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 Posted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 9:40 pm
Ever since her dad had met up with Eva Coral, he had been buzzing about the house like a prepubescent boy crushing on some rock star. That was a really accurate statement, since that guy's mom was apparently pretty famous in Britain a while back. Dad had started to go through all of his old possessions and pulled out anything and everything that had anything to do with the band Cherry Pie Filling. Albums, photographs, even a couple moth-eaten t-shirts were pulled out and hugged onto like they were stuffed animals.
"...and 'ere I thought I was th' one who was in high school..." she sarcastically pointed out one day.
The blonde man just grinned. "You, kiddo, just don't know good music when you hear it!"
"...well... yeah... I don't... but that's 'cause I'll listen to almost everythin'..." Except country. God save Ellie if the music was country. The teen rolled her eyes. "Why don't ya get a CD... I mean, ya don't even have a workin' record player anymore..."
The man whined out "...but that requires money..."
The tomboy's sigh filled the room. "Yer hopeless!" Without another word, she left the house.
With her hands in her pockets, she walked and walked and walked until she managed to find just what she was looking for. Big Willy's! Dad was just too stubborn at times about money. "Let's see if they got what yer lookin' for..." With that, the tomboy entered the store.
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Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 4:25 pm
Big Willy' was a humble sort of man, and his store was a humble sort of establishment. These things made sense together. They were both rough around the edges and always seemed just little bit grungy, but also, somehow, managed to be charming. Vanessa had spent a great deal of time under the peeling paint of its dusty ceiling; working with Damian, under Big Willy's lenient supervision. For her, it was something like a second home.
And filled to the brim with everything any self-respecting music lover could possibly want.
When she'd failed to graduate High School, Big Willy had fired Vanessa temporarily on the grounds that she improve her grades. She didn't work there anymore, officially, but that didn't stop Vanessa from strolling across the street every now and again to visit with her old boss. Usually, Big Willy was more than happy to see her.
Today was one of those days. There was a proud smile on Big Willy's face as he listened to Vanessa rattle on and on about all of the cool things she was learning in History class. He sat behind the till, chuckling every now and then, and looked up when the little bell that hung above the door signalled the arrival of a new customer.
"Hello," he and Vanessa, who'd turned around to greet Ellie, said at once. "How can I help you?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 4:40 pm
As she entered, she thought she heard a jingling sound, like one of those bells you hear at the doorway. It was an everyday thing in all honesty, so she paid it no mind. The tall tomboy wandered up to the front counter nonchalantly before stopping right there in front of the two.
It was just a bit creepy that both the man and girl said the same thing at the same time. It was like when creepy twins did that. Except one was an old dude and the other was a girl about her age.
"Yeeeeeaaahhhhhh...." She glanced over to the CD department before shooting a glance to both man and teen again. "So my dad is in a fix an' needs some tunes by Cherry Pie Filling... old group, most popular in Britain... bla bla bla..."
Yes, the blonde did just say bla bla bla.
"...ya guys got some'a that sh*t on th'shelves?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 5:57 pm
The old dude and his little companion, aware of the way they'd spoken at the same time, exchanged curious glances. And then--
"Pop Jinx!" Vanessa burst out childishly, grinning from ear to ear, and pointed wildly at Big with one ink-marked hand, "HA! You owe me a soda!"
Amused, one eyebrow aloft, Big Willy chortled and his great big belly jiggled like a bowl full of jelly. He crossed his thick arms over his chest, ignored Vanessa for the time being, and fixed Ellie with an amiable stare.
"We've got some of that s**t and more," he drawled, and gestured at the whole of the store. There were wracks upon wracks of music, from records to a-tracks to CDs. "Probably, anyways."
"I've never heard of them, but I'll help you look," Vanessa interjected when he'd finished, flashed Ellie a brilliant grin, and hopped off of her stool. She motioned towards the nearest collection of CDs with her chin, and started towards them at a leisurely pace. "Follow me?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 6:58 pm
Ellie nodded her head at Big Willy, seeming absolutely okay with the fact he cursed right back at her. "Yeah, and more... but specifically, ya got CDs for this band? Dad's got ol' records, but he ain't got a record player now... probably be better t'bring him into the 21st century!" She flashed a grin in the owner's direction before rather easily spinning to face the direction the redhead motioned towards.
