This empty house seems so cold (Victoria)

Subject: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Thu Jul 26, 2018 5:03 pm

Spoiler:

Beep, Beep, Beeeeeep, the display on the treadmill screeched as it was hit again and again, protesting against the ambush as it was already tuning at top speed. It wasn't the machine's fault its current user needed something a lot more than the fastest uphill setting available on the device.

Sweat poured down Senator Jackson's Blake body in tiny rivulets, soaking his tracks pants a darker shade of blue than they were and foraging glistening trails down bis bare torso, his raven hair clinging to his skin in clumps of wet strands above his eyebrows. The fast pounding of his feet drowned out by the loud music assaulting his ears through the headphones, Jackson had been abusing the machine for over two hours - and he wasn't about to stop anytime soon.

The gym routine had begun since his return from work. After a sickly day of pink roses and red hearts everywhere, the man's mood had grown fouler on the drive home and had culminated into him binning the box of chocolates the Goblin had given him - bow, unread card and all - right in the kitchen. It probably wasn't important seeing as she'd given one to every person in the office. There had even been cake though why the fuck people would bring cake on the fourteenth was beyond him. Sometimes Jackson figured it was his own fault was having an office full of chicks.

And with his current dry spell going on months, he was probably about to get his own periods soon enough.

His feet pounded harder on the machine, willing it to provide more of a challenge. If he could think, he could run faster. Sadly the machine did not know that and so kept up its steady pace while something loud and metal blared into his ears. Something about bitches needing some. All around the man, used exercise equipment told its tale. The sandbag he had boxed into a tired heap now lay in a corner, a drooping red mess that would need to be refilled and re tightened. the dumb bells he had lifted the token one hundred and one times now lay discarded and off their poles. Even the joint stretcher had snapped in the middle from having too much pressure applied to it.

Jackson was mad as hell and his gym would bear the brunt of it so he could pretend to be human again come tomorrow. There were no shortages of important decisions at the office. The NRA was waiting fro his reply and they were not known for their patience. Another Junior senator wanted to cut a deal to support his bill in exchange for blindly supporting whatever the fuck Jackson came up with in the next five years and Bitchy Tammy Baldwin was still in the media, touting her opponents inexperience and lack of resources or political acumen. But the worse news of all had been Sasha's refusal to come to Milwaukee coupled with her usual quip of not knowing much about politics.

She was lucky really, he reflected as the machine groaned and protested under his furious footfalls. Knowing politics was to suffer them, so why did he wish she would suffer with him? Or at least learn enough to advise him or even correct him. He had an office full of girls ready to correct him when he fucked up, hell that was why he hired them in the first place. That wouldn't possible be too much to ask of his own fucking fiance would it?

If he was being honest with himself though, it wasn't about Sasha knowing politics, it wasn't even about her not managing to make it, no this was something a lot bigger that that. Her coming would have just distracted him from it, despite how much the distraction would have cost both of them in the morning. The idea of intimacy with someone who was still clearly not of age in his mind was uncomfortable, the label of fiance not having done much to alienate the stigma from his mind. But at least it would be better than this growing frustration that made think about alcohol every time he was on his own.

A red blooded male with a history of addiction didn't have many options for stress release, and the long distance relationship he found himself in with its own crappy stipulations was not helping. Jackson had been hitting the gym more and more lately as proven by the fact that the most well used room in his new house was the one he was in right now. A diet of continuous protein shakes and supplements punctuated once a day by Victoria's lunches were working magic on is body, and not just the wizarding kind. The abs that had been firm before had now hardened beyond compere and the broad shoulders had now expanded to make room below for extra muscular segments. He could run faster than when he was a teenager high on youth and lift more than he had in college level sports. Jackson Blake was in the best shape of his life and slowly starting to derive the same kind of pleasure from working out that he'd only ever associated with alcohol.

The signs were there, but the wizard was too furious to notice, and too afraid to stop. Without his physical regiment, he would have nothing to fall back on.

Engrossed in his own thoughts and determined to spend the nights testing the limits of his body, the young man continued to run. When the bell rang or even if it did, he did not notice because someone was screaming into his ears from a studio far away. Truth be told the bell could have rung a dozen times without him being he wiser. Jackson was determined to keep the world out that night, but when had the world been so accommodating?

