Whirlwind Move-in

[Astra Creed]

Part 1
<2 months ago>
Lamia Scale Guild Hall - 1:20pm
Girls' Dorms

It had been nearly a week since she woke up, and Astra was finally done being tested and poked and prodded and asked things she didn’t know. Apparently she was supposed to know answers to all of these things - Who her family was, where she was from, how old she was.  Her guess was as good as theirs, and she’d told them so. Her head had stopped hurting after a few days, and all she had concluded was something had happened and she had something called amnesia. They’d frowned when she said it sounded tasty for some reason. She had looked at them and asked “what? It does.” She wasn’t sure what amnesia meant.

Actually she seemed to remember some things and not others, and it didn’t make sense. She remembered how to read and write, how to use magic, her name, and a lot of other practical things. She remembered nothing about her life, or what some words meant, and stuff like that. She also apparently had odd thoughts that no one else understood, because when she voiced them she got some interesting (and sometimes fun) reactions.

Long story short, many people at the guild Lamia Scale had been worried about her despite her insistence she was fine and she didn’t need their poking and their questions. She could figure things out on her own without all of the boring sitting around.  In the end, they’d offered to let her join them so she would have a place to stay and friends she could count on during these ‘rough times’ for her. Actually Astra was rather happy. She didn’t mind having fun relearning things. There were a lot of things she simply didn’t understand anymore, and that included what was socially acceptable and what wasn’t.  She’d already been scolded once for her behavior.

Now, she had had time to get some new clothes since her only set had been torn and dirty when she was found, and she was dressed in an outfit that she rather liked – she had what looked like a black school girl’s outfit, with sleeves that went down just past her elbows and a strange yellow eye pattern on the left under her collar. It revealed much of her torso below her chest. She was also wearing a skirt that was short, though not super short, and just because she’d liked it and she was odd, she was wearing one of those archery chest protectors on her right side that had a cross pattern that looked like two claw marks. She also had a set of dark red fingerless gloves and sneakers on. She had a single streak of bright red in her hair that went down her bangs that she rather liked. That had been there when she woke up though, so it wasn’t new.

Astra was standing outside the room of her new roommate with only a duffle bag filled with the stuff she’d been given the jewels to buy for herself. She knocked, knowing some girl named Ava was supposed to answer. Astra was bored outside the room already, and fidgeted during the few seconds she had to wait.

[Ava Brooks]

So there was some new girl. Ava had joined Lamia Scale a year ago, and she felt she fit in just fine. They all had their own personalities, and as long as no one was completely cruel or completely insane they fit in. Ava was not cruel and she was not insane. She was intelligent and not as arrogant as people sometimes told her she was. They just didn’t know her. She’d been mildly hurt by the accusation, which the person insisted wasn’t meant to hurt her feelings. She insisted it didn’t hurt her, and she walked off. That was about a week earlier, and she had been somewhat sulking lately. Not that anyone could tell.

Apparently keeping to herself made her the perfect candidate for a new roommate. She felt like she was being punished. Her furniture was pushed around so that a new bed could be put in. Hypothetically she could get a bunk bed and the room would have more floor space. Ava had actually twitched at the suggestion, and it was dropped. A man named Amie had offered her his height months earlier. He was nice, if so very ill bred. She didn’t mean that negatively, but they were both aware of his lacking education. He didn’t seem to want to discuss it, so she hadn’t asked, but she did appreciate his help. He had hung some metal from the ceiling so that she could have drapes around her bed. She usually slept with them open, but it made her feel more at home. With a new roommate, she might just close them.

Still, she felt slightly judged, so she was going to do her best to be polite. So there was a new bed in the room, a closet, a dresser, a chest, desk, armchair, and a very well stocked bookcase. Ava was sitting on her bed with one of her stuffed animals, which usually sat on a shelf near her bed, another thing she’d gotten help with, when she heard a knock. Ava took a deep breath and walked over.

