The Heights of Londo [IC 4: Turnabout Trainers]

[Comissar]

Leah finds her cheeks heating a little as she realises what the subject of Nika's photo was going to be. She made sure to give a smile for the camera all the same, leaning in a little closer to Alyssa as she did so. Her blush deepens as Nika comments on how cute they look, returning Alyssa's smile with a grin of her own. When her attention is drawn to the t-shirts that have been sketched out, she nods toward the floral patterned design. "I, uh, I like the look of that one."

[Hazuki]

"Ooh, I like that one!" Nika points at the geometric design. "I think that would look... Well, I'd like it on my bindings, but there's no point in that if nobody's going to see them anyway, huh?" She asks, then glances down at the pokegear she's holding. "Um, it says: picture sending, zero point zero one percent done."

[Comissar]

Leah abruptly sits up straighter, "Wh-what? Wh-who's it sending to?" She leans forward a bit, trying to see the screen.

[Hazuki]

Leah sees that the photo is apparently being sent to her mother, and has reached 0.02% completion.

[Comissar]

Leah hesitates as she sees who the message is sending to. After a long moment's deliberation, she closes her eyes and sighs. Opening them again, she gives Nika a smile, "That's fine. Umm, it'll, uh, it'll be doing that for a while but... Yeah, that's fine."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa smiles and nods at Leah's choice. "I like that one too." She laughs at Nika's comment on the drawing, looking over at her. "If you know it's there and you like wearing it, that's good enough isn't it?"

She shifts a bit as Leah sits up, putting a hand on her back when she sits back down. "How does that work?" Pointing over at the Pokegear, she looks at Leah. "Like, with the sending?"

[Comissar]

Leah's quiet for a moment as she thinks on the best way to describe it. "So... Each pokégear can be connected... Umm, and they can communicate with each other. Sort of like sending letters..? But it makes a copy of whatever's going to, uh, going to be sent, and sends that. So I'll still have the photo, but my Mum will too..." She gives an uncertain look to the other two, "Does that, uh, does that make sense..?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa looks up from her drawings at Leah. "So, uh, it's kind of like if I make another drawing and then make it go really fast to someone far away?" She kind of draws in the air to show something going far away. "That's cool." Realizing she's been starting at Leah a bit, she turns a bit red and goes back to her sketch book, trying to finish out some other possible designs with different flowers, different geometric shapes, different waves, and then combinations of flowers, shapes, and waves. Most of them end up being very simple and quickly made, but all of them still have the spark of creativity.

[Hazuki]

"What about that one?" Nika asks, as she points to a particularly bold combination of yellows and greens. "Will you be able to paint bindings so they look okay even if I don't align them all right?"

Maggie, meanwhile, seems to have gotten bored of exploring and pulls up a seat.

[Comissar]

Leah gives a smile and shrug in response to Alyssa, "Sort of..? It's not always, uh, not always really fast. If, uh..." She hesitates, realising her analogy of sending a painting breaks down at file sizes and connection speeds. She gives Alyssa an apologetic look, "It, uh, it gets kinda complicated though... Umm, if, uh, if a photo's really... Big, it can take a while to send. Or, umm, or if there's a poor connection. Like... Uh..." She nods to her pokégear on the table, "Back in Kanto that would've sent already. But, umm, but there's not as much coverage here so, uh, so it takes a lot longer to find a connection."

She looks over at Nika's choice of pattern and smiles, "It looks very summery. I think if it's a, uh, a repeating pattern it should be fine..?" Her voice takes on a more thoughtful note, "We could, uh, we could mark out roughly where on the fabric you'd need to match up the colours..? Just to help make sure it works for you..?"

[Hazuki]

Nika gets up to go to one of the drawers and retrieves a long white sarashi, which looks to Leah a lot like an exceptionally long bandage, and places its folded form on the table.

"Maybe it can be done in sections, so the reds and yellows overlap...?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa nods at Leah's explanation, though she turns her head a bit. "So, like, it has to find a good road to send it on? And, um, 'cause we just got those here we don't have that many roads?" She turns towards Maggie as she comes up and holds the sketch pad so she can see.

She smiles at Nika's question. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure I can make it work for you. Just give me a bit." As Nika places the bindings on the table, Alyssa starts sketching them twice, once completely flat and stretched out and once sort of bunched up and circular, like it would be wrapped around Nika's chest. Then she starts filling in the pattern Nika pointed out on each one, making adjustments as she tries to see what it would look like scrunched up.

[Comissar]

Leah gives the sarashi a surprised look as it's retrieved. More to herself than anyone else, she comments, "I, uh, I didn't realise they were that long. I guess, uh, I guess I just thought they were kinda like tube tops..."

She looks over to Alyssa at her question and gives a hesitant nod, "Y-yeah... Yeah, that's not a bad way of putting it."

[Hazuki]

Maggie peers at the sketchpad for a few seconds, gives a nod, then tries to sit on Alyssa's lap.

"Tube tops..." Nika stares off to the side. "How do they work?"

