Baltimore, Thursday Afternoon

[soniaroadsqueen]

With no classes on Thursdays, Ringo had decided to take her morning AT run in the city, so she'd left early. And it had been a great run, even if she'd had to be careful not to do anything too visible. No need to draw any official attention, after all. In fact, she'd gotten so caught up in the joy of riding in an actual city that she'd lost track of time and almost forgotten about her deal with Kathy.

Ringo and Kathy had been talking about a shopping trip for quite a while, but just this week they'd handwavily made plans to actually do one. A flurry of text messages had them agreeing to meet up at one of the stores Kathy knew in Baltimore.

She probably still could have made it on time if she hadn't gotten turned around once or twice trying to find the right address. American addresses didn't really make any sense, and she didn't know Baltimore that well, and thank goodness for GPS in phones.

So she arrived a couple of minutes late, face flushed from the rush, with a ripped pair of jeans and a tshirt that were a lot better suited for an AT ride than convincing anyone that she had a real fashion sense.

"Sorry, sorry," she said, already apologizing for making Kathy wait.

[NFB for distance]

Comments

[spin_kick_snap]

"Oh, right!" Kathy said, remembering this would be Ringo's first. "So, it's an event when the alumni come back to school for a dance. There's usually a carnival or festival or something."

Usually it had been a carnival, but after last year...yeeeeah. Maybe not.

"So, big fancy dance, people vote for the Homecoming King, Queen, and their Court from each individual grade, too."

[soniaroadsqueen]

"That sounds fun," Ringo admitted with a grin. "But also a bit confusing?" Kings? Queens? Courts? Voting? Why not just have a dance?

[spin_kick_snap]

Well, how else would they separate it from all the other dances in the year?

"It's not that confusing," Kathy promised. "Each class votes for a guy and a girl in their grade. The people with the most votes becoming part of the Homecoming Court, with the senior girl becoming Homecoming Queen and the senior guy becoming Homecoming King. There's a fake crown and they all get a special dance and then it's back to dancing as usual."

[soniaroadsqueen]

There were multiple dances? Yay!

"Oh. I guess that's not that complicated." Well, Ringo already knew who was going to be the Homecoming Queen this year, and grinned to herself at that knowledge. (After all, everyone else had to know how awesome Kathy was, right?)

[spin_kick_snap]

Would Ringo be heartbroken to know Kathy had never won? She didn't exactly know the numbers, but she doubted that she'd ever come close, even.

"Nope! Just a quick vote and a dance and a shiny crown you can wear to prom, I guess." She glanced at Ringo. "Does Japan have proms?"

[soniaroadsqueen]

That was not even possible, Kathy, so don't try to convince Ringo that it was actually true.

"Prom?" Ringo frowned. "Is that another dance?" Hey, they were talking about dances, so it seemed like a decent guess.

[spin_kick_snap]

Winners of Homecoming Court were announced on radio! She could check for herself!

"Oh, prom," Letty said with a wicked grin. "I remember my senior prom very well. Or, at least, the afterparty."

Kathy laughed a little. "Prom is the biggest dance of the year, at least for juniors and seniors. You can only go if you're in that grade or the date of someone who is. Again, there's a King and Queen chosen for each grade and it's supposed to be a magical and wonderful night."

And before you ask, nope! Kathy hadn't won Junior Prom Queen last year, either.

"That's actually how I met Letty," Kathy confided. "I needed a prom gown. She wouldn't let me have a gown, but she did give me a dress and it went over pretty well, I think."

[soniaroadsqueen]

Pffft. Clearly fabricated!

"Oh, I see." Ringo's enthusiasm for prom may have fell a bit when she realized she couldn't go.

And she grinned over at Letty. "I hope she appreciated you properly when that happened."

[spin_kick_snap]

"She came back and spent ridiculous amounts of money in the store, has agreed to wear only things I approve of, and has brought me a new customer," Letty said with a laugh. "I think it's safe to say she has." Nudging Kathy, she added, "Show her how you looked. It was amazing. I'm still very proud."

Laughing, Kathy pulled out her phone and swiped until she found the picture Letty meant. "My prom...dress," she said, since gown didn't work at all. "You like it?"

