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[Open] Catch all!

Who: Bernadetta and YOU
When: First couple of weeks in the month
Where: Various locations
What: Bernadetta is having to adjust to some new changes. It's a lot to take in! For someone who is getting smaller every day...
Warnings: Hopefully just her usual anxieties. But I'll throw up a warning for potential mentions of child abuse (she had a rough childhood) just in case. Other than that it's just body transformation things!

A. Home is where the heart is (Closed to the people she lives with at the Lions or Eagles houses)

[Those who live with Bernie may not see her that often. Which, honestly, is pretty normal! She loves to spend time in her room and keep to herself. With that said there's always food for either household and she makes sure it's well suited to individual needs. Of course she makes sure that she doesn't make a mess either. After all she doesn't want to be a rude housemate!

With that said, her housemates might notice something rather...odd. Or maybe even a few things.

For one, she's definitely been getting smaller. She'd started out at around 5'5" but now those around might notice that she's got to have shrunk...several inches. Why, she's shorter than Edelgard now!

But there's more than that. Thin, almost hairlike things are starting to stick up from her hair. She's a little self conscious about how weird they might look so she's been dodging people. That and the fact that the window in the back of her clothes is definitely showing off very noticeable nubs that indicate her incoming wings. And are her ears...pointier?

Well she can't dodge people forever. Eventually one of them will find her! Especially if she thinks she's alone and has a space to do some sewing or reading in another part of the house.]

B. Sometimes she has to get outside

[It's rare for her to go outside right now with her odd looking changes but she knows she can't hide forever. Besides, she really wants to do some painting or sewing outside! Which means that she tries to find a private but pretty location to do just that. It helps that there's a lot of gardening things going on right now which happens to be one of her favorite things in the universe.

A nice vase of flowers arranged on the ground before her as she hums to herself while she either paints it or embroiders the design of it onto fabric. She seems lost in her own little world so she's not likely to notice she has company right away.

Don't let that stop you though. She might be jumpy but friendship is good for her!]

Wildcard

[If we have other plans feel free to use this one here! Otherwise feel free to plot with me and we'll figure something else out!]

[ooc: Just a heads up that tags will be slow on weekdays because of school for this month! Still I will do my best to not keep you waiting too long! Thank you for your patience in advance!]

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Taller?

[She's blinking now that she realizes that maybe Leslie is just...excited about that? That must be a common thing for little girls to get excited about. She wouldn't know really. She'd only ever wanted...

Well, friends.

Looking her over, she tilts her head to the side.]

Um. I don't think so. Your clothes don't seem to be getting too small.

[Before arriving in Aefenglom, becoming taller seemed like a far more likely dream to come true than making friends. Even now, she’s not able to entirely process how she’s managed to make so many (by her count of “people who have directly told her that they are friends,” about four or five).

She looks down as Bernadetta mentions her clothes. As she says, Leslie’s clothes are still the same size on her as they have been since she received them.]

Oh. I should have thought to check that. [She sighs.] It really did seem like you weren’t taller than me by as much as I remembered, but maybe all it is is that I haven’t seen you in that chair.

[Getting taller? Yeah, Sir Lorenz did that, but that was because he added something, like the monsters she can remember seeing change. She can’t imagine anyone shrinking and losing body mass.]

Oh. That.

[Book still smashed to her chest, she sighs some. She even looks like she wilts a bit. apparently her height change is more noticeable than she thought. Then again of course it would be. How stupid of her to think otherwise.]

I'm getting smaller.

[That reaction is definitely enough to jolt her out of pouting about her own height issues.

At first, she hesitates, unsure how to comfort her. She’s realized that mirrorbound who come here as monsters have problems that she’s not going to be able to understand as a witch. Maybe it would be best to say nothing.

But she can’t look at the wilted Bernie and do nothing, so time for some sincere but possibly misguided words of comfort.]

It’ll be okay! There are plenty of people who do just fine being short! Like Lady Edelgard! She doesn’t let being small slow her down. I almost never notice how short she is, most of the time!

[You would think this would be something she’d be hoping Edelgard doesn’t overhear, but she doesn’t look like she’s even considered this could be taken the wrong way. She also doesn’t consider how she just got extremely excited about possibly growing taller and will openly admit that she wants to grow well over six feet tall.]

Huh? But I wasn't tall...

[She's confused here. Being short isn't bad, she knows that. She's always been short. Sure she used to only be slightly taller than Edelgard but it never felt like it.

No she's scared of how small she'll get. She doesn't know where this will stop. If it will stop. After all she doesn't know much about how monsters work here or what traits indicate what.]

I've always been short.

