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Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 3:36 pm
Before Iosif could begin to explain the complexities of his act (these complexities being "shooting things" and "shooting other things") Grete had moved on to another topic entirely, and it took the inebriated Russian a few moments to catch up with her. His already meager understanding of English only seemed to dwindle under the influence of alcohol, and Iosif gave Grete a very puzzled look as she seized his wrist and started tugging, but once she explained what it was she wanted to do, he seemed to catch on.
After a few seconds of contemplation, Iosif staggered on to his feet and began wobbling away from Grete. "I am thinking this is not an idea very good," Iosif said, laughing easily. But he wasn't backing away from Grete because he was opposed to to her suggestion - rather he knelt by his suitcase and after a moment of fumbling procured a clean, if slightly wrinkled, suit jacket. "Fancy!" he declared, holding it up with an air of pride, before sliding it on. Of course to complete the look he'd have to don a tie, but he ignored that for the time being and moved back to Grete.
"Outside," he ordered, planting his hands on her shoulders and steering her towards the door. It was a bit worrisome, since Iosif could barely direct himself, let alone Grete, but eventually they managed to escape outside without too much trouble.
Soon as they had made it outside the trailer Iosif began to arrange Grete's arms: one he placed on his shoulder (the height difference didn't make it too easy, but Iosif scarcely cared), and the other was raised up, with their hands clasped. "You maybe is knowing foxtrot?" he asked, raising his eyebrow.
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Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 4:13 pm
Grete nearly fell out of her trailer, half in shock at suddenly being moved elsewhere. Once Iosif properly arranged her, she found herself slightly embarrassed at the height difference between the two, which, to her at least, became severely obvious once she had her hand on Iosif's shoulder. Smiling sheepishly, Grete looked up at Iosif. Once again feeling embarrassed and common, she raised an eyebrow at him.
"I'm afraid I don't know how to foxtrot," Grete decided that it would be best not to mention that she hardly knew what it was, much less the actual steps. She had heard of it, but aside from that, she wasn't quite sure what to do. She assumed that she had seen it at one time or another... Yet, even then, she was at a loss for which dance it was.
Grete giggled softly once she realized exactly what Iosif had pulled from the suitcase. Granted, they were already outside, and he already had it on, but she failed to notice it in the trailer.
"You look very classy," Grete said, with a smile on her face.
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Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:24 pm
"Hey, yes, this I am knowing! Am very much classy gentleman," Grinning, Iosif pulled his hand away from Grete for a moment to tip an imaginary hat before resuming his original position. Perhaps their posture wasn't as stiff or as proper as it ought to have been - what with the nine inches of height difference, and the fact that both dancers were rather tanked - but it would work for this purpose.
"Okay!" Iosif exclaimed, flashing Grete his brightest smile. "Foxtrot very much easy, yes? You take two steps slow, two steps quick-quick." Leading Grete carefully, Iosif demonstrated with his own feet: slow, slow, quick-quick. Slow, slow, quick-quick. "Basic step," he explained, with a smile and a shrug.
He remembered back when he was first learning to foxtrot. He was probably drunk at that point as well.
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Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:38 pm
Watching Iosif's feet caused Grete to become mildly nervous. She tensed for a moment, worried about the 'quick-quick' bits. Her eyes kept darting from the ground, to Iosif, to the ground, and then back again.
Once he led her, she was relieved to see that it wasn't as difficult as she thought it was. Grete beamed at Iosif, proud of herself. This one was easy enough to remember, and easy enough to do while drunk.
"So," she began excitedly, "What's next? Is this going to be in what's next?"
Now, Grete was surprisingly relaxed. This could be the alcohol's influence on her, thought she highly doubted it. She was happy, and she was entertained. Grete couldn't keep a smile off of her face, and she was shocked at this fact. Thoughts kept running in her head, things that she needed to ask, or tell, Iosif about their living conditions. She figured that she might as well ask now. Grete was confident in her abilities to learn to dance, and talk at the same time. That thought was purely influenced by the alcohol.
