AU: Senorita with a Necklace of Tears (Anjali)

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Doctor Sean Neville was a leading expert in the fields of psychiatry, psychology, and psychic meta-human powers. He had, quite literally, written the modern text book on the psychology of meta-human powers, with another two tombs on the psychology of the psychic mind and on the history of psychic powers, both in life and in fiction.

People from far and wide sought his advice. Governments contacted him to speak as an expert when drafting policies. He could be rich, living off royalties and the fees for speaking engagements, while otherwise living a life of leisure.

Instead, he still saw patients and taught two classes a week. While he saw patients of all stripes and backgrounds, and while he had had relationships with people of all stripes and backgrounds, he only hired meta-humans as his staff. Despite his greatest efforts, there remained discrimination based on meta-human status, and the least he could do was to pay forward his success to members of his community who had not been as fortunate as he had been.

For this year, his assistant professor was a graduate student in the penultimate year of her PhD, named Anjali Kedar. She had been one of his students as an undergraduate, and he had become her advisor. It had been a pleasure to hire her for the year, and they had worked well together on numerous projects. She had valuable insights, and he enjoyed using a variety of situations as teaching moments.

Although classes were on hiatus for a week-long recess, he had been invited to a psychology conference, and he had invited Anjali to attend, paying her way as a perk of her employment. The first day had been informative and exhausting, and he had allowed her to sleep in on the second day. But while she was asleep in her room, he had gone out to breakfast and had run into a few of his colleagues. A long discussion brought with it rumors of a mystical artifact that he had debunked in his third book. One colleague insisted it was real and couldn’t be dissuaded otherwise.

An hour’s debate had brought him back to the hotel for the second day of the conference, and to the lobby where he had been scheduled to meet with Anjali.

[Anjali Kedar]

Working under Dr. Neville had been a literal dream come true for Anjali Kedar.  He was one of the leading and most sought out experts in the field she had devoted her doctorate to; psychology.  She'd worked with him since her second year of her undergraduate degree, and had been fortunate enough to study with him through the many years of schooling following.  She'd become close to the man, as anyone might in such a close academic environment, especially considering she was his A.P., a position she took as the honor it was.  Nothing thrilled her more than being considered worthy enough to work below him, and when he'd gone a step further and offered to bring her along to a psychology conference.  Her years of sleepless nights pouring over books and filling her brain with as much knowledge as it would willingly hold, was truly paying off.  She hoped to one day be as recognized as he, though she doubted she could ever match him.  She knew Sean had an advantage in the field that made it all easier for him, but hard work and determination could easily bring her close to his level. As close as someone who could not read minds could get.

The first day of the conference had been interesting and perhaps a little overwhelming.  She'd babbled like an idiot over dinner, as she was inclined to do, asking questions and talking about points speakers had brought up.  She was as enthusiastic as a five year old who had just spent the day at Disney World with a fleet of princesses.  It took her some time to sleep that evening, pouring through her notes to review them all so the information might sink in, falling asleep sometime in the wee hours of the morning, bedside lamp still on and notepad sprawled across her lap.

Anjali woke with a start the following morning.  Panic gripped her as she realized she'd fallen asleep at some point and now the daylight peeked through the closed curtains in her room.  She heard the graceful song of the morning doves outside her window, her dark eyes shooting to the alarm clock.  Not even eight in the morning.  She sighed and relaxed, leaning back against the headboard.  Had she been late Sean would have fetched her, she was sure of it, but as it turned out she had plenty of time.  Now alert, she decided to get up and get herself ready to meet the day.

After a shower and a light complimentary breakfast in the hotels dining area, she made her way to the lobby to meet with the man she so admired.  She poured through her emails as she waited, lounging in a high wing back chair, legs crossed as she waited.  Eyes scanning the room now and then, she finally spotted her mentor and smiled brightly, alert and excited for their second day at the conference to begin.  Today there would be a debate, something she looked forward to. Nikhil was right; she was such a nerd.

"Good morning!" She chirped, getting to her feet and tucking her phone away into her purse.  She was dressed like someone attending a conference, which meant her high waisted white dress pants only had decorative pockets sewn in.  Why would anyone make decorative, non functional pockets on pants? Still, she looked sharp with the flowy black blouse with white polka dots. The heels she could have done without, though.

"Did you sleep well?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean offered her a warm smile. “You seem in good spirits.”

Not that he could fault her. He remembered his first conference, those decades ago. Once upon a time, he had been bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, eager to see, hear, and do everything. The early years of academia, research, and professional practice were like a second infancy in that way: so much to learn, so easily to become over-stimulated, so very excited.

