ArchivedLogs:Sorry to Disturb

Sorry to Disturb
Dramatis Personae Melinda, Tian-shin
In Absentia	2013-10-14 '
Location <NYC> Melinda's Apartment - Lower East Side
The apartment is composed of four bedrooms, two baths, a living room and an entry space attached to the kitchen, near the door. That kitchen is covered in tile, from floor to countertop to back splash on the wall, all white, with light, thin blue stems and flowers. The cabinets are newish, with blond wood kept meticulously clean of fingerprints. It is also outfitted with an excellent coffee maker, or two, with all the accoutrement to go with it. The living room is mainly furnished by found pieces, two chairs and a couch. None of it was constructed at the same time, but it all has been reupholstered with the same cloth, the surfaces colored similarly and with a regular weave. The wood has all been refinished as well, dark and able to hide stains well. The walls are colorful, but that goes with the territory of having a mutant roommate with Tag's ability. Today, it is a sage green with some abstract blue and orange intermingling in different places. Tomorrow it will be different. A cursory inspection shows that five people live in this four bedroom apartment, so it's difficult to pick out what belongs to any one person. Tian-shin enters the apartment building with purpose. Only the tightness of her fingers around the strap of her purse indicates any doubt or tension. She wears a lilac v-neck shirt, a black cropped jacket, gray pleated skirt, purple tights and black high-heeled boots. Her long black hair is gathered into a bun and secured with a single carved jade stick, which matches a jade bangle on her right wrist. She ascends the stairs and makes it all the way to Melinda's door before hesitating, hand already raised to knock. Her hand drops and she begins to turn away, then abruptly follows through and raps three times on the door. She draws a deep breath and stands tall, one hand still clenching her purse strap. Melinda isn't exactly prompt about answering the door, but she does appear within good time. She's dressed in soft cotton pants and a loose t-shirt in varying shades of blue, with a hefty navy bathrobe, her hair looped up in a braid, knotted on the back of her head, stray bits showing that she's slept in this hairstyle. The apartment smells of black tea with the tang of hummus drifting on its heels. She still has a faint expression of surprise on her features when she sees Tian-shin, but most of the initial surprise has worn off between when she peeked through the spy hole. She pulls the door open a little more. "Hi, Tian-shin." "Hello, Melinda." Tian-shin bobs her head--a sort of hybrid between nod and bow. "I'm sorry to disturb you..." Her dark brown eyes take in Melinda's attire, then flick down. "I know I've caused you no end of trouble in the past, but I really need to talk to you." She straightens--it looks like an oft-practiced series of movements for her. "If that's all right." "Oh, don't mind me. Just relishing a day off. I've been up a while, but have worked so much lately, I didn't feel like dressing. I can go change if it makes you more comfortable." Melinda holds the door for Tian-shin, so she can enter, looking to close the door after her when she's inside. "It's okay. What do you need to talk about? Would you like some tea?" "Oh , no! Please, you needn't change on my account!" Tian-shin's eyes widen at the suggestion, as if Mel had offered to sacrifice her firstborn. She ducks inside and moves out of the way so her host can close the door. "Several things. First, I wanted to see how you are doing. Second--" She catches herself counting off fingers and stops abruptly. "Sorry, I know you weren't asking for an /agenda./" A moment's pause. "Unless you were?" She blushes faintly under the thin veil of mineral makeup. "I would love some tea, thank you." "Oh, please, come in, sit down and relax. I'll answer all your questions to the best of my ability." Melinda locks the door behind her out of habit, then moves to the kitchen to grab a fresh cup. She brings it back to the tea pot on the coffee table in the living room, moving to sit on the couch next to it. "You can state your agenda all at once, if you like, or just ask questions one by one. First off, I'm okay. I've been a bit stressed out about work as of late - finding a coworker to be a bit of an ass lately, but that isn't what you're referring to. Noone else has come by about you and … to be honest, I still have the thing in my head that makes me forget if I've seen your brother. I hope he's okay, but it's rather pointless telling me anything besides 'yes.'" She sets down the cup and begins to pour tea inside, the liquid inside the pot still quite hot, as demonstrated by the amount of steam produced. She looks up at Tian-shin again, offering her the cup now. Tian-shin picks her way through the living room, examining the furniture with a faint smile. "I appreciate your understanding, but this isn’t an /interrogation/, I'm just...concerned. And perhaps harboring some guilt over my part in this." Her eyes follow Melinda. "You are right in that I was thinking mostly about my father's /associates/, but I know you have other triumphs and tribulations far beyond my ken. I am sorry to hear that work has been stressful." She accepts the tea with both hands and an