The doorbell buzzes, causing Finé and Izetta, whose foreheads are still touching, to jump slightly. Finé clears her throat as she goes to the door while Izetta shuffles off the bed, the two of them taking breaths to calm down.
As the door opens, Lotte reports, "Princess, we've brought the clothes for Lady Izetta to try on."
"Thank you, please come in."
Izetta is shocked to see maids file in, each of them carrying a stack of clothes to be spread out on the bed. Behind them are two more maids carrying a full body mirror.
"Lady Izetta, please try any that catches your eye," Lotte offers as the maids finish spreading the clothes and setting up the mirror in front of the bathroom. "If none of them suit you, feel free to tell us what you prefer and we can fetch those instead."
"No, no, this is much more than I've ever seen!" Izetta exclaims with her hands up. "Princess, I only need to wear one, right?"
"Yes," Finé chuckles, "Just go through them slowly and decide on what you like."
Izetta's eyes scan through the catalogue. Then she does it again and again as several maids leave the room. Izetta eliminates the suits and tuxedos in her mind, but there are still a wide range of dresses and gowns. Yet amidst the plethora of clothes, her eyes gravitate towards a dress with several shades of yellow paired with long white gloves. Eventually, Izetta steps towards it. "Then I'll try this one first…"
As Izetta dawdles to the bathroom, Finé takes a chair and sits at the side. She offers the maids to take seats as well, but they humbly decline.
Izetta closes the bathroom door. Lotte goes near to call out, "Lady Izetta, if you have trouble putting on anything, just call for me and I'll come in to help you."
"O-Oh, thank you."
Minutes later, Izetta comes out in the yellow dress. Finé feels her heart skip a beat at this new side of Izetta. Izetta notes her exposed shoulders, but marvels at how she looks in the full body mirror, twirling around to see the back as well. 'W-Wow… I didn't think I could ever look this… good…?' Izetta looks around the room, getting nods of approval from the maids. Then she looks at Finé and shyly asks, "How do I look, Princess?"
Finé smiles. "It suits you. You're very cute."
Izetta's cheeks colour as her eyes look away. She cannot help but smile.
"Lady Izetta," Lotte pipes up, breaking Izetta out of her trance. "Would you like us to fit this for you or would you like to try on more?"
"Oh, uh…" Izetta takes another look at herself in the mirror. 'I really like this, but there are a lot of them… The Princess may even prefer me in another dress…'
Izetta takes a quick step towards the clothes before slowing down, not wanting to trip in her new outfit. "I'd like to try on more please," she requests as she starts to pick up dresses that catch her eye. After accumulating a hefty stack, Izetta catches herself and slinks back to the bathroom with Finé suppressing a giggle.
Izetta comes in and out of the bathroom in different outfits, studying herself in the mirror each time. Sometimes she likes how she looks, sometimes not so much. Every time though, she asks Finé how she looks, trying to see which one Finé likes the most. Yet all Finé answers with is a, "Very cute."
Izetta closes herself in the bathroom for the umpteenth time. With a sigh, she looks to the other dresses she has not tried on yet. 'Why does the Princess only say that? I can't figure out anything like this… I know, I'll put on something that will be sure to make her say something else...'
The door opens and the White Agent steps out. Everybody in the room tenses up. Then they relax when Izetta doesn't bolt for the door but walks forward calmly. "How do I look, Princess?"
Finé smirks as she rests her chin on a palm. "Very cute."
"Princess!" Izetta whines. Although her voice changer is still active, everybody can hear her voice cracking. "How can this be cute?!" Izetta cries as her hands swing down to the suit. "You're teasing me, aren't you…"
"Sorry, sorry," Finé laughs as the maids chuckle. "But it's true that you are very cute. No matter what you're wearing, you're still you. You should just pick what you like the most. You could even go there in your own clothes if you want to."
