As the girls made their way home on the Metro, Marta bemoaned the fact they hadn't done any of the things they had originally planned for the day, not even a trip to the shops, but Anna looking her in the eye said what had happened was far more important, and she should be feeling proud of herself. At home there were three boys playing in the garden, Ella agreed to have Victor for the day to help out Magda, as the coast was clear the girls updated their mum on the day's events, Ella holding back the tears was united with Anna that Marta's selfless act had saved that poor girl from another night on the streets, and in all likelihood an increasingly bleak future.

Marta was a little embarrassed by the fuss, stating she needed to get on with some work in her room, and she wanted to phone Karl, when she called and tried to apologise for how she ruined their date, he was very understanding saying there was nothing to apologise for, she was a heroin of the first order and how brave she had been. To change the subject she asked if they could go out tonight or spend Sunday together, they spent time talking about various ideas, eventually the consensus was for another cycle ride this time in the local neighbourhood as she wanted to become familiar with the area.

As per normal Marta also had secondary reasons for this plan, but then so did Karl, when he had said the previous evening he would like Marta to meet his parents, the truth was his mum had been constantly badgering him to bring his girlfriend home, so he hoped to get her off his back by telling her Marta would join them for Lunch the next day.

Boy did he have things to learn about females, when he spoke to his mum, his dad sat back grinning as she complained of the lack of notice, and how she had nothing in, though Karl knew there was loads of food in the house, next she was all in a flap about what she was going to wear. Karl's dad then got it in the neck for slinking behind his newspaper, at which point Karl wished he could say 'beam me up Scotty', or maybe start the day again with a reset button.

When the family had brought their bikes a couple of weeks back Igor had gone all out, taking advice about all the possible extras, the boys had knee and elbow protection, for when the training wheels came off. The girls being older felt they were too cool, and besides, so much better coordinated, and therefore didn't need them. Igor did insist that everyone got helmets, and the girls also got panniers as Marta said Karl had those on his bike, but she had only just seen fit to attach them this morning for their day out.

Karl showed up early to find Marta sitting on the ground legs astride the back wheel as she made the last adjustments needed to fit the panniers, with tools laid out neatly by a small box at her side. The open leg stance was reminiscent of so many site photos he had seen, and even though a layer of denim blocked the view, he still sprung a woody at the pose.

He quickly moved to kneel down beside Marta giving her a kiss hoping she hadn't seen the movement in his jeans. Faces close Marta spoke quietly.

"We're girlfriend and boyfriend right?" at his nod she went on, "Last week you shook me up, changed my view about me, about those marks, the ones that aren't important any more. So now it's my turn to help you out, I know how guys react", she said looking down between them, "I know a lot of the time they have no control over it, so don't worry, I'll take it as a compliment, OK?"

Karl knew she must have felt it before, when they were pressed together kissing, but the red faced boy was somehow tongue tied that she had spoken of the 'elephant in the room', so OK it wasn't that big, but her statement had nevertheless surprised him.

He stood as Marta tidied away the tools, he then helped her up, and earned another kiss as she bumped against the subject she had spoken of, he thought she looked cute with a smudge of grease on her forehead, but he told her, as he didn't want to get in trouble later.

When they were ready to set off, Marta said how she wanted to get a digital camera, as the day before hadn't worked out the as planned, she wanted to take some pictures while they were out today.

Karl pointed out they would need to go right into town, besides it would need charging before she could use it, then he said she could use his camera, as he had it with him, pleased Marta kissed him again saying what a practical boyfriend she had. Marta checked the local area street atlas she had conned out of the house agent, tracing the route for the first stop of the day.

They stopped at the T junction, it was BIG, she couldn't guess how many rooms, the garden, no on second thoughts - make that the grounds, were in a sorry state, weeds had taken over, totally unkempt, the lawns hadn't been cut all summer, and stuff was dumped on the driveway - perfect.

Her father had taught her, being in maintenance was a bit like being an emergency doctor, triage your patient to determine the superficial from the life threatening, the vendor's agent had seen what they wanted him to see, though he should have known better, but of course he wasn't an expert, he was just a salesman when all said and done.

Karl was given his orders, wide angle shots from all four sides of the house, then shots showing the view outwards across the grounds as seen from the house, overlap the shots so he had everything. Then she wanted each wall, next every door and window close up, focus on capturing any of the architectural details, and anything that looked damaged, she even wanted pictures of the driveway, the gates, and the paths around the house.

After placing their bikes out of sight of the road, Marta began her own snooping, at one of the smashed rear windows she looked in to see the carnage, the puddles had dried out but left impressive stains, and the water pistols Anna had suggested, had made a nice job of the ceilings above, a little coloured water went a long way.

She went to find Karl, then dragged him back to the smashed rear window, asking him for a demonstration of how to use the camera, before he had a chance to say anything she was up on the sill and in through the window. He tried to get her to come out and was about to follow, but was again told what to do, act as lookout and guard the bikes.

