kitty’s character aesthetics 3/? - travis barnes - space cadet
Because you don't
Know us at all we laugh when old people fall.
But what would you expect with a conscience so small.
Heavy metal and mullets it's how we were raised.
Maiden and priest were the gods that we praised
Cause we like having fun at other peoples expense and,
Cutting people down is just a minor offence then,
It's none of your concern, I guess I'll never learn.
Vaas Montenegro: Turns out, Marina knew a guy who knew many other guys. In Albuquerque , it was hard to get an unethical business to be a well-oiled machine without Saul Goodman fishing tools out of your pocket. She did appreciate what he did for her and her business, and so figured it was time to introduce her two newest gems to the man that would sort out the legalities, contracts, properties- and generally captain the 'get out of jail' parade. " I'm sure you've seen his commercials. They're hard to ignore. " She remarked to the pair. They looked like a very odd and out-of-place and roughly sewn together family in her car. Thankfully, they were pulling into the parking lot to his law office sooner than she expected.
sarah: Sitting next to Marina with his arm stretched across the back of the drivers seat, Nacho drummed his fingers against the headrest. Not because he was completely agitated from the fact he'd been roped into dealing with Saul's bullshit for an entire day-- that was actually a lie, that was why he was completely agitated. But here he was anyway glancing up at the inflatable statue of liberty while Marina spoke to the kids in the back. "I'm going to head, make sure we don't have to wait around," he said glancing at Marina before pushing the car door open and heading into the office, with subtle and cautious glance around first.
sarah: head in*
Layah: Layah was tired of these meetings, all she wanted to do was stay home and sleep. It had been two days since she last slept and she was really feeling it. It didn't help that Vesper was still around, making her life both difficult and fun at the same time. How a woman like her could manage that was beyond her. Layah's head rested against the window and she closed her eyes, groaning when they announced their arrival of Saul Goodman's office. "He's helped me out before, fucking funny man." She laughed, rubbing her eyes, hoping it'd keep her awake, maybe she'd have Minnie slap her a few times, that'll work.
sarah: Minnie leaned forward to look out the front window as they rolled up to the office and wrinkled her nose, "I've heard of him. My mom hates him..." she looked half surprised mostly perturbed and glanced at Layah, willing her to keep it together during this meeting at least. "And this guy is going to be able to find us an adequate lab space?" She shouldn't be too... harsh considering their current lab was an RV. But still... she was skeptical.
Vaas Montenegro: Marina stepped out of her car and used her remote to lock it once the other two did the same. " You and I have that in common. " she mentioned to Layah, making her way to the front door and holding it open for that both. " He's not so bad, " she remarked to Minnie as she got Francesca to clear their small party. Being the high-paying client she was, she tended to take priority- especially when matters were this sensitive. " He's an absolute scumbag, don't get me wrong- but if anybody can find us a place to cook meth, it'll be him " she mused quietly, leading them to his office and opening up the door.
Saul: Saul had to admit that he was a little nervous about this meeting, but he gone over the paperwork and even pulled out a few good locations for the shiny lab Marina had requested. His nervousness was masked when he watched Nacho come into his office, he quickly greeted him and looked out the small window into the parking lot, "The girls joining us? I gotta say, seeing that Old Lady of yours, what a lucky guy." He chuckled, placing his hands together in front of him and turned back when he saw the woman of the hour come in with two young girls, "Hello Ladies, come on in Suong will take your bags, don't worry she only steals the good stuff! Kidding, please, come into my office. Sunong, hold the phones please."
sarah: He hadn't been to Goodman's office ina while but it was just as tacky as he remembered, honestly. He shook his head slightly, "stop talking," he warned, though tone was casual it wasn't as if making comments about Marina was the worst he'd ever heard come out of the lawyers mouth. He leaned against the back wall as the girls came in and Minnie cast an appraising look around the office. It was even worse than the outside. She gave her bag up and looked around at the man walking up to him to shake his hand, "It's nice to meet you Mr. Goodman. I'm Minnie Song." She introduced herself like she hadn't just been looking around like she was completely disgusted with the place (always the professional).
Layah: Layah made a face as she walked in, surprised that this was now his office. It wasn't any better than that dumb at the nail salon, but it was something. She dragged her feet, hands deep in her pockets as she just shrugged at Saul and kept close to Minnie. She had learned to rely on Minnie and whether it was a good or bad thing, there was no telling, but she trusted her and that's all that mattered. "'Sup, still loving those hookers I see."