"Uuuu…" Izetta mumbles as she turns to the side and transforms back. "But I'll look so out of place if I did that… And you kept saying the same thing for all the dresses. I don't even know if there were any I looked inappropriate in…"
"You didn't look out of place in any of them," Finé comforts Izetta as she walks over to her. Gently placing her hands on Izetta's shoulders, Finé turns her around so that they are facing each other. Finé assures her, "I'm not just saying that, really. The maids will even dress us up with accessories and makeup tomorrow so you don't have to worry so much. I'll speak up if you'll catch too much unwanted attention, I promise."
"Okay…" Izetta slightly shrinks back at how close they are while the maids are watching. Her eyes drift to the bathroom. "Then… I know which dress I want to go in…"
"Great, let the maids fit it to you then," Finé grins as she lets go of Izetta and steps back. "Remember that you can also ask for alterations to make it even more perfect for you."
"Mhmm." Izetta hurries back into the bathroom. Soon afterwards she emerges in the yellow dress she had picked out at first. Looking at the maids, she requests for them to take the measurements and they surround her.
"Lady Izetta," Lotte chimes in as the maids are almost done measuring. "Is there anything you want altered?"
"There is one thing. Could you make it so the dress covers my shoulders as well?" Izetta's gaze flickers to her defined shoulders that the dress leaves exposed. 'The rest of my body is covered well enough, but my shoulders… I don't want to look like a brute beside the Princess…'
"That's simple enough. We'll have the dress ready by morning so when you wake up, just call me and you can try it on again. Then we can make any final adjustments in time for the party."
"Okay, thank you all so much," Izetta bows. "Oh!" she realises as she shoots back up, "I have to take it off so you can work on it!"
As Izetta hurries to the bathroom, Finé and Lotte look at each other in amusement while the other maids are recalled to pack up. Once Izetta comes out with the stack of clothes, almost all of the maids have left, with the exception of Lotte who receives the stack from Izetta. Soon after, the last of them leaves the room, leaving it as it was before they entered.
Finé turns to Izetta. "What do you want to do now? Are you tired?"
"Oh, not yet. Actually, Princess, I wanted to ask you what you do to relax. I think I'll stay up for a few more hours so I'd like to try something new."
"Then I have something new I'd like to try as well," Finé smiles as she tenderly pulls Izetta towards the bed.
"W-What is it?" Izetta stutters as she feels her heartrate speed up.
"Watching a romantic movie with my girlfriend."
The sun shines down on the cliffside. Yet along the dull, craggy and massive terrain, a speck slowly but surely traverses upwards. Bit by bit, the speck nears the top of the cliff where a pod is as well.
Izetta's hand reaches out to a protruding rock, feeling its sturdiness before using it to haul her body upwards. She has no rope or equipment with her, but she pays it no mind. Even if she were to fall, she could always use her magic to save herself. So she continues, moving away from what were once giant boulders on the ground, now shattered pieces of debris.
Earlier she had slid down the cliff as the White Agent. There she lay into the boulders with her hastened hand to hand and knife techniques before finally smashing them with boosted strength. Satisfied with her magic, she shut it off to scale back up, training her whole body.
Izetta finally surmounts the cliff. She lies on her back as her chest heaves. Her hand goes into her pocket, taking out her phone and looking at the time. 'Wow, I didn't think I would make it back without magic before the alarm… My body felt really light, but this was much faster than my previous times…'
As Izetta's breathing slows down, she repockets the phone and gets up. Taking a deep breath, she leans forward into a handstand. Soaking in the warmth of the sun, she slowly lifts her right hand, her dominant hand. Her left hand shifts a little as do her limbs to balance herself, but her form does become balanced. Despite the beads of sweat dripping down her face and onto the ground, Izetta cannot help but smile as she remembers what happened last night.
When the romantic movie started, Finé and Izetta were sitting on the bed apart from each other. As the events unfolded and the main characters got closer, Izetta noticed that Finé shifted closer and closer to her. Soon Izetta began to make her way to Finé as well, eventually leaving the two sat shoulder to shoulder.