How could he have denied her the opportunity to attend with him? He couldn’t have.

He nodded in response to her question, before rising to his feet and his full height. “I did. The beds are always so comfortable.” Once, many years ago, the hotel hosting a conference had given him a bed too small for his frame. That had been a long night of complaints to the concierge. Since then, he always had a king-sized bed, and he always slept well as a result.

“Have you eaten breakfast?” Although he had already eaten, he wanted her to stop off and have something – even if they had to eat on the go – rather than to deprive herself for the rest of the morning. They had programs from the first session all the way until lunch.

In that way, he acted more like a parent than a teacher.

[Anjali Kedar]

"It was very comfortable." She agreed with a nod, reaching to tuck some loose hair back behind her ear.  Her smile was warm and content, her entire being radiating excitement.  It was no secret she was pleased to be there and she was grateful to the man before her for offering such a wonderful opportunity.  She didn't need to read his mind to know he was glad to have her along.

"I have, yes." She nodded, recalling her breakfast.  "I hope tomorrow I can tackle that omelet station.  It looks so good, but by the time I realize it's there I've already loaded my plate down with muffins and yogurt and there simply isn't enough room in my gut to house an omelet on top of that."  She smiled and rolled her shoulders gently.  "This hotel has everything.  They have a great tea selection, too.  Have you seen it? There were two dozen blends to choose from! And not just those cheap sawdust kinds, I mean, real tea!" It had always been the little things in life that got her excited.  And sometimes the not little things.  Everything, really.  Everything was cause for enthusiasm.

She was rambling and once she realized she nipped the inside of her lip and looked out the window.  "Anyway." She said in way of apology.  "Have you had some breakfast? I could sit with you.  Sample more tea.. or if you've eaten we could get started.  What's the plan, Sean?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

“If you don’t stay up too late tonight, we can go to the omelet station tomorrow morning.” Sean had let her sleep in, because he knew how late she had stayed up the night before. If she let herself go to bed at a more reasonable hour, then they would have time to take a leisurely breakfast before beginning the next day’s schedule. Tomorrow’s schedule would also be a bit more manageable than today’s, since Saturday always proved to be the marathon day for academic conferences.

The telepath then glanced down at his watch; they had twenty minutes before their first panel of the day. “I already had breakfast, and ran into a few colleagues there. That’s the nice part of conferences: you can’t throw a pebble without hitting at least two colleagues.”

He stretched and then gestured towards the corridor which led to the conference rooms. “We can meander for a few minutes, or otherwise go straight there and try to get better seats.”

Although he offered the choice sincerely, the latter option was intended as a joke. Due to the size of the rooms and the screens, no matter where they sat, they would be able to hear the discussion and see the panelists clearly enough.

[Anjali Kedar]

His paternal promise made her smile.  In some ways Sean reminded her of her own father, only much whiter.  Both men were serious but had large hearts.  Both valued their space but enjoyed company, so long as it wasn't too rowdy.  Maybe that's why she felt so at home around him.  That and on some level Sean had acted as a father figure, guiding through the last several years of her adult life as though he were picking up where her father had left off.

"That would be wonderful." Humor was evident in her tone as she nodded along to her own words.  She wondered how long it might take until she familiarized herself with enough colleagues to see friendly faces upon arrival, faces saved only for conferences as many would be from cities and states she'd never had the pleasure of visiting.  She envied his experience, but looked forward to beginning the road to her own.

"I love meandering as much as the next assistant, but getting good seats sounds more up my alley."  She'd learned long ago not to bother hiding or being wishy washy with the psychiatrist.  He would know what she wanted whether she voiced it or not, and strangely she was okay with this.  She never caught on that the suggestion was a joke, but that wasn't so much due to Sean's dryness as it was to her own obliviousness.  "Though whatever you prefer is fine with me.  Really, you know I'm easy."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Being able to act in a parental role was one of the aspects of working with students that Sean valued most highly. He didn’t say that outright, but due to his own inability to have a family, he valued interacting with the younger generation all the more in whatever capacity he could manage.

Although the telepath overheard her thought, he didn’t reply to it. That was a fifty-fifty proposition when working with him; sometimes, he saw no reason to keep his remarks to himself, since his telepathy was widely known, and he viewed it as another sense rather than as a great intrusion the way it was portrayed in popular culture. (Sean had, in fact, devoted two chapters in one of his books to that phenomenon alone.) if he had answered, he would tell her that it would likely be years before she was able to recognize a sizeable portion of any conference attendees, but, if she stayed the course, she would get to that point. It wasn’t as though his success and notoriety had appeared overnight.

