OOS 103

Korrinoth 19, the party goes clothes shopping in Wolis after doing some other shopping and learning. It happened during session 45. It is followed immediately by OOS 104.  
== Transcript ==
Lei: 
between looking at different attire in a shop full of adventuring clothing/gear and trying to guess the type of fabric and how it was made, lei glances at kiono for a bit and then says awkwardly, “um, so kiono. what do you think of your new hairstyle? it’s, um.... well, short hair is pretty in nowadays. could do some cute looks with it.” 
Kiono: 
There is a long silence. When Kiono responds, it is in a voice only barely loud enough to be heard. "...It's... out of the way..." 
Lei: 
lei ducks into a changing room and waves kiono to come over 
Kiono: 
Kiono rolls her eyes but follows. 
Lei: 
lei ushers her inside and closes the door behind them, so it’s just the small girl, the tall girl, and a large mirror. 
she immediately poofs her hair similar to that of kiono’s, but silver, and much more evenly cut 
she adjusts her part more to the side, and parts her bangs to the side, and floofs up the hair a bit, looking in the mirror as she does so. “what do you think of this look? would you go for it? you’d just have to get a bit more of a trim probably...” 
models it for kiono 
Kiono: 
Kiono stares at Lei in confusion. "Wh— I don't... I don't see— Wh-what's the purpose? It's..." She sounds somewhat pained as she finishes, "...It's just hair..." 
Lei: 
lei gives kiono a look and raises an eyebrow. 
“why did you cut it, if you don’t mind me asking?” 
Kiono: 
She breaks eye contact and resumes avoiding it as she usually does. "It was in the way," she says softly. 
Lei: 
the look continues. “well. it will definitely grow back, for better or for worse!” 
“but you should make sure you take care of it, so it grows back healthy.” 
Kiono: 
She glances back at Lei, somewhat confused. 
Lei: 
“which...admittedly isn’t easy when you’re wading through swamps and stuff....” 
lei tweaks her hair again, and messes around with a no-bang look, then presents it to kiono. “look, you could grow out your bangs if you wanted.” 
“what do you think of this one?” 
Kiono: 
She stares a moment longer, then shakes her head in defeat. She is perpetually on the verge of the verge of tears. "What are you doing?" 
Lei: 
sighs, then poofs her hair back to her normal lei style and says in a resigned tone, “trying to make you feel better. you can just leave if youre that uncomfortable though.” 
Kiono: 
"What do you mean, make me feel better?" 
Lei: 
“your hair is part of how you express yourself, you know? you seemed upset, um, i dont know, upset maybe about changing it that drastically.” 
lei makes sure she is standing away from the door. 
Kiono: 
Kiono instinctively reaches for the braid and misses drastically. More deliberately, she grasps the remains of it with both hands, eyes closed, determined not to cry in front of Lei. 
She leans against the wall, focused on not crying. "It was so long," she mourns softly. 
Lei: 
lei nods. “you can grow it nice and long again. but in the meantime, your short hair can be reeeally cute, with just a few little adjustments.” 
“and there’s things you can do to help it grow healthy and strong, so it’ll be even better than it was before.” 
Kiono: 
"It had been years since I last cut it..." she continues, momentarily ignoring Lei, choosing to mourn for a bit longer before being brave and looking toward the future. 
Lei: 
“ceci—um, i heard if you trim it regularly it grows faster. i don’t know if that’s true.” shrugs 
Kiono: 
"I trimmed it. The ends were... unpleasant if not," she defends, knowing exactly two things about hair care entirely on accident. 
She sighs shakily. "I got used to... not having long hair... I... I'll get used to... to not... having the braid..." She chokes back a sob as she slides to the ground. 
Lei: 
lei freezes up like oh god what did i do this time uhhh uh uhhhh 
she eventually bends down to kiono’s level. 
“um.....” 
“it will grow back. and it looks cute short. really.” 
“well, okay, if it were more even.” 
Kiono: 
"I know it'll grow back. It just... it... took a long time... and I don't..." She sighs, still shaky. "What do you mean 'cute'? What is that?" 
Lei: 
lei stares hard at kiono, incredulous. like she’d have no reason to be lying but how silly. “neither concludion nor izora ever called you cute?” 
Kiono: 
Kiono returns the look with a small shake of the head. "Why would they?" 
