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────── #five word count: 3.8k ❝ not so different ❞ POV:CARIAD
Samson Landas' exhibit flourished with snooty Capitol folks that studied his artworks with a quizzical brow, the atmosphere reeking of pretension. It was a miracle that his work was even allowed to make a home in such a luxurious gallery, but money made the impossible within a person's reach. Samson's artistic endeavors were a work on the side, his more 'practical' occupation being the overall manager of the apate factory at Six -- taking trips to his home district to oversee its production from time to time and reporting back to his wife.
He had quite an important job. He did he best to compensate those who were affected by its poor conditions, he truly did, but Laverna would always turn a blind eye. Most importantly, Samson believed his main job was protecting his children from the deceptive nature of the woman he married. If his art could paint a world of safety and security for Cariad and Corwin, he'd create until his hands could no longer hold a paintbrush.
Cariad had her camera ready, capturing the humane essence of her father's portraits in the click of a button. While they weren't looking, Cariad also captured her brother and Thessaly as they examined the artwork, too. Once she developed them, she'd place them on her brother's desk as a gift with an ominous note beside it: I'm watching you...
They loved each other, they really did.
A woman with a blonde bob cut approached her parents with a wide grin on her face. Trailing behind her was the one and only Arachne Crane. Cariad concluded that this woman as Arachne's mother, and her suspicions were proven correct when Laverna Landas approached her and shook her hand. Mrs. Crane recently became good friends with Laverna, and she wondered what the catch was. No one was just good friends with the transplants from the districts, there had to be a catch. With Strabo Plinth, Sejanus' father, it was the Plinth Prize. To keep her curiosity piqued, she joined her parents as Mrs. Crane rambled exaggeratedly.
"Samson, I've seen the catalog!" Mrs. Crane gushed while pulling him into a light hug -- close enough to seem friendly, but far enough so that his district scent didn't rub off on her. "Your work is so impressive for someone district! It's so similar to that of the umm, Capitol artists here. Right, Arachne?"
Arachne's lips thinned into a fine line as she nodded, but her eyes bulged out of their sockets as Cariad neared her. Time for Caroline. "Nene. It's so good to see you here!" she exclaimed while opening her arms and moving closer. Her classmate took one large step back, but 'Caroline' was persistent, and pulled her into a tight embrace. "I didn't know you had an appreciation for the arts. You don't really appreciate a lot of things!" Cariad let the hug linger as Arachne discreetly attempted to wrestle out of her iron grip. But Cariad was stronger.
