Festival

After their little skirmish, the Wanderer and Mari were once again sitting with their legs crossed under the tree as raindrops struck the flowers around them, each flower chiming as the rain continued to fall. As they meditated, they both could sense someone's presence, prompting them both to open their eyes and turn to face it.

"Ah, there you are. Sorry to interrupt..." It was N'ara, the leader of the town, bowing to them both with a gentle smile. "We all wanted to invite you two to our festival to thank you for saving our home.

The Wanderer wasn't a festival type of person, preferring to keep to herself most of the time. She had a look of uncertainty on her face, not wanting to decline due to that being rude, but not wanting to accept because it genuinely wasn't her thing. However, Mari was quick to give an answer in her stead.

"That sounds fun! We would love to attend." Mari smiled brightly and rose to her feet, looking down at the Wanderer with sparkly eyes. With a slight grin on her face, the Wanderer stood up as well and looked to N'ara. "We appreciate your invitation. We will be there." she said with a bow.

"Great! When the sun begins to set behind that mountain over there..." N'ara pointed to a mountain filled with green foliage, one that overlooked the village. The sun was far from setting, but the festival needed a full day to be prepared. "... the festival will begin." N'ara then made a gesture with her hand, prompting two men from her village to walk over and hand garments to both girls.

Immediately. Mari's eyes lit up upon seeing the white, blue, and red traditional garbs in her hand, along with a folded, cone-shaped straw hat to go with it. The Wanderer, however, had the opposite reaction. She usually wore black, perhaps sometimes grey, so dressing up in such colorful clothing was something outside of her comfort zone. However, respect, when it was due, was of utmost importance to her, so she bowed and thanked N'ara and her men. "Thank you, Ms. N'ara." Mari joined in as well, bowing and repeating after the Wanderer. "Yes, thank you very much."

And so, hours later, the Wanderer and Mari found themselves walking side by side, both wearing white, blue, and red kimonos which had a red bow wrapped around their torsos and tied behind their backs. On their faces, they both wore festive makeup, giving the Wanderer an unusually feminine look compared to the more androgynous-masculine appearance she was usually seen with.

What was once a town filled with cold, stone architecture was illuminated by warm, orange lights hanging from buildings and across roads. In the air, there were lanterns floating above them, and many of those participating in the festival had glowing sticks in their hands to light their way. Despite rain falling and the clouds being dark, the mood was cheery thanks to the festival's lights.

As the two girls walked, Mari couldn't help but stare at the Wanderer's new pretty face. The Wanderer wore reddish makeup around her eye and her lips were a stark, bright red, which matched the bleeding kyber crystals that hung from her ears. Mari's makeup was similar, though rather than having red lips, hers were pink and her cheeks were also a pinkish hue from both her makeup and admiration for the Wanderer.

Mari found herself unable to look away, getting a rare look of the Wanderer when she was dolled up. Usually, the Wanderer did not wear a single speck of makeup on her face. However, wanting to enjoy the festival to its fullest, she decided to fully commit to the look.

Mari wasn't the only one staring at her, as men, women, and anyone else stared at her with wanting eyes. Due to staring being something she was used to, she ignored them. However, there was one person's stare that she could not ignore for long. Without looking at her, the Wanderer teased Mari. "You still got that staring problem." she told her, smirking slightly as Mari quickly looked away embarrassingly.

"I just... You look pretty is all. Like a doll." Mari confessed, which then compelled the Wanderer to playfully scoff at her. "Only now?" she remarked with a hint of sarcasm, though she was almost feeling sort of offended, however, Mari was quick to tell her what she really meant.

"Pretty would not be my word of choice when describing you usually..." Mari told her, walking with her hands behind her back while stepping playfully. "I just mean you look so girly, usually, you're more, I don't know... Sauve? Despite being a lady."

"I'd say I'm pretty handsome for a lady." the Wanderer told her confidently, preferring to be described as such in contrast to being called cute or adorable. Mari looked at the Wanderer for a moment, wanting to tell her at least twenty more words she'd use to describe her, but she refrained. She'd been throwing hints and sometimes giving her best attempts at subtly flirting with her, but she felt that she couldn't be too direct. She wasn't even sure if the Wanderer would like her since she only ever mentioned having a male lover in the past.

"You're starin' again." The Wanderer tried to tease her again, though Mari's gaze did not break. "I know. This time was on purpose." she told her with her lips slightly smiling, still looking at the Wanderer with wanting eyes.

The Wanderer's brow raised, though before she could say anything, the sound of horns blaring caught not only her attention but everyone else in the ever-growing crowd. Accompanying the horns were rattling percussion instruments, along with shouts and chants coming from a squad of dancers wearing traditional clothing.

The Wanderer, Mari, and the rest of the audience made way for the dancers, who were stomping their feet and spinning around gracefully with animal masks covering their faces. They were at the town's square, joining in on the circle of spectators that surrounded it. "It's so traditional." Mari whispered, never having seen anything such as this in her entire life. The Wanderer nodded, "Yeah." she told her, remembering the similar festivals her village used to have when she was a child.

Behind the dancers, there was a stylized dragon made of paper swaying from side to side, being held up by other dancers who were carrying it from the inside. With each step, the dancers inside the dragon shook their hips to the beat of the rattling percussion and spiritual chanting.

