Chapter 93: The Star Festival (Part 2)

Disclaimer:

Hi guys! Quite the hectic chapter here with a ton of people in this one. I hope you like it since some big things happen!

There are references to events in past chapters to help with foreshadowing and whatnot. Here they are:

Chapter 35, 86-87, 92

With that said, I hope you enjoy!

Daisy had chased her siblings all the way to the water fountain where she met Lucas and Mimosa. The Ice mage was silent for a few seconds as her head was pounding with a single thought.

"Okay… Daisy, just do as you always do. There's nothing different…", she sighed before greeting her friends.

"Well, Lucas, thanks for the invite", she winked. "Hello there, Mimosa. It's been a while!"

Around the flowing water fountain, sat two members of the Golden Dawn. Mimosa had just finished her cotton candy stick with Lucas eventually finishing his. He had four more remaining but all four sticks were now stolen by the four new arrivals that decided to climb all over the Light mage.

"It's nice to see you again, Daisy", Mimosa replied first, seeing as Lucas was preoccupied with another task.

"Guys, you're going to fall if you keep moving around. I can't keep you all on my shoulders anyway", Lucas sighed but tried his best to keep his balance. He was starting to feel a slight ache start to form near his shoulders and back.

"Hehehe", Mimosa giggled as she put her hand to her mouth. "Shall I take two of them?"

"No! Mister Lucas is our friend!" Alice shouted back, rocking back and forth on his left shoulder alongside Chloe.

Daisy had her head in her hands as she watched the rather peculiar sight in front of her. Alice was the most animated out of the younger four, Grace and Sonia were chatting amongst themselves whilst dropping some of the pink, sugary dessert on the mage's white squad trousers, and Chloe was practically silent but was wearing a big smile.

"Alice, there's no need to be rude! Mimosa here is the one that found you that night and she healed you up after getting back from the cave. She's just as much a friend as Lucas is", she explained. The Blue Rose crossed her arms and looked judgingly at the long, ginger-haired girl.

"I… I'm sorry, Miss Mimosa", Alice pouted but still refused to let go of Lucas as she held onto him by his neck.

"It's quite fine", the royal waved with her two hands quickly, showing she wasn't offended in the slightest.

"We'll join you!" Grace and Sonia said together as they snatched two of the cotton candy sticks from Lucas's right hand. They then jumped over and landed on Mimosa's lap.

"And you two - you better hope that cotton candy hasn't stained Lucas's clothes or that means no pocket money!" Daisy put her hands to her hips, staring intently at the twins. "Be careful around Mimosa as well!"

Chloe was the only one of the little girls to be well behaved. She slowly slid off Lucas's shoulder and decided to sit in between him and Mimosa whilst enjoying the cotton candy she had.

"As for you, Chloe, uh… well, you're not doing anything wrong. Sorry, I thought you four were on a roll". Daisy sighed and dropped her shoulders, scratching the side of her head.

"Hehe, don't worry, I'm a good girl", she replied whilst kicking her boots up and down. "I like your g-glasses, Mister Lucas", she smiled.

"Thanks, Chloe", he smiled back. "I can never get used to them calling me 'Mister'...", he sighed. "On top of my shoulders killing me, my ears are aching since I've worn these for a while", Lucas explained as he took the colourful glasses off. "Why don't you hold onto them for now?"

The red-haired girl's eyes widened with excitement as Lucas put the glasses he had around his eyes on her own. Slowly, they changed from yellow and blue, to a full, blue colour which matched the seven-year-old's Water Magic.

"Woah", she said as she moved the frames with her hands.

Eventually, after a few minutes of watching the girls eat, they all sat down on the fountain's border and started speaking with each other. The twins also tried on the glasses and the colour changed to white, representing their Steam Magic. Alice opted not to try them on but she still looked like she was enjoying herself. Daisy was sure to keep a big eye on them as they had made it their mission to up and leave at the most random times, just as they had done by playing Hide and Seek in Nean a few months ago.

"I'm sorry about that", Daisy apologised.

Lucas moved his arms in a circle and stretched out his neck carefully. "It's… fine. Phew…", he exclaimed. "I'll need to work harder to strengthen my body if this is anything to go by", he chuckled.

"I think you've had enough exercise tonight, Lucas. You went all out on the target practice stall earlier, remember?" Mimosa pointed in the general direction it was located at.

"Hey, you're the one that was sweating first. You just didn't want to lose to me", Lucas shrugged.

"Hm, that's not how I remember it!"

"Oh, yeah?"

Daisy just smiled as she watched the two argue. "Were you two… on a date, perhaps?" She teased, scratching her chin with her hand. "A boy and a girl, at a festival, in the evening…".

The Golden Dawn duo blushed in unison and it almost looked like the two were having a competition on who could turn more red within five seconds with how bright they'd become.

"D-D-D-Date? No way…!"

"Oh, please? A date is definitely NOT what we were d-d-doing!"

The Ice mage furrowed her brow, squinting her eyes as she tried to piece things together. "Well, if you say so", she pouted.

After calming down, Mimosa turned to Daisy and looked at the outfit she was wearing. "Wow, Daisy, you're looking good".

It was now her turn to turn a bit red. "I wasn't prepared for a c-compliment, but thank you! I don't usually wear anything different to the Star Festival but, after not going last year, I thought I might as well do something nice this year".

