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(Yuma PoV)

"I've never seen anything like this…"

"Me neither," Peach agreed. There were streamers and flags up on every street corner. Dancers flowed in deep blue dresses on a raised platform in the middle of the street. They moved with perfect synchronization as they spun in tight circles on the wooden planks. With hard shoes under their dresses the woman tapped out a rhythm that sounded like a chorus of applause. A child let out a wild shriek of delight from somewhere up ahead.

There were vendors and stalls which turned downtown Vale into a bazaar.

"This is the Edenshift arts festival. It's the biggest art festival in the world. Last year there were over fifty five thousand performances and four thousand different shows," Pine had to talk over the din of the crowded streets.

A drum beat up ahead of us loud enough to shake the air and another was playing for an entirely different venue to our left.

"We never had anything like this in Wutai…"

"I saw the Vytal Festival when it was in Atlas but this is easily as big as that was," Peach agreed. "It had an entirely different focus about it though what with the tournament. There were art shows but it wasn't about the art shows. Not like this."

We watched the women finish their performance on stage and take a bow to the applause of the crowd. I eagerly joined in. I mean… I could dance okay but not like that. They must have trained for months to pull off such a tightly coordinated feature.

"Let's get something to eat. Something we can walk around with," Rosé started. She pushed a little through the crowd. I followed closely behind her on the swarming streets. There were more people in the street we were walking on than lived in my whole village.

Rosé found a food stall and paid for these giant mounds of cake covered in powdered sugar and cinnamon. It was about the size of six of my fists if not a little bigger. Pine took hers and when she took a bite there was a trail of some sort of custard filling that she struggled to swallow all of with repeated bites.

I tried mine. The sugary bread would have been dry. It was toasted and not fried. But on the inside was this creamy yellow paste that was also rich in sugar. It tasted smooth and the whole treat was warm in my hands. Some of my custard started spilling out of where I took a bite and I was fast to reclaim it before it could fall to the ground. I'd never had anything like it before. It was absolutely delicious and I ran my tongue through the yellow custard and gulped it down. It was thick enough that I had to lick at my lips and front teeth to clean them off. But it was gooey enough that it dissolved in your mouth.

"What should we check out next?" Pine wondered.

"There's acrobatics down on Thirteenth and Kingsland," Rosé said. "A whole circus is out dominating Second Street."

We watched the crowd start to part out of the middle of the street. We quickly followed suit and got out of the way of a whole marching band with trumpets, drums, and trombones. I watched a man beat a steady pulse that I could feel with the hair on the back of my head into a drum he was wearing around his front. The fifty man precession marched by in bright red and gold uniforms with tassels. Following closely behind were ribbon twirlers with pink and blue strands that they danced with and waved through the air.

I made a second attempt at the giant pastry in my hands. It exploded in my mouth with the warm and fluid insides and the soft buttery bread soaked up the custard and my spit along my tongue. "Mmm." I managed. "Ah. Well if we don't pick some event or venue I bet some event or venue will pick us at this rate."

"Do we want to see a play?" Pine asked. "The Fistle Gardens are supposed to be running shows until midnight. Every two hours. And if we don't want to see that then the Jasmine Round Gardens have been converted into an amphitheater."

"There's so many…" I trailed. "We can't possibly see them all."

"Not a chance, no." Rosé agreed. "We'll have to pick something and stick to it. Ooh shopping!"

We turned onto fifth street and the entire six lane road had been converted into an open roof strip mall. Clothes and dresses of all sorts were on display. There was of course also a food court but I was struggling to keep up with my giant pastry at the moment. I could smell fresh pizza and steak and frying foods on the breeze from the stall up ahead.

In the breeze, flags whipped overhead in bright colors loud enough that you could hear them over the street performers, marching bands, stationary bands, holographic displays, and the general chatter of thousands and thousands of people.

"Have you been to the Eidenshift festival before?" I asked Rosé and Pine. Pine nodded and Rosé answered.

"Every year since I was little. There's going to be a big gala at the castle tonight, too. And every other night this week. I used to have to attend."

"I've only been twice since I moved back and forth between Vale and Menagerie my whole life. But I've seen the biggest circus in the world before. Well not the one before last year which was the biggest Eidenshift festival."

