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A Philanthropic Appeal
Jul. 29th, 2022 06:05 amVanessa Kapatelis is not a woman to give up easily.
Perhaps that's what the people at the Wayne Foundation were hoping for, when they informed her in no uncertain terms that their donations budget was set and none of them had the authority to increase the amounts. Perhaps that's what the secretaries at Wayne Enterprises were hoping for, as she worked her way up the corporate ladder in an elaborate game of phone tag, looking for someone to speak to regarding the Wayne Foundation and the shortfall that social services would be dealing with this year.
When an Amazon fights, she identifies the best place to strike, and goes for that first. When slaying a monster, you don't hack at its feet -- you aim for the head.
This wasn't a monster or a physical fight, but the principles could still apply. Aim for the head -- that's why Nessie drove out of the city proper on her day off, looking as put together and professional as she could, and headed up to the most exclusive neighborhood still considered part of Gotham. Her destination -- Wayne Manor, ancestral home of the Wayne Family, currently housing (most of) the children of Bruce Wayne. It wasn't very likely that she'd get a chance to speak with the acting head of Wayne Enterprises, but she had a presentation to give, or at least the materials to drop off.
Vanessa spent what remained of her downtime, after all those calls, to put the presentation together. It was a collection of the financial data for her department and information on the ongoing opioid crisis -- she even used the color printer in her own apartment and put it together in a slim, sturdy binder with plastic sleeves for the pages. And if she could make a good impression on whoever she spoke with, it could get passed on to Timothy Drake-Wayne with a good word for the social services department.
(She hadn't forgotten her initial reason for wanting a way into Wayne Manor. But her visit had to look legitimate, and the looming trouble of ongoing fallout from the widespread malpractice of the nineties was definitely real. She had to treat it with all the seriousness it deserved, for its own sake as well as making sure that she appeared to have no ulterior motives for entering the manor.)
Nessie parked her car a short distance from the drive leading up to the manor. It was out of the way enough that she wouldn't block anyone else trying to get in, and shaded by a tree. She picked up her handbag and tucked her presentation binder under one arm, then locked up the car and walked away.
The walk up the drive was pretty long -- the rich enjoy their privacy -- but she'd walked further and in worse conditions while wearing heels before. She was determined. Finally, she made it to the main gate and pushed the button that would alert the house beyond that a visitor had arrived.
The low, grating buzz set her nerves going, and in the silence that followed, Nessie allowed herself a moment to worry about a bad outcome to this visit.
Perhaps that's what the people at the Wayne Foundation were hoping for, when they informed her in no uncertain terms that their donations budget was set and none of them had the authority to increase the amounts. Perhaps that's what the secretaries at Wayne Enterprises were hoping for, as she worked her way up the corporate ladder in an elaborate game of phone tag, looking for someone to speak to regarding the Wayne Foundation and the shortfall that social services would be dealing with this year.
When an Amazon fights, she identifies the best place to strike, and goes for that first. When slaying a monster, you don't hack at its feet -- you aim for the head.
This wasn't a monster or a physical fight, but the principles could still apply. Aim for the head -- that's why Nessie drove out of the city proper on her day off, looking as put together and professional as she could, and headed up to the most exclusive neighborhood still considered part of Gotham. Her destination -- Wayne Manor, ancestral home of the Wayne Family, currently housing (most of) the children of Bruce Wayne. It wasn't very likely that she'd get a chance to speak with the acting head of Wayne Enterprises, but she had a presentation to give, or at least the materials to drop off.
Vanessa spent what remained of her downtime, after all those calls, to put the presentation together. It was a collection of the financial data for her department and information on the ongoing opioid crisis -- she even used the color printer in her own apartment and put it together in a slim, sturdy binder with plastic sleeves for the pages. And if she could make a good impression on whoever she spoke with, it could get passed on to Timothy Drake-Wayne with a good word for the social services department.
(She hadn't forgotten her initial reason for wanting a way into Wayne Manor. But her visit had to look legitimate, and the looming trouble of ongoing fallout from the widespread malpractice of the nineties was definitely real. She had to treat it with all the seriousness it deserved, for its own sake as well as making sure that she appeared to have no ulterior motives for entering the manor.)
Nessie parked her car a short distance from the drive leading up to the manor. It was out of the way enough that she wouldn't block anyone else trying to get in, and shaded by a tree. She picked up her handbag and tucked her presentation binder under one arm, then locked up the car and walked away.
The walk up the drive was pretty long -- the rich enjoy their privacy -- but she'd walked further and in worse conditions while wearing heels before. She was determined. Finally, she made it to the main gate and pushed the button that would alert the house beyond that a visitor had arrived.
The low, grating buzz set her nerves going, and in the silence that followed, Nessie allowed herself a moment to worry about a bad outcome to this visit.
