10130/Haircuts and Makeovers

Haircuts and Makeovers
Date of Scene:	20 November 2019
Location:	Mall - Salem Center
Synopsis:	Shannon, Gwendolyn, Brad, and Andrea head to a mall salon for haircuts and styling: Andrea's treat.
Cast of Characters:	Rage, Dragonfly (Armenteros), Haunt, Nightingale

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Rage has posed:
After texting Gwen, she sent her bestie down the hall for her to knock on Jay and Brad's door, while she waited downstairs. Odd. Right? Once they all meet downstairs, Andrea gives a smile to them. "My bodyguard James will be driving us to the Mall. They have a really top of the line salon in there and I reserved an hour with Jasmine who is one of my stylists." A black armored SUV pulls up with tinted windows, and her bodyguard in the driver's seat in a full suit and shades. "Ready to go guys?"

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
AFter a day of classes, getting out into the world sounded like a great idea. It was getting close to Thanksgiving, so figuring out where the best stores for shopping for gifts was on the list, even though she was making most of the things she was giving away. Gwendolyn does as instructed, finding Brad, wherever he was, and bringing him, along with his backpack negation device, downstairs to where Andrea and her enormous SUV is waiting.

The bodyguard gets a wave and a smile because he's a nice man, even though he looks like an alternate skin for Zangief in Street Fighter V. Instead of the usual goggles and wings outfit that she has, Gwendolyn has taken advantage of the X-men brand imager that erases her otherwise non-human aspects from view. Instead of goggles? Trendy sunglasses that can be taken off to reveal a rather pretty-looking girl. Gwendolyn before the mutation gave her antenna. Dressed for the weather, she's in a parka, boots, cute pants, and a pair of gloves with a hat on top of it all, along with a scarf. Bundled up for the snow, she is.

Haunt has posed:
Brad is prepared for the outing now. He's dressed warmly, but not in a lot of layers: if there's a need to go invisible, he needs that option. He's in his warm white and gray winter coat, jeans, warm hiking style boots. His seeing-eye dog, Holly, is along as well. Brad was invisible for the car ride, but after they arrived he pulled on his own opaque sunglasses and the black backpack and switched it on. Brad appeared into view. His hair is overly long, getting into his eyes when it isn't pushed to one side in a sweep of tousled sandy brown. Normally he'd have a hat, but that would defeat the main goal of this meeting, probably. It's in his pocket.

"Uh, thanks, James," Brad bids to the bodyguard when they climb out. Holly the black lab falls into step next to the teen in the parking lot, her colors (and Brad's opaque glasses) making it very clear what service she's doing. "Is there no way to do this without making a big scene?" Brad asks in dismay.

Rage has posed:
"We're not making a big scene. We're just having you get a haircut, in privacy, without people freaking out about me in public. I really don't want to deal with any bullshit today. I've had a long night." Andrea says as she waits for James to meet them once the van is parked, then heads inside. James as always will give the group some distance, but he has his eyes on the party.

"But I did want Jasmine to personally work with you, because she's amazing, and you deserve a chance to look awesome." Once they head through the mall, she can feel the eyes and snaps of camrea phones in her direction as people whisper about. The Salon is tucked away between a Victoria Secret's and an Omega Watch store, looking quite busy, save for a sectioned off part in the back. A bubbly young African woman calls out to Andrea and they trade kisses on the cheeks, followed by a quick round of conversation.

"Jasmine, this is Brad. Can you work with him on what he wants? That's Holly his seeing eye dog, and this is Gwen, my friend."

Jasmine is perky and upbeat, as if she had five cups of coffee. "Heeeeee-eeeeey guys! Let's do this! Brad, I'm Jasmine. It's awesome to meet you. What are you looking for?"

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
     Going into a mall surrounded by people with cameras isn't something Gwendolyn really expected. I mean, sure, she knew Andrea was famous, but never actually put 2 and 2 together. Being friends with Andrea and getting her picture taken was never considered, and hopefully her estranged parents don't suddenly decide that US Weekly is required reading and see a picture of their daughter in the cold wilds of the northern United States. Brushing her hair behind her ear, Gwen is thankful for the sunglasses image providing a little bit of anonymity, but the flashes do startle her when one goes off too close.

"With Andy, it's hard to not make a scene, but she's doing her best not to. I think that, since she's gotten a section of the salon set to private, just for this little event, you'll be fine." She reaches down to scritch Holly lightly on the scruff of her neck, staying close to the group and trying her best to look like she belongs. Malls? Those were things in New Orleans! Not from where she was!

Upon arrival at the salon, Gwendolyn relaxes a little. When they're behind the curtain and alone in the private grooming suite - what else do they call it - she relaxes a little more. Apparently Andrea informed Jasmine about what might be going on and for who, so instead of the usual flowery, girly stuff that smells good, other, more manly things are there to be had. "I think he's just wanting a haircut, Miss Jasmine." Southern manners coming in strong. "Been a while since he's gotten a trim."