[Yep definitely confused.]

[Now Leslie is confused, not recognizing the worry. The sigh and wilting made her think that Bernie was worrying about her height in a more standard range.]

You...sounded dejected about getting smaller, though.

Did I? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you.

[Her own problems are, well, just that. Her own problems. There's no need to go worrying Leslie with them. So she gives a little smile as she tilts her head.]

I'm okay. You don't have to worry about Bernie!

[Leslie ends up emulating the gesture, tilting her own head. Her people-reading skills tend to be a bit over-specialized and she hasn't figured out the difference between "I'm fine" and "I don't want to bother you so as far as you know I'm fine," and she can't tell which one this is. It's like suspecting you know who the murderer is in a mystery novel but not having the evidence to back it up...is a simile that Leslie would never think of because she's never read a mystery novel.]

I wasn't...maybe I was a little worried. But if you ever are feeling down, I don't mind hearing about it. I can take it.

Down? No. I'm okay. I was just busy doing things so I was thinking about stuff.

[Which is perfectly normal as far as she's aware. Maybe it's not? No, it has to be. She's seen other people do that! And she knows that Sylvain and Hubert do it for sure. Get really busy and then end up thinking about things. Not that she's aware of what they're thinking about but she can sometimes get that thoughtfulness feeling from them. Which is enough of a clue really.]

[Leslie herself sometimes gets lost in thought, so the excuse doesn't seem odd at all to her. Granted, she doesn't usually wilt suddenly when she's lost in thought about things that aren't separately making her feel down, but she also doesn't trust herself when it comes to knowing what is normal.

...Gosh, she must have been misreading the situation. How embarrassing.]

I...I meant for if it happens another time. But maybe that was obvious. I'm sorry.

Oh. No, it's okay. You don't have to worry about me! It's fine!

[No way could she ever share any of her problems with Leslie. She's not sure how old she is but she's a child. Completely a child. You just don't do things like that to a child. Leslie should have a nice time without all things that she goes through on a daily basis. It's bad enough her bond mates are exposed to it.

Nope. She's never sharing with Leslie. She'll spare her that.]

Um, do you need something? I don't think I missed making food yet...

[~~She's not a child she's already twelve years old~~ Leslie shakes her head.]

No. I just got a little excited when I thought I'd grown taller compared to you. I'm okay, too. Um, since you reminded me, thank you for making the food all the time.

[She bows a bit, but unless Bernadetta has anything else she wants to talk about, Leslie will probably take this as the moment to leave her alone.]

I'm not sure I'd really be allowed to stay if I didn't.

[Yes she would. But Bernie clearly is not aware of that.]

Cooking is something I'm actually good at though so at least I can make sure everyone gets a good meal in here!

[Despite being terribly similar in her self-confidence, Leslie is baffled to hear it coming out of someone else's mouth.]

But...you're one of Lady Edelgard's commanders. Why wouldn't she let you stay whether you helped here or not?

[One of her commanders. The first time that Leslie met her she'd called her General von Varley too. Maybe that's all she is to Edelgard. Military for her to use. A tool for battle. Not even really a good one either.

That sounds right though. It's what she expected.]

Because I'm not useful otherwise. If I don't stay useful then there's no need to keep a pointless commander around. It's a waste of space that could be used for someone else.

[When this kind of reasoning is being used by someone else, it makes no sense to Leslie, but she fails her self-awareness roll to realize that she thinks exactly the same way when it comes to her adoptive family back in her world. Even here in Aefenglom, this kind of thought process left her confused for the first few weeks staying here when she couldn't find a reason for Edelgard to let her stay here.

Instead, she's a little startled to get a peek at Bernadetta's self-loathing.]

I don't think Lady Edelgard is motivated by how useful people are when keeping them around. [Hubert, she could believe it.] I think she just likes you, and that's why she wants you to stay here.

[please take your own advice leslie]

I don't think so. If I weren't an ally it wouldn't matter if she liked me or not.

[And she would be killed. She knows that for sure because she's seen it. She would be killed back home for not siding with Edelgard. Her emperor is honestly one of the most terrifying people she's ever seen.]

Did you need something by the way?

[Leslie, who is not thinking anything beyond housing, looks baffled at this response. War isn't something that has become a part of her life. She doesn't think about what would happen if it came down to choosing between fighting a friend for the honour of getting to kill her friend or deserting. Not even in the worst breakdowns of roommate agreements.

After a couple of moments of apparent confusion, she shakes her head.]

No, I'll leave you to your book. [Her feet shuffle for a moment.] I'd be happy to have you here whether you cook or not.

[And with that, she retreats.]

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