Knowledge is Power

"Well you're always welcome to come by, just so you know." Lina chuckles, Rae reminded her a lot of her self back when she was a young teenager. Strict training in etiquette and how to be a proper lady had her all confused and jumbled, she would always stop mid sentence, evaluating every word she spoke and trying to figure out if it was appropriate. She accepted and appreciated Rae and all of her quirks, for they were what drew her to the girl in the first place. This girl was herself all the way, she was honest and funny even though she probably didn't think so. "Well, it's actually a lot like prison." The woman jokes before continuing. "Thank you, though, if you're gonna be in the same room every day for work might as well make the most of it. Besides, I always like my clients to feel somfortable when they're in here." Lina watches as Rae rambles and apologizes  again, she honestly found it to be cute when she was flustered. She gives a short huff of a laugh. "Sorry for what?" The woman says sarcastically before saying. "Not that I don't appreciate women in uniform, but I meant you look nice today. You seem, I dunno, happier since last we spoke." 

His smile widened and he let out a small chuckle at that. “That’s very good to hear.” As she answered his question, he rubbed at his chin, thinking about how he was going to respond. Not something he always did, but something he had gotten use to when speaking to business partners, coworkers, etc. “Criminal.” Again, very careful. “What information would be needed to know how you’d represent?” Lawyers worked in different ways. Some liked to know the complete facts, others were completely fine with the client’s words of not to be held accountable and guilty so long as they mentioned anything that may be incriminating.

"Ah, ok." The woman clears her throat quietly before jotting a few things down on her pad. Afterward, she changes her stance to one that is much more serious. Both elbows rest firmly on the desk in front of her amd her eyes meet his directly. "Ok, Mr...." She awaits his answer before continuing. "Mr.Reed, I'm going to be completely honest with you. I know these sorts of subjects are very touchy. However, it's important for you to remember that I am no policeman nor am I here to pass any judgement. Whatever is dicussed between the two of us is strictly confidential." She then shrugs lightly. "So, whatever information you feel comfotable disclosing is up to you. I just need some sort of idea of what's going on to help your friend as best I can. Deal?"

Gillian rubs her neck and shrugs the tension out of her shoulders, feeling the uneasiness creep all over her body. Thanksgiving is tomorrow. She could be facing some serious… confessing come then. But, she’s given others a reason never to feel thankful again, so. Maybe she deserves this. I had a, um, question about… she huffs out a sigh, shrugging her shoulders again. There’s a significant lack of rigidity in her posture; Gillian honestly looks like she’s about to have an anxiety attacks out of her own skin. The legal repercussions of… something. Say, hypothetically, someone committed a crime and it went unpunished for years. What happens if that person, um, confesses all of a sudden? What could their sentence look like? It’s completely obvious that she’s talking about herself, really. But, Gillian isn’t ready to admit that yet.

"I didn’t make a mistake." That still seems weird for her to say, but she’s paid her price for her mistakes already, so it’s kind of true. Doesn’t mean it’s not a worthwhile endeavour to attempt and limit the prices others have to pay for theirs."I’m not here for myself. And look, I know that you could probably make more money doing an hour of counseling than my job pays in a week, but I’m asking you on behalf of the NGO I volunteer for. So what we can offer you is probably nowhere near close to what you usually make, but you could really help us out greatly. Us, and most importantly, our client. Do you take requests like these?"

Emmeline leans forward onto her desk, pen and pad ready to write whatever is necessary to help this woman. She smiles and nods politely while listening to her request, writing notes in quickhand cursive. Funny how everyone who came into her office was usually anxiety-ridden about the cost of her services, luckily for them Lina considered herself gracious and was more concerned about building a defense than the payoff of the case itself. "Well to answer your question, yes, I do take cases like these." The woman stops writing and tucks a strand of her hai behind her ear before lowering her voice to speak. "And, off the record, don't worry yourself with how much this will cost you or the company you represent. I can afford a few pro-bono cases if need be. Just tell me what your client needs and we'll work from there."

"You specialize in representing post-humans, correct?" He knew the popularity of post-human lawyers, not in their numbers, but in the volumes of people needing them for representation. "In all fields, or do you only focus on, say, personal injury?"

"That is correct. The only in this firm and one of the very few in the city who actually cares." Lina felt happy that her popularity among the posthuman community was growing lately, because she didn't see 'them vs. regulars' just justice. She was blessed to have an ability that's easily hidden and wanted to help those who weren't so lucky. "I normally work criminal law but I am not limited to any one field, no. What sort of case wold your fiend be involved in, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Uh," he smiled nervously. "I didn’t mess up— This time, anyway. There’s something I wanted to ask you about your firm."