The Ice mage spun around in place, revealing her full outfit for the two mages to see. Underneath her squad robe, she was wearing a long, cream-coloured top which went down to just above her knees, and its sleeves were also long enough to cover her hands. It had a set of four, dark-green buttons that were slightly to the right-hand side which were just there for show. As Daisy twirled, her black and green-chequered skirt flowed and you could see that it was longer than her top by a little bit.

"Oh, and Mimosa, check this… Tada!" The Blue Rose kicked her feet, one after the other, showing her light-brown, knee-length boots.

"Wow!" Mimosa stood up and then kicked her own feet out. "We're similar to each other now".

The two looked like they were dancing in a way that cowboys would do in bars with how quick and in sync they were.

"Well, I mean, apart from the similar hair colour that's… also oddly similar to Lucas's as well", the royal corrected.

"Wha-?! What a weird coincidence!" Daisy put her hands to her hair as if she never noticed before.

"Don't tell me… You never noticed?!" Mimosa was bewildered at how the Blue Rose was surprised.

"Nah, I noticed but it still is quite the coincidence!" Daisy then focused on Lucas who was being oddly quiet for some reason. "What do you think?" She pointed at her clothes.

Still, he was silent as his eyes went from focusing on Daisy to then looking down at the floor. It didn't look like he was upset or anything like that since there was no reason to be, but it looked as if he was thinking about something or trying to piece something together.

Then, the two girls grabbed his attention in different ways. Mimosa clapped her hands in front of his face while Daisy flicked his forehead. Either way, he was back from his own world.

"Ow… What was that for?" Lucas moaned at Daisy as he rubbed the middle of his forehead.

Mimosa decided to reply, putting her hands on her hips. "When a girl asks about her outfit, you're supposed to be listening!"

"D-Did she ask what I thought? Sorry about that… You're looking good. I've never seen one like this before", Lucas praised, scanning the 16-year-old from head to toe.

"Okay, cool the compliment from you! You're on a date with another girl, you can't just be saying those things to me!" Daisy winked, waving her hands in front of her body so that he couldn't get a good look in.

"Again, we're n-not on a d-!"

"Hehe, I'm just pulling your leg. Thanks for the compliment, Lucas, and you as well, Mimosa", she added as she stopped trying to tease the two.

Mimosa stared intensely at the Ice mage's head, in particular the front of her hair. "I feel like something's missing though…".

"Oh, you mean her green ribbon? I asked her about it earlier", Lucas replied.

"And I told you, back at the house, that I was thinking I should try something different! What do you think - No ribbon, different colour ribbon, or maybe another accessory?" Daisy asked, making various shapes with her hands on her head. "Ooh, maybe that 'All-Purpose Ring' that you have might help?"

"You know about it?" Lucas pointed to Chloe who was moving her head side-to-side with his star-shaped glasses on her head. They looked big for her head so the Dual mage smiled in response to the funny sight.

"Duh, obviously! They're always around at every festival", she explained.

"I thought it was something new judging by Mimosa's reaction to it. Right, Mimosa?" Lucas turned to the royal only to find that smoke was coming out of both her ears and that her face was red once again.

Quickly, she shook her head and snapped back. "W-Wait, when did you go to her house?"

"Focusing on that little detail, Mimosa? You're too obvious", Daisy smirked.

Lucas responded to Mimosa, waving his right hand about. "To invite her? I told you this earlier, remember?"

"No, you didn't".

"I did. It was the reason I was late", he dropped his shoulders. "I thought you heard me since you nodded and everything and that's when we decided to start walking around the festival".

Mimosa's yellow eyes widened in realisation. "Oh, I think… I was distracted by deciding on what to do that I didn't listen to him at all…", she sweat-dropped.

"If I had known he was supposed to meet you quickly, I'd have kicked him out. You cannot keep a lady waiting, Lucas!" Daisy wagged her finger at the Light mage as she thought back.

FLASHBACK - A FEW HOURS AGO:

It was nearly the evening in the Clover Kingdom. The sun's shining rays were darkening ever so slightly as the light hit everything down below.

One girl was rocking back and forth on a swing set with the other swing sitting still beside her. She was standing and used her feet to balance herself on the seat. As she increased her momentum, she swung even higher and was able to see the rest of the town, vibrant with tons of life and energy.

There were kids playing on the street near the church; adults working or enjoying their day at different shops, cafés, and restaurants; and families socialising with one another.

"Looks like the lights aren't up just yet. I mean, it is still day time and there's some time before the evening", Daisy pouted as she looked around.

Once the swing went backwards, she just waited until she could see the rest of Nean again so that she could admire the view that her favourite place in the world gives her.

With every swing, her smile started to fade further from her initial one until it was a frown. Her eyes were drooping and there were shadows casted over her eyes.

With a deep sigh, she shook her head.

"Every single day… is exactly the same".

Her swinging slowly came to a stop but, just before she hopped off the equipment, a pair of eyes were glued to her, following her from inside her house.

A small girl with long, ginger hair peeked over the ground floor's backdoor and looked outside of the window at her elder sister who looked to be in her own world.

"Big Sis has been going out there multiple times a day…", Alice thought before she saw her walking towards the door. Quickly, she moved out of the way and joined the rest of her sisters who were playing on the large, beige rug that was on the floor.

The door opened and then closed, revealing a smiling Daisy who greeted her four siblings that had toys in each of their hands. She kneeled beside them and rubbed their heads playfully.

