TOBIAS SALLIS:

THAT THE TWO of them had somehow
arrived here, at this point in their conver-
sation (seriously considering hypnosis,
convincing other people to do one’s bid-
ding, denying one’s own name) baffled
even the great Tobias Sallis, but he made
no moves to try and stop it from going the
way it wanted to. With a girl like Diana Re-
mington, this should be nothing new. If a-
nything, he ought to have gotten used to
it by now. 

“No. I’ve never thought of it that way,” he
answered plainly, still trying to understand
how things had gotten here (or why Reming-
ton seemed to be so insistent on the topic). 
He narrowed his eyes at her. “Where is this
going, exactly? Do you intend to put your
skills to the test?”

     SUGGESTION WAS AN INCREDIBLY USEFUL skill, especially in their line of work. Without even just a little bit of it, no one could even convince a guard that there’s a cat on the roof, when it’s in fact your associate meowing while trying to hold onto the roof tiles. Useful, but dangerous. Diana herself learned how important it was while she utilized her ignoble methods as D.R. in committing crime, and indeed, it would be quite hard for someone as noble as Tobias Sallis to understand a bit of it.

     “Well, something like that,” she said pensively – of course she intends to put her skills to the test, otherwise nothing would remotely work. “D.R. could do it somehow, but as him, I’ve used quite a bit of charm and intimidation. I wonder if I could do it without the latter and get the same results. Food for thought, really.”

TOBIAS SALLIS:

THE INVESTIGATOR HAD to pause for
a good long while there. From where had
all this sudden introspective philosophi-
sing come from exactly? When had the
conversation gotten so deep? 

“Er.” He squinted, angling his head away
slightly. “You don’t suppose this line of
thinking is giving yourself too much cre-
dit? There are some very simple minds
out there, to be sure, but… I don’t think
anyone could go so far as to deny their
own name in favour of something some
teenager’s given them. Persuasion is one
thing.” Tobias gave Diana a doubtful look.
“Hypnosis is another.”

     HYPNOSIS, INDEED. IT IS A very complicated field of study, and it wasn’t that she dishonored the entire notion altogether, but it was somewhat silly to fear something that can be learned and assume that it is the work of some higher power that seems supernatural. Probably one day, she’d learn it herself, but she’d never use it even if she were to be paid beaucoup pounds for it.

     “Well, I’d really like to see someone denying their own name in favour of something that I’d make up myself,” she proudly smirked, going so far as to look mighty confident while she was at it. “Personally, hypnosis is rather interesting, but it does say a lot about the person using it on others - haven’t you ever thought that the former might use hypnosis because they’re rather insecure about their own natural abilities in convincing others to do their bidding?”

TOBIAS SALLIS:

“OF COURSE I have. It happens
eventually in our line of work.”
The look on his face was almost
offended. “But that’s beside the
point. To what purpose would it
serve, convincing someone that
the world is flat?”

     “USUALLY, IT’S JUST SOMETHING that is so set in stone that no one can ever dream of questioning it - it’s like saying that the sky is blue and that water is transparent,” Diana mused, genuinely looking as if she was deep in thought. “And then I thought, what if I could suddenly change someone’s perception with enough convincing? It’s like suggesting that your name’s Harold instead of Tobias, and the question is - will you buy the flimsy ‘fact’ that your name is Harold, instead of Tobias?”

TOBIAS SALLIS:

“BUT WHY WOULD you.”

     “WELL, THE RIGHT QUESTION would be ‘why not?’” came the response. “Haven’t you ever tried to convince anyone to believe something that’s not exactly true?”

thatpinkmustache:

don’t tell me “you can’t do that” ‘cause I will do that

unusuallygifted:

_{@maliiciously}

     “WHAT ARE THE ODDS OF people believing me if I tell them that the world is flat?”

evagreenplus:

Eva Green

SALLIS:

SIMILAR TO WILLIAMS’ train of thought–though Tobias Sallis had no way of knowing this at the time–the Tuffing’s boy could easily tell an investigating child apart from a normal one any day, and it was easy to say that this Landon Williams was one of them as well. What he was doing associating with the Remington boys, however–or one of them, at least–was an entirely different mystery altogether.

Tobias entertained the possibility that they could be similar in working styles, for not every child in society worked the same way after all. Kids like Townsend and Priestly and Cheung, only a few among many, ran around daily, climbed trees, and chased after missing cats, always out in the field, always tailing suspicious people (or breaking doors down, in Priestly’s case). There were children like Bello and Purcel who worked in their studies, inventing and repairing, occasionally stepping out for deliveries and cases of their own. And there were children like Tobias himself, who kept strictly indoors, writing letters and notes and decoding secret messages, going out only once in a while to gather information and almost always in cognito.

Perhaps, thought Tobias. Perhaps.

“Pleasure to meet you, Williams,” said Tobias. He’d heard that name before; he would have to look it up in his records. “Tobias Sallis. Tuffing’s boy, born and bred, I s’pose.” As freely as he gave his name away–it had power, he would have to admit, when used among those he was certain worked within their ranks–the investigator had ways of protecting his secrets and keeping his affairs and whereabouts private; he would not be who he was without them. “The older one–Xavier, correct? He knows you’re waiting for him?”

     “TO BE FRANK, no. A surprise, really. Just wanted to give good Xavier a fright, is all,” he shrugged. “You know him; always having a good sulk. Somewhat odd that he doesn’t ever try to have fun, hm?”

     And then the funniest thing happened - Landon’s delayed reaction as to who exactly he was talking to allowed a surprised reaction to show on his face. It says it all: the Tobias Sallis? Honest to God, it’s him? Wonder of wonders, this is a marvelous time to meet a legend, a secret in his own! The Addicott’s boy gaped - oh, how good he was when it came to expressions, and he remained there for a few seconds, gobsmacked.

     “Tobias Sallis. You,” Landon double-checked aloud, looking at Sallis from head to toe, as if he couldn’t believe that Sallis had the fortune, or misfortune, of being in a rowdy school like Tuffing’s. “By God, you! Tobias Sallis! Oh, this I’ve got to tell Xavier - the bloke’s never mentioned you before! What on earth is wrong with him?”

     A hearty laugh escaped Landon - small world, small world. Through files, he’d seen Sallis’s face. Through plans, he had learned how he works. Nevertheless, being imposing and being menacing would get him nowhere, and it’s far better to remain civil, isn’t it?