"Do you understand what they're chanting?" Mari asked, unable to recognize the language being shouted from the dancers' mouths as it was familiar, yet far too different from any language she knew. The Wanderer of course was well-versed in many languages, especially the ones indigenous to their home planet.

"I do. There is an old religion that believed in a dragon god named Ryushinsko, sometimes known as Ryushin or Ryusko, dependin' on where you're from. They're doing a song and dance prayer to him, asking for protection. They're saying somethin' along the lines of 'Protect us, protect us, let your flames wash away all evil.' but it's impossible to translate it exactly. My village used to pray to the same god when I was younger."

Mari was impressed with the Wanderer's knowledge of the matter. Many people, including Mari, assumed upon first meeting the Wanderer that she was unintelligent due to her way of speaking, but that was far from the case. "That's so fascinating. Does the god actually protect them?" Mari was asking this not out of skepticism, but out of pure curiosity. Not too long ago, she lifted flowers with her mind, so a dragon god wasn't too far-fetched.

"Maybe. Maybe Ryushinsko is the reason why we're here. Perhaps, just this time, we are the flames that wash away evil. It is said that once his flames wash evil away once, the people must pray to him again to ensure his flames will protect them yet again." the Wanderer told her, watching the dancers with a kind smile on her face. Despite the inconveniences she'd experienced in the last few days, she was glad she came.

"Well... I didn't do much." Mari told her, not wanting any of the credit.

"If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have had a reason to come here." said the Wanderer. "I'm sure it's probably just a coincidence anyways."

Some time passed, and the two of them watched the dancers together, eventually getting so into it that they started chanting along to the songs and dancing with the others. Before long, the main dancers weren't the only ones dancing as everyone from the crowd flooded the streets and began stomping their feet to the song.

As the Wanderer and Mari danced together, hand in hand, the two of them looked deeply into each other's gazes. It was at this moment when both of them had realizations about one another.

The Wanderer thought about her past, remembering the times she would dance and sing just like the way she was then. She reflected on the last time she was truly happy, remembering her lover in the past once again, seeing him smile, hearing his voice, feeling his hand in hers. She couldn't help but start comparing how he made her feel to how Mari was making her feel at that very moment. For nearly half a decade, the Wanderer hadn't felt true joy until then.

Meanwhile, Mari was feeling all new feelings inside her. Her heart was nearly beating out of her chest, and the Wanderer's touch felt as if it sent vibrations through her entire body. As she locked gazes with her, she found herself getting lost in the Wanderer's single eye. She started having thoughts of the future, not with the Fletsnow prince, but with the very woman in front of her.

For hours, Mari and the Wanderer danced and sang until their bellies grumbled, leading them to the many stands with food scattered all around the festival. Due to being the wanderer who saved the village, those running the stands gave them whatever they wanted free of charge.

After a while of walking from stand to stand, the Wanderer and Mari found themselves in front of one last stand, though rather than selling food, it sold paper lanterns. "Here, write your name on this." the Wanderer handed a paper lantern and a marker to Mari with a gentle smile on her face. "What is this?" Mari asked, looking down at the lantern with a look of confusion on her face. "Just write." the Wanderer told her, prompting Mari to do just that, writing her first and last name on it.

She then handed it back to the Wanderer, who then started to write something on it as well, using her lips to hold it, before releasing the lantern into the air, watching it fly away with a smile. As the lantern floated away, the Wanderer told Mari what the meaning behind the lantern truly was. "As long as they are together, Ryushinsko shall protect them. So they say."

Mari looked over at the Wanderer, confused as to what she meant. "Together?" Mari asked.

"Yeah, since we're traveling together, he should protect us until we reach our destination. Guess we'll have to see if that's true."

"I see." Mari sounded disappointed, though she knew her own thoughts were silly. Of course, the Wanderer was talking about being traveling companions and nothing more.

"Did you write your real name?" Mari asked, looking up at the lantern trying to read what the Wanderer wrote. However, it was far too high.

"Using a nickname wouldn't be very effective would it?" the Wanderer told her, revealing that she did in fact use the name she abandoned all those years ago just for this. Mari wondered if this meant that the woman who the Wanderer killed, her old self, was reemerging.

"Ms. Wanderer?" Mari spoke the only name she knew, looking up at her with an intense gaze. The Wanderer looked down at Mari, her lone eye seeming confused due to Mari's tone. "What's wrong?" she asked her, which compelled Mari to sort of hesitate before saying what was on her mind.

"I..." Mari paused, coming so close to confessing how she felt at that exact moment, but stopped herself. Despite only knowing the Wanderer for a few days, she found herself falling for her. However, she still had doubts due to how fast these feelings appeared. She thought perhaps it was simply a crush and nothing serious.

"I'm glad you're the one taking me to the prince. Thank you." Mari gave the Wanderer a smile to hide what she felt inside.

The Wanderer, though confused, nodded. "Me too. C'mon, it's getting late. We're gonna head out early in the morning."

With that said, the two headed back to their room, and removed their makeup, along with their traditional clothing, before heading straight to bed. However, as the Wanderer slept, Mari lay awake, staring at her wantingly through the dark.