"So, shall I start getting dinner ready?"

"Ooh, I wonder what we'll have tonight?" Grace tilted her head to the side and played with her curled, yellow-blonde hair.

"She's on the same level as Rebecca when it comes to cooking, so I don't mind what we eat!" Sonia replied, twirling in place.

"When it comes to cooking?" Daisy repeated, squinting her eyes. "So, there are things she's better than me at, ay?" She questioned, grabbing the twin and tickling her.

"Are you going to eat with us?" Alice asked, pulling on her sister's clothes.

"Hm, I don't think so. I'm not really hungry".

"You've been eating less lately. You're gonna shrink until you're the same size as me!"

"Haha, maybe when it comes to that then I'll start eating 24/7! Perhaps I'll have a bite or something later", Daisy smiled, rustling the 9-year-old's hair.

Chloe raised her hand which made the Ice mage stop. "C-Can I help out t-this time?"

Daisy let go of Alice and Sonia and stood up. She reached her hand for the red-haired girl and winked. "Sure, you can! Ooh, hang on a minute… Let me get my apron from upstairs. I let it dry out on the window sill and now it should be all good to wear!" She helped Chloe up and then ran upstairs to grab her piece of clothing.

During this, Alice was in her own head again as she wondered about Daisy. "Something… is up with her. It's been like this for a month but… she always puts on that smile even when she isn'!"

Her train of thought was stopped as a set of three knocks was heard on the front door. The girls stopped playing with their toys as they all looked at one another with confused looks.

"Can you get the door, Alice?" Daisy shouted from upstairs. "I still… can't find my apron. I think one of you must have moved it…", she mumbled.

"Sure, Big Sis!" Alice replied as she got up and turned the doorknob.

As the door opened, a person who she only saw once before was standing in front of her again. Alongside Alice, Grace and Sonia also joined in and Chloe peeked at the person behind the stairs that were on the side of the room.

"Oh, hi, Mister Lucas".

Lucas waved but his smile was slightly awkward as he replayed how Alice addressed him. "Uh… Hm, actually, just call me Lucas. Mister is a bit, I don't know… makes me sound old", he answered. "Hello, though, Alice and the rest of you", he said as he looked at the four inside.

Alice put her chin in her right hand as she thought about it. "But you are old! You're at least six years older than me!"

"That's not old though… Hey, I'm a few months younger than your big sister as well!" Lucas replied, defending his age.

"Eh? But you don't seem… as childish as her!" Alice argued back.

"Hehe, that's true. You should see her when she tries to tell us scary stories. Sometimes… even she gets scared by her own words!" Grace added.

Sonia wasn't going to let her twin expose Daisy without her so she joined in as well. "Big Sis also has this thing where she's not scared of spiders, lizards, wasps, or any insects like that but if a snail comes near her she'll jump as high as she can!"

Lucas was just nodding as Daisy's secrets were out in the open. "I'm pretty sure… Daisy wouldn't want me knowing something like that…", he thought to himself as he started to feel awkward.

From the stairs, a faint whisper was heard but only the three other siblings understood the quiet sounds. The small girl with purple eyes who was peeking at him kept repeating;

"Psst… Is that him?"

"Yeah, he's the one that found me and Grace when we were hiding!" Sonia jumped up and down.

"You're forgetting the most important part - He came to save us in that cave!" Grace pointed outside in the direction of where the cave was.

"Woah", Chloe replied as she scanned Lucas up and down. "He's tall…", she said as her eyes widened.

"What's with all the staring…?" Lucas thought to himself. On the outside, he was just smiling but inside he was quite conscious with all the eyes on him.

Then, a familiar voice came from where Chloe was which saved him from the endless gazing. Footsteps also came down the stairs and Daisy appeared again.

"What's all the commotion, guys? Who was at the d-!" Daisy began to say but, as she turned around, stopped as she saw Dual mage standing outside with his hand waving.

"Yo, how have you been?" He smiled toothily.

"L-L-L-Lucas?! Oh my… I'm not ready or anything. I'm just, uh, in my home clothes… Oh no, I look so rough", she mumbled to herself as she started fidgeting and panicking.

"Hey, Alice, why is she so nervous all of a sudden?" Grace asked with a whisper to her older sister.

"Yeah, I've never seen her like that before", Sonia added, whispering in Alice's other ear.

Chloe was still staring at Lucas. "Wow, he even has the same hair colour as Big Sis and Alice…".

A few seconds went by before Daisy calmed down. She shook her head and then sighed, letting out a huge breath. As she dropped her shoulders, she went up to the door and ushered him inside.

"Don't just stand there, come on in", she smiled, wiping away some of the sweat on her forehead.

After entering Daisy's house, Lucas sat down on the floor and leaned against one of the walls with a pillow right up on his back. The twins were surrounding the Dual mage whereas Alice and Chloe were a bit further away, playing with their toys.

Next to Lucas, was Daisy who was still standing up in place. She was wearing a plain, white t-shirt with the sleeves rolled up towards her upper arm. She had a light-blue apron covering the majority of the shirt with it being tied up at the back and around her neck. The 16-year-old was also wearing some comfy, grey, cotton shorts that just went above her knees with grey socks on her feet.

"If I knew you were coming I'd have made myself a bit more tidy…", she said as she rustled her messy, ginger hair. Instead of the usual, light-orange hair with bangs, her hair was parted at her forehead with a side ponytail coming out of the side of her head, kept in place with a black ribbon. "Hm, what's with the staring?" She winked.

