Taylor took a drag on her cigarette and looked around the backyard at all the students. Somehow, word got to her that there was a Vortex Club party and she figured it could be worth checking out. It had been made abundantly clear from her first moment at Blackwell that getting into the club was the fast track to being Somebody. A junior year transfer who didn't know a damn soul here. Taylor didn't have money or nice clothes or anything, but she liked to think that she at least knew how to fake it.

But so far all her attempts had been a total disaster. No one really wanted to talk to her. If she danced, she danced alone. The beer was shit and the weed might as well have been oregano. Maybe this club wasn't all that it was cracked up to be.

She was suddenly aware of someone standing next to her, joining her in people-watching. She turned and saw, with some surprise, that Victoria girl. She was pretty instantly recognizable with her cardigan and pearls and pixie cut. "You're new right?"

It took Taylor a few seconds to process the fact that she was actually talking to her and not just to herself or something. "Um... yeah... Taylor."

Victoria nodded and retrieved a cigarette of her own from her purse, holding it up. "You mind giving a girl a light?"

"Not at all." She was reaching for her lighter when Victoria suddenly leaned forward and used the tip of her own cigarette to light it instead. She had no clue what to say, so she just stood there, smoking nervously, searching for anything halfway intelligible she could utter.

Victoria ended up being the one to break the silence. "You looking to join or something? Or do you just like half-assed parties a whole lot?" She tapped out a few ashes into the dirt and sighed, eyes narrowing. "Less a celebration and more a goddamn wake. Mourning the start of another school year..."

"Uh, well, I'd certainly like to join up. But I don't really meet much of the... criteria?" She shrugged and took another draw, still trying to stare more at the other people instead of the pretty girl right next to her. It was a difficult battle. "My family isn't really famous or rich or whatever. Nobody here really seems interested in meeting me. I dunno..."

A slender hand was suddenly gripping her chin, carefully but firmly, and Taylor was forced to look back in Victoria's direction. In her surprise, the last remnants of her cigarette fell to the ground, but the other girl didn't move. She just kept inspecting her intently. An eternity seemed to pass in silence, the sound from the party fading far into the background. "You'll do."

It sounded so definite, so final. "...what...?"

And just like that, the hand was withdrawn and Victoria was back to smoking. Taylor would be lying if she said she didn't miss it just a little. "I can grandfather you in. Grandmother. Whatever. If you decide you wanna join, I can help you."

"Why would you do that?" Taylor realized too late that this sounded a bit confrontational and made another attempt. "I mean, is there... I don't know... anything I can do to make it up to you?"

She studied her again, eyes piercing in the most terrifying way. "I always wanted a minion."

That statement should have been a massive red flag. It should have told Taylor everything she needed to know about what kind of person she was dealing with. This wasn't a friendship, this was a tit-for-tat agreement. Victoria would get her into the Vortex Club, as long as she became her lackey. It wasn't a fair trade and it wasn't a smart idea. She should have said no. She should have told Victoria to fuck off.

"...okay."

That incredibly bizarre encounter was more or less the end of things. Victoria flicked away her cigarette, said a curt goodnight, and disappeared back into the party. Taylor felt... strange, and ended up returning to Blackwell in a hurry to return to the boredom and normalcy.

The next day was a Sunday and Taylor had every intention of sleeping in as long as she could get away with. That was completely destroyed by a knock at her door well before noon. Grumbling, she stuck her head out from under her covers. "Whaaaat?"

"It's Victoria. Are you decent?"

Taylor shot up to a seated position, not sure if she was ready for the flawless Vortex girl to see her looking so unglamorous. But... was it worse than making her wait? Crap... She could feel the anxiety starting to flare up and she knew that if she didn't make a command decision she would end up having a meltdown. "Um, yeah, come on in."

Sure enough, Victoria opened the door and stepped through, kicking it closed behind her. To Taylor's surprise, she was carrying two cups of coffee and offered one to her without batting an eye. If she was judging her for looking like a slob, she didn't show it. "Somehow I figured you might be in bed still. You'll need the caffeine. Don't get used to this. If anything, you'll be the one bringing me coffee. Or whatever."

"Oh. O-Okay." Taylor took the coffee and drank it slowly. Cream and sugar, just the right amount. She had so many questions, and really no clue where to begin. She figured it would be best to tackle the most obvious first. "So... So you need a... minion?"

"Mmm, can't say I necessarily need one. But I'd like one." Victoria made herself comfortable on the futon across the room, sitting gracefully. "I intend on running the club next year, and that means I need to finish the climb I began my freshman year."

"So you need... what... Like an assistant? Like a secretary?"

For a moment, Victoria just sipped her coffee in deafening silence, studying her with those damned eyes of hers. "I said minion. I meant minion. It's a good word. You're not just going to be following me around with a clipboard and a notebook jotting things down. You're going to learn to dress like me, how to apply some decent make-up for once in your life. You're going to need to understand every person in this school, and in the club, who could be trouble for me, so that we can determine how to undermine them. By this time next year, I'll be running this school. And you've got access at the ground floor. So would you call yourself a secretary?"