The girl standing there looked a mess. Ava wanted to ask if she’d been attacked, but she assumed this was by choice. Ava was wearing a large pink dress with white lace, a bow in her blond hair, stockings, and MaryJanes. She was covered except her hands and face. Her eyes very clearly went over every inch of this woman, before swallowing, which was covered by the lace at her collar. This is not going to be fun is it? “… Hello. I suspect you are Astra?” she asked, since the woman was unfamiliar, and had a bag. Ava stepped aside to let her in, “… Welcome.”

[Astra Creed]

Astra wore a goofy grin on her face when the younger girl opened the door. She might have noticed Ava looking her over if not for the fact that she was busy staring at the girl’s frilly dress at the same time. “Yeah, I’m Astra. I bet you're that Ava girl with the frilly dresses!” she said cheerfully as she stepped into the room and sat the bag down right next to the door. She scratched her bare midriff as she looked around the room. It was fancier than she’d expected. What had she expected? She’d essentially had a makeshift hospital bed for the one week she could remember. “Nice to meet you!” Astra ran her fingers through her somewhat messy hair as she held out the other hand to shake Ava’s. Astra was lucky in the fact that her disheveled look actually didn’t look bad at all on her, though she certainly looked in no way prim and proper.

“So you’re my new roommate? Well I assume you aren’t my old roommate since I just joined Lamia Scale,” Astra rambled aloud, somewhat airheaded-sounding. It wasn’t that she was stupid. Not according to her at least. She just felt like she was in a fog oftentimes when she tried to give things deep thought. As a result her occasional insightful words of wisdom surprised her as much as anyone else. She chuckled to herself, rather pleased. “At least I get a pretty roommate,” she commented to the poor fifteen year old offhandedly. She did find her rather pretty, even if she did still have some childish features about her. “With fancy clothes and a fancy bed and everything!”

Astra glanced around, not particularly phased whether Ava shook her hand or not. The bed that wasn’t decorated was Astras. Even she could tell that. The items on and around the bed looked too important and the idea of the other girl not having things was a bit too sad - especially if Astra had randomly gotten that many presents. As she looked around, she looked a little bit lost. Well, she was lost. Things felt real and yet they didn’t. This was her first real chance to discover who she was and what her life was going to be like. It was exciting, and if Astra could process fear properly, she would have been rather intimidated. As she was, she just felt a strange feeling in her stomach that made her want to get started, and this seemed like a great place to start! Astra chuckled to herself again in excitement.

[Ava Brooks]

Apparently Ava was “that Ava girl with the frilly dresses.” Deep breathe. Deep, calming, breathe. Ava. Just calm. Calm. Don’t say a word, she told herself in her head. She needed to be good, she needed to be very calm, and not say a word. If she said a word, she would just be insulting. She couldn’t understand how people did this. It was like asking what the difference between satin and sandpaper was. Goodness, how were people that ignorant? Simply how?! It was beyond her. She took a very deep breathe, but still let Astra inside, “A pleasure, Astra,” Ava said politely.

…. Take it back. You did not. Oh my word. Ava was visibly tensing. Why? What was this woman? What was she doing? She was screaming in her own head. This woman. This woman. Ever muscle Ava knew existed was tense in her. She was mortified. This confusing woman was greasing up her hand before offering her other to Ava. Ava wanted to break away from her parents. She wanted her own life. She wanted to know what she knew and think what she thought. She wanted to be her own person. That was all she wanted. Unfortunately her parents taught her a dainty handshake was required. Dainty. She was a woman after all. Still, she wasn’t too much for following the letter of the law. Astra was confusing and horrifying, but Ava struck out her hand and shook Astra’s without any more question. It was proper, and people should be proper, no matter the circumstances.

“Apparently,” Ava said as far as being roommates, not listening to the rest. Well, she listened, but there was no use in responding to ramblings of a strange woman. When Astra said that Ava was pretty she blushed, “Uh… thank you. If…” she slightly softened, “You would like help… uh… prettying your bed up, I can find you help. Or clothes, as well. I know a lot about both, and I would be happy to do that,” she said sincerely. She wasn’t sure what this woman wanted or liked, but at least Ava could relax for a few seconds with the offer. She allowed Astra her time to look around the room. Ava closed the door and waited near her bed for some sort of verbal reaction.

