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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 20, 2021 15:01:43 GMT -8
The Honda Civic pulled up on the border of Spring Valley and Summerlin at a Starbucks, where Kai Rose had agreed to pick up a friendicorn. The Beast was an avid walker, it seemed, hiking around in the early summer like it was no problem. As far as she was concerned, it was hotter than hell in Vegas, and the air conditioning didn't do enough. Shorts and a tank top didn't stop the bead of sweat pooling on her forehead. They needed to get up to speed, get a breeze going.
"Hey, dude. Hop in. Let's go get something cold."
She leaned across the passenger seat and shoved the door of the silver sedan open for Agrippa.
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Post by Agrippa on Jun 20, 2021 15:19:48 GMT -8
Agrippa's head whipped around as they heard themselves being beckoned. Their brain had been cooking in the sun for the past hour or so, and their attentiveness was apparently taking a toll.
"And the air conditioning arrives!"
They jogged over to the passenger-side door, grinning as they pulled the thing open and slid inside. The white blazer that had been slung over their shoulder found its way onto their lap
"Sounds as good of an idea as any, given the weather! How's the day find you?"
They reached behind them for the seatbelt before shutting the door, all the while giving Kai their full attention. Perhaps they hadn't been out of the house in the past couple of days, or maybe they were simply happy to be out of the sun- either way, they already looked to be having a good time.
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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 21, 2021 10:07:15 GMT -8
The air conditioning was cranked to full, cold-ish air blasting at them through old fans. The car took off and quickly found a drive-thru Burger King -- it was as good a place as any to get a big, cold drink.
"Good, good. Thought I'd touch base with you after the shit that came up at Beltane. Loki seemed... concerned."
Understatement of the year.
"You doing okay?"
Turning into the drive-thru line-up, Kai glanced over at the Helldiver, a note of concern and matching colors writ on her face.
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Post by Agrippa on Jun 21, 2021 13:42:52 GMT -8
Agrippa took a deep breath in, closing their eyes and nodding.
"Ah, yes. That."
The smile stayed, though the humor turned grim. This wasn't anything new. The hair on the back of their head flattened as they plunked it onto the headrest.
"Its not all doom and gloom. Still have a chance to fix things. Would be lying to say I wasn't nervous about it though."
They blinked up at the ceiling before tilting their head just enough to level their eyes at the Summer in the seat beside them
"Want to hear the story from the top? I'll warn you, it isn't terribly short."
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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 21, 2021 13:50:58 GMT -8
"I do. One sec."
She accepted the drinks through the window and got them back on the road, handing Agrippa their icy beverage before taking a long sip of hers.
"So, there's two ways this can play out. One is you tell me the thing, and I commiserate with you, nod and say soothing things, and we carry on with our lives. The other is, I take a statement, make a transcript, and file it with the Knight of Scales so that this issue can be looked at -- as opposed to kicked in the teeth at a party. Your choice."
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Post by Agrippa on Jun 21, 2021 14:20:27 GMT -8
The choice caught them off guard. Agrippa's brows touched their hairline as they leaned forward to accept the drink
"I- we have to decide that before I launch into it, don't we?"
They frowned, patting a hand quietly on their lap as they mulled through the options
"How about we treat this as a statement. Having it on-record can't hurt, even if nothing comes of it. Is there some sort of procedure I need to follow, or do I just start talking?"
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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 21, 2021 14:26:13 GMT -8
"I'll set up a recording. We'll have a conversation and you can tell me all about it, like a normal chat."
Kai produced her telephone and turned on the audio recording function before setting the phone in the cup holder.
"For the record, this is Kai Rose of Summer. I am taking this statement from Agrippa of Spring in relation to the course of events that led to the Beltane incident between Loki and Archie Hartman."
She glanced to Agrippa.
"What happened between you and Mr. Hartman that led to that incident, Agrippa?"
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Post by Agrippa on Jun 21, 2021 18:03:04 GMT -8
Agrippa nodded, sitting quiet and patient as Kai took out the phone and announced herself for the record. When time came that she passed them the proverbial microphone, the unicorn hesitated, taking the time to collect themselves
"Around the end of February or the beginning of March this past year, Mr. Hartman took a professional interest in me. I trust you know him to be a talent agent. I am an author. He brought me into his office all very excited about the prospect of working together. I showed him my first book and the first part of the manuscript I'd been working on at the time. He loved everything. Super confident. He handed me a contract and I... I got excited and signed it on the spot."
They shrugged apologetically
"My first book got published due to a contest, so this was my first real experience with professional interest. I'd been receiving nothing but rejection letters up to this point, so I was eager to have a chance to prove myself. At first everything was perfectly golden. I had been struggling to come up with the manuscript before I'd met with Mr. Hartman, but things had picked up once I had an idea. I figured with a real professional contract I would be able to churn out something good by the mid-season mark."
They took a sip of their drink, conveniently marking the conclusion of their optimistic setup with a pause
"Unfortunately my muse had other plans. A few weeks in and I was grasping at straws again. If I had been working alone I would have likely scrapped the thing and started over, but I was on someone else's budget so I kept pushing through. The contract gave me an editor and the material I was putting out needed ample help, so by the end of it I had ran the budget up quite a bit. We got a usable product out, but it quite frankly wasn't worth the cost. I knew that.