"N-Not staring, really… I was just looking at you", he replied quickly as he looked away.

"Do you think I look like a housewife?" She winked again as she twirled around in place. She grabbed a frying pan from near the sink in one hand and had a serving spoon in the other, moving both around in the air. The twins got up and copied the same action as their older sister as if it was the start of some sort of dance sequence.

"I have… no comment on that!" He shrugged his shoulders before returning to his calmer self. "Haha, it's fine, Daisy. You look nice and comfy which is good… but, I am wondering where your signature green ribbon went", he asked as he pointed to the top of his own head. "It's like a staple of who you are", he smiled.

Daisy thought back to her conversation with Cyrus a month ago and what happened right before that as she failed to cure Alice. "I just… wanted to try something different, you know? B-Besides, what made you come to visit?" She asked, changing the topic quickly.

"Oh, come on, don't tell me you forgot?" Lucas crossed his arms and looked at the teen questionably. "It's the Star Festival!" He then stood up to meet the Ice mage face-to-face.

"Huh?" Daisy replied, wide-eyed at what the teen opposite her said. "I-It's tonight?"

"What?! You didn't know? Everyone has been talking about it for the last few weeks! Have you been locked away in the house or something?" Lucas joked.

"I haven't been on many Magic Knight duties lately so I've spent more time with my siblings just taking care of them. I completely lost track of the days and the time…", she pouted, lightly slapping herself across the face with her hand.

The four siblings reacted completely differently though. They were jumping, dancing, and screaming with joy.

"Woah, Mister Lucas is really taking us to the Star Festival?"

"What should I wear?"

"We didn't even go last year!"

Seeing the kids' reactions, Daisy walked over to one side of the room and asked Lucas to follow. She leaned against the wall with one foot planted firmly on it, with the other on the floor to balance her body. She stared outside through the window and then back and Lucas.

"Listen… I don't think I can make it this year", she put her hands together above her head as if she was asking for forgiveness.

"Your sisters are all excited, though. Look", he pointed at the stairs as Chloe jumped off into a large pile of pillows. "You don't have anything else to do tonight, right?"

Daisy scratched her head and sighed. "N-No, that's not it but I'm just not feeling it. Besides, do you not have anyone else to spend time with at the festival?"

"Yeah, I promised Mimosa that I'd go around with her. I'm meeting her in an hour or so, but I think it'd be fun with all of us, so I wanted to see you beforehand. I think… with everything that happened, we need a bit of fun", he smiled.

"What does he mean? Surely, he doesn't know about me failing to cure Alice, right? Or the argument I had with Cyrus?" Daisy gulped before asking. "What do you mean?"

"It's just… the whole thing with the Witches' Forest took a toll on all of us. I've gotten a bit better but I'm still not in the best frame of mind with my whole 'transformation' business and we could all see how mentally drained you were after the fight with the Witch Queen", Lucas explained.

"It's true that the whole day was a big mess…", she sighed. "The fight we had against Mystic, where she was throwing illusions at us… You're not just trying to prove her wrong, are you? Because you don't need to listen to her jibes and insults at all!"

Daisy and Lucas thought back to what was being referred to.

Mystic presented her with another illusion.

Nean showed up and her house was pictured in the middle. It was night time and it looked like snowfall was imminent with how cold it was all around. The illusion then warped towards the back of the house and showed a small park that was on top of a hill.

Lucas and Daisy were going back and forth on the swingset and the latter had been crying. Her blue skirt started to darken with her falling tears and her face was already stained with them.

"My mom is dead, Lucas-san…".

More tears started to fall from her face and the only thing Lucas could do now was to pull her in for a warm and lengthy embrace. Lucas pondered for a bit but then decided to say something to his friend.

"I'll be here for your siblings as well. Don't you worry… about a single thing, Daisy". He had her rest her head on his right shoulder.

"I… I can't trouble you with that…!" Daisy sobbed.

Then, all of a sudden, the illusion ended and Mystic stepped forwards. She stared down at Lucas who was still trying to recover from the previous illusion.

"You never did trouble your friend, Daisy, did you?" Mystic asked. "That was a few months ago and how many times did you go to see her after that declaration? A total of zero times!" She laughed and then turned to Daisy. "That's the sort of Magic Knight you're friends with. A no-good liar!"

Lucas sighed, leaning against the same wall as his friend. "While it's true that I didn't visit after I made that promise, inviting you and your sisters isn't because of Mystic's mocking. I… thought hard about everything and I realised you've helped me a lot as a friend and as a Magic Knight, so… I just want to show my thanks", he turned away, blushing. "After all… you did say those nice things about me when you fought her…", he mumbled under his breath.

The two thought back again.

"If his ideals are flawed then that means… I am as well. Lucas is the one that's given me the strength to carry on no matter what. Things about me that he has no idea about… by picturing his face, he's helped me overcome so much. From the moment I met him and got to know him… and then… when we saw each other again, I knew what I felt wasn't wrong", she paused and smiled, tilting her head ever so slightly. "Lucas… is my ideal!"

She then started giggling for a few seconds, holding her mouth with both her hands. "Oh, Lucas… Fine, my sisters and I will be there but you have to give us an hour or so to get ready!"

The Dual mage pumped his fist in the air. "Haha, yes, I knew I'd get you to come!"

