Posted by PK on April 21, 2003 at 18:22:41:
Gina/Alice was in the sea, waving, she hoped, not drowning. Fainting in Coils. She screamed
as the tidal wave broke on the shore.
When Petra turned up In the changing room the next evening, Gina was already dressed for
work, in a sheer slip that covered her breasts without concealing them and left her naked
from midriff to ankles. Wearing Mercy's demi-bikini on a specials night seemed a bit too
much like tempting fate, but she had stowed the garment in her locker along with Donna's
skirt for future use. Elegant leather thong sandals showcased her feet without hiding them,
she had bought the footwear herself during the day with her own money. She had enjoyed
having the male salesman attend to the fitting, watching him try not to be too obvious about
looking up her skirt, just long enough to make it hard to tell for sure if she had anything on
under it. She hadn't.
Petra was attired - there was no other word for it - in a fashionably conservative and
unflattering outfit in pearl grey which announced to the world that, whether you liked it or not,
it had been created by a designer you couldn't possibly afford. It wasn't so much clothing as a
statement.
"Nice suit," Gina said brusquely. "Get it off, we're on in five minutes." The girl opened her
mouth as if to say something, thought better of it and took her jacket off. "I wasn't sure you'd
come back," Gina added in a more friendly tone. "After last night..."
"You won't make it through the week unless you start to enjoy it," Gina had said bluntly. Petra
had affected to believe that she was either crazy or kidding. After they both had a shot of the
tequila the conversation had taken elliptical paths, an unsteady cameraderie alternated with
furious arguments neither of them could fully remember.
Sellin' all my midnight, still broke and living on the ground...
"I still think you're out of your mind," Petra said as she removed her expensive underwear.
And you're not? Gina's raised eyebrow said.
"I like your shoes," Petra said. "Where did you get them?" Ten minutes later she was thinking
about buying a pair for herself as she took her first order for the night. Now she was wearing
nothing but a fragile G-string one of her (unsuccessful) suitors had ordered from a catalogue
of fantasy. She had ditched the dork but kept the gift. All went well. Her tiny tits liked the
open air. The customers liked them too, she could feel their regard in her nipples. Her skin
burned, she'd get a tan if redheads tanned. Freckles, maybe. Spots like a Trill. She hummed
to herself as she worked....
"You," another customer said, half an hour later, "Look good enough to eat. Just one thing..."
Petra froze. "Sir?"
"Let's see it.." The ape's paw pulled at the lacy wisp adorning her loins. It broke, it wasn't
meant for that kind of stress. This wasn't in the rule book, Petra didn't know what to do. The
shreds of her beautiful lingerie slid down her legs. She tried to control her bladder.
The Bigger Apes appeared as if by magic. The house peacekeepers. One of them loomed
over the punter, the other put a reassuring mitt on Petra's shoulder.
"You going to order her?" her Sir Galahad enquired of the man. "'Cause if yer not..."
The erstwhile client demurred. He was out of his league...
Another fucking time waster, Petra snarled to herself, trying to ignore her shaking knees. If
he'd only said 'Yes' the house gorillas would have marched her to the kitchen as easily as
they dismissed him. Just in case she had second thoughts and attempted to challenge the
terms of her employment. Not me, she said. No way. I'll go myself on my own two feet, I
won't be dragged out kicking and screaming
"You want to go change?" One of her Knights spoke considerately.
Petra noted with relief that she hadn't actually peed herself. That would really have been
embarrassing
"I guess I should," she managed. She saw Gina serving another table about half a lightyear
away. Her dark hair brushed her bare shoulders in an unbearably sensual way. She was
composed, she moved as if dancing to inner music. Petra wanted to hate her, she couldn't.
She almost understood something she really didn't want to understand. She brushed her
short, red hair back with one hand. Maybe I shouldn't have cut it, she thought. "Yeah, okay." I
want to throw up..."I'll go change."
As she did, she distracted herself by wondering if she could sue the bastard for ruining her
expensive underwear. It was her own, he had no right to destroy it. He could, under the terms
of her employment, order her for dinner in which case she'd be killed, cooked and served to
him, if he could afford it, but nothing gave him the right to damage her property. The
speculation calmed her a little as she tried to decide what to wear next.
Gina came in. "Are you okay? I saw..."
"I'm fine," Petra said. "Do you think I could sue him?" She explained briefly.
Gina was momentarily taken aback. She recovered quickly and frowned in thought. "You
know, I think you could," she said. "Go ahead, I'll witness."
Petra was surprised. "You would?"
"Sure, why not?"
Because you hate me, the old Petra said. The emergent Petra wasn't sure of that or of
anything much. "Wouldn't it make trouble for..you know...this place? Sueing a customer?"
Gina shrugged. "I don't see how. This place is exclusive, it wouldn't hurt to show we have
standards of behaviour. The oaf is no loss, he was a time waster. And if it did..." she
shrugged again, "Why should I care?"
Every time Petra thought she had Gina worked out, she didn't. "Because..." Because what?
