A Discreet Note Between Candidates

 Señor Nathaniel Morosec,
 
    This missive is to inform you of a great social injustice within the Academia de la Foresta. I have witnessed the evidence of your political charm in the form of your own campaign and its successes. I am impressed. With appreciation for your considerable talent, it is my hope that you will give my proposition considerable thought.
    There are certain unsatisfactory restrictions placed upon the upcoming elections. While still technically eligible, due to my youth I must accrue majority votes in favor just to place in the nominations. The same stipulations apply to my running mate, Adrian Mackenzie, who has collected some unfortunate mishaps in his record. While bolstered by his contributions, it is not yet enough.

    I am not particularly approachable, as I understand it. So, I would request your aid in devising my campaign to sway against Adrian's rhetoric of 'All for one, one for self'. My Serpens dorm mates will cut themselves off at the knees if they follow this tactic to its end. In compensation, I foresee an enlightened partnership between the respected, law-upholding generational family of Morosec and the influential, entrepreneurial Gifted house of Vega.

                                                                                        Partner Candidate,
                                                                                                    Cecilia Noelle Vega del Toro 

Candidate Cecilia Noelle Vega del Toro,

I found myself so humbled and honored by all of your kind words, Cecilia, that upon receiving your missive I have taken it upon myself to look into your concerns independently. It is an outright shame that the school board has decided to place these damning restrictions on such exceedingly capable young students. Thankfully, you will be pleased to learn that my services are indeed available for a price, which I imagine will be of little concern to a lady of your means.

However, before we can officially do business, there is a matter we must first settle at which end I believe we will find a mutual benefit. Your running partner, Adrian Mackenzie, has gone out of his way to share a spotlight with and indirectly support one Estelle Roux for female House Leader of Lyra. This is in direct opposition to my personal goals.

Although I have not had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Roux, she has a reputation around campus that does not sit well with me. She strikes me as politically unpredictable - Driven by emotion. Her running platform is based around action and fixing problems whereas my intentions... Well, as stated: I don't believe I'll be seeing eye to eye with Estelle.

Rather, I have chosen to support Olwen. She is the ideal candidate for Lyra, and although admittedly I have not known her long enough to develop an accurate assessment of her character, I believe she is the far more agreeable candidate between the two.

Simply put, I am asking you to use your leverage with Adrian as your running mate to denounce Estelle Roux as a suitable candidate. Perhaps you will find a way to loosen his tongue and if so, I would be exceedingly grateful for any information that could be used to belittle Ms. Roux's name in time for the elections, and even more so if it was announced via Mr. Mackenzie himself. If Olwen's campaign succeeds this will put the Lyra house in good standing internally, which will put you and I in good standing for any future endeavors. If Estelle remains on course for victory, however, I fear my personal affairs will become far too muddled to worry about the affairs of the Serpens house.

To the prospect of a long lasting partnership,
Nathaniel Morosec

    "Adrian."
    "Hm? Ah, the pipsqueak. Getting there, aren't we?"
    "Much too slowly. You should retract your stance on Serpens policy."
    "What are you worried about? You've got no competition, kid. If anything it's my ass on the line now. Not enough female voters pitching in..."
    "You would gain a far greater advantage if you only attempted to draw from the male population."
    "Hurts my pride, really."
    "Are you listening, Mackenzie? You could lose this nomination slot if you do not gain supporters."
    "Relax, someone might do it. Can hardly lose respect for them if they're picking the right guy for the job, yeah? Besides, everyone's voting for themselves. It's less competition. Thought for sure I'd have a landslide with the ladies, though."
    "Your inability to plan for the impossible will be your downfall."
    "Ouch."

    "My own issues for candidacy stem from lack of notice. Your representation was excellent. What can you tell me about Estelle Roux?"
    "Well, if you want to get noticed, she's got a way of pushing it out there. Very purposed and driven. Like a knife. Be careful of her, though, she cuts right through the things you don't want her to touch. I don't half doubt she'll copy it all over the school for the notoriety, either."

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Señor Nathaniel Morosec,

    Certain provisions can be easily prepared. There is substantial room for direct contributions to be released to the House Leaders for the purpose of providing quality services to the student body. Excess funds may be appropriated for exemplary candidates to better suit their ambitions and planned improvements.
    
