interstellar5555 | [CLOSED] BE PREPARED FOR SENSATIONAL NEWS

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[CLOSED] BE PREPARED FOR SENSATIONAL NEWS

Who: Lesedi, Jamie, and Terry
What: Lesedi wants to make sure her troops are sufficiently under control and ready for battle.
When: The beginning of Hype Week.
Where: Lesedi's office love den.
Warnings: Lesedi is here.

Lesedi isn't very polite when it comes to summons. No, instead of asking people to come to her office by phone or by messenger, she's gradually drifted to just teleporting whoever she wants present straight in without warning. She's a busy woman and has places to be. Whether or not you do is irrelevant.

That is how they'll be brought in. One minute they are going about their lives, and the next they will be standing in front of Lesedi's desk, with their head honcho resting her chin on her hands, leering at them uncomfortable. Though these are to be two separate meetings, her greetings are exceptionally similar.

"Hi there," she'll say. "I can tell we have a lot to talk about."

She can see it just by looking at them - magical aura swirling off in waves.

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When Jamie blips into her office he's freshly showered after an intense rehearsal, dressed down in sweatpants and an old t-shirt, and guzzling milk straight out of the carton. Clearly this is the best way to meet the insane CEO of your record label.

It takes a second or two for it to register exactly where he is, but when it does his eyes widen hilariously and he spit-takes, spraying milk everywhere. At...least he's facing away from the desk when he does it.

He whirls to face Lesedi, reflexively wiping at his mouth with the back of one hand and clutching the half-empty milk carton in a death grip with the other. He's pretty sure why he's here. He's here now because she knows he was here before, playing with her marbles and snooping through all her shit with Garnet and the others. Like Molly and Koumei before him, he is going to die. Or something.

"Oh god," he croaks.

Oh, if she knew about that this would be a much different discussion. Though, really, it actually might be hard to tell if she's going to kill you based on the way she says hello. As mentioned, she is a little bit unhinged at the best of times.

"Ouch - is it a bad time?"

A towel will just kind of appear from nowhere and land on his head.

That startles him so much he almost drops the milk carton. Pushing the folds of the towel away from his face, he just stares at Lesedi in obvious terror for a moment or two. Power is rolling off of her in waves that practically have a physical presence all their own; she dwarfs every other power signature he's encountered thus far. He shouldn't be surprised at this, and isn't, really - he's just extremely overwhelmed right now, and the sensations he can feel coming from her only worsen his discomfort and apprehension.

Also she's saying something to him and he should probably try to answer her. Not that he thinks he has any chance of influencing whatever she's decided to do to him, but still.

"N-no, not - not at all, it's fine, everything's fine, j-just fine..." He stammers like an idiot, any trace of confidence or bravado he might have felt at the awakening of his powers evaporating. What did he think he was going to do with his stupid little stage tricks, anyway? What could he ever do against something like this?

Her grin becomes a bit more malicious for a moment, enjoying the obvious fear he is filled with at her presence. It is as it should be. It will be especially handy with what this meeting is supposed to be about.

"Oh, don't break down already. I promise, this will be good for you, if you follow my advise." She gestures to the seat in front of her desk. "Sit."

He sits, obediently. And then just stares at her fearfully, still clutching the milk carton and moving only to slowly remove the towel from his head, as though any sudden moves might provoke her into a fit of rage.

She actually doesn't seem angry or upset, which replaces some of the fear with curiosity. What did she bring him here for, if not to horribly kill him?

"I've noticed, you know," she says, apparently not interested in wasting time now that her initial amusement is over. "The things you can do with music."

There's a brief moment in which Jamie is confused, probably because he's also still terrified and overwhelmed by the power emanating from her, but then he realizes that she's not referring to his dreamy voice and ability to make girls weep with adoration.

"Oh," he says simply, and his eyes dart as he contemplates what to say. "Is it...unusual, what I've been doing?"

"Mmm. Uncommon. At least, usually."

Her expression becomes more sedate - this is obviously something she takes very seriously.

"There have been many small manifestations in your batch...you, though. You've gone farther and faster than any of the rest."

This surprises him for some reason, even though he already knows - or at least suspects - that he has more of that power than a lot of the other Pride musicians, especially the ones that he associates with closely. The newer artists, the ones with all the weird memories and shit. His "batch."

He's not really sure if Santiago is complementing him or just stating a fact, so he responds modestly. "I...didn't even know I was doing anything, most of the time. And then I thought it was something that I could play around with a little, you know, to get the fans more excited..." He's saying more than he really intended to, but he's scared shitless and consequently rambling a little.

She smirks again, and it is an inherently unsettling gesture.

"Ah, yes, that's a favourite of ours. You use a bit of your strength to get them really interested...and that emotional impact gives it back to you tenfold. At least with something like Pride Records backing you." Never forget that this is her doing. "I'm sure you've realized where your power comes from..."

