IN
IN
IN
Within the last few days, May was a volcano building up to explode.
Her body performed the moves from muscle memory, but her mind wasn't in today's show. She didn't even hear the blaring of the music as they did a love scene.
What she saw on that hill plagued her mind day and night. When she first heard the cars honking and screeching and then Leon and Sora rolling down the hill, her initial instinct had been to go and check on them.
But then Sora cried out something in another language, making May pause in her steps.
There was desperation and sorrow in that cry and May wanted to know what she had said—not that she'd be willing to go and ask the Japanese girl herself. She contented herself to just watching and waiting, but then she had frowned upon seeing Leon move his head close to Sora.
May had been aghast to see them kissing—if she could even refer to it as that.
The intensity of it, the way they moved against each other like they were trying so hard to sink into the other's skin, merge together and never be separated, May knew what the familiarity meant. She couldn't explain why her brain jumped to the conclusion that it did having only witnessed that interaction. But she knew the truth, despite how much of a leap it was on her part.
She had been in a numb state until they finally left the hill separately.
I hadn't known how spot on I was with the strumpet comment. Her face distorted in extreme resentment. Sora was the reason why Leon was distracted, she was the cause of the imbalance between the two leading performers, and the redhead didn't even care how much unrest she was causing.
May attempted to keep her face clear of the anger.
Unfortunately, it left a blank mask on her face that was very out of place for Juliet reuniting with her Romeo. May's hands connected with Leon's and he swung her to hang from the bar upside down with him. Soft petals fell against her face and the trumpets blared out in triumph.
May could find nothing to be triumphant of.
No sooner had the trumpets stopped that Leon suddenly righted them.
May rapidly blinked out of her somewhat depressing thoughts as he began to climb up the ropes of the swing. What in the world is he doing?This wasn't a part of the script. Why would Romeo go away from Juliet? There's nothing up there!
How wrong she was.
Rosaline was there, Romeo's first love and heartache—a most potent danger to Juliet.
IN
Sora had just emptied the box of petals when she noted the murmuring hum of the audience. What's going on? Curious, she tucked some hair behind her ear as she peered over the scaffolding she was on.
She squeaked and promptly scurried backwards upon seeing Leon there. In her sudden movement, her blue stage crew button up shirt slipped down one arm. He quickly got on the top of the scaffolding and crouched right in front of her. Her movement made the sleeve slip completely off
"Come," he told her.
"What?"
He didn't give her any time to think. He smoothly grabbed her hand, she idly felt the remaining sleeve slid off and then they were falling down. Before she knew it, he placed her hand on the bar. The familiar, long missed swing felt comforting to her but she wasn't able to enjoy it.
"I'm not supposed to be on stage," she hissed under her breath.
"Yes," he murmured back in correction, "you are."
IN
Sora quickly launched off of another swing as she attempted to get off of the stage.
She withheld the urge to yell when Leon, once again, foiled her plan and smoothly altered her swing to go the other way. "Just let me go back!"
"No."
The clinking of a swing behind her made Sora turn around. May was glaring at her and Sora could see why she'd be upset. But before Sora could apologize, May shouted out to her.
"Let's settle this once and for all!"
The Chinese acrobat jumped towards the swing Sora and Leon were hanging off of. May's legs kicked out beneath the skirt of her costume, making Sora quickly let go of the bar and deftly flip over to the swing May just came from. Two people holding a bar was somewhat clustered. Three would definitely not work.
"Stop it May!" Sora called out.
As she looked for another escape route, she happened to catch the faces of the audience. It's too late for that…If she left now, they'd really know that she wasn't supposed to be on stage to begin with. It would make completely no sense for her to have appeared for a few minutes and then disappear without having done anything on the stage.
Fine.
With that in mind, Sora did a few rotations on the swing she was on to gain momentum and then she flipped to the next swing. She felt a stirring of excitement with that action, her enjoyment of the stage threatening to come out and play. Sora set herself up for a twirling move which brought out some "ohs" from the audience.
A smile tugged on her lips. Leon saw it as he came towards her on another swing.
May's form came between him and Sora. Her arms artfully stretched out to him as she was in the air. His attention was brought back to Sora as May caught a swing. Given the limited number of swings there were, he wasn't surprised that Sora landed on his, especially since they were on the level with the higher up swings.
He watched as Sora stood on the bar and wrapped a leg around the swing's rope. She hung her entire weight from it, her body arching backwards and her arms stretched out. He could see her face from the part in her hair. Her eyes were shining with energy.
Drawn in by it, he pulled himself up the bar and lifted a hand up in a silent offering.
Warmth flooded him when she took it without hesitations.
His eyes lightened slightly. Sadly, she was only able to enjoy it for a few seconds before May barged over. However, the teen had miscalculated the gap and started to fall. Quickly, Sora loosened her leg from the rope and she dropped down in time to grab May's hand.
Thank goodness!
The relief was short lived as May narrowed her eyes at the sight of Sora and Leon holding hands above her. I was saved by her. May's ego didn't take that too well.
May twisted her body and with her swinging she was able to jump onto the top of the bar. She did a handstand above Leon and artfully bent one leg. When she looked down at Leon she was appalled to find that he wasn't watching.
Beneath May, Leon hung with one hand on the bar and brought his legs into an arch. Sora's arm hung off from the crook his bent legs made and from there she curled and twisted her body. When Sora felt him shift, she adjusted her hold as he brought one leg in a ninety degree angle in front of him and then the other. Having made a seat for her, she promptly sat on his legs in a demonstration of his strength and control and then grabbed the rope of the swing once more.
May had left the swing in a moment of indignation, allowing them their own space temporarily.
He offered his hand again once he was sitting on the bar. She took it and then offered her free hand. There was a moment between them in which opportunity opened for them. Having not performed together since Saiyuki, each wondered what they could accomplish as a pair after they had grown so much within these many months.
He was eager to know; she was burning to explore it.
Their previous hesitations were suspended for this one moment.
Hands together, he fell backwards and she followed. His knees were bent and over the bar, allowing his hands to stay in hers. She dangled for only a mere second before she started to pull up. He bent his arms to help her ascend, meanwhile curling his upper body so he could bring her hands up to his neck. She wrapped her arms around his neck and only hung on from there.
She curled her upper body so that they were chest to chest, the move made a mirror image of each other. The side of her face was against his jaw; her head turned, making her lips brush it. Again, he wondered about her lack of reservations about being in public contact with him. He pushed it aside for now.
His arms went around her waist.
She let her body go limp, her arms unhooking from around his neck and she curled her body backwards. Her hands grasped her ankles as he rested his forehead against her stomach. The move reminded her of their ice skating and she smiled at the memory, wondering if they would pick off where they left off.
The future, for once, did not seem so stifling.
She squeaked a little with his teasing bite to her tummy. If she could see his face, she'd see the small smile playing on his lips. They maneuvered themselves so that they were hand in hand once more. She could see his face now and his eyes were darting over hers in assessment, trying to gauge something. She'd be an idiot to not know what he was thinking at that moment.
She gave him a small nod.
With that, he swung a few times and when he deemed their momentum to be enough to launch her to the swing up above, he threw her up.
After all, she needed to be above for the Angel's Maneuver.
However, he had not counted on May going to the same swing.
May reached the bar first, causing it to shift just enough that Sora, who had been a half second behind in reaching the bar, completely missed it.
Wide eyed, he watched Sora fall.
IN
IN
IN