Then Izetta felt Finé's hand over hers. With a smile, Izetta turned her hand over and their fingers intertwined. Their minor but intimate actions continued as the movie reached its climax. By the time the movie finished, Finé was resting her head on Izetta's shoulder while Izetta had her head tenderly on Finé's.
"How was the movie?" Finé asked.
"It was great," Izetta replied while her fingers rubbed Finé's hand. 'Though I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much if I wasn't watching it with her…'
Finé giggled as she turned to embrace Izetta. "I liked it too, but I very much prefer the real deal…"
As Finé leaned in, her hand went to support Izetta's head. Their eyes closed as Izetta clinged to Finé's back. Their lips locked and their hands stroked each other as their bodies are pulled closer, savouring the touch of each other. They don't break the longer than usual kiss even as Finé gently pushed Izetta down onto the bed.
When they finally break away, Izetta felt as if she had her breath taken away. With her eyes half lidded and chest heaving, she could say nothing as she beamed at Finé.
"Shall we go to sleep?" Finé suggested as her own breathing had deepened.
"Mm," Izetta nodded.
"Okay, wait here." Finé went to turn off the television and lights. Then she climbed back into bed and tucked them in. As they cuddled each other tightly, they drifted off to sleep.
An alarm snaps Izetta out of her daydream. Flipping forward to stand upright again, she takes the buzzing phone out of her pocket to silence it. As she walks to the pod, she mentally goes over the schedule again. She had given herself ample time to cool down, make it back and shower before the time the maids had given her. They would then start the full treatment course, dress Finé and Izetta up and then they would be driven to the tower for the party.
Reaching into the pod, Izetta takes out her water bottle and chugs it down. Then she takes out a towel and wipes away her sweat as she stretches. Satisfied with herself, she hops into the pod and sets the destination back to the palace.
As the pod speeds back, Izetta takes out her phone. She scrolls to the messages she exchanged with Finé.
"Feeling better than ever. Will be off doing some training until it's time for the party," Izetta sent after she had brunch. She had woken up by herself in the late morning, hugging the pillow Finé was using.
"Great to hear. See you later then," Finé replied soon after. There was another message that Finé sent immediately after that, but the contents were blurred out until Izetta tapped on it to toggle the hidden content. Trying to suppress a giggle, Izetta taps on the message again.
"Love you."
Izetta leans back into the seat with a big smile plastered on her face. 'I can't wait for tonight…'
A Royal Maid whispers something to Lotte who grins. Izetta, who is sitting all dolled up, notices and fidgets.
"Lady Izetta, they are ready. You can leave the room now," Lotte divulges as she goes to the closed door.
"Uh, thank you," Izetta utters as she hops out of her seat and approaches the door.
As Lotte opens the door inwards, the room across from Izetta opens as well to reveal Finé in her dress. Finé had chosen a dark blue sleeved dress with gold highlights. Her hair is in a low ponytail with a blue bow holding it together. In addition, she is wearing a necklace with a turquoise gem at the centre.
Izetta's hair is also tied up, but with a thin band that is obscured by her hairdo. On one side of her bangs, she has a hairpin with a flower in it. Her ears are studded with fake but simple bead earrings.
Both Izetta and Finé are enthralled as they take in the sights of the other. With faint blushes creeping up their faces, they shift their gazes slightly as they tell themselves not to stare. Even so, the two are thinking the same thing, 'I'm so lucky to have her…'
"Have fun you two," Lotte and a maid behind Finé nudges them forward. Finé and Izetta slowly step forward as the doors close and the maids continue to clean up the rooms.
Izetta shyly looks up at Finé, who is taller than usual. "You look amazing, Princess…"
"So do you," Finé returns the compliment. Noticing their increased height difference, she looks at Izetta's feet but her yellow dress covers them. "Are you not wearing heels?"
"Oh," Izetta looks down to stick a foot out from the dress, showing her covered flats. "I couldn't walk properly in them, so I asked for something more stable. Should I wear heels instead for a high-class party like this…?"
