3763/A Ridiculously Unprofessional Meeting

A Ridiculously Unprofessional Meeting
Date of Scene:	10 October 2020
Location:	Oracle Corporation
Synopsis:	Namor and Susan Richards have an incredibly unprofessional meeting. Namor is obviously sad in the end. But there's coastal relief aid!
Cast of Characters:	Namor, Susan Richards

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Namor has posed:
As they're all very busy people, when Namor asks for the CEO of the Fantastic Four to meet with him, they end up setting a time for after business hours, that way they can discuss //real// business.

Namor is, well, Namor, he's not going to bother with surface formalities. He sits in his board room wearing his weirdly revealing Atlantean armor and everything. But as //Susan Richards// is coming, the board room's table is covered in elaborate chocolates and other gourmet surface treats. There's random expensive jewelry just sort of laid out as if an elegant decoration, but anyone will know that these are //gifts//.

He does have charts, for the environment and disasters and such, but he's gone out of his way to be freshly from the ocean, his body dripping with the water of the sea, because this is //his// boardroom floor and he can do as he likes to it.

Susan Richards has posed:
    Susan Richards wastes several precious seconds on the other side of the board room door, turning invisible long enough to let out a slow breath and wiggle around a bit as if to shake off the nerves. This is just a business meeting. Nothing strange about this. She glances down at herself and the fetching sleeveless blue dress she's wearing - complete with pearl necklace and earrings - and just... fidgets with her wedding ring for a moment, holding a stuffed folder under one arm.
    Susan shakes her head. This is ridiculous; they're not kids anymore, this is going to be simple, and respectful, and dignified, and professional.
    Susan fixes a pleasant smile on her face and opens the door, stepping through it while starting to say: "Heeey, Namor, I hope I'm not late, I-..." only to find an array of sweets and priceless gifts laid out for her, her blue eyes going wide. "... Oh."

Namor has posed:
"Hello Susan." Namor says as he sits rather straight and powerfully across from her, his eyes practically piercing her. "Yes, well, to get the formalities out of the way. You being the Queen of Atlantis is on the table, you yourself if you wish such. But I'd also like to discuss the disasters first."

He slowly stands, walking over to her as he grabs two things from the table and holds them out to her. "Would you like an Italian chocolate? I had everything freshly made by chocolatiers of course. Perhaps a platinum necklace instead." He holds her choices up in each hand.

Susan Richards has posed:
    Susan straightens up considerably as Namor stands, holding the fold to her chest with one arm in a subtly guarded fashion, and looking from the two offered items, to the oppulant spread, and back to Namor again. "... Oooohhh, Namor, you..." Susan slowly plucks the chocolate away between two fingers, so as not to be rude, "... *really* shouldn't have."
    This is fine. This is fine. This is salvagable. The past is the past. Just don't look at his abs.
    Susan's certainly gotten more confident over the years, but she has her weak spots, and with nothing provoking her fiercer nature, one could mistake her behavior as pretty similar to how it was before. Albeit, before, Susan had significantly less faith in herself, and didn't know what she wanted. Keeping her voice good humored, Susan sweeps one leg behind her to politely step back and put some distance between them as she patiently says, "Now, Namor... I really don't think my *children*-" she stresses that word, "-would appreciate me running off to Atlantis."

Namor has posed:
"Well, once they're adults and have moved out to become highly successful, I'm sure you can freely visit the surface and see them any time you want. Or they can come to Atlantis to experience true luxury themselves." Namor sits the necklace back down onto the table, then points to one of his charts.

"Due to an ongoing situation in Atlantis, one that I'm still trying to solve, there have been unnaturally out of season natural disasters. I'm trying to have them repaired and provide relief as efficiently as possible, but I thought it would go much quicker and easier if our companies combined their resources." he proposes, managing a business sentence right before holding up an incredibly decadent looking piece of sushi to her.

"Since you'd prefer to delay being queen for your children, I don't mind treating you like one right now." he suggests, re-entering her personal space almost immediately as he holds the sushi up to her mouth.

Susan Richards has posed:
    Susan just... sighs helplessly, her brow raising as her eyes narrow. The more things change the more they stay the same. "I'll... be sure to run it by them." She says dryly.
    That said, she seems pleasantly surprised when Namor actually speaks of matters of concern, and apparently didn't just bring her here to... court her in his aggressive fashion. Looking concerned, Susan says, "Well... we're always looking into ways to revert climate change." She notes, then proudly adopts the corporate voice, noting "That's one of our company's more ambitious goals." She glances to the side a bit self conciously and clears her throat, continuing more normally, "I... don't have any issues with cooperating in *theory* but..." Susan tilts her head curiously, "You speak as though something else is- eep!"
    Susan is taken aback as she is again face to face - well, face to chest, he's quite tall - with Namor, looking down at some truly mouth watering food. She turns her head away as if to avoid being hypnotized by it, and puts up one hand saying, "I am..." she shakes her head, "*Happily* *Married*, Namor! There *must* be nice girls in Atlantis!"