Haunt has posed:
Actually, Brad does have input. To some extent, anyway. "Hi, Jasmine. So. I'd like short on sides and back, but longer on the top? But I don't want a crazy Mohawk or anything," Brad grins, smile quick like a whip: unusual, since he's normally invisible. But it suggests he's full of these roguish smiles that always include his straight white teeth.

"I can't see, so I'm relying on the girls to help decide," Brad adds. He'll need to be guided to a chair, but once he's found it he'll sit confidently enough, and pulls the dark glasses off, leaving his eyes shut. It's bright in the facility, of course. "If they mess up I have clippers in my room," Brad innocently threatens. The idea of the blind boy fixing his own hair is probably a bit terrifying.

Rage has posed:
Jasmine laughs as she takes Brad by the hand to gently guide him to a chair. "So, you want maybe a faux hawk? Where you can glue it upwards at a slope on both sides without it being too high? A lot of guys your age is doing that and it's a hot trend. You got a face that can pull it off too. Also, Andrea mentioned we may be interested in highlights? Put some color in there to give it some life?"

"Oh, totally, give him a boyband treatment." Andrea says with a laugh.

"Like one of those guys from Fate?"

"Yes! Those guys are /hot/."

Girls are weird. Jasmine turns the chair Brad is in and guides it backwards so that his head rests over a sink. She turns the water on, waits until it's warm, then begins to rinse his hair off while using a comb to work out any potential knots. The shampoo will smell amazing, followed by the conditioner.

"Gwen, do you want a haircut too?"

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
Gwendolyn rolls her eyes at the comparison and wanting to give Brad a similar haircut. "I never got the guys from FATE. I mean, they all seemed so aloof on their posters, just kind of gazing off into the middle distance, scattered over the shore on their CD covers. Just indifferent hot guys. Give the guy what he wants. Out of the eyes, short on the sides. Enough for him to part it if he wants to."

Gwendolyn moves to take a seat in one of the unused salon chairs, behind the curtain, looking over at the question. "I...um..." her hand comes up to brush through her hair, the X-men imager making her look normal, compared to her usual. "Is it okay? I could lose about an inch to get rid of dead ends."

Nightingale has posed:
     What girl could resist a trip to the mall? Perhaps this time there would be safety in numbers. So Shannon decided to take a chance on going with Gwendolyn, Andrea, and Brad, in the hopes that this time, there would be no... incidents. It also meant that she left a few whispered words with Gwendolyn and made a detour to the music store, this time for a slightly more leisurely perusal of the music store. She comes away with some spare guitar strings, both steel and nylon, and a reference book to learn chord fingerings and tablature on her own. However, she had a feeling that she'd not be using so much tablature as the chord references.

     Time to rejoin her friends at last! However, when she tried to reach them in the curtained-off section of the salon, well... she was definitely met with some resistance and skepticism. "Oh for pity's sake...!!!"

Haunt has posed:
"I don't think I need highlights or much special, isn't that girly?" Brad counters a little skeptically. That sounds like something girls have, to Brad. The condition of his hair is quite good. It's very healthy, considering: because it never has any bad treatment, sun damage, or product in it! Any tangles come out without issue.

"Maybe some other time we can add blue or something," Brad laughs. "I mean, I'm all for standing out, but we can baby step this." Brad doesn't want to bring up the invisibility! While in the chair, he puts The Backpack in his lap. It's heavy, but not big, so it's not really any big deal. Holly has settled under the counter by the mirror.

Brad, during the shampooing process, mostly looks like he's sleeping: the eyes closed, and he looks calm enough, though when asked questions he'll smile and answer, breaking the sleeping-beauty routine even if he keeps his eyes shut.

Rage has posed:
"I got asked out by Steven Ryker from Fate. He's about our age. He's actually really nice." Andrea says to Gwen with a laugh. "You can't fault them for how their marketing team makes them pose for posters. I am sure I have a few posters that makes me look pretty ditzy. Actually! I do have one.. I'll show you later. I hated this poster. It's one of Mason and I sitting next to each other back to back in front of a window and looking up at the ceiling."

Jasmine finishes washing his hair, then pats it down with a towel a bit to remove some of the moisture, while still keeping it moist and easy to manage. Once she sits Brad up and turns him around, she smiles. "Okay, no highlights then. But it's not girly. Everyone is doing it these days. I think blue would be /really/ cool. I'll be here whenever you're ready." With that, she starts working on the hair now, trimming and buzzing away in her expertise.

Hearing Shannon's voice, Andrea peeks around the curtain and waves her in. "Hey there. Grab a seat! Gwen is going to get a hair cut also. You too?" She asks as she spins around in her own chair slowly.

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
Some blue highlights would look kind of cool." Gwendolyn says from her spot in the seat, pushing with one toe to spin around in a circle, ending up facing the mirror, looking at herself the way she was before. "If I'm getting a haircut...Miss Jasmine, you're okay with...not so normal-looking people?" It's an important question for Gwendolyn to have answered.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon flashes Andrea a grateful smile, setting her bag down near the last of the empty salon chairs and sitting down. It's a little bit of an awkward proposition with her wings, but she manages to find a comfortable position with her wings out over the arms of the chair but not spread out to their full span.

