Liliya Kennedy (evenindeath) wrote in light_of_may, @ 2010-10-11 23:49:00 |
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Entry tags: | 2009-07-29, cameron, liliya |
There you go - you're always so right
Who: Cameron and Liliya (NPC mediator)
Where: Town Hall
When: 7 o’clock p.m.
Cameron felt like he’d do better at this than anyone was giving him credit for. He knew that plenty of people on his side were ready for him to show Liliya just why she shouldn’t go up against a human, much less a Calvert, but he knew plenty more weren’t. But he didn’t care because Amanda was right, he was right, they were all right and right was supposed to prevail in things like this. Vampires didn’t deserve human rights, they didn’t even deserve equal rights for god’s sake! They deserved to be treated like what they were, a disease that should be culled before it spread all over the world, and he wouldn’t be silenced when it came to this matter. He would share his opinion loudly and often with whoever would listen. Which really meant at debates because Cameron hadn’t ever been all that good at the door-to-door pitch. That was for the younger people who weren’t ready to step up to the podium like he was. Sure his father would’ve been better, he’d actually considered asking him to do it instead, but Cameron had won nearly every debate he’d ever been in during his school days.
This wouldn’t be any different.
Though when he was in university there hadn’t been reporters, cameras and a crowded room that he knew was just as full of supernaturals as it was humans. Filth, brushing shoulders with all of us, likely looking at our necks and trying to decide which one will taste the best when we leave. They shouldn’t have the chance to even get a whiff of them, but oh well, he’d settle for the injustice for right this moment so long as he came out ahead in the end. Which he would. Straightening his tie he accepted his glass of water and took his place at the podium, shuffling the notes that he’d assembled from which to answer the outlined questions with. At least for those he was prepared and his mind wouldn’t allow him to think that Liliya was just as prepared.
Liliya was not nervous. Part of that was due to the fact that she saw no reason to be nervous and part of it was, admittedly, due to the fact that she had ingested a rather large quantity of angelic blood not half an hour past. That and she had received multiple well wishes in various forms, some from people she had not expected. The Moriarty’s were going to be there and their eldest daughter - who admittedly, might not count as much in the world of politics as others - had actually been one of those who wished her well. All in all it added to her certainty that tonight would go in her favor. Because she was correct and Calvert, for all that he said, was on the wrong side. People did not hold as well with discrimination these days as they had in the past.
Reaching up to toy with her necklace, Liliya debated whether or not she should use the abilities of her family to infuse a look of life to her features. It had always made dealings with the humans easier in the past but then she was not trying to appease humans, she was trying - going - to win a debate about supernatural rights. Perhaps the best way to do that was to appear just as she was without any sort of flushed skin or other human-esque features. She was not even going to attempt to consciously hide her fangs when she spoke. Casting her eyes over the crowd, picking out familiar faces as she did so, Liliya brushed back a piece of hair as she took her own side. This was just a publicity stunt, really, she expected nothing influential to come of it. Perhaps that was why she had indulged in so much soothing blood instead of keeping herself on edge as she had preferred doing while in school. So long as she did not say anything implicating then she had nothing to worry about and tonight could only benefit her since Calvert would not have the support he needed. She knew that, she actually trusted in the people of the area to be more open-minded than that.
Not a minute later the mediator stepped up and smiled at those assembled. “Welcome to Scarlet Oak’s first official supernatural rights debate. Representing those against and in favor of something else we have Mr. Cameron Calvert.” Proper paused for applause and even a few boos. “And in favor of complete supernatural rights we have Mrs. Liliya Kennedy.” Same reaction. “Now before we begin as is customary, the debators will shake hands." If Democrats and Republicans could do it then so could they.
Liliya's smile was easy as she stepped out, heels clicking on the floor as she walked to the middle and not an inch further, hands hanging loosely at her sides. The moment that Calvert reached her she accepted his hand and squeezed perhaps a little too tightly. "I just want you to know," she said through her smile, looking to where the cameras were flashing. "That I'm going to humiliate you."
"Try your best," Cameron replied, focusing more on not wincing from the force of her cold hand around his than anything else. As soon as the flashes stopped he let go, inclined his head sharply and went back to his podium. Last thing he wanted was to stand closer to that thing parading about as a woman for a moment longer than was completely necessary.
"Now we will have opening remarks, beginning with Mr. Calvert.”
Cameron was ready and after clearing his throat he smiled and looked out at the crowd. He’d always had a talent for this sort of thing and even being faced with a vampire who’d been bred to do this he didn’t worry. “Actually, I have no opening remarks. Everyone in this room knows that I stand for pro-human rights, which used to be plenty enough for everyone, but all that I have to say will be done when we come to the set questions.” A move that had been argued against but Cameron had never been a fan of opening statements. They either made you sound repetitive or look stupid.
