The Clark Kent Conundrum (for Tat)

A lot of thinking done and dusted, it was time for Adrian to do what she probably should have done a long time ago.

Start using her connections to get some perks. Starting with a bit of vacation time just before the PPV.

"Uh..." the cosplayer sounded out as the elevator pinged open. Dressed in not much more than a cap, shoes, shorts and a red T-shirt as she stepped into the office looking for a certain Von... something who could probably arrange it for her.

Hilde Von Creuzfeldt sat in her office typing away at her computer. Lukretia was out on business that didn't require her and she was able to spend a peaceful few hours catching up on some work she was sorely behind on. She really wasn't sure hoew she managed to ever accomplish anything with only 24 hours in a day. She let out a sigh, adjusted her glasses and went on tacking away at the keys.

When the doors opened, she greeted her guest with a smile, as was appropriate to her job as a secretary and while she did get paid to smile, she also genuinely liked seeing the bright young faces of the league even if they usually were pretty grim knowing that through the door behind her was someone who was more akin to a dragon than a human. But Hilde's smile helped to relax them before they faced her sister Lukretia. Or so she thought and hoped.

When she saw Adrian, she smiled brightly. She didn't' get a chance to talk to her even though they technically belongedt o the same Faction. Which was weird in and of itself. But she liked Adrian, as she liked most people and thought it would be nice to have some company.

"Ms. Kytes, what a pleasure to see you. I'm afraid Ms. Von Creuzfeldt is not in at the moment but I will do my best to help you with whatever needs you may have."

Adrian relaxed when she saw Hilde. It had been a while since they saw each other last, all things considered, so the cosplayer couldn't really gauge where she felt on the asshole to nice person line. Her sister and boss fell pretty harshly on the asshole side but at least she seemed nice. Hopefully it was more than just appearences.

"Hey Hilde, actually... I think I'd be better off talking to you about this anyway, partly because if Luk was in she'd try to molest me, again. But anyways, I wanted to ask a favour." She began "Cause... I haven't been feeling great mentally and haven't really had some decent recovery time because bad shit seems to be going down constantly. So could I have some time off?" She asked, ducking just below her desk to raise her face to look up at her. "Pretty please?"

Hilde smiled warmly when Adrian addressed her. It was nice to be called by her first name, it sounded less professional even if she had sold her soul to her younger sister to be able to keep her last name. She carefully listened, blushing a bit and turning her head at Adrian's words about her sister. Lukretia always did take what she wanted and Hilde was much easier to speak to since she had regular feelings. Still, it was odd and made even odder by the request for a favor. What could Hilde do that Lukretia wouldn't or couldn't? She didn't understand until Adrian spoke again.

Hiilde's eyes widened as she looked at Adrian. "O-oh no! That's not good at all!" She stood up and looked down at the girl. "M-Ms Kytes, you need to take better care of yourself! Body injuries are one thing and it's a shame when they happen, but we can't have our wrestlers suffering from mental anguish as well!"

Hilde then turned her head. "I.. Yes! I don't think it would be a problem to give you some time off... Just let me check..." Hilde began clicking through some files and brought up Adrian;'s information. "Oh.. Oh no.."

"Ms. Kytes the bi annual pay-per-view is coming up. I'm afraid you're in a bit of a pickle. You certainly need to be at your best for the event but you are also scheduled for promos, dark matches and even one or two regular matches. At least, that's what's listed. We need to get your name out there so that your match is well anticipated." Hilde sighed and stood up. "This isn't good at all..."

Hilde went over to the plush couch that was int he reception area that wrestlers could wait on. On her way she grabbed some tea and poured two glasses. "P-Please have a seat here for a moment." She said and patted the couch next to her. She then blushed deeply.

"Um... I'm not like my sis... er.. Ms Von Creuzfeldt. I assure you that I only wish to speak for a moment. It's still professional..." Hilde looked away from Adrian for a second. 'More or less..." She added.

Adrian's heart rose and the sunk quickly again. Although Hilde sympathized with her plight she still couldn't do anything about the Pay Per View thing "Stupid PPV and it's stupid envelopes..." she grumbled "can't I just be considered a wild card since I didn't show what I got to build suspense that way?" She asked, grabbing at straws.

"Okay..." she said nervously as she stood up, led towards the couch, sitting next to Hilde with an obvious blush on her face.

"Tea?"

Hilde blushed when Adrian blushed but she was thankful Adrian took a seat. She offered her one of the two cups of tea she had in her hand, saving the other fr herself as she took a sip. After taking a moment to look over Adrian, Hilde looked down, paused and put on a gentle smile.