Vaas Montenegro: Marina really couldn't stifle the laugh that Layah's comment and Nacho's reaction prompted, going in to shake Saul's hand- as she usually did when meeting with him. " Oh, this is going even better than I expected- " she remarked quietly, as she knew the statement very much rang true for the aged lawyer. " Is that a new tie? It's nice. " she asked, mostly just to make polite small talk as she helped herself to a chair.
Saul: He just pointed at Layah, breifly remembering her case and boy was it a tough one, beating her father to a pulp, he knew better than to mess with her. When everyone was greeted, he walked them into his office and motioned them over to the two leather chairs, them being both Nacho and Marina, leaving the young girls to sit on the couch in the back. Finally, he sat down and took his blue tooth off, "Alright, shall we get down to business?" Hands clapped together and placed over the paperwork he had put together for them.
sarah: Minnie stopped short when it was clear she was being shuffled to the back of the room, and raised her eyebrows. No. There was no way she was being sat at the kids table while the "adults" got to "business". This was supposed to be her lab, right? So, instead she made her way towards the desk taking a seat in the vacant chair Nacho had been directed to sparing him a slightly apologetic look (though he was happy enough to lounge back on the couch), before turning to the lawyer, "Yes, how about we get down to business. I have a list of requirements here for this lab that I expect to be met if you care to have a look," she said holding out the paper for him, "I assume you already know it has to be at least near town. I can't go traipsing all over the desert every day, when I still have a part time job, and class until June."
Vaas Montenegro: Very slowly did Marina's head turn toward Minnie. She was simultaneously both impressed, and taken aback by her rebuttal. She reached out her hand and took the paper from Minnie before Saul had the chance. " Hold on there Dirty Harry, " she said to Minnie, eyes scanning over her list of requirements. " Let's just get one thing straight here, " she began. " You're not the one funneling millions of dollars into this facility- I am. If you think you're the only one who's going to go 'traipsing' to and from it, you'd be incorrect. " she remarked, making sure to mimic her phrasing. " That being said, of course- like with everyone I work with - I want you to be happy with the choices I make, and where you work- but have you ever heard the phrase ' you can't have your cake and eat it too' ? "
Saul: Blue eyes glanced up at Minnie as she made her way up to his desk and began to demand things, he was about to open his mouth and say something but Marina had beaten him to the punch. He chuckled and went to grab the manilla folder that had four choices of real estate with pricing and inspections attached to them. To add insult to injury he lifted the folder and handed them over to Minnie, only to snap them back and give them to Marina,, "Gotta train them while they're young."
Layah: Layah got comfortable on the couch, slowly but surely drifting off to sleep. That's when she heard Marina put Minnie in her place and she frowned at that, even getting second hand embarrassment from it, "Damn Red, chill."
sarah: Minnie glared daggers at Saul before looking over at Marina, "Yes, I'm aware. Just as I'm also aware that I am the one who will be cooking in this lab, and I'm not simply here on some educational field trip. All I have in mind is what I need to be as productive as possible, and isn't that in everyones best interests?"
Vaas Montenegro: She gave Minnie a bit of a look. " It is when you go about it with tact. " she said simply, opening up the folder and starting to browse through the various lots he had picked out. " You done good, Goodman. " she remarked as she perused.
sarah: Minnie sat primly, and straight backed in her seat, staying silent but clearly not relenting. She'd be tactful when she wasn't being pushed into the background like she was just here for the fun of it. Nacho pulled himself up and off the couch going to lean over the back of Marina's chair glancing over the papers, "where are we headed first?"
Saul: Saul smiled at Marina's praise, of course that is why she paid so much for him and boy did he know it. Fixing his tie he stood up and placed the bluetooth device back into his ear and clapped his hands together, "Ladies and Gentlemen, ready? We can go in the white cod, should fit -- everyone."
Vaas Montenegro: Marina pointed her finger to a particular listing, glancing up at him to see how he might react to it. She answered Saul as she let Nacho look over the papers. " I think for Ignacio's sake that we should probably drive separately. ' she teased- although she knew he couldn't handle much of Saul's tendencies. " Why don't you two ride with Saul? He's got heated seats. " she suggested to the pair. She considered them a package deal, and figured splitting them up wasn't a good idea.
Saul: Saul pursed his lips at the missed oppurtunity to spend some time with the beatiful woman, but instead of focusing on that he drew his attention to the young girls, "Follow me and we'll take a look." He muttered as he opened the door for them, not missing the opportunity to get a good look at her ass, if God was willing to throw him a freakin' bone.