"No no, you're perfect the way you are," Finé laughs. "I thought you would try to wear them although you were uncomfortable. I had to learn how to walk in them properly and not have my feet hurt afterward. As long as you're comfortable, wear what you want." Finé extends a hand to Izetta. "Now then, shall we get going?"
Izetta smiles as she takes Finé's hand. "Yes, Princess."
The crowd in the banquet hall applauds as Finé finishes her speech. After a bow, she heads back to the table where Izetta is sitting.
The owner of the tower takes over the stage. "Thank you Princess Finé for that wonderful speech. Now then, we will be serving dinner. After you have had your fill, the dance hall on the floor below will be open as well for everybody to mingle. We will then have the closing ceremony there at ten. Have a great night!"
"That was marvellous, Princess," Izetta compliments as Finé takes her seat.
"I think I'm getting used to it," Finé chuckles. "How about you? How are you doing?"
"Oh, uh…" Izetta looks around for the umpteenth time. There are two Royal Guards standing at a respectable distance away from their table and the two that were escorting Finé re-join them. The table they are at is big, but only Finé and Izetta are sitting at it. During Finé's speech, people were glancing over at Izetta and even now there are a few looking over. "It feels… weird… to get so much attention… I think…"
"Don't worry, people are just curious about you since they haven't met you yet."
"Well, there's that… But your guards are also on standby and not participating in the party… Even though I can protect you…"
Finé leans forward with her chin resting on her hands. "Izetta, just relax enjoy the party. You're not here as my bodyguard, but my special guest. You don't have to worry about anything now, let the guards handle that. Besides, Bianca told me that those guards drew the short straw this time. She and a group of other guards are also here as guests."
Izetta looks over to where Bianca and her group are seated. Noticing this, Bianca raises her glass and tips it towards Izetta with a smile. Izetta returns with a small wave before slowly turning back to Finé.
Finé's eyebrows furrow. "If you're really uncomfortable, do you want to go back first?"
"What? No!" Izetta slightly raises her voice. With her face turning red, her eyes dart around to see if anybody is staring at her outburst but everybody else is engaged in their own conversations. "It's not that bad… Nobody's staring like I feared… I just need to get used to this atmosphere…"
"Well, have you seen the view?" Finé extends a hand towards the windows.
From their location at the top of the tallest tower, they are able to see all of Eylstadt. Although it is dark out there, the city has its lights on, showing the vibrant night life. The cacophony of lights meld into a single entity. With different colours flicking on and off as well as the movement from vehicles, the entity almost seems alive.
"Oh…" Izetta trails off as she looks out. The view takes her away, leaving her to gasp in wonder. "It's beautiful…" she murmurs. "I can't believe I was so caught up with what was happening inside that I forgot to appreciate what's outside…"
Finé chuckles. "Yeah, sometimes we focus too much on the negative things. But if we consider the positives as well, it's not all that bad." She lifts her glass and brings it towards Izetta. "Now then, how about another positive thought? We're finally having a meal together and what a place to have it at."
Izetta blinks at the revelation. Realising the tornado of events that had happened over the past few days, she laughs quietly as she raises her glass as well. "You're right, Princess."
Their glasses clink and they settle in. As they dig into the multi course meal served by the tower's staff, they make small talk about their memories, without touching on magic. As they are about done with the meal, many groups begin to leave the room to head to the dance hall.
Finé waits for Izetta to put down her cutlery before standing up. "Shall we go down as well?"
Izetta suppresses a burp. With a sheepish smile, she stands up as well. "Yes."
As they ride the elevator down, Finé whispers to Izetta, "Some people will want to talk to me about some business. It's nothing much, but if it bores you, you can go around by yourself first."
"Oh, I'd like to be with you actually. Maybe if I talk to some people I'll be less anxious about them."
"Alright, if you want to."
The elevator dings and the door opens. People file out of it, joining the many others already in the dance hall. As Finé and Izetta make their way in with their four guards behind them, they are soon approached by two men.
"Princess Finé," the one on the right greets with an extended hand.
Finé exchanges pleasantries while shaking his hand, followed by his partner.