Marta went from room to room taking shots of anything and everything, glad that these digital cameras did not have the limited capacity of old film cameras, she even took shots of the views from the bedroom windows, noting the closest neighbour was a small bungalow that could be seen through the trees to the back of the house. She thought the house must be really old, from the style it could have been built in the early 1900's though it had to have been updated, with extra bathrooms added at some point, she could tell some parts had been changed about, her dad would know for sure, that is if the owner was as desperate to sell as it seemed he was.

A relieved Karl grasped her waist and helped her down, she kissed him again before pulling the window closed, mission accomplished they rode off to Marta's next port of call, the local parade of shops, to visit the newsagent which their family often used. Greeting Marta he asked what he could do for her today, perhaps she wanted some more sweets for her brothers, but no, today she was after more magazines, only this time life - style ones, for the well to do set, with those beautiful colour spread features on house and gardens, that were so popular with the bored wives of the executives living in this area.

The new panniers proved useful as she had a nice haul, now it was Karl's turn, his route took in a local library, then on past a private sports centre which had a pool, there were other small local parks, and then she found they were at the block where Karl lived.

She followed round to the back where he could lock both bikes in a small shed, pleased with his surprise he told Marta they were having lunch with his parents.

He didn't expect the shocked reaction, or to be told he was an idiot, first his mum now Marta, saying how she was only wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, not a nice dress, and how she would have made an effort if he had warned her. Knowing she was expected, she couldn't back down, she hadn't even brought a gift of any kind, what would his parents think. Digging through the panniers she opened her make-up bag to find a small mirror in order to touch up her appearance, before facing his family.

With her rapid heart beat she wondered if this is how new models felt, first time naked in front of a camera, as Karl fumbled for his keys to unlock the door. After the initial greetings Marta apologised for the way she was dressed stating how she hadn't been told about the lunch, as she had only found out about it two minuets ago, giving Karl a pointed dirty look.

Elena, Karl's mum put a sympathetic arm round Marta's shoulder, saying her son needed a lot of training, it had taken her years to train Denys his father, with that she lead Marta off to the kitchen where they could talk leaving the dumb males behind.

It seemed only a short time later they were chatting away like old friends, Elena confiding she had been a little worried her son had been so shy, especially when it came to meeting girls, and Marta said she had been pretty much a wallflower until recently. Elena broached the subject of the studio, saying how they had at first been shocked, but having seen a few of the pictures and realising the employment it created, saw it as a power for good in the lives of all the girls who joined, and it also created employment for so many other people.

Soon Marta was pouring her heart out, telling the tale of the desperate girl they had found on the streets two nights ago, and how Karl had played his part watching over her, and not complaining how she had abandoned him part way through the evening.

Elena had not been aware of what had happened on Friday night, saying perhaps her son was not beyond hope, if he was prepared to help with her mercy mission. Marta then told her of how their meeting had progressed on the following day, and that Irisha had been signed up without even an audition, Ivan had then arranged for them both to have the medical care they obviously needed, so hopefully Yana would be well again soon.

Under other circumstances Elena might have been embarrassed to have a guest helping in the kitchen and serving up, but she was just so taken with the girl, it made her think how nice it must be to have a daughter. Talking over the men as if they weren't there, Elena said it had only taken eighteen years to train Denys, and he was nearly house broken as he had managed to set the table without being told. As Karl was about to speak his father interrupted him saying not to steal the merit points he had just gained with his wife.

She liked Karl's parents, and the meal was great, Karl must only have been complimenting her mum, to say she was a far better cook. Marta found that Elena worked in a department of local government, she described herself as a paper pusher, and Karl's dad was a technical writer, a job she had never heard of. He explained how when you made any complicated device, somebody had to write instructions on how to operate it, the do's and don'ts, and on how to look after and repair it.

When Marta said it looked like Karl got his academic genes from both sides, his smart reply was to say he got his jeans at a designer store in town, earning a jab in the ribs for such a poor attempt at humour. It was amazing where the time went, as after they had eaten the conversation flowed easily, and she found Karl's parents knew all about her family, and they were up to date on the happenings at the studio, aware of Anna's rising popularity, and about some of her own contributions.

Karl teased that he must be the best teacher as Marta was learning a lot about computers, but she said it was his own fault for being too slow if he was having trouble learning English, for she was having no problems teaching her younger brothers. When he talked of the night school workload, she conceded he had a point, then said with a smirk she would place him in the remedial class, or work out a reward scheme, suddenly realising how that sounded Marta, began to stutter and went bright red.

There was laughter all round, as it began to settle Marta peeped out between her fingers, and it started up again. Elena grasped Marta's hand giving her a brief friendly squeeze, "Sometimes the most innocent lines cause the biggest laughs as they are unintended, don't worry next time you come round we can upset Karl, I'll get out the baby albums, and then it will be his turn to be embarrassed."

On the way home Karl pointed out the Metro station he used to get to her house when not cycling, then he showed her the most direct route for biking back. They arrived to find Igor had just finished washing his shiny new MPV in front of the house, the boys had been sent in after getting soaked in their efforts to help. Seeing Karl, Igor had some questions about using spreadsheets on his new toy, so they both went off to the study, a short while later when Ella came out, she found Marta putting away the hose and cleaning kit, saying her dad had left her to do all the work, and stolen away her boyfriend to boot.