Layah: "What a clown." She muttered to Minnie, laughing as they walked out of his office, giving him a once over as she followed the line out.
sarah: He glanced over the paper and gave a small nod, "we'll work our way out from there if this doesn't... meet standards," He added the last part with a glance over at Minnie who was gathering up her things. He was grateful for Marina's pointing out the obvious, and gave another annoyed shake of his head catching Saul's eyes and heading out the door. Muttering a few insults as he past.
sarah: Minnie concured with Layah and sighed, "and this guy helped you out before?" She asked as the exited the office and she made her way over to the large white car sitting in the front with the ridiculous license plate. "Sit in the back with me."
Layah: "He wasn't this bad -- he actually had a soul yo." Layah nodded and went to open the door for Minnie, keeping an eye on the wondering eye that was Saul's.
Vaas Montenegro: Marina chuckled a bit at his statement, glad to get a bit of a break from the two rugrats as she shamelessly referred to the pair as inside her head. The first lot they were off to explore was a lumber production facility. The drive wasn't too far- but it'd be long enough for the two girls to get the true Saul Goodman experience- which was quite an experience, to say the least.
Saul: "Alright, any particular order you'd like to see? Each of them has their own unique magic, it doesn't hurt to try, am I right Nacho?" He pointed at him and grinned like an idiot. He walked up to the driver's side and opened the door, frowning that they were both sitting in the back seat, "Oh come on, I don't bite..."
sarah: "Just follow us," Nacho commented flatly, to Saul as he and Marina walked across the parking lot to her car. It was less conspicuous to travel this way, of course. He settled into the passangers seat and smirked a bit over at Marina, "too bad you didn't bug his car first. Would'a been nice to have some entertainment."
sarah: Minnie doubted Layah's comments, "well now his soul has apparently been replaced with a douche bag. My moms words, not mine-- though I see where she's coming from." She said sliding into the back seat and buckling in, glancing up at the Lawyer as he spoke, "good to know, but we can hear you just fine from back here."
- - -
Big Boss: Marina laughed gently. " An idea for next time. " she declared, starting up her car. " I'm sure we'll get an earful of how... lovely and professional he is once we get there. " she mused, returning the smirk as she pulled out of the lot.
Saul: The lawyer kept quiet, turning to smile at the girls and hiding the fact they were pretty much making fun of him. Luckily, nothing these two girls said could really hurt Saul's ego. He didn't speak much on the way toward the listing and practiced his pitch for each of them as they went down Albuquerque streets.
sarah: "I bet," Nacho said in a dull tone, keeping his eyes in the rearview mirror for a moment, before turning towards Marina. "You think this is gonna work out? With the girls?" He guessed she would if they were really looking for labs.
Layah: Layah drummed a tune on her knees as they drove, she then turned to Minnie and offered a smile, "Yo, you excited?"
sarah: She tried to keep note of where they were going and calculated the best ways to get there from her dorm, and her parents house (when school was let out) in her head, before thinking over Layah's question and grinning a bit, "I'll be excited once we get the lab equipment." That she did trust Marina with, considering she too was a Chemist. "But it'll be good not to be in that RV in the middle of the desert."
Big Boss: She gave a small shrug, turning the radio on to a quiet station, some sort of classic rock was playing. " This is an investment, but you and I both know not all investments pay out. " she remarked. " They don't seem like wild cards. "
Layah: "Hey, we had fun out there didn't we?" She laughed, leaning forward in her seat, hand wrapped around the head cushion of the passenger side seat, "We there yet Saul?" She asked, raising a brow at him.
Saul: "Just a few more miles, it's by the University, isn't that what your girlfriend there requested?" He chuckled, both hands gripping the steering wheel a little tighter, regretting his choice of words.
sarah: Marina was right about that, they didn't strike him as the type who would try to step out on their own. They were young but they'd all been young once. "No, they don't. They just seem annoying, but if you can deal with the rest of your people I'm sure you'll be fine dealing with them."
sarah: "If that's what you want to call boiling in the middle of no where," Minnie laughed at Layah's comment, then went back to looking out the window her eyes widening when Saul spoke jarring her enough the small intake of breath she took caused her to go into a coughing fit.
Layah: "Shut up and drive faster yeah?" She muttered, looking over to Minnie, wondering if she could do anything and knowing the answer was probably no.
Layah: nothing*
Big Boss: " Oh, annoying isn't half of it. " she mused with a tiny chuckle. " But, they're good cooks. They know what they're doing. I was pretty shocked when she told me how old the two of them are. " she explained, pulling into the lot as Saul did so.
sarah: "You sure you didn't go out looking for a little protege?" Nacho teased, looking around the lot as they pulled to a stop, and getting out of the car with a suspicious look around.
