AN's: Storm O and I discussed writing a set of complimentary fanfics after seeing the challenge issued earlier this month to write a wedding-related scene. "Jinx's Soirée" is my portion of our not-so-little project and contains various references to her fanfic, "Falcon's Last Hurrah".
This is a sequel of sorts to O's "My Last Name". Read & Enjoy!
Any non-cannon characters mentioned belong to one or the other of us and are used with each other's permission.
O -This was lots of fun. I hope we do this again sometime. Thank you for the idea and all your help.
Jinx's Soirée
"I can't believe you all talked me into this," Keiko grumbled at Alison, Shana, and Courtney as the four friends walked to the limousine parked outside Keiko and Vince's second floor apartment.
"You didn't think we'd let you get married without having a party first, did you?" Courtney asked.
"Just call it a friendly payback for what you and a certain other friend in our midst, who shall remain nameless, did to me a couple of years ago," Shana said, moving her narrowed blue eyes back and forth between her brother-in-law's fiancée and Alison.
"Hey! You started it! At least I didn't put Hector in charge of your entertainment," Alison butted in, referring to her own bachelorette party, which had taken place close to a year before Shana's. She continued, "Keiko, you know good and well that playboy fiancé of yours ain't turning down his night out. So, why should you?"
"You gals coming or not?" Courtney yelled, being the first to climb into the sleek, black limousine. "We pay the same rate whether he sits here in the parking lot all night or if he's actually chauffeuring us around town."
Keiko entered the vehicle after Shana and Alison. Thoughts of what the men would be doing crossed her mind, and she spurted, "I'll kill him!"
"What!" Courtney's voiced echoed what the other two were thinking. She passed out the first round of little bottles, filled with different colored liquids. "Keiko, don't worry Hon. He knows the rules of the game - look but don't touch. Also, several of the guys are with him, including our significant others. They'll make sure Vince behaves."
"Yeah, even more reason to kill him," Keiko said under her breath. "He should know better than to trust those jerks. We all know Brad's got several pools going by now, and he'll do anything to win." Keiko's eyes fell on Shana. "After I'm finished with Vince," she paused to dust her hands together, "I'll slowly torture Conrad. Those two are more alike each other than they care to admit. Also, I don't think putting his younger brother in a compromising position and watching for entertainment was something their mother had in mind when she asked Conrad to look after Vince."
"You should adopt our policy on these parties. Ask no questions, tell no lies," Shana explained, rolling her eyes upward. "This isn't the last round of our bachelor and bachelorette parties."
"Shana, you okay?" Courtney asked, her inflection showed she was concerned about her former rival. She knew firsthand of Conrad's weakness for redheads. She also knew the group of men who would be with them simply couldn't be counted on to stay out of trouble.
(Flashback)
During her first months with GI Joe, Cover Girl had taken a liking to the team's First Sergeant, Duke, and a heated rivalry with Scarlett, the team's counterintelligence agent, was soon forged. To spite Scarlett, Cover Girl cut her hair and colored her hair a reddish auburn color. Now, she just had to wait for the perfect moment to steal him away for herself. The opportunity came even sooner than she could have hoped for. That Christmas, Cover Girl and Duke were part of the skeleton crew that remained on base during the holiday season. And, it happened that Scarlett had went home on holiday leave.
On their way back to base from collecting toys for tots, their convoy was attacked by Cobra. The battle didn't last long, and Cobra retreated for apparently no reason. Everyone wondered why they left so quickly, but passed it off and continued their trek back to headquarters. Little did they know, their enemy's mission was successful. When the team unloaded the gifts from the vehicles, a miniature version of the historic Trojan horse was activated, which allowed Cobra to infiltrate the Joe's headquarters.
After spoiling Cobra's plans to take over the world once again, Cover Girl ran over to Duke who was still handcuffed. She smiled slyly at him, dangling the keys just out of his reach, holding them for a price. This couldn't be any more perfect, she silently thought as she wrapped her arms around Duke's neck. She pulled him closer to her, kissing him more passionately than she had ever kissed anyone else up to that point in her life. That'll give him something to think about. The kiss left them both awestruck, both stuttering their Merry Christmas greetings to each other.
