Am I Pretty?

[sansseraph]

Who: Lailah and Mikleo
Broadcast: N/A (only to a certain water seraph at first, anyway)
Action: S.S. Huntress, in Lailah's room
When: 1/10, hours before her date with Zaveid (so very early morning)

[It's been a long time since Lailah's been on a date with someone. Her duty to the Shepherds, as well as generally the rest of the world, has kept such luxuries to a minimum for her. Honestly, she's excited and happy for it, if also a bit nervous. That nervousness won't stop her from taking a day to feel like a normal seraph, though.

She has the make-up and dress prepared, but she stares at her hair with mild discontent. She needs a second opinion, and there's really only one person she can think of to help her out and might be up at this hour.

Lailah sends a quick voice message to Mikleo.]

Mikleo? I hope I'm not interrupting anything or waking you up.

Comments

[nerdeology]

[The nice thing about being a seraph is that sleep is pretty optional, and since the whole malevolence... thing... he's been sleeping a lot less than he used to. He's in bed but awake to receive her message, so it only takes him a moment to respond. He does keep his voice down, though; Sorey's usually a heavy sleeper, but there's no need to risk disturbing him.]

Not at all. What is it?

[sansseraph]

[...This has suddenly become a little more embarrassing to admit. Oh, well. Lailah's committed and she's not about to back down!]

Um, well...I was wondering if you had some time to help me with my hair?

[Mikleo doesn't even need to see her to know that she's blushing.]

I, um, might have...a date...in a few hours, so any help would be appreciated.

[nerdeology]

[....

....

w h a t]

A date!?

[WHO'S DATING MOM

WHO'S DATING MOM]

[sansseraph]

[Lailah almost drops her communication device, but she saves it!! Just don't mind the static from her fumbling. She laughs a little nervously.]

Zaveid asked me out, and I felt that maybe it was a good time to accept and see where it goes.

[She's blushing so hard right now. Maybe she'll consider it a good thing that Mikleo can only hear her.]

[nerdeology]

[zaveid

zaveid is dating mom

There's a long moment where he doesn't respond; he might actually be a little bit in shock right now. It's not the least bit surprising that Zaveid would flirt or even ask someone, but Lailah's actually taking it seriously. Which means it might... actually be serious?

y i k e s

Finally there's the sound of someone crawling out of bed.]

I'll, er. I'll be there shortly.

[Yeah, he better not wake Sorey up for this one.]

[sansseraph]

[If Lailah wasn't nervous about her first date in a long time, she'd find Mikleo's reaction amusing. She still kind of faintly thinks it's funny, but mostly she just hopes he says he'll help.

So, when her water son says he'll be over, she can't help a huge, joyful grin.]

Thank you, Mikleo!

[She'll bake him cookies after this.]

[nerdeology]

[YEAH ABOUT THAT.....

Anyway, it's only a short while later that he's knocking on her door, still baffled, but fully prepared to help.]

Lailah?

[sansseraph]

[Lailah hurries to open the door and Mikleo will be greeted by her not wearing her outfit. Rather, she's wearing her date dress to save her the hassle of not ruining her hair while putting it on. She looks happy, at least, though maybe a little nervous.]

Hello, Mikleo! Thank you so much for helping me out on such, ah, abrupt notice.

[The fire seraph steps aside to let him in and shuts the door behind him. He'll notice that her hair is already loose and flowing freely, given that she's holding it up off the floor with one arm.]

[nerdeology]

[Oh, wow. That dress... she is serious. He takes it in curiously and steps inside so the door can be shut again. If she's calling this early, maybe it's better if no one disturbs them for a while.]

Not at all... you just surprised me, that's all. I had no idea you and, um, Zaveid...

[sansseraph]

[Lailah giggles a bit sheepishly.]

He has his charms.

[Like engaging in pun battles with her, encouraging her curl obsession, and generally making her laugh and smile. Perhaps most importantly, though, it's that Zaveid understands and seems to want to try despite the fact that her duty will likely take precedence.

She still wishes he'd put on a shirt, but it's fine. At this point, he'd look weird in one.]

Like I said, this seemed like a good time to see if we can make it work.

[nerdeology]

[Her reaction is enough of a sign: whatever Zaveid's flaws or his weirdness or his perversions, she genuinely looks happy and eager to try. And it's not like Zaveid is a stranger or someone they don't trust. Even if it's a little odd to imagine, family is family.

Okay, so. Not gonna pry. Not gonna worry. ...Much.]

...Do you know what you want to do with your hair, or are you looking for suggestions?

[sansseraph]

[Lailah gets a thoughtful look at the question.]

You know, I'm not too sure. I do want to do something different to it, but I haven't really decided on one. I could braid it and put some ornaments with it, or I could do something else with it.

[There are a lot of possibilities and she's not sure which one's good for today.]

[nerdeology]

Well... I can't say I'm an expert with long hair, and I've definitely never worked with hair this long. But sometimes I helped the others in Elysia, and we tried plenty of different styles. We could experiment until we find one you're happy with.

[sansseraph]

[Mikleo having some experience with styling changes things so much.]

Oh! Well, in that case, why don't we try curling my hair? If you're comfortable with that.

[She steps carefully over to her desk to sit down on it, moving her hair so that it flows over the back. Lailah looks over her shoulder to smile at him.]

This way, you'll get more practice combining fire with your water channeling.

[nerdeology]

There's a thought. We'll need something to heat up, but I won't deny that the practice could benefit us in the long run... and the short term too, of course, if it turns out well.

[Let's not be selfish about it; this is for Lailah, not his own growth. That's just a small attached perk.

He moves to stand behind her, fetching her brush to work it gently through the long locks. Her hair is soft, and it brushes easily without much tangling despite the length of it; pretty impressive, actually.]

I don't know how you manage with hair this long all the time.

[sansseraph]

Hm, I do have a metal rod that we could use? I'd thought about curling it for some time, but I've never had an excuse to try until now.

[Granted, she doesn't really need an excuse to try out different styles, but details.

Lailah giggles at the comment.]

It takes practice, and some trial-and-error. My seraphic artes also help in keeping my hair from getting too frizzy.

[nerdeology]

There's seraphic artes for hair care?

[Is there a seraphic arte for everything?!]

yo yo yo

[airily]

[ Zaveid has always stuck true to the name in his heart, his true name - Zaveid of a Promise. He says he's going to do something and he'll damn well do it, even if it takes him a hell of a long time to get there in the end. This, however, is one promise he's not exactly aching to get over and done with and there's an itch of excitement about him that he can't quite swallow back.

Meeting Lailah is easy, and he waits for a few moments before he sends a quick message to her device. He hasn't gone out of his way to look too fancy - she'd see right through that, she's always had the brains - so instead he's just tidied his hair up a bit, sorted out the cuffs on his arms (they're tucked under his pillow now) and... Actually pilled his trousers up properly.

He's trying. ]