Participants:
| Scene Title | Motorcycle Mamas |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Helena and Elvis meet for the first time. It's the start of a beautiful friendship. |
| Date | November 17, 2008 |
The relatively late hour finds Elvis doing what else, wrenching. With her big Kat up and licensed, she had the time finally to really go over Roger with a fine toothed comb. Slowly, everyone's favorite pint sized biker eased back from the stripped frame of her honda. Dipping her head into lighting a fresh cigarette, before its back to acid washing. It was tedius, smelly work that would more than likely conspire to give her some exotic cancer if she survived to her 70s. Not that Elvis had ever really entertained living quite that long in the first place.
There's a back and forth exchange from the kitchen, undoubtedly Meredith and some other expatriate who's taking some time out in the safehouse. There's an exchange of conversation, and then the door leading out to the garage opens, and Helena steps out. She takes a quick look around, absently wiping her hands on her jeans. "Nice bike." she compliments, followed up by, "Do you know where the Phillips head is? Meredith needs it."
Elvis leans back, eying Helena narrowly for a moment. "What needs fixin?"she rather simply sidesteps the question, she knew if she loaned out a screwdriver she'd never see it again. Instead, she slowly rises and rubs her hands in an old shop rag. "I'm sort've the mechanic on duty, ya'll dont need to do no messin round with my screwdrivers."
"Ceiling fan in one of the upstairs bedrooms is wobbling and creaking." Helena replies, non-plussed. "It just needs a little tightening, is all." She begins to circle the bike, keeping well out of Elvis' way, but clearly checking it out.
Elvis gestures back to the almost fully stripped bike. "Thats Roger, and I'm sure he'll appreciate the kind words when he's not in boxes. Poor dear started developing this strange harmonic in Alaska, I was heading back down to Memphis when I got wrapped up in all of this. Washington to New York in about thirty eight hours, by the time he got here there was a really wicked cylinder pressure drop. I got the pressures regulated but shit, I'm gonna need to go over the crank with some sand paper to straighten it out. Anyway, I'm gonna go fix the fan. Keep roger company?"She steps back, sniffling some before simply departing without offering Helena much of a chance to decline.
Helena simply grins, and walks back to the door, opening it up and leaning against the jamb. "Hey, Meredith!" she hollars. "The chick with the bike is coming up to fix the fan!" She looks back to Elvis, her deep set eyes widened to the point of near-anime capacity. "I'm Helena." she offers. Elvis may or may not have heard the name, affiliated with Phoenix and the Ferrymen. "Don't worry, I'll make sure no one rapes Roger or pillages the sheep."
"Thanks, and I'm Elvis. Ferrywoman."before she slips round the corner to ease upstairs and attend to said fan. A little toil with her handy dandy multi-tool, and she's back downstairs in no time."Anywho. I'm Elvis, its a pleasure Helena. Also:"as she parks her ass right where it was before. "I'm a biker, not a chick with a bike. Theres a difference you know, its like calling you a "chick with ideas". Now, any ideas how long you ladies will be hangin around?"
Helena gives an affable shrug, "I am a chick with ideas. I'm with Phoenix. But I stand corrected, biker it is, Elvis." She follows the other woman a few steps, and takes up a perch on some available surface. "I'm pretty good with anything on four plus wheels, but never been on a bike before. You come across country with it?"
Elvisnods softly as she gently washes away steel with her que-tipped dobber, her footpegs were too heavy. "Every state but Hawaii, some of Mexico and Canada. Put a little under a hundred thou on him in his present condition, but I never built him for that much distance. So about every ten thou, he needs a new head gasket. The ergoes are way too tight even for me, but he's Roger. I dont think he's ever worried about my convience, but he's never let me down. Got me away from alot of heat, never come close to caught."
"I can see why the Ferrymen would be all in for you, you're well traveled." Helena says. Ruefully, "I've only ever been in New York. Grew up upstate, came to the city when I was eighteen or so. Where'd you like best?"
Elvis waves a hand dismissively at that"Oh, shit thats easy. Ozarks in the fall, Colorado in the summer and Arizona in the winter. I'd like to go back to the Ozarks but I need to wait for that, I broke some punk cop's jaw and put his partner in the hospital when they tried to give me shit. Maybe in a few years, but not for atleast a little while. Not with Roger anyway."
