A Hellfire Club Interview (kinda NSFW)
Sep. 9th, 2016 03:51 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsHope talks with Emma, Doug and Julian about taking a position in the White Court.
If Hope had an interest in joining the Inner Courts of the Hellfire Club, Emma thought, there was little point in concealing from her exactly the kind of club that it was.
Thus the interview, interrogation, call it what you will was taking place in the formal meeting rooms in the Club. The intimidating boardroom appearance, all oak and leather and dark club colours, was augmented by the slight tweaks that Emma had made to the lighting and placement of the furniture. The discreet placement of anchor points were suddenly less discreet, the small scatter of volumes left not at all carelessly near where Hope was sitting had their titles picked out in gold and the pictures on the walls made clear some of the more esoteric rituals that the club sometimes indulged in. The chair Emma had had taken out of storage and now sat in at the head of the table didn’t so much hint at being a throne as boldly state it.
In deference to the fact that this was only an initial interview, however, Emma was not wearing her Queen’s regalia but instead a white, perfectly tailored Christian Dior one-button suit. She hadn’t felt the need to wear a shirt underneath it and pale skin shone and shifted as she leaned back comfortably.
“Hope,” she said, her tone pleasant but without a smile. “My Knight tells me that you may be interested in a position in my White Court.” She nodded at Doug and Julian, who flanked her, seated in chairs that were slightly less ornate versions of her own.
"That is correct, Ms. Frost." Hope replied quickly after finishing her discrete glance at the strange, almost lurid, painting across from her. "From what Mr. Ramsey has told me, I think I can contribute to the Inner Court. Though I am also the first to say I am young and therefore also still learning much as well."
“There’s always things to learn at the Hellfire Club,” said Emma. “Where to hide the evidence, to start with.” She smiled at Hope. “I have been rather busy lately and haven’t been attending as many Club events as I should. Not since the White Court’s détente with the Black Court on mutant affairs, at least. Has my Knight introduced you to some of the events that the Club is… infamous for?”
"Informed, yes. Introduced..." Bringing a young woman like Hope who had blushed at being openly flirted with by a woman to even the tamest of Hellfire socials would have been like tossing red meat into a shark tank, in Doug's opinion. But he had done his best to impress on her that the bacchanals were just as much a part of being a member as the intrigues and the resources it made available. Whether she'd gotten the message was anyone's guess, though.
"He has been quite frank in his tales, Ms. Frost." Hope confirmed and she was happy when she didn't feel the telltale warmth of a blush rise on her face. "Though I am well aware that it's something entirely different to be a part of it. To partake so to speak."
“Despite appearances on occasion, nobody partakes in the activities available at a Hellfire Club gathering unless they are willing,” Emma responded. “And as a telepath, I can swear to that.” She leaned forward, suddenly serious. “In a way, they are a test. We are the rich and powerful and one of the things it does is make you bored with everything. Nothing is a challenge. Nothing is unavailable. We are always bored and just a little bit contemptuous and it’s how we test that you are one of us. You don’t need to participate, but you do need to maintain your air of bored ennui as the fat little man in front of you continues to discuss stock prices while receiving vigorous fellatio from an athletic and underclad young lady. Or man. Or both. It may sound foolish or scandalous or immoral, but it is important and something you need to know how to do to deal with people like me. Like us.” She nodded at Doug and Julian. “Like the Black Court. It is the ticket of admission to our world and your passport once you’re part of it and it is the most important piece of camouflage you can have. Do you understand what I mean?” Emma’s question was directed at Hope with an unnerving intensity.
"I understand what you mean, Ms Frost." Hope confirmed her a nod. "Self-control is something I have practiced all my life, but I also know it will take me some practice to maintain that control in the kind of situation you describe." And to stop that infernal blushing issue she was still working on... but it was getting better.
It was a lesson Doug had had to learn himself, though in some ways the ways Day Zero had changed him had made it easier on him. But he still remembered the timid, blushing young man he'd been when he first arrived at the mansion. Still, if he hadn't believed that Hope would ultimately succeed, this meeting would not have been happening. "Self-control is absolutely the most important thing," he said. He chuckled at the lyric that popped into his head. "Talk less. Smile more..."