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This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Rsz_mi10

This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Rsz_ja12

This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Rsz_rs13

Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Thu Jul 26, 2018 6:32 pm

February the Fourteenth had come around almost as quickly as Victoria's birthday had! Since Jackson had won the election the witch had not had a day off from work. Through Christmas and New Year, the young witch had been in to work early in the morning, and last to leave every evening. Some Saturday's had been spent in the office, making sure that the paperwork needed first thing on Monday morning was done, but Victoria didn't mind. Workaholic, that was what the young witch was, and she was not going to allow Jackson a moment to think he was not capable of running this city!

It had, of course, meant that Victoria had lapsed on one very crucial point of Newbury tradition.

Victoria had had the frostiest phone call with Jake on Christmas Day when she'd asked to talk to him, his short answers, and numerous 'mmhmms' had not made the witch feel good about the decision of staying Stateside for the holidays. But the final nail in that coffin had been when Victoria had told her older brother how much she missed him, and that she would try to come home soon. The 'yeah, talk to you soon, then', had hurt the witch deeply as she sat alone in the apartment she'd taken on from Jackson.

She'd held it together long enough to talk to her niece and nephew who were talking excitedly about how Grandma had gotten them so very complicated sounded action game for their handheld consoles -- only to be left a moment later as Ivan tried to do some move, and 'died'. The phone had returned to her mom's hands, they'd exchanged seasons greetings once more, and then hung up. Jackson really, really did owe her for this favour.

Which, Victoria reminded herself, he should have been inviting his fiance over for!

January had come, though, and Jackson hadn't made up for the time she'd spent with him (and Merida) instead of with her own family. February had graced them, her birthday had passed (though, of course, the office hadn't forgotten, but she'd seen in Jackson's eyes that he had) and then had come Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day wasn't that big a deal to Victoria. Having only seen one year of the holiday with a boyfriend, the witch had very low expectations on the day. That, however, did not mean that she didn't participate, because Merlin if there was a reason to paint everything (figuratively, and literally) pink, Victoria Newbury was in!

Which was why Jackson Blake's offices had every Valentine's Day bunting going for it, any time someone opened a drawer they got covered in pink confetti, boxes of chocolates neatly wrapped in bows found themselves to everyone's desk with a small, personalised note to each member of staff -- a compliment on their work, their dress, their smile, anything to make someone smile. At eleven, the heart-shaped cupcakes had arrived, and the office was jittery with excitement.

Except, perhaps Linda in accounts, who was looking at all this spending with wide eyes, as if Victoria would have put it through on her expenses for the month! Victoria had had to personally console the older woman with a second cupcake to reassure her that this was all from her own pocket, and Jackson's coffers would not have to deal with it.

Which, Victoria had said with a glance at the man's office.

Jackson Blake did not look a happy man through the glass partition. In fact, Victoria was quite sure he was very, very mad. Try as he might to hide it as he flicked through the paperwork before him, Jackson's hands were much heavier in their movements than normal, his movements just a little more frustrated than Victoria would have liked...

By the time the last people left that evening -- the singletons of the office, of course, Victoria had felt tense. Jackson had left... two hours ago... three? Victoria wasn't sure. But, as she packed up, retrieved her handbag, and moved down to the foyer, she had summoned an Uber car in that time, and after a short wait, it had arrived.

First stop, Jackson's favourite diner.

It took a little while for the order to be ready, Jackson's large, meat covered pizza sat atop her knee, her own smaller Hawaiian pizza on top. A soda cup for each of them with the same size differences balanced precariously on top of them as the driver followed her instructions to Jackson's castle. She still wasn't over the fact Jackson had actually bought a house that looked like a princesses palace, but then, she reflected, it had probably been Sasha's choice.

Not thinking on it anymore, Victoria had thanked the driver as she got out, slipping him five dollars in cash as a tip for allowing her to get food, before moving to Jackson's front door. She'd rung the bell once, waited patiently for a number of minutes, before repeating the process twice more. When no answer came, the witch quickly reached in to her bag -- balancing their dinner precariously on one hip, to withdraw her keys on witch she had the spare one to Jackson's home. Letting herself in, the witch called out to the man she was looking for whilst moving to the kitchen to deposit the food.

No answer.

A small pit of worry opened in the witch's stomach, quickly flicking her wand at the pizza to keep it warm, Victoria moved upstairs, calling out intermittently to the man who had disappeared. It was as she passed Jackson's bedroom that she heard the thudding of his feet, and she outwardly exhaled. Whilst Jackson had never relapsed in her presence, the witch had researched his condition after their stay in Greenswitch. The struggle of others in the same position was unimaginable, and Victoria had... found herself worrying about Jackson when he was out of sorts. Like today.