So. He calls me into his office. He isn't happy, and I don't blame him for that. First thing he does is to give me an ultimatum- either I get my name on the cover but I see not a dime from the sales, or I get the money as per the contract, but he gets to put a different name on the cover. Its his way of recouping costs, one way or another. I'm not exactly drowning in cash, so I take the money."
Another sip, another pause
"Somehow the conversation only gets worse from there. At one point I request that he not put his resources behind my next book- he was threatening that he should drop the contract earlier in the conversation, so I figured simply asking him to not spend anymore resources on me would be agreeable. He refuses to leave it simply at that and gives me a counter offer- He will give me the privaledge of not having any help so long as I swear to the wyrd that I will give him a six month pledge of service should I not have any book to give him by the end of the season..."
They sighed and shook their head
"I had been fighting so hard in that conversation to give him a response that wasn't met with anger or disappointment. I didn't want to have another conversation like that if I used his resources again. At that moment that was the most important thing so... I agreed and we sealed it."
The ice in their cup sloshed about as they twirled the straw regretfully.
"And that was that. The deadline is coming up now and I'm writing as best I can. Things are almost done, but if I don't have it on his desk by summer I'm in for six months of service."
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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 21, 2021 20:07:25 GMT -8
Jesus, Agrippa.
"Do you pledge that the evidence you just gave and will give in this interview is the truth and nothing but the truth?"
Her colors were swirling red and blue, concern writ on his face. Her second question followed the answer to the first.
"What were the particulars of the terms of service? Or was it just... you owed him service for six months?"
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Post by Agrippa on Jun 21, 2021 20:42:55 GMT -8
Agrippa looked up and nodded, forgetting in the moment that this wasn't a video recording
"Yes! I pledge that everything I say recorded in this interview is the truth, and nothing but the truth as well as I know it."
A weak smile followed the pledge, though it fell as soon as Kai asked the next question. Their brows furrowed and they seemed to search the dash for answers
"Now that you mention it, he hadn't gone into any details that I remember, other than to say that it was on top of my other obligations. I hadn't asked for details when he gave me the terms, and quite honestly I just hadn't really thought about that part until...until just now."
a meek horror spread across their face as the dire nature of their oversight finally hit them.
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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 21, 2021 22:37:41 GMT -8
Kai's lips parted in a look of Very Serious Concern.
"Interview paused at twelve ten."
She pulled over to the side of the road and turned off the tape.
"Okay, shit. Summer is... like, almost here. Jesus Christ, Agrippa. Okay. I'm going to make a couple of calls."
First, she sent the short interview file to Solomon with a flag of URGENT - HIGH PRIORITY with a simple text: he's days from Hartman screwing him for six months, review ASAP please. Second, she texted Ivory.
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Post by Agrippa on Jun 21, 2021 22:55:26 GMT -8
Agrippa nodded for what felt like the umteenth time, feeling suddenly so far out of their depths
"I know I know. I've got something. its not quite complete yet but its getting there."
They looked to the phone, frowning with a concern of their own
"What are you going to do?"
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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 21, 2021 23:00:00 GMT -8
"Take you to our house. Ivory is going to spin Fate in your favor. You're never going to tell a fucking soul she did that for you, because it's super private, got me?"
Ivory cared a lot about her secrecy, but whatever price she wanted was up to her -- unless she was doing this for the sheer satisfaction of thwarting some fucking nonsense, which did actually sound like the Fairest.
"Then, you're going home, and you're going to write until you pass out, wake up and then write again, because Litha is like, no time from now. That good by you?"
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Post by Agrippa on Jun 21, 2021 23:06:44 GMT -8
"The terms of the agreement were..."
Agrippa bit their lower lip and closed their eyes, straining to remember
"One novel, by the end of the season. He trusts I work on it alone. And complete it alone. if not, then a six months pledge of service from me to him, over top of my other responsibilities."
They turned back to Kai with a breathless worry
"Would this plan break the pledge, or would I still be working and completing the book alone?"
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Post by Kai Rose on Jun 21, 2021 23:16:17 GMT -8
Kai frowned. Work on it alone. Complete it alone. Was the blessings of Fate stopping him from 'working on it alone' or 'completing it alone'?
"Good question. My gut says it might be okay, since you're working on it alone and completing it alone, but Fate's tricky..."
Sounded like some Nerd Shit. She wracked her brain as she dug deep on the question of who the Pledge lawyers were. Noir might be okay, but that dude was expensive and involved in Spring nonsense...
"Worm. From Autumn. He's a pledge lawyer. You should call him now, and flag it urgent. The fact that Hartman's gonna end up making you his servant with a Pledge might encourage him."
She chewed that over, receiving a text from Ivory in the affirmative. Good. This was important, not just for Agrippa's sake. Sure, slavery was bad, but Hartman was an agent, not an occultist. It was possible that the Chatelaine was just sloppy as hell in his Pledgecrafting. Right now, it was thoughtcrime, bad wording and terrible fucking optics. The second Agrippa ended up the agent's servant, things would be at a new level. They had to get this done.
"I can get us driving in the right direction, at least."
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