Title: Winning Strategy
Fandom: Bartimaeus
Rating: PG
Length: 316 words
Content notes: —
Author notes: —
Summary: Kitty is worried about her hair, Nathaniel shows her why she shouldn't be.

She doesn't notice him until he's leaning against the doorway behind her, only visible in the mirror. He has his arms crossed and there's a little frown line between his brows like he's realised something and is unhappy about it. Kitty freezes, one hand still tangled between her grey strands.

"What?" she asks, hoping she won't have to brave his intense stare for long.

"You have nothing to worry about, Kitty," Nathaniel says.

"Of course, I do," Kitty insists, although she's not entirely sure whether or not they're referring to the same thing.

"I think you look beautiful," he says, pushing off the door frame, only to come up behind her and gather her hair into his hands. "And interesting, which, I suppose, matters more to you than the former."

"I look like an old lady." Kitty pulls a face at him in the mirror, but Nathaniel doesn't crack a smile.

"Stop listening to Bartimaeus, he's only doing it to wind you up," he says and cards the fingers between her hair to loosen it up before he holds out a hand for her brush. "Besides, it's not grey, it's silver."

"I didn't say—"

"No," Nathaniel says, carefully lowering the brush through her hair, "but you were thinking it."

"You can't prove it," she says, crossing her arms, which finally makes him grin.

"It's hardly relevant anyhow."

"Kinda thought my opinion mattered here," Kitty says, arching an eyebrow.

"Not in the slightest," Nathaniel tells her, doing surprisingly fast work getting the tangles out.

"Oh yeah? Whose does then?" Kitty asks. "Yours?"

"While I certainly have thoughts on the matter," Nathaniel says, eyes gleaming, "you should be focused on the electorate, all of whom perceive you as a very sophisticated candidate."

Kitty snorts. "You're crazy, but thank you."

"My pleasure," Nathaniel says, kisses her cheek and hands her the hairbrush. "Now, will you please come to bed?"