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bakerstreet2013-01-12 01:38 am
followedbylemmings) wrote in bakerstreet2013-01-12 01:38 am
The In Media Res Meme, already in progress.
- ...-g other people.
- Assume that a scene's been going on for a while and you're starting in the middle of the action. (If you don't know what in media res means, Webster defines it as, "In or into the middle of a narrative or plot.") If you need an idea of what might've happened/is happening/will be happening then...
You know. RNG. Numbers.
1. And that was when the small animal tried to jump on your character.
2. And that was when your character realized that what they just ingested tasted horrible.
3. And that was when your character was informed that recovery would take longer.
4. And that was when your character got shot at.
5. And that was when your character turned the corner and saw something or another.
6. And that was when your character ruined the story/joke/information they were trying to tell and just messed up on the delivery.
7. And that was when the plan backfired. - And have fun.
/makes shit up like a pro
...on the neck.
[not a very large one. but not small enough to pass off as a speck of dirt in ten different pictures.]
There's no obvious trend in terms of clothing choice. I believe they merely reflect the fashion trends then.
1/2 fuck yeah we're pro shitter uppers
and an almost disconcerting grin when she mentions the fashion trends. ]
Astute observations as usual, Awashima-kun.
Shall we assume this constant remains even now until proven otherwise? [ he turns to face her then, his hand on the handle of his sword. ] Very well.
and yes i went through all of that tldr so they could play dressup FIGHT ME
[ there's the slightest cant of his head and it's obvious enough he's motioning to the lady in red. and although she's birthmark-free, it's a fact made obvious only because her hair's been pulled up by the saleswoman to fit the hat over her updo. ]
How familiar are you with the departmental sales division in retail, Awashima-kun?
no fightin', no fightin', it's all beautiful.
...quite familiar. I have some experience.
[selling what, no one will ever know. maybe red bean paste.]
i'm sorry i'm not sorry, i guess...
Then I will have to request use of this skill set of yours until further notice.
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but for now, she understands— and complies. it's not difficult to replicate the salespeople uniforms for this department (a pencil skirt here, a vest there). they're not the exact shade but she manages— close enough.
permission to enter the changing rooms, sir.]
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but yes, permission granted.
and... well... he'd be terribly out of place were he to follow wearing his uniform coat, so... he'll go without it. his vest, ascot, and dress shirt combination works well enough for their purposes, anyway. ]
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when she emerges, she definitely looks less lieutenant seri awashima and more well, seri awasahima. still needs to work on that smile, though.]
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when she steps out from the fitting rooms, he's already there waiting for her. he's stationed along the side wall in a lean that is supposedly meant to be casual, to give off the aura of an ordinary civilian in his nodded head and folded arms.
but reishi munakata will never cease to be reishi munakata regardless of how he stands; even in his casualness, he's a terribly regal presence even without his coattails to follow him.
at least his smile this time around is much more natural. ]
It suits you.
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--and a smile. a smile is always important for sales staff, after all.]
Thank you. Shall we?
[-- as she bites back the sir.]
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That we shall.
[ ... unfortunately, however, there's only so much he can do when his resume is very noticeably lacking in anything involving customer service.
perhaps he'll make a very fashionable coat rack.]I'll follow your lead.
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[how many in scepter 4 can claim to have gone shopping with the blue king, after all? though, of course, in this context, "shopping" has to be used in the loosest sense...though the next person who peeks into that fitting room will probably see a neatly folded pile of scepter 4's female uniform. whoops.
but yes, walking like-- like a salesperson confidently towards the lady in the red hat (presumably, because she was the nearest target). she makes sure to walk beside him and not ahead of munakata, though.]
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... or they're just honestly pretty people. ]
Oh, yes. You were asking about this hat? It's really cute, isn't it? Very chic. I'm sorry, this was the last--
[ it bears repeating: he has had no experience in customer service whatsoever. bureaucracy experience makes for a poor substitute.
it doesn't seem to stop him. ]
It's a lovely color. [ it's all meaningless flattery, but the group of women milling around miss red immediately stop their clamoring -- to look at them.
there's a surreptitious glance to make fully certain that the lady in the red hat does not sport their telltale sign. she doesn't. he smiles and lifts his gaze. ]
Correct me if I'm wrong, Awashima-kun. But I believe it's the most popular product we've had in stock this week.
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You're absolutely correct. It's been so popular that we've had it flying off the shelves since it arrived.
[some of the women have short hair, these were easy to assess and rule out. five out of fourteen, including miss red hat and excluding the quite-confused saleswoman who opens her mouth:]
Do--
["--you even work here?" would've probably been the damning question, but seri glances at the name tag (a detail she forgot, but then again, it would've been more difficult to swipe another staff's), paints a somewhat pained smile as if remembering something somewhat distasteful.]
Of course I remember, Hori. Ten of these got sold just last weekend. [and she turns back to the lady in red, counting first: four women with shoulder and long hair on her right alone. smile.] It'd be a pity if you couldn't get one in time, miss.
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perhaps you'd like to take your break early today? he says to hori-san after dragging her away with a friendly yet insistent hand on her shoulder, it's almost lunch, and you can rest assured that we'll be able handle it from here. he leaves no room for refusal, and the young saleswoman is ushered off the scene with an easy smile and a casual motion of his hand -- from the look of things, even without his uniform to add authority, he's a difficult person to outright disobey. ]
Do you think you'll get them in stock again soon?