"Sure... an' yeah... they were most popular in th' 70s and early 80s... I don't get what Dad sees in 'em... well, maybe it had somethin' t'do with th'bassist?" Her shoulders rolled to form a shrug. "He got t'meet 'er in person recently and now he's actin' like an idiot..." Ellie failed to understand why people got so stupid around famous people. Seriously, they are people too. Get over it.
"So... how long ya been workin' 'ere?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 8:23 pm
Big Willy's Record Store was Big Willy's record store. He was not affiliated with any sort of super-corporation, and ran a modest business out of his modest home. If he wanted to swear, he would swear. At whoever he damned well pleased. Especially if they started it.
As they were, Big Willy just nodded after the girls with his big bald head and let Vanessa do what she liked.
"We have a couple of record players in the back, actually," Vanessa beamed at Ellie, "They're in pretty good shape, too. Music sounds really… raw coming from them."
The way she said it made this seem like a good thing.
"That's sweet," Vanessa mused, tickled by the idea that somebody as old as Ellie's dad, who must have been as old as her dad, being so smitten with a celebrity. Vanessa associated her father's serious disposition with his advanced age. Even though it wasn't very advanced at all.
"I don't work here anymore," she explained casually and, with her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth, rifled through the CDs in the 'C' section. "I used to-- started as soon as I was big enough. I guess that makes it a couple years, even though it feels loads longer."
"Not that it sucked or anything, 'cause it totally didn't. A year just never feels like a year, you know?"
Time was a sneaky beast. It moved faster than the blink of an eye, without seeming to change at all.
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Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 8:47 pm
"Record players, eh?" The blonde tomboy did not seem impressed. "I wouldn't encourage him to sink even further inta this funk of his... next thing ya know, he'll be complainin' 'bout all th'new fangled technology!"
Ellie glanced over the redhead's shoulder, as if trying to take a look as well in the little C-marked section.
However, that same bell sound she heard earlier rang again. It was too close to be the door. In fact, the sound seemed to ring right there by Vanessa's feet. If Vanessa was to look there by her sneakers, she would find a golden colored pen with red accents on it. Well, it looked like a pen, but rather bulky. It seemed to have a strange symbol carved into the lid. What could this be?
(Congratulations Honey Gee! For all of your contributions to the shop, it seems that Vanessa will be upgraded into a senshi. Please contact LizzyMoo with further details. Do not treat this RP as an awakening, but more as a soft awakening where she strictly gets the pen, nothing more. You can arrange a separate awakening at a later time. Thank you for being an amazing part of this shop!)
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Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 11:24 pm
Complaining about new fangled technology. Now that was something Vanessa could agree with. There were no computers or cell phones in her little home-- although Mr. Rae had been eyeing his bank accounts recently with the specific intention of purchasing his daughter something that would make it easier to keep track of her. Whether or not Vanessa would understand how to use it was another thing entirely.
"Record players are pretty cool, though," she grinned over her shoulder at Ellie, golden eyes twinkling, and retrieved three CDs from the wrack. They were all labelled with different Cherry Pie Filling albums, and brand new. She handed them to Ellie. "There you are- hey, did you hear that?"
She turned slowly on the spot, alerted by the tinkling sound of the bell, and blinked stupidly down at her feet.
"Huh. That's a funny looking pen," Vanessa bent to pick it up from the floor, and examined it with an admiring eye. Biting her lip, she cocked an eyebrow at Ellie, and asked, "Did you drop this?"
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 10:06 am
Ellie, in fact, had heard that. It definitely wasn't the door, and when she also looked to the ground, she easily understood what had produced that sound.
...that cat is a sneaky little b*****d!
Even this pen looked less gay than her own henshin pen. Gold and red was cooler than rainbows any day! Not wanting to blow her cover, she had to say something. "Yeah... it's kinda weird lookin'..."
The question directed to her soon enough got an easy answer. "I ain't never seen that pen before." This technically wasn't lying. It was true. That specific pen she had never seen before. Now, if she had said she'd never seen anything like that pen before, she would have been lying her a** off.
"I guess finders keepers, eh? Maybe ya should hold onta it, in case someone goes askin' 'bout it?" The blonde then went to busying herself by rearranging the albums in her hands. It was a vain attempt, because all she could think about was the fact that this redhead was apparently a senshi.
"So, ya got a name?"
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 2:26 pm
"Sure," Vanessa mused with a little nod of her head, and slipped the strange pen into the back pocket of her jeans, "finders keepers."