"So, Ms. Kytes." Hilde furrowed her brow. She was being too polite for the situation. "I... I mean... Adrian." She said and laughed nervously at her words. "What's been going on. Tell me what's wrong. What has been shaking you up so badly that feel the need to request time off when your career is just finally kicking off?" She hoped that Adrian would be willing to speak honestly with her. Hilde's voice and face showed that she was genuinely concerned.

"Uh, thanks! Never drunk tea before, or coffee really. Usually stuck to energy drinks but yeah, thanks!" She said, chuckling nervously before taking a sip. It was bitter but didn't taste too bad, she'd tasted much worse before.

"Well..." she started nervously, she didn't expect to have to explain it. And she wasn't about to recount what she did to Natalia to anyone, except maybe Rebecca. "...I haven't had a lot of time to sort things out, and I... well..." she stuttered, looking down as her own words repeated in her mind Everyone hates me! I can hear them lauging at me! ...you...she...don't? her heart beat faster and faster, the cosplayer started to shake "I just want some away time! I just want some time where I can just drown myself in cute pictures of puppies and hugs till I stop feeling sad about losing one of the few friends I'll probably ever have!" She ended up shouting, spilling the tea on the carpet, leaving herself panting. "...Sorry, well... you can at least see why now..." she said sadly, trying to sink deeper into the chair as if to hide from the world

Hilde was surpesed she never had tea. "Really?" She tilted her head and smiled softly. "It's good... and relaxing... even though it has caffeine in it." Hilde scratched her head. She didn't really understand how that worked.

Hilde nodded when she thought Adrian was going to begin speaking. But instead of speaking, she freaked out. She even ended up spilling her tea. "Oh no!" Hilde said and stood up quickly."You didn't spill any on you?!" She searched Adrian for any spilled tea and let a sigh of relief when it was just on the floor. "Thank goodness." She said and turned to pull out some cleaning supplies from the closet.

"It wouldn't have been pleasant to get hot tea all over you." She said and began to scrub out the stain. She was diligent, on her hands and knees but still retaining an oddly professional look.

As she scrubbed, she did not look at Adrian. "You shouldn't bottle all that up. You end up tense. I'll bet if you spoke to someone about what's going on, you would feel a lot better." She finished cleaning the stain and put the supplies away. She then went back to Adrian and smiled. "We have some time if you want to speak about it. Lukretia won't be back for a while. But if you still feel uncomfortable, I think I could manage to wriggle away for a bit and we could go somewhere you might feel more at ease."

Hilde then lowered her head. "It's up to you of course. I know we don' even really know each other but sometimes it's better talking to a stranger. You don't have those connections and you don't have to see that person again the next day... or... something like that." Hilde let out little chuckle and looked up at Adrian with hopeful eyes.

"Eep!" Adrian tried to suppress her shriek as Hilde jumped up to clean the stain "...relax, it's just a small stain, right?" She asked, her voice still shaky. Talking things over with a stranger... well that's why she asked for time off, she wanted to see a shrink and didn't really have time for it, but maybe...Hilde? "Uh... wont I have to see you if I want to get anything from Lukretia?" She asked, Hilde wasn't exactly a stranger... not someone she knew very well but... she remembered her name at least!

"Uh, well... I dunno, person said I probably need professional help because... well, you probably saw the I quit match... the one where I got my ass kicked, right? I kind of went that crazy again. And... yeah..." Adrian sighed, checking the watch. There was something she had to do soon, she didn't really

Hilde considered Adrian's words. "Well..." Hilde looked sheepishly at the girl for a moment. "It is generally the safer route. More adventurous folk have been known to occasionally go directly to Lukretia though." That was Hilde's nice way of saying the very bold or the very foolish. Hilde was a nice flak jacket for those seeing to wade into Lukretia's domain, especially for the first time. But still, Adrian did have a point.

"Person?" She question. Did Adrian already have this conversation. She then thought about the girl's words. "Oh... I... did see that match but only because Lukretia watched it. I... tend to shy away from such grizzly displays normally." She wasn't too fond of the more brutal matches the AFW often hosted.

"Again?! D-Do you have a history of going crazy?" Hilde frowned. "Are you sure it's not when you have to fight someone tot he point where your not even in control of your own body? Normal people shouldn't want to endure that kind of suffering. I..." Hilde smiled and looked at Adrian. "Would you feel better that you didn't react coldly to it. You should be thankful you're still a human being. This business can turn good people into monsters." She said with a soft nod.