A Good Break

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GlytchMeister
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A Good Break

Post by GlytchMeister »

{Collaborative effort between Yana Nimkova and myself}

"Hey, welcome to Georgette's! I'm Jill, what can I get you?"

"Raspberry bellini, please. I need the energy." The Latina climbed up onto the bar stool. Damn things were always too high.

"Arright. Hard day at work?"

"Like you wouldn't believe. Another fricking GWC who thinks model means escort. I swear, if it weren't for having to fly, I'd make sure I kept my little peashooter with me. Ended up losing half my pay. I'd have made more staying at home and working."

"Oh, sweetie, that's rough." Jill placed Yana's drink on the counter.

Another voice spoke behind Yana. "You said you had a photo shoot?"

"Yeah, I'm a model, it just didn't go... As... Planned..." Yana turns to see Georgette Sundahl standing with a Manhattan in one hand. "Holy crap." She meant to say more. Really. Just the signals from brain to mouth had a short-circuit along the way. She covered by offering a hand out. "Hi!"

Georgette shook Yana's hand. "It definitely sucks being a small-time model. I like how you're trying to break the mold - you are definitely not put together like I am." The legendary model looked Yana up and down... It wasn't a long distance; only 4'11", and yet she was more callipygian than the average 5'9" woman.

"...Thanks?"

"Oh, you're totally rockin' it. That's for sure." Georgette smiled a little. Gawd, she reminds me of Monica... "Where are you from?"

"Nogales, Arizona. Basically, find the furthest south point you can go there, where three quarters of the city are on the other side of the border. That's where I live."

"Oh, man. It's a lot warmer out there... I can't imagine you're enjoying the weather here." Jill leaned to the side and looked pointedly out a window at the heavy snowfall. "And you're stuck here until tomorrow? Helluva trip."

"Yeah. The original return ticket was for tomorrow. I'm going to be a Yanasicle by then. Thank god for hotel heating systems."

Georgette peered at Yana for a long moment before making up her mind. "I know a gal around here - great photographer, she's actually been nominated for more than a few awards lately. Lemme call her and see if she's willing to do some photos."

"I'd love to. But like you said, I'm small time. I can't afford to pay a photog. At best, I could do a TFP with her, but that only works if she actually needs pictures of someone like me in her portfolio. At least I'm uncommon enough in build that usually counts for something."

"Yeeaaaaahhhh. About that..." Georgette and Jill exchanged an odd glance.

-----

"Hi Amanda!" Georgette said brightly when the photographer opened her door. "Thanks for doing this!"

Amanda smirked. "You owe me," then she turned to the tiny Latina next to Georgette. "You must be Yana. Nice to meet you." After the two shook hands, Amanda raised an eyebrow at Georgette. "You certainly have a 'type,' don't you?"

"Oh, shaddup and let us in, it's freezing out here."

"Alright, alright!" Amanda let them past, nudging a tiny, curious, and very cross-eyed cat out of their way, muttering something about "don't need you knocking over trash cans in my alley again." Yana and Georgette filed in, dragging Yana's luggage behind her. "So, what sort of outfits did you bring?"

"A little bit of everything, really. The guy didn't have a preference." Yana took on a disgusted expression. "I guess he cared more about getting me out of my clothes than taking pictures in the first place..."

"Excellent, that's perfect! We can build up and diversify your portfolio. From what Georgette told me, that should help you out a lot." Amanda led Yana and Georgette up to her studio and began to bustle about, getting her setup ready. "You can change in there... There's plenty of hooks and shelves and benches. Let's get some basic, establishing shots so I can figure out what I'm dealing with. Your skin has a wonderful tone, I want to make sure I get it right... Hmm... Your hair is really dark... I wonder if I can bring out a colored luster, or maybe iridescence..." Amanda continued to prattle on in a stream of consciousness as she chose a camera and lighting and began to fiddle with exposure and brightness settings. Yana went to the door Amanda pointed to and found a small room beyond containing the shelves and hangers of a walk-in closet on one side and a large, well-lit mirror and vanity on the other for makeup.

Amanda soon became extremely focused on her work, communicating extensively with Yana and occasionally going into the dressing room to explore the wardrobe Yana brought. She worked quickly and efficiently, working to find the best techniques and settings that emphasized every quality Yana had to offer. They frequently worked together to fine-tune a pose or an expression.

Yana kept up well with Amanda, conveying a wide range of emotions with a great range of intensity, using not just her face, but her posture as well - and it never seemed like she was putting on a mask... It came more from within. The pictures seemed more real and honest for it.