Daisy lightly punched Lucas's shoulder before skipping over to the bottom of the stairs and talking to her sisters. "I'll get ready first, and then you will, okay?"

"Okay, Big Sis!" The four of them shouted back, barely able to contain their excitement.

The Ice mage was about to run upstairs but then something Lucas said was on her mind. She turned back around and looked at the teen from Hoffvol.

"Why don't you go have fun with Mimosa and the four of us will meet up with you? You don't want to be keeping someone like her waiting!" She instructed, pointing out the front door.

Lucas paused and then looked outside as the sky started to turn orange. "H-Huh, it's nearly time to meet up with her! Th-Thanks for letting me know and I'll see you soon!" He rushed towards the door but stopped. "How will you know where to find me?"

"Oh, I'll figure something out. Just go!" She laughed.

Lucas just nodded and smiled before rushing away, picking up the broomstick he had leaning outside on one of the benches near her house.

A few minutes after Lucas invited the Calor siblings, Daisy was in her room getting ready. She was throwing clothes all around but stopped as she caught a glimpse of herself in her small mirror on her desk that was near her bed.

She looked at her face and saw how pale it was. Her eyes were low and there were bags under them. She put her hands close and felt how cold she was.

"I don't think he noticed anything different. It's a good thing guys are kinda oblivious when it comes to a girl's looks, hm?" She chuckled and thought to herself before raising both of her hands.

She put both index fingers on the edge of her mouth, forcing her frown to turn into a smile.

"Come on, Daisy. You're used to putting on a brave face so you can do it again, right?"

FLASHBACK - END

"He practically barged into my house", Daisy lied, making sure that Lucas was getting worked up.

"I did not! I felt like I was quite polite in how I came by! A knock on the door, then wait to be let in!" Lucas protested. "Well, at least I didn't look like I just woke up", he retorted, choosing to tease the mage as he knew what Daisy was aiming for.

"H-Huh?! I just w-wasn't expecting you!" She quickly replied with her voice rising in tone.

"Maybe… I should say something", Mimosa smiled awkwardly at the sight. However, she didn't need to do anything as their argument stopped as there was some commotion nearby.

The group of seven all joined up together and looked in the distance of where the noise was coming from. In the air, there were some small bubbles around that were rising slowly and swaying side-to-side as if in rhythm to something.

"I… can hear singing? Oh, is that the band that's supposed to play here?" Lucas asked, still focusing in front of him.

"No, that's not Shooting Star. It's too different but it does sound quite nice. Do you want to check it out?" Mimosa asked, intrigued.

"Sure", Lucas nodded as he started to walk towards the singing. He turned around and noticed that the Calors were coming as well.

"Don't forget about us!" Daisy smiled, toothily

A few minutes passed as the two weaved in and out of the dense crowds until they reached an open area where there weren't too many stalls around. There were families all sitting around, clapping and humming to the tune that was being sung nearby.

Lucas, along with the rest of the girls, got to the front of the crowd and they were immediately entranced with what they were seeing and listening to.

There were two people that wore very different clothing to what you'd see in the majority of the Clover Kingdom. One was dancing all around and circling the other one who was singing. There were the same bubbles that they saw beforehand but now they were plenty.

"Their clothes…", Lucas started to say but couldn't finish as he had no words for them.

"They look like fishes!" Grace pointed and laughed.

Daisy covered the twin's mouth and looked around. Seeing as no one heard the rude comment, she sighed and slowly let go.

The singer had quite a slender build with the colour red being a main focus on how she looked. She had dark, red hair which gathered into a very long ponytail that went down to her legs. Her white, sleeveless dress looked to be made of sea scales and she wore a red belt in an 'X' shape across the lower-middle. She also wore a pair of red sandals that had red straps around her ankles. Around her neck was a gold, chain necklace with a pendant of a whale hanging down.

The dancer looked similar to the singer. Instead of the red colour, he had a blue scheme. His dark, blue hair bounced up and down as he danced across the floor. A strand of his hair was braided on the right whereas the rest of it was also like a ponytail. His white clothing was thinner than the girl's and he also wore some trousers that went down just below his knees. A blue belt went across his stomach and was tied into a bow on the side. His pair of sandals were blue with straps around his ankles.

After watching for another minute, the two stopped and started walking away but they suddenly stopped as they were met with tons of clapping and loud cheering.

"You guys were amazing!"

"Have you thought of joining a band?"

"This year's festival might be the best!"

They looked in awe but quickly started bowing.

"Thank you, all!" The two smiled and waved at everyone.

Lucas, Mimosa, and Daisy were only clapping whereas the four younger sisters were making as much noise as they could.

"Wow, they were quite good", Lucas said.

"Definitely. Though I wonder who they were?" Mimosa added.

All of a sudden, Grace and Sonia wriggled loose from Daisy's grasp and ran towards the two performers. They were yelling things like "Autograph!" and "I'm your fan!" which made Daisy turn red with embarrassment. She chased the twins, and the rest of the group walked over since she didn't have to go too far.

"I thought this would be a relaxing festival but here I am getting a workout because of my sisters!" Daisy face-palmed.

The Ice mage almost reached the twins but they were already in conversation with the unique-looking pair of performers.

"And who might you two be, little ones?" The singer kneeled down to pat Grace's head.

"I'm your biggest fan!" She squealed with stars in her eyes.

"And I'm yours!" Sonia added, shaking the dancer's hand up and down.

