'Rapunzel'
Title: Rapunzel
Fandom: Azumanga Daioh
Words: 522
Rating: G
Character: Sakaki/Kaorin
Prompt: 'Hair'
Warnings: None
Summary: Sakaki associates long hair with sweet things.
Sakaki had always loved long hair. She took fantastic care of her own, conditioning it before she slept, tying it back so it wouldn’t tangle. Having long hair made her think of romance heroines petting unicorns and tending to little lambs. She’d never been tiny and delicate, but sometimes the hair made her think that she could be.
When she’d been little, Sakaki had had shortish hair down to her chin. With her height, this made her feel even less cute. Sakaki was not the sweetest. She’d never been called the sweetest. Disney films and fairy tales made her want to grow her hair so she at least had something in common with those who were the sweetest.
It grew as she grew. In middle school, the girls whispered and the boys stared. Nobody really approached her, except to ask if she wanted to join their sports team. One girl asked her to join her gang. Sakaki had walked away, mystified, and the girl had gone pale every time she’d seen her after that.
Many girls experimented with frilly, girly fashions and Sakaki, beguiled by the frills and lace, decided to try it, herself. However, this was nipped in the bud when she’d stood in front of the store mirror, her long legs strangely awkward poking from a fringe of ruffles and her chest straining against the delicate lines of lace. Her waist was still narrow enough for the corset styles that were so popular, but it all came together to create a sort of adult hardness. This was incompatible with the way she felt, like she was forced into the tight confines of a store mannequin. Too rigid, too plastic, too awkward to really be appealing to anyone. Her hair, however, hung silky and waved, delicately pinned back by a subtle red clasp.
Sakaki didn’t speak to many people, or even so much as noticed individuals, much. But, there was one girl she’d noticed around who stood out, somehow. She seemed separate from the others in their staring. She’d approached Sakaki a couple of times. Possibly with the intent to say something.
“I…I…can I…” she had begun, her wide eyes meeting Sakaki’s and then swerving to the floor. She looked briefly at the empty chair next to Sakaki. “Can I?...oh, oh, never mind. You probably have…never mind!”
This had both perplexed and hurt Sakaki. Did the girl not want to sit next to her? Sakaki was not a regular subject of bullying, but it still was pretty cruel to tease her like that.
Every time she saw the girl after that, the girl would flush. Stare, apparently meet her eyes, and then look away.
The second time was after sports, as Sakaki was brushing the pony-tail-caused kinks out of her hair. She’d caught sight of the small girl in the mirror. She was playing with her chin length hair, her eyes darting from Sakaki to the floor.
“I…I…” she began. “Your hair…”
Sakaki froze.
“Yes?” she replied.
“It’s…I mean…it’s…” she paused, then looked up, then took a deep breath. “Itsbeautiful…likeyou.”
Then she tottered off, leaving Sakaki staring after her in amazement.
Fandom: Azumanga Daioh
Words: 522
Rating: G
Character: Sakaki/Kaorin
Prompt: 'Hair'
Warnings: None
Summary: Sakaki associates long hair with sweet things.
Sakaki had always loved long hair. She took fantastic care of her own, conditioning it before she slept, tying it back so it wouldn’t tangle. Having long hair made her think of romance heroines petting unicorns and tending to little lambs. She’d never been tiny and delicate, but sometimes the hair made her think that she could be.
When she’d been little, Sakaki had had shortish hair down to her chin. With her height, this made her feel even less cute. Sakaki was not the sweetest. She’d never been called the sweetest. Disney films and fairy tales made her want to grow her hair so she at least had something in common with those who were the sweetest.
It grew as she grew. In middle school, the girls whispered and the boys stared. Nobody really approached her, except to ask if she wanted to join their sports team. One girl asked her to join her gang. Sakaki had walked away, mystified, and the girl had gone pale every time she’d seen her after that.
Many girls experimented with frilly, girly fashions and Sakaki, beguiled by the frills and lace, decided to try it, herself. However, this was nipped in the bud when she’d stood in front of the store mirror, her long legs strangely awkward poking from a fringe of ruffles and her chest straining against the delicate lines of lace. Her waist was still narrow enough for the corset styles that were so popular, but it all came together to create a sort of adult hardness. This was incompatible with the way she felt, like she was forced into the tight confines of a store mannequin. Too rigid, too plastic, too awkward to really be appealing to anyone. Her hair, however, hung silky and waved, delicately pinned back by a subtle red clasp.
Sakaki didn’t speak to many people, or even so much as noticed individuals, much. But, there was one girl she’d noticed around who stood out, somehow. She seemed separate from the others in their staring. She’d approached Sakaki a couple of times. Possibly with the intent to say something.
“I…I…can I…” she had begun, her wide eyes meeting Sakaki’s and then swerving to the floor. She looked briefly at the empty chair next to Sakaki. “Can I?...oh, oh, never mind. You probably have…never mind!”
This had both perplexed and hurt Sakaki. Did the girl not want to sit next to her? Sakaki was not a regular subject of bullying, but it still was pretty cruel to tease her like that.
Every time she saw the girl after that, the girl would flush. Stare, apparently meet her eyes, and then look away.
The second time was after sports, as Sakaki was brushing the pony-tail-caused kinks out of her hair. She’d caught sight of the small girl in the mirror. She was playing with her chin length hair, her eyes darting from Sakaki to the floor.
“I…I…” she began. “Your hair…”
Sakaki froze.
“Yes?” she replied.
“It’s…I mean…it’s…” she paused, then looked up, then took a deep breath. “Itsbeautiful…likeyou.”
Then she tottered off, leaving Sakaki staring after her in amazement.