[soniaroadsqueen]

"Whoa," Ringo breathed, eyes wide as she stared at the photo.

Sorry, Kathy, she was having a bit of trouble processing at the moment.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Isn't it gorgeous?" Kathy asked fondly. "Letty is brilliant. I don't think I've felt more glamorous, before or since."

[soniaroadsqueen]

Ringo was still pretty distracted staring at the photo, but she had enough presence of mind to nod slowly. "I bet you turned a few heads," she said with a grin.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Well, Anders and Ezra both made sure to compliment me, though Anders is one of my best friends and Ezra is, you know, Ezra." Kathy couldn't help but smile again. Ezra might have been completely incorrigible, but he was sweet and charming and knew full well how to make someone feel attractive. "And Nick, this guy I knew, seemed to like it, but..."

Nick was kind of a complicated topic. And one Kathy couldn't get into in front of Letty because it involved superheroing and Fandom craziness.

"So that was three, huh?" Letty asked. "Okay, our goal for Homecoming is at least four!"

[soniaroadsqueen]

Ringo laughed. Anders was the only one of those three she really knew. She'd met Ezra, but nothing more than that.

"Does the number just go up one each time?" She grinned over at Kathy. "Better be careful how many events you go to, or you'll have some huge target."

[spin_kick_snap]

"By prom, it'll be something like ten and I'll have to go in a bikini and heels," Kathy said, making a face, but laughing too.

[soniaroadsqueen]

Ringo looked slightly doubtful and glanced over at Letty. "Is a bikini with heels a good combo?" she asked. Because it sounded kind of weird.

[spin_kick_snap]

"High heels extend the legs, making them look longer and more shapely," Letty explained. "So if you want to wear your bikini and look like you have legs for miles..."

"It's what they wear for bathing suit competitions in beauty pageants, too," Kathy said, though this time her grimace was real.

[soniaroadsqueen]

"Sounds like something I probably couldn't pull off," Ringo said, shaking her head. Which was okay with her. She'd never really gotten into high heels.

[spin_kick_snap]

"I can run in them," Kathy admitted. "For me, they're pretty much the same as wearing sneakers. I'm sure with a bit of practice, you could pull off something similar."

She was raising a brow at Ringo, as there was no other good way to signal, I'm talking about stuff that non-Fandom folk won't understand, like our unnatural grace and agility.

[soniaroadsqueen]

"Well, maybe," Ringo admitted thoughtfully. She turned to Letty. "Should I do that? I mean, I don't have legs anything like Kathy's." Would heels do anything for her?

Sorry for asking, Letty.

[spin_kick_snap]

Pffft, that was what Letty was here for, young one!

"Heels make pretty much anyone's legs look good," Letty said. "And there are heels of various sizes and widths, so you don't immediately have to dive into six inch stilettos. Here, let me show you what a good set of heels can do for someone's leg."

Letty pulled out her phone and queued up a video.

"Should I be concerned you have a song all about hating you job immediately available?" Kathy asked, with a laugh.

[soniaroadsqueen]

Ringo was laughing, too, but part of that was in surprise at the video. "I think I see what you mean, even if Kathy's question has me worried that you're just putting up with me today."

She was mostly kidding when she said that last bit. Mostly.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Weren't you listening to the lyrics?" Letty asked. "It says, 'I hate my boss, I hate my coworkers.' Nothing about adorable customers."

"Wait, there were lyrics?" Kathy teased. "Sorry, I was distracted."

[soniaroadsqueen]

Letty's tone relaxed Ringo again, and she laughed, shaking her head. "I didn't hear anything in there about you particularly liking your customers, either," she pointed out with a grin.

"But like Kathy, I may have just missed it. But I see what you mean about heels."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Of course you didn't hear that," Letty said. "Not every customer can be you and Kathy!"

She put her phone away when the video ended and then clapped her hands. "All right, you two. Homecoming is, well, coming. I want you to find four dresses you think you'd like to wear to it. Grab them and bring them back here, got it?"

"Homecoming is semi-formal," Kathy said. "Do you know what that means, fashion-wise?"