Mikey and I were sitting over iced teas and snacks discussing our 'Asia blitz'. He seemed a little distracted.

“....What?....” I asked him.

He shook off his distraction and glanced at me. “Huh?”

“You seem distracted. Penny for your thoughts.”

“US or Australian?” he laughed hollowly.

I simply raised an eyebrow and cocked my head.

“....I was just thinking.... it's been a pretty wild ride... way more than I expected.... than either of us expected?”

My nod was as understated as his declaration. He laughed again. It still sounded conflicted.

“I never could have imagined....” he muttered. I don't know whether he was talking to me or himself. Maybe he was just thinking out loud. He shook his head and grinned. “God. The places we've seen! ….not just Hollywood, but most of the USA....”

“...AND lots of Canada and I think a bit of Mexico too!” I held up a finger.

He nodded and waved his hand in a circle.... “And Iceland and Ireland and Belgium and Stockholm and London and Paris and Marsielles... Monaco and Geneva and Vienna and Berlin and Belgium and Spain...”

I laughed. “OK Carmen San Diego... stop reciting your luggage tags! Yeah... we got around.”

He smiled at me. “AND Catalina Island ...and the Hollywood Bowl....GOD that was fun.”

I nodded, returning his smile. Then a wistful look came over his face.

“....And those were the best because I got to hang out with you. Dennis is the best.... he's told me so many juicy Hollywood stories... and about some of his adventures with Katherine when they were jetsetting around the fashion world. But you were off ...being Katherine.... we came out here to have adventures together. I know it was the cover story... but I never considered you my 'chaperon'. You were my collaborator. My partner in this adventure. My......”

“If you say 'sidekick' I'm throwing a tomatino at you.” I warned with a grin.

Mikey sighed. “....soon it's back home... to the real world. ….And with all the stuff we DID.... you and I never.... “

I shot him a curious look. With everything we had done, what hadn't we done?

He looked at me sheepishly. “Remember that first night, when I suggested we hit some posh restaurant and maybe a chic club?”

I nodded. “And I said there was no way a couple of teenaged tourists could even get in to those kind of places, let alone afford them.”

He looked at me sheepishly. “.....that wouldn't seem to be so much of a barrier....now....”

I couldn't help but smile. I told him I'd see what I could do, and as soon as we finished lunch, I got together with Dennis.

“I presume Michael told you he wants to 'do the town'?”

“He may have mentioned something about that a time or two....” Dennis grinned.

“...or two thousand?” I laughed. Dennis nodded as his grin got bigger.

“Yeah... that sounds more like it.... although in all honesty he was never really a pest about it.”

“More like a kid dropping hints about what he wants for Christmas?” I inquired with a sly smile.

“That sounds about right. So, Santa... what do you say?” Dennis grinned.

I rubbed my chin. “That depends... was he a good little boy?”

Dennis laughed. “Absolutely. He diligently did his chores, always cleaned his plate, and was a very attentive and well behaved young man.”

“Well, then...” I folded my hands primly. “It seems he deserves a reward... what do you think... a pizza party at Chuck E. Cheese's? Burgers at Carl's Jr?”

“Or we could just go clubbing. I'm sure the denizens have missed Katherine at her usual haunts.” Dennis laughed. “..Still.... I would love to see the look on Michael's face when your limo pulls up to Chuck E Cheese's!”

I mock-grimaced. “Yeah... we still have the Asian leg of the tour to get through, and something tells me if we took Michael to Chuck E Cheeses, it would get ugly quickly.... and Katherine needs to avoid any more encounters with local law enforcement.”

Dennis laughed. “Oh God! No more run ins with men in blue ….unless their uniforms are breakaways!”

I shot up and shimmied over to to him grinning like an idiot and singing at the top of my lungs “It's fun to stay with the P-D-L-A....”

He threw his head back and roared a laugh as we mock disco danced together.

When we finally calmed down, he said “what do you think... dinner and schmoozing at Cheval de Mer then hit Tritium and let our hair down?”

“I don't know what any of those places are. Are those Katherine spots?”

Dennis shot me a sly look. “Let's just say She's not unfamiliar with them. ….or they with her. She can jump the line and waltz in anytime and they won't blink.”

“OK. But I still think it's polite to make reservations....”

Dennis snorted. “The sort of folks who make reservations have to do so months in advance.”

“....Well... at least let them know we're coming?”

Dennis nodded with a smile. “I'm sure they would appreciate the warning. Sure hon. No problem. So how many will there be? You and your cousin.....”

“And you of course....”

Dennis drew back with a gasp and placed the back of his hand to his chest. “Oh, NO. No no... that's simply not done! The P.A. Makes all the arrangements but never goes along. Certainly not to CDM and Tritium! That would be ….scandalous!”

“Oh. Right. Wouldn't want to buck convention and tarnish Katherine's reputation as keeper of the status quo.” I said in an exaggerated appalled tone of voice.

Dennis snickered. “Yeah. If anyone would do something as outrageous as bringing the help along to the most exclusive restaurant in town and probably being secretly pleased at pissing everyone off, it would be Katherine.”

I smiled. “I'm not going to get her ...like... banned or anything, am I?”

Dennis shook his head and smirked. “Nah. That will just enhance her 'outlaw' reputation. She'll love it when she hears.”

“Glad to hear. Maybe you should send her some selfies when we go.”

He gasped. “I couldn't!”

I laughed. “Just tell her I made you! And if you and Michael corner any celebs for group selfies – tell them I made you!”