Helena's smile widens at the mention of a lack of respect for authorit-ay. "Doesn't Arizona get cold at night?" she asks. "I heard the temperature drops down real low, but then again," she shrugs, "What do I know. So is punching cops a hobby for you, or something you're dedicated to in principle?" Again, her smile returns.
Now heres the point where Elvis has a chance to deliver a proper bit of reasoning as to why she dislikes authority and such. "Fuck cops, fuck feds. Fuck those god damn mother fucking cocksuckers tryna get away with the same shit they're tryna slam me for. Wearing a badge dont make you any more a citizen than I am, so yeah. If they wanna start shit, I am all too happy to finish it or them, Whatever comes first. I mind my business, and they wanna hassle me because its cold out and I'm motherfucking cold? I dont wanna talk, so they call that grounds to search my shit? Fuck that, thats fucking grounds for some pig bitch motherfucker to get fed his fucking teeth."
Helena beams. "This is going to sound special school 'tarded, but I like you." She doesn't offer to help - Roger seems like Elvis' precious baby and if mommy wants assistance with the baby, she'll let it be known. "You do realize the Ferrymen, while they do something important…they're not exactly the proactive wing of this enterprise?"
Elvis pauses her diatribe, smoking -furiously- for a few seconds before breaking out a new one. "I like me too darlin, but what the hell has that got to do with anything? Aint like I joined the Ferrymen, they joined me. I was mindin my business doin my normal shit, and yaknow whatever sorta happened. Aint like I said to myself, gee golly I am sure heartbroken over the way I'm treated by the federal fucking government. Sister I've been fucking pissed at those fucking fucks since before I got my first patch."she points back to her jacket, which in its sprawled open state exposes a bunch of "1" patches on the inside. "Proactive or not, they fuck with the government and the biproduct is something I believe in."
It's as if the Cheshire cat replaced Helena's grin, she's smiling so big. "So let me ask you," she asks casually, "Has anyone mentioned the holding facilities to you? The ones where the government's holding Evolved and doing experiments to try and produce their Evolved-detector faster and god knows what else? We're weeks away from an op, but it's Phoenix who'll be doing it."
Its time for a new cigarette, again. "With bells on, just tell me what you want me to do. I'm all for beating figures of imposed authority into an early fucking grave, so if theres like a position where I can just beat the fucking shit out of some cops or whatever I think I'm gonna want to do that."professional cop beater-upper.
Helena still beaming heads into the kitchen, rummages around, and then manages to come up with some scrap paper and a pen. She scrawls her cell number and her name on a piece of paper and offers it to Elvis. "The work we're doing right now is pretty benign. We need Bennet to supply us with the info before we work the lab op, but it's on the plate. But if you ever want to shift over to our branch in general, give me a call, or for anything else you think I might be helpful with." A pause. "Can I ask a nosy question?"
Elvis nods back towards her jacket when Helena produces said paper."I'll loose it if you give it to me, but I live out've my jacket so just slip it in there."she leans back, properly smoking for once rather than just powering through the little cancer sticks. "Ask away, just aint swearin to answer no questions."
Helena walks over and tucks the paper in accordingly. "If you get comfy with it, rip it up." she says. "Are you Evolved? And if you are, what's your thing?"
This is the first time anyone's actually -asked- her, its usually accused or just skirted around. Its so new, that it takes her a few moments to really decide on the answer. "yes. When I get pumped up, I get very strong and fast. I can kill a man if I'm wearing brass knuckles, and I can fight a few guys and never get hit. Also, my thing is also being really awesome. I mean frankly, I'm really supernaturally awesome."she nods sagely, serious Elvis is serious.
"I believe it." Helena says mildly. Hey, she knows truth when she hears it. "Me too. Nothing like you, but - atmokinetic. I control weather and weather phenomenon. Making it rain, snow, hail, controlling wind, stuff like that."
Its a holy grail, if she could get this chick to ride motorcycles and then ride -with- her she could never get rained on again."So, you stop stuff already going on? Like could you make it seventy degrees outside?"the scope was a little difficult to grasp, her own was. Well it just did its thing, entirely automatic.
Helena nods. "Sure could." she says. "My range is about the size of Manhattan. But it only lasts for as long as I exert my influence, or my mood causes a shift. It's kind of symbiotic, my emotional state and the weather are connected." She holds out her hand and concentrates…after a few moments, there's a teensy tinsy wind funnel dancing in her palm. She dissapates it with a flick of her fingers.