"What are we even celebrating?" I wondered. It was a statewide party and everyone was invited. I just wasn't sure of the history behind the event.

"King Lot Gainsborough I united Vale and signed the first treaty with Vacuo. It ended the last War of Match's Succession and the fifty years war between Vale and Vacuo. Ever since then Vacuo and Vale have been allies and the entire continent of Sanus has been at peace within itself. That was a little over four hundred years ago and the festival has been going on every year since then. Well not the years with the First and Second plague and not last year either with Black Out Day."

"You're great grandad or whatever did this?" I asked.

Rosé nodded. A troupe of acrobats came backflipping their way towards us down Eastenwatch Avenue. We walked into the mall. Peach went to the boutique and stared at a lovely purple dress with petal like trimmings around the waist. The neckline was a low 'v' with black trimmings.

"The dance is coming up," Peach murmured. "Anybody want to go dress shopping?"

"Sure," Pine agreed.

"I'll buy," Rosé coupled.

I found a little blue number with white tassels. It would be a short skirt if I wore it and I didn't really like the neckline. I took another bite of gooey pastry. I still had the vast majority of the treat wrapped up in a napkin.

"So? What do you think?" Pine asked, holding up a lime green flowing gown with a slitted thigh.

"If it was a few shades darker it would match your eyes and hair…" I trailed.

"You don't think that would be too much of the same green?" She wondered.

I shook my head. "You've got pretty eyes and hair."

"Yeah, work it. Think the Prof will appreciate me if he saw me in this?" Peach held up a very tight looking body con in plain rich white.

"You really think you can get his attention?" I pressed. I was a little curious too. If she could, then maybe I could too. It wasn't all about looks thank goodness because then Peach would be winning by a mile. At least over me.

"Yeah? Think he'd even look twice at you?" Pine supplied. "I bet after one look he'd be moving right along."

"I caught him looking at me once in his office during detention. If I can do it once in the schoolgirl skirt I could do it in this number. Besides, don't you think once is enough if he looks long and hard enough?"

"The goal is to make him look twice. Make him double take. Like 'holy crap, I had no idea you're a woman under there.' That's how I'm going to make him look at me." Rosé countered. She was looking at a pale blue halter that progressively became a deeper blue as your eyes moved down it.

"Now you're talkin'." Peach grinned.

"Do you think he'll even be at the dance?" Pine asked.

"He will be if I ask him!' Peach laughed. "What kind of man would say 'no' to me in this thing?" She waved the body-con dress a little with one hand.

"Do you want to try it on? There are stalls over there." Rosé pointed further down the street where wooden fitting stalls had been set up.

"Let me finish my elephant's foot," Peach waved the pastry. "The last thing I'd want to do is stain this bad boy."

I took another melty bite of my own doughnut at the reminder. It was still warm inside with the sweet, creamy custard filling.

"Do you think he'd really dance with us?" I asked.

"Why? You lookin' to cut in on my action? Sweetie…" Peach tutted. "That kiss and dance are mine."

"Yeah right," Rosé countered flatly. "I know him the best. He's going to dance with me."

"But will you get that kiss?"

"I guess we'll find out."

"But in all seriousness it's just a dance. Why shouldn't he dance with some of the students? It's not illegal. We're all above the age of consent," Pine chimed in. "I mean, he could have some professional standards but other than that he's free game."

"What if, like… he doesn't want to," I wondered. "What if he can't dance and he's nervous and shy about it?"

"You wanna bet he can't dance? The man can do seemingly everything. He's too confident to not be a good dancer."

"The goal," Rosé emphasized. "Is to be so hot that he wants to dance anyway. Even if he doesn't know how. That's what you're shooting for. Because as soon as you get him thinking 'huh, you're a woman after all,' then you own him. You feel me? Because it's only a short trip from there to treating me as a woman. Dancing with me and touching me like a woman. Looking at me like a woman."

"I-I-I guess…" I trailed halfheartedly. I mean… sure. It sounded easy. Right? I mean, get him looking at me, get him thinking about me, get his hands on me. It had all the ingredients of… of something special. And fun. And a little exciting.