actual bow. "Thank you. As for my brother...I haven't seen him in weeks. We thought it unwise for me to know his new address or phone number. He objected in the strongest terms to my moving back to our mother's house, and is naturally reluctant to visit me there, but I have not been harassed." Her shoulders sag, and she tries to make it look natural by hunching over her tea and inhaling the steam. "To that end...do you know what became of our father?" There is a sort of guarded distance in her eyes when they raise from the cup to regard Mel with equal measures of hope and fear. "No, I am afraid I have not. I don't know whether to call it hopefulness or gnawing suspicion, but I really do believe that Murphy would not leave me hanging in limbo for this long without reason. Whatever is going on must not be resolved yet." Melinda lifts her cooler mug off the table and pulls it over her lap, taking a moment to sip before lowering her arms to her thighs. Her lips purse in thought before she exhales once more. She gives Tian-shin a small smile before noting, "I know you're not interrogating me. I mostly wish I could help assuage your fears and help you feel better. I simply do not have any information. How have you been? This can't be easy for you either." "He's been missing for so long, and given the kind of people with whom he had truck..." Tian-shin laces her delicate fingers around the mug. "Everyone's given him up for dead. It is possible that Murphy wants to give you the option of plausible deniability, even to a telepath . Still." She pauses and sighs. "I want to know. Could you tell me how to get in contact with Murphy? I don't even know if that is his given name or surname." Finally, she takes a sip of the tea, the corners of her mouth curling up just a touch. "Thank you, this is perfect for the weather. Myself, I am struggling to adjust to my new life as rogue attorney for hire. I could not continue working for Mister Li. I always knew there was some connection between the firm and the syndicate--Tag said it often enough--but I could ignore it until..." Her eyes slide show away and fix on an intricate dendritic design climbing the leg of a table. "Any any rate, I might look into renting office space, but until then, I'm working out of my mother's house, too." "Plausible deniability is definitely an advantage, it's true. I don't know. Maybe it's just that." Melinda shifts uncomfortably. "The trigger implanted in my mind - it's supposed to be temporary. If you think he's dead, there's no more reason for me to be oblivious to your brother's existence." She runs her fingers through her hair and frowns. "I should probably give Murphy a call myself." She sighs and sets down her tea cup and gets to her feet, moving over to her purse near the front door and pulling out a well worn business card. "His name is Murphy Law," she replies as she hands over the card before sitting down again. There is only a phone number on the card and the private investigator's name and title. "I don't know what kind of confirmation he can offer you without incriminating himself in your father's disappearance, especially as he does not know you, but you should talk to him. Maybe he will have some sort of answer to give you peace." She pulls the tea toward her again and wraps her hands around it, absorbing warmth through the porcelain. "I'm glad to hear you got out of that law firm. It didn't really seem like a healthy place to be. What type of work are you doing? I could refer people to you - you know, when it comes up, but there's no point offering your services to those who need a criminal lawyer if you're primarily in property law." "I honestly don't know what to think anymore. A part of me grieves for him, a part of me still holds out hope that he survived, but for the most part I am just terrified he will come back." Tian-shin accepts the business card with both hands and a slight bow. "Thank you. As for incriminating himself..." She gives a nervous half-smile, eyes darting to the entryway as though she expects Murphy to crash in through the door at that very moment. "I don't know that he would have just let me walk away if he were excessively concerned about that." Fishing a flat silver box from her purse, she tucks Murphy's card in behind a stack of others. "I was mostly handling litigation for small businesses at Li and Associates, but my passion, and hopefully the future of my practice, lies in social justice. I've done some pro bono work for gender and sexual minorities, and will continue doing so as necessary but it would be nice to do it for pay, as well." "Ah. Well, I do know some small business owners and could probably convince my work to put you on retainer if you were still interested in that type of litigation - but social justice. Wow, I could refer a lot of people to you, but most of them are from my homeless shelter, so pro bono." Melinda snuggles back into the corner of her couch and holds her tea very close to her nose so she can enjoy all of the aroma. "Though, I suppose if you do it well for long enough, a charity or foundation could pick you up and give you a paycheck." She bows her head and shakes it slowly. "Here I am talking about things I am not that familiar with. Please excuse my presumptions. Do you get along well with your mother?" "I am still representing small businesses, and would