealey started talking again. Ireland? Well, at least he had been right with one of his thoughts, and hadn't been completely wrong, like if she was Australian or something like that.
Before he could respond to that, though, Kealey was commenting on how much there was for him to go through. And offering to help. Ash simply shook his head. "I couldn't ask you to do that," he said. "You must have other plans, some better way to spend your night. This is part of my job, not yours." The boring part of the job, Ash mentally amended, but still part of the job.