[Astra Creed]

Astra’s eyes went from well… everywhere… to the younger girl, Ava, again when she spoke up again to offer her help with prettying herself or her stuff up. She blinked a couple of times, at first confused as to why she would offer to pretty things up. She looked over at her rather blank bed, then down at her clothes, then to the bed, then back to her clothes. Astra pulled at the collar of her shirt, examining it a little bit closer before looking back to Ava. “I think my bed could use some decorations but my clothes are all new. I think they’re pretty enough.” She decided after a long moment (perhaps too long of a moment) of consideration.

She walked over to Ava’s side of the room just to take a look. Even though she didn’t know it was wrong to touch Ava’s stuff without permission, she thankfully didn’t think to, only looking at it and admiring the girl’s collection of things. She turned back around rather suddenly, her slightly ditzy grin never leaving her face. “I searched all morning for these clothes in town,” she informed Ava. “I like the way they show off my tummy.” She looked at Ava’s clothes again. They were pretty, but Astra didn’t think she’d be caught dead in something like that. It was too… she wasn’t even sure. "Did I do something wrong?" It was the only thing she could think to ask at this point. Why else would she need help with her clothes? She hadn't exactly had lessons on whether she'd been doing things right since she woke up. Just scoldings if she were doing it wring.

[Ava Brooks]

…. Why? What had Ava done? This was a trial, wasn’t it? It wasn’t purgatory, it was simply a test to see if she could handle it and grow from it. Certainly. No one was pranking her, but it was a life test to see if she could grow as a person. She really didn’t feel like growing today. The woman kept looking around like she was only just waking up. Her brain hadn’t properly calibrated yet, right? Ava wasn’t going to ask. Apparently Astra liked her clothes, they were… “pretty.” They were not pretty. Skimpy, and perhaps functional, but not “pretty” as far as Ava was concerned. She took a deep breath, “Well I can get someone to help with that if you like.”

Ava became tense when Astra walked into her personal area. This entire room was Ava’s private escape. This was her home. Suddenly there was a completely oblivious intruder and Ava had to share. Even at home she had been very particular about her bedroom. Unless she was inside she only allowed Rolland inside. He was trustworthy and responsible, this woman was… Ava didn’t know yet, but she felt like she might touch something and it made Ava uncomfortable.

Ava’s eye twitched slightly when she heard the woman liked how they showed off her stomach. Her word choice, and her general taste in clothing baffled Ava. She took a deep breath and tried to keep herself calm yet again, “Nope. You did not do anything wrong. You simply do not make any sense at all to me,” she said in one breath. Perhaps she’d said too much, but she was just overwhelmed, “I was raised to have very strict rules and manners and you… do not fit any of those. It is a matter of upbringing I suppose.”

[Astra Creed]

The fact that Ava believed that the difference in their tastes was because of their upbringing was a bit ironic, because Astra couldn’t remember a thing about her upbringing. For all she knew, she had been raised exactly like Ava. Or maybe she’d been raised to be exactly how she was. The funny thing about her memories was that she had every bit as much of an idea about her own life and past as everyone else. She could have been someone completely different, or she could have been exactly the same. All she knew was that it was always like her head was in a slight fog.

Astra’s expression twisted into one of slight confusion. “Did they tell you anything about me? Cause I think they should tell people about their roommates.” She decided, crossing her arms. She took a deep breath as she tried to think about what she could even say about herself. Her hand drifted to her chin, making her look thoughtful for a second. “IIIIIII don’t know how I was raised,” she decided to say finally. “The guild master found me and I was unconscious, and then I woke up a week ago and I don’t remember anything about me except my name and magic. Maaaaybe I used to wear dresses like you, but now I like this stuff.”

[Ava Brooks]

It wasn’t really ironic that Ava believe the differences in taste were due to upbringing. Ava could remember her upbringing, she had been influenced by it. Astra couldn’t remember hers, and so no matter how she had been raised, it couldn’t influence her now. This guaranteed that she didn’t have the same influences at Ava, even if at one time she had. Astra crossed her arms and Ava arched an eyebrow, “Should they now? Is it suddenly someone else’s place to talk about you, or me? I find that to be an invasion of privacy,” she said seriously, not crossing her arms because it seemed so unladylike.