I'd felt and tasted his aura. It was strong like caramelizing sugar and a lightning bolt. You could feel it when you were close to him or when he entered his Breaker state. If I was close enough maybe I could give him a shot of my own smaller aura. Maybe he'd decide he liked the taste. I didn't have Peach's beauty but I could have something smaller and more subtle but altogether more true.

Imagine, after four years, coming back home to Wutai not just as a huntress but as a woman. With a real man wrapped around me.

And it could all start with one little dance where he gets that feel for me. His hands on my hips and sides… my face got really hot. It was a short trip from there. At least it seemed that way. I could be wrong. Maybe romance and… sex were totally different than what I was thinking they were. But Peach and Rosé and Pine would know more and they seemed to think it was a good plan. Why not me too? Because I knew that looks weren't all that mattered. You had to be able to make a personal connection with somebody or it would just be empty air. And I thought we got along well enough. He… he treated me nicely that day when I tried to rob him of his dust. I cringed a little at the memory. He'd for sure taught me a lesson. But a few more years and who knows where I'd be in terms of maturity or looks. I might still be behind Peach and Rosé but I could have a je nais se quois. I could relate to him better than them maybe. And so where would that leave me? Well… it would leave me ahead, wouldn't it?

I mean Rosé had had time for chemistry to develop but nothing had by her own admission. She put it on the table after months together, she talked about drinking with him and giving him the opportunity to touch her. And he turned it down. So maybe with a little something special I could make some magic happen where she just hadn't and Peach hadn't with her looks. It was a slow race to the finish and just because I was last now didn't mean I'd be last forever.

And it could all start with his hands on me at the dance.

I shuddered a little as I thought about how intense his aura would be at that range. It would be all you could breath. It would be suffocating in a really dizzying, pleasant way. Actually touching me? Interacting with my aura and feeling that buzz of electricity against my skin was the sort of thought that made a girl start pondering.

And of course he'd saved my life. How could I forget that? He was a honest to gods hero. He was like… you read stories about huntsmen like him. Do you know what I mean? You read books about the sort of man he was and maybe he deserved a little reward or treat after what sounded like a hard life. Maybe I could be that sort of treat or reward. And you know what? I bet Rosé was right. I bet he knew how to touch a girl.

I perused through the dresses and tried to calm myself down a little but I was having some pretty inappropriate thoughts. I took a bite of my pastry and suddenly it didn't taste so good. I mean, it was alright. But it wasn't… it wasn't something special. It was just a doughnut. And it wasn't the doughnut's fault it wasn't something special but it still wasn't something special all the same. I tossed the remainder in the garbage. My stomach was tight. I… I wanted to feel full…

I found a little apron dress that was a rich full green. I wasn't like Pine, Peach, or Rosé. I didn't have eyes that made one pop a little. But maybe I could still catch his attention with something loose fitting and more modest and more me. Do you feel me? I wanted to… well, I wasn't sure what I wanted in the public space we were in but what I really wanted was fairly inappropriate and was enough to make a girl blush out of decency and modesty. 'Yuma Strife' didn't sound stupid… At least not to my ears. And if I was a betting girl, then I think he'd be nice and gentle and treat a girl right.

He wouldn't devastate me or hurt me any more than I could handle or the situation called for. Though he probably could. And on occasion… on occasion it would be really easy to let him devastate me. Maybe I'd want to be devastated and torn apart and my secrets pried open. I bet… well, I'd been betting on a lot recently. But I'd bet he'd been with a woman before. Like Neapolitan, maybe. Despite what Rosé said I think they'd been together. So maybe he'd already had his fill of gorgeous and wanted something more modest? Maybe? Someone who could do things for him that others just couldn't. Emotionally speaking, that was.

He was probably of some experience with women. And that could be alright. I mean every girl wants a guy who knows what he's doing in the bedroom. So I wasn't special in that regard. But I had the feeling he was and did and could. I think he could do things to me. I also kinda wanted him to. Like Rosé was saying at the bar about him just bending her over and taking her. And Peach made fun of me for it but so what if I thought it was attractive that he'd saved my life.

Thinking about it… thinking about it… thinking about it was a little hard to breathe. And was it hot out or was it just me? I felt myself shift and realized that it was just me. I took the grin dress and spun into the changing stall.