“Mrs. Kennedy then?”
What was this? Liliya would have frowned if she was not wearing her perfectly smooth politician face because she had not expected this little turn of events. She had a perfectly formed opening statement as was expected and then Calvert went and did not give one. That was not how these things were supposed to work. How was hers supposed to qualify as better than something that was not even given? I need a telepath, not a clairsentient, they could have told me that he was going to do this. No, she could not hold this against Mael but she felt a prickle of annoyance that it had happened at all. “If Mr. Calvert does not have a statement prepared to give then I think that I will withdraw mine and save any key points that are missed during the debate for my closing, thank you.” A smile and incline of the head, she thought that was a better way to handle it than several of the other options that had presented themselves in a matter of moments.
The mediator appeared surprised, not that Liliya blamed him, but after a moment he just nodded and continued. “The first topic is the recent outburst of vampire attacks and what sort of effect that has on your views, stance, supporters... Mr. Calvert, you have three minutes.”
Brilliant first question. “Ever since the first of May there have been multiple vampires and vampire groups claiming that they will drink only from blood banks or willing donors, that they are not animals who need to go about killing or taking blood from people who don’t want to give it. And yet people are still turning up dead because of vampire attacks, as you all know from the news. Why, if vampires are capable of living off bottled blood and willing donors? Because they aren’t. It is in their very nature to hunt and drain their prey and that is not going to change just because some of them say it is. Yes, there are the different families or houses that claim it now goes against their rules but are the majority or the minority and can we know if they are telling us the truth? We aren’t the only city in the country, or the world, experiencing this and it is my belief that the vampires who claim to want nothing more than equal rights are in the minority. Why should any of them have rights equal to us, rights that they could have kept if the Light of May had never happened, when they will never be the same as us? Again, the attacks that are happening are vampires acting on their base nature much in the same way as a wolf would. Imagine if wolves lived solely off of human flesh instead of their actual diet; would we give wolves rights similar to our own if they suddenly revealed they could speak and desired the rights; yet their kind were still killing?” Cameron shook his head. “Just because they look like us doesn’t mean they are like us and now that we know what they are we need to have strict laws regulating them to keep attacks like this from occurring.” Less than, not equal to, they were less.
“Mrs. Kennedy?”
Liliya sadly could believe exactly what she heard Calvert say. He was a bigot, there was no denying it, and the way he painted the attacks was the way she had expected. Vampires attacking and killing people because it was in their nature. Which was sadly true, but Liliya could not just say that. Enough people here agreed with her but she did not want to give anyone reason to regard vampires in a light even similar to Calvert’s. “The vampire attacks were terrible and I cannot stand here and say that I know for certain they will never happen again. Innocent people died for no reason past someone being unable to control their appetite. Or perhaps they did it because they wanted to. Vampires were human just like Mr. Calvert once upon a time and mental instabilities that affect them can us as well. Vampire serial killers are as real as human ones. Our minds do not undergo some radical change when we are turned. I was human myself not so very long ago and the only difference between me now and me then is that I don’t breathe and I drink blood - from a willing donor. Civilized vampires, like civilized humans, would never dream of killing for their food.” She paused for a moment. “But even we have our... problem children and all of us cannot be held responsible for the actions of a few.” If someone brings up Eric, so help me I will stake him myself. “We wouldn’t ask all humans to give up their rights just because of the Charlie Mansons and Adolf Hitlers of the world, now would we?” Even if she was more than half convinced that Hitler had been some sort of a psychic or witch.
“A rebuttal, Mr. Calvert?”
Cameron felt his hands tightening on the podium and he glanced out at the crowd and back. Enough faces showed support of Kennedy. “Mrs. Kennedy has a point,” he conceded, immediately adding, “but - the differences between vampires and humans cannot be ignored. What if they couldn’t find a willing donor and the blood supply at their blood banks were out? Are you telling me that they would simply starve instead of going and biting the nearest human? That you would all starve and die if the humans of the world decided that no, they didn’t want to share their blood with you? That the attacks would not happen everywhere to everyone?”
“Mrs. Kennedy.”
Probably. Liliya had, to her occasional shame, drank to excess but she had been young then and not fully in control of her impulses or completely content with the life that she had been turned to. Of course he had a point. It was a ridiculous point but it was one nonetheless. “I think that you are trying to give us an example of something that will never happen. There have always been and always will be those who are willing to donate their blood, if not via bite than via a needle. And why would we want to attack and drain every human? That would be as bad for us as for you.”
