enchanted forest . mingle

[misconceived]

WHO Forest planet occupants!
BROADCAST N/A
ACTION Enchanted Forest / Spa Time
WHEN Upon reaching the system (Jan. 4) to leaving it (Jan. 31)

[ It's another day, another planet for the Drift Fleet to explore. Whether it be relaxing in the landing field, checking out the spa (and subsequently getting urged to enter the woods), or taking on the Enchanted Forest's game, there's enough to do for stir-crazy Fleet members.

Just remember one thing: make it look good. ]

Comments

[hearsthesea]

Well, what do they look like?

[Give her a break, man, she's never met an elf.]

[catamite]

[sheesh, what is with you people and your elf-less worlds.]

Oh, they're really pretty. Some of them get super complicated, but even the simple ones are nice.

[hearsthesea]

[Well excuse you, what world doesn't have sentient oceans?]

Could you make one of them? I wouldn't mind trying it out.

[catamite]

[...actually, his world might. there are sentient forests and they are terrifying.

and oh how his face lights up then.]

...You mean me braid your hair? You want me to?

[hearsthesea]

[The ocean isn't terrifying! Well, not after they beat the murderous rage out of it anyway.

Nel's enthusiasm isn't quite expected, but it's certainly not unwelcome when she's already asking. It does feel a little strange, given that they've just met, but she doesn't see the harm in it...]

If it's no problem.

[catamite]

[and now that she's said yes, he can't help but gush a little.]

I used to live with a bunch of girls, and we would just all braid each other's hair all the time. I guess I miss it. ...They were really good at it, but I do know some stuff.

--Oh! And I bet that conditioner stuff will make it even easier to do.

[hearsthesea]

Will it?

[Hmmm. Points in favor of the conditioner, then. And aside from that, he seems really happy...it sounds like a good memory.]

Then teach me.

[catamite]

Okay! Have a seat.

[on the floor, in the water, on the edge of the pool, it doesn't matter]

[hearsthesea]

[Shirley chooses to sit at the edge of the pool, letting her legs bathe in the water again. Her headbands is already off, but it takes her another moment to undo her braids and straighten out her hair before setting the ties on the ground.]

There.

[catamite]

[he puts some of that leave-in conditioner in his hands so he can work it into her hair as he braids, helping the plaits stay separate from one another and be more easily woven together.

so happy about the whole thing, he dives in without a hint of shyness--carefully and quickly running fingers through the ends of her hair, combing out and dividing up tendrils.]

There are a bunch of different kinds of braids. Do you want little skinny ones, thicker ones, simple or complicated ones...

[hearsthesea]

Hm...thick, and simple. So maybe I can try and do this again later.

[Should be easy, right? She's already been braiding her own hair for a couple years now.]

[catamite]

Oh sure, it'll be easy.

[and so he gets to work weaving her hair into pretty herringbone braids.]

If you like this one, I can teach you no problem.

[hearsthesea]

I'll see when it's done, okay?

[Shirley's pretty curious about how it's going to turn out, although at the same time she's starting to feel a little self-conscious; every now and then she'll tense up for a moment, then force herself to relax. She hasn't had her hair done since she was a kid, really, so it's strange to be doing this again.]

[catamite]

[and if Nel notices the awkwardness, he doesn't show it. for his part, he seems totally comfortable hanging around half-dressed in a bathhouse, braiding some stranger's hair.]

...I'm surprised you haven't tried more things with your hair. Yours is perfect for it.

[hearsthesea]

I never had a reason. Until recently, I don't think I even had many people I could talk with about it.

[Or any. Norma and Grune would have probably been receptive to hair talk, maybe even Chloe, but before that...Shirley would have died if she talked to Senel about hairstyles, and not just because his is such a mess. The thought is just embarrassing, and Shirley starts tensing up again.]

[catamite]

[she gets a little break while he leans to the side and holds out his hand for a hair tie, to finish up her first braid.]

None at all? No sisters, or friends growing up?

[hearsthesea]

[It takes a second to figure out what he's waiting for, but Shirley quickly hands over one of the ties she's set down - trying to move as little as possible as she does, so as not to mess anything up. She's trying to take the time to figure out an answer, meanwhile, because what a question.]

I had a sister, but things weren't like that between us.

[And...she's not even going to talk about Senel. Nope.]

[catamite]

No? ...Well, maybe you're lucky. I used to have really long hair, and they just never left me alone about it.

[and... tada! he finishes and bands off the braid.]

--There! Tell me what you think. ...There's a bunch of mirrors around here if you want to see it better.

[hearsthesea]

No, it's fine.

[Shirley's just fine checking herself out in the water's reflection and--oh. It's still her hair, but the change is remarkable.]

It's so...different.

[catamite]

Really? [he scoots around so he can see her reflection too--as if it'd look any different.] It is?

[for someone who's eager to change his hair color whenever he gets the chance, this doesn't doesn't exactly seem like a shocking difference]

[hearsthesea]

You don't see it?

[It feels a lot different to her, anyway. A little weightier, and leaving more space around Shirley's neck compared to her usual style. What would it be like to wear this again? ...Hm.]

Oh, wait one second.

[She gets up out of the water and hurries over to the wall where she's left her usual clothes. She puts on her hairband - a cute little thing, pink roses alternating with turquoise beads - and turns around to display it.]

How does this look?

[catamite]

[ah! he grins wide, totally approving.]

Hey! That really looks great!

It makes you look like a princess.

[hearsthesea]

[Shirley shakes her head and laughs. It's a little strange to be compared to a princess given her actual position, but of course Nel doesn't know anything about that. Meanwhile, she's marveling at the feeling of having the braid swing around behind her neck - it's different, compared to the many smaller ones she used to wear in the front.]

I'm not sure about that, but I do like it. Can you teach me how to do it again?

[catamite]

Oh yeah, sure. It's pretty much the easiest one.

[he gestures her over so he can undo the end and rebraid it while she's watching.]

And you can do other things with it, like... work in smaller braids, or braid your usual ones like this but just smaller.

...And then there are all the other kinds of braids too, if you ever want to see those.

[hearsthesea]

[It's something of a tempting thought, but Shirley decides to refrain for the time being.]

Maybe another time. I want to start with this one now.

[She reaches out for the end of the braid, hoping to give it a try herself but not interrupting Nel's work either.]

May I?