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[jacksonian]

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[keep_nothing]

You start with what you like, where your passion is. Which, as it turns out, I believe you already have, right?

[jacksonian]

[ He looks at her in confusion. Have I? ]

What do you mean?

[keep_nothing]

Finances, right?

[jacksonian]

Oh.

[ He shrugs, just a bit self-consciously. ]

I mean...I'm good at it, I guess.

[keep_nothing]

But you like doing it?

[jacksonian]

[ He hesitates. He...doesn't know, really. He guesses... ]

It's...Yeah. I like being good at it. And - When you have money, people...can't really...do anything to you.

[keep_nothing]

Oh, they can, and they can try to steal it from you or whatever else is common in Jackson's Whole. But then there's also smart investing.

[jacksonian]

Yeah.

[ A hesitation, and a glance off to the side. A little quietly: ]

I - like the thought of being able to hire people to protect me, too. If, uh...If Galen shows up here.

[keep_nothing]

Would you hire the Dendarii for that?

[jacksonian]

[ He looks up and says, firmly: ]

No. Never. Miles would take that as an open invitation to dig.

[keep_nothing]

[ She makes a vague hand gesture as if waving it off. ]

Okay, maybe not hiring them. But what about asking? Hiring them might be inviting them to dig, but asking as a friend? Comrade? That puts a different spin on snooping.

And you're technically Dendarii too by being the finance guy. I would think Dendarii would protect their own.

[jacksonian]

[ A gesture of dismissal. ]

Asking would be even worse. Then Miles would convince himself he had a right to know, because he's helping me out. And I don't want him knowing. Any of it.

[keep_nothing]

... How about if I ask him for you? With stipulations.

[jacksonian]

[ He shakes his head, the firmness starting to edge into a bit of desperation. ]

You know he'll pry.

[keep_nothing]

[ She hears the change in his voice and she raises a hand in surrender. ]

All right, all right. I won't say a word about it. But I can just as easily imagine him getting offended that you hired out and will want to know what you're hiding from him.

[jacksonian]

[ He hunches his shoulders - but he's relaxing a bit. ]

So I won't tell him.

[keep_nothing]

[ She makes a faint snorting sound. ]

Tell me how that goes for you.

[jacksonian]

[ He hunches down further. ]

I've managed to keep my secrets from him this long. I can continue to do so.

[keep_nothing]

Oh, I'm sure you could. I was just laughing at the thought of Miles actually backing down when you don't tell him anything.

[jacksonian]

Well, it isn't any of his business.

[keep_nothing]

It's not, and I'd tell him as such, but that word would only go so far with him.

[jacksonian]

So, what, then?

[ He hunches his shoulders. ]

There's nothing I can do? I should just expect him to find out? He already basically treats me like some possession of his now, when he just thinks I look like him. I can't even imagine how he'll treat me if he finds out that it's not just a coincidence that I look like this.

[keep_nothing]

You continue to do what you're doing. If he does find out, it won't be from you or me, and that's as far as we can control. I don't believe Duv will say anything either since I asked him not to, and he hasn't yet.

As for how he'll treat you ... it'll be like a brother, if memory serves, as vague as it is by now.

[jacksonian]

Yeah, but...

[ He shifts uncomfortably. ]

He doesn't respect me now. When I say don't, he just talks over me.

[keep_nothing]

He's like a child testing out the limits of someone he just met, how far he can push them. Don't let him pull your pigtails.