InsaneJournal

WHO: Molly Suresh & several locals (including the Mayor of Colligo)
WHAT: A trip to City Hall yields interesting results.
WHEN: Mid-afternoon
WHERE: City Hall
RATING: Kid-friendly
STATUS: Complete; Narrative

Having decided to start the university with the intention of getting a degree in public relations, Molly thought it might be a good idea to check out just where it was she would likely wind up working when it was all said and done. She'd been to City Hall once before, when she had first arrived in the city as a child. Back then, she had been attending public school and her class had taken a field trip. All Molly really remembered of the event, however, was that she really hadn't liked the idea of a bunch of locals running the city and especially hadn't been thrilled at the knowledge that the Mayor could be so easily manipulated simply by toying with the programming every local in the city seemed to have.

Of course, shortly after that she'd been taken out of public school and had started lessons with Aziraphale. Within a few weeks, her worry over the status of the local government had given way to learning all sorts of interesting things courtesy of the Principality in charge of her education. Now, years later, Molly's worry was nothing more than a distant memory, as was the trip itself. So while she knew she'd been there, she very much resembled a tourist as she stepped inside the building and began looking around. Bypassing security was pretty easy when you could figure out where they were at any given point in time and, within five minutes of entering, Molly found herself standing in front of the door leading to the office of one Reynold Paulson. Or, more specifically, the Mayor of the fine city of Colligo.

A charismatic man with a receding hairline, gut that he hid behind expensive suit jackets, and a smile that could put most anyone at ease, he was definitely a politician. Molly had seen him on television from time to time but, for the most part, tended to ignore his existence given his 'local' status. However she found herself rethinking that stance the more she thought about her future and figured that now was as good of a time as any to rub elbows and start making connections. So with a deep breath to calm her nerves, she knocked on the door. A few minutes later she was standing in the office, Mayor Paulson eying her from across his desk as though he thought she might be there to assassinate him.

"I'm sorry to bother you, sir," she greeted him with a small smile. "I was actually just wondering…" She paused, knowing that he might very well toss her right out of the office for wasting his time. Summoning up her courage, she finally spit out, "Are there any positions available on your staff? Possibly an internship? I'm going to school for public relations and my counselor said it would be a good idea to line up a potential job once I get far enough along in my stu-"

"I'm sorry but there isn't a position available." Clearly not impressed with having his busy day interrupted by someone begging for a job of all things, the Mayor cut her off smoothly. Eying her closely, he added, "For future reference, young lady, these sorts of questions are best handled by the director of my staff. I'm a very busy man, you see."

Molly blinked, momentarily taken aback. She considered going, already able to feel the tears of disappointment stinging her eyes. However before she could turn to leave, the door burst open and, quite suddenly, there was a brash woman all but shouting as she stormed into the office. Startled, Molly turned toward her only to find herself suddenly face to lens with a large camera and an even larger man operating it. Realizing that the woman in question was a reporter – Molly was never more grateful for having watched the local news far more than most probably should – she stepped to the side and watched with a shocked expression as the reporter began to fire question after question at the clearly shocked Mayor.

Although she wasn't sure just what was going on, Molly heard enough to get the general gist. Apparently the Mayor was being accused of taking bribes from local business owners in exchange for looking the other way as various laws were bent and sometimes even broken. Mayor Paulson at first began to deny it but it quickly became clear that the reporter wasn't having any of it. Rising halfway to his feet, he seemed stuck in some sort of limbo listening to her demands and accusations. A few seconds later, after realizing the woman wasn't going to back off anytime soon, Molly realized she was wasting a perfect opportunity.

She'd be lying if she said she didn't briefly consider tossing the Mayor under that proverbial bus. It would be so easy to confirm the reporter's accusations and all but ruin the career of the man who wouldn't even give her a foot in the door. However Molly believed rather firmly in karma so instead she decided to go the other route entirely.

"Excuse me." Stepping directly in front of the camera, making sure she was blocking his view of Mayor Paulson, Molly focused her attention on the reporter who didn't look at all pleased at having some girl she didn't know interrupt. Raising her chin a bit, Molly ignored the clear look of irritation and said what she wanted to say.

"Why are we here?"

Four simple words that, when strung together in the right order offered an immediate respite from any local close enough to hear the question being asked. Sure enough, the trio in the office was no different. As the glazed looks began to enter their eyes and they replied (eerily enough) at the same time with "That's for you to decide", Molly sprang into action. A few minutes later, about the time the locals were coming back around, she was holding the file of a former member of the Mayor's staff.

"As I was saying, if you'll take just a moment to look at this file, you'll see that this individual is actually the one responsible for the bribes, ma'am. You'll also see that Mayor Paulson, upon discovering what was happening, had the man quickly and quietly removed from the equation. I can assure you, an investigation is pending."

Nodding dumbly, the reporter took the file in question and glanced through it. Then she looked to the camera and tipped her head toward the door. A few mumbled apologies later and the news crew was gone. Molly smiled faintly and glanced over her shoulder at the clearly stunned Mayor.

"I'll start on Monday, if that's okay with you?" she questioned with an arched brow.

Reynold Paulson could do little more than nod in agreement.