She really had no idea. "Do you think I should?"
"If it makes you feel better, sure. Up to you." (Star Cycle by Jeff Beck...Gina's hips twitched
in synchrony with an orbiting binary star....)
And I never affected her enough for her to hate me, Petra realised. I never mattered that
much. This is a joke and I'm the fall guy. The bet, everything. They all know but me. I'm the
comic relief.
"I'd say you have a good case, prima facia - whatever - for assault and destruction of
personal property," Legal Gina went on while the rest of her space-boogied. "Look, we'll sort
it out later, okay? Grab a pair of something or other and get back on the horse."
She wants to get back out there, Petra saw. She wants to...
Shelving the lawsuit she grabbed a pair of the standard bikini briefs and stepped into them.
"Coming," she said. No way out but through, no backing out. Not this time. Never again.
Hours later, she finished her glass of wine in one gulp and handed it back to Gina. "It's
terrible," she said. "Got any more?" They were in Gina's apartment, such as it was.
"Only about a gallon," Gina said and refilled it. She waited patiently for the girl to unburden
herself.
Petra drank another glass and got another refill before she spoke again. "Doesn't it bother
you at all?" she asked. "I mean, you knew her. I only spoke to her maybe twice..."
"Looked good, though, didn't she?" A wry, wicked smile.
She had indeed. Melanie had been served whole; head, hands and feet included. Curled up
on a platter surrounded by roasted potatoes and vegetables, inviting as a lover waiting in a
scented, silken sheeted bed. An erotic cannibal feast for true connoisseurs. It had been too
much for the waitresses to carry, they had served side dishes, wine and condiments knowing
full well that their real status was decoration while the male staff did the heavy work.
Petra ran a hand through her hair. "Oh, sure. Great, Chef's masterpiece." She still looked
pale.
Gina affected innocence. "I don't see why it bothers you. You got Helen eaten, you knew her.
You ate lots of girls you didn't know. What's changed? It's no biggie. You said that yourself."
Petra had said that about eating Gina, but it didn't sound as if she was trying to guilt trip her.
Not exactly that.
"Aunt Helen wanted to..." She made a helpless gesture.
"And I just work there. So?"
So? Petra couldn't make sense of her own emotions. Two answers occurred to her. The
obvious one was 'That could have been me'. The other was.....she didn't want to say it.
"She was one of us," mindreader Gina teased. "Don't worry, she's not gone. I put some
leftovers in a doggy bag. Want a few toes?"
Petra felt her stomach rising to her throat. "You're fucking insane," she said thickly.
"Oh do come on," Gina said, mocking Petra's mockery of a British accent. Her eidetic
memory included perfect phonetic mimicry. "One simply hasn't lived until one partakes of a
colleague. Join the Sistren of the Table."
"I don't see how you can joke about it. I mean, you KNEW her." She knew she was only
repeating herself. Her mind seemed to be going round in circles.
She had been there when Melanie had been ordered. It wasn't exactly a surprise, but it was a
shock nonetheless. As usual, Melanie had been wearing one of those lacy, transparent bras
that didn't so much conceal the breasts as package and display them. Nothing else. Petra
would have ordered one herself but her own tits wouldn't have filled it.
Somebody bought the package. Maybe they liked the wrappings. They bought the rest of her
with it. Mel had not tried to fight. She had accepted the order professionally and walked out
with it. Adrianne had been watching, she followed her out.
Flashback:-
Petra spilled wine on herself while pouring for her table. "Excuse me," she said, "I'll get you
another bottle after I wash up..." She headed for the changing room. She opened the door.
Adrianne was hugging Melanie, they didn't see her. She froze and willed herself invisible.
They parted faces. Melanie smiled. She had taken her bra off. "Really thought it would be
you," she said lightly.
"Don't go," Adrianne said. Her face was wet.
Melanie kissed her. "Got to. You would. Got to go..."
"No..."
Petra still had her hand on the doorknob. Both of them suddenly noticed her. Air currents
carrying scent? They drew apart, hands touching for a moment.
"Did you want something?" Adrianne asked. Her eyes were pink and her expression stony,
frozen pain.
"No, sorry, I didn't....sorry..." Petra's hands didn't seem to be connected to the rest of her.
"I wasn't joking," Gina said. "Please excuse the flippant manner. Totally uncalled for."
There was music, Petra noted. She poured herself another drink without asking.
Julie with her open blouse is gazing up into the empty sky.....
"Not wishing to be Mother, but you're not going to make it home at this rate," Gina said. "Of
course, you're welcome to stay. Please don't throw up in the bed."
Petra stared at her through a pink cloud. With a drunken precision she enunciated, "I couldn't
possibly inconvenience you. I'll get a cab."
"No, you won't." Gina took the glass out of her hand and helped the girl out of her clothes.
Petra fought at first and then, with a sense of luxury and relief, surrendered herself. She
allowed Gina to undress her like a child and put her to bed.
The still sea is darker than before....