He nodded his agreement with her preferences and then started in the direction of the corridor. “Then we’ll get good seats. We should make this conference as memorable for you as we can, easy or not.”

Despite the early hour, the corridors were already crowded with hundreds of attendees, all dressed in business or business casual attire. Those who recognized Sean nodded towards him or greeted him, and, each time, the telepath made sure to introduce Anjali so she would make another acquaintance.

[Anjali Kedar]

She gave a close lipped smile and a short nod.  It didn't matter what happened, this conference would be memorable.  Like any first important event in a young person's life.  She had a feeling she would always remember the disappointment of finding an omelet station five minutes too late her first conference.  It was the little things, after all.

She was on cloud 9 as they walked the corridors, being introduced to at least a half dozen people she might never see again, but all who treated her with more respect than she felt she deserved simply because of who she was there with.  It was like going to an awards show with a top billed actor; everyone knew his face.  Everyone knew his work.  Everyone seemed to be in awe of him, and on some level she felt that maybe they held her in some regard for having trained with him.  Or at least she hoped.

"Where do you normally sit during these debates?" She asked softly as they walked in, turning to look up at him briefly before admiring the conference room.  There was nothing special about it, but it was magnificent to her.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

What the conference room had going for it over some others was its size. As this was one of the more mainstream topics, one of the ones that would catch media attention in the science reports, it had been scheduled for one of the largest conference rooms. Chairs lined nearly every inch of floor space, with narrow aisles set aside for access. Despite twenty minutes until the presentation was to begin, already many attendees had taken seats, creating pockets of people interspersed with empty chairs. Already a couple of the panelists were seated at the table on the podium, their microphones not yet on so as to grant them privacy of conversation.

“Somewhere in the middle is where I typically sit, but I have the height advantage.” Barefoot, he stood nearly a foot taller than her, and he had yet to shrink with age or due to bad posture. “I think we can try to move a little closer.”

Not in the front row, but near the back of the front section, there were several available seats, and Sean pointed them out before asking if those would suffice. Other attendees continued to dribble in from the outside, and the room continued to slowly fill up.

[Anjali Kedar]

Anjali nodded.  As far as women went she was of average height, but as far as Sean was concerned she was short.  She didn't only figuratively look up to him.  "Between the middle and front sounds like a good compromise."

Sean pointed a few seats out and she gave another nod in agreement.  Those would certainly do.  She took her seat with him and opened her purse, pulling out a small notepad and pen.  She wasn't necessarily required to take notes, but sometimes she liked to jot things down.  

She had fun watching the people enter the large room, buzzing with life as a hundred conversations went on at the same time, some obviously lighthearted, others more intense.  She was glad to see she didn't stick out like a sore thumb, a strange fear of hers.  She didn't know how she would, but those sort of thoughts always entered her brain.


"They all eventually settle down, right?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean agreed, and he led her over to the seats that he had spotted and that she had approved. Although several of the other attendees continued to stand and chatter, the telepath sat down. Eventually, the panel would begin, and he wanted to be comfortable.

“They always do,” he assured her. Considering that this was an academic and research conference, rather than a popular culture convention, the attendees always settled down and maintained control of themselves in the end, even if they were excited about a particular topic or area of study.

True to his word, when the lights began to flicker, indicating that the panel would begin momentarily, the other attendees all stopped talking and found their seats. The room had filled in completely by that point, so that there were no empty seats but for perhaps one or two scattered about the entire conference room.

The panelists were introduced one by one, and, once they had taken their seats as well, the topic began.

All went fine for the majority of the panel, but, near the end, when taking questions from the audience, someone near the back stood up and began to ask about a theoretical field of therapy. When the panelists attempted to answer the question, the guest instead began to rant and rave about Project MKUltra.

The moderator told him to sit down, but instead he started towards the center of the room near the stage. Someone called for security, but the guards had to come from the front desk.

At that point, Sean stood up from his seat and quickly made his way through the aisles to catch up with the other guest before he could reach the panel. In the midst of all of this, the panelists and the moderator disappeared out back, other guests began to move towards the raving one, and Sean managed to tackle him to the floor.

