| Sudden Interview |
| Summary: | Brooklyn Waters runs into Karen Starr while at Metropolis University, and scores a brief impromptu interview with her. |
| Date: | 2014-11-05 |
| Related: | NA |
| NPCs: | NA |
| Scene Runner: | NA |
| Social/Plot: | Social |
| Players: |
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With a midterms coming up right around the corner, many students are working diligently on their various projects, papers and reports. Brooklyn Waters is no different, though her assignments tend to get her out and about rather than restricting her to a library or sticking her behind a computer screen. Like the one she's working on right now! Brook has come to the Metropolis University campus today looking very much like a tourist. She has what appears to be a very high-quality camera as well as a camera bag and several 'tourist' pamphlets about the university sticking out of pockets as she makes her way across one of the skyways, looking around with wide eyes.
Of course, tourists with interest in the City of Tomorrow are pretty commonplace, and many of them come with cameras. But how many of them are teenaged girls, apparently alone - rather than with a group of others - with such a high-end camera? Not many. Definitely few enough to make it, as a whole, a profile worth some attention.
Then again, so too is the view of a six-foot tall young blonde with, shall we say, pronounced curves, wearing Met U purple and white, and wearing what most would recognize as top-end StarrGaze smart glasses. Karen Starr is a relatively famous name, even amongst people not in the math and science academic world. But she's no Angelina. Not yet, anyway.
When Karen heads from East Tower towards North Tower, she spots the young woman with the camera, and keeps an eye on her as her path brings her closer and closer. She has some time, and decides to slow her pace, glancing at Brooklyn. "You looking for anything in particular?" she queries. Her attire alone should say she might know where 'it' is, if she knows what the photographer is looking for.
"No, nothing in particul-," Brook starts to say before looking to see who addresses her. But, when she does, her words stop and her eyebrows arch up. Up. Up … because Karen is /tall/. There's a few brief seconds of processing before recognition sets in and Brooklyn grins. "Oh wow! You're Karen Starr, aren't you? Like, /the/ Karen Starr? The rich and famous one?"
The blonde chuckles wryly and shrugs those broad shoulders of hers. "Well, I don't know how rich or famous I am." She is more than a bit of both, but she's not one for bragging about it. "But yes, I'm Karen Starr. And you are?" Of course, she has already snagged a photo of Brooklyn's face with her glasses and fed it to her computers, running a facial recognition by force of habit. But she asks, anyway. It's polite, after all. "Seriously. If you're looking for anything in particular, let me know. I go here, after all, I can probably point the way."
Cue motormouth Brooklyn! "Ohmygosh, it's so fantastic to meet you. I'm Brooklyn Waters and I'm going to school over at Metro City College and I'm studying journalism and photography and I just came over here because we've got a photography assignment due but it would totally make like my whole semester if maybe I could just interview you real quick or something even though I don't have an appointment or anything?" Brook is obviously very excited, which probably has a lot to do with Karen being the first actual 'famous person' she's ever had a chance to meet in person.
Karen smiles warmly. "Relax. Brooklyn, was it? I'm not just going to disappear. Relax." She takes her time, and so gently but resolutely enforce that 'calm down' directive. "You want to interview me? OK. Why don't we head over to the quad and find a spot to settle in. Or would you like a coffee shop setting? We have those in each Tower." Sure, Karen's supposed to clear interviews with her Dad and the company, but she figures this can't hurt. It's not a professional interview, just something for a fellow student.
Brooklyn ducks her head and turns red sheepishly, reaching up to tuck a few strands of hair behind her ear. "I'm sorry. I just … I've never met anybody who's actually famous before. Not /really/ famous, anyway." She takes a deep breath then goes back to smiling. "We can go to the quad, if you want. I obviously don't need any more coffee," she says, snickering at herself. "And I don't really have a lot of questions or anything, because I'm not prepared for an interview. So … would it be cool if we just kind of talk? I won't publish it or anything … just maybe mention it in my blog?"
"Sure. That's fine, Brooklyn." Karen offers, stepping back and motioning for the other woman to move ahead of her towards the quad, the suspended piece of 'park land' connecting the mid-height skyways of all four of the Metropolis University towers. She'll guide the way to a nice spot where they can sit down on a bench together and just talk, while taking it all in. "I'd be happy to just talk. But if you think of a question you want to ask, ask it. I don't really think of myself as being 'famous'. I'm just a college student, like anyone else. I just have lots of big ideas, and I'm doing all I can to pursue them. That's what founding StarrWare was all about."
Brooklyn nods as they walk, pulling out her cell phone and opening up a recording app on it. "So, then … which do you think is harder? Staying ahead of the curve in coming up with new technology? Or trying to be a college student?" she asks, folding a leg underneath her as she settles down on a bench. She sets her phone down on the table so that she can work on putting the camera back into its bag for safekeeping. "I mean, I don't really know what it was like, growing up for you, but coming from Nebraska, I've had a hard enough time just adjusting to being in school here in Metropolis."
Karen smiles and shrugs her shoulders. "Well, honestly, I don't find either one too terribly difficult." Karen admits. "I don't really look to 'stay ahead of the curve' in technology. I just look for ways that technology and science can make our world and our lives better. Then I go after it. It's just about being interested and engaged. And honestly, school is a lot like that for me." She grins. "Admittedly, it's a big change from Portland, coming here to Metropolis. But people are people. The tech here is amazing. That's part of why I came here. I find it liberating and inspiring. The hardest part, though, is just that I'm not living with my parents anymore. I come home every night to my dorm room, alone."