"...n-no, I guess not..." Taylor took another long sip. She knew if she spent too long thinking about all of this, she would undoubtedly have one of her awful panic attacks and it would freak Victoria out. Perhaps even more importantly, as long as she just nodded her head and agreed to follow along, her anxiety seemed to be keeping at bay. How could it be that this waif marching into her room and giving her commands would actually make Taylor feel more relaxed? "I take it from your sudden arrival we'll be starting sooner rather than later?"

"Well, I'm glad to see you know how to connect the dots. Yes. First things first, I'd like to take a look inside your closet. I need to know what we're working with here."

It wasn't phrased as a question. But then again, Taylor got the impression that if she were to say something to the effect of 'no, get the fuck out of my room' then Victoria would probably leave her alone. But she didn't do that. She motioned with her free hand toward the door. "Be my guest."

She wasn't sure why she acquiesced so easily. No doubt, part of it was just the curiosity. She wanted to know just how far Victoria could push it. And there was that strange sensation, the way her anxiety seemed to fall away the more she was around. She felt more than that, but nothing she was willing to admit to herself just yet. So she just sat there, drinking her coffee, and watching with growing fascination as her visitor started exploring her clothes. Victoria said little, only making small noises now and then, though Taylor had no clue how to decode what noises were good and what noises were bad.

"You're actually not doing too bad here, Taylor. You make good use of lesser brands to get the same effect as pricier stuff. Totally indistinguishable to the untrained eye. I see I've chosen well. Still, going to have to take you shopping at some point."

Taylor put aside her coffee cup and stood up from her bed with a little frown, crossing her arms. "Those clothes aren't just knock-offs because I'm a miser. I told you, my family isn't exactly the wealthiest."

"Did I say I was going to make you buy anything? I'm taking you shopping. That means I'm buying them for you." She studied her again, making absolutely no attempt to hide the fact that her eyes were tracing Taylor's entire body. "Which reminds me, I'm going to need you to take off your pajamas for a moment."

"What?" The response squeaked out Taylor's throat with embarrassing volume. "Right now? This exact moment?"

"Now or later. If I'm going to help dress and style you, I need to see what we've got to work with, okay? Body shape, curves, fat, all of these things and more need to be considered when putting together a perfect look. Besides..." For a moment, Victoria's facade was replaced with a much warmer one, all smiles and warmth. "It's just us girls. You've been in a locker room before, right? Same thing."

Yeah, except people in a locker room explicitly avoid staring at each other. With hands shaking slightly, Taylor shed her tank top and pajama pants and stood there awkwardly in the middle of her dorm room. Normally she was relatively familiar with her body. She knew what her limbs were and how they worked and what standing was supposed to feel like. Now all of that assurance was gone.

For a second, anyway. As Victoria stepped in close and started to really examine her, everything turned... automatic. Taylor's shoulders pushed back a little, her head held a little higher. This feeling only grew as Victoria reached up and cupped her chin just as she had done the night before. Taylor could have sworn she was examining each individual pore in detail. The hand left her chin and moved back to tease out her hair a few times. Her eyes closed slowly and she tried to not think too hard about how nice that was. From her hair, Victoria traced down to her shoulder and along her arm, directing her to lift it as she examined her muscles. She let it go and her arm dropped again, then she knelt down and performed a similar check on her legs. She hadn't been kidding, this was thorough.

When she stood up, Taylor assumed she was done. But that wasn't the case, just yet. Victoria stood in front of her, looking directly at her chest. "Hmm, I think I'd like to remove your bra as well. Is that alright?" Taylor was certain she hadn't heard her correctly. Surely that must have been her imagination firing off. She said nothing, and Victoria's brow furrowed. "Taylor. I asked you a question. Be honest. Would you be alright with me taking off your bra? I'd like to get a sense of your natural chest size without the padding in the way." Her voice was softer than before, but still just as commanding. Taylor nodded, but apparently that wasn't good enough. "You need to be able to say it out loud. Sometimes you might have to do embarrassing things for me. Is that okay?"

She attempted to catch her breath, but it was more shuddering than she intended. Taylor understood full well what was happening to her now, and no amount of sheer willpower was going to help her ignore it. In less than a collective hour, Victoria had come into her life, come into her room, and now had her half-naked. It was all pretty obvious when you weren't being intentionally dense. "Y-Yes, Victoria. It's alright if you want to take off my bra. I'll be fine."

Arms reached around her and deft hands unhooked the garment. Before she knew it, her chest was bare. As if this weren't already embarrassing enough, Victoria decided to gauge the size of her chest directly, placing a hand against each breast. She didn't really do anything beyond that though, which was equal parts confusing and frustrating. Part of her wished Victoria would just leave her alone. Part of her wished Victoria would just go for it. But all of this baffling in between stuff was hard to sort through.

"Okay, I think I got what I needed." The hands were suddenly gone and all Taylor could think was that she had been wrong. She definitely wanted Victoria to come back and touch her again. Even if it was just playing with her hair. Something. Anything. She let out a shuddering gasp she didn't realize she'd been holding in. "Get dressed and we can head out."

"Y-Yes, Victoria..." Taylor began putting her bra back on and went to grab some clothes to wear for the day. It was going to be a long year. A long, confusing, exhausting year.