Or it's perfectly reasonable that he hasn't, and she's just trolling him.

He pauses to choose his next words carefully. Along with being aware of other people's capacity to manipulate the musical energy surrounding and suffusing them, he has the impression that what remains in him and everyone else is just the dregs of something greater, scraps left over after the bulk has been collected. He guesses that Lesedi is gathering it from them, and if she needs them to produce it for her then it can't be coming from her. He's not sure, though, how smart it is to insinuate that she's taking the energy away from him, as though he feels any sense of propriety toward it.

He shakes his head slowly. "I don't really understand where it's coming from. Ma'am." He's not lying, at least.

He leans back as if she is about to enter story time with him, swirling a finger in the air in way of example.

"Magic around here is a thing of emotional connection and consensus. When you play to an eager crowd, it draws out that energy. Your music, the rhythm...it takes that energy and bring it to you. All those souls are moving to your beat, and while that's the case, the power they generate is yours for the taking."

His eyes dart warily to her finger. She could be plotting anything with that finger. Wizards, man.

"O-okay, so...that's been happening all along, right? Since I, um..." He doesn't know at this stage if he needs to keep playing dumb, but it probably wouldn't hurt. "...signed on with Pride.

"So, uh - why haven't I noticed it before now?"

She shrugs.

"You weren't skilled enough to pick it out! Not everyone can interact with the music, you know. That's why I'm talking to you right now."

"Really?" There is some genuine surprise and curiosity there now, undercutting the stark terror, but it makes a certain kind of sense.

"That's why everybody...feels kind of different, right?" He makes a vague wavy gesture with the milk carton. "Because they're at different - stages, or something, of being able to do stuff with the music."

"Yes," she says, simply. Then she smiles in a way that is a little challenging. "And where would you consider yourself to be on that scale of power?"

"Um." Jamie pauses, considering. "I haven't...really felt many people that seemed stronger than me." He doesn't name names, for several reasons. In particular, he thinks it's probably not a good idea to mention Mr. Universe to her, considering he's under Blanche's control and anything pertaining to Blanche might send her into a frenzy of insane rage.

"...why is that?" he ventures cautiously. "If I have this kind of power, I thought - I dunno, that there might be a lot more people who were at the same level."

"How optimistic," she says, glancing at her fingernails, finely manicured to be particularly sharp. She leans back.

"The answer, of course, is that there are many more than you. They simply aren't anybody you'd have the casual privilege of talking to. Both under Pride and Virgo's banners."

"Well, but what about the ones I see around HQ all the time? Like my bandmates and stuff. None of the guys have as much of that energy as I do. Out of the other people that got signed on at the same time I did, there's only a couple of 'em that really stand out that way."

He lifts one shoulder in a careful shrug. "So why do I have it and they don't?"

"One of tera's greatest mysteries," Lesedi says boredly, playing with one of the many trinkets on her desk. "If all of you were as competent I'd have accomplished my goals years ago."

"At any rate... why is anyone good at anything? Innate talent, I suppose. A particular quality of your soul."

"I-I dunno, I thought maybe hard work had something to do with it?" Jamie tries for a wan smile that quickly falters.

Anyway, more soul talk. Souls are pretty serious business, Jamie's been learning.

"O-okay, so..." He turns the milk carton around in his hands nervously, never taking his eyes off Lesedi. "What, uh - I mean, was there - y-you called me up here to do more than just...tell me that I had this power stuff. Right?"

Are you going to do something horrible or what, Lesedi? The suspense is killing him.

Pch! So nervous, Jamie. What did she ever do to warrant such anxiety? (Lol.)

"Up until now luck is far more important, I think," she says. "But now that you have it...now is when you've gotta work. Which is what I've called you here, for."

Her gaze becomes particularly intent.

"As a member of Pride, you work for me."

Jamie withers visibly under that stare. Being the focus of Lesedi Santiago's attention is never a good thing, as far as he can tell.

"Wh - was there anything, um, in particular you wanted me to do?" His gut is churning with dread; he had entirely different designs on the use of his rad new powers, designs which just happen to be the exact opposite of doing Lesedi's bidding, and he's terrified that she's going to force him to do things against his will.

"You'll be training under one of my masters, starting now. This is a big time for Pride, Jamie, and you are an asset that can't be ignored. That is... if you can learn to refine these powers of yours."

Most importantly, she'll be personally keeping an eye on you.

~~Oh GREAT.~~

He's relieved, if only marginally, to hear that he's an asset - he guesses he always was, but maybe if he can do things that a lot of other people can't she'll be less inclined to use him for a soul battery or messily kill him or something. Maybe.

And that apparently hinges on learning how to control his abilities. No pressure.

"Okay," he ventures cautiously. "So um - who exactly is gonna be training me?"

"Hm," she considers, leaning back and taking a moment to look at her phone. "I think that Cass would be a good choice. Or perhaps Jenny. The leads of Predator, of course. They are the most talented stock I have."

