(TKTM) You Never Know Who People Are Online

[Snarlequin]

"I know," he says patiently. "Just doing legwork." Satisfied that there's no one inside who'll question a locked door being unlocked, Auto gives a quick backhand in the direction of the lock as he pulls a spell down from the watchtowers.

When you choose the shadow name Autolycus, you are making a statement. That you're a master thief. That locks, no matter how complicated, are meaningless to you. Someone might laugh at you for checking a door to see if it's locked, but that's just due diligence. It's going to take way more than a lock to keep this mage out of anywhere.

  Loosen the Threads 1 potency

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2014-06-18 02:16:47		Autolycus rolls 7 to Loosten the Threads rote (Dexterity + Larceny + Matter -2 contagion) (10 Again)		7, 3, 4, 1, 8, 7, 1		1 success

[Snarlequin]

Auto opens the door for Mandy, like a gentleman. And a true gentleman always holds the door open for a Lady, even if she laughs at him.

[Zodiac]

Snapping the phone shut with a flick of her fingers, Mandy raised a brow. "... colour me impressed," she responded with a little chuckle. At least the person who had ended up accompanying her was useful in some way. Slipping into the thankfully cooler building, she gave the man a reprising look for a brief few moments.

The next step she didn't have such an easy resolution for - which her previous action would have been, had it not been rendered useless by the other.

[Jhet]

The weird look returns. Cut isn't exactly good at reading body language. Or maybe he's just not good at reading language. It's time to find out.

"You know what the business is?"

Her eyes become distracted at the police car driving past in a myriad of colors and un-deciphered strands of the giant web of fate that layers itself atop her normal vision. When it's gone they snap back to Cut.

"You must know what the business is if you're asking about it, right?"

Maybe he can pick up on her tone of voice. It matches the expression of annoyance that's covering her face. She waits and watches. Nothing in particular to focus on yet, she looks for that something so that she can feel like she's actually doing something.

Still concentrating on Interconnections

[Star]

"Uh, no?"

His expression was blatant confusion.

"The only 'business' I know is Flo-Rida's business. You know, 'Fall out cause that's the business, All out it's so ridiculous'? But you're saying 'THE' business," he elaborated, arms raised and fingers dipping to add Air Quotes.

"And, uh, I dind't meant 'the business'," Air Quotes again, "I meant just regular business. Not Overly Emphasized Business. Like, whatever business someone who does interviews with a stage and cameras is in. Like Walter Cronkite business. Or Sixty Minutes business."

He shrugged.

"Oh, and I know about Business Time. So, like, I don't know much about business? I get this feeling I offended you? So, sorry about that. Wasn't intentional."

Did he look like a Business Man?

[Jhet]

He certainly does not looking like a business man. But he certainly looks like a man who was familiar with the business. The fact that he looks confused only exacerbates things.

"If you ask about the business in California, what exactly do you think you're asking about? It isn't journalism, that's for sure."

She doesn't want to explain exactly what he's insinuated, especially since she can't be certain he even knows what it is that he's insinuated she does for her work. He says it's not intentional, but she just takes that for an excuse people use when they've gone and put their own foot in their mouth.

"I guess thanks for not insinuating that I work in porn?"

She does it anyway.

[Star]

The Business. California. What?! What did geography have to do with porn?

"Uh. The business of interviewing people?"

He'd said that. He was pretty sure he did. And she'd said she could interview people. It was a pretty solid connection. At least, he'd thought? Was he forevermore banned from using the word 'business' or putting 'the' in front of the word when addressing... anyone? Oh, shit. Was Flo-Rida singing about porn? Was he 'falling out' because he was in 'the business'? Jeez. Was Flo-Rida was a porn star too? Total Rod Steward moment. All the luck, yo.

Learn something new every day, right?

"And. Uh, I guess if someone asked me what 'the business' of California was... I guess I'd say wine? Like that whole Napa thing?"

Yeah. No clue what the primary commerce of the state was.

"Anyway. Thanks for... educating me? But that's not what I meant. I wouldn't ask you if you did porn. Not that you couldn't, and all. At least, I'd guess. You've got pretty eyes, but I'm not sure how much that means in 'the business'. Even though that's not really my thing, someone, somewhere, right? Even if I did think that you did, I wouldn't jam you up about it."

At this point, he was studying his feet, rather than their surroundings. He'd never had a conversation about porn before.

"So... now I'm really curious? Do you really think that any time someone says 'the business', they're talking about porn? That's kind of messed up."

OK, shit, he had to ask.

"Unless it is just me that doesn't know? So was Flo-Rida talking about porn? In that song?"

[Snarlequin]

All Auto does is smile at Mandy's statement.

He closes the door behind the pair and he looks around. "So now we need to find David Barton." He looks around, maybe there were mailboxes with names on the wall? "You want to interrogate someone or sweet talk them for directions?"

[Zodiac]

"No need to be cruel until we need to," she responded with a shake of the head. "People tend to be more forgetful of random nice folks. They tend to remember things that scare them," Mandy pointed out, following his gaze to the mailboxes for much the same purpose.

Asking around after a David Barton would be conspicuous, especially after they'd already gotten into the building. It had, if nothing else, botched her plan of questioning the building manager as a potential tennant... So it was back to the drawing board for her on ideas. Impressed though she was by the action, it had hindered her plans.

"Don't suppose you can do the same thing to the boxes there?" Even if there weren't names on the front, mail had names on it.