Lei: 
shakes her head “it’s like....when you find something appealing. pretty.” 
Kiono: 
"Why would— 'Pretty' is adequate. Why would they— Why them?" Absolutely flabbergasted by everything. 
Lei: 
lei barely resists a facepalm. “a lot of words can mean the same thing, or nearly the same thing. they’re called synonyms.” 
“if it causes you this much distress, i’m sorry. i take it back. pretend i said your hair is pretty.” 
Kiono: 
"I'm not distressed," Kiono says, clearly distressed, albeit about something else. "I don't— 'Cute' is... for squirrels and... and baby birds. Why would you— And why Concludion and Izora? Why—" She digs her fingers into her hair and presses her forehead to her knees, hiding her face. 
Lei: 
lei is thiiiiiis close to giving up. she can’t handle this. 
but a certain thought comes to her mind. 
she was already bent down, but now she sighs and gets settled cross-legged. 
“some people use cute as a term of affection. if they like somebody.” 
she starts playing with her hair length, color, and style, twirling it in her fingers 
Kiono: 
Kiono doesn't move, silently considering the concept of 'cute' as a term of endearment. After a moment she shakes her head, rocking it back and forth on her knees. "It's a weird choice." 
Lei: 
shrugs “it’s probably used more in some places than others. there’s lots of weird new uses of words i’ve heard since leaving wolis.” 
Kiono: 
Kiono grunts. The statement is true enough from what she's experienced. 
Kiono's head shoots up, then. She stares at Lei, realization and confusion on her face. 
"You like me?" 
Lei: 
lei’s face does a thing. 
“uhhh.....” 
“you’re good at—um, smart with—“ 
no, that isn’t the thing to say. 
“trying to.” 
“...i’m trying to.” 
Kiono: 
Kiono stares at her. This was all a trap, surely. She just can't figure out how. 
She looks off to the side, contemplative. Making certain not to look Lei in the eye, she points to a spot on Lei around her hip. "It was... It was about that long... Four month ago..." 
"...proportionally." 
Lei: 
thankful for the rescue, lei grows her hair that long and says, “impressive.” 
“why did you cut it then?” 
she asked a probably off-limits question, if she had to guess. she braces for impact. 
Kiono: 
Kiono shakes her head. "I... didn't. The halberd..." 
She makes a face, confusion. 
Lei: 
“oh. sorry to hear that.” 
lei’s voice is deeper when she says that. oops, she—he?—changed genders. 
Kiono: 
She glances at Lei, confirms the switch, and looks back to the floor. Tallo was a guy for a bit, so she's not too distracted by it. "It was... my hair or my life..." She attempts to shrug it off, but there's too much she can't. There's confusion about the incident evident in her statement. 
Lei: 
lei is distracted by it, and glances at his reflection. “oh...oops. weird. uh...” 
changes back into a girl, back to short lei hair 
“i...um....” trying to get back into focus 
“well it’s, um, good that you....didn’t lose more than that, i suppose.” 
“uh...” 
Kiono: 
Kiono furrows her brows, glances at the halberd which is leaning in a corner of the changing room. More to herself than to Ephemera necessarily. "It was simple melee... Why did you run?" 
Kiono's expression relatively quickly transitions from confusion to More Confusion to Aw I Hecked Up. She sighs and points at the halberd. "She wants to talk to you..." 
Lei: 
lei studies kiono a moment before getting up and touching the halberd. 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera is filled with tense emotion. Carefully she says, "I know you are not skilled in martial combat, but would you describe fighting Kitano as 'simple melee'?" 
Lei: 
oh. 
“are you two....arguing?” 
Ephemera: 
"I had to request she tell you I wished to speak with you a couple times before she did so. I needed the opinion of another mage on Kitano's fighting style before I responded to her question." 
Lei: 
lei glances at kiono. 
Kiono: 
Kiono is resting her cheek on her knees, looking away from them. She appears to be in deep thought for the moment. 
Lei: 
“um...uhh.....” looking between kiono and the halberd a couple of times. “to be honest i don’t know all that much about fighting styles. maybe you’d be better off asking plosi or teer.” 
Ephemera: 
"Your lack of knowledge is specifically why I'm asking you." 
Lei: 
“i wouldnt describe any of it as simple.” 