Ava knew a little about Astra. She knew that the woman was new, and had amnesia. Unfortunately Astra was going to talk for herself and not let Ava say that much. She basically reaffirmed what Ava had already been told. Rumors spread, and Ava might not think they were proper, but she couldn’t help but listen to some. “…. Yes, well I knew that much, but I wouldn’t go around saying that is much to know. No one else in this guild wears dresses like me, so it does not surprise me,” she said with a small sigh, “Anyway… that does sound stressful, I am sorry for your troubles.” She said it, and the only thing she could think was as long as she doesn’t say ‘it isn’t your fault, you don’t need to be sorry.’ Ava hated when people did something like that, it completely backhanded the sympathy.

[Astra Creed]

Astra blinked again before shrugging at Ava’s insistence that no one else wore dresses like her. Which was true. She hadn’t seen any other girls dressing like Ava. And she hadn’t seen any when she’d gone looking at clothes this morning either. It didn’t really matter though, Astra had just been making conversation, even if it was true that she wasn’t sure if she would have worn something like the dresses before. She didn’t really understand amnesia. Assuming they were right about that being what she had.

Astra wasn’t about to say anything about it not being Ava’s fault though. For all she remembered it had been completely Ava’s fault. Though she not only highly doubted that was true, she wouldn’t have been angry if it had been. “Thanks I guess, though really I’m not upset,” she insisted to Ava. “It’s weird being expected to know things that I don’t, but I’m having fun, I guess,” Astra walked back over to her side of the room. “Except when I do weird things I shouldn’t and people get mad at me. That’s less fun.”

She sat down on her bed, testing how comfortable it was. It was… exactly like the bed that had been used like a hospital bed for her when they were making sure she was alright. “I would tell you more if I knew anything,” Astra insisted, looking slightly frustrated despite her claim she didn’t care. She didn’t care, but it would still be nice to have something to tell people who didn’t think she was telling them much.  

Astra had pretty much done all of the moving in she knew to do. Her stuff was in a bag and she had her empty side of the room. "Soooo what now?" she asked curiously, like she was expecting Ava and her to get some bonding time in now. Actually, she was expecting that. She figured if they were going to be roommates they were logically going to be friends. She liked Ava, even though Ava was weird. Actually she found a lot of people weird, even though they insisted she was the weird one.

[Ava Brooks]

The fairly irrational woman was blinking at Ava while she spoke. It really was like watching someone who just didn’t speak the same language. Ava would have fidgeted under the scrutiny, but she had been taught not to. She didn’t need to squirm around like a restless child, she was going to stand still and wait until it was time to listen again. Kristie rarely even fidgeted, and she was five. Ava knew this more so from letters than in person, because she hadn’t seen her sisters since she moved over a year ago.

“Being scolded is never fun,” Ava said. She was pretty well behaved. Most people thought she was too uptight to misbehave, but those people hadn’t been raised to where doing something individual and less “high class society” was considered misbehaving. She never felt the need to educate them on the matter. It wasn’t her job to teach them about her life, and it wasn’t their business to know it. “Either way, I promise not to yell at you, if that means anything.”

Astra walked in, said some things, sat down, and asked what was next. Ava blinked twice and then sighed, “Well, would you like to unpack your things? There’s a closet…” Ava did not assume they were friends, nor that they would become friends. Ava was particular, and Astra was… reckless. She was socially reckless, and oblivious, and Ava usually avoided those people. Except when they were nice enough to put things up high for her.

[Astra Creed]

Ava told Astra that she promised never to yell at her. If that meant anything. “Yeah I think it does,” she said with a curious nod. Some of her hyper had gone away for the moment and she was a little bit more calm seeming. The speed the girl switched gears was rather impressive, actually. She looked around the room, lost for a moment as she tried to figure out what she was going to do with it. She didn’t really have anything. Did she need lots of things like Ava had? She wasn’t sure.