"And who might this be?" the left man poses as he looks at Izetta.
"This is my childhood friend, Izetta."
"P-Pleased to meet you," Izetta greets as she shakes their hands.
"Izetta, these two men are the ingenious owners of the company that produced the custom steel that forms the base structure of this building. It would be no exaggeration to say that they are a major reason that we're here right now."
"Oh please, Princess. No need to toot our horn so much. Everybody here contributed to this project. So, Lady Izetta, how about we get to know you better. What do you do?"
Izetta's eyes shift to Finé who maintains her smile. "O-Oh, it's… confidential. S-Sorry, but the most I can say is that I'm training to join the Princess' Royal Service."
"Alright, we won't probe then. I'm sure your abilities are top notch though. For you to even be considered a potential member of the Princess' exemplary service at such a young age is no easy feat."
Izetta slightly blushes. With a small bow, she appreciates, "Thank you."
"Now then, Princess…"
The men move onto different matters with Finé. Izetta catches the part where they ask about Finé's father's health, but she is soon left in the dust. They talk about trademarks, foreign worker policies, import and export, restructuring plans for old buildings and so on. Izetta wants to say something, but she is completely clueless on any of the topics they talk about. As her brain struggles to process what they are saying, she almost misses the part where the men end the conversation. The four of them exchange thanks and the men walk away.
Finé is about to walk away when she notices Izetta standing there in a daze. "Izetta? Is there something wrong?"
Izetta shakes her downcast head. "I was completely lost the moment they talked business. I don't think I can handle another conversation like that… It felt like I wasn't even there… so much for talking to people…"
"Hey…" Finé comforts her by rubbing her shoulders. "How about you go and rest at the side then? Or you can go back up and sit at our table. When I'm done, I'll come and get you."
"Okay… I'll be at the corner then…" Izetta mutters as she shuffles away. The two guards assigned to her break off to follow her as well. Looking at Izetta's retreating figure, Finé breathes out. Perking herself up by lightly slapping her cheeks, Finé goes back to talking with the executives.
Izetta reaches a corner of the room. Turning her back to the walls, she sighs. Several people start to approach her, but they have enough tact to back off seeing her dejected face. Especially when her two guards had noted her expression and postured themselves between her and the rest of the room.
After a few minutes of moping, Izetta looks back up to see Finé conversing with a group of people. 'I knew it before, but the Princess sure is amazing… Meanwhile, I…' Izetta looks down at her hand. Her hand that Finé had held tightly many times.
'…I'm her girlfriend. What am I doing… When she finally breaks the news, am I just going to hide in a corner every time somebody talks to her? If I'm not used to it, I just need to practise bit by bit. I don't have to talk like she can, just enough so I can be by her side.'
Izetta steps forwards to the guards. She whispers with a pat on their shoulders, "Thank you, I'm fine now."
"No problem." The guards respectfully bow before retreating a little, allowing Izetta to walk towards the centre. She doesn't move much, just far enough from the corner so that it looks like she is open to conversation.
Sure enough, a few people come up to talk to her in turns. They are interested in who Finé would have brought as her special guest to a grand opening like this. Izetta continues to go with the cover story of being childhood friends and her training to join the Royal Service. The people politely accept Izetta's confidentiality since they believe that Finé would not be biased and bring somebody without merit.
Then the people introduce themselves and their professions. Although Izetta does not understand most of their jobs, she makes the effort to keep the conversation going by asking if they could explain it in simple terms. Many oblige, taking the opportunity to see how well they can explain things to the uninitiated. The few that prefer not to move the conversation to the party experience itself, which Izetta is glad to talk about as well.
Eventually Finé finishes the list of people that want to talk to her. She looks to the corner where she saw Izetta slinking off to and hums in relief to see Izetta standing upright with a smile on her face. Wasting no more time, she makes a beeline to Izetta.
"I see you're doing better."
"Oh yes. I was able to talk to some people. I still didn't understand a lot of things, but I managed to get some info and hold the conversation for a while. I'll never be able to understand everything like you, Princess, but I'll work towards being able to chime in when I can."