     She giggles and glances over at Gwendolyn, relaxing and leaning back in the chair. This was a rare treat, one she would not usually indulge in for herself. "Gwendolyn... she's got someone sitting in here with great, big feathery wings. So I sure hope there isn't a problem!"

     Brad gets a little bit of a wing-wave and a smile. "Hey, Brad. Andrea finally get to ya and drag ya in for a makeover? Should be fun, she's got one heck of a sense of style."

Haunt has posed:
Shannon arrives; Brad's fairly sure it's her by her voice. He's visible, getting his hair trimmed now: sitting up, patiently. The cover to protect his clothes from hair trimmings also covers the nullifying backpack in his lap. "Hi again," Brad replies. His eyes were closed, but he opens them, though he doesn't turn his head. Brown eyes move and he makes a face of pain, but for a second it looked like he actually registered Shannon, not looking through her. Perhaps the big wings helped.

"Yes, I'm very trusting; don't abuse my trust," Brad teases.

Rage has posed:
"There is no such thing as normal looking people." Jasmine says to Gwen with an amused look upon her face as she snips and combs through Brad's hair as the style he likes is taking shape. "If you are beating around the bush about mutants or skin color or sexuality, you can bet none of that matters to me. I'm a black woman from Harlem who lived in foster care her entire life. Trust me sweetie, I know all about struggle and I'm not going to judge people for having wings, scales, or too much money and never pay taxes."

Jasmine is also very snarky when it comes to politics.

"Don't worry cutie, you'll look fantastic when I'm done with you." Jas says to Brad.

Andrea giggles as she taps away at her phone. "So, you want a haircut too, Shannon? I'm paying for everyone since I booked the session. Jasmine is my personal stylist here in the city and she is the best at what she does. Her superpower is scissors and shampoo."

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
"What about...mutants with antenna and slightly odd skin?" Gwendolyn glances to Shannon, giving her a small smile and wave before turning to face Jasmine and deactivating her imager, revealing the whole shebang of antenna, visor, and chitin plates on arms and the like. The wings, thankfully, fold up and out of the way so she can sit in a chair without worrying too much about her wings.

She watches Brad get his hair done, one knee going to her chest as she leans over a little in her seat. "Been forever since I've been in a real salon. Like, since before being in new york by, like, six months."

Haunt has posed:
At the compliment, Brad /flames/ with a blush. He's very pale (no sunlight for two years will do that), so his blush is radiant and apparent. He partially focuses on her arm when she comes in front of him, dark eyes picking up on the moving, close blur maybe. The squint has relaxed a little from his gaze, which helps: squinting isn't a sexy look for anybody. But he closes his eyes and actually relaxes, listening to the conversation.

"Can you describe what your hair looks like /now/?" Brad asks. That is probably at Shannon and Gwendolyn, but the question is just open. "I've never done a 'salon'," Brad chuckles.

Brad then quiets, going where directed for his hair items, including submitting to highlights if they deem it good.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon attempts to stifle a laugh at Jasmine's very plainly-spoken point of view on mutants, humanity, money, and politics. She also fails, and winds up grinning wide. "Ah, what the heck, why not? Haven't been to a salon since... oh, wow, a year or so before my change. Used to love going, it was always a treat. Mom would make an afternoon of it with me, we'd have breakfast somewhere nice on a Saturday and then head for the salon. A nice little day, just us girls." Andrea is favored with another smile, and she tips her head in her direction. "Thank you."

     She beams with pride over at Gwendolyn, giving her a thumbs-up as she turns her imager off. "You go, girl!" She remembered all too well first meeting the girl, and how uncomfortable she had seemed in her own skin. To see her with the bravery to simply be herself outside of the school put a smile on her face that wasn't likely to go away anytime soon.

     Smiling over at Brad, she nods. "My hair's fairly long, reaches down to a little past the middle of my back. It's stick-straight, very pale blonde... sort of a cross between gold and a pale sand color... and has never seen any dye or highlights, ever. My eyes... very light blue. Ever see pictures of a glacier, that really pale azure color the ice gets? That's the color." She's not trying to show off, but simply to try and describe something for someone who could see once, and might have a frame of reference to go by.

Rage has posed:
When Gwen transforms in front of Jasmine, that definitely gives a reaction. She wasn't expecting that. She steps back a few steps for a moment, eyes wide, before she lets out a breath. "Oh! I see.. you were hiding all of that. Wow. Okay, that was a neat trick. Giiiiiirrrrl... can I borrow that? I have a country club I've been trying to sneak in for about twenty years now. I can do your hair, sure, no problem."

Jasmine is a rock star. Everyone should have a Jasmine in their life.

