Under The Moon (Finished)

[Elias]

"Ah... Okay..." He muttered, paying attention but not really. He looked through the swords, searching for the right one with the right hilt/pommel/sheath coloration and whatnot. "I'm good for that." He said over his shoulder as he put those crimson eyes to the test, though he's not particularly perceptive he could at least pretend he was for a minute. He rummaged through things with a mission, listening to her list off the things they were supposed to do and that there was some sort of super secret magic tome collection somewhere that he could totally check out if he felt the need. Oh and he felt the need, he felt it sohard, but... he didn't go ahead and take her up on the offer. Mostly because he said he'd help her, and Elias was anything but a... uh... not-helper? He was drawing a blank. Point was he was gonna help her, and do it with a smile on his face. "Oh hey, is this it?" He pulled a sheathed blade out of the pile, well it looks like the whole 'not paying attention' thing works out for the best sometimes.

He held the blade over his shoulder using the strap, so he wouldn't drop it or anything silly like that, as he walked back to Terra. "Hundreds of tasks? Bring them on!" He said with a wide grin. It was nice to have something to take his mind off of things, and Elias loved meaningless busy work. That sounded sarcastic, but it was totally true in a sort of depressing way. It was nostalgic really, it was how he spent the majority of his childhood. He jabbed a thumb into his chest with that cocky grin that felt as though it had been lost. "The crimson mage will complete each and every one with the utmost skill and precision." He held the blade out and handed it to her, and she did whatever she did with it. He wasn't paying that much attention as he looked around the room one last time. Maybe if he was lucky he could check this place out again some time later.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's hop to it."


====Timeskip to the night====


To be honest, Elias probably could use a nice bath. They had been traveling for a while, and while he wasn't a pig or anything there wasn't a whole lot of room for cleanliness on the road. Wyatt and Mana were probably in similar situations, Wyatt would need special care bathing though because of his legs. It made the mage cringe slightly, as he felt guilty somehow. Which made no sense since if it wasn't for him he'd be a lot more on the dead side of things, but still he felt as though he could have done better. Wyatt was probably always going to have those scars and difficulty walking. He had the best staff in all of Elibe, but he just simply lacked the skill to use it at it's full ability. He's never been able to replicate the miracle he performed on Wyatt, and while it's healing powers were incredible even in his untrained hands they were a far cry from the staff of legends that could heal legions of men staring in the face of death itself in a single flash. An entire army restored to perfection in a single spell, healing dozens, hundreds of men at once.

He looked over to Wyatt with what only good be described as a sheepish grin. He wasn't really expecting to run into him again, well like this at least. Terra sort of dropped him off in this tent after they finished running around the campgrounds all afternoon doing stuff, a lot of it meaningless busywork but some of it was quite interesting. He learned quite a bit about Sacaen culture, of course that was hardly the point on display here. By the time he was done, it was late and he found his self in this tent with Wyatt who he more or less ditched earlier. He wondered if he was upset about that, but doubted it. After all, it meant he got to spend time alone with Mana and stuff.

"So, Wyatt, how was your day?" He said in a sort of sing-songy way, feeling awkward.

[Mana]

Mana finally found the tent where Wyatt and Elias stayed, it wasn't very far from her tent. The girl wasn't sure she wanted to meet them in this embarassing dress. It was a little revealing and cute, not something she usually would wear. Terra had forced Mana to wear something more feminine and put some make up for tonight party. She wasn't transformed into a super beautiful princess like a cinderella story but the girl had gone through some pretty drastic change. Mana let her hair down, without her favorite ponytail style, for this special occassion.

Mana was about to barge into the tent when she remembered that the guys were probably still changing. Of course she wasn't the type who got embarrased easily by the sight of a naked man's body but Wyatt and Elias needed some privacy now. She tried to listen to their conversation, the only words she heard was from Elias, though, who was asking Wyatt about "his day". It seemed they had just arrived here. Well, that wasn't surprising, at all. Terra stole her from Wyatt and Kai early to prepare for the night, maybe they continued talking, playing, drinking, etc after that. Elias? The mage had been enslaved by Terra to do most of her work so maybe he had just returned from doing some tasks.

"Heellooo....Are you still changing? It's Mana! I am going in, okay?" Mana called to them as she walked closer to the entrance.

[Elias]

Elias turned around at the woman so rudely barging into- Oh hey that's Mana. "Hi Mana!" Elias waved at the now changed woman. She was wearing a completely different outfit then he had become used to seeing her wear, also her hair was down and not up which was funny because he had assumed that Mana's hair was magically sealed in that same style since it was exactly the same as it was when he met her years ago. She looked nice though, in a girly kind of way. It wasn't what he was used to, but change was always good in Elias' book. "You look older." He put a hand on his hip with a wry grin.

He had changed into a pair of Sacaen clothing earlier in the day, Terra forced it on him, telling him that the people would 'trust' him more if he didn't stand out so much. Which was annoying, but whatever he didn't complain. It took a while to find something that was the right shade of red, since he didn't accept anything but the best, but he was comfortable with his choice. The outfit was really roomy and light, it felt so weird compared to his robes and cloaks and while he didn't look as cool he had to admit he moved a bit easier now. Still Elias was a wonderful and attractive young man, so he was sure he looked just fine in anything. This being part of the phylum of 'anything' meant that he looked fine in it.

He looked back at Wyatt, then again at the swordswoman. "Wyatt's being quiet. So I'll ask you instead, how was your day?" He laughed.

[Mana]

Mana waved to Elias and Wyatt as she entered their tent, half-expecting she would run to them while they were still changing. Unfortunately it didn't happen. Why did she want it to happen anyway??? She wasn't a pervert. The Sacaen girl walked very slowly because she was still trying to get accustomed to the long skirt she wore.

