GM: Sarah Doom
Players: Cris Viana, Sophie Lagacé, Fred Hicks, Sean Nittner
System: Velvet Glove
We got together and created four killer girls: Carla the Hellion (Cris), Dina the Newbie (Sean), Jordan the Stoner (Fred), and Cori the Tomboy (Sophie), and our gang/band, The Alley Cats (our mark was a cat’s claw).
The game is set in Santa Lucia (a fictional town) in the late 70s. A seaside town with a boardwalk, and neighborhoods for the upper class, middle class, and lower class, followed railroad tracks, and then finally the scrublands where we all lived.
Cori and Dina were trying to form a band and already had competition from Romeo’s Rats, a punk band from the other side of the tracks. A bunch of shitty guys in their early 20s.
The Play is the Thing
We opened at The Pearl, a dive bar run by Lazlo Porter who was hosting auditions that night. It was a place that was way too old for all of us, but that didn’t stop us from trying to get in.
The front of the bar was a concrete and mosaic monstrosity that glittered…perhaps like a pearl. There was a long line to get in the door, and the cool people had event arrived yet.
Dina grabbed Carla and ran to the front of the line where the bouncer, a surfer looking guy in a 20s in a tight shirt that looked good, stopped us and told us to get in line.
Dina said we’re with “the band” and that Mr. Porter wanted to see us. Apparently that line might have been said once or twice before, but it at least got Josie musing “You don’t look like the skanks that follow Romeo’s Rats around, so maybe you’re cool.” Josie looked a Dina an realized she was young, but not as young as she really was (Dina is 15 but wears a lot of disco makeup to try and look older). It was also transparent to that Dina was dying for approval and that she could be manipulated easily. He caressed her ear, pushing and errant hair back and leered. [Mixed result to get the skinny]
Carla, upset already on Dina’s behalf, told Josie we were the Alley Cats and we we’re going to get inside one way or the other! Josie had the power though. “You skanks aren’t getting in the line and you aren’t getting inside.” We heard the snap of a polaroid, as the other person at the door took our picture to put on the NO ENTRY wall. Fuck. [Miss on tell a man to cool it]
Dina shouted a string of obscenities “You gassy fuck, punk asshole, dick face, shit bird, dirt bag motherfucker!!!” at Josie and then ran off with Carla behind her.
Jordon on the other hand was playing it cool. She saw an older girl named Tuesday—known for having the good stuff—waiting in line. She sidled up beside her “Looks like it’s Tuesday.”
Tuesday smiled and made space for Jordan to stand beside her. Jordan asked about a hookup but Tuesday didn’t want to deal out here. This was the Southside Rollers’ turf and the last time one of her girls crossed them, they ended up in the hospital. Serious fucking shit.
Jordan picked up on a couple things during the conversation. Tuesday liked her. She hadn’t been giving her freebies, but Jordan was getting a little extra on her orders. She was also hiding two things: a tiny kitten she just rescued and a bad coke habit. Jordan was cool about both and so she joined Tuesday in line. [10+ on get the skinny]
Cori, when she got to the front of the line, played it cool and distracted Josie the bouncer so that she and Jordan got in, and spotted an opportunity for Calra and Dina as well…a cook going out back for a smoke break. She couldn’t signal to Carla and Dina because she was already inside, but she did make plans with Jordan to peek out back and let us in once we found the door. [Mixed result on psych someone out]
Outside the cook was firing up the grill. Jordan approached and offered him a joint, which he gladly accepted. The cook said it was vegetarian and asked her if she meat, which Jordan playfully pretended was a weird pickup line. He quickly backed up and just said she shouldn’t eat the meat here, but he’d make her some cheesy fries. Maybe the one guy who wasn’t a shit bag in this whole place.
Carla caught up to Dina, who was looking up to try and stop herself from crying. “Fuck that guy, we’re going to find a way into that place!”
Dina, always impressed by Carla’s ferocity and loyalty seemed mollified “Man, I wish I was cool like Jordan, she just slid right in. Maybe we can find another way.”
