Owner Pose
Sebastian Shaw It is evening. Dark. Dreary. Cold outside. Most of the world at this hour is shut down, especially amongst the high rises of Midtown, where offices stand empty as the weekend is in full swing. One building's top floor is well lit this evening though: The Hellfire Club's inner sanctum, for those who know the ways of the club, is open for business.

Sitting at the throne of the Black King is Sebastian Shaw. He has a newspaper open on one side of the throne, and an old, old looking journal laying open on the other. Shaw moves restlessly from one to the other, reading bits and pieces of the news, and supplementing it with something from the journal.
Talia al Ghul Without having to assault anyone on the way in, disappointingly, Talia al Ghul makes her way up to the Top Floor, and strides into the Throne Room. She moves quietly, knowing that the Black King is well aware of her arrival, but also not seeking to interupt him as he is reading. She waits for him to do the speaking - proper and polite, at least here.
Sebastian Shaw A glance is given to Talia as she enters, and Shaw makes her wait for full acknowledgement for a few moments. He makes a couple of marks in the journal, and then closes it with the paper stuffed between the leaves. He then straightens up in the throne, and motions Talia forward. "A pleasure to see you Ms. al Ghul," he says, watching her hips sway as she walks in his direction. One of the joys of being the Black King. "To what do I owe this visit?"
Talia al Ghul If the dress code for women in the Hellfire Club is something which bothers the Daughter of the Demon, she certainly gives no signs of it. Clearly, she is committed to following these rules, and as she approaches the throne of the Black King she does her very best to accentuate every aspect of that policy. As, of course, she is expected to do.

"I thought it worth checking in now that my duties back home have been completed, to see what trouble we were brewing here. I appreciate having been given the time to attend to the affairs of my father."
Sebastian Shaw Sebastian Shaw motions Talia up to the dias on which he sits -- all the better to see you my dear -- "But of course. We did miss your exquisite presence here, but the affairs of your family do take priority over our poor club." He smiles a little ironically at that, and then stands himself, and holds out a hand for Talia. The implied question of what the club is up to at the moment, is left alone for the time being, as he says, "Welcome back, Black Rook," before leaning in and giving her a polite kiss on her cheeks.

Once the niceties are over, Shaw returns to his chair, and then motions Talia to the seat next to him. Not her usual spot, but...the full back rank is not here so why stand on ceremony? "We are in a bit of a holding pattern. Ms. Frost's departure and...subsequent...reappearance has complicated things. She has not resumed her position of White Queen, and I am unsure that she wishes to. So we have been waiting, and watching." He motions to a screen a few feet distant, that is showing the Public House, where Emma can be seen in the middle of a group of people chatting away. "I think though it is time to do something. But I am unsure what. And that is an unsettling position for me to be in."
Talia al Ghul "Well, when you have a club where one of the primary foundations is that we are all individual movers and shakers in the world on our own, it is to be expected." The Black Rook leans in to accept the greeting from the Black King.

She shows no visible surprise at being offered the seat, but moves to claim it comfortably. "She is either playing a long game, or has taken up with those whose interests run counter to us." She offers a shrug, made all the more interesting by the Club's dress code. "As she is wont to do. At some point, I would hope the club would reward its more consisstent and loyal members, but what is a lowly Rook to say about that?" She looks the Black King straight on as she says this, clearly belying her words and tone. She turns her gaze to the screen and regards Emma. Another shrug. "To do something within our ranks, or inflict our greatness upon the exterior world?"
Sebastian Shaw "I have plans to remove some of the dead wood that is clogging up the upper ranks. I am not unaware of the work of those who are deserving of rewards." Shaw replies as his gaze turns to look at Talia fully. He shakes his head, "With the recent activities in the City, it is...difficult to assess where we might best put our focus. Our network is in a bit of a shambles at the moment, with the ongoing chaos. Which provides opportunities, yes, but not the ones that a large overarching organization can well take advantage of. Rather, I am reliant upon the initiative of our street level operatives to get a lot of the work done. Which, is unfortunate." As he says this, his hand closest Talia trails down off of his throne, to idly flick fore and back as his mind works.
Talia al Ghul "I have a great deal of confidence that you know, then, who are deserving, and who are not." Talia al Ghul watches the Black King carefully as he lays out his concern. "Are you suggesting that we should increase our intelligence efforts? I have been saying for some time that we need not allow ourselves to grow complacent, lest other confederations chew away at our strengths." She glances towards the screen into the public room again as she leans back, reclining slightly in the chair. Seemingly rather to enjoy the idea of being in that spot.
Sebastian Shaw A long glance is spared to Talia, before his gaze returns to the surveillance he is carrying on in his own club against one of it's former top members. He grimaces at her comment, "I do not disagree, and must say that the events of the past few weeks have brought to light rot and problems that I was unaware of, and that is embarrassing in and of itself. We were caught -- for lack of a better term -- with our pants down. I plan to cut out the rot that remains and replace it with those who have been loyal, and who enjoy their place." Another glance to Talia, before he says, "Make your case, then for increasing our intelligence operation at the cost of our other prospects."
Talia al Ghul "Simple. Any company that spends all of its profits on materials and marketing at the expense of research and devlopment will enjoy periods of large success followed by eventually being surpassed in the market by more innovative ones." Talia's gaze drifts out towards the room in general. She seems to be sampling the view from up top, filing away for future notice. "Why exhaust our efforts exploiting what little operations we have, at minimal gain, if there is not much to be had? Instead, look for the next big thing." She leans slightly to the side, closer to his seat on the throne. "Do you think that our compeition were unable to do anything at all to take advantage of a nearly entirely abandoned city, or just us?"
Sebastian Shaw "They are of course doing their own work to try and gobble up space in the new order of things. I have been working to keep us atop our various rackets, and for the most part it seems we haven't lost more than anyone else. It's that bit we and everyone else has lost that is up for grabs and inroads to be made. I do not disagree with your analogy, but don't you think that right now our priority should be on grabbing as much of what's up for grabs as possible? And thus, dedicating our efforts to expansion and taking what we can?" As Shaw asks these questions, he turns his attention from the screen, and focuses solely on Talia, sitting up and looking down at her, watching her reactions closely.
Talia al Ghul As Shaw asks for her thoughts, Talia sits up a bit straighter. "If we know what has been taken, sure. But how well do we even know what is out there to be retaken, other than what we ourselves have lost?" Talia leans in closer towards Shaw as he regards her, tilting her head a bit. "I think we need to know who the players are, what is on the table, and get a sense of where everyone sits in the pecking order." She shrugs, ever so slightly. "Again. That is what I would do. The more we know the landscape, the more we can decide on what is worth pursuing. Are we wasting resources fighting over one opportunity, when a better one is available at lesser cost?"
Sebastian Shaw Sebastian Shaw considers Talia's words and studies her a bit more. Eventually, he stands and walks over to the window, motioning Talia to join him. He looks out over the city below, and comments, "You are correct, of course. We can guess exactly what is available to us, what is out there, and that we shall need eyes to figure it out. I would like you to...showcase your talents. Find a new avenue for our business, and expand into it. Let me see if you really are serious about moving up, and earning a bit more of my favor." As he says this, he looks down at Talia again, before he moves to stand behind her, and whispers, "We shall see about getting you into a proper position soon."
Talia al Ghul The Rook follows the King over to the window, and steps forward to peer out the glass at the ants far down below. "I do not believe that my talents are in need of showcasing," comes her reply, glancing up for a moment into his reflection, and then back down at the society beneath them. "But I am certainly happy to advance the cause of our Club, and if so doing convinces you of my merits, then it shall be a happy coincidence."