Saul: He parked the car and turned off the engine, "Alright ladies, here we go." He muttered as he exited the vehicle, knowing he had to impress Marina more than anyone present. Arms extended as he gestured at the property and smiled, "What do you think?"
sarah: "I'm fine," Minnie muttered to Layah before exiting the car, straightening her skirt out and pretending like she hadn't just been hacking up a lung as she followed Saul. "The location is ok, but I'll have to come up with a reason why I'm coming and going from here every day." However Minnie had the feeling she was going to have to be coming up with a lot of reasons for why she was doing certain things in the near future...
Big Boss: Marina stepped out of the car, glancing around the lot. It was an old lumber-processing facility, and still seemed to be in business. She walked about the property, her high heels clacking as they made their way across the concrete. " Show me where you pictured the lab going. " she suggested to Saul.
Saul: "Ah yes of course, if you could follow me." His tone was a little more enthusiastic now that he felt confident in the property. "They are set to walk out of here in a weak, damn economy am I right?" A chuckle as he went toward the back of the lot and pointed at a pair of doors that lead to an underground basement and opened the doors, struggling a bit to get them open, but when he did he smiled.
Saul: This way Ladies and Gentlemen."
Big Boss: Marina watched him struggle with the door, but followed him nonetheless- making notes about all the things she noticed about the property.
Saul: He let them all pass him and then proceeded to follow them down to the basement level where a big, spacious room was, "It's the right amount of square footage for your special needs and with a little work, it could be the lab your little tyke's here want."
sarah: Minnie glared over at Saul, before she went to look around the room, surveying it closely. It was very dusty, but once it was cleaned that shouldn't be too much of a probelm. "And this place isn't going to be operational?"
Saul: He shook his head, "Nope, they went bankrupted, due to the previous owner stickin' his hand in the honey pot a little too many times."
Big Boss: Marina began to walk around the room, surveying everything she could- doing all of the checks. " We're going to have to put some business in here. It'd look a little odd for someone to buy this place and not put anything in it. " she remarked, opening up a breaker panel to give it a look over.
sarah: Minnie nodded her head at Marina, "we can't start shipping the amount of chemicals to a vacant lumber mill. It'd look suspicious."
Layah: Layah glanced around, staying behind the crowd since she really didn't have much to say in the matter. She just kept close to Minnie and away from Saul.
Saul: Here it was, the part he had practicing for a while, the pitch that would definitely sell this place or perhaps the ones after, "I'm thinking night club, it's close by the University and kids love warehouses for that sort of thing."
Big Boss: Marina scoffed. " Yeah, the police will definitely stay away from a party warehouse filled with university students. " she remarked dryly, narrowing her eyes when she noticed something important that the room was missing. " Okay, pop quiz- " she began, looking at the two younger members of the group. " Which one of you can tell me what's wrong with this room if you plan on cooking meth in it? " she asked. The answer wasn't obvious , but it was there: The basement had practically no ventilation. They'd suffocate if they cooked in it.
Saul: He pursed his lips, "Well, of course not -- make it legit, hire legit bouncers and a staff and it should be fine. This space is well hidden and we can even forge documents to say it had been filled with concrete as for the ventilation..."
sarah: Minnie pulled a face clearly unimpressed with the idea, "there's no way anyone would buy seeing me anywhere around a night club." She went back to surveying the area, and tossed look over at Marina, "just one problem? The ceilings are a little low for my taste, it'll be hell to get this place sterile enough not to mention nearly impossible to keep quiet with a 'nightclub' on top of it, and there is no air in this place." She turned to look at Saul sparing him a polite but completely disingenuous "it looks good on paper."
Big Boss: " Ten points to Minnie. " she said simply. " It's a good property, " she said to Saul, as if to console him. " Really, the basement idea was pretty perfect- so kudos for that, but... they'll suffocate in here- and I can't think of any business that I can just shove upstairs on a whim. " she explained. " Got anything else? "
Saul: "Yes, two more places that I have found for you ladies." He began to walk out of the basement, a forced smile on his face.
sarah: "Hope no one had any plans tonight," Nacho commented as he closed the doors behind the group while they headed back out to the parking lot.
Layah: Layah laughed at Nacho's joke and followed the herd, "Yo, can we just see them on Google Earth on something?"
Big Boss: Marina grinned a bit. " Why don't you drive around , skype call us and show us all the properties that way? " she teased Saul. She could tell he felt a little badgered, however, and so returned with a compliment. " I don't pay you enough. " she mused.
sarah: Minnie sent an amused grimace in Layah's direction as they all headed back outside and towards the cars. "What's going to happen if the other locations don't work either?" She asked looking over at Marina.
Saul: "We have a bowling alley and the basement of an old laundromat facility, both take care of your little ventilation concern."