At first, Amanda's approach was nigh-on scientific, using incremental changes of her technique and settings... As time went on, however, Amanda began to get a feel for what was best for Yana, and the results were absolutely fantastic; professional-quality photos of several variations of outfits, makeup looks, poses, expressions and emotions that seemed not only to show what Yana looked like, but also conveyed who she was as a person. The time between each photo shortened, a testament to how well the shoot was going.

Georgette hung back for the most part, occasionally providing input. She mainly gave pointers or suggestions to Yana, although once in a while she had an idea for Amanda as well. She had spent so much time with photographers, some of their tricks began to rub off on her.

During a break, the three women sat on a couch and looked over some preliminary printouts.

"Y'know, a friend of mine looks a lot like you..." Amanda quipped. "I've tried a few times to get her to let me take some good photos of her, but that doesn't usually work out unless there's lots of alcohol in her system. She also just so happens to be Georgette's girlfriend."

"Ah, now I know what you meant by me being her type," Yana replied, nodding. "I was thinking it was just a professional preference."

"That's not why I decided to help her out," Georgette mock-pouted briefly before smiling.

Amanda chuckled. "What I wouldn't give to see M meet you..."

*poit!*

"AMANDA! I have got to get out of this damn snow! Get your swimsuit and suntan lotion, gi-" Monica stopped mid-stride and stared at Yana like a deer in headlights. "Oh. Um. Hi."

Yana, equally stunned at the sudden appearance of a woman right before her eyes, simply blinked.

Monica recovered first, looking Yana up and down. "Damn, girl, I usually don't see someone shaped like you unless I'm looking at a mirror!"

"Uh..."

Monica turned to Georgette, half-whispering. "I gotta admit, this is the spookiest thing I've seen all week. And I had a refreshingly intellectual conversation with a haunted and reanimated pirate skeleton last Tuesday."

"You two do look very much alike." Georgette finally conceded.

"I had to stop myself from calling her Monica a few times." Amanda snickered.

Yana spent more than a moment looking Monica over tip to toe. Same height. Same build. "Latina-what?" she finally asked, as she took in both the similarities and the differences.

"Irish." Monica replied after a moment, doing her own subtle doubletake again. "You?"

"Russian." Yana looked back. "I think you got the better end of the deal. Love your hair color."

Monica craned her head to the side. "Yeah. But you got a butt."

Amanda looked to Georgette. "This is as good a time as any to take a break. Besides, drinks for the mutual admiration society here might be a good idea."

"So... Heh..." Monica cleared her throat a little awkwardly while Amanda went to get drinks. "I'm guessing you're wondering what's up with me... Popping in here like that, huh?"

"You could say that, yeah. Only in a total and complete kind of way, but yeah." The tone was dry wit. "Sorry, being a body twin was weird enough. Being a TELEPORTING body twin, that's something else."

Monica narrowed her eyes at Yana for a moment. Georgette glanced at her, then she almost seemed to look at the empty space to either side of Monica. It was only a short moment before Monica seemed to make up her mind. "I'm gonna go ahead and trust you... You seem alright, and obviously Jet and Amanda like you well enough." She took a deep breath. "Long story short, there's a whole bunch of supernatural and paranormal stuff hidden right under everybody's noses. Sphinxes, demons, Titans... And I'm one of them. I'm a Jaguar Girl. Teleporting is one of the things I can do that are out of the ordinary."

Georgette nodded. "There's a whole hidden society of it. I'm only a little odd, M here helped me out with a demon-related problem I was having."

Amanda walked in with a pitcher of iced tea and a few large cups. "She poited me into Lake Calhoun, the little snot. Beyond knowing about this, I'm just a normal human."

Yana blinked. Because really, what do you say to that. She listens, then finally pinches the bridge of her nose. "Either I'm going nuts or life just got too weird for me..."

"I swear, if you poit her into Lake Calhoun in this weather..." Amanda glared at Monica.

"Relaaaax, I'm not gonna do that to her." Monica flapped a hand dismissively at Amanda.

"It's actually not that weird. You get used to it. Well... I did." Jet smiled reassuringly.

"Wellllll..." Monica grimaced a little. "It can get really... Weird. But I doubt you're going to end up at the center of any world-altering events."

"I don't know. Given the insanity going on in..." She starts to tick off on her fingers. "...the country, my state, my family, or my life? World-altering events don't sound bad." Yana shook her head. "Though, being teleported into a lake sounds less good."

"I guess so..." Monica didn't seem very sure.

Georgette, however, seemed much more enthusiastic about Yana's reply. "Well, I know the perfect way to let you jump in - the Para Mall! Or maybe Cerebus Club?"
Amanda pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Unless you're bent a little more towards the intraverted side... Maybe just introduce them to some of our friends? Slowly?"

"To which ones? They all tend to get a bit... Uh..." Monica petered off.

"Strange? Weird? Dorky?" Georgette supplied.

"...Yes."