“Oh! Yeah I guess I should use the closet.” She decided as if it had never occurred to her before. She picked up her bag, walked over and opened it and nearly threw her bag inside before deciding maybe the hangars in there were for more than show. She unzipped the clothes bag and took out a hangar. She remembered how to use that now. She just hadn’t had to think about it since she woke up earlier, and now she realized it made sense. She shook her head, then put her four sets of clothing in the closet before turning around and closing the closet door in one smooth motion, leaning on it. “Alright that’s done,” she decided with a nod. “Want to do something since we’re room buddies?” she asked Ava.

[Ava Brooks]

Astra said that she thought Ava not yelling at her meant something. She thought it did. Ava just watched her. How was it that she could make so little sense? She really didn’t talk like a normal person. Even the average person understood certain things. Apparently Astra’s lack of memories killed the rational part of her brain too. “Well… that’s good, Ava told her simply.

Ava sat on her bed and watched as Astra walked to the closet. She seemed enthusiastic about every little thing, even if every little thing was every other second. Was she going to keep up like this? She was going to wear Ava out if that was the case. Enthusiasm wasn’t a bad thing, but constant enthusiasm would be exhausting to the young woman.

“Room buddies?” Ava asked, arching an eyebrow, “We are roommates. And we’re not buddies, I don’t even know you,” she said, adding the last part to be nice. She didn’t expect to become friends with Astra, but she didn’t have to be mean about it. Still, Astra had asked about doing something, and if Ava was going to be mature and pleasant, she should probably take her up on that. “Well, we could play dress up,” she said. It sounded childish, but at times, Ava was childish, “Do you like tea? And what about reading?” Ava enjoyed reading a book with some warm tea, maybe Astra did too.

[Astra Creed]

They were roommates, not buddies. Ava laid that out quite clearly, even to the spacey-acting young woman in front of her. Astra looked a bit disappointed for a moment, but she didn’t think Ava was being mean. She was just telling her like it was. Astra respected that. Her face got more serious as she looked at Ava, accepting that they weren’t friends. At least not yet. “Yeah, I got excited,” she told Ava apologetically. “It’d be nice still.” Astra was a spacey, random, weird eighteen year old girl. But she was an 18 year old girl, and presumably she had at least part of her life experiences to help her act more mature when she needed to. Now was suddenly one of those times.

That was when Ava suggested that they play dress-up. Dress-up sounded pretty self-explanatory. She was pretty sure she could even remember what it was. The things that didn’t end up getting erased from her memories were so random. Almost like whatever had taken those memories had been interrupted or something. Astra didn’t dwell on that for more than a fraction of a second though, and it never registered in her expression or actions that she had. “I’d love to!” she told Ava excitedly. “You’ll uh… have to remind me how to.” She admitted, looking at her clothes she was wearing. They were fine, if skimpy, but she couldn’t remember what the difference was between what she normally wore and ‘dress-up.’ Only that it was a girls’ game that involved changing clothes.

[Ava Brooks]

For how much Astra acted like a strange creature on a sugar high, she handled the truth fairly well. That was strange. Quite strange actually. Ava had expected some negative response, but instead Astra actually appeared to understand. Perhaps Ava should give Astra a bit more credit. “That is fine, I can understand,” Ava told her. She didn’t get excited about a lot of things, but she had her moments. She was only fifteen after all.

There was that excitement from Astra again. She would apparently love to play dress up. Ava smiled at her, and then smiled some more at being told Astra needed a refresher course. “Well, you are smaller than I am, so I am sure my clothes will fit you.” Ava didn’t let many people touch her clothes, let alone try them on. In fact she didn’t let anyone try on her dresses, not that they wanted to. Her sisters had enjoyed dressing up, but they all had more than enough of their own gowns and didn’t need to borrow from their other sisters. Sometimes though, Ava would see the younger girls wearing an older sister’s outfit, and she found it adorable. Her parents did not, so it rarely happened. “I can help you put them on, if you want to.”

[Astra Creed]

Astra’s eyes glanced at Ava’s clothes as she considered the fact that she was shorter than a girl that was still a bit of a child. She wondered why she was so short, and couldn’t help but be just a little bit jealous. At least it was handy for when she played dress up with Ava, right? She smiled again after the slight shift in her expression. “Well if it fits then that’s helpful!” she nodded, having gone with the good reasons to be short instead of the bad despite her sensitivity to her height. “What am I supposed to wear?”