"Woah, even I have a fan?" The dancer pumped his fists.

Then, two other people walked towards the singer-dancer duo and smiled.

"Looks like you two are going to make it big with this kind of support!"

"Wait, hang on a minute… those twins look familiar".

Grace and Sonia peered behind the two in front and saw that Asta and Noelle had joined up. They looked at one another and remembered the two Black Bulls from Nean, especially the one with the ashen-grey hair.

"Asta, and the royal!" They shouted, jumping at the two.

The magicless mage picked up Grace as she was practically asking him to whereas Noelle folded her arms at the other twin.

"Hmph. I have a name, you know - it's Noelle!" The Silva said, looking at the young blonde down below.

"Royal Noelle!" Sonia said, jumping up towards her which forced the Water mage to catch her so she didn't fall.

"Hm, that's an odd way of greeting me. I d-don't mind it though since I am a royal, of course!" Noelle thought to herself.

Finally, the eldest Calor sibling caught up and once she saw the two Magic Knights, she relaxed as she knew the twins were alright. She rolled her eyes though as she got the weirdest sense of deja vu. "Didn't something like this just happen?"

"Daisy?" Asta and Noelle said.

"Asta, Noelle?" Daisy replied.

Then, the rest of the group all caught up to the Ice mage and they all looked at one another for a few seconds.

"Lucas?"

"Mimosa?"

After that, as if in sequence, the two performers slid in from either side with their arms stretched to either side.

"I'm Kahono".

"And I'm Kiato!"

All of the new arrivals exchanged confused looks.

"Who?"

"Every year, the Star Festival never ceases to impress".

"This… is actually my first time coming to the festival".

Far from all the commotion of the singing and dancing, two members of the Aqua Deer walked through the bright, candle-lit streets of the Royal Capital whilst rummaging through a bag of popcorn in each of their arms.

Cyrus, after hearing what the other just said, stopped in his tracks and looked judgingly at his friend who froze under the intense stare of his light-green eyes. "How is it your first time? I thought nobles always enjoyed this festival, even with all the crowds and the noise that comes with it", he asked. "Is there a reason?"

Fragil was in the middle of picking up a piece of popcorn but she dropped it back in the small, white bag that she was holding. "N-No reason, really…", she rolled her eyes as she refused to make eye contact with the alchemist.

Being as focused on details as Cyrus was, he knew something was up seeing as her body language was slightly off. "Hm, I don't think I should pry anyway", he thought.

"Hey, wait up!" A voice calling from behind caused the two Aqua Deers to turn around. As the stranger got closer, Cyrus and Fragil both recognised him but the two had very different reactions.

"Hi, Daimon", the alchemist waved with his free hand. "Nice to see you here at the festival".

"Yo, Cyrus. I haven't seen you since Talon Village but you're looking well. Have you gotten better with your magic?" Daimon asked, returning the wave.

"You bet", Cyrus nodded. "Though I won't be showing anyone yet since I need to perfect them beforehand".

Daimon nodded. "Hehe, good idea. You wouldn't want your secrets out in the open, but I'll still power through and beat ya", he chuckled.

"We'll see about that", Cyrus smirked, returning the slight laugh.

Daimon then turned his focus to Fragil who had been constantly looking at the floor since he appeared. "Oh, come on, woman, I thought we were friends now", the male smirked.

Cyrus reached his hand out slightly. "Um, you know she doesn't like to be referred to as th-", he started to explain but a hand from Daimon stopped him.

With a whisper, the Purple Orca explained. "I know. It's just a way to get her to speak to me since it's the one thing that gets under her skin".

"I can HEAR you!" Fragil turned her head to shout right in Daimon's face. "I didn't speak to you since I knew you'd be like this but then you tell Cyrus that you're doing it on purpose? Hmph, the nerve…".

After her little outburst, she looked at Daimon's face and saw that he was holding back from laughing. However, once the two made eye contact, he couldn't hold back.

"Ah, it's great seeing you like this. Remember how you were happy after that little girl kicked me in Talon? Well, consider this my revenge". Daimon's laughter slowly came to a halt after he explained.

"Revenge?" Fragil repeated, not believing what he was saying. "It wasn't that serious and, besides, you deserved that kick from her", she shrugged.

"Anyway!" Cyrus interrupted, seeing as their conversation was just becoming an argument. "Are you with anyone tonight, Daimon?"

"Hmph, maybe everyone's sick and tired of him", Fragil teased.

It was Daimon's turn to roll his eyes this time. "No, that isn't the reason. As a matter of fact, I am here with someone but she just seemed to disappear…", he turned around and dropped his shoulders. "We got separated maybe an hour ago".

"Oh, how I wish I could be her right now", the Snow mage joined her hands together to pray.

"Watch it", Daimon warned, pointing at the dark-blue-haired mage.

"I can't win with these two", Cyrus blew air out of his mouth, feeling defeated.

All of a sudden, Daimon abruptly moved a step forward which made the other two flinch as it was so sudden. It looked like he had squared up to Fragil which was worrying. Though that wasn't the case at all as a very quiet voice emerged from behind.

"Sorry there, Mister", a small girl, apologised as she moved away from Daimon. "It seems as if I didn't see you. Forgive me for bumping into you".

Daimon, being Daimon, didn't take the apology and was about to start another argument but, as he turned around, dropped his anger and just sighed. "Oh, there you are, Rose".