"Hey!" Amanda narrowed her eyes before returning to a good-natured smile. "We can cross that bridge when she gets to it..."

"Yeah, no real rush. I can come get you if you ever feel the need to cool off from that Arizona heat." Monica smirked. "On to more important matters... Like where do you shop for clothes... Especially bras? Nogales doesn't sound like a very big town, I'm surprised you can find anything that fits! I have trouble and I live in a city!"

"There's a mall? A club? Someone has not sent me the newsletter." Yana complains. "And it's not heat, it's an ice cube up here. You're Latina, you ought to be a popsicle in this weather. As for Nogales..." The model shrugged. "It's a plenty big town...on the Mexico side. But you're right. I do most everything mail order. Curvy Kate, mostly. But the only time I've ever managed just BUYING something out of the store was when I visited L.A."

"Oh, girl, I have GOT to take you to Lydia's sometime. You will not regret it!" Monica grinned, and her canines seemed a tad large. "You might even get the Ninjas!"

Amanda rolled her eyes. "I never saw any ninjas."

"Exactly!" Monica giggled with a mischievous smile.


Jet chuckled. "Monica found a nice island out in the middle of nowhere. She goes there to defrost."

"Ooh! Yeah, that's where I was headed! I was gonna bring Amanda with me until I met miss Mirror here!"

"If you ever feel the need for some paranormal hijinks, we can totally hook you up. And if you are up for some real excitement..." Amanda looked to Monica with an evil grin.

Monica laughed. "Oh... We probably don't want to start her off at the Library. That's a bit much."

"Ninjas?" Yana looks more confused than anything. "Islands are good, though..." Her voice clearly indicated a little wandering; having a hard time following the conversation. Just too many new concepts and images.

Amanda, still in tune with Yana, picked up on it immediately and came to her model's rescue. "We can do all that later, though. Right now, I think we were in the middle of a photo shoot?"

Yana immediately snaps back into professional mode. "Right! We're on Amanda's dime." She actually blushes some, a little embarassed that she got distracted from the shoot.

"Well, it's actually mine, but don't worry about it. We're just helping you out, and it's always good to take breaks now and again." Georgette smiled gently. "Life can't all be work, you know. Gotta find that balance... But you're right, we can finish the shoot and move on from there."

The three ladies resumed the photo shoot with renewed vigor, and the camera clicked and flashed ever faster. Amanda occasionally saw Yana do something fleeting and fanned the camera button as fast as she could to catch the short moment.

Eventually, the photo shoot began to wind down. Amanda was out of ideas, Yana was getting exhausted, and both were very satisfied with the fruits of their labor. Yana changed back into her original outfit and packed up. When she emerged from the dressing room, Amanda used a much smaller camera to take a picture of Georgette and Yana together, and finally a picture of all three, their wide smiles beaming.
He's mister GlytchMeister, he's mister code
He's mister exploiter, he's mister ones and zeros
They call me GlytchMeister, whatever I touch
Starts to glitch in my clutch!
I'm too much!
FreeFlier
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Re: A Good Break

Post by FreeFlier »

GlytchMeister wrote: . . .

"Wellllll..." Monica grimaced a little. "It can get really... Weird. But I doubt you're going to end up at the center of any world-altering events."

"I don't know. Given the insanity going on in..." She starts to tick off on her fingers. "...the country, my state, my family, or my life? World-altering events don't sound bad." Yana shook her head. "Though, being teleported into a lake sounds less good."
. . .
Okay, Yana can't be blamed, but hasn't Monica learned better by now? :shock: :shock: :shock:


Off to a nice start . . .

--FreeFlier
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GlytchMeister
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Re: A Good Break

Post by GlytchMeister »

FreeFlier wrote:Off to a nice start . . .
Hey, Yana! Ya hear that? :mrgreen: I think they want more!
He's mister GlytchMeister, he's mister code
He's mister exploiter, he's mister ones and zeros
They call me GlytchMeister, whatever I touch
Starts to glitch in my clutch!
I'm too much!
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lake_wrangler
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Re: A Good Break

Post by lake_wrangler »

GlytchMeister wrote:
FreeFlier wrote:Off to a nice start . . .
Hey, Yana! Ya hear that? :mrgreen: I think they want more!
Of course, we do... :D

You weren't planning to leave us hanging like that, did you? :evil:
Actually, let me rephrase that:
You didn't expect us to allow you to leave us hanging like that, did you? :twisted:
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Just Old Al
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Just Old Al »

GlytchMeister wrote:
FreeFlier wrote:Off to a nice start . . .
Hey, Yana! Ya hear that? :mrgreen: I think they want more!

