"Mom, save me," Maru said, dramatically flopping down in the chair next to Robin. It forcibly dragged her attention away from the farmer, who was idly standing to the side while others in the town made their moves and sought out dance partners. Robin knew she was likely very obviously staring at the town's newest resident, and wasn't sure if she was grateful for the distraction or frustrated that she couldn't continue.
"You poor thing. Is Harvey trying to get you to dance with him again?" she asked with a hint of a smile.
"Worse. Dad is trying to make me eat his 'spring flower surprise'."
Robin rolled her eyes. "Sorry, you get no sympathy from me seeing as you and Sebastian were conveniently out of the house when he needed a taste tester."
The young woman pulled a horrified expression. "Don't do this to me."
Her mother playfully stuck out her tongue. "You should ask someone to dance. That's a good enough excuse to get out of it."
Maru shrugged, her shoulders slumping slightly. "Maybe. I don't know. I might not dance this year," she said halfheartedly.
"Why not?" she asked, eyebrows raised. Maru loved this festival. She had always been enraptured with those who dance when she was younger, and eagerly learned the moves as soon as she was old enough, unlike Sebastian who dragged his feet through the whole process. Not participating, or even approaching the day with any amount of enthusiasm, was unlike her.
"I, uh…" Her daughter anxiously glanced around before angling herself so her back was to the rest of the townsfolk. "I wanted to ask Penny," she confessed, keeping her voice low. "But we were in the library the other day and mentioned she would be dancing with Sam."
"Oh…" Robin's expression turned soft. "Oh, sweetheart." She pulled her daughter close, wrapping her up in her arms, letting her rest her head on her shoulder. Robin's heart ached for her little girl. The Flower Dance was a longstanding tradition in Pelican Town. Sometimes, established couples took to the floor, getting all dressed up in the costumes they used to wear when they were younger, but more often than not, it was an opportunity for bachelors and bachelorettes in town to bear their hearts and make their interest clear. It was a romantic gesture, plain and simple.
And there was no wriggle room for married townsfolk to dance with anyone other than their spouses.
While their situations weren't entirely the same, Robin felt her daughter's pain. "I'm sorry. I know a fair bit about being unable to dance with the person you want." Maru swore she saw her mother's eyes drift to someone she couldn't see, but she was too torn up about Penny to think too hard about it.
"What about Dad?" she asked instead.
"Psh. You think I want to dance with him? My feet wouldn't survive." The mother-daughter pair shared a laugh. "I meant in terms of the festival at its core. Like I would love to dance with you. Or your brother. Or my friends from aerobics. I'm just sorry this whole thing is so rigid."
"It's okay," Maru insisted, though Robin didn't miss the slight wobble in her voice. "It's on me. I should have asked sooner."
"Well, with any luck, there'll be the chance to do so next year," she offered as weak consolation. Maru nodded against her shoulder. "And Maru, honey," Robin added. "You know you don't have to wait for the Flower Dance to make any moves, right?" she said gently.
"I know," she whispered in response.
"Good." Robin pressed a kiss to her daughter's temple, wishing she could do more to take away the disappointment she must have been feeling. "Hey, why don't you get us some jell-o? That was always your favourite growing up. Leave your father's cooking for the rest of them who don't know any better."
That finally got a smile out of her. "Yeah. Okay. Jell-o sounds good. I'll be back in a second."
Robin watched her head towards the impressive buffet spread before sparing a glance at Penny, who was indeed talking to Sam. She sighed, sinking a little in her seat. Maru had come out as bisexual a few years ago but had never shown any interest in girls until now. Robin wished she could have had a better first experience, but she also knew that one rejected dance didn't mean her chances were ruined forever. Maru had plenty of time.
As she pondered this, the older woman was suddenly pulled from her thoughts when she was approached by the very woman who had admittedly already captured far too much of her attention.
