"What?" Katie blurted out. "Pole dancing? Like a stripper? Or is that some 'Savvy-ism' for a gang bang?"
"Ree-lax," Savvy dismissed the surprise in her voice with a casual wave of a gloved hand. "Not like we're goin' on stage to git naked fer a'bunch a business fellas an' frat boys ta stuff our panties fulla dollar bills. Least not right away. I wonder if that's the final?"
"Savvy!" Kate protested, trying to remember if her contract with the lab contained a morals clause or not.
"Oh hush. It's a six week beginner class put on by a friend a'mine. Mondays and Thursdays hangin' with bored housewives lookin' ta spice things up in tha bedroom. Maybe a coupla' baby dancers gettin' some pointers. Suppose ta be a real good workout."
"A friend of yours?" Kate tried to settle in for the ride, letting the wind ruffle her long blond hair. While not her first time in Maybelle, this time Savvy drove the convertible out of the garage and both of them stayed dressed. "You know some interesting people."
"Ah know yew," Savvy agreed with her cheeriest smile, scooting the hot pink car through city traffic as if qualifying. "'Berry's a sweetheart."
"Barry? Sounds like a guy with a porn 'stache who WOULD teach pole dancing."
"Naw naw sweetie," Savvy laughed. "Its short fer 'Strawberry'. And she's about as far from bein' a guy as yew can git. Yew'll like her, Ah promise. Started strippin' ta git through school. Now she's a financial adviser but teaches the class jes'ta keep in shape."
They zipped through traffic and made it to the studio only a few minutes late once they pulled a cover over Maybelle. The class consisted of around a dozen women of various sizes and ages wearing tight tops and shorts, two assistants and the instructor gathered at the front of a number of poles spaced around the room.
"Strawberry!" Savvy called out, waving the minute the two of them walked in, interrupting conversation.
"Savvy!" the absolutely stunning redheaded instructor called out joyfully, crossing the room to sweep the belle from her feet in an enthusiastic hug. Standing a bit shorter than Jerry, she possessed a figure that would make her millions of dollars if she did porn and hid very little of it in her dancing outfit. "So glad you finally made it!"
"The timin' worked out this go-round." She returned the hug with equal fierceness until the taller woman set her down and they exchanged air kisses. "And I found a new special friend who's a bit more inta doin' 'bottom ta top' exercise."
"Meaning she doesn't get all of her workouts in the bedroom," Strawberry said with a perceptive smile. Katie didn't miss that her hand slipped down and gave Savvy's ass a familiar caress.
"Well, not ALWAYS in tha bedroom," she replied, taking Katie's hand. "Lotta workouts in the living room, kitchen, garage, bathroom...jes'cause mah faverit cardio is ridin' dick don't mean Ah cain't branch out. Katie Kitty, this is mah friend Strawberry. 'Berry, this is Katie."
"Hello Katie. It's a pleasure to meet you," Strawberry took Katie's other hand and squeezed it lightly in greeting. "Thank you for joining us today. Are you ready to join the class?"
"Sorry about that, ladies," Strawberry said, disentangling herself from Katie and Savvy and leading them back to the group. "Just goes to show, you bug someone enough, they'll actually do what you ask them to do. Unless you're married and then you might as well give up and do for yourself."
The late arrivals set down their workout bags against the wall and joined the group, Savvy greeting a few people she knew on the way. The tall redhead resumed her place at the front of the class where several large pictures of various clothed pole dancers hung on the mirrored wall.
"Welcome ladies to Basic Pole Dancing for Fitness," she said with a big welcoming grin. "In case you misread the flyer, that's 'pole' as in 'stripper pole' and not 'Polish'. Those classes are in a completely different annex and the instructor's name is Zazanna. My given name is Cassandra, but I prefer everyone call me 'Strawberry'. With me today are my assistants Mariko and Nancy."
She paused and asked everyone to introduce themselves, smiling and complimenting each woman in turn on clothing, hair, name- anything she chose to latch onto. Kate immediately recognized the technique she used, memorizing names and faces by putting in a memory trigger for herself- a good strategy that she herself used when meeting large outside groups at the lab. When they finished, she found that she too could easily put a name to each person too.
"Though Pole Dancing may be best associated with strip clubs," Strawberry continued, indicating a photo of herself wrapped around a pole on stage. "It started out as an attraction in 'Little Egypt' travelling sideshows as far back as the 1890s with and wasn't really considered a staple of stripping until the 1960s. And yes, that is a picture of me on stage in 2005 when I worked at the Skin Gentleman's Club as a featured performer to pay for college. If any of you, or your boyfriends at the time, were regulars, you've probably seen me naked."
Many of the ladies laughed. Savvy nudged her with an elbow and nodded, though Katie already suspected a bit more than sightseeing in their shared past.
"For those of you worried about having to get naked in this class, don't be. No one will take their clothes off for the things we're going to show you. Sorry Nancy." Strawberry smiled sweetly at her assistant, a small and slender brunette who sagged with visible sadness, pouting dramatically.
"We'll start out with ten very basic moves and, once you all master those, then move on to more complicated positions. We'll also talk about how to choreograph a routine for exercising, as well as one for the bedroom because, let's face it, if your man (or woman) isn't turned on by your dancing, they're probably dead. But more importantly YOU will love your body." That got another chuckle from the audience.
"Make no mistake ladies," Strawberry cautioned, moving towards one pole. "Pole dancing may be titillating to watch, and under the right circumstances, downright erotic, but it's a whole-body workout, especially your core and upper body. You'll support your own body weight with your arms a lot. We're going to work on your balance, coordination, stamina and arms. Mariko there may look like a fairy princess, but she's got guns that weightlifters envy." The willowy thin assistant nodded, then flexed into a bodybuilder pose, showing off her bare arms. "If you don't leave here sore all over, you haven't worked hard enough. You'll be tired, but you'll feel great! And if you do leave sore, I use a great massage therapist who will come to your home so when you're a puddle on the floor after she's done with you, you don't need to worry about driving anywhere.
"Now then, lets check out a demonstration of the first ten movements we're going to work on, and then we'll get started with some stretching before we break into smaller groups and try it ourselves?"
Strawberry then took the time to discuss the ten most common positions and movements used in a pole routine. She either demonstrated it herself, or one of her assistants mounted the pole as a live example of how to do it correctly. In review, she mounted the pole and did all ten in order, sliding down to the end to applause.