"Well, Mr.Petrelli, I'm certainly glad you came by. I hope all is well with you." She leans forward on the desk with a soft smile. "Sure thing, what do you need to know?"

  "No, no, I’m here for a good friend of mine. He can’t afford an attorney so I’m checking out some of the attorneys in the area to see which would be best for him, but a few things first, if I may. You can only know so much about another person from what’s online."

"Ah, I see. Well, I have to admit I do prefer people to see my good side in person rather than on a screen." A light laugh is heard before she re-postures herself to be more comfortable in her desk chair. "Of course, whatever you -- or you good friend need. Ask away."

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"Thanks." The woman says quietly as Rae takes a seat on the barstool next to hers, sipping her heineken. Lina isn't exactly sure how to fill this quiet air between the two, or if she even minds it for that matter. But to keep it from being awkward, she speaks up saying the first thing that came to mind. "How long have you been in the cit--" As soon as things were nice and peaceful, the relaxed atmosphere was ended by the arrival of four guys and their dates, probably college students. Which meant small talk with the bartender was on hold , in order to let Rae do her job Lina grabs her clutch and pulls out some cash as well as her business card before carefully writing a note on the back. She then stands and waits until the redhead was done tending to the others before handing her the money and business card. "Thanks for the talk, I gotta get out of here and do some paperwork." Lina walks out of the bar with a smirk. The cash amount was $150 and the note on her business card read. 'Thanks for listening, if you ever need to talk or anything here's my # see ya around :)' 

Rae casually throws out, but she still sheepishly blushes at the undertone of flirting that she senses. It’s been awhile. Like, a long while, and she feels gross for encouraging herself to react positively to any sort of sign that’s even remotely close to flirting, but… it’s just so nice? Like, it makes her feel powerful again, knowing that she’s got, like, a 0.2% hold on someone else because they find her attractive or whatever. Even if she’s imagining it, the sensation is making her stomach do flippity flops, which is heartwarming. Criminal defense, huh? So, you’re really into the action type of stuff, right? Wonder what other kind of— Rae, no. So, like… have you run across any, y’know, characters? Like, Hannibal Lecter-type clients who try t’, uh, well, I mean, it’d suck if they threatened you or went after you, but, like, have you ever seen that? It’s so lame that she would choose that question to ask of all questions. It’s like the one curiosity people probably have about lawyers. Other than if they’re really liars who twist the guilty to become innocent. But, that’d be rude to question the woman on. Well, everythin’s a hassle, y’know? Just life. Rae shrugs; she used to be one of those people who thought that there was some ascended area of life that stopped feeling so shitty. Which she did find, but then the shitty stuff came back, so. Useless. Hey, it pays for your drink, too, so, good for more than just your bills. She chuckles, lightheartedly.

Lina takes small sips of her drink as she listens to the ambient sounds of the bar, taking in the much welcomed quiet. She was just letting the alcohol do it's job for a few moments and numb the obsessive compulsive thoughts in her head to a serene hum of carelessness. That was until Rae began t oask her more questions about her career as an attorney. A proud smile is written on her face as she listens, no-ones been this happy with her choice in career since her father whom only cared about such a thing for his ever-so-delicate reputation. "Every other case seems to be some wacko -- but my favorites are the vigilante heroes who think they deserve to be given some award for commiting crimes against a posthuman ... or sometimes vice versa." The woman moves the right side of her hair away from her ear before rubbing her own neck and continuing. "The most memorable nutjob was this man who had to be schizophrenic or some sort of mental illness. We bring 'im up to the stand for questioning since he was deemed sane enough to be prosecuted and he starts arguing with his other personality!" A snort of uncontrollable laughter escapes the woman as she recalls one of her weirdest cases in the courtroom. "I am so deeply sorry, it's the drinks. Mental illness is no laughing matter but that incident caught me by surprise." After Lina calms down from her embarassing fit of immoral humor she rests he head on her palm and supports it by resting her elbow on the bar and looking at the bartender as she speaks. "You're right, life is just one big obstacle course and the only way to get by is to roll with the punches." She has to take another swig of her drink on this note as she nods and points as if Rae said something profound and she agreed heavily. "Speaking of which, I know you are at work but I feel pitiful when I drink... I'll pay. Just have one little drink with me. Not like you have a huge crowd to serve."  Emmeline requests the for the girl to join her for a glass because this interaction between the two was actually pretty interesting and she could tell she needed at least one little pick me up, her eyes said that she had been through a lot more than she let on for other people to see, when she spoke. Maybe that was something they had in common.