Winter Wonderland

[Beau LaRoux]

"Yeah, it's kinda a nice quiet little town," Beau agreed. He said it without hesitation, though he couldn't help but notice the hesitation in Cassidy's voice. That said volumes, but, well, again: Beau wasn't going to pry. He also wasn't going to point out that quite a few residences recognized him: he did have a tendency to play at nearly every show and fair, and he was pretty damn good at what he did... record label good. He just wanted to finish things first, that and the mutant thing. But this definitely wasn't about Beau: it was about what was bothering Cassidy.

And apparently the boy was getting to it. Beau actually focused on Cassidy as the young man continued, hearing the question. "You ain't ringin' no bells," Beau offered, gesturing toward Cassidy and nodding. He paused for a moment, studying Cassidy closely. "Should I recognize you from somewhere?" he asked, adding a rueful smile. "I ain't great at keepin' up with much that ain't music, so I probly ain't a great test of your popularity or nothin'."

[Cassidy Laramie]

Cassidy let out a breath he'd barely been aware he'd been holding at Beau's answer, feeling more  relieved than expected. His irises sparked back to life, the blue and grey colors swirling a few times, but it seemed the emotions were not quite so easily removed. He quickly replaced the sunglasses, still cautious of the other patrons, before answering Beau's question. "No, probably not, unless you care about boring business stuff," he said, making a gagging motion and laughing a little despite himself.

Cassidy was struck with a sudden thought, and he bent over to dig through his laptop case, moving several wrapped stacks of bills aside until he found his phone. He couldn't help but feel an unfamiliar pang of guiltiness as he pulled out the shiny iPhone, with its obnoxiously bright case studded with real diamonds; he wondered just how many rings could be bought with the case alone. Not to mention the laptop, and the bag it was in. Pushing those gut-wrenching feelings away, he quickly slid his thumb and unlocked the phone, pulling up Google. "I dunno why I'd bother explaining all the beginning stuff, I bet someone else has already done it better," he muttered as he went through a series of searches, occasionally letting out a laugh at the ridiculous headlines.

"Heh, I'm apparently in New York right now. And Boston. And Chicago. And somehow cleverly disguised back in LA," he joked as he scanned for an actually useful article. "Huh, here we go, this one is recent. And isn't completely wrong," he added as he skimmed through the article. "Hm... stock prices falling, blah blah blah," he murmured, completely unconcerned with the state of his father's business. "Ah, here," he said, turning the phone towards Beau so he could read it.

"Meanwhile, the whereabouts of Cassidy Laramie, son of the aforementioned Leon Laramie, owner and CEO of Lionheart Technologies, are still shrouded in mystery. He was last seen at a press conference outside of the family's Beverly Hills home, where he made startling claims of an affair between his father and his personal secretary, Miss Caroline Peters. While official sources continue to claim he was sent to the Lawrenceville School, an elite boarding school, however the school has continually refused to comment on his being a student there. Theories have ranged from absurd to horrifying; some have gone as far as to speculate he could have been murdered by his father for revealing his secret indiscretions. Wherever he vanished to, the real question is: will he return?"

[Beau LaRoux]

Did Beau care about business stuff? Well, he cared about the stuff he had to learn for courses and all, but something told him that Cassidy wasn't talking about economic theory and exams and whatnot. So the Southerner kept silent while Cassidy kept working through things, just sipping at his drink, listening intently. There was something about how someone had already explained the beginning.

Then came something about how he was apparently... all over? Beau arched his brows. "Reckon that's an interestin' power right there," he drawled, feeling like there was definitely something more to it, not least of all because he didn't know about colors mixing with splitting people and all. He didn't quite understand as much about mutant powers as he really should, considering how long he'd been at the school, but he understood a lot of the basics.

Then came the press release. Beau took the phone, leaned forward and read. He read again, then looked up. "So, you would be this Cassidy then, eh? Son o' a big time suit," Beau handed the phone back over. "So you edgy 'cuz you run out on your dad then? These things kinda happen, what with the powers an' all. Not every family takes to 'em." He paused, tapping his fingers for a moment. "Or is it somethin' else?" He looked down at the phone, remembering how it said something about Cassidy making claims. There was the briefcase of money too...