After wishing Happy Holidays to Dusty, Shipwreck and Polly, Roadblock, Mutt and Junkyard, Tripwire, Blowtorch, and Wild Bill, she and Duke ambled around in the snow, talking and laughing the entire time. It wasn't until they were chilled through and through that they went to the cafeteria to join the others for a festive dinner.
A couple of months passed and the tank jockey realized Duke and Scarlett were an item, despite of what happened between her and the blond commanding officer during the holidays. Nothing was ever stated officially about their relationship, but Cover Girl immediately quit her pursuit. She still very much disliked the only other female on the team, a feeling that was very much reciprocated by Scarlett. Cover Girl wouldn't have minded stealing Duke away from the snobby, natural redhead, but figured it wasn't worth the trouble. She would just play up the flirting when circumstances allowed, simply to annoy her teammate.
After months of being forced to work together to accomplish their missions or survive, the two feisty women slowly became good friends. By the time Lady Jaye joined the Joes, no one would have ever believed Scarlett and Cover Girl ever hated each other. Years later, Beach Head joined the team, and Cover Girl found herself intrigued by the hardass drill sergeant. It took quite a bit of meddling by their mutual friends to get them to go out. In fact, they ended up tricking Beach Head and Cover Girl to go on a blind date with each other. A smile grew on Courtney's face as she remember their first date and kiss.
(End flashback)
"Court, that was a long time ago. And as much as I would have liked it, Conrad and I weren't together back then, no matter what everyone else said," Shana laughed, suppressing her grin as she played with her wedding ring.
"He really wasn't my type. I was just after him to irritate you," Courtney said, trying to remember why she had hated Shana so much back then.
The limousine pulled up to the valet drop off in front of Circles, which at first glance appeared to be a high-scale restaurant. Shana had originally planned for them to eat at Marvin's place, RB's Cuisine, before arriving at the club. However, no matter how much she threatened her good friend, he refused to give her a reservation. She knew better than buying into his lame excuse of being full for the night; since even if it was, Marvin always offered to squeeze them in or let them use a room in the back.
The four friends walked into Circles. A hostess led them to the upstairs floor to a table, where a slender lady, with toned-down pink hair was waiting. Zarana tapped her watch twice, indicating they were late. "It's about time you showed. I have been awaiting your arrival for the past eight minutes."
"Zarana?" Keiko asked, leering at the former Dreadnok.
"Nice to see you again also, Jinx," Zarana replied. "In case you forgot, you Joes were able to defeat Cobra once and for all because of information I fed you."
"Forgive me if I don't ask about your brother," Shana stated, a bit of sorrow hinted in her statement. Shana pulled out a chair and sat down next to her arch nemesis' sister. She couldn't imagine completely cutting off any one of her brothers as Zarana had done.
"Agh. Don't be. He's in custody now, which is exactly where he should be," Zarana replied.
"So, um, how are you and Mainframe doing?" Alison asked.
"We're fine. In fact, we're expecting a baby," Zarana answered. The others noticed the glow form on her face as she replied.
Shana, Courtney, Keiko, and Alison all gave Zarana their congratulations as a waiter, who appeared as if he walked straight off the pages of some steamy hot, romantic book, approached their table and bowed while greeting them. "Good evening, miladies. My name is Giovanni, and I shall be your waiter tonight."
Giovanni loved the reaction he got from the five guests. All of their eyes seemed to melt when he spoke. He saw the diamond rings and/or gold or silver bands that each one wore and so knew they were spoken for. But he also knew how to bring in the tips, thus Giovanni played up his romantic side, which came naturally for him. "Pray tell, what drinks would these five exquisitely, lovely ladies desire?"
Zarana ordered a Club Soda, Shana and Alison, Margaritas, and Courtney and Keiko, Martinis. Giovanni returned a few minutes later, smiling as he continued to flirt with each female patron. He passed out the first round of drinks and took their orders. "Club soda for the glowing mademoiselle, margaritas for the radiant redhead and gorgeous brunette, and martinis for the woman who should be gracing the cover page of every tasteful magazine created, and for the very dashing guest of honor." He bowed slightly once again before departing to place their orders.