appreciate some recommendations." Tian-shin blushes, and brings the mug up to her lips as if hoping to hide behind it. She lowers it again, though. "Outside of classmates, most of my contacts in the field have been through Li. I'm something of a pariah in Chinatown now, and so must start from scratch. The /only/ work I am doing now is pro bono, but then, my mother is not charging me rent." The faint, crooked smile on her face makes her look just like Tag with longer hair and fewer colors. "My mother and I have a complicated relationship. She has some old-fashioned ideas about women, and she has finally come accept that I am her only daughter." A long sip of tea. "She keeps trying to set me up on dates. How is your relationship with your family, if it isn't too forward to ask?" "Oh, no. It's not too forward. I get along well with my parents, even if they don't understand my desire to live so far from home." Melinda tucks her feet underneath , her gaze distant as she speaks. "My sister thinks I'm brave, but she is mostly jealous that she didn't go galavanting around the world when she had the chance. She's married now and expecting her first child. I think they're happy where they are, but I just couldn't stay there, you know?" She turns her attention back to Tian-shin with a small smile, studying the other woman's expression. "Is there any reason why you continue to work out of Chinatown? Is it difficult to get work in the rest of Manhattan?" Tian-shin sips her tea while Melinda speaks, but watches her host and nods conscientiously. "To be completely honest with you, I'm jealous of /Tag/ sometime. Not the cards he's been dealt or the troubles he's had, but the adventuring--maybe he plays it up for my benefit. I wish I had his courage." She chuckles and looks down at her lap. "Maybe's that's a younger sibling thing." Her eyes track over to the window, as if trying the view on for fit. "I'd get out of Chinatown if I could afford it right now, but my mother's charity is keeping a roof over my head at the moment, and I cannot afford office space, either. Not for long! I've got feelers out, and can always get into some contract work in the meantime." Her shoulders hunch, and her shrug looks almost like an attempt to make them relax. "No walkabout for me! I love the City too much--as you do, I suppose?" "Oh, yes, I really do love the city. Couldn't possibly leave." Melinda smiles as she moves to rest her cup on the arm of the couch. "You know, you could probably have all of the adventure you could stand if you expanded your practice into mutant rights as well." There is a hint of good natured teasing that goes along with the statement, but the truth behind the words makes it sound a little sour. "But you've probably already considered that, what with your brother's experience. And no, I don't think it's all exaggerated or played up. It could also just be something of a chosen perspective, just like windows seem to be his chosen mode of entering a building." Mel shrugs and focuses on Tian-shin. "Sometimes I wonder about my desire for 'excitement' these days. I keep thinking that I'd love it to be peaceful and slow, but then, I'm not sure I'd recognize my life." “I had aspirations to go into mutant discrimination law while I was in school.” Tian-shin bows her head. “But after all this...I have realized that I must make concessions to practicality. I do not yet have the experience and skills to blaze new trails in discrimination law. If someone needed representation--if I were the only one willing to stand up--I would do it. Actively seeking to make a career out of it at this point, though?” A long sigh escapes her, as much ashamed as disappointed. “I am not brave enough. Still, if you do know people facing unjust treatment due to a genetic mutation and cannot afford legal advice, send them my way. Their chances at this point, though, are not good.” She drains the rest of her tea and sets down the cup. “I should get going. Mother will be worried--precautions against being followed made the trip here much longer than it should have been. Thank you.” She bows deeply. “For the tea, and for the chat.” "I understand and appreciate the position that would put you in," Mel agrees, slowly getting to her feet and leaving her cup on the coffee table instead of precariously perched upon the sofa's arm. She smiles as she nods and steps away from the living room, leading the way to the front door. "It's a nice idea, but it's also painting a gigantic bullseye on your back, front, and well, everywhere. People who help mutants are often treated just as bad as those they work with, sometimes worse in an effort to keep that minority down." She purses her lips as she arrives at the door and unlocks it. "Thank you for coming by, Tian-shin. I'm glad to know you are okay. Please give me a call some time, if you want to just talk again. I'd love to do this again." Tian-shin’s hunched shoulders bespeak some discomfort as she follows Mel to the door. “I suppose you speak from personal experience there. Maybe when I am back on my feet, I will look into blazing those trails in mutant law. I am following that Luke Cage case very closely, to be sure.” She bows deeply, purse clasped in both hands in front of her. “Thank you once again. This was nice.” Flashing a quick, slightly nervous smile, Tian-shin slips out the door and is gone.