“Mr. Calvert?” Cameron waved it off. “On the opposite end of the spectrum from vampire attacks we have the hunters, who we know continue their gruesome work despite it being directly outlawed. What are your stances on the existence of hunters. Mrs. Kennedy, you have the first response.”
Such an unpredictable lot. “Hunters are more dangerous than they have ever been useful,” Liliya said simply. “One can never be certain where a hunter is, what their race is, who they are hunting, why they are doing it... some claim that they’re helping to purify but how is their purification - no matter what species they are targeting - any better than oh say, lynchings? Blood hunters can be especially dangerous. Yes, I know what I’m saying. They are the ones out for monetary gain and care not at all for those they hurt and even kill, just for the payment they receive at the end of the day. Vampires don’t need hunters, they need to go to the blood bank or make a bite-friendly friend.” Or visit Ad Gustum, it’s practically the same thing. “And of course, I think it goes without saying that I’m against vampire hunters.” She showed her fangs in a small smile. “Buffy was never one of my favorite shows.”
Covering a smile of his own the mediator directed attention to Cameron for his turn.
But Cameron found that Liliya had said much the same thing that he wished to. Standing up for hunters wasn’t a good idea, the general public seemed to be disturbed by the very idea of them, but what was he supposed to do, agree with a vampire? “Hunters can be a problem,” Cameron agreed reluctantly. “But if used correctly then they can help correct problems that our police forces haven’t even trained for. Take a local police officer and put him in a situation where the criminal is not a human, but a vampire or a were.” Because Cameron’s distaste for the supernatural didn’t stop at vampires, they were simply the easier target most of the time. “He wouldn’t know what to do because normal methods aren’t as effective. But take a hunter whose trained their entire life to deal with those situations and they will know what to do. Hunters should not be vigilantes, but their abilities cannot be denied and should be used.”
“Rebuttal, Mrs. Kennedy?” Liliya shook her head, feeling as though she had covered her stance adequately and seeing no point to say anything in response. It was a ridiculous statement and she had a good example of why it would not work, but the last thing she wanted was to inform all of the people here that there were necromancers in Scarlet Oak. “Now the next question deals with a more sensitive topic but I trust that both of you are adequately prepared - more directly than just vampire attacks are the still-recent attack on Amanda Blake and the fatal attack on Claire Korey. Mr. Calvert?”
Ah yes, Amanda. “What happened to Claire Korey was beyond tragic, a young girl murdered by something that was apparently half-vampire and half-werewolf. And why? No one has been able to step up and give a reason since it doesn’t even seem to be for her blood so we must assume that she was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Incidents like that are why we should know who all of the supernaturals in any area are - so that when they do happen we can check to see what the signs point to, who may have done it. As it stands now there is no one being held accountable for the incident and Claire Korey’s murderer is still out there. If we had supernatural records then likely we would have been able to find and detain the one responsible and deal with them. Provided that the law will soon be set that supernaturals are every bit as responsible for those they kill as any human. To do any less would be like comparing a human life to something inconsequential.” He paused for a moment, eyes seeking out and finding Amanda. He was so glad she’d come. Just seeing her was enough to put the emotion into his voice that he needed. “As for what happened to Amanda, we know the cause. Thank God that he was not successful in what he did, but that winged vampire - a Gabriel, the Fallen Angels - attacked and tormented her for no reason other than she was engaged to me and believed in human rights. I think that there are no clearer examples of how supernaturals are dangerous and vampires in particular hold themselves to be above ‘our’ laws even though some of them claim to want equal rights.” Cameron wouldn’t believe that was true. After all, he’d never be able to look at anything he ate as his equal.
“Mrs. Kennedy.”
Damn the Canis Lyacons for coming and carrying on with their ridiculous vendettas in her town, and damn the Gabriels for ever daring to exist. Liliya could think of families that were worse - the Harbringers for their madness, the Horsemen for their dedication to eradicating the entire world’s population, the Crimson Blades... - but she could not think of ones that had given her bigger headaches since her turning than those two. The Gabriels most especially; first the one here and then the mess in Chicago and actually just in general she was certain that they were going to continue being her leading problem. Unless the troublesome ones finally fell on a stake. “While I agree that what happened to Claire Korey was nothing less than a tragedy, I disagree that it gives justifiable reason for registering supernaturals. Why should someone have to reveal what they are if they would rather keep it to themselves? And whose to say that these registries won’t serve a darker purpose if anti-supernatural groups get hold of them and decide to go on some sort of spree? No, registration would not have saved Claire Korey, it very likely would not have helped catch her killer and it will never be anything but an act of bigotry by those who cannot stand the idea of not knowing who can do what.” Amanda Blake was another matter entirely. “There is nothing I can say for what happened to Amanda Blake past that I was disappointed when I learned that any vampire would think such actions would do anything but cause more chaos and fear. In fact, I think that was exactly what the action was meant to do and it succeeded. I am truly grateful that she is making a full recovery and out of the hospital.” Even if she’s a privileged little brat who should have drowned all on her own. “But I don’t think that what happened to her could have been prevented anymore than all of the abductions and violence in the world can be.”