Shana pulled Alison aside and said, "Excuse us a moment. We need to go powder our noses." They walked towards the restrooms. But instead, once out of sight, they turned into a crook and met up with Giovanni, who was waiting for them as planned.
Giovanni grinned and explained, "Everything's in order as requested. Your private room is ready anytime you are, miladies. I, personally, will ensure that the entertainers are available anytime you wish." He took Alison's hand and raised it up to his lips, planting a small, sensuous kiss on it. Alison let out a small sigh. Shana giggled a little when he did the same to her hand, right before he disappeared into the kitchen through a set of stainless steel doors.
"Can you believe that Giovanni?" Alison asked on their way back.
"I think you have more to be concerned about than Keiko does," Shana joked, sporting her devilish grin.
Alison gave Shana a questioning look, "What do you mean?"
"Your husband. If Dash finds out, Giovanni is a dead man."
"It was just on my hand," Alison puffed as she crossed her arms.
Shana sat back down in her seat and lightly kicked Zarana's thigh. Alison, likewise, did the same to Courtney. The four women sipped their drinks, signaling they would proceed with Plan A.
As they finished their meals, Giovanni returned. He leaned over and whispered in Shana's ear, "Is your group ready?" She nodded and stood. Alison, Courtney, and Zarana followed suit, leaving Keiko to wonder what was going on.
"Come on, Sis," Shana urged, walking over to her husband's future sister-in-law. "The restaurant has arranged for us to have a private room for our after dinner drinks and dessert in celebration of your upcoming wedding."
"You promised! Where's your sense of honor?" Keiko complained as Shana dragged her along. She grumbled through her teeth, making sure her friends could hear, "I know I'm gonna regret this. I knew I should have convinced Vince to elope and leave for Japan for a few weeks instead of sticking around here to entertain these overgrown teenagers. This whole American concoction of a bachelor/bachelorette party is just an excuse to do stuff they would normally get into hot water for doing." The irritated bride-to-be, reluctantly, played along with her friends' game.
As he opened the door, Giovanni explained in his remarkably authentic Italian accent, "The other diners won't be able to hear anything from this room, so enjoy yourselves. Remember, the show will be much better if the performers are well-tipped."
The private room was a comfortable size. It had a small stage at one end and a circular table large enough that the chairs fit along the back arc so all five women had a good view of the stage. The women broke out in laughter when they heard the opening stanza of "I'm Too Sexy for My Clothes" playing on the surround sound speakers, but suddenly gasped as Giovanni introduced the line-up for the night.
"Miladies," he said walking up to Keiko. Keiko blushed and became breathless as Giovanni took her hand and kissed it as he had done Shana's and Alison's earlier in the evening. She whispered something that only he could hear.
"My enchantresses, please excuse me for a moment," Giovanni asked, before leaving the room momentarily. He returned and announced, "On behalf of Circles, may I present to you your personal entertainers for tonight: Paul... Gary... Chris... Stephen... and finally, Eric."
One by one, the men emerged from behind the stage's side curtains, each one dancing suggestively, stripping down to a skimpy outfit that barely covered what it was meant to cover. There was no leaving anything these men possessed to the imagination.
Chris and Stephen teasingly danced towards the huge, sturdy table. They jumped on it, paying special attention to their two assigned guests for the first song. Paul, Gary, and Eric strutted over to the remaining women, more than making up for the lack of attention they received from the table dancers. Shana gasped when she noticed Eric, the blond one, was standing right in front of her. What! I specified no blonds. Where's that damn Giovanni? Just as her husband had a weakness for redheads, she had a weakness for well-built blonds.
Keiko did everything she could from bursting out in laughter at the flustered redhead. That'll teach you for forcing me into this. Shana looked at Zarana, Alison, Courtney and finally at Keiko to see if she could tell which one of them had set this up. She remembered seeing Keiko whisper something to Giovanni earlier in the evening. The bride-to-be picked up on what Shana was doing and motioned her dancer to move to the side. She turned her chair to face him.
"Keiko?" Shana asked suspiciously. There was no response. As Shana got up out of her seat to confront the black haired ninja, Eric grabbed her arm. He continued dancing right along side Shana's body. Every time she tried to break away, he would turn her around. Shana thought seriously about showing the jerk a move or two of her own, but didn't want to ruin the evening and spend the night in jail. The guys would be too inebriated to go and bail them out.