“well, maybe sometimes...?” 
she seems to be lost on how to answer this question. 
“what does it mean if it’s simple?” 
Ephemera: 
"I believe that answers my question, thank you. I—" She pauses, thinks. "Honestly, I don't know. No melee is 'simple' in my opinion. But then, I am quite knowledgeable about it. Much like someone might tell a mage that it is 'simple' to cast a spell despite that not quite being true." 
Lei: 
“um, i dont know, casting a spell can be pretty simple...uh...” 
Ephemera: 
She is contemplative again. "I... I think I might need a second person listening to what she and I discuss now, if you don't mind. I might not be interpreting things correctly, I would like a second opinion." 
"The other option, of course, being to bring Squire and Teer over here as well..." 
Lei: 
“i mean, the science behind it isn’t simple, i guess, but....it’s easy enough to do it without thinking about that.” shrugs 
“uh...i...guess that’s...okay.” 
Ephemera: 
"If you would be so kind as to poke her with the halberd." 
Lei: 
takes the halberd in her hands—the weight of it still catches her by surprise sometimes—and offers it to kiono to touch 
Kiono: 
Kiono hesitantly places her hand on the halberd. She is confused, but also concerned about the fact that Lei hasn't let go. 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera calmly asks, "What do you mean, 'why did I run'?" 
Kiono: 
Kiono frowns. "Was it because of Everalda? You were concerned about— It was just a guard... You... You could have dealt with... just one guard easily enough..." 
Ephemera: 
"Kiono, the guard... It was Kitano. He is no simple guard." 
Kiono: 
Kiono's eyes grow wide. She hecked up. 
Backpedal! "I-it... You... You still could have... He wasn't—" She bites her lip. She doesn't know how to forwardpedal, much less backpedal. "You're strong. You could have..." 
Lei: 
"um...isn't this argument kind of...." 
Ephemera: 
"Kiono's entire opinion regarding Kitano changed after the fight with Varren in Bromwich. I want to know why," Ephemera says, remaining calm, but refusing to be distracted. 
"Teer said that Concludion was the only one to speak with her after that encounter, and historically Concludion, despite the good he does, hasn't been able to calm her down that much that quickly. She's had multiple conversations with him without fear — well, that much fear." 
Flabbergasted, "You hugged him, Kiono!" 
Kiono: 
Kiono looks mildly scared and mildly guilty and very much like she would like to cry. 
Lei: 
"um, kitano has seemed to...change a bit too." 
Ephemera: 
A beat. "You mean like what Plosi said? About him perhaps... I don't remember what he said, looking for redemption or something?" 
Lei: 
"he almost killed me the first time i encountered him. probably was about to kill my moth--adrienne at one point, too. concludion was certain he was going to kill or torture him until very recently. dort spent a lot of time with him, too, and said he was....murderous." 
"he definitely seems different." 
Ephemera: 
"Why? What happened to cause it? Why did both of you suddenly change? Did something happen with Varren that I didn't witness?" 
Lei: 
lei glances at the dressing room door, trying to focus her thoughts on the fact that no one has said anything about them taking so long. this is definitely a banned question, she's sure of it, and though she wasn't the one who asked, she's certainly wanted to, so she feels guilty anyway. 
Kiono: 
Kiono shakes her head, stops, then gives a half-shrug. "I just... want my brother... to be my brother..." 
Lei: 
"did you always?" 
it comes out of lei's mouth before she can stop herself 
Kiono: 
"A-always...? Want him to.. be my brother?" 
Lei: 
slight nod 
and then she signs 'yes', not like that means anything to anybody 
Kiono: 
Kiono considers, then gives a small shrug and very softly says, "I don't know." 
Lei: 
"why not?" 
ephemera is just going to have to stop me i guess.... 
Kiono: 
"I don't.... I don't remember..." I don't remember Kitano, she doesn't say. 
Lei: 
"what do you mean?" 
Kiono: 
Kiono gets very quiet, as though answering the question at a volume nobody can hear still counts as having answered the question, "I don't... remember..." She's in trouble. She hasn't even admitted what she did yet, and she's already in trouble. "....Kitano... from... from before the... Shadowfell..." 
"It... it was on purpose..." she adds relatively quickly, then shakes her head. "I... don't remember... why, but... it was my... my decision." 
Lei: 
"how?" her mind immediately jumps to the mirrors. 