Big Boss: She pondered Minnie's question, and returned with a joke. " Ever cooked Meth in a bath tub? I have a pretty big bathroom. " She turned to look at Saul once more. " Well, let's try the bowling alley first- and if it goes poorly, we can always just play a round. "
sarah: "It's nice of you to offer, but I doubt you'd want your bathroom to smell like pesticides," Minnie said dryly with a smirk on her face going over in her head the options Saul gave them. "The chemicals would still be a problem with the bowling alley," She pointed out, leaning against the large white car.
Saul: His car beeped open and he opened the driver side door, not bothering to open the car door for them, "Chop chop ladies." He muttered as he started the car and looked over the address for the Laundromat, it seeming to be the best option for his client, "We're heading to the laundromat."
Big Boss: Marina made her way back to her car, sliding into the driver's seat. " It's a shame- I haven't been bowling in a while. " she remarked dryly, starting the car up.
Saul: "That'll be our last stop, it's the furthest away and that is a big no no to your new prodigy here." He murmured, raising his window and pulled out of the ciliche road and headed toward the laundromant.
sarah: Nacho laughed and closed the passengers door behind him, "please don't just buy the bowling alley because you want to bowl. I know how much you enjoy playing Marina Warbucks."
Layah: 'Yo this is taking forever..." She whined, patting her pockets for a cigarette or something to do, she turned over to Minnie and shrugged, "Travis says he wants to do more than distribute."
sarah: She settled into the back seat, buckling herself in and resting her hands on her lap staring at the back of Saul's head for a few moments, before looking over at Layah and blinking. "Like what? Advertising? Managing?"
Big Boss: She laughed a bit, following Saul's lead. " Wouldn't you like one for your birthday? " she teased. " You can call it the 'Nacho Bowl' , and have it double up as a restaurant. "
Saul: Saul took a few phone calls on his bluetooth, accepting appointments and settling business dinners.
sarah: "You didn't already buy me a bowling alley for my birthday and this is your way of breaking it to me, did you?" He asked arching an eyebrow.
Big Boss: She grinned. " Oh, I bought you two. " she teased. " And a lazertag place, and the rights to Disney's Epcot. " she added in, pulling in along with Saul's car to the industrial facility.
Layah: "Like cooking..." She replied, shrugging, "He was into all of that in High school, loved Chemistry or some shit I don't know, didn't even pass my sophmore year."
sarah: He laughed, "just keep buying up property and soon enough I'll be able to go anywhere I want without having to watch my ass. Sounds good enough to me."
sarah: "Oh," Minnie raised her eyebrows, which one was Travis? The one with the hair? Hm. "Well, if we need another pair of hands and he's ok after I've vetted him then maybe." It couldn't hurt to have some backup.
Layah: "Yeah, the one that's not Badger yo." She chuckled, glad that Minnie was willing to bring Travis in. Out of all of her friends, Travis was the one she trusted the most.
Big Boss: " We don't have to stay here, you know. " she said to him, parking the car. " We could up and relocate, live off of drug money until we find something new. " she offered. She stepped out of her car. " Maybe we could move to Canada. " She teased, although the sentiment was real. " Well, Saul- show us the ropes. "
Kim Nu Suong looked up at the bartender with a surprised expression, and blinked a few times. "I'm twenty-three." Just her luck she'd probably walked into the only bar in this damn city that actually cared about legal things. The man behind the counter didn't look like he was convinced of her age, and she let out a huff, "Trời ơi, bạn phải đùa," she muttered under her breath pulling her ID out of her bag.
Well, it was a fake ID. But it wasn't fake because she was underage. All the information was true, it was just... not a legal ID. Still, the man seemed satisfied and placed the glass of scotch in front of her. It wasn't the best scotch but... Well, beggars couldn't be choosers. It was that or beer, and Suong hated beer. She wasn't a eighteen year old college girl, ok?
Sure, she easily could have gone to a bar that was more... to her taste, but what was life without getting out of your comfort zone. That thought was fitting too, as it came when a man at the other end of the bar punched another man in the face, and Suong had a front row seat to a bar fight.
Suong met Thomas Nguyen a couple months after moving to Albuquerque, and the two hit it off pretty quickly. His family is well known for owning a lot of the Vietnamese run businesses around the city, and lesser known for allowing people to use those businesses to launder money and sell drugs. Within a few days Tommy offered Suong a job at his massage parlor, and a place to live which she agreed to seeing as she had neither of those things. He's not violent, and he's not exactly mean to his girls, but he is an asshole who puts his profits before the people who are actually doing all the work. While their relationship has been physical since they pretty much met Suong doesn't really see Tommy as anything but an employer, and their relationship as nothing but business transactions.
