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 Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2016 9:09 pm
When Beth was surprised not once but twice with gifts, she was determined not to be overcome a third time. And so it was that she went hunting for her other friends before they had a chance to seek her out. Like a very fashionable (and younger and female) Santa, she had a couple of gift bags looped over her arms and she raced over the grounds to see if she could find her first target: Sylvia. She combed the gym, the Hearth, and finally had the bright idea to seek her out in the Aphrodite dorm. Knocking on the door shared by both Sylvia and Misha, she stood, excited and ready to pass along the spirit of the season.
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Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2016 2:59 pm
It was lucky for Beth that their timetables worked out. Sylvia was getting a late start to her day and was considering visiting the gym after all; ten minutes later, and Beth might have just missed her, after already missing her at the gym earlier. Sylvia was halfway to her closet door when she was surprised by the knock on her front door, and shifted her trajectory.
Seeing Beth on the other side of the door elicited the grin of the pleasantly surprised. “Beth! Hello, gorgeous!” Sylvia opened the door a bit more and stepped back, effectively inviting Beth into her space. She held onto the doorknob and crossed her legs, other hand on her hip as she tilted a playful look at her friend. “What brings you here?” She saw the gift bags hanging from Beth’s arm, but she almost thought it more likely that Beth would ask if Sylvia knew where Misha was so that she could deliver a gift to the fellow Aphrodite. Though Sylvia secretly had her own batch of gifts hiding in her closet as it was, so having Beth stop in for a visit on any grounds was rather fortunate.[ 196 words ]
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Posted: Sun Jan 01, 2017 5:14 pm
Beth beamed at her opal-haired friend. She was grateful for the compliment, as her brightened aspect might have indicated. "Why, presents of course!" She stepped inside, looking around at the room before finally casting a glance at her host. "Were you about to go work out? I won't be long! I just wanted to pop by and give you something."
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 1:34 am
Sylvia shook her head and waved a hand at the air, lightly batting away Beth’s concern. “Oh, no, don’t worry about it. I was considering going for a work-out, but this is a much nicer way to spend my time.” And way more convenient. She wouldn’t have to cross campus for the gym, or for gift-giving. Not that she would mind the latter, but the point still stood.
“I appreciate you thinking of me.” Sylvia tilted her head slightly, beaming, continuously impressed at the thoughtfulness of the few friends she had made so far. It was true that she had also thought to get gifts for a few others, but it was still a nice surprise to also be thought of.[ 121; 317 total ]
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 10:19 am
Beth giggled. "Hanging out with friends is always better than going to the gym, I agree."She didn't see anywhere she deemed appropriate enough for her to settle, so she simply picked out one of the many bags on her arms and held it out to Sylvia. It was a cream colored bag with the dove of peace on either side. White tissue paper reached out from the top. It was a medium sized bag, with clearly more than just a token gift card in it. "Just a few tokens of appreciation! I never thought I'd end up with so many friends! I wanted to show you how grateful I am to have met you." The plain, unvarnished honesty in her words surprised even Beth. Still, she smiled warmly, encouraging Sylvia to take her gift.
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 11:19 pm
Sylvia pressed a hand over her heart at Beth’s comments, a touched expression on her face. “Well, honey, same here.” She accepted the bag, but made sure to give Beth a hug at the same time. Beth had been one of her first friends – one of the only people so far to have had fairly in-depth discussions with her. She wasn’t sure that this was quite the time to fully express how much she appreciated that. It made her feel good to think that at least one person here trusted her, even if they were still developing further than a basic level.
Sylvia turned and pulled the chair for her desk out, turning it and waving a hand to offer it to Beth before she spun and sat on her own bed. She pulled her legs up and crossed them, placing the bag in her lap with a smile. Delicate fingers tugged lightly at the tissue paper on top until it let go and fluttered out. Sylvia set it aside and peered at the contents.
She gaped slightly, glancing up at Beth before turning back to the gift with a smile. A beautiful white fabric with patterns of cranes and flowers, and pale pink accents, was folded on top. Sylvia reached in and pulled it out, unfolding it and gasping softly. It was absolutely gorgeous. Smiling, she wrapped it around her neck and let it fall over her shoulders, running her right hand over the length of what fell on its side, fingers playing with the fringe on the end. Biting at the right side of her bottom lip, she turned to the bag again, having caught sight of more inside.
Next was a colorful shawl, printed feathers and flowers in the shape of wings revealed as Sylvia unfurled it. It was not something she would have picked out for herself, but the detail was lovely and the colors were gorgeous. She found, holding it out in front of her, that she liked the idea of being a bird. She would enjoy using this. Despite the fact that it was basically doubling up, she wrapped the shawl around herself, tucking it under the scarf on her shoulders.