As the cutting and trimming is done, Jasmine spins Brad around to face the girls, holding her thumb up, then down, as if to silently ask: Hey, does he look good? Help me out girls.

Andrea gives a smile and shuffles a bit closer. "Dang, that looks good. Brad, you're hot. I like it! You gonna put some gel in it, maybe spike it up or tousle it?"

"I can if he wants." Jasmine confirms.

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
Yeah, she was hiding all of that. At least she's got mostly normal features and the like - a good hooded sweatshirt and some sunglasses could technically take care of the problem but a stiff breeze and off it goes, freaking out the public. She smiles, her cheeks turning up a little as she does, blushing, nodding faintly. "I'll...see about finding you one. There are a few bouncing around, but they require a little work to get operational with what you're going to look like. My imager is programmed to look like I did before all the mutations came in, for instance."

Running her fingers through her hair, Gwendolyn looks over to Brad and his chair. Her first instinct is to give a thumbs up, but that really won't work when he can't see so, instead, she first gives her opinion, then her description. "I think it looks good. Makes your face look nice. Get some five o'clock shadow going and you'll be able to sneak into bars without having to resort to leaving your pack at home." A little teasing from Gwendolyn there. "And as far as what I look like? Brown hair - not as long as Shannon's, to a little below my shoulders. Kind of wavy, but not curly. Sapphire eyes - which you've seen, as best you can, but the imager has hazel ones like mine were before the change. Um..." She looks down "Like..five six? Couple of inchest shorter than you. Little more curvy, too. Thank my spanish mother for that."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Wow... Brad, seriously, you look /good/." Shannon gives a low whistle and a thumbs up, smiling. She high-fives Andrea, Gwendolyn, and definitely Jasmine each in turn. "Andrea wasn't kidding. Your superpower really /is/ scissors and shampoo!"

     Giggling softly, she settles back in her chair, and reaches for the bag from the music store. It'll be a while before it's her turn, so she takes a few minutes to study the book she bought just a little while ago, holding the book open on her lap, her left hand curled up and over as if holding a guitar, testing the feel of each chord. "Whew. This is going to take some practice, but it'll be fun."

Haunt has posed:
Brad didn't know what Jasmine was asking them, he just knew he got spun around. "Just a minute," Brad asks, and digs his hands out from under the haircut cover, to brush them up and through his hair: he's examining the cut by touch, clearly his primary sense for things such as that, as he lacks sight. He's blushing again as the girls lay it on. Particularly that Shannon /whistles/ at him.

"It feels like I was Quasimodo before and nobody told me!" Brad jokes, trying to soften things.

" I mean. Come on now," Brad says, in a weird uncomfortable humility showing through. He can't tell if they're just being nice: they could well be. Still, it isn't unwelcome. Brad just isn't sure what to do with it, and his self doubt is strong. "Can you teach me to gel it, instead of doing it on me? I have to do it by feel, though," Brad asks Jasmine.

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
"You really look nice, Brad." Gwendolyn says quietly, reaching over to tap his knee lightly with her fingertips, leaning back after a second. "A little less shaggy, of course. More put together. Presentable, even." She giggles, adding the best compliment she can. "You look like anyone else you'd see in high school. Like you belong."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Pffft, who are you kidding, Gwen? He looked nice before. Now... well, he's definitely going to be breaking some hearts!" Shannon extends one wing towards Brad, brushing the tips of the largest wing feathers across his hand, accompanied by a brief touch from her hand to reassure him. "Don't let me hear you putting yourself down, okay? Ask Gwen and Andrea, I've even gone toe-to-toe with Mr. Rasputin when he tried to put down his singing voice. And he isn't exactly a pushover. So...."

Haunt has posed:
"At this point I'm good with just being responsible for my own heart!" Brad chuckles in amusement. He's very tempted to go invisible, which is a strange feeling for him. After so much hatred of being invisible, it's become so natural to him to hide. Some of the emotions play on his face, unaware that the women can see them. He's exceptionally expressive; his brows and lashes are light, which make his dark eyes more apparent when he opens them, a contrast of dark eyes to his pale quality. It causes a thoughtful introspection, intelligent look not marred by his lack of focus: more that he's looking through things, as if thinking far away into the future. Not just blind.

"Anyway, I feel pounds lighter, so," Brad says, pushing a smile to the surface. He moved one hand to catch Gwen's fingers at his knee, the other to where Shannon touched with feathers. He's gentle, though: no pulling. When Jasmine pulls his attention with 'how to gel', Brad focuses on that, though, his face dropping serious, intent on trying to feel gel amounts, where to put it, and so on. It isn't terrible: the faux-hawk ends up happening, but then Brad is FREE, and he climbs out of the chair, flushed but smiling subtlety.

"Thanks everybody. Someone else's turn." PLEASE someone else's turn!

