dress for success

[self_composed]

By the time when Alice first shows up at Stanford visibly (as opposed to lurking around the ceiling at Bella's classes, making smart remarks in her head), Janine has put in a request, and so have four other girls on the hall. (Lillian wants a summery floral dress, Tasha wants a midnight blue evening gown, Ruth has expressed a fondness for polka dots, and Kuo wants something gothy. Bella politely makes no remarks about anyone's taste.)

Bella likes all her teachers okay, and also the orchestra conductor and her soccer coach. Life is good.

Comments

[self_composed]

"All right," Bella says. "What's the Disney Princess dress made of?"

[edgeofyourseat]

"Cotton," says Alice. Janine nods approvingly.

[self_composed]

"An excellent plant," Bella says. "Alice, anything you wanna see while you're here?" [And light bounces off of you?]

[edgeofyourseat]

Alice giggles.

"Dunno, like what?"

[self_composed]

Bella shrugs. "Parts of campus. The downtown area. There's stuff in Palo Alto too, if we go there."

[edgeofyourseat]

"Sure," he says. "Show me someplace cool." [That I haven't been already.]

[self_composed]

"There's a plant nursery," Bella suggests, "if you don't mind sitting behind me on Tegu to get there."

[edgeofyourseat]

"I so don't."

[self_composed]

"Yeah," says Bella, smirking. "I didn't think that was gonna be a problem." She heads into the closet for her leather ensemble, which goes on over her regular clothes.

[edgeofyourseat]

Alice admires her openly.

Janine clearly thinks they are both adorable.

[self_composed]

In short order Bella is jacketed and leather-pantsed and booted and gloved; her helmet is sitting on Tegu. "Off we go," she says, and she trots out the door.

[edgeofyourseat]

"Have fun, guys!" says Janine. Alice waves to her on his way out, and she waves back.

[self_composed]

Bella conjures an extra helmet in the stairwell - [You left yours on Tegu, you have one because of course you don't usually get around by flying,] she coaches - and they go out to her bike. She zooms them along to the garden, which is indeed full of interesting plants, including cactuses and other things unheard of in Forks.

[edgeofyourseat]

The interesting plants are fun and so is Bella. Alice is fond of both.

At some point, a thought occurs to him: [Should I get a bike?]

[self_composed]

[Quite possibly. Want me to design you one?]

[edgeofyourseat]

He beams. [Yes!]

[self_composed]

Bella starts thinking about that. [Any guidelines I should bear in mind?]

[edgeofyourseat]

[Mm... dunno,] he says, and starts thinking of vague mental images. He kind of likes that thing his wishcoins do, where they're flat glossy black unless you see them out of the corner of your eye, and then all of a sudden there's colours. Possibly that is too magical to use for a pretending-to-be-normal bike, though.

[self_composed]

[A little bit. I was thinking a bolder color scheme for you anyway. If I mess with the finish it could look different colors from different angles? Not traditional but hardly magical; they do it for advertisements, something to do with ridges on the surface.]

[edgeofyourseat]

[Awesome,] says Alice.

[self_composed]

['Kay,] says Bella merrily. [There's also the question of where I should appear it.]

[edgeofyourseat]

[Not a clue,] says Alice.

[self_composed]

[I guess I could door back to Forks invisible, and pop it into your garage, and you can say your mysterious internet motorcycle supplier delivered it when no one was watching.]

The design's forming up in her head. Pretty bike.

[edgeofyourseat]

[Works for me,] he says serenely.

[self_composed]

[We can go when we're through looking at this pretty garden.]

They finish looking at the pretty garden in due course, and then hop on Tegu back towards school, and duck into the door into Alice's basement when no one is looking. Janine, even if she sees Tegu, will probably just think they slipped off somewhere to make out. (Which might also wind up being true.)