"Oi, Mr Senator, I got you som..." Victoria's eyes went wide as she opened the door to the gym, finding Jackson's torso bare was... the witch's cheeks were aflame as she cut herself off from such a thought from being able to process. And yet, even as she didn't want to process it, even though she had seen Jackson topless before back at his apartment, she had never seen him...

Taking out her wand, the witch flicked it at the plug powering the machine, and then pulled back towards herself, watching the plug come away from the wall, and the machine stop. Smiling at that win -- was it a win when you stopped such a sight from being a thing? Victoria wasn't sure, and her eyes averted from the man's body before he could notice her looking at him. Later, perhaps -- NO!

"I got you dinner." The witch explained, her cheeks going even hotter in that moment as she turned from the room in an effort to get some fresh air. Everything had suddenly got quite warm, hadn't it?

It was just because he was working out, the room was hot because of that.

Yes, that was exactly what it was, the witch decided as she headed back to the kitchen.

Definitely not... anything else.

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Thu Jul 26, 2018 7:16 pm

Of course, when someone is distracted to all outside noises and running full tilt on a high speed treadmill with their back against the door, the sudden stopping of the machine puts a few scientific principals into effect. And seeing as Jackson had neither heard the tiny excuse for a human come in nor heard her declarations of why she was here or how she had made her way around the house, the random unplugging of the machine was the first sign of invading his space

The first reaction was the machine coming to an abrupt stop even as Jackson's feet kept pounding, now unaided by the moving convener belt. The second reaction was his feet propelling him forwards because they had not stopped while the machine had, lurching his frame into the display case with such force, the movement threw him off both figuratively and literally.

The third reaction was perhaps the most humiliating, the crash bouncing him back and off the treadmill and down on his ass, somewhere in the vicinity of the princess's feet. The fourth reaction was of course, nature taking its course.

"MOTHERFUCKER!" the man yelped as the scratch on his shoulder began to swell with tiny beads of blood as a result of the crash with the machine's glass display. A moment later, as if to add insult to injury, the podium of the mill let out a creak, showing internal damage to the already stressed out machine.

Only one person would come waltzing into his house as if it was her hovel. "Jesus Princess, ever heard of knocking," the young politician groused, still on the floor and disentangling the headphones from his ears. Without them, he could see how heavy his breathing was. How long had he been at this workout?

"Hang me a towel willya, its hanging behind the door?" he asked, still not getting up from his position on the floor. He was already down anyway, why bother? the mixture of sweat and blood continued to pour down his body, his heart rate finally slowing down as it recognized the decreasing tension of the body.

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Thu Jul 26, 2018 7:31 pm

"Jesus Princess, ever heard of knocking,"

"I did knock! Three times! But, someone was too 'in the zone' to hear me! And then, I called out to you more times than I can count. Still nothing!" Victoria told him flippantly, hiding her reddened cheeks from view in that moment because she did not need Jackson to get the wrong idea, nor did she need him teasing her for being so easily flushed. He was, after all, only shirtless. It wasn't that big of a deal. These things happened all the time!

The towel he asked for came flying at him, covering his body for a moment before it fell off of the slick planes of his muscles.

"Pizza downstairs. Put a shirt on before you come to the dinner table, Merida wouldn't approve of your current attire." Victoria told him, not managing to fight the smile off of her lips in that moment because the thought of his mother telling him off for indecency was much better than the reality of Senator Jackson Blake simply being shirtless. "And, it's the pizza you like most, so don't take too long!" Victoria added, as if a man ever needed a helpful reminder to get to the food before it went cold.

Without another word, Victoria moved downstairs, as she had planned in the first instance, back to her small pizza box. As she moved around, the witch remember just how much she disliked this house, the old-fashioned decor of the walls was just... not nice. No, the witch simply couldn't work out why Jackson had agreed, she'd always thought him to be more contemporary than this classical kind of vibe. Still, as long as Sasha liked it, then who was she to pass opinion on the place. Hopefully, the two would make a good go at the married life, when they got to it, at present, they were getting Sasha in to university in the States, not an easy feat in the current climate.

Collecting her pizza box, Victoria took up her seat at the dining table, her small pizza box open as she looked around the place, still not understanding all of this.