    The troubles you face in Lyra appear to be a valid concern. For you. Your preferred candidate appears to be far less motivated than Ms. Roux. One can only imagine the intent that reflects upon the most sought after candidate in Lyra. Were we in the same dorm, I might find this troubling. In your favor, Adrian seeks the position for its claim, not so much for control. This places a certain effective quality on my own shoulders. I trust that, as separate Dorm Leaders, there will be no conflict of interest.

    My running partner is not quite tight-lipped, but I dare say he has little positive to say of the girl. Views her as paparazzi. Useful, potentially expendable. But not, I think, to the extent of denouncing any friendship on a public level. Still, there is some possibility for foul play. As I understand it, the same unnecessary restrictions applied against Serpens' most promising candidates can be applied to Ms. Roux, as well. If the circumstances of her reputation were put into question by leading her into an illegal activity, the nominations in her favor would count for less.

    Perhaps, by joint design, we may yet sabotage an unwanted candidate. Adrian is certainly ready to play the fool.

                                                             Partner Candidate,
                                                                         Cecilia Noelle Vega del Toro    

Candidate Cecilia Noelle Vega del Toro,


    Allow me to bypass the pleasantries. It is displeasing to hear you find my personal affairs troubling, but however unfortunate that may be, I sincerely doubt we will run into any conflict of interest. Our current goals are not mutually exclusive and therefore we have no need to mar our partnership with irrelevant disagreements. Lyra and Serpens will coexist beneficially so long as we agree to stay out of each others way once this election is all said and done.

    In good faith, I will assist you with your original request. A lesson I've observed from family who have many more years of experience campaigning than myself is that your campaign does not need to be indicative of your true goals. The simple truth is that it's a waste of effort to fulfill your campaign promises once you're elected - For now, you need only say what the people want to hear in order to cast their vote in your name.

    And in your case, Cecilia, you need not be the face of your own candidacy if you wholly tie in your campaign with Adrian. Use his handsome face as your personal figurehead, because this is a far more effective solution than learning how to make yourself "approachable" in such a short period of time. Publicly, play second fiddle to Adrian and unite Serpens under his rule - For now. Once you are both elected with an equal split of power between the dorms, I trust you'll have the brains to renegotiate the situation with Adrian privately from there.

    Which simplifies your problem to getting Adrian elected. The unfortunate truth is that once you commit to a campaign, you can not go back on your stance or your opponents will tear you to shreds. This means you must both stay true to his foolish ideals, at least until the next election, because Adrian has already committed Serpens to its path and changing it now will only split the vote in favor of someone else.

    Now, bear with me as I shift topics temporarily. Why not let Estelle dig her own grave? If she's persistent like paparazzi, and is the type to take action as her campaign indicates, it is a simple matter of misdirecting her efforts. We need only drag her name through the mud long enough to elect Olwen - I care little of Ms. Roux's reputation beyond that.

    But while we're at it, why not kill two birds with one stone? Perhaps a rumor could spread of Adrian's prowess in bed, particularly with Estelle. I rather doubt he'll deny it, and if Estelle plays the role of paparazzi as you say, she may be drawn in by this rumor. Once she confronts him, we will have the cameras ready.

    It would be a shame then, for instance, if more rumors were to spread of Estelle. If he accepts her, would she then be little more than one of Adrian's conquests to be used and discarded as per the rumors? Or perhaps Adrian will reject her. Actual footage of being discarded like trash by the lustrous Adrian? Left crying in his wake, whether tears are actually spilled or not? She promised that all members of Lyra would be "winners", so to see her fail would be a sight indeed. Or maybe she'll reject him, in which case she is an irrational ex-conquest who confronted an uninterested Adrian.

    Alternatively, in the event that she declines to chase down the rumor, we attack her from the angle that she promised to speak up for the students of Lyra. But how could one trust her if she won't even speak up for herself? There is admittedly the droll possibility that the two of them will converse rationally and handle the situation like adults, but with their personalities, I feel the odds are in favor of something more interesting taking place. And even then, remember we do not need to show dialogue if it does not favor us - Only their physical interaction. Put a juicy enough rumor between them and I am positive something will break open to be used in our favor.

    The possibilities are intriguing, but however we spin it, we can make your candidacy look good and Estelle's character appear subservient or weak. I'll let you handle the particulars. Adrian will establish his leadership by conquest, and Olwen will have the scales tipped ever so slightly in her favor. And Olwen is a strong candidate regardless of what you may think, perhaps strong enough to win without any harm coming to Estelle. But better safe than sorry, in one man's humble opinion.


Respectfully,
Nathaniel Morosec