“Rebuttal?”
“Mrs. Kennedy, you say that registering supernaturals is bigotry.” Cameron knew the original question and that he’d ventured off of it quite well, but he didn’t care. He was responding to what she’d said. “Yet tell me, how is it different than requiring the registry of guns? Or those people who have black belts in martial arts and could kill a man with nothing but their hands? They must register their weapons and what I, and many other people around the world, are asking for is not that different. Supernaturals have abilities that allow them to do things that could be potentially dangerous to those around them and I think that we have a right to know if our neighbor is going to turn into a raging monster during the next full moon.”
Liliya only just waited for the acknowledgement that it was her turn before she opened her mouth. “It is different because what we are doesn’t dictate what we do with it, Mr. Calvert. That neighbor who is a bitten, do you think he wants the world to know that he loses control of himself? People who have guns make a choice to own their, whether it be for protection, sport or - god forbid - offensive purposes. Supernaturals make no such choice; they are either born the way that they are or something happens to make them so. Just because a telekinetic could break all the windows in your house and steal every last thing you own doesn’t mean that they will. No one should have to put their name and details on some list just to help people who cannot accept things that are different sleep better at night.”
Biting his tongue to keep from saying something that he’d only regret later, Cameron took a long drink from his glass of water. There would be no list, as much as he wanted one he knew that there were too many supernaturals in places of power to allow it to exist, but bit by bit he was making his own. Him and others like him. See what the Liliya Kennedy’s of the world could do to stop something they couldn’t even see coming. The mediator cleared his throat. “Now the matter of supernatural rights itself... how exactly do you stand? Mrs. Kennedy, the floor is yours.”
Liliya nodded, wishing that she had a little bit of blood to help calm her just a little more. “Supernatural rights cannot be the same as human rights.” There was an automatic murmur in the crowd and she saw several ugly looks flash across faces. “But that is because they must be different, but equal.” Vampires are a law onto themselves, we don’t need the mortals to try and dictate our lives when we have been doing better than they have for centuries longer. Families and Houses fought, yes, but the last time she had checked there had never been full-out war between the different sects no matter how different they would. Yes, there were a few families the world would be better without, but they were always too small to be any real threat. “If there is a young man walking the street at night and someone attempts to mug him then normally, he would be the one in danger and there are laws in place to prosecute the one committing the crime. But if that young man is a bitten were and is frightened badly enough then he will shift and likely cause more damage to the would-be thief, and himself, than would happen if he were anything else. Do we try him as guilty of assault? There are no laws in place right now to govern what actions should be taken when in all likelihood that young man is just as traumatized by what he’s done as anyone else. The same stands for vampires, psychics, elementals, witches... all of whom have endless contributions they could make to society but many of whom won’t because they have to hide the ways that they come across some of their knowledge or ideas. Supernatural rights are necessary and the sooner they are drawn up and legislated the better.”
“Mr. Calvert.”
“Supernaturals don’t need special rights,” was the very first thing Cameron said. He’d believed that since the Light of May and not just because it was the road that his father’d chosen to take but because he believed it as well. “The laws that have been in place for governing our country have changed as they need to, yes, but should there be an entire different set just for them? If that young man killed the potential thief then should be not still be charged with murder? Or what if it wasn’t a thief at all, but just someone intending on asking directions who spooked him into the change? Our systems have several failings as they are and we would only add to them. And whose to say that with new laws there wouldn’t be people taking advantage of them? People already do that. Supernaturals don’t deserve rights any different than those already in place for humans and those laws worked just fine before they felt the need to reveal themselves. I stand against supernatural rights and I will continue to do so because freedom of speech and expression are protected by the Constitution itself. Even if this ‘new world’ that is forming seems full of those who will ignore that to attempt silencing those who would stand against the changes that never needed to come.” Once again he looked to Amanda. Still so hard to believe she’d spent a month in the hospital because of a vampire.
The mediator nodded. “It was decided just before the debate began that we would end with those question that we feel give a general feel for where Mr. Calvert and Mrs. Kennedy stand before they gave their closing arguments and we opened the floor up for questions from the public. Since we began with you, Mr. Calvert, we will end with you. Your closing argument please." He arched an eyebrow. "If you have one."