[Comissar]

Leah's ears heat a little at Nika's question as she sits up straighter again. "Oh, umm... They're, uh, they're tops that, uh that go from, uh, from below the shoulders," She draws a line across herself with her finger, a little way below her collarbone, "And, uh, and they can vary how far they, uh, they go down. Umm, a lot of them show, uh, show your stomach," She draws another line, "But, uh, but some are, uh, are smaller than that. And, uh, and they just cover your chest." She draws a third line, "Umm, they, uh, they don't have straps, which is, uh, which is why they get called 'tube tops'. They, uh, they stay up because the fabric's held tight. Umm, usually it's a bit, uh, a bit stretchier than normal clothes to, uh, to help with that."

[Hazuki]

"Oh... Wouldn't that get so tight that it's uncomfortable?" Nika asks. "And are they made out of thick things? The sarashi works so well because it's thick, too, so you've got your modesty, althoughit is a pain to wrap sometimes."

[Comissar]

"I, uh, I don't know," Leah admits, "I've never, uh, never actually worn one. And they get made of, uh, of a lot of different things. Umm, some look kinda thin, others can be pretty thick. Umm, like I say I, uh, I don't really know what they're like to wear, though." She hesitates, reddening a little, "Although, uh, I, uh, I have to admit I thought the, uh, the same thing about sarashi's..? Umm, I thought you'd have to, uh, to tie them tight..? I guess, uh, I guess they're not as restrictive as I, uh, as I thought..?" She looks uncertainly between Alyssa and Nika.

[Hazuki]

"They're tight, but, like, that's what they're meant to be?" Nika says. "Like... I want mine tight for binding and I can do it comfortably. But if something's tight and it's not meant to be tight, or it's not tight in the right way?" She pauses. "It's complicated."

[Comissar]

Leah gives Nika a faintly confused look following her explanation, "Umm, it, uh, it sounds it..." She smiles, giving a shrug, "I guess, uh, I guess they're easy to buy, though..? Umm, they, uh, they look like they'd all be the same size for, uh, for everyone..?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa smiles, making a bit of space so Maggie can sit on her lap. Looking up as Leah looks at her, she shrugs. "I, um, have only worn one a few times, but, um, yeah, if you do it right I can wear a really big one. Harder to, um, tie it right, though." She makes a few motions around her body like she is tying the sarashi, her motions big enough to go around Maggie. "I, um, haven't really had much reason to wear one since, um, I mostly wear working clothes." She gestures at her dress, shrugging. "I, um, guess I wouldn't mind wearing something nice again." Her attention turns back to trying to finish the designs for the sarashi.

[Hazuki]

Maggie lets out a happy little cry as she's allowed to sit on Alyssa's lap and eagerly watches her finish off her sketch.

"Sass says she wants to wear one, but it's too much work to look tough," Nika says. "Like she doesn't spend ten minutes every morning getting her hair ruffled just right."

[Comissar]

Leah can't help but grin at Nika's comment, "I've, uh, I've never thought that Sass had a, uh, a problem being tough. But I didn't know she took the time to ruffle her hair, either. That's, uh, that's pretty cute, actually."

[Hazuki]

"You should see her when she gets home and has to take that armor thing off of her head." Nika giggles. "It's all fluffy but for this one strip that's been flattened down. She glared at me when I laughed the first time..."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa giggles at Nika's description. She looks over at Leah as she comments on ruffled hair, and smiles at her. "Have you ever tried wearing your hair differently? I, um, tried doing it up but it's a lot of work. Mostly I just want it out of my face and my paints." She gestures to her ponytail and giggles.

[Comissar]

Leah finds herself also breaking into giggles as Nika describes Sass' difficulties with headgear. Turning her attention to Alyssa, she shakes her head, "Uh, not really, no... I mean, I, uh, I put it back in a ponytail when I work, but that's about it. I mean, I've, uh, I've thought about having it shorter..? About to here..?" She holds a hand just at her shoulder, "I think it'd be easier to handle, but, uh, but it also takes forever to grow out. So, umm, if I don't like it, I'm stuck with it for ages."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa turns her head at Leah as she responds, nodding. "W-well, I could try drawing it and, um, you could, um, see if you like it." She gestures down with her pencil and smiles. "That way, you could see if you like it and, um, if you don't then you don't have to do it." Looking up and down, Alyssa smiles. "Um, I don't think I'd ever cut my hair."

[Comissar]

Leah's cheeks heat a little at Alyssa's offer, "Well, umm, yeah. If you don't mind doing it it, uh, it'd be nice to know how I'd look before I commit to it." She breaks into a grin at her other comment, "Well, uh, the nice thing about hair is that any changes you make aren't, uh, aren't there forever. So if you regret it, you can, uh, you can wait it out. That said..." Her grin broadens, and she leans back into Alyssa, "I, uh, I like yours how it is."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa smiles, turning a bit red as Leah leans in. "Thanks." Alyssa looks down at her sketch, doing some small touches, then picks it up a bit so Nika can more easily see. "What do you think of that, Nika?" She points with the tip of the pen at sarashi, one image with it fully stretched out and one with it tied, so Nika can tell how it would look to wear. The patterns are setup so when folded, the pattern still looks like it should.

[Hazuki]

"It looks so nice!" Nike claps her hands together. "Do you think you'll really be able to do it that good?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa shrugs. "I've, um, done a lot of painting and drawing but never on clothes, so, um, maybe? We can work together." She shifts a bit in her seat, then looks down at Maggie in her lap. "Can I put you down so I can get up, Maggie? You can watch me do some painting." She looks up at Leah with a sort of embarrassed smile.