Julian tapped the send button on his new phone, the stylus moving itself over the surface a few feet away from him. He suppressed the urge to move his unkempt hair behind his ears with his now-non-existent hands, settling for a shake of his head to settle what was becoming an unmanageable mane. "I think you gave me the same advice once, Doug," Julian's phone slid to his upper vest pocket as he glanced the scandalized looks from his supposed betters. "My queen," he began, finally paying attention, "Hope has served me for the past year...two years?" he looked to Hope for confirmation. "Doesn't matter," he pressed on, "she's valuable. She'd be an asset."
Emma raised one perfect blonde eyebrow at Julian, though it was impossible to tell from her expression whether it was in disapproval of his speaking out of turn or approbation at his willingness to voice his opinion. It was entirely possible it was both. “I have no doubt you are an intelligent and resourceful young lady,” Emma spoke to Hope, rather than responding directly to Julian. “Your work when we were trapped with that mind parasite was sufficient to show me that.” Emma allowed the smallest shudder to run through her at the thought of all those bunnies and puppies. “But our work here is not that of heroes, if that is what you wish to be. The Club’s ways are morally ambiguous, to say the least. We do what needs to be done to achieve our goals. We blackmail, we subvert, we destroy, we hack, we financially ruin, we make good men unelectable. Because I am the White Queen, I will tell you that we do these things for the greater good, but when you come right down to it, I am the one defining what is the greater good. I think I do it well, but these things are done on our own judgement and we have to trust that what we are doing is in the best interests of mutantkind. Sometimes mankind. Mostly mutantkind.” She paused for a moment, tapping her fingernails on the table in thought. “And we work with the Black Court. With Sebastian and his people. Not on all things, but on some things. We have rules and we play by them, and being part of my Court means that you agree to play by those rules, no matter how much they may offend you. That includes not seeing a place in the White Court as an opportunity to destroy the Black Court. We are counterweights to each other. And frankly I do not wish to expend my energy making an active enemy of the Black Court; Sebastian may seem… unsubtle, but he is a formidable opponent that I do not care to engage as such. Would you be willing to work within such strictures?”
"The true game of power has always been played in the shadows, but that is no place for heroes. To play the game there, that takes a different kind of person. I am that kind of person." Hope's gaze turned steely as she faced the White Queen directly. "I can work within those structures. I can follow your lead, Ms. Frost. But I will not allow anyone to force me to check in my brain and my heart at the door. Not again." Not like the Archduke forced her to do.
“Your heart and mind is what I need the most, Hope. I need people who can think. People who are clever enough to see a problem long before it appears on anyone else’s radar and clever enough to find ways to solve that problem. And your heart to tell me when I have strayed too far from the right path. Despite all my efforts to the contrary, I am neither infallible nor omnipotent. I need people who are willing to tell me when they think I am wrong.” Emma smiled again, half in jest. “Most of them have even kept their heads afterwards. My right as Queen, however, is to make the final decision, despite all advice. My responsibility as Queen is to make the best decision that I can. And to protect you. I do not promise to keep you safe. I cannot do that.” It was a fleeting touch on the minds of all of the people in the room. Doug’s sister. Julian’s hands. Emma’s sorrow. “But I will protect you to the absolute ends of which I am capable. Even when I’m feeding you to the monster.”
"Sometimes literally." It was a point in favor of how far he'd come from Day Zero that Doug could joke about it, even when he still woke from occasional nightmares of drowning in the dark. "And even when she feeds you to it, she'll come to cut you out." A strong undercurrent of gratitude flowed from him to Emma. The remark about being willing to tell her when they thought she was wrong resonated with him - it was what he'd always seen as his role with her, keeping her from losing Emma Frost too much inside the White Queen.
"That I can work with, Ms. Frost." Hope tilted her head a little. "When I would join, what would my role in the Court be? What would be my responsibilities? Doug has mentioned a few generalities, but I would like to form a somewhat more concrete picture."
“There are a number of positions available that you could be considered for. I would prefer to keep you low on Sebastian’s radar for now, so it would seem best to slot you into the Outer Court. The Black Court tends to overlook those it considers junior members, which can be very useful.” Emma tilted her chin slightly in Julian’s direction. “As to which position – Julian, you have worked most closely with Hope. What would you recommend?”
Julian did not radiate the same gratitude as Doug; not that there was any resentment toward Emma herself, but more-so to the fact he'd been stuck on that much overlooked outer-court. Putting away his phone and putting his serious face on, he shut his eyes and tried to visualize the organizational chart they'd made him memorize. "Herald, Sentry, Witness, Page, Chateline," he paused between each word, giving them weight and consideration. Then, "Hope has always impressed me with her seeming ability to know things she shouldn't and given her powers...something in the line of the Bishop, I'd think. Given her connection to my Knight, Sentry seems like a good fit."