Brooklyn nods to Karen's last statement, looking far off for a moment. "Yeah, I know whatcha mean," she murmurs. Heavy sigh. "But … don't you have like, roommates or anything? I mean, that would make it better, wouldn't it? I know, when I was in boarding school in high school, it kinda sucked having to share a room, but it also was a great thing, because I had somebody right there if I wanted or needed to talk about anything. Since we don't have dorms at City College, I don't really have that opporutnity anymore. It kinda sucks."
Karen shakes her head. "No, no roommates. I have a single, all to myself. I have hall mates, and we do things together sometimes. But no one in my room. And often, everyone else is busy. Too busy." Just like Karen herself. But she smiles anyway. "Did you end up getting an off-campus apartment, then?" Karen inquires. Hey, fair is fair, right? Besides, Brooklyn mentioned where she was from, so she can't just be living with family. Right? Unless she teleports back and forth.
Brooklyn nods, tucking more hair behind her ear as she shifts in her seat, untucking the leg that was under her. "Yeah, I got a little studio apartment for myself close to the school. It's not much, but it's home, right?" she tries, but it wouldn't be hard to tell she's not completely happy about it. "So what kinds of things do you like to do for fun? Do you really even get that much free time? Or do you spend most of it focusing on school or your business?"
Karen nods, understanding that Brooklyn isn't entirely thrilled, but also knowing there's not much she can do about that. She can, at least, listen, and she does. "Well, I find a lot of what I do fun. I enjoy meeting new people, which I do a lot for school and for business. I like science, and technology, and I get to spend every day working in those fields. But, that isn't all I do with my time. I work with a few charities. And I work out a good bit. A lot of swimming. I also read a lot, and spend more than a little time playing video games." Hey, tech geek. She may be a girl, but that doesn't mean she doesn't game.
"Oo! I swim!" Brooklyn interjects, perking right up. Then, she blushes and ducks her head again. "Sorry. Swimming is pretty much my favorite thing ever," she admits. "So … did you secretly invent something that lets you get more hours in a day? Because I have /no/ idea how you can find time for all of that!" she says, smiling. "You know, I've met a /lot/ of really interesting people, Miss Starr. But I don't think I've ever met anybody like you before. You make me feel like I'm slacking off just trying to keep up with schoolwork and stuff!" Brooklyn says, all smiles.
"Hey, no need to apologize, Brooklyn. Seriously. I rather like swimming myself, obviously." Karen offers, trying to reassure the other woman. "Still, no. I haven't invented anything that lets me get more hours in the day. No time turners for me." Karen grins. "But I often manage to get by on a good bit less sleep. I love all-nighters." All true, but she also gets through it almost every night. There are advantages to being her, after all. But she's not sharing /that/ reality with Brooklyn. "I'll be honest, I only spend about ten to twelve hours a week on the business. My Dad runs the company, I'm just the big idea woman, when I get the chance."
"Oh! Well, that would make things a bit easier, then," Brooklyn says. She looks down at her phone and grimaces, offering Karen another smile. "Gosh, I hope I'm not keeping you from doing anything. You obviously weren't coming out to get ambushed for an interview when you found me. Are you good to just sit here and chat? If you've got someplace more important to be, I don't want to make you change your schedule or anything."
Karen smiles and reaches out a hand to gently squeeze Brooklyn's forearm. "It's OK. I'm happy to chat for a while. But I must confess, I was on my way to the research lab. I do have some work to do on a school project for my midterms, and I should get to that a bit sooner rather than later. Still, it was a pleasure to speak with you, Brooklyn. And if you come up with any follow-up questions you would like to ask, feel free to give me a call." Karen does no more than blink, but then Brooklyn's phone will sound a tone from an incoming text message, which will turn out to have Karen's contact details attached.
Metropolis University — Metropolis Village
Bordering between the tree-lined avenues of Metropolis Village and the gleaming towers of the Financial District lies Metropolis University, the seat of higher learning in the City of Tomorrow. As with many things in Metropolis, the University is arranged in a way that is rather unique to Metropolis. Instead of being spread out and covering a dozen or more city blocks, Met U is an arrangement of four gleaming towers surrounding a city block-sized central space. The towers soar into the heavens by a hundred fifty stories, a little over two thousand feet high. The central plaza is dominated by a huge domed stadium, home to the University's many athletic competitions. The four towers are connected at many levels by various skyways, most notably those at the midpoint of the towers' height, where interconnecting skyways join with a platform that houses a huge open-air park suspended a thousand feet in the air, home to the 'quandrangle' of the school and many social functions.
Each of the towers has dormitory space that dominates the first twenty floors. Their uppermost floors are dedicated to the sciences. North tower's top is home to a huge hypermodern stellar observatory. East and West towers' roofs are landing and takeoff pads for the flying cars that dominate Metropolis, with access to automated garage facilities that whisk away vehicles surrendered to their robotic efforts, storing them in chambers inside the building. South tower's roof includes both a large enclosed greenhouse, and a sizable open-air garden, all used and maintained by the students in their classes. Parking for land vehicles is all handled underground, with more automated garage facilities. The University is in many ways its own city within a city, with its own fire department, police force, maintenance droids, broadcast media stations and more.
- Obvious Exits:
- [01] - Dorms - Metropolis U — Metrop
- [O] - Metropolis Village and Financi