Starring:
Date: November 20, 2009
Summary:
New York's latest power couple find that they're still in the dark on a lot of things.
"Mood Swings"
Roof, High Rise Apartments, Greenwich Village
The paranoid mood that's been circulating in certain quarters lately hasn't really hit George personally, not at the emotional level that ultimately drives such things. Should it be? If his reading between the lines is anywhere in the ballpark, then it's even got a presumably combat-trained federal agent jumping at shadows.
Partly because of that, and partly to enjoy a slight change of scenery, he's met up with Hallis at the apartment building and taken her to the top floor rather than either of their own places. "The hatch on this side should still be unlocked," he explains, "they've been swapping out the plumbing."
Walking through the hatch, Hallis hangs on to George's hand to balance herself. For the first time in their relationship, she is not wearing a pair of stilettos and as such, she is at least 3" shorter than she normally is. The satin flats that she is wearing are good for climbing to the roof, however, and she doesn't slip on her way up.
The cityscape captures her attention and she gasps at the sunset and the twinkling of the New York skyline against the darkening sky. "Oh George," she exclaims, breathless, "This is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen…" Turning toward him, she smiles widely and squeezes his fingers within her own.
Easing closer, George slips his other arm around Hallis's waist, as he looks for a place to sit that isn't too cramped or dusty or close to the edge. He has the good taste not to voice a corny response, but he is thinking it.
"Ran into that FBI agent on the way back here," he murmurs, once they're settled in comfortably. "The one from Chinatown? Said he was trying to help you out with things."
Hallis settles herself quite confortably in George's lap (to avoid the dust of course) and loops her arms around his neck. Her legs swing lazily to and fro as she listens quietly to him licking her lips as he ends his statement. "He did? How was he helping me with anything? I don't understand, George." Her eyebrows furrow slightly in worry and her lips downturn into a small frown.
"About the blackouts," George replies, keeping his voice low. If they found their way up here, then someone else might do the same, right? In theory. "He said you scared someone off— that he was trying to help you stay clear of them." The earlier exchange of implications seemed to work pretty well, let's see if it will play out the same way here.
"Trying to help me?" Hallis almost cries out, giving the man underneath her an incredulous look. Then she shakes her head and withdraws her arms from around his neck, her shoulders sagging. "I suppose if that's what he said, then I guess that's it." Then, sullen silence. The young blonde turns her head to look out at the city lights and takes a deep breath inward, holding it. Finally, after almost a minute, she lets it out in a long drawn out sigh. Cleansing breaths, they're supposed to work to draw out tension.
George has seen enough of the city lately, both from a distance and up close; now he turns his attention fully to Hallis. "That's what he said," he repeats. "He was being all vague - said he was scared about being followed - anyway, what was he leaving out of the picture?" Because clearly there must've been something.
"I don't know," Hallis remarks, still in that same sullen voice. Apparently emo is her flavor for the night, after such a wonderful day it doesn't sit well with her. "I just.. that's not how I remember it at all." She adds finally, her voice finding a little strength. "I guess if telling me to stay away from someone I don't know because she was doing to do something worse to me if I didn't is helping, then yeah, that's what happened. But it doesn't help me to not know who it is. How can I stay away if I don't know who to stay away from?" She turns to look at him briefly, her eyes filled with disappointment.
"Well, you're right, that's no better than you could figure out on your own." George leans back, mulling it over. "Did he have any ideas about why you might've met them the first time around? Maybe you thought they had an ability and you asked them about it?"
"He told me she wasn't, but I didn't believe him. How can someone steal memories if they don't have some kind of ability?" Hallis presses, almost insistently. She lowers her head slightly, staring at the little shoes on her feet. "I know I bought her a pair of shoes, I don't just buy people shoes. So I was either going to her house to bribe her or something. Sydney said that I called her Miss Bad Hair Day, but it doesn't ring a bell to me at all."
George shakes his head. "No, I don't know, either. Sydney didn't happen to see her, did she?" Dammit, Kitty, we could've really used your help with this one. The way things are going, that might still end up happening. "Well, if that was what you were thinking… I guess, if you see something new and their hair's messed up, then just keep quiet about it for now."
"I just don't care anymore George, really. She's out there and she'll probably kill me or something the next time she sees me. There's nothing I can do and there's no one that will help because she's something special and I'm not." Apparently Hallis has become a little exasperated with the situation. Looking away, she smooths her hands down her legs and shrugs her shoulders lightly. "If she finds me, then she finds me. I can't avoid something I don't know."
"I won't accept that." George turns to face her, placing a hand firmly on her shoulder. "I got in touch with an old friend— she's on the run, too, but we're supposed to meet up in a few days. All you have to do is hold out till then, all right? Then we should be able to fill in the blank."