Doug's eyebrow raised fractionally, the only reaction to Julian's slight appropriation of 'his' knight. Julian hadn't earned the same loyalty from him that Emma had, after all. But he was used to Julian pushing boundaries by this point, and so he kept the peace. He then turned to Hope, to see what her reaction would be.
"I still know far too little to give a considered reply. Thank you for your opinion, Mr. Keller." Hope bowed her head to Julian. "But you are my mentor in many of the skills I have acquired, Doug. I would really like your perspective as well."
"I think Emma's absolutely right about the Black Court - it tends to be Sebastian Shaw, and everyone tries to curry favor with him directly. As a result, they figure the entirety of the White Court is Emma much of the time." Doug chuckled. It made it easier for Emma, himself, and Julian to play off of those expectations and subvert them. "So I think an outer court position would be a good place for you to ease into things. As for particulars...I think Julian is right about Hope's working well in information gathering. The security aspect of Sentry..." He wavered his hand. "Not so much. I was thinking perhaps Herald."
Julian smirked and shrugged, wondering if Doug had known that was where he'd actually wanted to have Hope to begin with. "Like I said, she's an asset, she'll do well wherever you deem her talents are best suited." Turning to look directly at Emma, "Your Majesty, I'd second Herald, if it matters at all."
Emma’s smile at Julian was the lazy smile of cat that had swallowed the cream but nonetheless sincere. “I always value your opinion, Julian. I haven’t had you killed for anything yet, have I? Surely that’s proof of my sincerity.” She turned that lazy smile on Hope. “Information gathering, diplomacy – I think Herald would be an excellent position for you to display your talents, Hope. And the parties for joining the Outer Court are nothing near as intense as those for joining the Inner Court, so you can start learning how to deal with that blushing issue.” Emma rose and stalked her way around the table, all feline grace, until she stood behind Hope. She spoke her next words into Hope’s ear, her breath warm against the skin of Hope’s neck. “Rich, powerful, bored. Clever, brave, ruthless. You can be all of those things. You have to be all of those things. Welcome to the White Court, my Herald.”
If Hope had an interest in joining the Inner Courts of the Hellfire Club, Emma thought, there was little point in concealing from her exactly the kind of club that it was.
Thus the interview, interrogation, call it what you will was taking place in the formal meeting rooms in the Club. The intimidating boardroom appearance, all oak and leather and dark club colours, was augmented by the slight tweaks that Emma had made to the lighting and placement of the furniture. The discreet placement of anchor points were suddenly less discreet, the small scatter of volumes left not at all carelessly near where Hope was sitting had their titles picked out in gold and the pictures on the walls made clear some of the more esoteric rituals that the club sometimes indulged in. The chair Emma had had taken out of storage and now sat in at the head of the table didn’t so much hint at being a throne as boldly state it.
In deference to the fact that this was only an initial interview, however, Emma was not wearing her Queen’s regalia but instead a white, perfectly tailored Christian Dior one-button suit. She hadn’t felt the need to wear a shirt underneath it and pale skin shone and shifted as she leaned back comfortably.
“Hope,” she said, her tone pleasant but without a smile. “My Knight tells me that you may be interested in a position in my White Court.” She nodded at Doug and Julian, who flanked her, seated in chairs that were slightly less ornate versions of her own.
"That is correct, Ms. Frost." Hope replied quickly after finishing her discrete glance at the strange, almost lurid, painting across from her. "From what Mr. Ramsey has told me, I think I can contribute to the Inner Court. Though I am also the first to say I am young and therefore also still learning much as well."
“There’s always things to learn at the Hellfire Club,” said Emma. “Where to hide the evidence, to start with.” She smiled at Hope. “I have been rather busy lately and haven’t been attending as many Club events as I should. Not since the White Court’s détente with the Black Court on mutant affairs, at least. Has my Knight introduced you to some of the events that the Club is… infamous for?”
"Informed, yes. Introduced..." Bringing a young woman like Hope who had blushed at being openly flirted with by a woman to even the tamest of Hellfire socials would have been like tossing red meat into a shark tank, in Doug's opinion. But he had done his best to impress on her that the bacchanals were just as much a part of being a member as the intrigues and the resources it made available. Whether she'd gotten the message was anyone's guess, though.