She looked up to the tall, black-haired teenager and her pink eyes sparkled as she realised who it was. "Oh, there you are, Daimon!" She cheered, hugging him.

Daimon started to blush in embarrassment as he broke away from the hug. He stepped a few paces to the back so that she wouldn't try the hug again.

"Who's this?" Cyrus asked, bringing the girl's attention to him.

"Looks like a little kid", Fragil replied.

The small person had honey-blonde hair with bangs across her forehead and curls that went down into spirals just below her upper back. She was wearing a white shirt with a red bow tie and red buttons that went down the middle. She also wore a white skirt with red highlights across the bottom that went down to her knees. On her feet, she wore black shoes with two, miniature, white ribbons across the side of each shoe..

The new arrival gasped with horror. She brought her hand to her mouth and waved furiously with the other one. "M-M-Me… a k-kid?!" She rushed towards Fragil and looked and raised her head at her. "I'm 20, thank you very much!"

Fragil's eyes went white as she poker-faced. "This kid is the same age as me?! She's like… just to my waist!"

The 20-year-old put her two hands forwards and backwards twice to show that she was her age, making sure the two Aqua Deers focused on her 10 fingers. After that, she whipped out her squad robe and put it around her neck.

"With this, it'll prove that I'm at least 15!"

"L-Look, I'm sorry… um, Rose, was it? Can you cut me some slack?" Fragil knelt down slightly with a troubled expression.

"Ooh, bad move there", Daimon commented, raising his fist to his mouth.

"I would have… if you didn't kneel down to me as if I were actually a child! You apologised… and then did the same thing again…", she teared up and started to cry.

Fragil had no idea what to do now. She had just made a 20-year-old cry in public and the people around her noticed this as they heard Rose.

"Did she just make that kid cry?"

"Ooh, that's not a good look for the Aqua Deer".

The Snow mage put her head in her hands as everything she tried came off worse than it should have. However, Daimon knew what to do and he got to work.

"It's okay, Rose", he said softly as he rubbed her golden-brown hair. "What will you do if Aiden sees you like this? You have to show that you're strong!"

All of a sudden, Rose stopped the waterworks and smiled again. "Right. I've got to impress Aiden if I want him to go out with me!" She punched the air and jumped, doing a 360 from her sad expression to a completely happy one.

Cyrus was completely silent this whole time but he decided to speak. "You're interested in Aiden?"

"Yep! He's cool, strong, and really nice! He's helped me with magic and after the business with our criminal captain, guided me in how to be a better Magic Knight!" Rose clapped, getting more excited by the second. "It's a bit annoying how he tries picking on me but I just see it as him trying to bond with me!"

Daimon sighed. "I've heard this a million times now… If only Aiden came to the festival to give me a break from babysitting you".

"I'd have liked to see him again. It's been a few months", Cyrus replied.

"You're telling me that you would have? What about me?!" Rose shouted, forcing the others to look at her. "I'd love to share some chocolate with him, have dinner in a secluded area, and maybe… just maybe… k-k-kis-!"

The Explosion mage grabbed the small Purple Orca with no hesitation and started walking away with her. "Okay, Rose, we get it…", he awkwardly smiled. "Urgh, well it was nice seeing you Cyrus, and you", he pointed at Fragil. "I have to get her some food or she'll be like this the whole night!"

Rose struggled to move because of Daimon's grasp. "O-Oh, by the way, I met this really tall guy just now...", she tried to say but the Explosion mage pulled her away.

"See you!" Cyrus waved. He then turned to Fragil and saw that she had a huge pout on her face. "Rose was a bit too much, huh? To be honest, I thought she was a kid as well but you saved me from her outburst by saying it first", he giggled.

"Daimon certainly doesn't seem as hotheaded anymore. Maybe the festival's changed him, haha", Cyrus joked.

Fragil sighed heavily and shook her head. "The Purple Orcas are just odd. It's tiring to deal with them and… Daimon… he just purposely grinds my gears".

"He does? I thought you two had a little bit of understanding after that mission with the rogue Magic Knights", the noble replied.

"Me too!" She pointed at herself. "But then he purposely tries to annoy me and… urgh, I don't know".

Cyrus thought for a while before responding. He scratched his chin and corrected his glasses a few times before reaching a conclusion. "Maybe… he likes you, you know… in that way".

"HUH?!" Fragil exclaimed, shocked as to how such a point was even thought, let alone said.

"Hey, I'm no expert but I do focus a lot on things that catch my intrigue", he touched his dark-orange glasses with the tip of his finger. "Magic is one of those things and so are, well, people", he defended himself. "Maybe he does all that to provoke a reaction from you - like, in a teasing type of way? Perhaps it's similar to what Rose said about Aiden…", he scratched his chin as he tried to put some things together. "I mean… he smiled around you constantly and he's definitely different to how he was back in Talon when we first met".

"Yeah, he seems a bit calmer but I'm sure that doesn't equate to liking me like that", Fragil shook her head, disregarding the idea. "Cyrus, I'd like you to not even mention that point again", she asked, sweat-dropping and creating the shape of an 'X' with her arms.

The Alchemical Wizard raised his hands and apologised. "Fine, fine… Not a word more about this", he smirked which caught the Snow mage's eyes.

"Oh, don't you start this now!" She lightly pushed him away after noticing his teasing smile.

The two started exploring the festival once again and reached a few of the activity stalls that were a few minutes away from where they initially were. They stopped and turned to each other.