Frowning slightly, Hallis looks into George's eyes and shakes her head. "What will your friend do? Tell me who is after me so I'll know who to look at twice? I don't want to know anymore George. It's over. The woman with the abilities won. There's no consequences for people who can do things. She can steal all the memories in my head and kill me if she wants, there's nothing that can be done about it."
"That's not true!" George is upset about how helpless she feels, of course, but there's a streak of defensiveness as well that he forgets to muffle. Abruptly, he rises to his feet and stalks over closer to the railing, looking down at the red and white lines of light from the traffic far below. "There are other people who can do things too, remember? They're not going to stand idly by, not once they know about it… because, yes, sometimes there's no one else who can help. It comes down to them, and they know it."
As George gets to his feet, Hallis slides from his lap and stumbles to her feet. "Who is going to stop it George? Everyone that I've talked to about it tells me that as long as I leave her alone I'll be fine. Well I wasn't the one that stole her mind and I wasn't the one that laid out threats. I'm supposed to write a letter to this woman to apologize to her, I don't feel like I should apologize anymore." She shakes her head and clasps her hands in front of her, taking in a deep breath and letting it out in a rather deep sigh.
"A letter? Seriously?" It sounds like a therapy thing. Which means— "She must not have believed you, then. Not if she's treating this the same way as if you'd shown up drunk to her wedding." It's just as well that he doesn't know the truth about Sydney, or else he'd be doubly incredulous.
George walks back, now, reaching down and taking hold of Hallis's hands to help her back up to her feet. "You know what we're going to do? We're going to find this woman and we're going to tell her the truth. I don't know what kind of threat she thought you were, but you and I both know you aren't one… She'll listen to reason. She has to. As bad a thing as she did to you, a real criminal wouldn't have stopped where she did."
"And what if she does it again or worse?" Hallis asks in a low tone, not looking up at George as he takes her hands. "Then I'll have more blank spots in my memory and more questions to answer. I just, the more I think about it, the more I think that the right thing to do is just to leave it alone and just hope that the worst doesn't happen." She licks her lips and shrugs lightly, finally looking up into his eyes. "I know I must sound like a pity party, George, but I've gone over and over this thing in my head. I don't know what I should do other than that. I don't feel like apologizing for something I don't remember. And what if someday I do remember and I only found her to apologize? Then what would finding her do?"
The moment of Pretend I Know The Answer has passed; this time, George merely shakes his head. "I doubt you have anything to apologize for. And I don't know how this will work out… but it will somehow. I'll do whatever I can to make it happen."
Smiling finally, Hallis takes his hands and nods. "I'd rather just leave it alone, George. The Agent told me to stay away from her, the best way I know how is to just go about living my life. If she finds me, then she finds me. Right now, it's not an issue. I'll just keep working on my list and leave it be. I know that nothing is ever going to be done about her, stealing memories isn't a crime… no matter how violated I feel." Then she draws closer to him and rests her head against his chest. "Let's just let it go, okay? Besides, there's that tabloid rumor going around about you that you need to deal with." Looking up at him, Hallis smiles brightly and lets out a little laugh. "Having an affair with my therapist, really? Is that all they could come up with? Imagine the tabloid stories if they found out how smitten she is with the senator."
"All right," he murmurs, slipping an arm around her waist once again - though he plans to continue working on it anyway, quietly. "Ready to head back down, now? Oh, and the rebuttal should be on their desk already by now— I don't know if they'd go after Wynn, though. Hitching your boat to the war on terror… well, you still get detractors, but more like CNN than the Enquirer."
Shaking her head, Hallis lets out a small laugh. "Your best bet would have been to just ignore it, Georgie. They'll just turn that rebuttal into another story." Lifting one arm, she emphasizes each of her words with a small mimed block in the air. "'Dawson Strikes Back!' The headlines of one magazine will read, while the others print 'It's Love!' You can't win with them, everything you do is a story. Just be thankful that I'm trying to be good instead of doing what I used to do." Then she slips her arms around his waist and smiles again, "I'm ready whenever you are. It's a little too dirty up here to spend the night anyway."
Once they're back down the ladder again, George pipes up again, this time sounding impish. "As long as you're not planning to be too good…" He's already gotten as far as toying with her hemline by the time they make it to the elevator.
"You are so bad." Hallis murmurs in a catty little growl, her eyes narrowing as she twists her form to allow his fingers to just graze her bare skin before pulling away. "The paparazzi would have a field day with what they don't know about you." Then she raises her finger to touch the tip of his nose. "Feeling my bare leg in front of my grandmother… then again in the restaurant with Sydney. If only they knew."