[Sophia Blood]

❝ Pretty woman, walkin' down the street❞

---

One might look at Sophia Blood, professional thief, daredevil and connoisseur of other people’s fine things and assume that she would find the general atmosphere of a high society party rather boring, but that could not be further from the truth. The reality was that Sophia was rather easy to please, finding amusement and entertainment even in what others might consider dull; she stole because she was good at it, took risks because, for her, they were no more dangerous than crossing the street.

Even at a fundraiser, held to raise money for one of the many charitable causes that the rich and powerful so loved to take advantage of for good publicity and tax purposes, there were ample sources of amusement. For instance, one could observe the various millionaires and corporate representatives and try to work out how many of them were cheating on their wives, or husbands. Sophia had been doing that herself since shortly after she first arrived and had arrived at 14 out of the 25 couples she had observed featuring cheating on one side or the other. Truly, the wealthy were terrible at monogamy. Not that Sophia herself could judge - she’d never been a one-man kind of girl.

She turned to her plus-one, an up and coming stage actor named Olivia Garcia who was looking frankly delectable in that gorgeous red dress. She leaned in close and whispered in her ear, lips curling into a wicked smile as Olivia’s cheeks pinked. “The gentleman in the charcoal suit, the one with the harpy in that hideous pink dress hanging off his arm, snuck off to the bathroom with Ms Lopez not fifteen minutes ago.”

Sophia gently pressed on Olivia’s jaw with a couple of fingers, turning her head so that she could see the aforementioned Ms Lopez entering the room. “She looks disappointed, the poor dear,” Sophia chuckled, voice low and sultry. “Can’t say I’m surprised, she has terrible taste in men.”

She unlinked her arm from Olivia’s and gave her a gentle push in the direction of the door. She laughed quietly when her date gave her a plaintive look, clearly unsure of what she was doing. “Go on, you’ve been staring at her ever since she first walked in. If she’s willing to leave the room with a man like him, she’ll do the same with a treat like you, and I don’t doubt you won’t disappoint her like he did.” Sophia would be very surprised if she did - Lopez had been looking desperate since the night started, and, seeing as she was highly placed in a big local theatre company, developing a good relationship now would work wonders for Olivia’s future.

That did, unfortunately, leave Sophia herself a little bereft. With no date to tease she was left with little to do besides wander. After all, what good were humorous observations and witty one-liners if you had no one to share them with?

She scanned the crowd, looking for something, anything, anyone who could amuse her. Catching sight of one man in particular, her lips curled once more into a smile. Dominic Weaver, the PR guru of the Hero Program and, it was rumoured, one of its founding members as the now-retired hero Surge. While a man with no scandals or other particularly interesting sources of gossip, he was nonetheless a common topic among those of a particular class; less than thirty years old, but already a powerful and wealthy CEO, and the not-so hidden mastermind behind the most popular brand in America.

Sophia had never spoken to the man, for all that they moved in similar circumstances. Perhaps now was the time to change that. 

