Pretty 68: Souji x Bashou III
By YuriChan220
A girl can ask herself, "Am I beautiful?" For someone who has been around a narcissist, that's what Bashou of Hebijo Academy has been asking herself for a few days now.
She sits on the chair in front of the tall rectangular mirror, playing with her medium-length green hair and double-checking to make sure she's seeing things right.
"Can I really be pretty...like all the other girls?" Bashou asks herself.
"Did you say something, Ba-chan?" Souji asks. She is clearly a few feet away from her on the bed, checking herself out in a hand-held mirror, as usual.
"Ah, S-Sou-chan!" Bashou turns to her best friend and waves her hands back and forth. "I-I was just talking to myself, that's all."
Souji puts the mirror and brush down and hops off the bed to approach the shy greenette. "I heard you say 'Pretty'. Do you want to tell me what's going on~?"
Bashou lowers her head, looking at her long, black Hebijo skirt while putting her hands on her lap. "Leo-san...gave me this." She holds out an envelope with a golden sticker on the seal. "She invited me to her annual ball, which is tomorrow night. She told me to take anyone I wished, so I thought I might take you because...well, you know...you're my best friend."
"Heh, you're so sweet, Ba-chan~" Souji says, giving her a hug from behind and leaning close. "So tell me...is that the ONLY problem you're having?"
"N-no...I don't have a dress to put on, thus I don't know if I'll ever look good in anything I wear when I go to this ball," Bashou replies. "I feel like it's very important, so ummm...well..."
"I see what you're saying~" Souji sits up with an index finger held up. "You lack confidence on your appearance. Have no fear. For as I~ will bring you the loveliest dress in the world...and one for myself of course~"
"Eh?" Bashou tilts her head in confusion. "A-are you sure? You don't really have to-"
"And I'm off! See you soon!" In a flash, Souji is gone from the dorms as she speeds her way toward the first clothing store she can find.
"And there she goes..." Bashou sighs.
Next Day
On the night of the ball, Bashou looks down at her dress. It's a pretty, small green dress that exposes her shoulders. It has a "V" opening in the front with pink frills in the front and she is wearing green thigh-high stockings. Souji is wearing the exact same dress as Bashou, except it's all white.
Souji smiles as she gently takes Bashou toward the mirror and combs her hair a bit.
"You look gorgeous, Ba-chan~" she compliments. "I can see it from your reflection."
"Y-you think so? You don't think this dress makes me look a bit...silly?" Bashou says, slightly turning her head towards her best friend.
"Nonsense. Who would look silly in that dress I bought for you~?"
Souji stops for a moment to hug her from behind and plant a small kiss on her neck, making Bashou blush heavily from the touch, but she has no choice but to agree to what her best friend is saying. If Souji says she's pretty, then she'll believe it.
After finishing doing Bashou's hair, she stands her up and gently holds her hand with a smile.
"Now, let's show the world that two gorgeous ladies are going to the ball~" Souji says.
Bashou nods and the two girls exit the dorms, locking the door behind them. Out in the streets, Bashou is still a bit nervous about the whole thing, but she can feel Souji squeezing her hand as reassurance. When she looks up, the blonde winks at her, telling her everything's going to be fine. The shy greenette nods with a small cute smile on her face, feeling her confidence boost a little.
As they are walking, a couple of girls walk by, noticing how Souji looks in her awesome dress. One has ginger hair and the other has ash-brown hair, the two wearing beautiful dresses themselves.
"She's so beautiful! Just look at her~!" the ginger squeals.
"H-Honoka-chan...I think I might faint...!" the ash-brunette swoons.
"Not before the dance, Kotori-chan!"
Souji grins at the two squealing girls and flips her hair with a "Hmph!" The girls squeal some more at her fabulous act, thus they stumble away to keep going. Bashou rolls her eyes and grabs her hand to drag her along to prevent her to cause any more distractions. She loves her very much, but Souji's ego…it's hard to put up with it every once in a while.
By the time they get to the lobby of Leo's mansion, it's already crowded full of people, young and old. Men in tuxedos and women in beautiful dresses all around them. Bashou looks around at everyone who is walking to their destination. They all look so beautiful. Souji looks over at her with a smile and gently tugs on her arm to urge her to keep going. Bashou nods and they go downstairs toward the main room where the ball is held.
They enter and they see different colored lights glowing and moving around while music is playing. There are lots of food on the table, plus some tables placed nicely everywhere. Both of the girls decide to get some food to eat before doing anything else. They serve themselves some delicious food and place them on large plates, get some drinks and sit down on a table for two while watching other people dance to the music.
Just then, a familiar blonde beauty and a snow white haired girl appear together, walking towards them. Leo is wearing a white frilly dress while Yuyaki is wearing a long black dress.
"W-welcome to the ball," Yuyaki greets with a bow.
"It's a pleasure having you two here," Leo adds, bowing as well. "I hope you enjoy this party."
Bashou is the first to stand up and bow in return. "Th-the pleasure is all mine! Thanks...thanks for having us here!" She's so nervous talking to a couple of really beautiful women in front of her.
"Yes, thank you very much~" Souji says, bowing as well.
"Well, Yuyaki-san and I are going to dance," Leo says. "Enjoy the party."
"We will~!" Souji calls, waving.
The two Hebijo girls sit back down to continue eating when the slow music starts playing. They watch couples get out of their seats and take each other's hands to dance beautifully. Bashou can't believe what she is seeing right now. All of the ladies dancing with their significant others are wonderful to see. Souji takes notice of Bashou's longing expression, so she gets up off the chair, casually walks toward her with a hand offered to her while leaning forward.
"May I have this dance~?" she says.
Bashou blushes heavily at this offer, yet she raises her hand to gently take hers and stand up, stuttering a "Y-yes...!"
They take to the dance floor and start waltzing. They begin to sway this way and that while spinning slowly, just gazing into each other's eyes. Bashou almost swoons at just looking at Souji's beautiful face as they are dancing. Souji raises her arm, signaling her to twirl around and she does and they go back to dancing.
They press foreheads together, sharing Eskimo kisses and sigh softly and happily.
"You dance beautifully, Ba-chan~" Souij coos.
"Y-you think so?" Bashou says. "Th-thank you. That's...very sweet~"
Then, without thinking, she wraps her arms around Souji's neck to share a loving kiss. The blonde is surprised just a little bit, but returns the favor by wrapping her arms around her waist, pulling her closer, and deepening the kiss. Dancing to the music with them kissing...is the most beautiful thing anyone has ever seen. When they pull away, Bashou rests on Souji's chest while they still sway back and forth and the blonde gently strokes her hair.
"I'm so glad..I came here with you~" Bashou says softly. "I love you~"
"I love you, too, Ba-chan," Souji replies softly, kissing her on the forehead. "This is a night we will never forget, because I'm~ dancing with the most beautiful girl here."
Bashou brightens and lets out a happy giggle while hugging her tightly.
~The End~
Yuri-chan: We're back, or well...I'M back. I can't help myself but write this. Been on my mind for a while, so I decided to write about this couple. Our co-op days...well...we're on a break right now until...further notice. (fiddles with her fingers). That being said, I may or may not make this Pretty continue to grow.
A-anyways, hope you all enjoyed this and long and detailed reviews.
Have a nice day~