But, that was not why she was here. She was here to make sure Jackson Blake was okay, and not tempted to dip in to the spirits that would wreck the work they'd done thus far. Here to ensure that, even if his fiance couldn't be here, he wouldn't be alone on Valentine's Day. Not that Victoria had a plan on how this was going to work. Food, though, was a good starting place.

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Thu Jul 26, 2018 7:57 pm

Whatever her response to his rebuke was, Jackson missed amidst his own soft cursing as the wound continued to bleed. When the towel was lobbed his way, only to fall to the floor, the young politician rolled his eyes. If you wanted something done right, never ask a girl to do it. Their tits threw them off balance when it came to hand eye coordination. That was just a fact.

Though his ears did perk up at the mention of pizza, because they both knew well enough by now that if they were having pizza, it could only be for one place. When the little Goblin demanded he put on a shirt however, Jackson's mouth turned into a grumpy expression once more. "What if I don't want to?" he replied petulantly. Who was she to come into his house and order him around.

Her rebuttal of Merida was spot on though, leaving him grudgingly impressed. The princess as it turned out, liked to play dirty. Perhaps she was not such a novice to politics after all? "Whatever,' he muttered to her retreating back, getting off the floor and moving towards his bedroom. "Stupid Goblin," he added when he was sure she couldn't hear.

It was only as he was cleaning out the scratch before his five minute shower that he realized today was that accursed date. How long would the princess have had to wait in line to collect the pizza on a night when the place would be full of parents wanting to dump their kids into the ball pit to get an hour of romance with each other? Nah, she'd probably called ahead. And she'd probably name dropped him and reminded them of the five hundred dollar tip. They must have rushed her order even before she got there.

Yes, that version of events made him feel less guilty.

Still, he figured as he scrubbed his body underneath the hot water, maybe he might try to inconspicuously rescue her chocolates form the bin in the kitchen. Another few minutes of vigorous scrubbing and Jackson was done, stepping och of the shower and into a fresh pair of jeans and white t shirt. Once again, the man did not remember doing laundry but fresh clothes always appeared. And someone had had the foresight to buy more of the white t shirts he favored at home because it sure as hell wasn't him.

He really had to work out one day who the chores ghost was. But not today, today, pizza awaited. As a result the man was almost grinning as he appeared at the top of the stairs. Contemplating the shiny Bannister, where he decided what the hell and hopped on, sliding down the length of the polished wooden pole all the way down the stairs and landing with a laugh at the bottom, perfectly on his feet. Now that was the best way to navigate stairs!

"Oooh meat bonanza," he noted appreciatively, sliding on a chair beside her and destroying the place setting Victoria had made up opposite her own. This was his home after all, he could sit wherever he wanted. Pulling his larger box towards him, Jackson ignored the plates and utensils, throwing the cardboard container open and breaking off the first slice.

"I wasn't really hungry though," he clarified before stuffing half the slice in his mouth, pulling the other half away trailing strings of cheese. "What you got lonely in my flat? You haven't turned my curtains pink and my walls purple, have you?"

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Thu Jul 26, 2018 8:17 pm

Victoria was two slices in to her pizza by the time Jackson had come downstairs, the faint sound of the shower had denoted that the man had gone one step further than her request for putting a shirt on, and he'd decided to clean himself up. Not, of course, that the witch minded in the slightest. At least they wouldn't be eating in a fog of sweat fumes -- the idea was enough to put her off her slice of pizza for a moment as she turned her attention instead to her soda. A couple of mouthfuls and the idea had retreated, allowing her to eat once more.

Jackson appeared in the next moment, in fresh clothes. Fresh clothes that were clinging to his damp torso, the witch noted momentarily before she averted her eyes once more. Merlin's beard, this was the worst idea in the world! Well... second worst, the witch reflected as she cut another mouthful of pizza and dipped it in the mayonnaise she'd caught sight of on the way out of the pizzeria.

The man made himself comfortable -- as she expected, ignoring the utensils she'd laid out for him to use on his pizza, and instead opting for using his hands. Though, Victoria reflected, that was the much more normal method of eating pizza than her own. Hers just ended up less messy. A testament Jackson proved a moment later as stringy cheese flicked tomato sauce on to his shirt.

"I'll believe that when you tuck in to the pizza with less enthusiasm." Victoria replied with a fond smile. "But, you're welcome." The witch added, knowing that the comment was, in Jackson's own way, his way of saying thank you. It was a quirk you learned to live with with the man before her, he never outwardly thanked you for anything, you just had to pick up on the right words being spoken in the right pattern.