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
Gwendolyn watches the gel-instruction curiously. Since she's a girl, short hair never was a thing but knowing how a guy's hair is supposed to be styled never hurts. A little quarter-sized dollop of the clear stuff, run through hair with fingers and then neatened up with a straight comb or those same fingers. "No fair." She says off-handedly to Shannon. "A comb and a little product and he's done. I know it takes me a good twenty, thirty minutes to get my hair ready for the day."

Giggling, Gwendolyn slips out of her chair and offers Brad a hand, directing him to the place she was just sitting, walking sideways slightly to get out of his way and let to let Holly re-position herself near the other chair. "Here, let me..." she murmurs, her hands moving carefully past Brad's face and eyes so he can see the motion and not be startled, spiking the hair in the front with gentle movements, giving it a more natural look rather than laser pointer straight. "What do you think, Shannon?" She glances over to the angel-winged girl before wiping her hands on a towel. Straightening, she looks to Jasmine for a second, then turns a little more. This puts her with her back to Brad and the chair he was in, Jasmine sweeping up the piles of hair that came off the guy, facing Shannon. "So, what do you say, Shannon?" Gwendolyn grins, glancing to Brad. "Rock paper scissors for who goes next?"

Nightingale has posed:
     It seemed it was the girls' chance to play hairstylist, and well... Brad was it. Shannon slides out of her chair, setting her book down to keep her place and moves over to Brad, making sure he can perceive her approach. First there is a touch of her hand, and then the tips of her wingfeathers, to alert him to her presence there. Tilting her head this way and that, she raises her other hand slowly towards his hair. "Hold still a sec?" Adding a slightly tousled wave to the gel-styled look, she grins, and moves her hand away. "There. Definitely a heartbreaker."

Grinning, she turns back to Gwen and laughs. "I'm content to go last, but sure. Rock, paper, scissors!" She moves her hand in the classic gesture, counting out each word with a slight swinging motion of her loosely held fist--a holdover from childhood, the way she wished /all/ disputes could be settled....

Haunt has posed:
Brad stays still for at first, and nods when Gwendolyn adds her take, then Shannon, and they determines he's complete. "Oh my god guys," Brad laughs, finally batting both hands at their hands as they both come after his hair like monkeys! He's grinning though, and the flush remains. The attention isn't unwelcome, he's probably enjoying it now. Still, he's embarrassed.

He examines the front by feel - accidentally mussing it more - but it doesn't look bad. Brad wipes his hands on his pants (what towel?) and then oozes down in his new chair just a little, into cruise-control position. He fiddles with his sunglasses from a pocket and puts them back on his face, and reclines there.

Everybody did great work, and Brad can be in a boy band now, with his subtle little smile there, and the glasses making him just seem cool, not blind. "So we're doing bright magenta with zebra streaks for the next person, right? Whoever wins, gets it."

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
More fun if it's a challenge, rather than just going next. After all, it's Andrea's money they're spending, and Gwendolyn is keeping track. She'll have to do something nice for her soon to pay her back for this. Andrea's probably going to have a batch of cookies made with her name on it in the next couple of days, for certain! Wiggling out her fingers, Gwendolyn starts the motion, closing her eyes to make it more fair and bouncing her fist against her palm three times. Pop, pop, pop, paper!

"Did I win?" Gwendolyn opens her eyes and looks, grinning, at her victory! She bounces at Shannon's rock, playfully going up on her toes in a victory pose remniscent of a fighting game character, one arm up in the air in a victory sign. Someone, it seems, watches too much anime! Swiveling on the ball of her foot, Gwendolyn moves over to the chair that Brad vacated and slips in once the hair has been swept off, waiting to be pampered for the first time in months! "Wait, what?" She sits up straighter, first checking to see if Jasmine has bottles of hair dye at hand, then to brad with a laugh. "No! I already stand out enough without having crazy-looking hair. Silly."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Ha! No zebra stripes for me!" Shannon giggles madly, nudging Gwendolyn towards the chair with obvious relish, grinning at Jasmin. "You heard the man!" The last is said with a wink, and her tone is just plain out playful, not at all serious. And at that, she's content to grab her book and her bag from the music store, and plop down somewhere near Brad and Andrea, opening the book again and dividing her attention between trying some of the chords, Brad and Andrea, and what is going on over in the 'hot seat', where Gwendolyn is now seated.

Haunt has posed:
"I'm just going to suggest you /not/ shave it off," Brad says, blindly, from his spot. "I think you said brown?, but all I have experienced is texture, so. Leave that much alone," he suggests. This became really difficult, because Brad has so little input, but he made the attempt. Holly is trying to bite a bit of loose hair near her paws, ears perked forward at it.

"Maybe do the highlights I dodged getting?" No idea, just trying to be a part of things.

Rage has posed:
As they determine who is going to go next, Andrea and Jasmine are quietly talking to each other as it appears she is setting up a date for herself so she can get styled before her final concert.

"Okay, so who is going next?" Jasmine calls out as she washes her hands. Andrea sits next to Brad and grins. "Hey, lean in real quick to me, I'm going to take a selfie of us and send it to Jay." She says as she takes her phone out of her pocket. "Let me know when you're ready. You really do look good. I'm stoked for you."