She would safeguard the pen until somebody came to claim it, if anybody did. Vanessa had always been in charge of the 'Lost and Found' at Big Willy's Record Store, and ended up keeping a number of the things she'd picked up off the floor of the store for herself. But only after she was sure that they were good and abandoned.
"I'm Vanessa," she smiled at Ellie, eyes crinkling upwards at the corner, "last name Rae. Do you go to Meadowview? I think I've seen you around campus before."
Did they have any classes together? Vanessa couldn't be sure. So far this year, she'd spent more time with her nose in her textbook than ever before. Graduating was important. Even though she still struggled through some of the more complex ideas and bigger words, there hadn't been a lot of time to get to know her classmates.
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 3:36 pm
Readjusting the CDs so they were all held in one hand, the blonde thrust her right hand out for a handshake. A strong, firm handshake was the only proper way to introduce herself, after all. "Name's Ellie... Ellie Spectre." The tomboy flashed her teeth at the other girl. Might as well get somewhat acquainted now, seeing as this was apparently a senshi.
The mention of the school caused Ellie's head to bob up and down a bit. "Yeah, I'm at Meadowview... Senior year, baby!" Not being one to linger too long, strictly out of a need to move, the tall teen began to make her way to the front counter again. "What year ya in?"
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 6:20 pm
Vanessa took Ellie's outstretched hand with her own, and gave it one enthusiastic shake. Her grip was firm, but not strong enough to hurt.
"Its nice to meet you, Ellie," Vanessa was cheerful, and buzzed with a laid-back sort of energy that loitered somewhere near dormant today. Hers was a friendly soul. She appreciated the quality in other people too, and was delighted to find this other girl so agreeable.
"Uh…" the auburn haired girl hesitated for a moment, wet her lips, and ran a couple of fingers through her thick curls, "I'm a senior too. Year 13."
This meant that she was repeating. It was also clear, from the awkward way that Vanessa stood now, that she was a little bit ashamed of herself. When it came to brains and brilliance, she had always lacked. This wasn't such a big deal in preschool and kindergarten, when all of the other kids were eating paste and shoving crayons up their noses too.
But it mattered now.
She was repeating 12th grade, passing acceptably, so far, with 'C' level grades, and determined to graduate. After that? Who knew.
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 7:04 pm
Ellie smirked. "Lucky year then, right?" She continued to wander towards the counter, eventually setting the three cases next to the cash register. The blonde stood there, reaching back into her pocket and pulling out a wallet. She shrugged a bit after a while, then pointed out her stance.
"It ain't a big deal if ya ask me... I ain't exactly goin' t'college right away after I get outta school anyways... I've got plans t'learn th'industry I wanna go inta' before gettin' whatever credentials an' crap I need..." Gold eyes glanced to Big Willy, as if challenging him to argue that she shouldn't skip out on college right out of high school. She was quite adjusted to getting guff from adults who didn't understand her passions. There was wanting to get a good job, and then there was wanting to get a job you wanted. Ellie planned on getting that job she wanted, and it didn't require schooling right away.
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Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2010 8:02 pm
The future was, for the most part, a hazy and uncertain place. There were only a few things that Vanessa knew for sure. She would not be attending college. There would be bills to pay. And, most importantly, she wanted to make a difference in the world.
Once upon a time, her dreams had revolved around the possibility of starting a band, playing drums for said band and making it BIG. But, somewhere along the way, this girl's life path had taken a surprise twist in another more dangerous and less lucrative direction. Vanessa had spent so much time in Super Van's spandex suit, with that table cloth swirling around her hips, that she always felt a little bit naked without her faithful unitard.
She and the suit were like. One.
This was pretty awesome. Except probably nobody was going to pay her to wear it and go swing at bad guys with her crow-bar. And it was even less likely that she'd ever be able to get a decent dental plant.
"Yeah?" Vanessa smiled at Ellie, and sidled up to the till, where Big Willy was ringing in the tomboy's purchases. "What industry are you looking into?"
Lord knew, Vanessa could use some ideas.
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Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2010 11:01 pm
"Lookin' at auto repair." The way the tall blonde stood there even seemed to echo such a sentiment. She seemed rough around the edges. Even with all of the cleaning she did, the teen still had a couple of oil smudges on her skin that never seemed to go away.
"I already got a gig lined up after I turn 18." She grinned easily and nodded her head. When told the amount she owed, she slid some bills towards the man. Considering the current topic, it wasn't really all that strange that she asked Big Willy "Did ya always wanna open up yer own music store?"
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