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Tag Dominic Weaver

Words: 613

Notes: This dress

credit to Laura of Adox

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Sophia Blood

Surprisingly, Dominic did not particularly like fundraisers. He was comfortable here, and moved with his usual easy familiarity, but he wasn't at home. Dominic was a self-made man, he'd come from a working class family, skipped college, and gone straight into the world of work. He'd not been an exceptional student, and no-one had thought he would amount to much. Certainly no one had thought he would now be moving amongst people this rich and this powerful. Here he was though, chatting casually with one of the richest men in the country about the good the Program was doing and just why he should bring his money and his company into a partnership with them. It was rote, easy, the Hero Program almost sold itself, especially in San Francisco, with household names like Paladin and Gravity Girl it wasn't as if he needed to be here. He glanced around, searching for a sight of the Heroes. The Program often rolled them out for events like this, especially with this many high rollers in attendance. After all, they were both attractive women, and both of them had millions of fans across the country. They raked in huge amounts of money for themselves and the Hero Program through sponsorship deals and franchises. Dominic knew that Paladin gave most of her money to charity, primarily those that supported children in care. Her support for such charities was no secret, she regularly made public appearances for them, but the amount of money she funnelled in that direction was far from public knowledge. He shouldn't really spend too much time talking with them anyway, all of their jobs tonight was to pull in potential investors, men and women who wanted to improve the public image of their company, and god knows he'd need some more after the unfortunate conversation he'd had with Maxfield. It was looking increasingly likely that the Program would have to link with Axin, and that would not be good for the reputation. They needed someone more positive than a controversial arms company. He scanned the room again, finding himself surprised when he met the eyes of someone doing the same thing. It took him a moment to place her. Sophia Hewiit. She was an actress, a Hollywood star. If it hadn't been for the Hero Program she'd probably be the most well-known person in this room. As it was she was only just edged out of the top five. There was a faint smile on her lips, framed by her long blonde hair. Her expression was knowing. Perhaps she was as bored as he was. Not perhaps, almost certainly she was as bored as he was, if not more so. Dominic frowned as he noticed the woman that had evidently come with her walking away. His conversation with the CEO came to a natural close, the man promising to strongly consider a deal with the Program in exchange for links with prominent Heroes. No guarantees were made but Dominic knew that there would be a new contract landing on his desk in a matter of days. That left him temporarily unaccompanied, and so he wandered in the direction of the woman, plucking a wine glass from a passing tray as he did so. "Sophia Hewitt? Right? This doesn't seem like the kind of place I'd expect to meet a Hollywood star. An awful lot of dry old women and even drier old men. I thought movie stars were more about excitement…"

© seadra of gs

[Sophia Blood]

❝ Pretty woman, walkin' down the street❞

---

Sophia was still musing on whether or not to approach Dominic Weaver when he took the choice out of her hands, catching notice of her watching him and approaching her - after shooing off his current conversational partner of course, a frightfully dull man more concerned with making money than spending it. She took the opportunity to give him a once over, and secure her observations. A man comfortable in his own skin and his surroundings, but not particularly pleased with the latter. Oh he hid it well, but Sophia was an actress, and a far greater one than Weaver could ever hope to be. He had a politician’s skills, rather than a true actor’s; good at pretending, but incapable of truly becoming a given role.

Of course, it must be said that Sophia’s standards for a good liar were rather extreme; there might have been five people at the fundraiser, save herself and Weaver, who could’ve recognised his lack of enjoyment, and by now at least two of them would be drunk, and the other three likely couldn’t care less. Then again, Sophia never let a little something called logic get in the way of flattering her own skills and downplaying those of others.

His approach was impressively smooth - slipping through gaps in the press, a gentle pass of his arm towards a server snatching a wine glass without the woman even needing to slow. Truly, this was a man of impressive self control indeed. Had most of the men in the room tried that trick there would’ve been wine spilled all over the floor, but he did it as easily as breathing. Comfortable in his surroundings indeed.

Sophia smiled as he came into speaking distance, schooling her expression into one of politely amused interest. “You can find excitement in many places Mr Weaver, though I must admit it can be rather more difficult at such events. I mostly find my amusement in watching the various guests make fools of themselves, though I must admit that this would not be my first choice of venue for the evening.” Sophia shrugged her delicate shoulders. “I’m afraid I owed our gracious host a favour, so it seemed it would be rather impolite to refuse the invitation that came through my door.”

“What of you Mr Weaver? Are you here for business or pleasure this evening?”

---

Tag Dominic Weaver

Words: 393

Notes: This dress

credit to Laura of Adox

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Sophia Blood

"Indeed." Dominic glanced about him at the decidedly less than exciting party. He was perhaps being unfair, he could hardly expect it to compete. After all, he had himself once been a Hero, and before that a vigilante. Tracking down and fighting villains had been dangerous, concerning, and more fun than anything else he had ever done. That thrill of adrenaline made almost everything else seem boring by comparison. He had a more important role now, but that didn't mean he didn't miss the rush of running down dark alleyways, and, most of all, truly unleashing his power. It had possessed an almost addictive quality. Perhaps it was for the best that his position now did not require him to make use of it, tempting though it was in some of the interminable meetings and events he occasionally had to attend. Still it was for a good cause, and he knew that there were few that could do what he did, and fewer still that would choose to. He wondered how much of his thoughts would be reflected in those of the movie star. No doubt her life was normally far more interesting than this as well, even if her running through the streets and fighting villains only happened on a movie set. He raised an eyebrow at her justification. "Ah, favours… so valuable and yet so inconvenient." He knew the cost of inconvenient favours all too well. He snapped himself back to the conversation, raising his glass and giving an intentionally over-sincere grin. "Always a pleasure to attend such a prestigious event." Then he lowered the glass and leaned in, "Something like this? This many billionaires? Business of course, always have to be thinking about the next opportunity." He nodded towards the retreating back of the woman that had come with Sophia. "Your date isn't enjoying it either?"