Keiko's jaw dropped when Paul approached her. No way, she thought to herself, he looks just like Vincent. She looked at Shana and asked in Japanese, "Shana, Vince doesn't have a twin, right?." Keiko knew her fiance's sister-in-law was familiar enough with her native language to understand the question. She was, after all, an experienced martial arts instructor. Also, anyone who hung around her, Kamakura, Snake Eyes, and from time to time, Tommy, as much as Shana did, had to have picked up on some of the language.
"No," Shana replied before switching back to English, "It's just the two of them and Heather."
As the night went on, the male dancers took turns performing for each of the five women. The women thoroughly enjoyed the show, at times even dancing with their male counterparts. Unexpectedly, Shana's cell phone rang while she was in Gary's arms. She saw that it was her husband's cell phone number on the caller ID. "Excuse me a sec. I have to take this," Shana said in her sultry accent.
Her phone had rung around three times, before she could answer it. In her beautiful southern voice, she teased, "Hello, Handsome."
(AN - This next section was written by Storm O. I've borrowed it from her bachelor party fic with permission.)
"Now, how can you be so sure that it was me calling you?" Conrad replied, suppressing a chuckle.
"Well, who else would be calling me at this hour of the night...or morning?" She asked teasingly.
Picturing her grinning evilly, Conrad retorted playfully, "No one else, I hope."
With a laugh, she asked, "How's your big shindig going?"
"It's going, but I thought we were not going to ask any questions, tell no lies, tonight," Conrad whined into the phone.
"Party pooper, but that is what we said."
"Good, Vince needs your, well our, help. Are you game?" Conrad asked. Hearing the noise in the background, Conrad knew that Keiko would not be home sleeping yet.
"Sure. What's up?"
(AN - End of the section authored by Storm O.)
Shana listened as Conrad explained their plan. She assured him she would have Keiko back at the apartment in thirty minutes, giving them time to get things setup. She hung up her phone and announced, "Sorry to have to break up this little party, but the guest of honor needs her beauty rest."
Alison pressed a button under the table, letting their dreamy waiter know they were ready for their bill. Giovanni, very mindful of the unspoken rule of stage that the show doesn't end until the guests are completely out of sight, flirtatiously asked, "Leaving so soon, miladies?"
"It's late, and our friend needs her beauty rest. The entertainment was delicious, uh... I mean delightful," Courtney quickly corrected herself.
Since they were in a hurry to leave, all of the women paid with cash and told Giovanni that he could keep the change as his tip. It didn't take him long to figure out how much the gratuities totaled. He quickly refused, "It's too much."
Shana turned back and explained, "Giovanni, doll, you deserved it. Besides, we're running late."
"Only if you insist."
"We insist," replied everyone else. Giovanni escorted them to the restaurant's entrance and paged their driver. The restaurant's outer doors closed behind them just as the limousine approached the valet drive.
Giovanni lightly kissed the top of each lady's hand. "Enjoy the rest of your night. Keiko, milady, congratulations on your upcoming nuptials."
"Why thank you, kind sir," Keiko replied, mimicking Shana's southern accent, whom she looked to as an older sister more than a close friend. Giovanni bowed and took his leave of the group to attend to his other patrons inside.
"Zarana, you need a ride, dear?" Alison offered. "You're place is on the way to mine."
"Nah, I'll be fine. I didn't drink," Zarana replied, drawing attention to her stomach.
"Oh, yeah. How much longer?" Alison asked as both vehicles approached them.
"Six months, more or less," Zarana said as she stepped into her car and waved at her friends. As she drove back home, she wondered how her brother, Zartan, had ever convinced her the Joes were evil and had to be dealt with. You have them pegged all wrong, dear brother.
Once inside their limo, Courtney paged the driver and advised him that they were ready to go to Keiko's place and to hurry. The limo started to pull out of the drive when Courtney pressed the button again, asking the driver to wait.
Seeing a figure approaching his door, the limo's driver lowered his window slightly. "May I help you, Ma'am?"
"Yes, open the door and scoot over," Courtney answered, curtly.