"Hey Robin," said the farmer casually. Oh. Robin had a bad feeling she knew what was coming next. She hoped she was wrong, she wanted to be wrong (or at lease, she wanted to want that), but of course, Yoba seemed fixed on giving her some twisted form of torture today.
"I was wondering if you'd like to be my dance partner?" She asked it innocently, as if it was the easiest thing in the world.
If only saying yes could be just as easy.
"I'm sorry," she apologised, because she really was. "I can't."
"Come on," the farmer teased, never losing that hopeful smile. "Don't shortchange yourself. I've seen you dancing at the saloon on Friday nights. You've got some moves!"
Her blush deepened. "It's not that," she said regretfully. "Trust me, Farmer, I… I would love to dance with you, but the Flower Dance is more of a thing done by… romantic partners," she explained. "Or at least two people interested in each other, you know, in that way." Her eyes darted towards Demetrius and the farmer tried her best not to look too visibly disheartened.
"Oh. I see." Her smile fell for a brief moment, but not brief enough for the redhead to notice and hate it.
"I'm sorry." And Robin truly meant those words. Because she really did want to dance with the farmer. Not because she was interested in her that way, obviously. Because Robin was married. She wanted to dance with the farmer because they were friends, and Robin genuinely enjoyed dancing, even at this stuffy festival. The moves, the music, the way bodies can get lost in the rhythms and the flow of it all. She wanted to experience that with the farmer. Her friend.
"No, no! Don't apologise. I shouldn't have asked." The farmer smiled shyly, shifting her weight between her legs. "First the mermaid's pendant and now this. Guess I need to read up more on Pelican Town traditions, huh?"
"For your first couple of weeks, I'd say you're doing just fine," Robin assured her. "I think it's a dumb tradition anyway. People should be able to dance with whoever they want to, regardless of whether they're dating or married or whatever."
"Yes!" the farmer eagerly agreed. "What's the point of having an entire festival relating to dancing if not everyone can participate?"
Robin shrugged. "Pelican Town is just stuck in its ways. But the oldies enjoy watching though," she said, nodding to Evelyn and George. "Reminds them of their younger days, I think."
"Yeah…" The farmer glanced between Robin and her husband once more. "I guess you and Demetrius have the dance moves down, huh? Leah mentioned they were super specific."
Robin chose to ignore that last detail, needing to stop her eyebrow from irritably twitching at the mention of Leah's name. "It becomes muscle memory once you've done it enough years in a row. But we probably won't, though. We prefer to leave it more to you young people," she added with a chuckle, hoping to hide the fact that she and Demetrius hadn't danced at the Flower Dance for several years now, and likely wouldn't ever again. At least it saved her feet from getting trampled by her husband with two left feet. "But how about you? Do you plan on asking anyone?" Aside from Robin, of course.
The farmer shook her head slightly. "Nah. If this whole thing is just a guise for big, romantic gestures, I probably won't. I don't have anyone I'm thinking about that seriously yet."
Internally, Robin sighed with relief. The farmer wasn't hers to stake claim to, and yet she couldn't bear the thought of her considering anyone else like that. Maternal instincts, she thought to herself. The farmer's parents were far away and Robin was a mother, so of course she'd want to take care of her. She was just being protective.
"Want to just watch the dance together then?" suggested the farmer. "Maybe see if I can get my head around the moves for next year."
"I'll probably be here with Maru and some jell-o," she replied, gesturing to her daughter who was returning with just that. "She's not dancing either. But you're welcome to join us."
And so, the farmer did. As the rest of the young people in town danced somehow in synchrony, the three of them watched, commenting on the absurdity of this tradition while picking from the same plate of wobbly jell-o. A small part of Robin wondered who the farmer would be dancing with next year. A selfish part of her wondered if it would be Maru. Even though her daughter had clearly shown interest in Penny, Robin held out hope that the farmer might have a shot. At least that way, she would still be close to her.
A/N - Hello dear reader! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm having so much fun writing this story and the next chapter is one I'm very excited to post so keep a lookout for that. As always, let me know what you think and until next time, stay safe.
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