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Nice to see you too, Egan.

[Have a wan smile and Seth's trademark stare: half-vacant, one hundred percent disquieting.

It's been a while.]

[It's absolutely been a while. Not so long that the blank sort of smile is 110% disconcerting, but long enough that both of Dan's eyebrows stay exactly where they've shot up to.]

Shit. [That's a normal greeting here inside the Beltway, surely.] When the hell did you get here?

[In Seth's experience, it is a pretty typical greeting. Written across peoples' faces, if not spoken aloud. Anyway, it's good to know Egan's still working some intense eyebrows.]

You didn't notice? I've been following you for an hour now.

[Kidding. Definitely kidding, and Seth's smile tugs into a smirk.

He may or may not have done some digging into Dan's recent activities, but that's another story.]

Nah. A minute ago, maybe.

It was the strangest thing. I walked in, felt my skin start to crawl... And there you were. Dan Egan, in the flesh.

[He believes that it's been an hour, clearly. He also believes, sight unseen and prompt ungiven, that the chance there's any actual luck to bumping into a man like Seth Grayson are slim to fuck-all.

Which makes this either a really good thing or the beginning of a terrible nightmare.]

Cute. [His own twitching lips can't manage to be quite as blasé.] I mean the big 'here.' I could swear I heard you were off-- taking books from orphans.

[Relax, Dan; he's not after you. Seth's looking for something much bigger. At this point you're just a... potentially useful tool along the way.]

There are orphans in DC.

[He shrugs, glances around.] Where there's work, I follow.

Do you come here often?

[Hell if there's anything wrong with being a useful tool for the right person. Then again, hell if there's anything wrong with just being a tool in general. It seems to make breathing the Capitol air a little easier, honestly.]

Often enough. Where there's work, right?

[Or, at least, where there are other staffers, there's the potential to scrounge up enough muck to get better work. Semantics.]

Would have pegged you as more of a Komi or Marcel's guy, though.

[That's the way to see it! Surviving in DC is all about finding your role and really embracing it. Also kissing ass and serial backstabbing--a lot of that, too. Tool or parasite, sheep or wolf, everyone's got to pay their dues some time. And everyone's got to make friends (allies? pawns?) if they want to move ahead.]

Yeah, maybe if you're paying.

[Probably not even then. Places like that aren't great for tailing, and they leave him feeling exposed and out of place. (It doesn't help that he was once approached by an older woman who carefully explained that Seth was spoiling the atmosphere and ought to leave.)

Glancing around, Seth takes note of the patrons more than the joint itself. No one around he can identify; it's probably for the best.] I thought your table-waiting days were over.

[That's the problem with having an unreadable face. It hardly outweighed the benefits.

Dan's face, for its own part, has remained much more malleable--and able to be understood from a distance. Right now, at least, any more subtle (or helpful) emotions are masked largely by the continued low level shock he's operating under.

Not that his lips don't quirk sideways, briefly, toward a smirk now.]

Please. If that's your best guess, I don't need to be talking to you.

[But, then again, if Seth had come actually armed--and, therefore, fully aware of his current post as an ambitious staffer--then talking would probably be incredibly beneficial.

For Dan. Maybe also for Seth. It depended where Seth was really sitting... which Dan clearly didn't have the clearest idea about.]

[Seth would rather have a consummate poker face than a hundred-dollar meal any day. (And unless it's business-related, he doesn't care for taking the time to sit down a restaurant. Better to grab something quick and keep working.)

Just now, what he wants is information regarding Dan's employer. Seth's current contractor - one of them anyway - has a beef with the plastics industry. Seth has been instructed to seek out weak links in the industry's DC connections, which makes Senator Barbara Hallowes a clear target for investigation. He's already run the initial legwork. Has a few hunches, some leads he could pursue. First, though, it'd help to have a little extra information from inside.

And that's where Dan comes in. It'd been an almost-pleasant surprise to read his name listed among her staffers. Because if the man's anything like the Dan Egan Seth used to know... Well. Seth's counting on Dan's ambition. He's counting on the audacity that allows Dan to spill secrets if he thinks it'll get him somewhere. And he's counting on his own ability to read Egan through and through.