Astra was strangely excited to see how the younger girl would dress her, and even she wasn’t sure why. She supposed she hadn’t had much interaction yet, and that probably helped her enjoy just about anyone. Ava was certainly the first person to not be one of her caretakers while she recovered in the room they’d had her stay in befor she joined Lamia Scale officially. Astra loved Lamia Scale already. It had helped her when she was apparently hurt, and now welcomed her with open arms. She liked several of the people already, including Ava, the guild master, and a guy named Kade she had yet to get a chance to talk to.

She stepped over, looking unsure of what it was she was supposed to do. As friendly as she had been, her body language now said she was a little bit nervous. Excitement had a way of overshadowing any reservations she actually had. As did assuming they were friends because they were roommates. Now she just wanted to have fun and see if she could befriend the fancy girl who had offered to play dress up.

[Ava Brooks]

Astra approved of things fitting her, and Ava nodded. She appreciated the positive attitude. After all, this wasn’t normal or necessarily easy for Ava. She was trying to be mature, while being the younger one, and so any help was appreciated. “Hm…. What’s your favorite color?” she asked. Ava went over to her dresses and found one that suited whatever Astra responded with. She then got the petticoat that had to go under the dress, and a corset, although she had no intentions of tying it tight. Astra was too thing for that, and so was Ava. Besides, being a little uncomfortable was one thing, being miserable was just pointless. That was why Ava didn’t wear pants often. She didn’t like it.

Ava hadn’t wanted to take care of the new person. She didn’t really take care of people. Taking care of herself was difficult enough. “Okay, you have to mostly undress. I can close my eyes if you like, but then I can’t help you, and these are fairly complicated. I used to have help putting them on,” she explained, “but when I moved out here I had to learn to do them myself, and they really are no fun to put on alone. I had to cut out some steps,” such as anything to do with a lace-up corset.

[Astra Creed]

“Well, black,” Astra told Ava when she asked her her favorite color. It was probably obvious. Astra didn’t even know why she liked the dark, ominous color so much. She certainly didn’t feel like dark and ominous. “Buuuut other than that red or green,” she shrugged, not really caring what color Ava got her. Astra’s style was hardly the frilly garments that Ava preferred, but she didn’t mind putting them on she supposed. She guessed they looked pretty, though she couldn’t really remember why people wore them just yet. Hopefully that would clear up eventually, or she would at least relearn it.

Ava brought over the undergarments, and Astra suddenly realized that the clothes Ava liked were rather complicated. She had no idea how to put them on. She knew how to dress herself. She had done that since she woke up. But this was more than putting on underwear and a shirt and pants. “It’s okay,” Astra decided when Ava offered to close her eyes. “I don’t really mind and I think I need the help.” The shorter, older girl pulled off her shirt and skirt, tossing them on the floor and taking what Ava handed her. She managed the simpler things alright, though once she got to the more complicated ones, she just kind of looked at them dumbfoundedly. “… Help?” she asked Ava, turning around slightly and giving her a questioning look. Did she ever know how to put these things on? How did someone learn magic AND fancy dressing?!

[Ava Brooks]

Ava had a few black dresses. She preferred to wear more colorful things. She felt like she was heading to a funeral when she was in one of her fancy black dresses, but she still had them here. She selected one for Astra, who continued talking about other colors she liked. “I like lighter colors, although I’ve been told darker ones make my hair and eyes pop more,” she shrugged. She was relaxing more, and picking up mannerisms from her fellow guild members. Odd.

Ava didn’t stare or anything when Astra undressed. This was very serious business to Ava, and she was going to act accordingly. She helped Astra get the petticoat on and the corset, tightening it only as much as she thought Astra could handle. She knew some people to lay on the ground and be stepped on just to pull corset strings tighter, but that was not happening today. Astra hadn’t really needed help with the petticoat, but she did with the corset. “Arms up,” Ava told her gently. Once Astra’s arms were in the air Ava threw the dress over her, pulling it down and then lacing it up in the back. She had to do this differently for herself, and she wasn’t really in practice dressing other people, but she clearly knew what needed to be done.