"Oh, definitely. So very, very bored, I was like 'Oh, I'll go see Jackson, drive all the way across town, grab pizza from the mobbed pizzeria he likes, because I have nothing in the world better to be doing tonight.'" The witch jested, clearly showing this was a joke so he wouldn't become offended. "Mostly pink, not so fond of purple, in truth, but mostly the colour scheme hasn't been changed, I've just changed the accessories within to make it more homely." The witch explained, taking another bite of pizza to take a pause.

"You seemed to be going for a world record with your running -- did you win?" Victoria asked, pushing the ball back in to the man's court instead. Her motive for being here didn't have to be explicitly stated. "Also, you really shouldn't have your music on so loud. I could have been anyone!" The witch added, genuine concern touching her features in that moment, it was the truth, after all, and Victoria would not like for her friend to get hurt in his own home.

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Fri Jul 27, 2018 7:04 pm

"I'll believe that when you tuck in to the pizza with less enthusiasm."

"Hey, its still good pizza," the politician managed around his mouthful, swallowing the bite before going in for the kill and stuffing the rest of the slice in his mouth. A satisfied smirk decorated his face as that portion of meat, cheese and crust went down too. No matter how bad a day, pizza always made it better. Even if he was literally just undoing the last three hours of work.

Even her sarcastic reply to his question couldn't put him off as he tore a new slice. "What can I say, the kids love me," he grinned before reaching for a glass of coke and draining it before realizing he'd taken hers instead of his own. "Oops," he managed, motioning for her to take his glass. "I also have some sodas in the fridge, I can get more." Though an unspoken agreement, every wine bottle he had received - and there had been well over twenty - at the housewarming event had mysteriously disappeared from his home at the end of the party.

Jackson knew who was responsible, he just wondered if she took them home with her or found something worthwhile to do with all that booze. He hadn't ever seen her drink around him, not even once, he realized with a start.

"Wait, Princess, do you not drink alcohol?" he asked, wondering why he had not noted such a key detail before. "I mean, I don't for obvious reasons, but you didn't even drink that night we won, and I know for a fact Connie doesn't carry around tea in her flask, she's just trying to be mindful." Connie was a ball buster in most aspects but this was one of her nicer qualities.

"You seemed to be going for a world record with your running -- did you win?"

"I was sabotaged," Jackson replied with a dark look at the Goblin. "Or I would have." Though he couldn't stay mad at her for long, not when there was fresh pizza in his hands. Choosing to tear of another huge chunk, Jackson chewed slowly, savoring the bite before adding on "But I accept your apology, and one day we'll have to go to a proper eatery. pizza is great and all but the best food in all Milwaukee - or slightly outside it - is Frank's Garbage Plate. You have not lived until you've eaten a real garbage plate."

A dreamy expression crossed his features as he imagined the heaping pile of food that had gotten its name from drunk students stumbling in at three a.m. demanding a 'all that garbage on a plate please". Jackson hadn't had a Garbage Plate in almost a yea, probably the toughest part of working the job he did.

"You read the NRA proposal?" he asked, now well into his third slice and showing no signs of stopping. A shitload of money in exchange for endorsing gun lobbyists and sticking against any kind of gun control legislation. The question was silly of course, Victoria read everything. No wonder she didn't have a date on this of all days.

But then again, neither did he. But that thought was consoled by the finishing of his third slice.

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Fri Jul 27, 2018 8:17 pm

Victoria couldn't help the fond smile that touched her lips at the comment from Jackson in respect of the pizza. It never ceased to amaze the witch how easily it was to make the man before her happy. Put food in front of him in the face of any problem, and Jackson Blake's worries would slowly ebb away from his shoulders. It took a while to notice these things, but Victoria had, which was precisely why she'd gone to the effort of the pizzeria, tonight of all nights, to ensure that he didn't do something that would throw away everything they had worked so hard for.

His next comment of the kids loving him made Victoria sober slightly as she reached for her glass of soda, finding it gone. Taking Jackson's with a small roll of her eyes, Victoria sipped to hide the awkwardness of that comment. Victoria knew, of course, that Jackson had not meant to enter in to a relationship with a minor, Victoria believed the man when he'd said he hadn't known Sasha was underage. Many people wouldn't have. But, that didn't mean Victoria could laugh easily at the mention of children loving the man before her. It was... slightly discomforting.

