Fingers gently raked through the silk-black hair in front of her.
Long and soft to the touch, the thick strands flowed between her hands as Tanya pulled them back and tediously gathered them in her grasp.
Gone were the shortened locks that had been hacked off in protest, in rebellion.
The same ones she used to run her hands through and tease- remarking that she could style the shortened cut in the same manner as her own.
Angled and cut from the back.
Layered and long in the front.
A style that was met with a playful scoff and a roll of the eyes.
"It's very cute on you, Dearest," Mileena assured, as fingers ruffled through her own hair, "- not so much on me."
Pulling the hair back into one hand, Tanya kept her grasp tight while her other hand did one more rake-over, gathering any remaining strands that had managed to evade her the first round.
Eyes looked up to the mirror in front of her, examining the reflection that stared back, and ensuring that everything looked to be in place. And once she was confident that everything looked good, she tied a band once around the base of the hair to keep the hold- forming a temporary ponytail. Twisting the band to the side, Tanya looped the black strands through it once more to secure them.
When she twisted the band a second time, she only pulled the hair partway through, which allowed her to fold the ponytail into a tight bun instead.
Tanya slipped a hair pin underneath it for good measure.
Guaranteeing that any hair that was too short to make the loop would still be pinned down and out of sight.
Another look in the mirror ensured her of the flawless execution.
"I hope I'm not boring you, Empress," Tanya spoke, as she patted her hands along the woman's head, checking to make sure that the hair wasn't billowing out of place anywhere.
She caught the subtle smile in the reflection that stared back at her.
"You're a few minutes too late with that question," Mileena replied.
"Yes well, it's getting harder to entertain these days," she mused.
Tanya grabbed the black ribbon that was draped over her shoulder and carefully tied it around the base of Mileena's hair. It hid the band underneath it and gave the hairstyle a tighter appearance; although she highly doubted that anyone would notice. And when she was done with that, she grabbed the pink headband from her other shoulder and took the ends of it in both hands.
She slipped it around Mileena's head, setting it over the woman's hairline before she pulled the material down at an angle so that it sloped behind her ears. Tanya double-checked in the mirror once more before she tied the fabric just under the curve of Mileena's head; she kept the knot tight and the loose ends short, making sure they went no lower than the base of her neck.
Fingers traced over the front of the headband, smoothing it out, and tugging it down wherever it was needed.
And only when she was satisfied with the final product did Tanya put an end to the ordeal by slipping the decorative pin through the top of the woman's bun.
It was a far cry from Mileena's usual high-ponytail style, but it wasn't entirely half-bad.
It made the woman look too much like Kitana though.
Dressed up and refined, it couldn't be denied that the similarities were there.
That the face of the Edenian Princess was well reflected in the face of the Outworld Empress.
But Tanya didn't want Kitana.
[She wasn't Jade, after all.]
Unfortunately, that was the purpose here, that was the purpose for today.
To spread dissent amongst the courts and remind their opposition that, unfortunately for them, there was a newfound alliance between Edenia and Outworld. And that unfortunately for them, as delicate as that alliance was at the moment, it was shared as a bond that ran deeper than any ink could.
That wasn't to say that manipulation was out of the question.
That was the exact game plan for today, after all.
If Tanya held up her hand and covered the lower half of Mileena's reflection, anyone could be fooled into thinking that it was Kitana sitting in front of her. That it was Kitana she was helping put together for the day.
But then she would be covering up her favorite part.
The teeth, the mandibles.
Lips surrounded by a horrifying bite.
Death dressed in pink.
Moving her hands to Mileena's shoulders, Tanya squeezed the warm skin between the tied plates of armor, before she moved them to cup the woman's face. She knitted her fingers underneath Mileena's jaw and tilted the woman's head back- careful not to touch the hair she had just finished dressing. And she leaned down just enough to bring her lips to Mileena's forehead.
And when she gently ran her thumb over the woman's lips, Tanya felt the subtle nip that bit at the pad of her thumb.
"Don't."
The softest threat made.
Tanya chuckled and release the woman, before she tilted her head back forward.
"I must admit, Empress, this is not a look that I am a fan of," Tanya spoke, as she straightened Mileena's head and touched at her headband once more. She reached down in front of the woman and tightened the pink sash that pulled across the front of Mileena's uniform, before she smoothed out where the material had bunched around the metal bracer that framed her breasts.
It was an odd uniform to say the least.
But once more, it had not been picked by either of them.
An odd blend between Outworld and Edenian fashion- and a concrete piece that the blend had yet to be refined.
"And I lived with you in a Tarkatan camp for ten years."
"It was not one of my choice," Mileena reminded. "But sometimes I get asked to play nice- and who am I to turn down a gracious request from my sister?"
Tanya smiled at the subtle venom in the woman's voice.
"I think she does it to mock me still."
"Who does Kitana not mock these days? I think she does this to mock Jade, if anything- and perhaps even myself," Tanya remarked with a soft chuckle- and much to Mileena's amusement as well.
Her hands drifted back to the woman's shoulders before Tanya stepped around her and moved to the vanity dresser in front of them. She shuffled through the assortment of make-up in front of her; she was both impressed, yet annoyed by the expansive, and expensive, collection that they had now. A decade spent fighting had focused more on body and skills than looks. But now that things were at ease, it brought upon the ideals that power was now lead through portrayal, through looks.