[ he walks back just in time to catch the end of the question, stance poised and casual as he adjusts one of the cufflinks on his sleeves. ]
Inventory won't be taken until later this evening, I'm afraid.
[ he offers the very official sounding statement with all the mock sympathy of a decent salesman, managing even, to fake a tiny sigh. ] Regardless, I'm sure it won't be long until another stock comes in.
. . . Although perhaps . . . if our lovely customer would be so kind as to allow us . . .
[ he addresses the lady in red -- but he looks to awashima-kun out of the corner of his eye. ]
... we could at least have all of you try the accessory on for size.
To whet everyone's appetites, so to speak?
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—but the price won't be the same then.
[for this is, after all, a sale and sales are when Discounts are found. seri follows it up with a suitable pause (as she studies the new speaker— this time, a younger woman in a colour-coordinated green and white outfit) and offers an apologetic smile.
...it would be quite difficult to secure a similar discount for all here, granted. and absorbing such cost into the scepter 4 budget.....]
how did this happen
Might I propose something of a contest? A friendly game in the interest of fashion.
[ playing on people's vanity is a tricky business. indulge too much, and they can tell they're being insulted; indulge too little, and they stop paying attention and start preening their feathers in ruffled annoyance.
he's somewhat new to the game, but he has a somewhat fair grasp of the rules of engagement and that's all he really needs. still. he's new, and he's unfamiliar. perhaps that's why it's so terribly easy for him to make such an unorthodox recommendation. ]
... like a fashion show?
[ a young girl with long curly brown hair makes the mistake of inquiring after his mad scheme -- and he simply smiles, friendly, in return. ]
Indeed.
we're losing control of everything
—or just a weirdo, whichever it may be.]
That's— you mean that's allowed?
[seri shugs, the partially reluctant salesperson.]
I suppose we do have enough space for that. But you must allow us to assist you— we can't have the merchandise to be damaged in the process.
don't think i actually had any in the first place, tbqh... still sorry i'm not sorry.
The aisle along the dressing rooms might serve well for our purposes.
[ oh, yes, note to himself: hide their uniforms in a less obvious location. he's already going ahead to do just that as he continues speaking. ] Although I should add before we begin . . .
This is a friendly contest, mind. I anticipate that whatever the end result will be, it will be both respected and accepted with good graces from the rest of you?
[ the way he pins miss red with a look seems to have frozen the little dear.
she squeaks when she next talks. ]
I-- y-yes.
we keep lying to ourselves that we do, i reckon.
there is a murmur of assent from the rest of the women— once a king, always a king, even if he didn't have that blue coat of his. some exchange apprehensive looks of is this really the right thing to do right now and aren't there better deals elsewhere but seri quashes the discussion with a polite, honeyed—]
Ladies, shall we?
[of course, she lacks the beguiling charm of the blue king but what she lacks in that she makes up in that steamroller way of herding people towards where she wants them. she can about guess where munakata is headed, however, so she'll start off everything in the way she does best in: Giving Instructions.]
One line would make the process much faster— yes, just like that...
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nevertheless, the image suits -- the carpet is a rich red in color, and with the lights turned on and sparkling in the mirror stationed at the very end of the line, it gives the otherwise narrow hallway a distinctly glamorous air.
in the small amount of time it takes for his lieutenant to impose order on the crowd of young women, he's also ushered in more people to join in with their impromptu social experiment, with their attempt to smoke out this wayward strain. by the time he takes his place at awashima's side, nearly everyone in the store has given them their undivided attention -- the women titter excitedly as they take their places in line, the (few) men around have herded themselves into segregated little corners, and the salespeople are too concerned about a mob to attempt to stop this grand fiasco.
he claps a hand over his lieutenant's shoulder, tone clear and hardly subdued despite the fact that he's technically speaking to her privately. ]
My apologies for the trouble.
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meanwhile, the women await, a queue sorted based on height (for there were habits that even seri found difficult to discard even under acting circumstances), the shortest already with the hat sitting stylishly on her head (no birthmark on her neck, seri made sure to check).
time.
she claps her hands twice to gain everyone's attention.]
Could I have everyone's attention please? We're about to start.
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after all, this is all official business, isn't it? ]
The rules of engagement are quite simple. [ he begins, and although he doesn't shout, his tone is authoritative enough to rise easily over the scattered voices beginning to hush in the crowd. ] One minute to walk. To display how well the hat fits.
[ ... and of course- ]
Awashima-kun. [ he smiles, careful yet unusually casual at his lieutenant. ] Would you care to provide a live demonstration?
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and then she sighs.]
Of course.
[the red is a little too bright for her tastes but it doesn't clash too terribly. she has one of the women to help her adjust it just so (carefully, she admonishes) as she eyes the so-called runway. there are things seri awashima is good at; model walk isn't one of them.
but her mask remains intact when she finds herself at the start of the runway. add a smile on her face and off she goes.]
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but what she lacks in experience, she's always made up for with sheer confidence; although her gait may be a little stiff, a bit too orderly, somewhat closed-in, there's something to be said about her squared shoulders, her long strides in even steps. what he's seen in her exemplary sword work, he also sees now -- in her walk and half-lunges, in the careful way she swings her arms at her sides. he smiles when the background music flows into rhythm with her every footfall.
and when she reaches the end, he extends his hand in front of her, and waits patiently for her to take it. ]
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i am so embarrassed at how late this terrible tag is
i still owe you more stuff, okay.
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