but oh what a year

[patrols]

Comments

[mayoralty]

["Uh. What do you want to know?"

He doesn't want to say anything to make things awkward for Elena, and he doesn't know Carol well, nor does he remember much of her from when he was in Mystic Falls as a kid. Carol waves a hand.]

I've heard little things here and there. And I do remember your father working with the Council when you all were in high school. Miranda seems to speak well of him.

["Really?" Sam's eyebrows go up, and Carol smiles.]

You sound surprised. You don't think she would?

[redeems]

They... had a difficult relationship, ( tactless' boyfriend, says, helping the conversation along, right? He instilled certain behaviors they all live with today, and he's one of the reasons neither brother had been with anybody since Elena and Allison. But, he keeps all that. This is what the boyfriend of a busybody hears. )

He's a good person, though. Dean. Tough. Little angry.

[mayoralty]

["Miranda's had a hard time adjusting." Sam does feel he can say that. "And she may have been pointing some of it at people who may not deserve it." Mostly her daughter, some to Caroline, but some of it was in Dean's absence.

Carol nods slowly.]

Mystic Falls, at least when she was learning about all of this, had a fairly black and white view about the supernatural. We all have a fairly steep learning curve. But if she hasn't drugged him and passed him off to someone to be tortured she's already a step ahead of me.

[Sam raises an eyebrow. "She has not done that - at least not to my knowledge."]

[redeems]

( Having been through it himself, he knows coming back from the dead or a hell dimension - they come with adjustments. But he stays quiet through Miranda's take on it. )

Who would she drug and torture? Dean?

( He's human in all this... )

Have you drugged and passed someone off to be tortured?

[mayoralty]

[The look on her face says she has. She holds up her hand.]

In my defense, I did not have the nuanced opinion of the supernatural I have now. I just knew that my son was dating a vampire and I was told vampires were bad. And, I also didn't know the kind of torture that would be involved, I just gave her to her father.

[But it's not much of a defense. She knew who Bill Forbes was.]

But I did help them save her in the end, and I have since atoned for my mistakes.

[redeems]

Her father.

( Well, that makes it worse. )

I wasn't involved. We've all done things we regret.

[mayoralty]

We have. And we do our best to make up for them when we can.

[That being said, they've strayed from the topic of Dean, but she can pass that curiosity around.]

And how did you wind up connected to all of this?

[redeems]

I... ( He can do this, make conversation. ) Cordelia had a job to do. Helping the Winchesters. And she was... I was sent back, along with ( Ugh, Spike. ) someone else, in order to help her and them with -- God.

[mayoralty]

... God?

[She glances over at Sam and he sighs before nodding in confirmation. "It's ... a really long story, but yeah."

Carol takes another sip of her drink before nodding, eyes wide.]

And here I thought we had problems with Klaus.

[redeems]

That would be like if Klaus could rewrite everything. He wanted Elena, so he had her. Or, he pit her against Katherine, just for sport. At a certain point, he got bored of writing and rewriting his story, he became a part of it. And when that wasn't enough, he started rewriting it. Bored, he started destroying his... scripts. The other worlds.

( Things got hairy. )

Cordelia was brought in to help Sam and Dean stop him before everything was wiped of the map.

[mayoralty]

It felt like Klaus could, at times.

[Not really. Not truly. But when he has control over your son's free will, it almost as though he's rewriting the story to his benefit, over and over again.]

But I guess that kind of power is just hard to comprehend, no matter how you shake it.

[redeems]

That power isn't in his hands, anymore. Sam and Dean and Jack made sure of that.

( He believes they have nothing left to worry about. He doesn't share that Jack is basically the equivalent of God, now. )

We helped them with the one apocalypse. They've prevented others.

[mayoralty]

Well, glad to hear it. It's nice to have a world to come back to.

["It's nice to continue to have one," Sam agrees. "And we haven't had anything that crazy since."]

[redeems]

Other than everybody coming back from the dead.

( Well. )

And, even then, that's Tuesday. How have you been adjusting back? I don't know Tyler, but, people I trust speak highly of him.

[mayoralty]

Oh, I've been managing just fine. It helps that all my friends came back with me.

[She smirks as she takes another sip of her drink.]

I'm just glad to see that Tyler is doing well. That he's found a place in the world and that he's happy.

[redeems]

( He can relate. Not that - sure, Spike's kind of a friend. And Fred now! )

It sounds like you have everything you'll need.

[mayoralty]

We hope so. Though I'll have to find something else to do with my life at some point and not just keep hovering over his shoulder.

[He deserves to live his own adult life, like he was before she got back.]

[redeems]

I could be of help if you need it. I work for an organization that specializes in giving people a new purpose - and the direction they need. You could be outfit.

( If it's something she's interested in. )

[mayoralty]

Maybe.

[She does like to be useful, but she also wants to stay close to home.]

We'll get through the holidays first, and then we'll see what happens. And I don't want to run off into something where Tyler would worry.

[She's certainly not looking to fight God.]

[redeems]

( Angel produces a real business card for her. )

There are people who are displaced or in danger and we relocate them. We would do the same for you, to give you something you want to do - it could be right here because you're not in any danger.

( That they know of! )

[mayoralty]

Oh. So like ... witness protection?

[Kind of? But supernaturally speaking. That is interesting, but she doesn't know if that's in her wheelhouse. Maybe she should see what Liz has planned to do.]

[redeems]

Supernaturally speaking. But, we wouldn't... treat it the same. We would just get you up on your feet. Provide credentials. Get you working.

( He's not explaining this right. )

[mayoralty]

Ah. Well, we'll see. Tyler did say something about someone getting me a license again at least.

[Is that what Angel is referring to?]

[redeems]

And social security card. Usually, Cordelia handles these pitches.

( Or, Alexander. )

[mayoralty]

[Carol nods, understanding, with a small smile.]

For what it's worth, I think you're doing very well.