Kiono: 
"Noh," she says simply. 
Lei: 
"why?" 
"why do you...think you did it?" 
Kiono: 
She shakes her head. "Whatever reason... it went with... him." 
Lei: 
"what did you trade for?" 
she's in full-on questions mode now. 
Kiono: 
Kiono is full-on in-trouble mode now. 
Kiono retrieves the Philospher's Stone from her belongings, a seemingly simple red stone. She holds it up, but does not offer it for examination. "It... it's a powerful item... It enhances transmutation magic... Contains a few spells... I used it to... turn Squire into the... the crocodile before we... fought Varren..." 
Lei: 
"how do you feel about it?" 
Kiono: 
"I asked for something that would... help me with the asteroid. I knew spells that could... do what I wanted, but I wanted something similar to what I needed to be the base... to speed up the process..." 
She glances at Lei, then looks away again with a half-shrug. "It's... done. I can't... I don't know what I gave up. I... am starting again." 
"I've had to... piece together a lot about him from.. what you all have said about him. Had to believe that I... That starting over would... allow me the chance to... do what I wanted to do..." 
Lei: 
"what did you want to do?" 
Kiono: 
Kiono looks at Lei again, but this time with determination she rarely shows. "I'm going to save him. From.... from what, I don't... From himself, from... his darkness, from.... f-from Enooto. I don't..." She takes a steadying breath. "I want a brother." 
Lei: 
"how do you know if that's what you wanted bef--" stops herself 
a long pause "okay." 
Kiono: 
"I left a note." 
"It wasn't... detailed, but it..." 
"It was a message to myself, otherwise..." 
Lei: 
"does kitano know?" 
this question she asks with a little less relentlessness, a little softer 
Kiono: 
She shakes her head. "I don't think it... it would work if he knew." 
"Being.... being told that you... need to be saved..." she trails off, curling in on herself. 
Lei: 
"so we still don't have an explanation for why he's changed, i suppose." 
Kiono: 
"...I've been trying..." she says quietly. 
Lei: 
she starts to get lost in some thoughts and then snaps out of it. 
"oh. um, uh....." 
"thank you for sharing. sorry." 
"...by the way." 
Kiono: 
Kiono glances up at Lei, an eyebrow raised. 
Lei: 
"you should...probably share with everybody. this kind of information is...better shared i think." 
Kiono: 
She shakes her head, her eyes wide. "No, please, I—" She sinks back down, hugging her knees close, and repeats quietly, "Please." 
Lei: 
sighs "you don't have to. i think it would help everyone help you better though." 
"two of us already know, what do you think the others are going to do?" 
though ephemera has been really weirdly quiet.... 
Kiono: 
She tightens her grip even more. Her voice is barely a whisper. "C-Concludion is.. already upset with me... I can't... I don't..." A sob escapes her. She clutches at the remnants of her braid. 
Lei: 
closes her eyes and bites her lip. once she trusts she can watch herself, she responds, "okay." 
"you don't have to." 
Ephemera: 
"Lei," Ephemera softly says to Lei only. "If I may ask... It's—" 
Hesitantly, "You may say no, of course, but... May I borrow your body for a moment...?" 
Kiono: 
Meanwhile, Kiono is trying and failing to stop crying. 
Lei: 
lei bites her lip again. she realizes suddenly, strongly that she doesn't want to do it, but.... "okay," she responds just to ephemera. 
Ephemera: 
"Thank you," she says earnestly. And with that, she bumps Renn to the back seat. 
She's been in control of Renn's body once before, but it had only been a moment. She looks at one of her hands, turns it over, and experiments briefly with the transformative powers of a changeling. Her skin darkens in shade until it's nearly black, then lightens again until it is a deep tan. She looks at the mirror and a moment later finds her reflection to be a much smaller version of... herself. Black hair, copper eyes, powerful muscles, all reduced to fit the clothing of a small changeling girl. 
Ephemera: 
She leans forward and wraps Kiono in the biggest hug she can, holding her close and unwilling to let her escape. 
Kiono: 
Kiono is shocked at first, almost shocked enough to stop crying. It is only the briefest moment before she is once again crying, clutching at Ephemera. 
Ephemera: 
"We might have to purchase this outfit simply because of the tears and snot on it," Ephemera says silently to Lei. 
