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tenminutesaday2022-06-16 12:48 am
shivver) wrote in tenminutesaday2022-06-16 12:48 am
Entry tags:
Fill: Challenge #67
I just realized that my intoabar story is due in a couple of days, so I've been working on that and am taking advantage of the "fill a challenge by posting what other stuff you're working on" clause in the comm rules. Here's what I wrote today.
Kaylee shrugged. “Travel’s a service, ain’t it?” she asked no one in particular. “And travelin’ ‘beyond’, that’s about as miscellaneous as you can get.” She spotted a narrow space between a tall man offering guide services for the Mount Fenetra trails and a woman in a flowery, gauzy dress holding a sign that read in loopy hand-drawn letters, “Draw aside the veil! Contact loved ones who have gone before! No pets.” It seemed as good a place as any, so she squeezed between them to set her own sign out.
The man barely noticed her, but the woman skittered sideways as far as she could to make room, perhaps only two extra inches but Kaylee was glad for as much as she got. “Here you go, dear,” the woman crooned as she helped Kaylee settle in. “Now you just lean against the rail and hold your sign like this. It helps, you know, so your feet don’t hurt at the end of the day.”
“Oh, I ain’t gonna be here that long,” Kaylee replied as she took up the suggested position. The woman’s face, made up with bright cheeks and vibrant lipstick, fell for a brief moment before she masked it with a veneer of cheer. “Cap’n and Zoe’ll be back in two shakes…” Kaylee faltered. The woman seemed… lost. Lost and looking for a friend. “But I don’t know how they’ll find me in here. Probably be hours.” She stuck her hand out. “I’m Kaylee.”
The woman smiled, batting her long, false eyelashes. “Madame Tracy, dear. And what is it you’re selling now?” she asked as she cocked her head to read the sign. “Is that a bus line? I’ve never heard of those places. Are those up north?”
Kaylee giggled half-heartedly. Something seemed to be wrong here, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. “Not a bus. A ship. She’s called Serenity.” Just saying her name made her stand a bit taller. “You’ll never find better. Smoothest ride in the 'verse.”
“That sounds lovely.”
“You have such a pretty way of talkin’,” Kaylee said with a bright smile. “You from Dyton? Or maybe Muir?”
Madame Tracy hesitated for a confused moment, then shook her head. “Oh, no, not me. Nothing so fancy. I’m London born and bred.”
“Londinium?” The word came out as half cough, half laugh. The woman had nothing of the capital of the Core worlds about her - none of the pride, none of the condescension. If she were really a Core worlder, maybe she might fit in on Persephone at best, but her style matched the Border planets more than anything. However, if she were to take her word at face value, it’d explain her obvious confusion; any Core worlder would be bewildered, stuck here as a faceless nobody on a Rim moon. “You’re a long way from home, then.”
“Well, we’ve made our home here now, of course, but…” Her voice lowered to a murmur. “Truth be told, I’d like to go back.” She peered up at Kaylee. “Can I tell you something, dear? I mean, a stranger and all, but maybe that’s best."
Kaylee shrugged. “Travel’s a service, ain’t it?” she asked no one in particular. “And travelin’ ‘beyond’, that’s about as miscellaneous as you can get.” She spotted a narrow space between a tall man offering guide services for the Mount Fenetra trails and a woman in a flowery, gauzy dress holding a sign that read in loopy hand-drawn letters, “Draw aside the veil! Contact loved ones who have gone before! No pets.” It seemed as good a place as any, so she squeezed between them to set her own sign out.
The man barely noticed her, but the woman skittered sideways as far as she could to make room, perhaps only two extra inches but Kaylee was glad for as much as she got. “Here you go, dear,” the woman crooned as she helped Kaylee settle in. “Now you just lean against the rail and hold your sign like this. It helps, you know, so your feet don’t hurt at the end of the day.”
“Oh, I ain’t gonna be here that long,” Kaylee replied as she took up the suggested position. The woman’s face, made up with bright cheeks and vibrant lipstick, fell for a brief moment before she masked it with a veneer of cheer. “Cap’n and Zoe’ll be back in two shakes…” Kaylee faltered. The woman seemed… lost. Lost and looking for a friend. “But I don’t know how they’ll find me in here. Probably be hours.” She stuck her hand out. “I’m Kaylee.”
The woman smiled, batting her long, false eyelashes. “Madame Tracy, dear. And what is it you’re selling now?” she asked as she cocked her head to read the sign. “Is that a bus line? I’ve never heard of those places. Are those up north?”
Kaylee giggled half-heartedly. Something seemed to be wrong here, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. “Not a bus. A ship. She’s called Serenity.” Just saying her name made her stand a bit taller. “You’ll never find better. Smoothest ride in the 'verse.”
“That sounds lovely.”
“You have such a pretty way of talkin’,” Kaylee said with a bright smile. “You from Dyton? Or maybe Muir?”
Madame Tracy hesitated for a confused moment, then shook her head. “Oh, no, not me. Nothing so fancy. I’m London born and bred.”
“Londinium?” The word came out as half cough, half laugh. The woman had nothing of the capital of the Core worlds about her - none of the pride, none of the condescension. If she were really a Core worlder, maybe she might fit in on Persephone at best, but her style matched the Border planets more than anything. However, if she were to take her word at face value, it’d explain her obvious confusion; any Core worlder would be bewildered, stuck here as a faceless nobody on a Rim moon. “You’re a long way from home, then.”
“Well, we’ve made our home here now, of course, but…” Her voice lowered to a murmur. “Truth be told, I’d like to go back.” She peered up at Kaylee. “Can I tell you something, dear? I mean, a stranger and all, but maybe that’s best."
no subject
And now you've got me curious: who is going into the Bar?
no subject
The thing is, it doesn't have to be a bar. The character must go somewhere public and meet the other character. In this case, the place that Kaylee went into is a "service dome" on some moon orbiting the planet Salisbury - this would make more sense if you understood how the planetary systems in Firefly are set up. I made up the "service dome" - basically the moon's government dictated that all business transactions other than direct sales of physical objects and digital goods must take place in a service dome, which ended up meaning if you want to sell a service, you have to go to one of these domes and hold up a sign advertising your service, and hope someone sees you.
no subject
I thought about signing up. Can't wait to see where this goes
no subject