He'd held me in his arms and I'd felt his aura like a current through my body once before. I panted a little and started stripping my shirt off. I pulled it over my head and arrived at my pants. I imagined that current running through my body and I shivered and let out little whine that I wasn't proud of. My hands came to my pants and I pulled them down.

I was… I was leaking through the bottom of my panties. Enough that I felt inflamed and wet when I rubbed my thighs together. I knew I was in public but I reached my hand down into my black panties. I told myself I'd just rub myself quick. Once and be over with it but as soon as I touched myself my hips rolled into my hand and I parted my folds with a hiccuping squeak. Instead of my hands… Instead of my fingers… I imagined a much larger set and groaned lowly. Imagine how good his aura would feel if he was inside of you? I bet Rosé had thought about that. I stroked my clit hard and imagined it was a man's fingers doing it. I put my thumb in my mouth and sucked hard to keep myself quiet. I rolled my tongue around the hard length and whined into it as his hand strummed my clit gently.

He rubbed a firm circle around my nub and I rocked my hips in time with the smooth circle. He knew… he knew just how I liked it. He pinched the rose bud and I squeaked and jumped where I stood. I took the length deeper into my mouth and sucked on it harder. I felt his fingers dive down towards my entrance and I gasped around the hard length in my mouth. I felt him penetrate me nice and slowly and reach deep all the way inside. I felt him rub against the interior wall in an action that only made me drip with want and a bit of drool run over my lips and around the pressure in my mouth. I sighed and sucked a little hard in encouragement. He could be a little rougher. He could go a little faster. He could go a little deeper with me.

His fingers lifted and rubbed through my folds up and down and just teased at my entrance just the way I liked it. He returned to my northern apex and found the nub there. He stroked me firmly and I thrust my pelvis down onto his fingers even harder than before. I thrust my hips firmly against where his fingers coaxed at my petals. I felt myself drip a little from my entrance. His fingers stroked down away from my clit and back to my interior. He rubbed the velvety walls there nice and firmly. He was… he was getting more rough with me.

I whined and let him know I was ready for more by running my tongue under the length around the head. I groaned around it and gasped when he flicked across the entirety of my core. My inner lips were so smooth and ready for him. He was probably nice and long and hard. I bet he would stretch me out nice and smoothly. I bet it would hurt just right.

He pressed against my walls and roughly massaged at those inside places that made me twist in place. He was so firm and just where I needed him to be. Gods I needed him so bad. I bobbed my head on the protrusion in my mouth. It was so hard.

His aura thrummed around me and totally enraptured me. I felt his weight press down on me. He was so much taller than I was. I felt so small and I felt so… so safe with him all around me. I drank in his rich aura. It was like I'd stuck a fork in ann outlet. The current running through me was incredible. The ozone was so good going down and it smelled so powerful.

The rich burnt sugar tasted delicious in my nose and in my mouth. If only he would touch me more. If only he would touch me even harder and with more firm strokes. That would be just what I wanted. I felt him pulse in my mouth.

I wanted to make him finish in my mouth. I bet he tasted so good. If he would just finish completely I thought I might… I might…

He kneaded my flesh and flipped through my interior and exterior lips. The entirety of me was embraced by those firm digits. Oh…

I pressed my pelvis back and forth over those fingers down below. I rubbed them as hard as I possibly could and felt like my knees were about to give out. My lower back flexed and my left leg shook a little. My body softly trembled in anticipation. I felt my body spread and the flesh dip back in and out with a soft wet noise.

I felt his fingers dip into my interior and firmly stroke those walls. I felt it press hard against my walls and spread me wide apart. I bet he would divide me and cause me to hurt just, just hard enough. I felt his hands move back to my rose bud and firmly rub me there. I was about to… I was about to… I felt the muscles inside me clench frantically around his fingers. I ground my mound so hard into his fingers that I would have screamed if not for the presence in my mouth.

I came hard with my hips thrusting against open air. I groaned low in my throat and I arrived back in myself at the little stall in the festival. It was… it was so dirty. And…

I wiped my hands off on the inside of my pants. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down.

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-WG