Niklas fidgeted slightly before he responded. Mai laughed softly at his reply. "Indeed, Prince Niklas. Indeed."

[u][b]Time Skip to Early Afternoon[/b][/u]

Mai found herself armed with an arsenal of lipsticks, eye shadow palettes, make-up brushes, mascara wands, eyeliner pencils, curling irons, straighteners, hair gel, and every other cosmetic product imaginable as she surveyed the vanity that stood against the wall in Liviana's quarters after a light lunch. Apart from the make-up that Liviana and Mai themselves had brought with them to Aciras, Mai had nothing at her disposal until Ayreesha (who Mai had decided to keep in her service as a sign of respect to Casimir) returned with the items that she had asked her to fetch. But that was alright. Mai had plenty to work with as it was.

Mai examined the one-shoulder midnight-blue gown that Liviana was planning to wear. The layered chiffon and beaded crystal embellishments was simple yet elegant, and the loose, sheer fabric of the lace sleeve and the "sheath" sewn onto the dress at the shoulder made for a particularly unique look. "This gown is beautiful," Mai murmured, stroking the fabric gently. [i]I am surprised that Liviana has chosen to wear this dress. It is not as conservative as one would expect of a princess from Lusitania.[/i] It seemed like the other princess was embracing the challenge to "wear something unexpected" wholeheartedly.

Mai glanced up to see the waiting eyes of Princess Liviana and her two handmaids-one of them with auburn hair and brown eyes, the other with golden-brown hair and green eyes. "Well, we have many options," Mai began with a crooked smile. "There is much that can be done with the supplies that we have gathered." Mai turned to Liviana. "Before we begin, though, is there anything in particular that you had in mind, Princess Liviana?" Mai asked gently, mentally applying a dozen different styles to Liviana's features as she spoke. [i]I assume that she wants something different from her usual palette-the make-up she wore yesterday and earlier today was plenty, of course, but it was all rather subdued and made to make Liviana look older in a more natural way. The gold eye shadow was a nice touch, yes, but a tad too light, especially for Liviana's complexion; at least in my opinion. If she wants something dramatic, we will have to go with the more metallic gold as opposed to the paler, softer gold. The mascara stays, of course, though I shall be sure to slip a tube of waterproof mascara to one of her handmaids at some point. I was actually thinking about metallic gold or silver eye shadow that faded out into a smoky sort of hue paired with thick, defined eyeliner.[/i]

[i]And as for her lips, that pale pink gloss was very, very natural. If we put on a shade of lipstick that brought out her eyes and complexion more, it would make her look much older...perhaps one of the deep crimsons that I like so much? It would go well with her hair, though maybe a cooler tone would match her eyes more...[/i]