Iron Station Savage Masks IC IV

[mmdeforrest]

November 8th
Providence
There have been several plots, Emi agrees.

Emi looks around at the assembled Kelley family. “How long you want to keep everything quiet is up to all of you. I’ll probably be contacted for a couple of interviews, but it will be all of you that may bear the brunt of media attention. Once it gets out that John is dating me, there will be people that are going to look into your family, and camp outside of your house to try and get comments on our relationship, at least for a little while. And I apologize for that, but unfortunately, being Eidolon’s daughter causes these sorts of things.”

“No, dear” Mary immediately responded with steel in her voice and fire in her eyes. “I will not have you apologizing for who you are or who your family is. We can be nothing but proud of your choosing to associate with our John and if this is the cost for having you join us around the table it is a small price to pay. So long as you are one of us, we will respond to this together and without apology to anyone.”

Spoiler: Mary’s feelings on this matter are clear

Show

As Mary speaks, Emi can feel her sphere of concern actively extend to include her. Just as unapologetically, her use of the word family vibrates both with a sense of the Shaws and the Kelleys—although there is a recognition the latter is provisional rather than permanent.


So far.

Out of the corner of her eye, Emi caught Joe smirking and raising a self-amused eyebrow.

Mary gave him a look before rolling her eyes in exasperation. “Oh, go ahead and say it. I know you won’t be satisfied until you do and nothing I could say would stop you from saying it anyway.”

Joe looked back to Emi. “My father would remind me from time to time that a Kelley is as good as any man. I may also have repeated that once or twice.”

“He’s displaying his gift for understatement,” Stephen muttered at the table.

“Regardless,” Joe continued, pretending not to notice, “we have nothing to hide or be afraid of. In addition, the FPO has been prepped to be able to say nothing in a sound bite appropriate format about my activities for some time—even though it hasn’t had to do it before now.”

He turned to John. “Standing plans?”

“The Foundation prepared a press release,” John replied, “since any serious research into me will likely uncover my name on a host of official documents. Once my name appears, it will release that to the usual philanthropic journals and major news wires. We hope to get out in front of that via an interview with Aimee Balinski, one the Bellview Street Journals’s reporters who happens to be Seraph’s soon to be sister-in-law. Her profile of me and my work with the Foundation should be enough to keep the media busy for a news cycle or two. That should keep most of the media’s attention on Iron Station rather than Providence.”

And if anything, I have been more interested in telling people we are dating rather than keeping that quiet. I have wanted to keep things low key for you and your family’s sake.

Joe nodded approvingly. “Good, as far as it goes but anything more than that will be a reaction to events rather than prep work anyway. I’m assuming the Foundation is also working up a press packet on you. I’ll have my company’s profile checked and updated and make sure your three’s bios are polished and the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank has its PR teams to handle inquiries about your mother.”

“Will it annoy the paparazzi if I vamp for the camera?” Kate asked Emi as they walked to the table. “If it will irritate them, Jefferey and I can start practicing later today.”

“And I can always ask if they want to cover the quintet and, if not, to say nothing. Odds are, the nuns will keep them away from me, though.”

“We can work on some standard language tonight,” Mary said as she poured some maple syrup on her pancakes. “But don’t you worry about us, Emi. Truth be told, it will be a relief to be able to directly answer when people ask about you and John at the office.

She sits in the place she was assigned last night and waits for Kate to join her to start eating her pancakes. “These are delicious Joe,” she says sweetly. “I might need to steal your recipe after all.”

“I’d try and keep it from you but John has a copy of it and I suspect you will be able to get it out of him.”