Dennis returned my laugh. “OK. THAT everyone will believe.”

“So is tonight too soon?” I asked uncertainly.

Dennis shook his head. “For THEM... yes. Hell, anything the rest of this year is probably too soon for them. But this is Katherine... and they're used to it. Actually, your idea of warning them was super.... they'll appreciate even a few hours notice instead of the usual ambush.”

I started to leave while Dennis picked up the phone to begin moving mountains for Katherine's night on the town with her minions. I stopped and glanced over my shoulder.

“Oh. What's the dress code?”

Dennis didn't even blink. “Don't give it a thought hon. I know the perfect outfit. You'll be dazzling!”

“Actually... I was thinking about you and Michael... he has nothing in his wardrobe for a night of hobnobbing. Do you hobnob much? Do you have anything.... what exactly is the dresscode?”

“For us... pretentious casual... ideally, an ensemble custom designed to show how much you 'aren't a slave to fashion' I'm sure I can whip something up for both of us. And of course you will be blindingly beautiful in a 'what? I just woke up like this' way...” He laughed. “Don't worry 'bout a thing. This is my element.... I could do this in my sleep!”

I left Dennis to his minionly mountain moving and found Mikey on the patio by the kitchen reading Variety.

“Looks like you took to this life like a duck to water” I laughed.

“Looks like we both did” he laughed and instantly froze up, turning to me with a look of panic.

I wasn't expecting that. I think his impulsive comment took us both by surprise. But while startled, I knew instantly that I wasn't offended.

“True.... but not quite the same way.” I grinned. And he smiled back with relief.

I eyed his copy of Variety. “Planning to be a big Hollywood bigshot?” I teased.

“Small steps cuz.” he smiled. “Some of us have to wade out a footstep at a time. We can't all dive into the deep end..”

“The shark infested deep end....” I raised my index finger grinning.

Mikey laughed. “Sharks. Giant Squids. Krakken. Cthulu....”

“All in the most expensive suits.” I laughed back.

“I have to admit, L.C.” Mikey began, all serious now. “After hanging with Dennis and hearing the stories and him explaining the things I was seeing.... after learning... what's that saying? 'How the sausage gets made'? …. well after learning about that I now know..”

“Why everyone in this town is vegan? ...or at least bulimic?” I teased, trying to lighten his mood.

He laughed dutifully. “Maybe that too... but I learned that making art and making deals are two very different skillsets that only narrowly intersect. If you're only good at one, your masterpiece will never get made.... and if you're only good at the other... well, it explains so much of what does get made.”

I nodded.

“So the trick is to be good enough at one to be able to show how good you are at the other.”

“Sounds like you've cracked it.” I smiled.

“Knowing what to do and even how ...has little to do with getting the opportunity to actually do it.”

“Before you get your foot in the door, you need to get someone to at least open it” I nodded.

“L.C. This is what I want to DO with my life. I'm not sure exactly where or how I fit in... but everything about this... resonates in me.”

“I understand.”

“Do you really? Can you get how right this all feels and how serious and focused I am on actually making this happen?”

I swallowed hard and nodded. “Yes. I really do. The details are completely different, but I get it. You see what can be and know that no matter what, you will not be deterred from making it happen. Whatever success you may or may not meet with, you will not be distracted or deterred.”

He gave me a long look and nodded. “Yeah. The details are completely different..... but... I know you do get it.”

I clapped my hands together and brought us back on track. “So. Since part of your plan for world domination involves not just seeing but being seen... AND because – as you reminded me – we never really DID the town the way you wanted, and ...yes... now we ….ok, I... can... I have to ask you...”

He raised an eyebrow.

“Do you have any plans for tonight? ….and if so, can they be broken?”

Mikey broke into a slow grin and I knew, yes... I was the best chaperon ever!

I think I always knew it – at least subconsciously – ever since the encounter with uncle Kevin, but I had to admit... Dennis is a wizard. I can't imagine where I ...or Katherine for that matter... would be without him.

The 'reservations' (actually warnings of impending crashes) were confirmed. Mikey and Dennis were decked out like Details cover models. And I was.... let's just say Dennis knows how to outfit Katherine for maximum impact.

I really did not think I would be able to slip into that outfit unless he spray painted it on. Still, Dennis knew Katherine – and her capabilities. And, since I was eerily close to Katherine's ...odd... proportions, his skill was proven once again.

I stared at the mirror and tried to grasp that I was looking at an actual person and not a photoshopped magazine cover... I had a hard enough time believing that Katherine Keller could actually look like this …. let alone a Katherine Keller impersonator... I did not even try to wrap my mind around the fact that the Katherine Keller impersonator was actually ME – the gangly kid from Newstead who spent most of his pathetic life hiding from bullies and evading a disapproving dad.

I just looked at the mirror, thought 'yeah... THAT'S Hollywood glamour – thrown into overdrive' and imagined how the paparazzi would climb over each other for a piece of HER. Completely blocking the fact that whatever I saw in the mirror had any relation to …..me.....

I brushed LC... aside and threw myself into the moment... into the role... I was Katherine-bleeping-Keller! I was the eccentric star of the biggest cult hit since Showgirls, and I was going to make the most of my moment of fame... and use it as best I could to get my cousin Michael and Katherine's unsung virtual sibling Dennis, the opportunity and recognition they so richly deserved.

I strutted out to the foyer, looped each of my guys into a joined arm, and strode boldly to our awaiting Jet Ranger.