Whoever is up next will get led to the chair to have their popstar treatment of being showered and conditioned. Everything smells so nice and pretty, and feels silky to the touch. This is truly a day of lavish.

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
"I have no idea, honestly, Brad." Gwendolyn takes her jacket off and then takes her spot in the chair, looking back to Jasmine with a bit of trepedation as the monogrammed cape is fastened around her neck, a barrier against bits of hair entering sensitive spots under her clothes. "And I think I am, miss Jasmine." Gwendolyn takes off her goggles, her eyes held tightly closed to keep the light from hurting them too terribly badly. "I'm in your capable hands."

"Honey, you do /not/ need to worry. I take care of Andrea before her shows, so taking care of you and Angel wings, over there, is going to be like a vacation. You ever /dealt/ with Hollywood types, wanting someone to look perfect? Shoot." Jasmine laughs, snapping her fingers three times in a zig-zag motion. "Making you three look good is going to be a piece of cake."

"Just no zebra highlights. Or shaving it off. I kind of like having my hair long." Gwendolyn says, glancing over to Brad. "And make it sooooft for him to run his fingers through, if he wants." she teases playfully.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon rolls her eyes and chuckles slightly. "Or he could run his fingers through mine." Jasmine gets a laugh from her, and she just shakes her head. "Oh man... you have no idea just how nice a treat it is to be able to come in for a little bit of spoiling without someone looking at you funny, or worrying you'll freak them out for being so different. Trust me, you're not going to be getting any prima donnas here." She glances over at Brad briefly and smiles, extending one wing in his general direction again, just because.

Haunt has posed:
"Can someone also take one of me with my camera of me, too, after the selfie? So when people ask, I have something," Brad requests. He brought his phone on purpose for that; it is voice oriented. He unlocks it: pressing his thumb makes it chirp, and he verbally directs it into camera mode.

Brad orients on Andrea though first before going further, hearing her lean in as her voice moves next to him. He forgot to take the sunglasses off for the Selfie, of course. But he does grin anyway, letting Andrea handle angles with her selfie practiced hand, and then holding his camera out towards Shannon. "Will you take it, Shannon?"

"Also, you guys seem really confident about my lack of hair-pulling," Brad observes, cheeky, the smirk showing on his face, and lifting his hands, curving the fingers in monster-gesture fashion.

Rage has posed:
After taking the picture, Andrea smiles and then scoots over so that Shannon can take a picture of Brad.

"Some girls really like their hair being pulled." She says as she taps along the glass of her phone. "I just gotta be in the right mood for that. My safe word is pretty paws."

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon nods and accepts the phone from Brad. Thankfully it's already set up from the selfie to take a photo, so all she has to do is point and click. "Seriously, you look good with that style." A light little laugh escapes her at the idea of hair-pulling being a thing, and she just shakes her head. "Wouldn't know about that one." Oh, my. There's a little old-fashioned shutter click sound when she takes the picture, and she smiles somewhat. Hopefully, she thought to herself, he would be able to see this and remember a good day, perhaps the first of many.

     "Here you go, Brad." She turns the phone back towards him, touching his hand gently to alert him to its presence.

     A thumbs-up is given to Gwen. "Hey. If it'll make you feel any better, I'll let her dye one piece of my hair on the left side blue, and I'll braid it and put beads on the end or something."

Haunt has posed:
"Thanks Shannon, perfect," Brad says, accepting his phone back, brushing fingers against hers when she does the right thing: gently touching him to show the object. That was correct.

"Haven't had wild til you've done it on the ceiling with a telekinetic," Brad jokes back, picking up Andrea's dirty direction. His tone took on a brazen tone: very much 'jock boy' snark. Then Brad sort of realizes what he's said. It's a piece of him that would have come out a few years ago, before the invisibility crushed his social world.

"I'm kidding, of course," Brad says, trying to bail water, and slides towards his feet. "Um. I'm going to take Holly out to pee." And escape for a minute. "I'll find my way back." Brad pockets the phone, pulls on The Backpack, and directs Holly into position. He escapes for a little while, without much more word.

Rage has posed:
As Jasmine tends to Gwen's hair, it appears that the stylist is going to let the hair stay long, but she's going to trim away the dead ends. Next, she takes some curlers so that she can give the ends, about an inch or two some nice curl. Ringlets. They will have a great bounce to them when she walks.

Andrea looks amused at Brad, brows lifting before she goes back to tapping away at her phone as she sends the picture to everyone's phone of her and Brad's selfie. She uploads it to Insta, tagging it with: Hanging out with my homies at Sterling's. #PamperMe.

"So, Shannon, are you getting styled too?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon smiles and shrugs. "Probably, I'm just not quite sure how. Definitely a trim, it's been forever. Wondering if that bit of blue hair on the left side would be too much, or if maybe highlights is a safer bet. Would those even show on really light hair?" A light up-nod is offered to her, and she lets both hands rest for a moment on her book. "What about you? If we're getting spoiled, you deserve to, too."