Predatorrrrrr does he have tooooooo?

Jamie is less than thrilled with the prospect of being near either of these two people, but he doesn't think it would be in his best interest to challenge Lesedi on this. The dismay is probably evident in his expression anyway.

"Um. Whatever you think would be best." He fidgets unhappily. "What exactly is the training gonna involve?"

"I don't know," Lesedi says dismissively, waving a hand. "Whatever Cass and the others cook up, I suppose. It's certainly not my job to teach you - I can't even imagine how the human mind manages to struggle with such basic concepts."

Well. This is disorienting as hell.

Terry was brushing his teeth, but suddenly there's an office around him instead of the bathroom, and Lesedi's power so large and strong he almost feels smothered by it. He stares at her, wide eyed in shock for a long moment, wondering what he's done to piss her off this time but nothing comes to mind. He's been good, he's been going out of his way to seem cooperative and like he actually wants to get along with the label here. Either way, he has a mouth full of toothpaste and can't discuss anything like this, so he points to his mouth slowly to try and get that across.

For some reason, the main thought he has is that he wishes he was wearing a shirt.

Her eyebrows shoot up and and amused grin crosses her face immediately. She leans back, watching him with great interest.

"I'm sorry? I'm not sure I understand."

Why this.

Terry gestures a little more emphatically, pointing to his mouth with the toothbrush and a moderately distressed grunt. And then he starts looking around the room.

He is absolutely gonna spit in the first plant pot he sees.

She laughs, and then gestures at her desk. A glass will conveniently appear on it where he can grab it. She had her fun, she supposes the can give him a break.

"There. Enjoy."

Oh good. He takes the glass to get rid of all that toothpaste and wipes his mouth off with the back of his hand and sits down, fully able to be concerned about what's going on here now he's not about to choke on a spit and fluoride cocktail.

"What's going on?"

"We need to have a talk about you future with Pride Records."

The glass with disappear because, uh, gross?

Edited 2016-05-08 01:39 (UTC)

Oh shit. This is it he's going to the harvesting chamber goodbye world goodbye friends he loves you all so much write a song about him remember him fondly also eat healthy and take care of yourselves.

His eyes widen a little at the statement, but Terry swallows and keeps his composure. If he's about to take a trip to he basement, he's not about to let her freak out about it.

"Am I being fired?"

Totes chill.

She laughs - and its just a bit too long, enough to leave him in suspense. Why is she laughing? Is that a yes or a no?

Eventually, though, she'll get serious.

"No," she says "In fact, with some effort...you could be rewarded very finely."

Terry chews his lip in an attempt to keep himself from looking too worried while she laughs, because that is... Could he have a less deeply unsettling boss? That would be nice.

When she speaks though, Terry balks, eyes wide and he hesitates before he speaks because he's not entirely sure he heard that right. It's not like he's ever been on Lesedi's good side, and now she's talking about rewards? Is she drunk on something other than power?

"Wha-- why...?"

"Because you've got the magic."

She says it so plainly, like she is assuming he'll know exactly what she's talking about. Or maybe she just likes putting people on the spot?

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed..."

Edited 2016-05-16 01:32 (UTC)

He does, actually. To a degree. He's even started playing with it in his own time, trying to understand it. Control it.

"I've noticed," Terry says softly, it feels oddly like a confession, "when I perform, it's-- I'm stronger then."

Well, that makes things nice and simple. Lesedi looks pleased.

"Of course it is. The music is the source of your power - and the effect it has on the crowd. The bigger the crowd, the more power. That's what working for Pride gives you that nothing else could."

Well, except working for Virgo. Not that he's gonna go switching labels — the crazy, terrifying devil you know, etc.

He could ask a lot of questions — why only some people develop these powers, where exactly it comes from — but there's a more specific question right at the front of his mind.

"What do you want from me?" He asks, at the same time reaching out with his powers, trying to slip into her mind and seek out what she's afraid of. It'll probably be more illuminating than anything she has to say.

"You work for Pride, so you work for me," she says. "And I expect you to keep doing so, and to learn to use these powers to the best of your abilities. Big things are coming, and I want to put you to use."

'Put him to use.' There's a worrying turn of phrase, and Terry frowns in a mix of discomfort and concentration as he keeps searching for her fears. It's different somehow-- it's not nothing like with Page, and he can't feel any resistance but. Well, maybe it's just that he's still figuring this out.

So it's just a matter of keeping her talking until he gets it. Should be easy, right? Santiago loves the sound of her own voice.

"How do I do that? Learn to use them?" Because he doubts drunkenly breaking vodka bottles is what she's after.

"Practice, of course. And maybe a few pushes in the right direction." She grins eerily. "Starting today, you'll be provided with a teacher. One of the true magical adepts from Pride will be assigned to you, so you had better not waste their time."

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[CLOSED] BE PREPARED FOR SENSATIONAL NEWS

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