Lei: 
"glad she'll let someone hug her at least," is all lei? renn? think-responds, while exploring the weirdness that is the backseat. 
what if she just relinquished control forever? would she fade into nothing at some point? wouldn't that be better, probably? what an odd sensation. 
Ephemera: 
"She lets Concludion hug her all the time," Ephemera observes with some amusement, well aware of how unfair the comparison is. Then in a more serious, but gentle tone intones, "Care and understanding. She doesn't know in her heart that she isn't alone." 
Kiono: 
Eventually, Kiono cries herself out, and pulls away from Renn!Ephemera and sets about wiping her face clear of the tears. 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera allows her to do so. With a smile at Kiono, she looks in the mirror and does her best to return her form to that of Lei. She considers the form a moment, then changes the eyes to Cool Changeling Eyes before returning control to Renn. 
Lei: 
lei experimentally opens and closes her hands once back in control. she slightly raises an eyebrow upon seeing the eyes in the mirror but doesn't change them back to her usual. she sits back down (if her body was standing prior?) next to kiono, cross-legged, and says nothing. 
Kiono: 
Kiono sniffles and refuses to look at Lei, embarrassed any mildly annoyed. 
She curls back up, rubbing in frustration at her face, the feeling of tears refusing to go away. 
Lei: 
"feel any better?" 
Kiono: 
Kiono shrugs noncommittally. She does, but that doesn't mean she has to admit it. 
Lei: 
"i won't tell anyone until you're ready to share." 
"unless we're in a situation where....it would be incredibly important to share. such as if it would somehow save you or kitano from getting seriously hurt." 
shrugs "i'm not sure what would bring that kind of circumstance but--" 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera chuckles such that only Lei can hear. 
Lei: 
she sends ? vibes at ephemera. 
Kiono: 
Kiono nods, still refusing to look. 
Ephemera: 
"Those were the circumstances under which I said I would reveal your changeling nature," Ephemera says, grinning audibly. 
"If someone would get hurt by keeping it a secret." 
Lei: 
lei's face flushes, and she manages to get out to ephemera, "o-oh...oh, um..... i'm......i'm sorry for, uh...." 
Ephemera: 
"It's forgiven," Ephemera chuckles. 
Lei: 
lei kind of slouches while recovering from guilt and embarrassment. 
"she's like me," she thinks softly at ephemera, eventually. 
Ephemera: 
"Oh?" 
Lei: 
staring off at the wall, talking only to ephemera still "once upon a time...." 
"there was a little girl who grew up in a big house." 
"she was told everything was the way it should be. and she agreed, because that's all she was allowed to see." 
"but she was really just trapped. she was just being used." 
"it wasn't the way it should be at all." 
"...............not so different." 
Ephemera: 
"And then she was allowed to see the world and realized all of this, I assume? Gained friends who helped her along the way?" Ephemera continues, amused, but not, like, at Lei or anything. 
Lei: 
"maybe. who knows. i guess there's concludion and izora." 
Ephemera: 
"Concludion is her Cecily, Izora her Edger," Ephemera observes. "She could use a good Teer to support her, a Squire to teach her of people." 
Lei: 
lei snorts. she had a sudden mental image enter her mind that was pretty entertaining. 
"I suppose that makes kitano and enooto the worthings, somehow." 
Ephemera: 
"Enooto and Adrienne are an apt comparison," Ephemera says, greatly desiring to punch some women's noses suddenly. 
Lei: 
"or maybe her entire village....but there's only a few from there i know of, so..." shrugs 
Ephemera: 
"Enooto, Kitano, and Concludion are the main ones she interacted with as far as I know. Though, of course, I was limited to their activities in the temple." 
She pauses. 
"Well, not just Concludion, I suppose, but they were infrequent." 
Lei: 
"what do you mean?" 
Ephemera: 
"Don't worry about it," Ephemera chuckles. "Back to the topic, though... Your experiences have been similar to hers, but remember that while you can use your experiences to help you reach her, the things that worked for you may not be what she needs." 
Lei: 
"wouldn't want her to deal with it anyway." 
"what specifically do you recommend?" 
Ephemera: 
"If I knew the answer to that, I would have shared it on the way to Eddelton," she replies sadly. 
Teer: 
Teer's quiet and slightly muffled voice comes from outside the changing room. "Are the two of you alright in there?" 
