Theodric of York, Wednesday Afternoon

[deathsmajesty]

Liliana had learned that Nell had never been to a spa before and had immediately decided that such an injustice needed to be remedied. And then she'd met Annie and while she didn't know a great deal about motherhood - no one was going to mistake her for a maternal figure, she would be an indulgent wine aunt at best and only once the child was old enough to be interesting - one thing she did know was that it was exhausting and unglamourous and that Annie would probably appreciate the opportunity to be petted and pampered for a bit. And, of course, if she were to invite Annie, she couldn't possibly ignore the other mother of a baby, and Liz had been invited along as well.

Liliana, of course, deserved to be petted and pampered simply because she was Liliana. No further reason required.

For all that she could spend a full day at a spa quite easily, she'd limited their time to only two hours, figuring that Annie, at least, would be hesitant to spend much longer than that away from the twins. But they were certainly making the most of those two hours. First had come the forty-five minute massages to get them to relax. After that, they'd spent fifteen minutes getting their hair washed - though it was more like a soothing scalp massage that happened to include water and toiletries. Then they had gotten wrapped up in their luxurious bathrobes and whisked away to their mani-pedi appointments.

They were currently sitting in comfortable chairs that had been arranged to face one another, though with enough room between them for the nail technicians to comfortably provide them with their pedicures. The chairs had cunning little tray tables built in so they could enjoy the sumptuous and moddable lunch the spa had provided while their feet were soaked, scrubbed, massaged, moisturized, and toe nails polished. In roughly a half an hour, their lunches would be removed so their hands could undergo the same treatment, but for now, they were able to lounge in their seats, eating delicious foods and drinking fresh juice - Liliana had forewent wine for all of them in deference to Annie and Nell - and just (hopefully!) enjoying the sensation of being justly spoiled. The candles that seemed to spring up everywhere and anywhere just added to the ambience, as if the island had known what they were planning and had chosen its holiday whimsy to match.

She did so love it when the universe catered to her desires without her having to lift a finger.

[For them what were named and up early for SP! No pinging order, I declare a messy thread free-for-all, have at!]

Comments

[flamesburned]

The last time that Liz had been to a spa had been the one that Summer had taken her too and that had been over a year ago and she was looking forward to the afternoon, even if she was still feeling weird about being somewhere without Noctra but she knew everything would be fine and it was only going to be a couple of hours.

So she was doing her best to relax in her chair and take advantage of the afternoon.

[deathsmajesty]

"So how are you feeling after your massage, darling?" Liliana asked, purple eyes gleaming in the candlelight. "A little more loose and relaxed?"

[flamesburned]

“I’m feeling a lot more relaxed,” Liz smiled, “that was really nice, thank you again for inviting me,”

[deathsmajesty]

"Of course, darling," Liliana said. "I figured it had been awhile since you'd been able to indulge like this and I thought you might appreciate some time that was just for you."

She leaned over and added in a conspiratorial whisper, "And though I didn't have an ulterior motive for inviting you, something has sprung to mind over the last few days. When do you work next? Tomorrow, right?"

[flamesburned]

Liz smiled, “it has been a while,” she admitted, and she leaned over as well, curious to what Liliana was going to say. “I do work tomorrow yes,” she confirmed, trying to match Liliana’s conspiratorial whisper.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Liz, how's Noctra?" Annie asked, once everyone was settled in (and she, herself, was positioned to reduce falling-asleep peril. Food was helping a lot there, honestly.) "She working on her PhD yet?"

Look at that, everyone. Dad jokes were not as gendered a phenomenon as one might think.

[flamesburned]

Liz smiled fondly at that, “Noctra’s going so well thank you,” she said, “and not yet,” she added, “but she is crawling now, it’s getting hard to keep up with her. How are the twins?” she asked.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Oh, wow, she's crawling already," Annie sighed meltily, since that had been a joke but -- aw, actual development stages! "Maggie and Ben are great. Thankfully not crawling yet, or I'd probably be a lot crazier."

Something to look forward to in like, nine months!

[flamesburned]

Liz grinned, “it’s definitely been interesting trying to keep up with her,” she said fondly, “and I’m glad Maggie and Ben are going great, at least you’ve got a bit of time before the crawling happens,” she said with a smile.

[mylandmyrules]

Nell had also brought some teas and jam for Liz (and Liliana, yes, though her 'hostess' gift was a little fancier. "How is Noctra doing, Liz?" she asked. "She must be getting so big!"