"Hey", she said before breathing in and out heavily. "I guess I'll tell you since it's not really a secret, just embarrassing… The reason that it's my first festival is because I never had any friends growing up. I told you when we first met that because I'm a bit shy and don't really work well around people, remember? Well, that was a reason as to why I never came here. Going by yourself isn't really fun", she explained.

Cyrus was a bit confused though. "I'm not really sure that you're like that though. Even the first day I met you, you never came off like that. We became friends quite easily, to be fair".

"Hm, maybe that's how you saw it but I was terrified of asking to become friends, haha", she replied. "As for not working well with others… Maybe it's just how I think of myself, you know?"

"At least we're both friends now", Cyrus smiled. "I really needed a friend and you were the first one in the squad to talk to me which was a great help. So, in return, I'm going to make sure you have the best first Star Festival, okay?" He turned around and focused on one of the stalls.

"We've snacked on some stuff, so… how about this stall to start the fun off?"

"Woah, so you fought against the Third Eye as well?!" Lucas asked the two in front of him. "I knew the Black Bulls did but I didn't know about you two. Oh, and what's this whole thing about an underground water society?!" There were sparkles in his eyes as he thought about how cool and mysterious it all was.

Kiato, the dancer, matched Lucas's energy by standing right opposite him, flaring his nostrils and puffing air out of them. "Boy was that beast tough! Vetto, I think his name was? I hate to admit but I was no match for him but you fought till the end against that Copy Magic guy AND the Flame Magic girl? Woah, you rock!"

Lucas raised his arms and protested. "No, no, no… it wasn't just me but a lot of the Golden Dawn and… some of the guys that you see here!"

Mimosa pouted and crossed her arms. "If only you actually let me know about this Witches' Forest… I'd have come and helped!"

The last few minutes were spent with introductions with the large group taking their time to get familiar with everyone. It was just the group of 11 with only a handful of other people around as they were taking up a lot of the space around them, though a single stall was just setting up behind them.

"Kiato… I thought we asked the Black Bulls to keep the Seabed Temple a secret, yet you just blabbed about our entire race to someone you just met", the singer sighed.

Asta waved his arms up and down. "That's true, but Lucas and everyone else here are trustworthy! They're our good friends and we've been through some tough battles together", he explained.

"Come on, Kahono, you said yourself that you want to see what the surface world has to offer and, well, these cool people are part of it", Kiato smiled. He knelt on one knee and extended his arms towards Lucas, Mimosa, and the others. "I think these people are cool!"

"You've literally known them for five minutes!" Kahono argued in her head. However, with a sigh and a shake of her head, she nodded eventually. "Fine, if everyone else is cool, then I'm cool!" She pointed at herself with her thumb.

"That was quite the change", Noelle thought.

"Say, since we're a huge group now, do you guys want to go around with us?" Asta asked.

"The more the merrier, I say!" Kahono agreed, twirling in place. "And… I'm taking my fan with me!" She held Grace's hand and the twin was ecstatic as it looked like her blue eyes were replaced by flames.

Kiato spun in a circle and extended his arms outwards, putting one of them on his head imagining that he had a hat on. "That means Sonia's with me!"

The four looked at Daisy who took a few seconds before giving her permission. "As long as you two behave, alright?"

"We will, Big Sis!" The twins replied, jumping up and down.

After the two performers had their biggest fans by the hand, two other pairs spoke to the other. Lucas with Mimosa, and Asta with Noelle.

"Hey, let's join up with them for a bit. I think it'll be fun!" Lucas said to Mimosa.

"I'm happy to. I haven't been with Noelle to the Star Festival for a few years now", she replied.

"This will be the best Star Festival ever!" Asta shouted, pumping his fists.

"This is your first one so obviously it will be!" Noelle responded. Then, she started to blush as she thought of something. "I guess I'll just have to go along with you as well. I just know you'd get into trouble without me!"

Seeing the two pairs in their conversations, Daisy and Kahono both thought about similar things at the same time.

"My intuition is never wrong, hehe. Looks like I'll have to play as Cupid tonight… Hang on Mimosa, I've got you!"

"Noelle, I see you still have a problem with being honest. Let's see if I can change that tonight!"

Then, all of a sudden, as the two girls turned away they made eye contact with each other. It was as if sparks were flying with how they focused on one another. After the initial shock because of the realisation, they smirked afterwards.

Daisy and Kahono stood with their backs against each other and then the stall behind them turned on their bright decorations. A pair of pink wings sprouted through the magic and, since Daisy and Kahono were standing in front of it, they looked like they had a pair or cupid wings.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"You bet!"

The two pointed at each other but, as if knowing what the other was aiming for, nodded and looked at the two pairs near them.

"Hey, I've been thinking about something that might work well", Daisy said to Lucas and Mimosa.

"It's time to really get this night started!" Kahono said to Asta and Noelle.

Then, at the exact same time;

"Here's a fun idea. Let's have a triple date!"

NOTES:

The triple date with everyone starts in the next chapter and I can't wait to show you that one. I've been wanting to get to this point for a while.

A bit of a weird chapter in the sense that not too much happened but a lot kinda did as well.

Daisy is a bit of an odd one here considering what she's going through but having her here is important and I hope I show that in the next chapters. It also looks like she's a LucasxMimosa shipper!

The little siblings kinda made things a bit hard but I think I wrote them well.