"If you require assistance, I am capable of shutting off my visuals." 
Lei: 
"ah, we'll be back out in a minute...probably." 
Teer: 
"Oh, take your time, I just - um. Right, sorry." 
Lei: 
rises to her feet, turns to kiono, and offers a hand. "no rush. i can just tell them i tried to make a clothing tent out of the room or something." 
Plosi: 
“You okay?” 
Lei: 
"also. your hair looks pretty. it'll start to grow back in no time." 
Kiono: 
Kiono rubs her face again and gives one last sniffle, muttering something about taking Prestidigitation. She climbs to her feet, then notices that Lei had extended her hand. She looks at it, then away, embarrassed. She sighs, one last remnant of her crying escaping before her breathing becomes steady again. She gives a nod. "Yeah, it... It will..." 
Lei: 
"uh...you want me to try, um, drying your face with prestidigitation?" 
"we're fine." lei calls out to plosi after what for him was definitely a bit of a pause 
Plosi: 
“What do dragons like?” 
Lei: 
"Bacon," lei calls out. 
Plosi: 
“There we go.” 
Kiono: 
"I don't think it... works on the red eyes," Kiono mutters. Not a 'no' exactly... She shrugs. "I... cry a lot. Nobody will... think anything of it. It's fine..." 
Lei: 
lei gingerly tries to dry her face with prestidigitation, careful not to touch her. 
Kiono: 
Kiono pulls away a little. She expected it, so it's only a little, but the flinching is hardwired into her. 
"We should... finish getting clothes," she says quietly. 
Lei: 
lei sighs. "yeah." 
Kiono: 
Kiono retrieves the halberd from the floor and opens the door, prepared to continue looking through clothes since she didn't have any in there to try on or anything. 
Lei: 
lei follows after. 
Teer: 
"Are you sure you're both um... alright?" Teer glances back and forth between them. "You were awfully quiet in there for a while." 
Kiono: 
Kiono nods. 
Lei: 
nods "i was trying to convince her to try out some new hairstyles." 
"had to use the changing room to show examples." 
Teer: 
"I see," Teer says quietly. 
Kiono: 
Kiono shrugs. "I don't... really get it... It's simpler to just... let it be... Braiding it is... it's already more than necessary at... this length..." 
Plosi: 
“We’re— we’re here for you.” Plosi offers meekly. 
Lei: 
she very discreetly message cantrips teer, followed by plosi. "she's okay for now. she's just not ready to talk about things. i wouldn't push her." 
Teer: 
"Right, well, maybe we could take a break soon and go get some ice cream," Teer says aloud. 
Plosi: 
’Thanks.’ Plosi thinks back. 
Kiono: 
Kiono nods in acknowledgement of Teer's suggestion and turns to a nearby clothing display. Any display. It's a men's display. That's fine. She goes through the clothing on it. 
Plosi: 
“...both of you.” Plosi clarifies in a low voice, looking to Lei. 
Lei: 
lei looks with sudden avid interest at a wall. 
then sighs and says in a low voice to teer and plosi, “i had another....thought, but i’m fine.” 
“have you had any luck finding new clothes?” 
Teer: 
Teer places a hand on Lei's shoulder, and squeezes gently. He puts his other hand to one side of his mask and whispers, "I'm not buying anything at this store, but I did get Akaros to figure out how to duplicate about half of their inventory." 
Lei: 
lei giggles. 
Plosi: 
"Thank you for telling us." Squire murmurs, standing on his toes so he's closer to Lei's ear. 
Lei: 
lei gives plosi a really soft smile. 
Plosi: 
Plosi returns it with a bright grin of his own. 
Teer: 
Teer looks to Kiono, presumably still flipping through the racks. 
Kiono: 
She is decidedly doing that thing. A task to focus on, a goal to accomplish. 
Teer: 
Teer brings a pair of loose fitting pants he was holding over to a return rack, taking his time in hopes of giving Kiono a moment. "Is ice cream a real thing that is sold, or is that solely the purview of Xelbari?" he wonders out loud. 
Lei: 
"hehehe." 
"just xelbari, i'm afraid. he runs every single ice cream booth in oceanside, too." 
speaking in an obviously joking, lighthearted manner 
Teer: 
"Oh, how unfortunate."