Even when she knew Jackson would never, ever do the thing he'd been hoodwinked in to.

"Wait, Princess, do you not drink alcohol?"

"Do I have to remind you how we became reacquainted?" Victoria asked the man before her with a small, nervous smile. She still didn't know what had happened that evening, not fully. The two of them had never discussed it, Victoria didn't want to discuss it. But it was something that had happened, no less. "Yes, I do drink. But I haven't, since the night we ran in to one another." Victoria explained, giving a small, casual shrug. "I haven't really thought about it, actively, to be honest..."

It just hadn't seemed right to drink in front of a man who would be struggling to be around the liquid. It didn't seem fair to drink when she would usually be close to Jackson most evenings where alcohol was present. But, now that she thought of it, she'd never realised that she was actively avoiding the substance... Though, perhaps it had been waking up the next morning in Jackson's apartment, clothes torn, head pounding, not remembering a thing and having marks all over her body with no recollection of how they'd come to be. She could sit and ponder the why's all evening, try to establish the catalyst of her decision, but really, did it matter?

"A Garbage Plate?" Victoria asked, her nose screwing up at the idea of this 'dinner' as she brought another mouthful of pizza to her mouth with her fork. "That sounds disgusting... but I'll let you enlighten me on what a Garbage Plate is before I completely write it off as disgusting..." Victoria offered politely, after all, you should never dismiss an idea without fully understanding it.

The next question, though, was one that made Victoria stop cutting at her pizza, her fork being laid down because there was one thing Victoria could not continue eating through, and that was when there was talk of the NRA. Guns and America were a joke worldwide, in the UK when she'd been away from all of this, it had been laughable. Seeing in the news the stupid things America was doing. They were unbelievable, a world away, surely a joke.

And then she had come back.

Gotten a job with Jackson Blake.

And realised how out of tune America was with reality.

"I did," Victoria told the man before her, allowing herself a moment before she looked straight at Jackson. "I think we should try to talk to Mr Harrington one more time before we commit to taking funding from the NRA. If not Mr Harrington, then I can look around for potential investments elsewhere..." The witch offered, showing clearly she was not for the proposal they'd been sent at all.

"If we jump in to bed with the NRA, we'll become their puppets. I don't want to end up being the city that allowed... something terrible to happen..." The witch explained, because they both knew that gun crime in America was much too high. And it was never, ever the NRA's fault.

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Fri Jul 27, 2018 8:45 pm

It was only when he saw he hesitation on her face that Jackson realized how his joke must have sounded. He had fully intended it to be a joke on the tiny witch sitting beside him, calling her a kid. But instead the conversation had turned much more sober than intended. Sasha's absence, or rather her presence in his life was encroaching upon their happy bubble and Jackson didn't like it. There were a million other things to talk about besides the fact that his fiance was not here, and that it was his lawyer who had gotten him a pizza on Valentines' Day - even if said lawyer was a tree Goblin with an unhealthy attachment to pink.

But instead of trying to clarify or alliterative the mood, the man simply shoved another piece of pie in his mouth, because as he'd pointed out earlier, it was good pizza. Eventually talk turned to Garbage Plates and the man was truly in his element. "They're hard to explain<' he began, speaking around the bite of cheese and sausages covered in marinara source. "But it basically started out in New York like half a decade ago when drunk college students wondered into a restaurant and asked for "Some garbage on a plate". The establishment basically out anything and everything they had leftover on plate and served it."

More of the pizza disappeared as he spoke, recounting how the plates varies with each place but usually had the mac salad, the two cheeseburgers, hot wings, fries, some sort of bean based curry and a bit of bread on the side. "Frank's the best though, he never even tries to separate the foods, so the macaroni salad and the curry and the cheese from the burgers all go into one huge pile. Best. Garbage. Plate. Ever."

Reaching for his soda glass to find it empty, the man eyed Victoria's beverage for a moment before calculating the odds. She was so tiny, she probably didn't need the whole glass. But if she got mad... well, it would be hella amusing to watch, but she might not bring over pizza anymore. Casually waving his wand, Jackson summoned a few cans of cola to the table, making them land with a flourish between him and the witch.

"We should go sometime," he suggested before his eyes brightens up. "We should go tonight, but after midnight when all the saps have gone home to get laid. It's only an hour's ride on my bike, no portals."