Namor has posed:
"This is slightly more complicated than climate change. I have people helping on taking care of the root of the issue, but what I really need is to make sure that the places affected by these disasters are taken care of." Namor sits the sushi down, then moves one of her hands out to gently rest on one of her hips.

"//Are// you happily married?" he asks, stepping even closer to peer directly into her eyes. "Anything that I could give you tonight alone, you can imagine Reed Richards doing the same?" He raises his free hand to place it against her cheek, smiling down at her.

"You have my undivided attention." This last part is said with much weight, as if it's an impossible gift that //Namor// is capable of providing.

Susan Richards has posed:
    Susan would be lying if she said her heart wasn't beating faster right now. If she said the Atlantean monarch didn't still stir something inside of her. But Susan Richards has been at this game for a long time now, and after closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Susan looks up at Namor with a borderline dangerous gaze.
    "Namor. I am not a silly little girl anymore. I have sworn an oath to Reed. I have started a *family* with Reed. And all the exotic gifts and-" Susan looks briefly flustered "-chisled muscle in the world isn't going to change that. If you really want our help, this-" Susan's eyes move rapidly, glancing from the hand on her cheek, to the hand on her hip, then back to Namor's face "-*this* has to stop right now."

Namor has posed:
"You don't want me to stop, but I'll stop anyway." Namor removes his hands from her, though remains within her personal space. "I do have to wonder how many cold and lonely nights one can stand for the sake of an oath."

He walks over to the table, pouring two glasses of marlot. He takes his, though allows her to decide if she wants her's or not, taking a sip. "Ultimately, what I need is for you to use your resources and technology to both protect and also help repair some of the coastlines while I'm dealing with this situation in Atlantis. It's hopefully just a very powerful sea monster. And while Atlantis is perfectly capable of repairing the coastlines and offering relief, I have resources being dedicated to repairing an entire Atlantean city, preparing an island for mutant refugees, and doing what I can for some of the already affected coastlines."

Susan Richards has posed:
    Susan wrinkles her nose a bit at Namor's parting remark, but breathes a sigh of relief when he lets go of her, promptly stepping away and fiddling anxiously with her necklace for a moment.
    She glances at the drink, and then looks away from it, laying her folder on the table and saying "... We can spare some resources for that. If your company's willing to recomphensate us over time, or has anything else to offer in exchange." Susan glances to the side. She doesn't like putting down terms like that, but she IS running a business. That said, she offers, "I'd be a little more given to charity if we had a better idea of what we're looking at, but, in the meantime..."

Namor has posed:
"By the end of the year you'll be recompensated, as many of the projects tying up Atlantis' resources will finally be complete, or almost complete. I'll have more complete details sent to you later." Namor leans against the table, staring at her as he sips his glass.

"Do you realize that I love you more than any other man is capable of loving anything?" he asks, respecting her distance as he asks the question. "I have to wonder, if we kissed, do you believe you'd still be so secure in your oath after?"

Susan Richards has posed:
    "That... should be agreeable." She concedes reluctantly on matters of business.
    When Namor returns to more personal matters, Susan sighs. "Namor..." Susan smiles, "... We have." Susan shakes her head, "And I am. I've done a lot of silly things... I've been swept up by your..." Susan sighs, struggling to find an adequette word, "... Your passion. But I've found what's most important to me, that's not going to change. I *promise* there are other people you can care for just as much."

Namor has posed:
Namor pushes off the table and approaches her again, sitting his wine down. He re-enters her personal space, but doesn't touch her. He simply peers down, close enough for the heat from his body to be quite palpable. "You said it yourself, we're older and wiser. And yet you're still shaken on some level, there are still doubts, you still reconsider every time I ask, don't you?"

"You believe that you've been swept up by my passion, and you've certainly come close, but if you truly allowed yourself..." He leans down, his face mere //inches// from hers, his every breath felt. "I think you know how difficult it would be to leave."

Susan Richards has posed:
    Susan is very very silent for several seconds. Then she slowly speaks in a balance toned: "... Namor. This is the part of you I like the least. I am going to leave now. If you try to stop me..." Susan eyes shine dangerously with a simple confidence she never possessed in the early years that you knew her, "... you will regret it."

Namor has posed:
"I won't stop you." Namor says as he remains where he is, unmoving. "I am the king of 70% of this planet, I rule an entire empire. I don't deny the ugliness of how it looks when a man like myself still feels a deep void over a single woman."

"I feel no shame for my feelings, nor do I feel any particular shame for my contempt for your husband." He stands up straight, but still doesn't move from where he is. "I will never stop loving you. Perhaps one day you'll choose to //be// loved."

Susan Richards has posed:
    Susan almost looks guilty for a moment, but she keeps control over her stern expression and begins to walk away. "You know, Namor..." she starts to say, "... if you understood Reed..." Susan puts her hand on the door handle and opens it part way, pausing to look back over her shoulder at Namor, "... you might finally understand me."
    With that said, she simply steps through the door and closes it behind her.