Green for Red (Challenges #153/158) -- PG-13

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Green for Red (Challenges #153/158) -- PG-13

Post by librarian_7 »

Another little birthday surprise for you all. I started this one some time ago, for Challenge #153, Red and Green. So it’ll post in that challenge, and also in the Second Chance Challenge, #158. (Yay, a twofer!!)

I will mention that although this is firmly in the Moonlight universe, I don’t actually mention any familiar names. Although I think you might find a slightly oblique reference to one of our favorite vampires…

Enjoy! And comment!



Green for Red

Julie squirmed uncomfortably in her chair, pleating the flyer in her fingers. The piece of paper was pretty much a mass of creases by now. She had the distinct impression she was being sized up, and found completely lacking, by the perfectly groomed woman on the other side of the desk.

She couldn’t help it if she didn’t look her best, she thought with some irritation, glancing down at her faded denim skirt, and noticing for the first time that the worn graphic tee she wore had somehow acquired a spot, close to the neckline. Damn. It was one of her favorite tops. Then again, she hadn’t expected a job interview.

“Now, then,” the woman said, “can you tell me how you became aware of this agency?”

“Yeah, sure,” Julie replied. “I’m just confused about why it would be important.”

“Oh?”

“Well, I thought this would be more like—like one of those places where you sell plasma.”

The woman’s lips twitched, as though she were trying to suppress a laugh. “Really.” She paused. “This is a private agency, and our clients can be very—particular. So, if you’d be so kind…”

Julie fidgeted again. “Okay,” she said slowly. “I met this guy in a bar last night, and we got to talking. I mentioned that I was going through a rough patch. He gave me this flyer, and told me it might be a way I could make some extra cash.”

The woman looked thoughtful. “Were you trying to solicit him?”

“What do you—oh. No, no of course not!” Julie blushed furiously. Oddly, that got her the first hint of a smile from her interviewer. “Look, Ms—“

“Florescu.” She smiled a little more at Julie’s puzzled look. “It’s Romanian. A very old family name.”

“Oh. Okay, Ms. Florescu, I may be a little hard up for funds right now, but that’s no reason to accuse me of—of hooking. I made some offhand comment over a beer about looking into selling plasma, and this guy Jeff said he thought I could do better, and gave me your flyer.” She stood. “But I can see I made a mistake. You’ll excuse me.”

Ms. Florescu rapped her knuckles on the desk to get Julie’s attention. “Please sit back down,” she said, in a voice that brooked no disobedience, and Julie sank back into the hard wooden chair without even thinking. “Now, then. You indicated that your blood type is AB negative, that’s correct?” She consulted the single sheet of paper that marred her polished desk.

“Yes, I—”

“Good. Very good.” She folded her hands on the paper, and regarded Julie steadily, pursing her lips a little. “Normally, I’d put you down as an unseen donor—I believe I mentioned, our clients are very particular—but with such a rare blood type, I think that we might—” and she tilted her head first to one side, then the other, the intensity of her scrutiny making Julie feel even more inadequate, “be able to groom you properly for in-person service.”

“What are you talking about? I thought—I just wanted to see about selling some blood. You know. Give out some red, get in some green.” Julie was thinking hard, now, about bolting. The text on the flyer certainly hadn’t mentioned anything beyond getting cash for blood.

Ms. Florescu smiled again, and Julie had the oddest impression that her canines were unusually sharp. “Oh,” she said to herself, “I do love the charmingly naïve ones.” Her voice, though kind, turned businesslike. “You recall signing a non-disclosure agreement, before we started?”

“Uh, yes. Of course. I promised not to tell anyone anything about this agency, or my interview.” Julie had thought it a little excessive, but she was starting to wonder.

“Right. And I have to tell you, we’re very serious about it.” Ms. Florescu paused again. “But at this point…I’m going to have to trust you. I want to send you out to a client, tonight, and I don’t want you to be—shocked. Normally, we’d take much more time, have you do a few clinical donations first, get used to the whole…milieu. However, we have a client who greatly prefers the rare blood types, and we seem to have made a foolish promise to him. Which we cannot afford to break. So, your coming in today was highly fortunate.”

“I really don’t understand.”

Ms. Florescu rose from her desk, and went over to a side table to pour a glass of cold water from a frosty crystal pitcher. She set it in front of Julie, and returned to her seat. “Your first inclination is going to be not to believe what I have to say, but I assure you it’s true.”