"What? Ma'am, passengers ride in the back. Would you like me to escort you back there?" The driver informed. In all the years he had driven limousines and taxi cabs, he had never had any guest think about driving his vehicles.
"I'm not playing games, mister. Aha," she exclaimed as the door unlatched when she tugged on the handle. "It was open, eh? Now, I'm not telling you again. Scoot over and let me drive. We're in a hurry and don't have time to be poking around town." Courtney then gave him a look that told him he had better not mess with this lady.
The driver reluctantly slid over, allowing Courtney to take the driver's seat. "You ever driven one of these? You get one eensy weensy scratch on her and..."
"And what? You gonna tell your boss how a little, unarmed girl like me forced you into letting her drive your car? Well, if ya wanna be the laughing stock of the company, go right ahead," Courtney threatened, thinking she could have some real fun with this. Damn, no time for that. She pressed the intercom button, "Ladies, buckle up and hold on tight!" She whispered to the driver, "Hey, what's your name, pal?"
"Jimmy."
Courtney raised her voice back up, "Our driver, Jimmy, has graciously and unexpectedly allowed me drive us to Keiko's. By doing this, he's also letting me do the one thing the Army never let me do."
"What!" Shana, Keiko, and Alison yelled out.
"Let me drive a damn limousine," Courtney laughed, knowing full well that wasn't what the question was referring to.
Alison yelled out, "Haven't you been drinking too much to be driving?"
"Nah, I hardly even touched my glass unlike the three of you. Besides, we don't have time to mess around waiting for pokey... uh... Jimmy to take us home. We have to make a good fifty minute drive in less than thirty thanks to Mrs. Hauser back there." Courtney gently pulled the car out of the parking lot. "Ok, girls, get ready for some real driving."
Jimmy squirmed when Courtney turned to face him. He felt as if she could see right into his mind. "By the way, the name's Anastasia. It's very nice to meet you, Jimmy."
Back in the back section of the limousine, Shana, Keiko, and Alison all raised their eyebrows and looked at each other, asking, "Anastasia?"
"Baroness Anastasia DeCobray, business partner and personal confidante of Lord James McCullen, President and CEO of DD, LTD." Courtney replied in a tone that let the others in on her game. Even though she smiled a little during her introduction, Jimmy was none the wiser.
"Time to see what this baby can do!" Courtney exclaimed as she revved the limo's engine. She moved the vehicle into the other lane and flew past the other cars. After making a few hard turns, she swerved back into the outside lane. "Woo hoo!" She yelled as she merged onto the clear highway without any problems.
Jimmy buried his face in his hands, thinking that this woman was going to cost him everything, especially his job. Even without looking at the speedometer, he could tell they were going much faster than the speed limit. God, I know I'm going to regret asking this, he thought, but asked anyways, "Uh, Anastasia, how fast are you going?"
"If you wanna know, why don't you take a peek at the dash?" Courtney retorted.
"Holy Mary, Mother of God!" Jimmy yelled after he saw the needle tip past the one hundred twenty mark. He never saw exactly how fast they were going, but he saw enough to know they'd be in trouble if caught. He sulked back down into the black, leather seat, muttering a prayer, "God, send your angels down to guide this woman's hands and feet, give me strength to endure this ride, blind the eyes of the authority, and please God, most of all, don't let my boss find out about this."
Over the intercom, a voice was heard in the back, "Hey, girlfriend! We know traffic isn't that bad out there. Must you continue to switch lanes like that?"
Courtney answered, "Yes, I must. Just for that comment..." Keiko, Shana, and Alison were thrown from side to side; their drinks spilling everywhere.
"Shit!" All three yelled out. "Do you know what alcohol does to silk? This blouse is ruined," Alison pouted.
Courtney laughed at her friends, "You ladies still drinking back there? Serves you right. You've had plenty already, and our bride-to-be has a flight of stair to climb."
"Don't worry about me. I know when I've had enough. Just tell me one thing, what is going on? First you gals want to take me on a night out on the town, and now, you can't get me back to my apartment fast enough," Keiko ranted.
Shana stretched her arms up and faked a yawn, "I'm just getting a little sleepy, and I promised Vince I'd make sure you got home ok."