Glancing down at her feet, Grete asked, "Do you get up early? If so, I suppose I should go ahead and tell you where the food is in my trailer..."
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 9:20 am
Iosif was an early riser, if only because he rarely slept too well. He was a bit of an insomniac and while he did self-medicate with the occasional third of a bottle of alcohol, he generally spent as little time sleeping as possible. He'd learned to do fairly well on just a few hours of sleep and besides, the earlier he got up, the earlier he could get things done. Iosif was an active person who preferred to be productive - not much work was completed while sleeping, so he embraced his insomnia as some sort of gift.
"Early, maybe," he replied, giving a vague shrug of his shoulders. At the moment he was trying to keep his feet steady and rhythmic; the alcohol was certainly combating any attempts, but muscle memory kept him moving as he ought. "What is next you is thinking? We move!" It was easy enough to remain stationary, but when actually moving across a dance floor things became a little more complicated: you had to keep your feet going, maintain what the folks in the business called "continuity", and juggling all this with the alcohol the two had already consumed. Grinning with mischief, Iosif began to lead Grete slowly into a counter-clockwise manner.
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 2:16 pm
Emitting a soft, surprised gasp, Grete kept glancing down at her feet as she was moved to another place. As Iosif started to lead her elsewhere, she was caught by surprise, and it initially began as her simply being pulled to another location. Eventually, Grete caught back up, and looked up at Iosif while beaming.
"Well, you'll probably be up earlier than I," She said, still smiling, "All right, so, the food is in one of the lower cabinets." Her brain fogged with the alcohol, she tried to remember exactly which cabinet, but it simply wasn't coming to her.
"One of the ones closest to the wall, I believe. There's bread, and produce and that sort of thing," Then, her voice dropped to honied tones, "I sweet-talked one of the chefs to giving me some food for not a lot of money. I think he's got a bit of a crush on me," Grete laughed, "I'm not sure why. I've only talked to him a couple of times."
Still nervous about the whole moving-bit of the dancing, Grete held Iosif's shoulder tightly, and then her gaze lowered back down to her feet.
With a happy, but mildly bemused smile on her face, Grete asked, "So, when'd you learn to dance?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2007 11:18 am
Good question. Iosif wasn't too sure himself. If he'd been sober he might've recalled better, but as it was he was dedicating what little brain power he had on keeping himself upright, nevermind actually remembering things that didn't rely on muscle memory. So in response he pursed his mouth, came to abrupt stop, and dipped Grete carefully.
"I am thinks with brain, but nothing! Long time ago." It was the best he could manage at the moment. Righting Grete, he pulled his hands away and pat her head lightly with his scarred hand. The alcohol had kicked in full swing and Iosif knew that dancing wasn't the best idea at the moment. He grinned at Grete and crossed his arms over his chest, surveying her with a feigned critical look. It was almost too sharp - he had quite a glare without trying, let alone when he was acting. Still, he laughed soon and said, "Wonderful! Hey, you is a dancing profesh - profeshinal." His pronunciation was a bit off, but he got it! Sweeping Grete a surprisingly elegant bow, he took her hand and pecked it lightly.
Always show your appreciation to a lady. It was a lesson he'd learned a long time ago.
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2007 3:28 pm
Oh my. Being lowered while dancing was fun. Grete began to smile widely, never once realizing that with one little mistake she could be dropped onto the ground. Once Iosif broke away, she accepted being pat once again. When he looked at her, she was afraid that she had done something wrong, so when he laughed, she was surprised and jumped a little.
And then he kissed her hand. Grete's smile grew, and she gave him a look. This was a look that was difficult to tell was Grete was thinking about from, but a look nevertheless. She hadn't been expecting that, nor had she really expected Iosif to be such a gentleman. To her, at least. Now it was Grete's turn to pat Iosif on the head. She did so, and then ruffled his hair with her fingers.