One now had to look like a leader, not a soldier.
Which now lead to the wild assortment in front of her.
[It didn't help that the Empress could've been a little more organized with her vanity collection.]
Plucking a few tubes of lipstick from the collection, Tanya turned back to the seated woman- viewing her in-person now, rather than through the mirror.
"You know, the more I think about it, the more I'm beginning to think that Kitana's preferences carried over during the cloning process," Tanya teased.
Not so much amusement this time.
She compared the different lipsticks to the pink of Mileena's uniform before she found a shade that was close enough to match.
Tanya brought herself as close to Mileena as she could, somewhat resting her knees on the edge of the woman's seat as she reached out to cup her by the chin. Keeping the woman's head steady, Tanya carefully applied the color to Mileena's lips- and had to remind herself that that would be the final touch. Mileena's makeup was bold and heavy-focused around her eyes, opposite to how Kitana wore her own.
And considering that Kitana apparently could not replicate the look, Mileena had to go without it in order to sell the illusion.
It made her work a little easier, but admittedly, she missed it.
In the corner of her eye, she caught the movement of Mileena's hands moving from the arms of the chair.
And Tanya felt the smile that twitched on her lips as she felt those hands move to the round curve of her belly, letting the weight of it rest against her palms.
A gentle cradle at first before she felt the slow rubbing motion that followed as Mileena brought her hands over the front of it- reminding her of how far it stuck out now.
"Don't," Tanya whispered, as she dragged the tip of the lipstick over the curve of the woman's upper lip; expertly avoiding having the pink be smeared by the overgrown incisors that overlapped them. "You told me this morning that you were on a schedule- and you know what will happen if you keep doing that."
An amused chuckle corresponded with Mileena carefully removing her hands from her pregnant belly.
But not before they tugged at the loosely tied tunic Tanya had wrapped herself in that morning.
She figured if Mileena wasn't going to wear her Kahnum attire today, then she would.
It was one of few things that still fit her these days.
Stepping back, Tanya cocked her head as she eyed the woman over- taking in a full frontal view of how everything looked and how everything fell into place.
"Alright, Empress, the easy part is over with."
She caught the roll of Mileena's eyes just before she stepped away.
Just before Mileena pushed herself to her feet and smoothed out her uniform, eyeing herself over in the massive vanity mirror. And only when the woman seemed at least pleased with her appearance did she pick up the mask she had set aside that morning.
Tanya watched as Mileena carefully slipped it on, hooking the bands behind her ears, before she adjusted the mask as needed.
Much like her veils, although lacking the comforting aesthetic of them, the mask covered the lower half of Mileena's face in a porcelain disguise- replicating the face of an untouchable doll.
It was an interesting looking mask to say the least.
It seemed as though once Edenia was brought back, it brought forth an odd fashion of masks with it.
Anything from a full mask to a partial veil were utilized and swapped between the Edenian courts- or gifted along to their courts.
They all looked awful.
It was the one Edenian tradition that she could never get behind.
And with how it had evolved, she was certainly not going to pick it up now.
"How do I look, Dearest?" Mileena mused, as she turned around to face her, acting as though she didn't damn well know what the answer would be.
With the addition of the mask, compounded with the uniform, it truly would be impossible to tell who she was.
If someone couldn't spot the difference, there was little to no way of telling whether it was Mileena or Kitana under the mask.
Which meant, at this point, their plan would be executed perfectly.
"Awful," Tanya replied, bluntly.
"I married you for your honesty," Mileena chuckled, as she stepped out from in front of the vanity and ran her hands over the uniform, smoothing out the wrinkles that had formed while she was seated. "It will only be temporary- and you will only be seeing it now and when I return. So considered yourself spared."
Tanya rolled her eyes at the remark.
"I suppose I should show the Empress thanks for her gracious mercy," she quipped, sarcastic enough, before she moved to cup her hands against Mileena's jaw. She let her fingers run over the smoothness of the mask, feeling the cool texture of it underneath her touch, and feeling how it fit perfectly against the woman's face- contoured to her exact measurements.
Pulling her in, Tanya pressed her lips against the porcelain ones.
Cool and clean against her own.
A foreign experience.
"I cannot be late today," Mileena reminded, as she pulled away- or at least tried to. "Otherwise I will never hear the end of it."
She chuckled at the woman's expense and kissed her twice more before she pressed her lips to Mileena's covered cheek. "I suppose I can let you leave then," Tanya mused, as she stepped back and gave the woman one last look over, adjusting one or two more things before she was satisfied. "You will be back by evening, won't you?"
"At the latest, as I've ensured."
The subtle tug at the ends of her hair were a silent guarantee of that.
Gone were the days of week-long, out of realm visits.
Temporarily at least.
Tanya felt hands at her belly once more, cradling it once more.
"I will see you both later tonight," Mileena assured. "Take care of the little one."
"As if I have anything else to do," Tanya replied.
The other woman chuckled before she stepped back and leaned down to her belly.
"Do not upset your mother- or I will not hear the end of it."
Tanya clicked her tongue and gently shooed Mileena off, much to the woman's amusement once more.
"Go- or you will not be hearing anything when I'm through with you."