Hollow Note

[Cynthia Weiss]

Cynthia looked puzzled then a little sad before returning to blank. "We can't escape politics. Even your Sire sounded like he dabbled."

"Don't know mine very well. He was an asshole and I didn't take to...This very well at first." Cynthia started to trail off before she let out a long, aggravated sigh and started rubbing her eyes. She stopped and soon found herself staring at the stone floor of the Caldarium. "Dammit. I really haven't talked about myself so much in so long. Dwelling on memories can get pretty fucking depressing." Silence came after that. The energy she had before seemed spent.

[Robert Cross]

"He dabbled enough to keep his name clean with those who dabbled more. And to make sure his business didn't suffer." Cross had thought it the model for a successful requiem. Until coming to Sacramento. And now look at him, knee deep in domain politics. He's not sure how he feels about that state of affairs.

"They're all assholes, in their own ways. Just depends on whether what they have on offer makes it worth sticking with them." He shrugs. Sick Vic had been a son of a bitch. But he could drive a hard bargain. And he'd shared enough with Cross, materially and otherwise, to keep the Burned Man close.

He's tempted to ask what it was about their...condition that she found so difficult to begin with. But, given her obvious weariness of the conversation, he decides not to.

"Yeah, it can be hard. But if you don't think it through, things could turn out worse." A difficult lesson, but one he's been trying to teach himself lately. "Maybe we should call it quits for tonight. We've been at this a while."

[Cynthia Weiss]

"...True." Cynthia eventually said in agreement, likely to everything the Burned Man had said. Pointing out contradictions was something she just was not interested in doing. She nodded to Cross. "Yeah. Its been a long night, even in a place this nice." No sarcasm. It was genuinely one of the nicer Necropoli she had seen over the years.

The Artist looked up to the Deputy."Think I'll stay here for a few minutes. Then I'll have a look at the garbage pile." She managed to pull a small smile from her face. "Thanks for not pulling out the branding irons." A small, almost silent laugh came forth. "Another night then. Maybe I can meet the rest of the family then."

[Robert Cross]

"Stay as long as you like," he says, politely. Even if the comment about branding irons makes him want to frown. "It's yours to explore. Just try not to get lost in the catacombs." The last bit is more a warning than a joke. The tunnels can still confuse him, even after all his time working in them.

"It's been a pleasure to meet you," he adds, though whether he means that or not remains unclear. "I'm sure we'll talk more soon."

With that, the Burned Man turns to stride from the Caldarium, back into the further reaches of the Necropolis. Leaving Cynthia to her own devices.

I'm ready to end the scene if you are. Thanks for the fun!