Rage has posed:
"I have one scheduled next week to prepare for the concert. My styling is a big ordeal since it's done on a professional grade. I'll probably be here for a few hours sitting there with heaters and dyes and curlers, and I'm sure I'll end up crying at some point." Andrea jokes as she steals a look to Jasmine who sticks her tongue back at her.

"Girl, you only cried once! You big baby!"

"It was terrifying!"

"You said you wanted a bobby cut! Girl, do I look like my name is Karen? I don't know what the hell a bobby cut was!"

"Google it!"

"You don't pay me enough to Google it."

Andrea just laughs at that, eyes rolling upwards at Jasmine's snark.

"I think the blue would look totally cute on you Shan. Even some pink would be adorbs."

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon laughs, and shakes her head. "Naah, Megan's got the corner on pink. I like the idea of blue or maybe purple, though. What do you think, an ice blue? Peacock blue? Just how wild should I be going with this one here?" She grins a bit at Andrea's description and shakes her head, laughing. "See, this is why I'm not sure I'd want to go into music professionally. It sounds like a massive headache. Your life doesn't seem like it'd really be your own anymore. The security, the hours in a styling chair, the constant, grueling practice... how do you ever find time to just be /you/?" She shrugs a little bit. "I mean okay, maybe Byron made a point of bringing up his label but one... is he even legit and two... would I still be able to be a healer and everything else, or would I have to give that up?"

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
At this point, Gwendolyn is like putty in Jasmine's hands. While she might protest a color change or more drastic hacking, the little bit taken off the ends of her length, combined with the curlers, give her hair a nice bounce at the bottom, framing her face. She even considers asking for a little bit of lighter strawberry highlights to be put in but, by the time she works up the nerve for that, the washing, cutting, shampooing and styling is all over and done with. "YOu're lucky, Shannon." She finally says from her spot in the chair. "You're blonde to start with. If I end up getting any sort of color, I've got to get bleached first, and I'm really not looking forward to having that done." Jasmine can probably tell Gwendolyn has worked hard to get her hair back in some kind of order since arriving at Xaviers - and she's not looking to wreck it now!

"Why not just get a strip that changes in the light? I remember seeing one girl on the way up here that, when the wind hit her hair, it was like she had a rainbow growing out of her head. Reddish on top, going through the gradients until blue on the bottom. She flipped her hair and poof!" Gwendolyn claps her hands. "Magic."

Haunt has posed:
After a little while, and most of Gwen's cutting already complete, Brad returns to the room. He looks a little windblown, his jacket collar up against his neck as he returns. He's very memorable (seeing eye dog for once thing), and doesn't get challenged on return. If anyone saw Andrea's Instagram with Brad in it or she has any attention from it, Brad's entirely unaware, and just comes back inside, unzipping his jacket, pausing as he listens to audial cues about where everyone may be located now that he's back. Holly wags at the girls, pink tongue lolling.

Rage has posed:
"I go to school with you guys. That's where I can be me. This." Andrea waves her hand about. "Is my job. I treat it like a job. It's like any other nine to five job, except I get flown around on jets and I preform complicated dance routines while trying to sing and put on a good show. As much as I tease back and forth with Jasmine, I really do love what I do, because this is my passion. This and the charity work that I do. With fame comes the price of everything else. Security, cameras, people wanting to get close to you. I have learned how to deal with it at a young age."

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon's hair is a simpler affair, with a wash, dry, and trim. Water that lands on her feathers rolls right off, as if she were a creature of the water instead of the air. With a little bit of a nervous smile, she lets Jasmine work her magic with one single lock of hair on the left side of her face. Not a large one, just enough to braid and thread some nice beads on the end of for effect. That one single lock is changed from her natural blonde to a glacier blue just a shade or two darker than her eyes. Definitely a change, yet unobtrusive enough to warrant a second glance if necessary.

     "Gwen? Brad? What do you think? We all get our pictures with our new 'do's so all of us can look back at it and go 'What the frak were we thinking that day'?" She flashes both a nervous grin and a laugh.

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
"Well, I can't say what brad will think of the new look." Gwendolyn responds from her spot near the chair that Shannon's currently inhabiting. "Seeing as he can't really see it but the blue streak compliments your eyes. About the same color as a clear sky in in the morning...a shade lighter, in fact." She's not just calling it 'blue' but giving it more context, hoping that Brad can see it in his mind's eye, even though his eyes don't work entirely 100% just yet. A picture, though? That's the right idea.

"I think a picture will be perfect. It'll give brad something on his phone to look at. Exercise his eyes a few times with something that's around and not random pictures off of the internet."

Who knows what a young man might find with an unmonitored internet connection?