© seadra of gs

[Sophia Blood]

❝ Pretty woman, walkin' down the street❞

---

Weaver looked wistful, like a man past his prime remembering old battles - Sophia filed the expression away in a little folder labeled ‘Surge’. If the rumour was indeed true, and Sophia was quite sure that it was, then it was of no surprise that a man like Dominic Weaver would find the niceties of a high-society ball to be boring. Sophia herself found them to be rather dull herself after all, and she’d never been one for running street battles against ‘villains’; stealing priceless artwork right out of a gallery, absolutely, but conflict with other metahumans? Even allowing for the way the Event had changed the landscape, she’d never been a climactic confrontation kind of gal; much more efficient to just never let them find out you were the thief in the first place - saved a lot of money on damaged clothing, and the cost of a bullet. That was a lesson she’d learned early. One she’d learned well.

Her smile turned a touch wry as Weaver spoke. “Favours are the most valuable currency of all Mr Weaver. For people like us, money means nothing. I can take the inconvenience of a boring party, considering what he did for me in return.”

She laughed at his insincere toast, raising her own glass a little in a mocking echo. “Always a pleasure indeed.”

That he was here on business was no real surprise to Sophia - she had asked the question having already guessed the answer. The man was a consummate professional certainly, and he could fake it well enough to fool drunk socialites and immoral magnates, but Sophia was more observant than most. He was as bored as she was, perhaps even more.

The comment on Olivia surprised her for a moment. The man was observant indeed.

“I’m afraid Olivia came here hoping for something more than a boring party populated mostly by women her age or younger, and men fifty years older,” Sophia said, chuckling. “I would have warned her, but her naivety is so refreshing - my line of work tends to grind the idealism out of young women rather quickly.”

Her smile turned wicked, as Olivia finally reached the woman who had so transfixed her all evening. “If you look again, Mr Weaver, you’ll find the real reason she’s been so distracted for the last few minutes. Darling Olivia has been lusting after Ms Lopez for weeks now, and she finally has her opportunity.”

A delighted, if soft, laugh escaped her lips as she watched the two women speak. “Really, she has terrible taste in women.”

She turned her gaze back to the man beside her. “What of you? Which lucky lady did the illustrious Dominic Weaver bring to this little shindig?” 

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Tag Dominic Weaver

Words: 453

Notes: This dress

credit to Laura of Adox

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Sophia Blood

Well that was interesting, and suggested that Sophia Hewitt had brough Olivia as her date with every intention of setting her up with someone else. Clearly Miss Hewitt was rather more adept at playing the socialite than a movie star was typically presented. He wondered what favour she might be repaying to their host. Smiling at her question, he took another sip of champagne before he replied. "Me? A date? No." Dominic rarely bothered with such things, for one, he was a person of considerable influence in the Program. That might make him an attractive suitor, but it also made him an attractive target for any news organisation that had a story to sell on the Hero Program. He could just see the headlines now. He had more important things to consider at the minute than his live life. Besides, it wasn't as if there were many people that had caught his eye. Before the event his life had been a succession of high profile business deals, fast cars and attractive women. Now it still included the first two, but the latter had lost something of its lustre. Besides, it wasn't as if he really had the time to focus on a relationship, he'd tried briefly after the launch of the Program, but he'd always been married to his job before he would dedicate time to anything else. That had only intensified with the importance he now attached to the Program. "No, there is rather more interest in my personal life than I'd like, I wouldn't particularly want to expose anyone else to that." He sipped the wine again. Really, their host had spared no expense on the evening, the food was good, the décor lavish, and the wine certainly wasn't the cheap stuff. Hopefully that lavish spending would pay off for the Program, and some investment would come in their direction, recruitment could do with a boost, that had dipped after the attacks, understandably. He glanced around, catching the eye of Paladin across the room, she was engaged in conversation with someone he was pretty sure sat on the board of Mars and her husband. The Hero looked decidedly out of place in this ornate and black tie setting. She'd joked she should have a 'smart' costume specially for them, maybe it would have helped. Still, at least when she left she could take off the mask and be invisible once more. Sometimes he missed that. "Sometimes I'm jealous." He nodded in the direction of Paladin, drawing Sophia's attention to the blue haired Hero. "She leaves here and she just goes back to a normal life. I miss that a little bit, things were simpler before the Event." "Anyway, enough of that, you're filming aren't you? My PA mentioned you were in town for some project, he's a huge fan by the way."