Together they walked around the Pearl till they found the door Cori had cracked open. Despite the cook being utterly chill about them going in, Dina crept like she was sneaking out of the house.
Hair metal assholes
Inside the band was thrashing their instruments. It was smokey and loud and a bit scary. Dina, with Carla behind her ran to the front of the pit. Jordan sought out Tuesday, while Cori snuck in the back to see of there was any gear she could pilfer.
Dani and Carla got to the front of the pit as a song finished. The lead singer shouted “Thank you! We’re the Bloodmoths!” He was a grungy guy in his late 20s and he spotted Dina and Carla in the front. He held out his hand to invite them on stage. Dina accepted without thinking but Carla refused. He just shrugged at Carla, but when Dina got on stage he immediately planted a kiss on her. He reeked of cheap whiskey and cigarettes and sweat.
Dina tried to wiggly free, pointing at the crowd in the hopes that maybe them waiting for more music would get him back to the mic, or better yet, give her a chance to sing! It didn’t work. The lead singer with one hand reached down the back of hir shirt, unclasped her bra, and threw it at the crowd as they howled with glee. Dina stood wide eyed on horror as her bra sailed through the air, then ran backstage bawling, stumbling into the drum set and hurting herself on the way. [Miss on keep on trucking]
Carla did not miss a beat. She jumped on stage and started pounding the hell out of the Bloodmoths singer. She wrecked his drums and wrecked his face. Taking it too far and plowing her elbow into him on the ground. A fight broke out around her and one of the pieces from the drum flew off and hit Tuesday in the head, knocking her down. [mixed result on wreck shit]
Jordan ran over to Tuesday to see how she was doing and noticed that her kitted had escaped. It was over by the bar and through some people that were already throwing punches. Knowing that a scarred kitten wouldn’t stay in place for long she ducked and weaved through the crowd to get it, but she was spotted by Josie and the other bouncers, who came after her. Jordan darted backstage to escape them. [mixed result on keep on trucking’]
Cori, meanwhile, had been looking for something to steal…and she found it. Out back there was a junky van loaded with instruments. It had a rat spray pained on the side and a guy dressed all in black sitting in the driver’s seat. He was smoking and drinking and clearly killing time when Cori ran up and said “Hey man, you’re friends are inside getting their asses kicked!” He heard the commotion and ran inside, absentmindedly leaving his bottle and cigarette with Cori. Score! She got in the van and waited for her friends [10+ result to psych someone out]
Dina found herself in a dressing room, looking at herself in a mirror framed by lights, crying uncontrollably. Just as she was starting to regain her compose the door closed and a man in his 40s wearing an impeccable purple suit came in and sat down next to her. “What’s wrong little girl?”
Dina babbled another slew of expletives as she tried to explain “Fucking asshole. I just want to sing. Shit fucker took my bra. So embarrassing. Fucking, fucking, fucker. And then I froze like and idiot. That asshole. Kissed me. Smelled like piss—” Eventually she trailed off and looked at herself again in the mirror, her makeup ruined. “I’m Dina, by the way.”
“Lazlo” the man introduced himself as he handed her a tissue and opened a drawer with makeup so she could fix hers. “Did you come here to audition? Are you a singer?”
Dina whimpered an affirmative. She wanted to impress Mr. Porter.
“Okay then, why don’t don’ you sing for me?”
After some more sniffling, she finally regained her composure. “I can’t. I’m not even warmed up. Okay I’ll do it, but don’t look at me. I’m a mess.” Dina grabbed a hair brush and looked at herself in the mirror again and with a slightly croaking voice began to sing Peppermint, the uncharacteristically sappy love song she found in the back of Carla’s notebook. It was such a sad song about loving someone who glowed so bright but always being in the darkness yourself. Somehow, through the strange acoustics of this place, Carla heard her sing from the stage…and was mortified by it. [Mixed result on keep on truckin’]
“How old are you?”
“18” Dina said without missing a beat.
“How old are you really?”
“21.” She said realizing she was in a bar, but when he didn’t buy it she finally said “I’ll be 16 in July” (it was currently August).