“There,” Ava said as she took a step back. She went to get a small handheld mirror for Astra and held it out for her. “You look beautiful, but we should probably… fix your hair too. How’s that sound?”

[Astra Creed]

Astra blinked a few times then pulled on a small tuft of her hair as she tried to look at it. Not that she had a very good view, and she didn’t have a mirror right in front of her. “Is it that bad?” she asked with a frown. She brightened up again though with a big, goofy grin. “Sure! We might as well do the whole thing,” she nodded. Besides, she had noticed her hair wasn’t as pristine looking as other people’s in the guild, though no one had ever said anything before Ava.

“Thanks, by the way,” Astra nodded, scrunching her face thoughtfully. “I like looking beautiful. I think.” That was something she’d just decided. She didn’t actually care to dress fancily, nor did she see any point in doing it for other people, but this was a special occasion, and she was going to at least see how she looked. Dresses weren’t really her style though, and it was odd to her that her shirt was also her leg coverings. The whole outfit was actually rather odd. And complicated. And there was no way she was getting it off on her own, much less putting another one on. Still, she couldn’t figure out why people wore these things. They were a lot of trouble. Dresses should be less trouble since they’re less pieces of clothing right? Well fancy ones were apparently more pieces. Had she worn dresses before? She raised a hand and pulled on the red tuft of hair that was part of her bangs. Something told her no, she hadn’t.

[Ava Brooks]

Ava wasn’t intentionally insulting, usually. There was probably times when she got upset enough to intentionally, but tactfully, insult someone. Tact was always important. You could never be too obvious, it was plebian, and that was just unacceptable. When Ava mentioned Astra’s hair she wasn’t trying to be particularly nitpicky about it, even while suggesting they fix it. Luckily Astra was a very pleasant woman when you got past the initial craziness. They still weren’t friends, but Ava didn’t mind the interaction right now. Astra did fidget with her hair for a moment, asking if it was that bad, Ava resisted answering, and in a moment the joy was back on Astra’s face and she agreed to fix it. “Delightful,” Ava said, very pleased.

Astra also thanked Ava, saying she thought she liked looking beautiful. “Everyone should. There is absolutely nothing bad about beauty. There are many neutral or gray things, but beauty is not one of them,” she said with confidence. She might have said “but I think beauty is not one of them,” but she was taught to speak with more confidence than that. Ava brought Astra over to her vanity and had her sit down. She then got out a brush and waited for Astra to stop messing with her own hair, before brushing it down. It seemed like the hair didn’t want to cooperate, but Ava kept brushing it and not letting this get the best of her, “You never did answer if you liked tea or reading,[/b]” she reminded the woman.

[Astra Creed]

Astra flinched a bit as the brush went through her hair. It was so painful! How long had it been since her hair had been properly brushed? Ava was the first to offer to do it for her, and it was one of those skills she couldn’t remember. How long was she asleep before that even? No one had actually told her. Days? Weeks? Probably hours or days. But still… it had been at least a week. She appreciated Ava’s work despite her verbal complaints that she couldn’t help but spout.

There was nothing bad about beauty? Astra hadn’t thought there was anything bad about beauty. She just wasn’t very good at it is all. And she wasn’t sure she had the same taste in beauty as her roommate. But that was okay. Right? At least she was making her hair happy. She hoped. Her skull certainly wasn’t very happy.

“Oh!” Astra finally spoke after a few minutes of complaining and apologizing for complaining then trying not to complain then hurting again and complaining. “I don’t know if I like tea,” she told Ava curiously, wondering what tea was other than a letter. “I’d like to try it th- ow. Though.” She looked thoughtful. “As for reading… hmmm… I haven’t read a lot since I woke up. It might be fun. And informational. I could use informational things,” she nodded, eyeing herself in the mirror. This was the first time she’d really taken the time to look at herself without getting impatient. She really was short… but she did feel pretty. Even if she did like her own clothes better than these.