"He has been quite frank in his tales, Ms. Frost." Hope confirmed and she was happy when she didn't feel the telltale warmth of a blush rise on her face. "Though I am well aware that it's something entirely different to be a part of it. To partake so to speak."
“Despite appearances on occasion, nobody partakes in the activities available at a Hellfire Club gathering unless they are willing,” Emma responded. “And as a telepath, I can swear to that.” She leaned forward, suddenly serious. “In a way, they are a test. We are the rich and powerful and one of the things it does is make you bored with everything. Nothing is a challenge. Nothing is unavailable. We are always bored and just a little bit contemptuous and it’s how we test that you are one of us. You don’t need to participate, but you do need to maintain your air of bored ennui as the fat little man in front of you continues to discuss stock prices while receiving vigorous fellatio from an athletic and underclad young lady. Or man. Or both. It may sound foolish or scandalous or immoral, but it is important and something you need to know how to do to deal with people like me. Like us.” She nodded at Doug and Julian. “Like the Black Court. It is the ticket of admission to our world and your passport once you’re part of it and it is the most important piece of camouflage you can have. Do you understand what I mean?” Emma’s question was directed at Hope with an unnerving intensity.
"I understand what you mean, Ms Frost." Hope confirmed her a nod. "Self-control is something I have practiced all my life, but I also know it will take me some practice to maintain that control in the kind of situation you describe." And to stop that infernal blushing issue she was still working on... but it was getting better.
It was a lesson Doug had had to learn himself, though in some ways the ways Day Zero had changed him had made it easier on him. But he still remembered the timid, blushing young man he'd been when he first arrived at the mansion. Still, if he hadn't believed that Hope would ultimately succeed, this meeting would not have been happening. "Self-control is absolutely the most important thing," he said. He chuckled at the lyric that popped into his head. "Talk less. Smile more..."
Julian tapped the send button on his new phone, the stylus moving itself over the surface a few feet away from him. He suppressed the urge to move his unkempt hair behind his ears with his now-non-existent hands, settling for a shake of his head to settle what was becoming an unmanageable mane. "I think you gave me the same advice once, Doug," Julian's phone slid to his upper vest pocket as he glanced the scandalized looks from his supposed betters. "My queen," he began, finally paying attention, "Hope has served me for the past year...two years?" he looked to Hope for confirmation. "Doesn't matter," he pressed on, "she's valuable. She'd be an asset."
Emma raised one perfect blonde eyebrow at Julian, though it was impossible to tell from her expression whether it was in disapproval of his speaking out of turn or approbation at his willingness to voice his opinion. It was entirely possible it was both. “I have no doubt you are an intelligent and resourceful young lady,” Emma spoke to Hope, rather than responding directly to Julian. “Your work when we were trapped with that mind parasite was sufficient to show me that.” Emma allowed the smallest shudder to run through her at the thought of all those bunnies and puppies. “But our work here is not that of heroes, if that is what you wish to be. The Club’s ways are morally ambiguous, to say the least. We do what needs to be done to achieve our goals. We blackmail, we subvert, we destroy, we hack, we financially ruin, we make good men unelectable. Because I am the White Queen, I will tell you that we do these things for the greater good, but when you come right down to it, I am the one defining what is the greater good. I think I do it well, but these things are done on our own judgement and we have to trust that what we are doing is in the best interests of mutantkind. Sometimes mankind. Mostly mutantkind.” She paused for a moment, tapping her fingernails on the table in thought. “And we work with the Black Court. With Sebastian and his people. Not on all things, but on some things. We have rules and we play by them, and being part of my Court means that you agree to play by those rules, no matter how much they may offend you. That includes not seeing a place in the White Court as an opportunity to destroy the Black Court. We are counterweights to each other. And frankly I do not wish to expend my energy making an active enemy of the Black Court; Sebastian may seem… unsubtle, but he is a formidable opponent that I do not care to engage as such. Would you be willing to work within such strictures?”
"The true game of power has always been played in the shadows, but that is no place for heroes. To play the game there, that takes a different kind of person. I am that kind of person." Hope's gaze turned steely as she faced the White Queen directly. "I can work within those structures. I can follow your lead, Ms. Frost. But I will not allow anyone to force me to check in my brain and my heart at the door. Not again." Not like the Archduke forced her to do.