“Okay, this can go one of two ways. I can call your parents.” He paused as she clearly didn’t like that ideas “Or I can call the police?”
Dina hated that she had already blow her chance, but she didn’t want to give up. “What if there was an option number three where I leave and promise never to darken your doorstep again?”
He thought for a moment and said “Option three is that if you and your friends can bring me your report cards and you all get at least Cs, you can play here…during the day.”
“I can get a C” Dina said as though that would be a pretty major accomplishment.
As they headed out of the dressing room Lazlo put his arm on her shoulder affectionally. He meant to do it in a fatherly way, but there had been too many creeps that had touched her in creepy ways that day so she flinched…right as Carla came back stage with her bra.
Carla saw Dina had new makeup on, that she came out of room with an old man, and that he had his hand on her shoulder, and that she was flinching. Rage boiled up in her but before she started wrecking shit Dina ran and embraced her in a giant hug. “We can play here if we get Cs!” That of course was Dina’s take away from the whole thing.
Jordan came in after them both, holding the kitten, and nodded her head at Lazlo. She told him she wasn’t in the band, just hear to support them (trying to to keep some distance from Dani and Carla in his mind). She agreed to go party with him in his booth and to bring her friend Tuesday as well.
Dina hated the idea. Even though Lazlo had been kind to her, the old man was looking at Jordan as a piece of meat. She felt like they had a chance to get out and didn’t want to trade her own safety for Jordan’s. “Jordan, let’s get out of here.” She opened the door outside and pointed her eyes at Cori in the van, ready to drive off. Jordan didn’t like it. She felt like she could handle it, but eventually agreed. [Mixed result on psych someone out against Jordan, who interfered]
“Uhh, I gotta get these kids home. Maybe another time. If you can tell Tuesday I have her cat, that would be great.”
Lazlo nodded “Sure thing. Which one is Tuesday again?”
Jordan pointed out her big orange afro and we skedaddled.
Dina cracked open a can of spray paint and made a few swipes on the fan. As Cori pulled out of the lot, the Alley Cat (rather than Rat) was seen on the side! [10+ result on engage with delinquency, a gang move]
Catharsis
On the drive home Dina and Carla were sitting on all the instruments in the back of the van, when Dina confessed that she had found Carla’s song and that she sang it to Lazlo (which of course Carla knew, but Dina didn’t know she knew).
“It’s a really pretty song Calra. I know you think nobody sees you, but I think they do. You’re beatiful”
Carla said “It’s your song now. You can sing it if you like” and gave Dina back her bra. [Catharsis Move]
Thoughts
I played a character who had lots of ambition and very little sense. I wanted to see if she would get in trouble and wow, did she (3 angst by the end). I was also cognizant of how much danger I was really putting her in. Because this was my first game and because I didn’t know what real trouble looked like I never rolled use the goods. I think in a future game though, knowing that trouble is incremental and not immediately catastrophic, I’d be more daring.
I think the most important element for me in this was to see the fail states and to see that you don’t go directly to battery or rape when a roll is missed. It is the smaller aggressions like tucking the hair behind your head, and the implications (“do you want to party?”) that sold the game for me.
I also realized that as a white guy, playing a Latina girl, my own personal stakes were lower than than those of the women at the table. I know about misogyny and the ways women’s bodies are commodified, but having never experienced it myself, I think I was more cavalier about getting into trouble than I might have been if the consequences were part of my lived experience.
I think the game makes people feel uncomfortable by design. It’s a lot easier to gloss over the sexualization of girls and violence against women by not thinking about it. By making it front and center, we’ve got to acknowledge it. But also, but putting it in a game, we create opportunities to take bolder actions than we would in the real world. I believe that getting revenge and responding to the societally accepted mistreatment of young women with brutal violence can be cathartic.
Apropos of nothing, I loved swearing as Dina. If anything it showed her lack of maturity. She just vomited expletives when things went wrong. Using all the trappings and aesthetics of being an adult without understanding what any of them meant.
