Week 5

[grimgrinningghosts]

[...So that was a mess. All of it was a mess, and things don't look to be improving any time soon. With tensions at an all-time high and conditions worsened, it seems pretty safe to say that this whole week promises a great deal of foreboding atmosphere.

But, hey, things aren't entirely bad. Just as Randall promised, you're now able to leave the Manor! 

Just don't stay out there for too long. There's still a lot of you, and you just can't afford to lose numbers.

24 guests remain]

[SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY]

[OOC: and don't forget to fill out this week's activity check!]

Comments

[hasit]

Of course not. [Leia chuckles, turning so she can arrange herself behind Kim's back, and reaches for that ponytail to pull the elastic out.]

My mother would've never let me out of the house with such a simple hairstyle. Growing up in politics meant everything had to be elaborate.

[grabbing a brush and running it gently through Kim's hair to ease out any tangles.]

[pinkflip]

Really? I had no idea that's what was expected. You had to be good at diplomacy and haircare?

[ There's no joking tone in her voice, she's genuinely interested! Mmm, how fun. ]

[hasit]

Oh, yes. And elocution, and mathematics, and programming...

[Leia snorts.] Trust me. I could go on. [She sets the brush aside and runs her fingers through Kim's hair instead, getting a feel for the texture, seeing how thick it is. How much hair she's got to work with. With her fingertips, she starts to part her hair from ear to ear.]

[pinkflip]

[ Oh, that feels nice. For a moment, Kim forgets to say anything, just relishing the Leia's touch on her head.

... ] You know, it's really been awhile since I've done anything like this with my mom. She's been living far away and before that, I...didn't really have the time.

[hasit]

Oh? I'm sorry to hear that. [She really is. She knows what it's like, to miss your mother...Breha Organa had perished, along with her husband, on Alderaan when Leia wasn't much older than Kim, and her real mother died giving birth to her and Luke.

With the top half of Kim's hair separated, she pins it up to keep it out of the way, and begins to braid the lower half into a winding coil.]

You must miss her an awful lot.

[pinkflip]

[ It's a small comfort to hear. Kim would nod, but she doesn't want to mess up Leia's styling. ]

I do. She...remarried, recently? To a great guy, but because of that she moved with him to France. [ A light smile on her face, a little sad. ] She visited, but it wasn't really the same as having her right there.

[hasit]

Oh? Is that so? That's a shame. I'd...have given anything to have more time with my mom.

[Her voice gets a little sad.]

France, huh? That's the place Remy and Beast and Kit are from? and Gaston?

[SHE GUESSES]

[pinkflip]

[ She catches that... Maybe she should follow up there, in a moment. ]

Um, yeah! Paris. A super romantic city. It's pretty far away, especially when you've got responsibilities and stuff, but she likes it there. She's really happy, happier than I'd seen her in a long time.

[hasit]

It's sweet of you to be so supportive of your mom.

[Her finger snakes behind Kim's ear to pull out another strand of hair, and she murmurs an apology in case it's a ticklish spot.]

Sometimes...someone else's happiness is almost enough to ease your own unhappiness.

[pinkflip]

[ A light giggle; not too ticklish, but just enough. Kim's lips pull in thought.]

I think that too. If someone I love is happy, then...I can at least be happy for them. [ A light hum. ] Is...this something you'd do with her? With, um, your own mom?

[hasit]

Exactly. [Leia goes quiet for a moment, but when she speaks again there's still a note of humour in her voice.]

When I was young enough not to mind someone else tugging at my hair, yes. She was gentle, of course, but I was such an impatient little thing it's a wonder she even bothered.

[pinkflip]

[ Another giggle, this time from amusement. ]

You were a firecracker, huh? Ohhh, that makes sense. With the things you've been through, you had to have some spunk when you were little.

[hasit]

That's certainly one way of putting it. Though most people weren't nearly as polite about it. I heard the words 'pain in the ass' a whole lot.

[She doesn't seem all that bothered by it. After all, it's basically a point of pride at this point.]

[pinkflip]

What? No, a girl has to stand up for herself! [ Raises her head a li- wait no leia's still doing her hair ] They probably just were jealous.

[hasit]

Don't get me wrong, I agree wholeheartedly. [Leia chuckles as she works, fingers braiding deftly.] It just wasn't expected for a girl of my station to act that way.

[pinkflip]

But you proved them all wrong, didn't you? You became a general, after all! I bet everyone was proud of you.

[hasit]

[She chuckles as she tucks a pin into the end of the first braid.]

I suppose you're right. It's different, looking at everything that's happened when I'm so removed from the situation. At the time, it all just felt like...the thing to be done. The next step in the natural progression of things.

[pinkflip]

...I get that. That's how it felt when I decided to leave my friends. From the, um, the hero thing, I was doing. It was all so sudden, but it felt...time.

[hasit]

That's not an easy choice to make, but when you get that feeling...it makes it just a little easier.

[The bottom half of Kim's hair dealt with, Leia unclips the top part and begins to section it out.]

[pinkflip]

But it's okay to still have...second-thoughts about feelings, right? Even if you think you did the right thing?

[ Leia seems like the kind of person to talk to about this, right? Right?? ]

[hasit]

Of course. Kim, your...[How does she put this?]

Your feelings are your own. Nobody can tell you that they're right or wrong except you, as long as they're not harmful toward anyone else.

[pinkflip]

[ She lets out a light sigh. She's still sorting through all of those- if they're harmful or not, but... ]

Thanks, Leia. I always feel better talking to you about stuff.

[hasit]

[That makes her smile as she sets about twisting a part of Kim's hair into something like a victory roll.]

Well, that's what I'm here for, you know.

[pinkflip]

I know, I know... [ She squirms, just a little, to get a look at her hair. ] Oh...! It looks really, really amazing so far!

[hasit]

[Leia holds the chunk of hair she's working with steady while Kim move to check her progress, and smiles.]

I'm glad you think so. This is something you'd wear during, say, a springtime festival. Some kind of celebration.