“This is certainly making me very nervous.”

“Your instincts are good. I only ask that you hear me out.”

Julie never really remembered the next quarter of an hour or so, beyond Ms. Florescu telling her about a world she’d never dreamed of. The information stuck, all right, but she was so busy studying the other woman for signs of galloping insanity that she almost missed it when the explanation stopped.

“So, what do you think, Miss—“ she glanced down at the form on her desk, although Julie was pretty sure at this point it was just for show. Ms. Florescu probably had memorized the entire sheet at her first glance. “—Palmer?”

Julie took a deep breath, and squared her shoulders. “Fascinating,” she replied. “But there’s a couple of things you haven’t mentioned yet.”

“Please feel free to ask any questions.” She leaned back, putting her perfectly manicured fingertips together, and tapping them against her mouth. “However, do bear in mind that while I have all the time in the world, I do have clients who are expecting an arrival from my agency—tonight.”

The sun was streaming in through the window, silhouetting the figure at the desk. Julie had to squint a little to see her properly. “You haven’t mentioned how often you’d be calling me with assignments. Or what I’d be paid.”

Ms. Florescu laughed. “Practical girl,” she said. “We rarely call on our contractees more than twice a month. Sometimes less.” She opened a desk drawer, smoothly, soundlessly, and got out a gold Montblanc fountain pen and a pad of yellow postits. Uncapping the pen, she scribbled something on the postit pad, and pushed it across the desk to Julie with a graceful motion of her hand. “And this is the normal starting rate for AB negative. If you can captivate your clients, and they start requesting you, the rates go up. Of course, that doesn’t take into account your wardrobe allowance.”

“And it’s just—“ Julie swallowed hard. Was she actually considering this? Seriously? She glanced at the postit again. Once or twice a month? She could almost live on what they were offering. “—Just the blood? No funny stuff?”

Ms. Florescu snorted with suppressed laughter. “No, my dear. Just the blood.”

“Does it hurt?”

“I’m told it can be quite pleasant. But you’ll find out soon enough.”

“It seems sort of complicated. And maybe dangerous.” Julie was suddenly aware of her own pulse, beating in the veins of her throat. Someone here had to be crazy. Maybe it wasn’t Ms. Florescu. Maybe it was her.

The elegant woman on the other side of the desk paused, listening, and Julie wondered if her pounding heart was loud enough to be heard.

“Oh, no, my dear. It’s really quite simple.” Ms. Florescu smiled, and her teeth looked even sharper than before, against the deep crimson of her lips. “As you yourself said, ‘Red for green.’” She paused. “Now, do we have a deal?”
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Re: Green for Red (Challenges #153/158) -- PG-13

Post by allegrita »

Eeeee! :mdrama: I don't know whether to tell Julie to run as fast as she can, or stick around-- 'cause she's about to meet quite a charmer... :melts:

And then there's that wardrobe allowance... :whistle: not that she's that kind of girl, but still... :chin: Oh, what the heck. Just this once. :teeth:

(Suuuuure. Just once. :eyeroll: She's hooked.) :winky:

Love the Green for Red thing! Very clever take on the challenge. :twothumbs:
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Re: Green for Red (Challenges #153/158) -- PG-13

Post by MickLifeCrisis »

Wow... fantastic take on the challenge! Clever way of working in red and green. :twothumbs:

And IMHO, we definitely need a sequel to this. :whistle: You know, to find out how things turned out. (No pun intended.)
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Re: Green for Red (Challenges #153/158) -- PG-13

Post by Lilly »

I TOTALLY agree with MLC. :teeth:

This is wonderful, Lucky. You have a remarkable ability to make us care about characters we've never met before. Your OCs are so engaging, it's impossible not to. :blinksmile:

Great answer to the challenge. :twothumbs:
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Re: Green for Red (Challenges #153/158) -- PG-13

Post by allegrita »

I'm still dipping into the Holiday Fics index. This one was so good! Lucky girl, to have such desirable blood. I hope she's a hit, and becomes a favorite of a certain well-tailored vampire... :melts: :happysigh:
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Re: Green for Red (Challenges #153/158) -- PG-13

Post by MickLifeCrisis »

This wasn't familiar to me at all (until I saw my original comment :slaphead: ), so it was like reading it for the first time. Making me smile! :batseyes:

Enjoying these rereads!
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