interesting rich people

[self_composed]

The party guest list includes a wide range of interestingnesses of rich people. There's a fellow who sits on various boards of various faceless corporations; there's two who started startups and swept up a few million dollars that way; there's a small handful of professional philanthropists, who have oodles of money from various sources and make a hobby of distributing the interest to worthy pet causes; there is a congresswoman, and a state senator, both from New York but apparently willing to travel to the West Coast on occasion. There's also a lot of dull old money who do this sort of thing and nothing but all the time, but they still concentrate a lot of financial leverage, and Bella would rather have ins with them than not, as long as she can.

She bikes up - speeding shamefully, hexing herself radar detection, and cutting the trip in half from its estimated time to just eight hours on the road. Tegu can go very very fast.

Alice made her a new dress for the occasion - this one's autumny, mostly a dark red-brown, with leaf patterns in deep gold and burnt orange swirling up around and soft ruffles in the same colors around her knees and puffing out over one shoulder. It stands out more than the little black dress - which is fine. She would like attention, and just being the hostess's son's girlfriend will not quite get her there at a rich people party, she thinks.

Comments

[self_composed]

"Ooh," says Bella, affecting sudden distraction by hors d'oeuvres. "I think those might be jalapeno poppers. It was nice to meet you!"

And off she goes towards the poppers and other variously interesting rich people. [Where are you at?] Bella asks Alice. [A lady called Sophie just complimented my dress and said you were talented when I told her you made it.]

[edgeofyourseat]

[Hiding in the basement,] says Alice. [Sophie, huh? Who's she?]

[self_composed]

[Random person, unGoogleable, gray hair, pinkish dress, old friend of your mom's who stopped hanging around when your mom started seeing "that man".]

[edgeofyourseat]

[Huh. Never heard of her. Maybe I should come up and say hi.]

[self_composed]

[Quite possibly.]

Bella finishes her jalapeno popper and turns to the nearest interesting rich person, one of the startup folks. "Hi!" she says. "My name is Bella."

[edgeofyourseat]

"Hi, Bella!" says the interesting rich person. "I'm Nathan." Referring to her recently consumed jalapeno popper, "Are those things any good?"

[self_composed]

"Everything Hilary makes is good," Bella says. "This thing in particular is not only good, but also spicy and cheesy. Nathan... wait, Nathan Hall?" She's pretending she doesn't have all publicly available information about him memorized, aww. "Didn't you found Postnet?"

[edgeofyourseat]

"Spicy and cheesy! It's like they were made for me," he says, and grabs one.

"Yes I did. What's it to you?"

[self_composed]

"I've heard of it, that's all. I don't have massive hard drives that need to go anywhere so I haven't used it, but I read an article about it somewhere," she says vaguely.

[edgeofyourseat]

"Well, if you do need to send a massive hard drive somewhere, I know just the people," says Nathan with a wink.

[self_composed]

Bella laughs. "Good to know. Anything else in the works? I bet you don't personally courier drives, so now that it's up and running they probably don't call you much."

[edgeofyourseat]

"Actually, funny story," he says, gesturing with his still-untouched popper, "I did do a run once. It just so happened that we were short a truck, and it just so happened that I was going in the right direction. I dropped off the goods along the way. It was all very exciting."

[self_composed]

"Not so exciting that you did it twice, it sounds like," Bella points out archly.

[edgeofyourseat]

"Well, we have people for that." He winks again. "And technically, I'm not qualified."

[self_composed]

Bella chuckles. He doesn't seem to want to talk about whatever else he's doing. That's okay. There are more people around. Bella averts her gaze and drifts away after a few seconds have passed in silence and she can do it without being rude.

[edgeofyourseat]

Across the room, Alice has found Sophie and they are getting along, or at least, she's laughing at his jokes.

[self_composed]

Oh, there's a good excuse. Bella wanders in that direction, touches Alice on the shoulder and smiles - just a gesture of having noticed that he's there - and now she's on the other side of the room, next to Mr. Faceless Corporations. "Oh, hello!"

[edgeofyourseat]

Alice grins over his shoulder at her and goes right back to his conversation with the apparently-fascinating Sophie.

Mr. Faceless Corporations smiles at her. In perhaps an overly friendly way. "Oh, hello," he echoes.

[self_composed]

Bella doesn't like that; shades of Mike in a dude three times Mike's age is about three times less pleasant. But she is in a room full of people and she has freaking magic; she just won't go off anywhere with this guy, that's all. [Do you know this one?] she asks Alice, before politely, leaning on that acting pentagon, saying, "My name's Bella."

[edgeofyourseat]

"And I'm Arthur," says Faceless Corporations, offering her his hand.

Alice glances over his shoulder again.

[One'a Dad's friends,] he says. [Mom really likes his wife.]

Or neither of them would be here, is the implication.

[self_composed]

Bella shakes. "It's nice to meet you."

She likes true things. Sometimes she likes them so much she won't let other people have any.

[edgeofyourseat]

"Likewise," says Arthur, with a big, big smile. "What's a nice girl like you doing in a room full of old farts?"

[self_composed]

Bella reaches behind her and grabs Alice's hand, although she doesn't pull on it enough to suggest he turn around. "Visiting," she says.

[edgeofyourseat]

"With Junior?" asks Arthur, raising his eyebrows at their joined hands, as though he can just imagine the sort of person who'd visit Junior. Alice does not, indeed, turn around, nor does he pay Arthur any attention whatsoever, but he does squeeze Bella's hand.

[self_composed]

"I don't think he really goes by that," says Bella, a faint edge to her voice. She squeezes back and lets go; she communicated her point.