Well, DUH!
"The Empire was founded on cups of tea, mate, and if you think I am going to war without one you are sadly mistaken."
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GlytchMeister
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Re: A Good Break

Post by GlytchMeister »

I hadn't really thought ahead on what to do with Yana's new character... And I don't think she did either, so it will require some thought if we were to write more.

(Basically: Don't hold your breath... We didn't plan ahead and she's got umpteen things happening :? )
He's mister GlytchMeister, he's mister code
He's mister exploiter, he's mister ones and zeros
They call me GlytchMeister, whatever I touch
Starts to glitch in my clutch!
I'm too much!
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Sgt. Howard
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Sgt. Howard »

Turn her loose, see what she does and write about it... that's what I do with mine...
Rule 17 of the Bombay Golf Course- "You shall play the ball where the monkey drops it,"
I speak fluent Limrick-
the Old Sgt.
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jwhouk
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Re: A Good Break

Post by jwhouk »

Start where we all start:

Tina's.
"Character is what you are in the dark." - D.L. Moody
"You should never run from the voices in your head. That's how you give them power." - Jin
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Warrl »

jwhouk wrote:Start where we all start:

Tina's.
Oh, that gives me an idea. AFAIK Dawn hasn't been to Tina's yet. (Now I just need another idea or two to go with it.)
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Just Old Al »

Warrl wrote:
jwhouk wrote:Start where we all start:

Tina's.
Oh, that gives me an idea. AFAIK Dawn hasn't been to Tina's yet. (Now I just need another idea or two to go with it.)
Just ignore the two idiots arguing in the back...it's safer that way.
"The Empire was founded on cups of tea, mate, and if you think I am going to war without one you are sadly mistaken."
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Warrl »

Actually, I don't plan on those two being there. For reasons.
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Sgt. Howard »

Warrl wrote:Actually, I don't plan on those two being there. For reasons.
Al...? have we just been uninvited?... whatever for...?
Rule 17 of the Bombay Golf Course- "You shall play the ball where the monkey drops it,"
I speak fluent Limrick-
the Old Sgt.
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Warrl »

"There" being Mucho Mocha at a particular time.
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Dave »

Sgt. Howard wrote:Al...? have we just been uninvited?... whatever for...?
For reasons, as Warrl said.

If Dawn is going to put on an Emma Peel outfit, hop into a sporty convertable, and help break you two out of durance vile, it only stands to reason that you'll have to be in durance vile to start with. Thus, you won't be at Mucho Mocha.

As to why you're in the stir in the first place, I'm sure Warrl will make it an appropriate cause. Something about "Disturbing The Peace" or "Creating A Public Nuisance" I suppose... all those arguments, you know. :P
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Re: A Good Break

Post by FreeFlier »

Dave wrote:
Sgt. Howard wrote:Al...? have we just been uninvited?... whatever for...?
For reasons, as Warrl said.

If Dawn is going to put on an Emma Peel outfit, hop into a sporty convertable, and help break you two out of durance vile, it only stands to reason that you'll have to be in durance vile to start with. Thus, you won't be at Mucho Mocha.

As to why you're in the stir in the first place, I'm sure Warrl will make it an appropriate cause. Something about "Disturbing The Peace" or "Creating A Public Nuisance" I suppose... all those arguments, you know. :P
So she'd be retrieving them from Group W?

/flrrd/

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Re: A Good Break

Post by Just Old Al »

FreeFlier wrote: So she'd be retrieving them from Group W?

/flrrd/

--FreeFlier
I literally just hyperventilated laughing... Oh. My. Gods...

"...sittin' on the bench - the Group W bench..." Thank you Arlo.

That's one thing I stuck into SS Angel that no one ever called me on - the 8 x 10 colour glossy pictures with circles and arrows and a paragraph on each one.
"The Empire was founded on cups of tea, mate, and if you think I am going to war without one you are sadly mistaken."
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Re: A Good Break

Post by FreeFlier »

Just Old Al wrote:
FreeFlier wrote:So she'd be retrieving them from Group W?

/flrrd/
I literally just hyperventilated laughing... Oh. My. Gods...

"...sittin' on the bench - the Group W bench..." Thank you Arlo.

That's one thing I stuck into SS Angel that no one ever called me on - the 8 x 10 colour glossy pictures with circles and arrows and a paragraph on each one.
It seems like I spotted it . . . though I'm not sure at the moment.

I've used that line at work . . .got some very strange looks when four of us were quoting the lines in unison. (The fourth guy was a real surprise, too . . . never thought he'd know it!)

--FreeFlier
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Re: A Good Break

Post by Warrl »

Sorry, there's no specific in-story reason you aren't there. You just happen to be elsewhere. There's a solid meta reason why no Alexander-family adult have been there all afternoon (if any of them had been, the reason Dawn's there wouldn't exist), and Greg isn't there at the moment for the convenience of one line.
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