She had heard a rustle when she brought the shawl out and she peered into the bag again to find one last gift wrapped in tissue paper. She tilted her head curiously and retrieved the small but weighty package, setting the bag aside. She turned the paper over in her hands and unrolled the contents to reveal a beautiful necklace of light pink beads with bronze accents. The two embellishment beads had roses on them that reminded Sylvia of her goddess. She cradled the necklace in her right hand while her left reached up to hover past her lips. Slowly she glanced up to meet Beth’s eyes.
“Beth, these are gorgeous.” She glanced back down at the beads and smiled, left hand moving down so that her two fingers could lift the heart of roses at the end for closer examination. After a few seconds, she beamed up at her friend and removed the tissue paper from under the beads, letting them drape over the back of her hand and holding them against her cheek. She sighed and gave a playful frown as she lowered her hands, still cradling the beads, into her lap.
“Well, this just isn’t fair.” She carefully unwound the shawl and scarf from her shoulders, setting them aside on the bed and placing the necklace carefully on top. “How is my gift supposed to follow that?” Sylvia stood and made her way to her closet, opening the door to retrieve a bag from inside and turning to hold it up and show it off to Beth. It was dark blue with a smattering of gold stars outlined in grey – hopefully Christmassy enough.[ 643; 960 total ] Yekaterin THIS BECAME VERY LONG, I'M SORRY ;;
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2017 6:41 pm
Beth sat in the offered chair, setting her bags down at her feet. Still, she sat at the edge of the seat, eager to see what Sylvia thought of the gifts. She giggled as Sylvia wrapped herself in the scarf and shawl, feeling gratified that the colors accented rather than clashed with her hair. She had been afraid there was more blue and green in her hair than pink or yellow, but luckily this fear, like most of hers, was unfounded. She was practically holding her breath as Sylvia got to the piece de resistance--in her mind, anyway. The reaction was all she could have hoped for. Her own eyes sparkled with relief and joy as they met Sylvia's. She dug under her turtleneck to show her own prayer beads. "I figured one more way to show our devotion couldn't hurt." She shared a brief conspiratorial grin before tucking them back into her shirt. She paled at Sylvia's assertion that it wasn't fair. She didn't want to be the cause of her friend's downturn in mood, but...hadn't she wanted to completely outclass any gifts that anyone else in her social circle could possibly give? Tucking that piece of cognitive dissonance away for later, she molded her expression into something like blithe dismissal. "It's the thought that counts, darling. I'm sure it's wonderful!"The bag was beautiful--not the usual red and green of the holiday season, a change that Beth could certainly appreciate. She tried not to look too excited. The spirit of the season was the togetherness fostered by generosity, not the material tokens themselves.
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Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2017 1:30 am
Sylvia (carefully) clapped her hands when Beth showed her own beads. There was something wonderful about knowing they had matching, but unique, necklaces. And the sentiment of having another sign of devotion for their Godesses added a level of appreciation to her recognizing the roses and having something, besides her sigil, to wear in honor of Aphrodite. “I love it.”
Sylvia barely registered the fact that she might have freaked Beth out with her comment. She was too excited about the gifts she’d just received, and the gifts she was about to give. She wasn’t sure they were quite as fabulous as Beth’s, but she hoped that her friend would like them all the same.
Beth might have been trying to hold back excitement, but Sylvia could feel her eagerness even if she was hiding her feelings perfectly well. But excitement was the point! She loved the anticipation and joy of giving and receiving thoughtful presents. She returned to her place on her bed, holding the bag in front of her until Beth accepted it. Once she did, Sylvia pulled her legs up to her chest and watched with a hardly-contained grin, biting the edge of her lip and hoping for a good reaction…[ 204; 1,164 total ] Yekaterin Though I showed you elsewhere, just in case, WITHIN THE BAG is a shawl folded on the bottom and wrapped in tissue paper, with a choker resting on top beneath the initial poof of tissue paper~
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Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2017 3:47 pm
Beth gently took the bag from her friend, exchanging a brief smile over the tissue paper before focusing on the bag in her lap. She pulled the top layer of paper out, carefully collecting them next to her so they didn't fall to the ground. No need to make Sylvia clean up after her. The first item was a black and burgundy lace choker with a silver heart charm. Beth giggled as she pulled it out. "It's so cute! And it goes with my outfit!" The reds weren't exactly the same, and the lace detail would get lost on the collar of the black turtleneck she was wearing, but the moment was too cute to let it slip away. Before checking the rest of the bag for any other gifts, she reached up to put the choker on, securing it underneath the collar of her wine colored shrug. The ribbon, she hoped, accented her throat (covered in cloth as it was) nicely. She lifted her chin to let Sylvia admire her gift. "Does it look as lovely as I think it does?"