© seadra of gs

[Sophia Blood]

❝ Pretty woman, walkin' down the street❞

---

“Too much interest in your personal life Mr Weaver?” Sophia smiled, a peculiarly gentle expression that contrasted greatly with the slyness she had been displaying earlier. “Welcome to the life of the rich and famous. Now that you’re here, they’ll never give up looking for a story. If anything, they’d probably be less interested if you did have a girlfriend. Right now you’re an eligible bachelor, the 9th most eligible in the US if I remember correctly.”

She raised a hand to her mouth to hide her chuckle. “You have an aura of mystery about you Mr Weaver. You were the classic young start-up CEO, complete with charisma, good lucks, fast cars and a different beautiful woman every few months. Now? You still have the charisma, the good looks and the fast cars, but the women are gone. And that makes them salivate. They think maybe you’ve got a serious relationship that they can blow the whistle on.”

“Date a few models, a starlet or two. Have some fun. Embrace the publicity. Either that or become a monk and swear yourself to celibacy.”

She took a sip of wine, emptying the glass, and raising it slightly to catch the attention of one of the wandering staff. The man accepted the empty glass and offered a full one, only for Sophia to wave him away. She’d drank enough for the night.

The tilt of his head in a particular direction caught Sophia’s attention, and she turned to look at what had drawn his gaze. Paladin, the shining star of the Hero program. The golden girl, and goose. A goody two shoes, with no hidden vices. No amusing secrets at all, so far as she could tell. Practically a comic book character; all black and white, truth and justice and all that rubbish. It would be fun to corrupt her of course, but there was little chance of that happening.

Honestly, Sophia thought she was boring, and she was not subtle about that feeling. “Normal is so boring. And please, your life has not been a simple one since long before the Event Mr Weaver. A very successful CEO before you turned 30? That’s not simple, or normal.”

She followed the change in subject smoothly enough: Sophia was always happy to talk about herself. “A fan?” She snapped her fingers, calling over one of the staff. “A pen, and a piece of paper please.”

While they were wandering off in search of that, she turned to his question. “There was a bit of a disaster in that actually. The studio and the director had a bit of a falling out, so I and my cast mates are mostly just waiting around while they hash it out. I don’t mind too much, San Francisco has always been one of my favourite cities on this continent.”

The woman returned with a pen and paper, and Sophia signed her name with a flourish before offering it to Weaver. “Make his day a better one. I would share my next project, but you know how private the industry can be sometimes.” 

