Alissa Razatski (part 2)

Three weeks after Alissa Razatski's visit, an Aeroflot plane from Moscow Sheremetyevo landed at its destination, Yakutsk Airport. On board was Evelyn, who still could not believe how fast everything had gone. She had assumed that getting a work visa for Russia would take months, but apparently the rules were different if you had Alissa Razatski's money and influence. Evelyn had ended the rent of her appartment and stored her possessions in a container. Everything else - flight, papers, visa, money - was taken care of by Anouchka, the HR Manager of Mappisi, the company Evelyn would work at. And so she arrived at Yakutsk Airport with only a small suitcase, nervous but eager for this adventure.

She'd had doubts when she heard her new company was located in Siberia. She had no idea how she had to prepare for a stay in one of the coldest regions on Earth. But Anouchka had assured her everything would be taken care of. They'd even bring fitting clothes to the airport, where they would pick her up. So there was no need to bring anything at all - the company provided it all. They were, after all, used to the conditions.

And indeed, when Evelyn entered the arrival hall, she quickly spotted the two women, one of them holding up a sign with her name.
"Evelyn?" the blonde one asked when Evelyn approached them.
"Yes," Evelyn confirmed.
"Great to meet you. I'm Anouchka, and this is my colleague Tatjana."
Anouchka was an attractive woman, with a friendly face and a broad smile that made you feel at ease. Evelyn was surprised how young she looked. Not even 30, she'd guess, and already HR manager. Tatjana looked about the same age; she was brown-haired and looked more reserved. Both were wearing long, very thick down coats with large fur-trimmed hoods. Anouchka's was white, Tatjana's black. They had left them unzipped inside the terminal. At the sight of those heavy coats, Evelyn immediately inquired if they had something for her to wear as well, since she had been told she needn't bring anything.
"Yes, of course," Anouchka said, pointing at a bag at Tatjana's feet. "There are your clothes. Come with us, please."
They walked through the airport while Anouchka explained: "Miss Razatski rents a small room in this airport for private use. It's excellent for occasions like this. It's also a relaxing space whenever someone from the company needs to take a flight."

They came to a door which Anouchka unlocked. After they entered the room, she locked it again.
"Okay, we're in a private area now. I'll ask you to undress completely. It will be easier," Anouchka said.
"Completely?" Evelyn asked uncertainly.
"Yes. You'll see why in a minute."
Evelyn had no idea what was happening but she complied. Soon she was completely naked, and Anouchka showed her a large diaper.
"You'll have to wear this," she said. "We have a long way to travel, through mostly deserted places. So there won't be any toilets on the way. Trust me, if you have to pick between peeing with your naked arse in the icy wind, and a diaper, you'll love the diaper."
Although she was reluctant to be put in a diaper, Evelyn saw the logic of that, and Anouchka helped her put it on. Next was a pair of black plastic pants to go over the diaper.

Then Tatjana pulled a short black nylon down jacket from the bag and handed it to Evelyn.
"Do I need to wear this on my bare skin? Shouldn't there be something underneath?" Evelyn asked.
"No, it's a down sweater," Anouchka explained. "It's supposed to be worn like that."
Indeed the garment turned out to have only a short zip, and Evelyn pulled it over her head. It was comfortable enough, although it was odd to feel the nylon on her bare skin. She let the sweater's hood fall behind her and zipped it up slightly, so that her cleavage was at least covered.

"Now this," Anouchka said, and the thing she was holding was enormous. It was a down suit, with attached feet and mittens, incredibly thick and in bright red. Evelyn looked apprehensive.
"Don't you have anything else?" she asked. The down coats the two women wore looked much nicer. She had hoped for something similar.
"No, sorry, this is all we brought. But really, it's for the best. You're not used to a Siberian winter. You'll be glad to have this on once we're outside."
That was true, so Evelyn took the suit and started pushing her legs in. Oddly, the opening was at the back. After she had one foot in the attached down bootie, she tried to put her other leg in, but standing on the smooth and thick nylon turned out to be hard. Anouchka held her while she put her second leg in. Then she stood somewhat unsteadily on her two down booties while holding the rest of the suit in front of her.
"Now the arms," Anouchka instructed, and Evelyn slid her arms all the way into the sleeves, reaching the attached mittens. These were so thick she wouldn't be able to do anything with her hands. Meanwhile, Tatjana was pulling a drawstring tighter around each of her ankles, knotting them off once they were tightened. Then she repeated this with drawstrings at the wrists. "So the suit stays properly in place," she explained.