When talk turned to more serious business, Jackson nodded. He knew what she meant, but he also knew the practical of the situation. "Even if we don't buy into their crap, someone else will. We both know the NRA doesn't need us to win, we would just benefiting if we support it." Ever since his thank you notes had gone ignored by Kit Harrington and his invitation to Jackson's housewarming party meeting the same fate, the politician was starting to worry that despite his win, he had lost a great deal of financial support in the Californians billionaire. Victoria was perhaps the only other person in his life who knew he extent of that worry.

"Unless you know someone else who can give us ten mil out of the goodness of their heart. Maybe we should call your brother?" It was clearly a joke. Jackson had no idea how much Jake Newbury was actually worth and he didn't really intend to find out. The Goblin didn't like asking her family for money and he could respect that.

Her explanation about why she hadn't drank was not something Jackson liked to comment on. How he'd found her seemed a lifetime ago and it still made him to punch Metz and co repeatedly in the face. However, he could offer some help.

"You know, I like going into the woods sometimes, to hunt or just swim against the river. You should come, it makes you feel sort of cool to be in that much control. Have you ever fired an actual gun?"

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Subject: Re: This empty house seems so cold (Victoria) Fri Jul 27, 2018 9:11 pm

As Jackson explained the Garbage Plate to her, Victoria couldn't help but feel slightly curious for how all of those foods, thrown together on one plate, would taste, but also feel slightly worried for one's stomach the next day. Still, as with everything, you wouldn't know until you tried it. Slowly, the look of apprehension turned to curiosity as Jackson explained the Plate, and after the offer of going to get one was raised, Victoria couldn't help but let out a soft laugh. "Fine, fine, if you're still hungry, we'll go after midnight and get one. But, no portals on your bike this time! They're horrible!" Victoria insisted, shaking her head at the thought.

Once had been more than enough, and she did not wish to be clinging to Jackson Blake again for dear life.

"And only if you have a Winter mode on the bike, too." Victoria added firmly. She was not going to die on the back of Jackson Blake's motorbike, of that much the witch was sure. "Oh, and you're buying." Victoria added with a triumphant smile as she sealed the deal. Merlin knew she bought the man before her more food than she kept tabs on, it was about time he repaid the favour, if only once!

"I know," Victoria had replied to the comment on the NRA. She knew, and she did not like it, not one bit. But, that didn't mean they had to give up on it, just yet. "We have a little more time, though, before we have completely run out of funding. Just... give me a week, let me see if I can get a hold of Mr Harrington and arrange more funds. If I can't get to him, and I can't find someone else, then we'll work with the NRA."

The compromise was not one that Victoria liked. A week was not enough time. But if the witch could find even the smallest glint of hope in the next week, enough to buy herself one more week from the Senator before her, and then maybe another, perhaps she could secure monies from another third party. Not Jake, though, even if Jake had that kind of money -- which Victoria did not know, at all -- she would not ask her brother to fund her work. There were bounds even the Newbury siblings wouldn't jump for one another, and it was no secret that Jake did not approve of her most recent venture.

Despite herself, though, Victoria found herself letting out a soft laugh at the idea of Jake bailing them out. She knew Jackson wasn't serious, how could he be. But... it lightened the mood back up again, and that much was useful to Victoria in that moment. The NRA just didn't sit well with Victoria, and she doubted they ever would.

The next question made Victoria shake her head, picking her fork up to pick at the small pizza before her that was barely half touched. No longer hungry, but trying to imagine Jackson's idea of 'control' made the witch unsure of what she was about to say next. Did she trust Jackson with that much information?

"I haven't, no." Victoria admitted. "The closest I have ever gotten to something resembling a gun would be my wand. However... offensive spells, spells meant to damage... I've always struggled with. Healing spells, household spells... they work well, but never ones with the intention of harm coming to anything. I would imagine hunting would be as fruitless, too..." The witch admitted, her cheeks heating once more. She knew, of course, that very few people had ever had as much of an issue with those spells as she had, it made her O.W.L.S. and N.E.W.T.S. vastly more difficult than they had to be, but it was just one of those things in life.

"If we're not aiming at... at animals, perhaps you could show me?" Victoria asked cautiously, because she did not intend to be dragged in to the world of hunting with the idea she would actively participate in it. She would not. Ever. "And, then perhaps the swimming in the river. Though, I'm not the strongest of swimmers, truthfully."

Which was a completely different story, that Victoria didn't want to get in to.

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