"Well, thanks. It helps to have a good teacher," she laughed, flattered that she had been called a professoinal. Well, 'profeshinal', but it was all the same. What a surprise! Iosif could dance, and play the piano and...
This last thought caused Grete to remember something. She gasped, and grabbed Iosif's hand.
"I have something to show you!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide. Grete stumbled (quite badly) as she walked back into her trailer, leading Iosif back in with her. When she got inside, she once more stopped at the cabinets and frowned at them. She dropped Iosif's hand and dug through one of them, obviously looking for something. Once she had found it, she smiled happily.
"Aha!" She said, holding up a key ring, but one of the keys she held away from the rest. She was clearly pleased with herself, and hoped that Iosif would be pleased with her as well, "See this? This key can get you into the caravan where they keep instruments and all that sort of thing. I'm sure - no, I'm positive - that they've got a piano. I can show you where it is sometime."
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Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2007 8:33 pm
Iosif scarcely minded being pat on the head, though he did raise an eyebrow in amusement at Grete. No one had done that before. Whatever! He appreciated the gesture, and laughed a little as he straightened up, teetering haphazardly on his feet. Of course it wasn't long before he found himself swept up in a fit of motion, staggering best he could behind Grete. She seemed awfully excited about something - Iosif was the exact opposite, as alcohol had the tendency to stabilize his mood. He was a serene sort of alcoholic, one of the few where the booze actually improved one's personality.
It wasn't long before the two arrived at the trailer, and Iosif lingered in the doorway, leaning against the frame in order to maintain his balance. Room was spinning! In all sorts of directions. My, it made things a good deal more interesting. He didn't seem to be paying much attention until Grete held something shiny aloft, and immediately his interest flickered into place.
"Piano, eh?" Iosif asked, pushing away from the door frame. He bent forward at the waist, inspecting the key as though it was some sort of magical artifact. Admittedly, he hadn't played a piano in ages - it stopped being his job, and he had little time for it - but it was a rather tempting notion, especially to his inebriated mind. He grinned and snatched the keyring from Grete, the thought of asking never even crossing his mind.
"Hey! We go now?" he asked, glancing at Grete. At least he was asking permission for that - and also he didn't know where they kept the instruments.
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Posted: Thu Mar 29, 2007 4:39 pm
Grete shrugged, staring at the keyring before her eyes met with Iosif's. It was fine by her. Of course it was fine by her. Just as long as, you know, she could get down the small stairs to her trailer once more without breaking anything. Or, just hurting herself in general.
"Sure! We can go now. I think all we'll need is the key," Grete frowned, thinking for a second. She couldn't think of anything else they needed, so she smiled widely at Iosif. She began to walk out of the door, but then stopped suddenly and wheeled around.
"I really, really hope that I remember where this is," Grete said to Iosif, "But if I get us lost, please don't be too angry with me, okay?"
Slowly walking out of the trailer, Grete was extremely dainty and careful with her steps, as to not wind up crashing to the ground. She led him out to an empty area, where several trailers could be seen. Grete looked at each one carefully, trying to make sure that she got them to the right one. One stood out from all of the rest: it was quite large, and it was locked. Smiling, Grete pointed and slurred, "I think it's that one."
Quickly and politely taking the key ring back from Iosif, Grete relocated the correct key, and fit it in the lock. Frowning when it wouldn't open, Grete took it back out, examined it and scoffed.
"Ha. Wrong one."
Now putting in a different key, she turned it and there was a rewarding click of it unlocking. Grete squealed and emitted a few light, musical giggles as she opened the door slowly, and poked her head in. Then, she walked inside, and gestured for Iosif to do the same. The trailer was dimly lit, and held a dizzying array of different instruments, and Grete weaved her way in and out of rows of them, attempting to find a piano. Once she did, she beamed at Iosif, and once more gestured for him to come to where she was. When she was near positive that he had seen her, she walked towards it, and hit a key at random. The note that she hit made Grete smile, and she stepped back to admire the piano. Noticing that there was only one seat in the area (which was the piano bench, and while there probably were more chairs, she just didn't feel like looking), Grete perched herself on top of the piano and crossed her legs. She ran a finger along the glossy surface.