Besides, he is curious to see what Dan's made of himself. How much of his potential remains untarnished. Because if Dan's still got promise, he might be worth keeping in mind for future ventures.]

Don't tell me you don't have time for an old friend.

[Seth hasn't yet decided how to play this. Depends on what Dan responds to these days. Depends on how well he's learned to actually veil his feelings. So for the moment, Seth keeps an unruffled eye on Dan and leaves it at that.]

[Luckily, Dan's only gotten more ambitious with age. It's possible he's gotten a little less readable, of course, but that's surely nothing Seth can't get used to again.

His own potential isn't something he has a complete handle over yet, after all. He's still very much a more useful tool in someone else's hands than his own.

Luckily again, he's never had a huge amount of trouble handing over his soul to the highest bidder.]

An old friend.

[It's not necessarily the relationship word he would have used. It's clearly an upgrade from the one he would have used, from the brief twitch in his brow.]

Maybe half an hour.

[If Dan's managed to develop a more consistent cover for his expressions, Seth might actually applaud. It'd be a sign that the Egan's learned something out here in the big, scary world of politics. And Seth doesn't mind the extra challenge.

He's already watching for whatever signs Dan might show. And he sees that little twitch. Which is - all right - probably a fair reaction. Absolutely a fair reaction. Seth's never done 'friends' well, and his association with Dan had always been... Imbalanced? Not exactly close. And there had been, ahh, adventures that didn't end particularly well.

Still. Old ties usually count for something, and Seth's willing to bet his own ambitions - not to mention his particular talents - haven't been forgotten. It isn't sentimentality that's kept Egan standing here, after all.]

Must be my lucky day.

I guess if you can donate half an hour, I can cover coffee. Or lunch, if you're feeling adventurous.

[Half of old ties count for something; the other half are to be left dead in a ditch along with 'normal' ambition like 'marrying for love' and 'sleeping at night.'

This old tie, however, is wearing a very tasteful suit and holding his face as if he's made it into a pocket somewhere pretty far up off the ground.]

Let's give coffee a spin.

[A few pockets, actually, though he's searching for something bigger. Something with more long-term prospects. Someone who's really worth catching onto.

Well. What he has will do for now. It keeps him plenty busy. Grants access to information And it supplies him with those tasteful suits, even if he doesn't wear them especially well; polished presentation has never been a forte.]

Whatever you want.

[Seth moves toward the counter, glancing around as if considering his options. Not that there's really any question; he'll get the house blend, dump creamer in it, and call himself set. When he speaks again, he doesn't bother looking at Dan.]

So how's life been treating you, Egan?

[Mirroring has always been part of Dan's M.O., of course. He'll stop short of adding a boatload of creamer, true, but if this is a tall house-blend crowd? Then it'll be the same for Dan.]

Pretty well.

[He's gotten the right bland tone in his voice these days; the typical lack of overt affect political aids and underpaid staffers are meant to keep at all times so that complimenting their bosses comes off more genuinely excited.

But he can't keep his brows from lifting almost hopefully.] Getting ready to start moving out of the middle time, though.

[Smooth, Mr. Egan. Smooth.

Seth can appreciate the (not-necessarily-)helpful little hint, though. It's a sign that Dan's old eagerness hasn't been worn away by the daily grind. It's a sign that he thinks he might be able to get something out of Seth. And if Dan thinks he can get something, he'll be more likely to talk.

All of which suggests that a more direct approach might work here. Especially since loyalty isn't likely to be a stopping block. Seth gives Egan a glance, another flickered smile.]

Yeah? [His own voice is even as ever, uncolored by excitement or any strength of emotion. It's a way of evading scrutiny - not to mention a long-engrained habit - and fails him only when he's side-swiped by frustration.]

I heard you just took a new position.

Edited (pfff proper html tags what are those? also sorry about the sporadic response times, erk.) 2015-01-18 08:10 (UTC)