Cameron nodded. He was more than ready for the Q&A, even if he was pretty sure that he'd get more than his share of barbed questions and veiled, or not-so veiled, threats. "Scarlet Oak, we were open to the supernaturals right from the start, were we not? Heme opened right within our borders and we've had a supernatural friendly club always open." Too liberal and too carefree about the changes. "There's even a magic shop, so no one can claim that we've ever been closed against them. Yes, the group formed by mine and Amanda's fathers has protested their rights but they were here nonetheless. And yet despite the relatively open arms still we've suffered. It was only after the Light of May that the demons came... and what did the supernaturals do to help us? Nothing. Oh yes, Heme opened as a place of shelter but the churches and high school did just the same. I heard a vampire once claim that they'd revealed themselves to help us... what help do you see? I see more dead bodies than have ever been in the county at one time. I see witches bringing the demons to our world. And not just the black or the blood, but the gray and white witches were supposedly there as well. They claim to mean well, but how can anyone mean well if they will take part in that? Not residents of Scarlet Oak itself but they have shown themselves capable of more evil than good. And only recently a daughter of a prominent family supporting supernatural rights, Kendal Hathaway, was nearly killed by a vampire priest." His eyes went to Liliya. "A Cyri os si Vyri, those who claim they'd never do such. They have done nothing but clamor for special rights to protect themselves when it was their coming, their reveal, that brought the demons and chaos to our front doors." He shook his head and sighed heavily. "They deserve nothing more than what they have and some deserve less for crimes they've committed that they'll never be tried of. How many people have the centuries-old vampires killed and not stood trial for? The bitten weres who lose themselves in rages and don't take care to contain themselves? The elementals who burn or bring storms just because they can? The psychics who would tear lives apart by knowing things that shouldn't be shared? The witches who use their magic to get their way? And the sirens who must kill to continue living... more trouble than they're worth. The Light of May should never have happened." Amanda would not have been hurt. She wouldn't be scarred or changed at all. They would have their perfect world and their perfect life and things would have been as they were meant to.
Liliya had never hated anyone so much as she did Cameron Calvert. The man was a wonderful speaker, she had spent too long in politics to not admire a trait that one was either born with or without. Calvert had it in spades and she could practically see his words weaving nets around those who were afraid of supernaturals, who looked for someone to blame about the demons and the changes. He had them and if she did not know for a fact that he was not then she would have accused him of being some sort of witch. But no, just charismatic. Too bad he was choosing to use his powers for evil. "It is my belief," Liliya began slowly, hands clasped in front of her on the podium, eyes going up past the mediator and Cameron to look out at the crowd. "That the world is changing. I'm not a vampire who has been alive for long, I'm only thirty-three and until seven years ago I knew nothing of the world I now strive to promote and help others understand. What we're asking for may seem like a lot to those of you who don't need it, but to us it's the world." Not to me, not to me - oh we don't need your permission and never have we ever. "All we ask for is understanding and the chance to be who we are without fearing that it will get us fired, looked down upon, snubbed or even killed. Consider that psychics and elementals can appear in any family at any time even if there's never been one. Could you live with yourself if you condemned us now only to discover that your daughter or grandson was one of us?" She paused for a moment to let that sink in. "And Cardinal Vartan - Eric - did not attack Miss. Hathaway, she offered her blood to keep him alive after intolerant humans attacked and crucified him in his own church because it was their belief that he shouldn't be there. In closing I would like to extend my thanks to all of those who came down to listen, and to those who have watched through the local news station. I hope that any questions you have will be forthcoming after our short recess." She gathered her notes together and smiled widely at the assembled crowd. "We're going to take a fifteen-minute recess and then we'll return to answer as many questions as we can in the time we've been allotted. Please, help yourselves to the refreshments located in the back." She raised a hand to motion and after a moment added, "There are a few punch bowls in the next room specially for the vampires in the crowd, they're labeled."
After the applause Liliya turned for the back, accepting the water bottle half-full of blood that she was offered. "Thank you, Ashley. Have you seen Naoki?"
Cameron was off the stage before Liliya and searching for Amanda. He didn't want her alone when there were vampires in the crowd and more, he didn't want to be alone for concern that his anger might spiral out of control and color his judgment. How dare Liliya say those things? How dare she claim that supernaturals could appear anywhere, even in the good human families? No, Cameron didn't believe it no matter what anyone said and he couldn't. He did, however, need to get a bit more of a hold on himself before he went back on stage since he'd caught glimpse of Liliya and she didn't even look as though she'd batted an eyelash through the entire debate. Damn vampires and their masks.