The limousine's moon roof slid open. Keiko stood up, jetting the upper half of her body out of square opening. "What are you doing!" Alison and Shana shouted, spurting the mouthful of liquid they both had.
"Co... I mean, Anastasia's doing something she's never had the chance to do before, and so am I!" Keiko yelled back.
"You crazy, girlfriend? Vince is gonna kill ya... me... Damn it, Sis! Get your ass back in here!" Shana reprimanded as she yanked Keiko back into her seat. "Your seatbelt," she said harshly.
"Geez, lighten up, Shana. Anyways, we're here now. You've really serioused up since getting married and having Alexis," Keiko fussed as the limo came to a stop. She opened her door and stumbled out the door. "You used to be fun."
"Oh, Keiko, you're just drunk. Go on home and sleep that off," Shana huffed.
"You need help making it up those stairs?" Alison asked. "You did have quite a bit to drink tonight."
"I'll be just fine," Keiko slurred purposely.
"We'll stay here until you make it inside, safe and sound," Shana offered.
Keiko nodded and said, "Yes, mommy. Bye."
Inside the cab of the limo, Courtney unlatched her seatbelt and opened the door. "Jimmy, you can open your eyes now. Your prayer must have worked since we're here, and we survived. Thank you for giving me this once in a lifetime experience. That was awesome, and you did great over there."
"What? You're not driving the rest of the way?" Jimmy frowned, making his puppy dog face.
Courtney made sure the intercom system was turned off. "Nah, I'm gonna go bug the hell out of my friends. They've had it too easy back there without me. Wait until she's inside before we leave."
Jimmy nodded to show he understood. "Until we meet again, mademoiselle."
"Wow, you're starting to sound a lot like that waiter. Yes, until we meet again." Courtney shook the hand offered to her by Jimmy. "By the way, Jimbo, I'm planning on coloring my hair and letting it grow out. So, look for a lady with long, jet black hair, instead of this old do," she said as she flipped her curled ends. Courtney ran to the back door, laughing the whole way. Chances were she would never see Jimmy again, nor would he ever meet up with the real Baroness Anastasia DeCobray, but that didn't mean she couldn't imagine the scene if he did eventually meet her. Courtney was still bearing a huge grin, which covered her face from ear to ear, when she sat down in the back seat next to Alison.
"You look happy. Something happen up there that we should know about?" Shana egged.
"Long story. I'll tell you about it after we leave," Courtney replied. She leaned over across Alison's lap, stuck her head out the window and yelled as loudly as she could, "Keiko, behave and get some sleep!" Keiko turned around and waved. Courtney returned to her seat and asked, "So, what was the big deal about getting her back here in such a short time?"
Shana explained the plan to the Alison and Courtney as they watched Keiko walk up the stairs and fumble with her keys. They giggled when they saw the apartment door open and Vince sweep Keiko off the ground. He gave her a passionate kiss before pulling her into their home and closing the door.
"Damn. You'd think Vince'd give us more of a show than that after all we went through to get her here," Courtney whined. The driver took his cue from the door's closing and pulled the limo back onto the streets to take the other women home.
Keiko was shocked and breathless. She would have to pay Conrad and Shana back for this. She knew Shana was involved because of that well-timed phone call and her anxiousness to leave. Not to mention Shana's paying with cash. She always used her credit card whenever they ate out together. Keiko laughed remembering how she had to pick up Shana's tab a number of times because the establishments only accepted cash, of which she never carried much. The ninja quickly learned to carry enough cash for both of them.
"What's this all about?" Keiko asked, taking in the romantic setting. The relaxing scent of Jasmine candles filled the air. She looked at their cherry coffee table, which held two champagne glasses, an open bottle of sparkling dessert wine, and a bowl of strawberries with chocolate sauce on the side.
She barely heard her fianc's comment about it being a little surprise. She had lost herself in the music that was playing. "Who is that?" Keiko asked, recognizing the song, but not being able to place it.
"Barry White," Vince answered, putting his arms around his fiancée's waist and gave her another passionate kiss. He broke it long enough to ask, "Care to dance?"
Keiko, who was still in shock that her flirty fiancé came home early from his final night out as a single man, nodded and sighed, "Yes, my love."