"Think this'll work?"
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Posted: Sun Apr 08, 2007 6:37 pm
Iosif followed, mildly obedient as Grete led him hither and thither; he swayed and occasionally had to stop to collect his bearings, but he'd always had a good sense of balance and he didn't crash into any trees on the walk. That alone was worth merit in Iosif's ever-so-informed opinion, and he smiled blearily at Grete as she fiddled with the keyrings, attempting to find the right key. Soon as the door opened Iosif moved inside, stooping so that he could fit in the small entrance of the trailer. Inside was a vast array of instruments, including some he did not recognize. Of course, the piano was easy to find - especially with Grete seated upon it, in a manner that Iosif believed exhibited her legs rather nicely. He tilted his head to the side for a moment, mouth pursed and eyebrows knitted together as he allowed himself to briefly consider the view.
After what was possibly an awkward moment, he straightened and gave Grete and eager, wide smile. "Yes - it works great! Hey, is piano so everything is good." Laughing, he tossed some nonexistent coat tails and sat down on the piano bench, spreading his fingers slowly over the yellowing keys. A knot in his stomach had formed without him noticing, and it was now tightening in a manner Iosif found rather disagreeable. Still, he tapped a key lightly with his pinky finger and immediately leaned back, pulling his hands away and laughing nervously.
"Is little off tune, yes? Out of pitch? Eh - " Perhaps it was the alcohol, or the fact that he hadn't played piano in so long, but Iosif was finding it rather difficult to play now that he had finally been presented with the opportunity. What if he wasn't good at it anymore?
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Posted: Mon Apr 09, 2007 3:40 pm
Had Iosif just been staring at Grete's legs? She was fairly certain that he had been doing such a thing, and, quite frankly, she was pleased. Grete was extremely flattered, and gave him a confident smirk as he sat down. Now positioning herself at a diagonal so that she could face Iosif, she now moved her legs up to the piano, so that she could sit completely on top of it. She couldn't help but notice how Iosif seemed a bit nervous about playing. Or was that just her imagination?
Another thing that she couldn't help but notice was just how very drunk she was. While Grete could hold her alcohol (quite well), and could make herself seem a little more sober than she actually was, but she was having trouble with that now. All of her movements were wobbly, her words were running together, and she was just becoming aware of a dizziness that she couldn't shake. Never the less, she kept a smile on her face and watched Iosif's actions. Once he asked about it being off tune, Grete furrowed her eyebrows and leaned down over the piano, to stare at the keys.
"Well, I don't know. Lemme see," She said, as she decided that she would see for herself. Sliding off of the piano not-too-gracefully, she walked slowly toward where Iosif was sitting, her shoes making soft clicking noises on the floor. Once there, she stood close behind Iosif, put her left hand on his left shoulder (mostly to keep herself standing up straight), leaned forward, and hit a few keys at random with her right hand.
"I suppose it's out of tune. At least I think so. Maybe just a little. I don't play, though, so I wouldn't know," She responded, laughing. Considering how close she was to him, she kept her laughs very soft. Grete didn't want to be too loud, and she kept in mind that she was probably already a little louder than she really intended to be. At this proximity, her light, citrus perfume could be smelled just faintly, and Grete hoped that Iosif wouldn't find it overpowering, even though it could barely be noticed. Part of her was becoming paranoid; nervous that she would irritate someone, anyone, while in her drunken state. Still leaning over, but turning her head and her gaze toward Iosif, she smiled and sighed.
"I think you'll do fine, though," She reassured him, "Besides, since I haven't played piano, anything that you do play I'll think sounds wonderful, out of tune or not."
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