They went to the kitchen to talk, Anna was upstairs supervising the boys in the bathroom, it had been amazing that in cleaning the car, they had managed to get both wet and dirty.

On hearing about how Karl had pulled off a stunt to upset his mum and girlfriend by not considering how they would like more notice of an important lunch date, Marta said he was probably not beyond redemption, he just needed training. Ella said at least her boys had the guiding influence of three females, so they might grow up to be more civilised.

It was not difficult to persuade Karl to stay for supper, as it involved eating and spending more time with Marta, he had retrieved the required cable while he had been home so they could transfer the photos to Marta's laptop, then they loaded them up to Igor's and Anna's PC's as well. When Anna arrived the trio ran through the pictures, then studied the various magazines to see how houses of a similar style appeared when done up to look their best.

A subtle two tone paint finish seemed in vogue, but then Anna found one example that also had some fine detailing in a third colour causing the architectural features to stand out more vividly, raising it above the rest. After choosing two or three possible colour schemes, the girls started on the pictures of the grounds, when Anna asked about the bungalow which was surrounded by a low hedge of shrubs. Marta remarked it was their nearest neighbour and with the mature garden could only really be seen from the back bedroom windows, the other adjoining properties were much better shielded behind high walls and the massive mature planting around the edges.

The girls then discussed how to improve the visual appeal of the grounds which would involve the minimum effort or outlay, impatiently Karl asked why they were so keen on the paint colour and landscape, surely they needed to think about the soundness of the house.

From the looks he got from both girls he had a sinking feeling he had just asked a dumb question, Marta patting him on the head said it was all about first impressions, so they were 'set dressing' to sell the house.

"Look we 'helped' the house agent think the place was in an awful state, it does need some work and dad's got plans for that, but when it's finished we need to sell it quickly. When a rich family come to view it, the wife will be impressed that it looks nicer than the ones she's seen in these magazines, and she will make her husband buy the house"

From Marta's smug grin he couldn't help feel she had it all sewn up, apparently it was all to do with the term 'kerb appeal', where someone would take an instant liking to the place, so before they even took a look inside, they already had a favourable opinion. When he voiced his concerns they might be wasting their time if the sale didn't work out his fears were eased as Marta said the research they were doing cost very little, and if it came to nothing this time, they could use it when their next opportunity came up.

When Karl asked how she always had an answer, Marta said it was because girls were just naturally smarter than boys, Karl for once showed his maturity by biting his lip rather than coming back with a reply, realising whatever he said, it would get him in trouble.

About eight that evening Karl said his goodbyes, and Marta went with him to open the garage so he could get his bike, and they could say good night together properly, returning she found Anna showing their dad the pictures Marta had taken. Igor with raised eyebrow asked about the pictures from inside the house.

"I, er,.. dropped the camera through the open window, and it must have gone off?"

With a rye smile Igor claimed how odd that it should have bounced right through each room before she managed to retrieve the errant device. They were joined by Ella so the adults sat in front of the screen with the girls looking over their shoulders as Igor paged through the images. Often in teaching mode with his kids, he pointed out original features of the house that were worth emphasizing, and others where the reverse was true such as the inset hollows of a bricked up doorways.

Marta said he was thinking with his old head on, not his new entrepreneurs head, the men who painted the boys room could do a trick painting so it looked like the door was open to the garden. That would change a negative feature into a special one, though she couldn't remember what it was called.

"Trompe l'oeil", Anna stated confidently, "It's an effect so it looks like you can step into the painting, we covered it in drama, you see it in the backdrops at the studio quite often."

"That would add a touch of class and raise it above the 'ordinary' executive house, to have works of art as part of the fabric of the interior could add a 'wow' factor, a term I've heard used these days, and I think my daughters know where to find the right people."

With the images and the magazines for inspiration a whole slew of ideas poured fourth for the transformation of a house they didn't have yet, Ella even suggested various scented plants, and a herb garden by the kitchen window, so the place would smell homely. When the girls talked about the exterior colour schemes, Igor said he knew a man with a paint warehouse, to whom he had passed a few orders in the past week, and he was sure he could get a reasonable price for all the decorating products they would need.

Marta had been scribbling notes during the brainstorming, she would type them in later when she had ruminated upon them, ideas often gelled better if she slept on them, plus she had thoughts on any number of things she wanted to investigate on the internet. It was great that her sister and the other girls made an income from their pictures being on the internet, but it did have other uses too.

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For those of you who are still with me - a comment or two might be helpful, did you like the Marta's meeting with Karl's folks? Does anyone want any other hints/spoilers of what lies further along the trail? Not having my own 'on topic' blog, website, or e-mail address, I often visit the forum on this site to join the current subjects under debate.

In chapter 29 Ann pulls off a double header of two studio sets back to back, and both sisters learn new and interesting things.