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Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2017 8:50 pm
Sylvia was pleased to see that even the first, small gift was well-received – and impressed at Beth’s coincidental color coordination. She bit her lip a bit in anticipation, a smile growing as Beth presented the choker. A firm nod was her initial response before cradling her chin in a palm. “I think it works very well.” It was lovely, and though Beth’s throat was mostly hidden, it was a pretty emphasis on her neck and still brought attention. Sylvia would be very excited to see how well it worked on Beth’s bare neck sometime.
Just in case Beth thought that was all there was, Sylvia indicated the bag again with her chin. “Make sure you checked all the tissue paper.” The red shrug she was wearing would certainly get in the way of the next gift, and perhaps the turtleneck as well if it was too bulky, but hopefully Beth would get a good idea of what it was and whether it was a good gift without needing to try it on immediately. Either way, Sylvia was excited to see if it was as fitting as she thought. Anxious jitters were starting to work their way into her limbs.[ 199; 1,363 total ] Yekaterin FINALLY, I'm so sorry it took so long ;; <3
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Posted: Sun Jan 29, 2017 1:49 pm
Beth beamed at the compliment. What a happy coincidence that it was similar enough to her current outfit that it could easily be incorporated! At the mention of another gift, Beth stirred her hand in the bag, fingers lighting upon and, after determining that it felt heavier than paper, wrapped around the likely culprit. She gently pulled the paper from around the dark pile of lace coiled in the middle. Beth's eyes went wide and she shook it open, taking in the detailing and the fringe. "Oh, Sylvia, it's so cute! I know plenty of outfits that needed something like this! Thank you!"
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Posted: Tue Feb 21, 2017 8:38 pm
Sylvia grinned at Beth’s expression. She seemed to have done a decent job, thankfully, and bounced slightly with delight where she sat. “Good! I’m glad I could help you complete them.” Beth did have an aesthetic, but Sylvia had worried about finding the proper gift all the same. Everyone was still so new to her. She tilted her head and admired Beth and her new gift. “It may be a little light for the weather now, but I thought it would be a nice accent when the weather gets warmer.”[ 90; 1,453 total ]
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Posted: Sat Apr 01, 2017 8:58 am
"I'm used to saving outfits for warmer seasons. Washington doesn't get nearly as bad of snow, but it certainly justified having seasonal clothing." She smiled warmly. "The good thing about having a defined aesthetic is that it makes it pretty easy for others to buy gifts. And anything to make gift giving easier." She winked teasingly at Sylvia. It was a complete departure from her own method of buying gifts: find something that would look lovely and then buy the most expensive version of it. She hadn't had a lot of friends who prided themselves on being a clothes horse so it generally worked out. And she herself was flexible about who she wore; unlike her mother who claimed she was allergic to faux brands and anything that cost less than triple digits. Trying to pull herself back from that semi-opened can of worms, she changed the subject, asking, "So have you gotten any other presents yet?"Mika_Yumi Don't apologize you were sick! heart
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Posted: Thu Apr 06, 2017 12:23 pm
Sylvia chuckled at Beth’s comment. It was true, she definitely had a recognizable aesthetic -- and, for that matter, even Sylvia at least had her pastels for people to fall back on. It had made it a little bit easier to know where to start for gifts, despite having only known each other a short while.
She followed the shift in conversation, nodding a little enthusiastically as she settled back. “Brian stopped by a little while ago, since he got my name for exchange; though I still need to bring him his gift, since I didn’t have it at the time. And Misha and I exchanged gifts as well.” Her bright smile expressed how well that had gone. She was really touched to get more than just the obligatory Xenia gift -- and even Brian’s present hadn’t felt just necessary. He seemed to have put some real thought into it.
“How about you?” Beth clearly had a number of her own gifts to distribute, but that didn’t mean that others hadn’t approached her first.[ 178; 1,631 total ]
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Posted: Mon Apr 17, 2017 7:20 pm
Beth recounted her own gifts. "Well, Lex got me a plush Dormouse. From the Alice in Wonderland movies? It's cute. But it was kind of a call back to the swamp." She wondered if she seemed to enthused by the gift. Was she supposed to be more traumatized? Without answering her own mental question, she breezed on, saying, "And then Misha swung by--in a frankly horrifying dress--and gave me this!" She turned her head to show off the fascinator she had tucked among her styled curls. "I'm actually headed to Brian next! Isn't that funny?"
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