"Your lucky you know, I never see anything unless yaknow like I'm getting ready to hurt somone or I'm about to highside. Wears me out, breaks my body to peices. I'm not like superwoman you know, I tear muscles and shit. I'm sore for days afterward, and the taste just doesnt go away."the show was indeed, impressive. She had no parlour tricks herself, something she regretted since she had first learned what she was. The little things always kill you.
"I'm pretty happy with it." Helena admits. "Interesting. Do you keep your head when you're juiced, or do you go all batshit crazy beserker amazon woman?"
That was complicated. "well"she explains"Yes and no. I'm still me upstairs, but yaknow I have maybe a minute or two before I pass out. So I tend to be going pretty bezerk trying to take care of shit before I'm on the floor, and yaknow I'm sort've an angry person to begin with. Can I hear people, can I apply logic and reason normally? Yes totally, can and have. I just normally dont much care to, and I have something of a pet peeve of when people try to tell me what to do so."she shrugs."you ride?"
"Not on two wheels." Helena admits. "Wouldn't mind trying some time, if you're feeling generous."
Elvis "Help me find the bike I'm looking for, and I'll set aside a little time to teach you if you provide your own bike. I can help you pickup some cheap wheels and stuff. I dont own anything that would be particularly forgiving however, aint neither of us big strong bikers. Like Roger isnt too bad, but the kat outside is five hundred pounds. Once it decides it wants to lay down for a nap, its gonna do it yaknow?"
Helena blinks at that. "I have some idea of how to get you parts." she says after a moment. "Can you get me a list of what you need?"
A hand is waved dismissively "not parts, bike. I want to keep a "clean" bike around, one that has no paperwork that leads back to me. You follow, like a proper modern sportbike thats been missing for long enough not to be at the top of somone's hot list."
Helena considers again. "I know someone who can get you all the parts to assemble a bike…an exact duplicate of Roger, even."
Elvis shakes her head "Nothing that complicated, I wanted to get a GSXR-750 actually. New, stolen or not I dont mind. We can just lift some plates or something, it'd be used for work and stuff. So a modern sportbike is the best camoflague."
"Sorry," Helena shakes her head. "I can't pull motorcycles out of thin air. I'm not sure how you think I could."
Elvis shrugs"Thought you knew somonw in the black market I guess, I can take care of it I guess. Dont worry bout it, but yeah if your serious we'll find you a good starting bike and I'll show you how to ride. Jezebel knows how to ride too yaknow, we were actually trying to get Abby on a bike but she doesnt have the killer instinct."
Helena blinks a little bit. "Abby?" she echoes. "I have black market contacts, but not for anything like that. C-4, I can get you. Hondas, not so much. Abby's getting a bike? Good on her."
Elvis blechs.."Naw, I built her a scooter and I dont think she's going to go further. Its for the best really, you really need to have a killer instinct to ride a bike safely. Wolf amongst sheep."
Helena grins. "Does she have a pink helmet with daisies on it? Because I could totally see her doing that. Jezebel, I don't know - but that's one hell of a name."
Elvis cackles about as evil as a woman her size can"Yeah, I dont think it'd be out of character at all. Jezebel runs the Garden house, has a Harley and everything. I actually stay there, but I dunno I've lived so long off a bike it feels a little claustrophobic to hang around with the same people every day. Dropped over for a little space, Silly I guess."
Helena shakes her head. "I understand, a little. I kind of miss stability, but you know, if I can't go someplace high by myself, be under the sky, I get a little crowded."
"Then you most certainly need a bike Helena, seriously. Whats your inseam, if your tall enough a dirtbike can get you places no man alive can walk to. They're also cheap, if I was taller I think I'd have one for myself."
Helena shakes her head. "I have no idea what my inseam is, but I'm sure Meredith has a tape measure somewhere. We could figure it out. How would we even go about finding the bike though? It's pretty new to me."
"Well"she begins, this is a long practiced subject. "You can either buy from somone looking to sell, like a want ad or on ebay or whatever. I tend to find most of mine wandering around looking for dust, if the bikes old and dusty I make'em an offer. They aint ridden it in years, and didnt think it was worth much so 1200 sounds like a steal."
"I'll trust you to know your bikes, because I have no idea." Helena admits.
Elvis shrugs. "we'll go sit on some stuff, figure out what you wanna spend and then we'll find a bike. Theres no rush to any of this."
 November 17th: Multicultural Experience |
Previously in this storyline… Next in this storyline… |
 November 17th: Twice Bitten |