A few songs, dances, and raids on the buffet table later.
Mushra sipped his glass of punch slowly as he watched Yakumo, Binka, and Saago over the rim of his cup. A slow song, In the Arms of an Angel, was playing above all the noise. He watched Yakumo and Saago dance to the music.
"As friends of course." He thought to himself as he watched them circle each other to the sad sound of the song. "She probably wishes Mushrambo had his own body so she could dance with him, instead of other guys."
Saago sneezed, lost balance, tripped and stumbled backwards. He caught himself and Yakumo giggled. He smiled as Binka tapped Saago on the shoulder and looked at him with an expectant look. Saago smiled and gave Yakumo's hand to Binka. The two girls danced to the music, hand in hand.
"She really is like a mother to her. It's so easy to see why everyone loves her; why I love her." He caught himself with this thought.
He frowned at his cup, shaking his head as if to get rid of the thought. He sighed and turned around to throw away the cup, that's when something past two glass double-doors caught his eye. He tossed the cup in the garbage can and headed toward the door.
Past the glass was a balcony decorated in ribbon and streamer. The above was a star-filled sky. A full moon shone from above, the face seeming to look down on the building in silent observation. There was a small, metal table in one corner. Pushed up against it was a patching chair with a swirling pattern on the back. That's not what caught his eye was not the decoration, the night sky, or even the slice of cake and cup on top of the table.
What caught his eye was a girl leaning on the railing, looking up at the moon. One of her slender arms rested on the railing and the other supported her head as she looked up at the stars. She had long, onyx-black hair that fell over one shoulder in gentle waves. The moon shone of her skin, making it a vibrant pale color, as if it were made of the moon's light. She wore a long, emerald dress that came above her ankles. At the waist, the skirt of the dress spread out a bit, but was still slim. The back straps crisscrossed over her shoulder blades in a large X. There was a green ribbon tied around her neck and made a bow in the back, the extra ribbon falling down her back to her waist.
Mushra, curious, opened one of the doors and slipped out, closing it gently behind him. The girl was so entranced with the sky, she didn't hear him. As he neared, he caught a glance at her emerald eyes. There seemed to be something –Sadness? Longing? Or maybe just a daydream?- hidden behind the green orbs.
He slowly made his way to the railing, at least four feet from where she was. He didn't want to startle her. He leaned over and looked at the sky, as if she weren't there. He was quiet for a moment, collecting his words into manageable sentences. He glanced over at her. She was still looking at the sky, but something new seemed to be in her eyes.
"Annoyance maybe?" He asked himself "Hopefully, not."
"Why aren't you in there, dancing with the others?" He inquired, so suddenly, he startled himself. There was extensive pause.
"Shouldn't I ask the same of you?" She challenged, scorn in her voice.
"Sorry, didn't mean to bother you." He said, backing up from her anger.
"You saw me out here, why'd you come?" her emerald eyes burned with built up frustration.
"I was curious." He admitted, "Is that a crime?!" this last part was said with exasperation.
She seemed shocked by his sudden change in attitude. Without another word, she smiled, looking at him with a new friendliness that seemed alien to the tense atmosphere a split second before.
"You're not from around here, are you?"
"Uh." He was taken aback by her sudden mood swing.
"You're not. Are you?" She answered for him with a happier tone of voice.
"No. My friends and I are just passing though." He said, with a careful look at the girl before him.
"You're travelers then?" Mushra nodded. "Wow. I wish I could travel. I'm stuck in this stuffy town." She waved out toward the town impassively.
"What's with the mood swing? Is she bipolar?" She saw the puzzled look on his face.
"Sorry about before. I was in a bad mood. I realized a little late that I shouldn't take it out on you. Sorry" She clapped her hands together above her head and bowed slightly in apology.
"Uh. . . It's okay."
Suddenly, she stood up and outstretched her hand. Her emerald bracelets jingled with the sudden movement.
"I'm Kikomei."
He took her hand, and pushing her previous attitude behind his mind, he replied, "My name's Mushra."
Almost . . . done . . .!!!