Disclaimer: I do not own Scandal

I've been searching, I've been thinking, I can't keep rolling like a broken stone

Olivia Pope smoothed out her the wrinkles in her black pencil skirt and adjusted the sleeves on the matching blazer jacket as she waited. She'd been escorted into Cyrus Beene's halfway finished office nearly fifteen minutes earlier and she was getting impatient.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." She jumped slightly at the sound of the heavy wood door opening and his booming voice, "Miss," he glanced down at a file in his hand as he rounded the corner of his desk, "Pope." He read. Extending his hand, he waited for her to to offer up her own.

"Nice to meet, you as well, Mr. Beene." She straightened her spine and waited patiently for him to sit down and flip through her file.

"A law degree from Georgetown, on the cusp of becoming partner at Purcell & Flanagan and you quit to become a secretary." He shut her file, "Why?"

"It's not just any secretarial position, Mr. Beene." Olivia pointed out, "It's the secretary to the President of the United States. I would venture to say it's an even more important position than an office in an inconsequential law firm."

"Purcell & Flanagan is hardly inconsequential. In fact, they're the largest firm in New York City, why leave?" Cyrus pressed.

"I wanted a change of scenery." Olivia responded easily, "I miss DC. I never really fell in love with New York or Manhattan." She paused, "And while Purcell & Flanagan may be the biggest law firm on the Upper East Side and have a long list of A-list clients, it can't compare to the work done here in the West Wing."

"You're over-qualified, Miss Pope." Cyrus deadpanned, "Spin it however you like, but you're over-qualified for this position."

"Oh, does that mean you're not interested, then? Should I pack my bags at the Watergate and go home?"

Cyrus stared at the petite, dark-skinned beauty in front of him. She was smart, he'd looked into her. She had a bit of a wild reputation while in undergrad at Georgetown. While she was in law school she met Edison Davis. At the time, he'd been a very young Congressman from New York. Now, he was a Senator. For the opposite party. "Are you still dating Senator Davis?" Cyrus asked bluntly.

"No." She offered up no other explanations.

Cyrus sighed, "What the hell, you're hired." He tipped his chair back and studied her reaction. She was trying to hide the look of relief that spread across her face. He wondered, briefly, what had happened with Davis. It must've been something to send her packing back to DC, particularly if she was willing to work in a secretarial position (it honestly didn't matter if it was in the White House), and not as an attorney in any law firm she damn well pleased. Perhaps Ethan had missed something? "I'll call personnel and tell them you'll be in Monday at 8am sharp. A member of the Secret Service will give you the run down on protocol." He stood up, "Welcome aboard, Miss Pope."

She stood as well, "Thank you, Mr. Beene."

"Cyrus will do just fine." He said nothing else, just watched as she gathered her purse up and left the office.

SCANDAL

"Have you hired someone yet?" Fitz asked, pouring two glasses of scotch and handing one to Cyrus. "With Lauren gone"

"Her name is Olivia Pope. Here's her file. She starts Monday." He dropped her small file on the coffee table.

Fitz hummed and picked it up, skimming through it, "This woman wants to be a secretary?" He asked.

"She does." Cyrus shrugged, "No clue why, but nothing amiss came up and Ethan couldn't find anything."

"Well then, I guess I'll meet her after she's cleared security Monday." Fitz leaned back, "Thanks for taking care of that, Cy, I know it's just a pain in the ass, but I really wanted you to vet the person, particularly after"

"I understand, Fitz, don't worry about it." Cyrus agreed. "How's Mellie?"

"In California. It's a week of blessed silence here." He paused, "She'll be back with the kids next Saturday. They'll start school here on Monday." He studied his Chief of Staff in silence for a moment, "Again, thanks for taking care of the secretary thing. Didn't think we'd have any problems like this within the first six months of taking office." He admitted.

"Neither did I, sir." Cyrus agreed, "Hopefully the Pope girl will be a good fit."

"I trust your judgment, Cy. For better or for worse, you won't let another snake in the garden."

Cyrus blanched slightly at his words before clearing his throat and nodding, "You can count on me, Mr. President."

SCANDAL

Olivia slipped the pins holding her hair up in an elaborate twist from her hair, wincing as they pulled at the strands. She glanced around at her hotel room at the Watergate and sat down on the edge of the bed, slipping her pumps off her tiny feet. Everything she owned was in this hotel room. She'd have to find a place soon, she couldn't afford to just stay in a hotel, as much as the thought of an apartment by herself haunted her. She'd stop by a real estate office tomorrow and hopefully leave with an apartment. For now, though, she was satisfied to know that she had a bottle of merlot in the fridge and a job waiting for her Monday.

SCANDAL

XOXO

MAS