“Your heart and mind is what I need the most, Hope. I need people who can think. People who are clever enough to see a problem long before it appears on anyone else’s radar and clever enough to find ways to solve that problem. And your heart to tell me when I have strayed too far from the right path. Despite all my efforts to the contrary, I am neither infallible nor omnipotent. I need people who are willing to tell me when they think I am wrong.” Emma smiled again, half in jest. “Most of them have even kept their heads afterwards. My right as Queen, however, is to make the final decision, despite all advice. My responsibility as Queen is to make the best decision that I can. And to protect you. I do not promise to keep you safe. I cannot do that.” It was a fleeting touch on the minds of all of the people in the room. Doug’s sister. Julian’s hands. Emma’s sorrow. “But I will protect you to the absolute ends of which I am capable. Even when I’m feeding you to the monster.”
"Sometimes literally." It was a point in favor of how far he'd come from Day Zero that Doug could joke about it, even when he still woke from occasional nightmares of drowning in the dark. "And even when she feeds you to it, she'll come to cut you out." A strong undercurrent of gratitude flowed from him to Emma. The remark about being willing to tell her when they thought she was wrong resonated with him - it was what he'd always seen as his role with her, keeping her from losing Emma Frost too much inside the White Queen.
"That I can work with, Ms. Frost." Hope tilted her head a little. "When I would join, what would my role in the Court be? What would be my responsibilities? Doug has mentioned a few generalities, but I would like to form a somewhat more concrete picture."
“There are a number of positions available that you could be considered for. I would prefer to keep you low on Sebastian’s radar for now, so it would seem best to slot you into the Outer Court. The Black Court tends to overlook those it considers junior members, which can be very useful.” Emma tilted her chin slightly in Julian’s direction. “As to which position – Julian, you have worked most closely with Hope. What would you recommend?”
Julian did not radiate the same gratitude as Doug; not that there was any resentment toward Emma herself, but more-so to the fact he'd been stuck on that much overlooked outer-court. Putting away his phone and putting his serious face on, he shut his eyes and tried to visualize the organizational chart they'd made him memorize. "Herald, Sentry, Witness, Page, Chateline," he paused between each word, giving them weight and consideration. Then, "Hope has always impressed me with her seeming ability to know things she shouldn't and given her powers...something in the line of the Bishop, I'd think. Given her connection to my Knight, Sentry seems like a good fit."
Doug's eyebrow raised fractionally, the only reaction to Julian's slight appropriation of 'his' knight. Julian hadn't earned the same loyalty from him that Emma had, after all. But he was used to Julian pushing boundaries by this point, and so he kept the peace. He then turned to Hope, to see what her reaction would be.
"I still know far too little to give a considered reply. Thank you for your opinion, Mr. Keller." Hope bowed her head to Julian. "But you are my mentor in many of the skills I have acquired, Doug. I would really like your perspective as well."
"I think Emma's absolutely right about the Black Court - it tends to be Sebastian Shaw, and everyone tries to curry favor with him directly. As a result, they figure the entirety of the White Court is Emma much of the time." Doug chuckled. It made it easier for Emma, himself, and Julian to play off of those expectations and subvert them. "So I think an outer court position would be a good place for you to ease into things. As for particulars...I think Julian is right about Hope's working well in information gathering. The security aspect of Sentry..." He wavered his hand. "Not so much. I was thinking perhaps Herald."
Julian smirked and shrugged, wondering if Doug had known that was where he'd actually wanted to have Hope to begin with. "Like I said, she's an asset, she'll do well wherever you deem her talents are best suited." Turning to look directly at Emma, "Your Majesty, I'd second Herald, if it matters at all."
Emma’s smile at Julian was the lazy smile of cat that had swallowed the cream but nonetheless sincere. “I always value your opinion, Julian. I haven’t had you killed for anything yet, have I? Surely that’s proof of my sincerity.” She turned that lazy smile on Hope. “Information gathering, diplomacy – I think Herald would be an excellent position for you to display your talents, Hope. And the parties for joining the Outer Court are nothing near as intense as those for joining the Inner Court, so you can start learning how to deal with that blushing issue.” Emma rose and stalked her way around the table, all feline grace, until she stood behind Hope. She spoke her next words into Hope’s ear, her breath warm against the skin of Hope’s neck. “Rich, powerful, bored. Clever, brave, ruthless. You can be all of those things. You have to be all of those things. Welcome to the White Court, my Herald.”
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