[flamesburned]

Liz smiled, “Noctra’s going really well thank you,” she said, “and she is getting so big, she’s crawling now,” she added fondly, “how have you been?”

[mylandmyrules]

"I'm doing very well," Nell assured her. "Busy with all the holiday orders between two shops, but that just means I'll enjoy the quieter time afterwards that much more."

[flamesburned]

“I’m glad the shops are going well,” Luz smiled, “how have things been with you and Gladio?” she asked

[mylandmyrules]

Nell was still rather bemused at the idea that some people did this regularly. Her modified massage had been very nice once they'd established that she'd be fully clothed and that it would mostly be a back, shoulders, arms, and lower legs massage. She had to admit that the shampoo was nice, though her very long hair had been a slight challenge as was her desire to just let it mostly air dry. Still, everyone had been very accommodating.

And now apparently she just sat back and ate while people played with and painted her toenails - why, she had no idea - and then eventually her fingernails - which would be destroyed quickly while working in the dirt. But it was rather nice and it was fun to spend time with Liliana and Annie and Liz.

[deathsmajesty]

Liliana's own long hair has been patted with a towel to soak up the excess moisture, then piled on top of her head to air dry as well. She didn't trust those hot air dryers, neither for her clothing nor her hair.

"What color have you decided on, darling?" Liliana asked with a smile.

[mylandmyrules]

"I don't know," Nell admitted. "Maybe a light pink or something? It's not like anyone will see my toes."

[deathsmajesty]

"What are you talking about, dear one?" Liliana asked. "Of course someone will. You will. Who else matters? The whole point of this is to let yourself feel good, feel comfortable and special and relaxed. What matters most is that when you take off your shoes at night, you see the color on your toenails and it makes you smile because, yes, even though it's silly and serves no purpose whatever, it's still pretty. So absolutely get pink if that's what makes you happy, darling, but don't be afraid to look at other colors and go with the one that you like."

She pulled her feet out of the warm water and wiggled her toes in the air. "Ignis certainly won't be seeing my nails, but that's hardly going to stop me from painting them..." She reached for the color she'd chosen "...Poison. Oh, how fitting."

Let's not interrogate why that was fitting, okay?

"I will because I like the color and that's the only reason you need, either."

[mylandmyrules]

Nell looked at her curiously, but didn't argue. "I suppose," she said. She wouldn't choose quite so different a color as Liliana, but well...

She looked again at the choices and chose a bright shiny pink. "I think this one would be nice." For whatever time it lasted. "This was very kind of you to organize, Liliana. I know I'm certainly enjoying it."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"I'm gonna get gel polish," Annie advised Nell, holding out her own, sadly-unmanicured-for-weeks hand and considering it. "I think, anyway. It lasts longer, and I don't think I'm gonna have a lot of time to touch it up in the next couple weeks."

...was this something Diego could do for her while she was holding or feeding someone? That sounded like a non-disaster, totally.

[mylandmyrules]

Nell didn't even know there were different types of polish, so she just nodded. "How are the babies doing?" she asked. "They must keep you awfully busy."

She'd brought along little gifts for Annie and the babies - some teas and jams for Annie and some cute little hand embroidered onsies for the twins.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"And then some," Annie replied with a tired, but genuinely happy smile. "They're both great, though. I mean, they don't do much yet, but they're starting to look like little people more than big raisins?"

[defenderofdesmoines]

Annie...had needed this. She hadn't been to a spa, or anything like this, since before her pregnancy, and while there had been a time in her life when she might have begged off or rushed through any of these treatments -- not today. In fact, could you take a look at those split ends while you were looking, hair friend? Masseuse buddy, did you have any advice about her new back pain? Annie would happily listen, in between trying not to fall asleep.

Her phone was staying very close, and it had taken her a little while to relax enough to not think every phantom movement was Diego calling to say that one of the twins was on fire or something -- but she had needed. this.

[deathsmajesty]

Liliana wore an indulgent smile as she looked at Annie. "Should I add another hour for a second massage after this?" she teased lightly, pleased to see that her spa day had been a success.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Diego might riot if we do," Annie replied lightly, giving her phone a gentle prod to just see the screen with no panicked messages on it. Yessssss. "And I need to keep him in my good graces so we can do this again."

Playing the long game, see?

[deathsmajesty]

"And, sadly, I don't think we can convince him that the candles are holding us hostage the same way we could have for the mistletoe or the aggressive garlands," Liliana agreed. "I suppose that we'll just have to slowly add a few more minutes to these outings each time we come and eventually we'll get to a full half-day before he notices."