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Tag Dominic Weaver

Words: 515

Notes: This dress

credit to Laura of Adox

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Sophia Blood

"Such is the way of business. Though I'm sure they will resolve it soon enough." These things usually got resolved, though he had also heard stories that had simply lived in a strange limbo for years before being cancelled, or worse, coming out and turning out to be a complete failure, both critically and commercially. "And if they don't you can enjoy San Francisco, I'm sure there are plenty of events that would love to host Sophia Hewitt." Dominic took the slip of paper, folding it carefully in such a way as to preserve the signature without a crease, and slipping it into an interior pocket. Gregory would likely be ecstatic at the gift. He had hardly shut up about the fact that Sophia Hewitt was in San Francisco, or that she would be attending this event. At least in as much as his professionalism would allow him to not shut up about anything. Even in this enlightened age, people raised their eyebrows at the fact that Dominic's PA was an extravagantly gay man, although maybe that was just because of how extravagant he was. In truth Dominic had never met a PA as good as he was, he anticipated his needs, held off the press with one hand and organised most of Dom's life with the other. Most CEOs would kill to have a PA like Gregory. "It definitely will make his day a better one, I'm sure he mentioned something about fangirling when he saw that you were due to make an appearance here." He sipped his wine briefly. He had mastered the art of appearing to drink level with the people he was talking to, while actually draining the glass at a far slower rate, like Sophia, he preferred to have his wits about him. "I can imagine what they're like, that privacy is becoming a big part of my life now as well, the amount of non-disclosures I have signed over the last year would make your eyes water." Thanks to his position Dominic was privy to an awful lot of the Program's secrets. Not all of them, it was true, but enough to be a concern. It was certainly not something he'd considered when he'd been much younger. He moved the conversation back to the previous topic "I'm actually 8th most eligible by the way, Martin Brenton has been spotted with the same woman three weeks in a row apparently." He rolled his eyes, then by way of explanation, "Gregory follows them too, just in case one of them comes to San Francisco and he can seduce them." He inclines his wine glass in her direction. "Any single friends you can recommend for me? Since you seem to be in the habit of matchmaking."

© seadra of gs

[Sophia Blood]

❝ Pretty woman, walkin' down the street❞

---

“That is the hope.” Sophia glanced around before leaning in, speaking in a conspiratorial whisper. “Though, between you and me, I wouldn’t mind it taking its time. It’s not the most interesting project, and being here for so long has let me establish myself a little better than I normally have the time to.”

“It’s rare that I ever get the chance to stay in the same place for long. I’m not so gauche as to complain about the opportunity to travel the world, and it’s certainly more exciting than being in the same city all the time, but it can be draining at times as well. Makes long-term relationships a nightmare as well.” Not that Sophia particularly minded that last part. Long-term relationships had never really been an objective of hers. She preferred them short and passionate to long and boring.

“The invitations are there yes, but honestly Dominic - can I call you Dominic? - the events are always so dull. This is easily the most entertained I’ve been in quite some time, all thanks to yourself.”

She smiled as he took the autograph, flashing brilliant white teeth at the care he took over it. Weaver’s PA must be something indeed. A young man with a boss who obviously wasn’t interested in sleeping with him and yet still took the time to care about his interests?

It must be said that Sophia, as intelligent and observant as she undeniably was, was not an entirely reliable or objective source, and nor did she tend to pay enough attention to the affairs of those she deemed as uninteresting to really glean any understanding of their lives. Her knowledge of the typical boss-PA relationship came mostly from the escapades of her father, a sleaze if there ever was one, and 1960s business TV shows and films. Not that she was wrong in this, but it still must be said.

The comment on privacy and non-disclosure would’ve had a less controlled woman salivating. Sophia had a fondness for secrets, mostly for being the one who knew them while others were ignorant. There was nothing quite as satisfying as being the one with all the answers, after all, and that was something Sophia was very good at being. Mostly by cheating.

Brenton dating someone? Sophia doubted it would last. He’d have his fun and be back on the Bachelor list in a couple of months. The man was an incorrigible flirt, and had never had any time for a serious relationship. Much like Sophia herself actually.

You’d think it would reduce how desirable people found him, but it didn’t seem to be happening. Not that Sophia herself cared, she had always been more concerned with her own short term enjoyment than other people’s long term happiness.

“8th? My my, you’re moving up in the world. Now you just need a title, or a trophy of some sort. Add that to your money and excellent looks and you’d shoot all the way up to number 1.”

Her smile turned crooked. “Between you and me, I find Brooklyn much less pretty than his father. He could use a knock off the pedestal.”

“Single friends? Not many. At least not who’d fit your tastes, or whose tastes you’d fit. I would’ve suggested Olivia, the girl isn’t too picky, but you’re an hour too late for that I’m afraid.” 

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Tag Dominic Weaver

Words: 560

Notes: This dress

credit to Laura of Adox