"Here, babies, give me the camera." Jasmine, her hands washed from the work she's done, snags Brad, Andrea, and Shannon's cameras and motions Gwendolyn and Shannon to stand on either side of him. "Okay, look right ahead...brad, baby, turn your head a little more to the left toward my voice and...perfect. Hold still." She Moves through the cameras quickly, taking several pictures of each individually and then a final group shot, passing the cameras to each person who has one.

Haunt has posed:
Brad stands, but moves a little to order Holly to sit in front of him by his feet. His dog can be part of the picture too, though she did not get any haircut. She gets a treat instead!

As the girls arrange themselves to either side of him, Brad turns a little red, and doesn't know what to do with his hands at all. If he had his telekinetics it would be different, but at this point he's feeling crowded in on. He masks it, though, and opts instead to put his hands out to either side, palm up, offering to the girls to either hold his hand, take his arm, direct his hand behind them, whatever they feel is best for the photo. "Okay. Do a verbal countdown please," Brad says, turning his head when instructed. He still has the glasses on, which with the new flashy hairstyle? It make him look a little bit like a famous person trying way too hard to be incognito: a bit comical.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon giggles a little bit, extending one wing to wrap around behind Brad and Gwen for effect, in addition to her arm. With her free hand, she makes the 'peace' symbol and grins. "It's the final countdown, guys...." It's impossible to keep from singing it again. "It's the final countdowwwwwwn! Three... two... one...."

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
The hand extending outward isn't something Gwen was expecting so she takes hold of it carefully with her right, two fingers looping around brad's thumb, her other hand lifting up in a cheerful wave since the peace symbol is alrady taken. "Say cheese!"

*click*

Haunt has posed:
Since Gwen takes his hand she gets a calm squeeze and rotation of his wrist, as he determines which part of her hand she's using. He's gentle about it. Shannon instead putting her arm behind them means he drops his hand instead on that side, and just waits through the countdowns with a quiet smile. These pictures aren't for him, in his opinion: he may never really see them. But that doesn't mean he wants them to be bad for those that can enjoy them. He separates when the photo ends and puts his phone away in a jacket pocket.

"I wish I could see you guys, really," Brad says, lamely, feeling foolish. "Maybe sometime. I'd like to go back, though, if that's okay. If you want to shop or something, I could go by myself: don't let me ruin the mall fun. I just hate shopping."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon lets her arm drop down once the picture is done, and reaches down to gently hold Brad's hand, smiling a little bit. "Pfft. It's the Musketeers. So, which one of us is D'Artagnan, which one of us is Porthos, which one's Aramis...?" She laughs, and tries to picture them all in the classic Musketeer's getup, with the blue and the silver fleur-de-lis. Plus the broad-brimmed hats with massive ostrich plumes. It makes her giggle, and she grins. "We could all of us dress up like Musketeers next year for Halloween, maybe?"

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
"Maybe on the musketeers. I don't think I could pull of Porthos very easily. No facial hair and weigh about 50 kilos too little." Gwendolyn looks over at Brad and then over to Shannon, shaking her head with a giggle. The definite answer she can give, though is regarding shopping. Slowly disentangling herself from Brad's hand, Gwendolyn slips on her coat and turns the imager back on, the 'normal' Gwen making a reappearance with a shimmer of light. "Given that I'm not comfortable tapping our benefactor for anything more than a lemonade from the food court, I'm good with heading back to the school. I've got to do some homework anyway, and I heard that they're doing grilled cheese BLT's tonight for dinner. So...bacon and cheese, grilled. That's kind of a win, right?"

Gwendolyn does have a small wallet, though, tucked into her parka, and as thanks, a beaten up $20 that she got from somewhere is witdrawn and tucked into Jasmine's tip bucket. "Let's head back?"

Haunt has posed:
"I'm always a ghost for Halloween, I'm not going to ruin my streak," Brad replies slyly, trying to play along. "Also, eleven days is too much planning ahead for that holiday, let alone eleven months," he teases. But having two girls his age, let alone mutant ones that don't mind that he's a mutant, willing to hang onto his hands and step close? It is a new situation for him. He's starting to flush again, and some awkwardness appears. He drops his head a little bit, swallowing, but doesn't hide his weird little smile. He's not unhappy.

Gwen breaks it up by letting go too, and Brad seems to shy more. "Really though, I had fun. I didn't feel invisible today. So. Thanks." Blehhhhh awkward. Brad snares Holly's guidebar, and thanks Jasmine. Going back home should be a nice relief. Fun, but stressful!

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon reluctantly lets go but smiles, offering Brad a brief hug. "Yeah, back home to some BLT's. Maybe I could make some mac 'n cheese, too. Cheese on cheese on cheese on bacon? Heaven!" She smiles and holds the hug for a moment, finally stepping back to give him and Holly a bit of space. "Come on... time to head home?"

Dragonfly (Armenteros) has posed:
"I can almost feel my heart stopping already from the cholesterol." Gwendolyn says with a smile, reaching down to scratch Holly behind the ears. "Think you can get us back to the car?" Yes, she's asking the dog, who wags her tail and starts leading the way out of the salon and back to the SUV.