"You overestimate me," Finé laughs. "I don't know everything either. If they were talking about their field of expertise, I would be lost as well. Don't worry about it too much."
Behind Finé, more and more couples have started to dance. The sound of talking soon becomes softer than the background music as people finish their business and partake in enjoying the party.
"Now then, shall we dance too, Izetta?" Finé asks as she goes to stand beside Izetta.
"Eh?" Izetta blinks. "I-I can't dance…" She looks around the room, noticing that some people are looking at the two of them, expecting them to dance. "People are looking as well…" She grabs onto Finé's arm and steps towards her. "It'll be embarrassing… I'll just make a fool out of myself…"
"Don't worry," Finé comforts her by placing a hand over Izetta's. "I have a plan."
"All clear, Princess," the leader of the four Royal Guards reports to her. "There is nobody inside. You two can enjoy yourselves in peace there. We'll be at the entrance."
"Thank you," Finé appreciates as she and Izetta walk into the garden. They are many floors below the dance hall, in a garden that houses many of Eylstadt's flowers for tourists to see when the tower opens to the public. But for now, it is a private area for the two of them.
Finé taps on her phone and music starts to play. Placing it on a seat nearby, she turns back to face Izetta. "Now that nobody else is here, you won't be embarrassed, will you?" Finé smiles as she extends a hand to Izetta.
Izetta rubs her hands together. "I… still don't know how to dance…"
"I'll guide you. We'll take it slow, don't worry."
Izetta looks at Finé's extended hand. Then to her with the flowers in the background. 'She looks so exquisite… And she's made so many considerations just to dance with me, just the two of us…' With a blush and smile creeping up her face, Izetta takes Finé's hand.
Finé steps closer, wrapping an arm around Izetta's torso. "Put your arm over mine," she instructs as Izetta nods. Bringing their held hands higher, their fingers adjust to clasp onto each other. "Now, just follow after me…"
Finé moves a foot slowly, encouraging Izetta to do the same. They go through the basic movements one by one, with Izetta flashing a glance at Finé's feet ever so often. Because of her martial arts training, Izetta soon picks up the rhythm of how Finé's feet move and can picture in her mind where they will be, but Izetta wants to be sure.
"Izetta," Finé calls out, causing Izetta to look up. "You don't have to keep looking down. Come on, look at me."
"Uh," Izetta swallows as her cheeks redden. "I wouldn't want to step on your feet, Princess…"
"It's okay, we won't go any faster unless you want to. Besides, it won't hurt. I'm wearing steel tipped heels in preparation for this." Softening her gaze, Finé adjusts her hold on Izetta. "So how about we just enjoy this moment to the fullest?"
Izetta feels her breath get taken away by Finé again. With a wide smile breaking out, tension leaves her body as she lets herself get lost in Finé's eyes. "Okay, Princess…"
The two let their bodies flow along with the beat of the music, doing the movements they just went over in succession, always at their own pace. The world around them starts to fall away as they are entranced by the other. Soon, all they perceive are each other, completely forgetting where they are and just enjoying themselves.
Finé feels her heart swelling. She slows to a stop, prompting Izetta to stop as well. Earning a few blinks from Izetta, Finé leans in to embrace her tightly which causes Izetta to stiffen a little. "I'm so… happy right now, Izetta…" she whispers.
Izetta relaxes into the hug, returning it with her own firm snuggle. "So am I… Thank you so much… Because of you, I managed to experience so many new wonderous things…"
"No," Finé nuzzles into Izetta. "Thank you for being with me…"
A/N: Those who watched the anime may wonder why Finé is wearing a dress for this party as opposed to the suit she wore in the anime. Since Finé rarely wore suits (if I remember correctly, the only time she did was at that party in the anime), I took it that she doesn't usually dress that way. Probably just more shipping fuel for us since they mimicked the outfits in 'Beauty and the Beast' as well. But let the lesbian couple both wear dresses I say.