"Okay, before you put your head into the hood, we'll put the hood of your down sweatshirt up," Anouchka said. She pulled the hood up, zipped the collar, and pulled the drawstrings tighter until only Evelyn's eyes and nose were showing.
"Now put your head in the hood of the suit."
Evelyn did this, and Anouchka helped pulled the rest of the suit over her shoulders. Tatjana started zipping it up immediately.
"I can't put the hood down," Evelyn said, noticing the opening at the front was too small for that.
"No," Anouchka laughed, "in Siberia that's not necessary. I'll pull it a bit tighter. Once we're outside you'll want as little exposed skin as possible."
She pulled the drawstrings until even Evelyn's nose was covered, leaving just a small hole for her eyes. Then she knotted this drawstring as well.

Finally, they produced a pair of red Moonboots. These were incredibly oversized, to fit over the thick down booties and the legs of the suit. They truly looked like the boots of a giant. In addition to being made to fit over the suit, they were abnormally thick. The polyurethane layer was 5 cm thick all around. At their widest, the boots  were close to 30 cm, making them almost round. The shafts were high enough to reach her knees, which combined with the thick rubber soles to make them very high as well. But clearly there was no alternative. She couldn't walk around on the slippery booties of the suit. So with Anouchka's help, she stepped into the giant boots, and Tatjana fastened the drawstrings.

Evelyn took some tentative steps while Tatjana gathered her clothes and put them in the bag. Then Anouchka unlocked the door and they left. Evelyn stomped after them awkwardly. It was like having your feet in concrete blocks, she thought - not as heavy, perhaps, but just as clunky. She was also very aware that nobody was dressed remotely like her, and that's she stood out like a lighthouse in her bright red suit. Not to mention the hood that left just enough space to see through and the gigantic Moonboots. At least they would be outside soon, she thought. Then she would probably be glad to wear these things. After all, people here were used to this weather, but she certainly wasn't. And once they arrived at Mappisi, she'd get her own clothes, and be able to pick what she wore. She'd be able to wear something at least a bit more fashionable.

Of course, she was completely, absurdly wrong about that.

Meanwhile they reached the exit doors and Anouchka and Tatjana zipped up their coats, pulled up their hoods, and put gloves on. Once outside, in the freezing wind, Evelyn was indeed comfortable in the heavy down suit. They walked towards the car, a sturdy SUV. Once they got there, Anouchka quickly slipped out of her coat and sat behind the wheel. Tatjana handed Anouchka's coat to Evelyn. "Here, you should put this on for extra warmth," she said. Evelyn looked doubtful. "I don't know if..." she began. "Come on, hurry up please," Tatjana interrupted her. "We really need to get going. We don't want to be driving at night if we can avoid it."

Evelyn put her arms in the sleeves of the white coat and tried to push her mittened hands through them. Tatjana helped her pull the coat over her arms. She zipped it up completely and did up the button flap. Then she opened the back door of the car and gestured for Evelyn to get in. When Evelyn sat down, Tatjana reached for the seat belt. This was an unusual design. It consisted of two belts that started above her shoulders and were clicked in place next to her hips. The two vertical belts went over her shoulders, holding them tight against the back of her seat. In addition, they were connected by two horizontal straps; one at the end of the belts, going over her hips and crotch area, and one higher up, just below her breasts. As soon as the seat belts were clicked in, the belts pulled tight, and unlike normal seat belts, they would stay tight with no way to pull them loose except by using the unlocking mechanism. Which, as Evelyn would soon find out, was impossible when your hands were in thick mittens.

The effect of this remarkable seat belt was that Evelyn was forced to sit rigidly in her seat. Her arms and legs were technically free, but due to the combination of her thick, movement hindering clothes and the way her body was fixed in place, there was really not much she could do. The hood of the white coat had gotten bunched up behind her head, and Tatjana pulled it out and put it properly over her head. Then she closed the car door.

Evelyn was only just finding out how tight the seat belt was, and how helpless she was. The hood of her red suit was also still tied to leave only her eyes showing, and with the white hood even loosely pulled over her head, she would heat up quickly. She wanted to ask one of the women to at least open the red hood, but then she noticed there was safety glass between the front seats and the back seats of the car. She heard nothing of the front compartment, and they couldn't hear her. She struggled to reach the drawstring of her hood and tried to unknot it, but with those mittens on she stood no chance. She wanted to knock on the safety glass to attract attention, but the belts over her shoulders gave her no room to move at all, so she couldn't even reach it. Gradually it began to dawn on her that she really was stuck for however long the drive would take.

Meanwhile Tatjana sat down in the passenger seat. "Bloody cold out there," she said to Anouchka. "Better turn the heating up."
"Full blast," Anouchka agreed.