[Anjali Kedar]

Sure enough the lights began to flicker and those that had yet to find their seats quickly did so. The room began to hush and soon the debate was starting to take place. Anjali looked around, noting how packed the room was, and she was glad they'd gotten their seats early. They may not have been the best in house, but they were excellent and she could see everything without any hassle. She turned back to the front, sitting straight in her seat, her mind buzzing with anticipation. How very exciting it all was! The panelists were all introduced and the topic began.

Anjali was quiet, not pestering Sean with any questions, but occasionally jotting something down. In no time at all it seemed they were beginning to allow the audience to participate, asking questions so the panelists could go into further detail. Anjali had no idea something was wrong when a gentleman in the back asked a question, only to begin ranting about some project called MKUltra. It sounded familiar, something she'd heard of before in passing, but over the many years of schooling she couldn't pinpoint the project in her mind. She would certainly need to look it up afterwards, or at least ask sean about it.

As the moderator asked the ranting man in the back to sit down, Anjali quickly began to jot down the project name, a reminder to herself before she forgot with the situation afoot. She suddenly felt shifting beside her, her dark eyes popping up to look at Sean instead of the man charging down the aisle. Everything happened so quickly that she didn’t know what exactly was happening at all. “Sean?” She questioned but he was already up and moving, her body tensing as she got to her feet to watch him go. What was he doing?

Her eyes widened and her lips parted as she watched her mentor tackle the raving man to the ground. She didn’t expect that from someone like Sean, who seemed so composed all of the time. The only logical explanation in her mind was that he, and he alone, knew this man was dangerous and was intent on inflicting harm. Why else would Sean throw himself upon him? A chill ran up her spine as she tried to think of what she could possibly do, and in the end found herself simply standing there, dumbstruck, unsure of how she could help at all.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Several of the other attendees appeared equally paralyzed by surprise or confusion, which was why Sean had acted in the first place. Someone needed to, and he had been in the best position to do so, in that he could.

Unfortunately, that now had him pinning a stranger to the floor of the conference room, holding tightly with muscles he didn’t use often enough lest the wild-eyed man beneath him break free from his grip.

“I think it would be a good idea for everyone to clear out the back!” He called out, a suggestion more than anything else, since he couldn’t force them to move. It seemed pragmatic to him: security would most likely come through the front; if everyone exited through the back, then they wouldn’t be in the way, while also making their way to safety.

At least, among peers - other experts in psychology - his suggestion held weight, for its pragmatism if not due to his authority, and many of the other attendees began to file for the exits. Several looked back at him, or at the man he had pinned, some questioning if he needed help. “I just need security to get here,” he promised, as he adjusted his position.

His back would punish him for this later.

You too, Anjali, he mentally assured his protégée. He had taken a risk; she had no reason to follow suit.

Soon, although not soon enough, three security guards barreled into the room through the main entrance. They approached both men still in the middle of the aisle so that they could take the stranger into custody.

[Anjali Kedar]

Her heart hammered.  This guy was dangerous if Sean wanted everyone to evacuate the room, not that she had any intention of leaving his side.  Not that she was exactly by his side, but she was helpful in ways many of the people in this room were not.  If needed, she herself could contain him without ever touching him, which was precisely why she ignored his mental insistence to leave as well.  As if she could miss all this drama! It was like a movie but in real life! Like.. a live documentary! That was sort of neat, even if it was frightening.   

The doors flung open and in came the security guards, finally, jogging towards Sean and the man that had been going off during the Q&A. Her attention was drawn to them, stepping away as others still moved to leave the back of the room.  She turned to look at them before moving back towards Sean, the pen and paper she'd been holding dropping to the ground next to her bag as she opened her hands at her side, watching the scene unfold.

I'm not leaving without you.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean maintained his grip on the other man’s legs until he felt security surround him and begin to gently pry him off. Two of the guards held the man steady while one handcuffed him (and one of the first two nudged the telepath so that he could roll off the other man’s body). Sean scooted backward so that he was out of the way, but he, too, refused to leave, until the guards had ushered the man to his feet and had led him out of the conference room.

Then, and only then, did the psychiatrist take a few deep breaths, stretch himself since his knees protested the earlier exertion, and turn his head back towards Anjali. He crossed over to her, examining her with his eyes and his telepathy to make sure that she hadn’t been injured in the midst of the excitement.

“You have questions.” A statement rather than a question.

However, before he could inquire further, or before she could explain herself, the hotel intercom crackled to life. “Due to a situation in the main conference room, the next presentation bloc will be delayed by twenty minutes. We apologize for the inconvenience. In that time, please avoid the main conference room.”

The psychiatrist gestured over his shoulder at the exit. “We should leave. We can talk en route.”