[Ava Brooks]

Astra immediately started complaining about the brushing. Ava continued. She put a hand down at Astra’s scalp to keep the hair from pulling too much against her roots. Ava continued brushing though, Astra might not like it, but she definitely needed it. “Don’t complain so much, it sounds ungrateful,” she informed the older girl. She bit her tongue to keep from saying more. Saying how only little children complained. Ava complained, she was sure she did, but she’d been told this before. Oh well, she didn’t need to be so harsh with Astra, “It takes work to keep up appearances, and it takes work to maintain anything worthwhile, you will be just fine.”

Ava managed to get the topic to shift back to likes, specifically tea and reading. Astra seemed surprised at the reminder. She didn’t know if she liked tea. That was simply sad, Ava couldn’t imagine not knowing the things she liked. She would have been mortified that Astra didn’t actually know what tea was at the moment. “Well, if you would like reading, you can look through some of my books. As for tea, I can make us some tea for you to try. I like a lot of different teas, so if you want to try them, it could be enjoyable.” She continued brushing the other girl’s hair. At least the tangles were offering less resistance now.

[Astra Creed]

Astra didn’t know what tea was for sure. She was pretty sure she knew, but she also wasn’t actually sure about much, so that wasn’t really a guarantee of anything. Still, she didn’t point this out. She could figure it out when it was brought to her, right? If not she could ask better questions then, at least. “Well I want to try your favorite first!” she decided, not knowing if there was any tea around or not, but still declaring what she wanted to try. “Oh! And I’ll try one of your books soon too. I promise I’ll be careful. Maybe you can show me one of your favorites? You seem to have smart tastes and I could use some more smarts I think.”

She nodded to herself, clearly convinced that this was a good idea. Well, it wouldn’t hurt anyone at any rate. She had promised to be careful with Ava’s books, after all. They looked so fragile, but she liked how they looked and smelled. She thought they might be good to explore when she was tired of exploring the real world. After all, it required less running around, right? “My hair is starting to look so nice! I can’t believe it…” she told Ava in surprised as she snapped out of her thoughts.

[Ava Brooks]

Ava would gladly bring Astra some of her favorite tea. Maybe Astra would like it as much as Ava, although Ava didn’t have that strong a preference. She liked many teas, but what she would call her favorite was a bit better to her. Then it came to books, “Heh, thank you,” Ava said, appreciating the compliment although she didn’t react to it much. She’d been called smart before. It was something she liked to hear, but not something she needed to hear to feel that she was smart. “I’ll try to pick a book you will like. Mostly historical, or classics, I have some romantic novels, and a couple books or poetry though, you might like those better.”

Ava focused on Astra’s hair again for a little while. She could get lost in that. There was so much needing to be done. She was sure Astra’s bathed, it wasn’t as if she felt like a ball of grease. If she had, Ava would not let her touch Ava’s dresses, let alone wear them. No, she cleaned up, just didn’t do the fine grooming details. Ava was getting almost all of the tangles out when Astra popped back into reality and commented on it. “Well you’re a pretty girl, its not a surprise you would look nice. Are you really that surprised that you would clean up well? Or I suppose this way?” She didn’t imagine Astra thought she hadn’t been just fine before. However this reaction as worthy of a comment.

[Astra Creed]

Astra considered Ava’s book collection while her hair continued to be worked with by Ava. She figured history and classics miiiiight be the best idea, though the others sounded interesting. She wondered what she thought of romance. She supposed she would find out at some point. “Yeah, I guess I didn’t know what I could do with myself. Or something like that,” she told Ava with a slight shrug. “Even if I don’t like frilly things that much most of the time, I guess I do look pretty good in it,” she told her with a chuckle. Most of the time was the entirety of this one week, but it was what she had decided when she was looking at clothing.

“What do people do in Lamia Scale?” she asked Ava suddenly as her brain shifted gears. She hadn’t actually asked before she’d decided people were nice and joined. She put her hand on the spot where the tattoo she’d received that morning was stamped. “I didn’t ask before I joined, but that’s okay I figured I would learn that like everything else, right?” she decided aloud. Ava was a big help with Astra’s appearance and reading materials and roommate…ness. Even though Ava didn’t consider them friends, Astra was rather glad this girl had been her roommate. She wouldn’t have gotten to talk to her like this if she hadn’t.

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