Mana looked a little embarrassed, even blushing, when Elias made a comment about her look. "Really? Well, Terra said something like that too. I am not sure I change that much, though. I mean...it's just a change in my hairstyle and maybe some necklace and wristbands. Oh Elias, you wouldn't believe how Terra and her friends gathered around me and treated me like a doll! They forced me to try many dresses until they got one that satisfied them. They even tied my hand to stop me from resisting!" The girl laughed as she let out her frustration. It wasn't too bad to dress up like this sometimes, she just hoped they would have let her do it herself.

"It was a great day. We had fun in the festival. Wyatt won an arm-wrestling contest and after that we went to eat. I ate a lot but Wyatt had triple or maybe more of my portion. Boys sure eat a lot." Mana seemed to have fun when she told Elias her story. Not surprising, she had truly enjoyed the day with Wyatt and Kai, but maybe if it had been only her and Wyatt the experience would have been greater. Well, she couldn't blame, though. That guy was completely oblivious. "How about you, Eli? Terra told me you had a quite busy day. But really, you should have had fun in the festival, not working hard, you know....She also mentioned something about how she finally understands that Crimson Mage is truly amazing."

Somehow, Wyatt being quite was a little disappointing. One of the reasons she allowed those girl to treat her like a doll and put some nice girly clothes to her was the blacksmith. She wasn't sure why, but she wanted to impress him.

[Elias]

Elias crossed his arms and looked the dressed up Mana up and down. She sort of waddled around instead of the confident quick steps she usually took. "That looks difficult to walk in." Was the first thing he said about it. He hadn't recognized her at first, because Mana was usually Mrs. ninja quick fast girl, it was kind of funny to see her unused to walking around and stuff. Elias probably would be just fine walking around in a skirt, it's basically just a shorter robe. "But yeah." He held his fingers up, making a square by connecting his pointer fingers and thumbs, making a sort of border and picture frame in front of his face. Closing one eye and lining it up so it was just Mana in the shot. "You look like four years older."

He let out a small snort of laughter afterwards though. "The pursuit of fashion can be so cruel sometimes. If they just tied your hands, you got off lucky." He said, striking a little pose with a little laugh riding along with it. He then gave her a thumbs up. Quietly he whispered, so the nearby smith couldn't hear. "I'm sure Wyatt will love it." He added a wink.

"So you had fun did you? I had fun too!" He jabbed his thumb into his strangely dressed chest. It felt really weird to wear this. Not bad, just different. "Of course Wyatt would win. He's, like, buff mclarge huge. That's not really surprising. If you told me he had his butt smoke, however, I'd have to find this person and beat him up." She mentioned how boys eat a lot, Elias never really ate too much though. He ate good, not a lot. Quality over quantity after all, he needed to keep his svelte magelike frame after all.

Elias was feeling a bunch better now then he did before. He had the time to recharge by doing meaningless busy work! He always liked meaningless busy work. It reminded him of when he was a kid and that was like 90% of the stuff he did, outside of studying and reading and junk. It was nostalgic in that way. Most people would view his day as boring, mostly because it was, but he liked the boringness. He was so busy trying to be awesome and cool and incredible, it was good to unwind by doing boring things. "Working hard IS fun." Elias laughed. "Elias is anything but lazy." He put his fists on his hips, posing once more. "I performed every task with 138% efficiency and effort." He added once more with with a wide smile. Then he remembered something. "Ooh!" He blurted. "Ooh ooh, that's right. I remember something."

"You're going to be getting a nice little surprise later Mana. Don't tell anyone I told ya." That blade he found was fresh in his mind. She was gonna looooove it.

[Mana]

Mana just nodded and smiled when Elias told her about his day. His didn't seem too bad from what she had heard. And he didn't need to tell her about how efficient he had been, Terra had told her that much. She was glad that her friends were getting along well. For some reason, and probably good reason, Elias had come back to her usual self. That gloomy face he had wore this afternoon wasn't there anymore

But when he whispered to her about how Wyatt would love her new look, the girl just turned red at that instant. Her mind almost went blank because of the embarassment. She trembled, not sure how to responded to his tease. Even if she knew that deep in her heart it was true, the Sacaen swordswoman never admitted that she had a thing for Wyatt. "What??? When did I say I wanted to dress up, try to look pretty, and wear this dress for Wyatt?" she screamed to the Crimson Mage, making a poor attempt to deny his words. In fact, she just unconsciously admitted everything. Elias was being considerate and nice by not talking out loud about it but Mana had just blown all his effort by shouting her mind. Mana was out of breath after all that shouting, she looked panicked and unease.

Of course, she then came to realize her foolish confession. The girl couldn't look at Wyatt, she just stared at Elias with confused look. "You are so mean, Elias!" she shouted again. Mana turned around and started to walk toward the exit, almost crying. She couldn't run fast because of the long skirt, though, so she was walking very slow, like a penguin. She didn't really blame Elias but now the girl just couldn't think straight.


OoC : I guess this will give us reason to leave the tent without Wyatt. ^_^ Don't worry, Wyatt. We won't leave you! We hope you will come back soon.

[Wyatt]

Wyatt hadn't meant to ignore Mana and Elias. In truth, the idea of wearing something so loose-fitting had him slightly distracted. A smith always wore tightly secured clothing, lest it catch on the embers from the forge. Lycians in general tended to wear simple clothing, but not as flowing as traditional Sacaen garb went. It felt like the cloth was clinging to his shoulders, in danger of falling off if he leaned the wrong way. Of course, the Sacaen were no fools, the clothing was perfectly secured to him, it just flowed easily. He was going to feel self conscious wearing so little, he just knew it. He thought he would mind the sandals, but he found them oddly comfortable. He could get used to this, he supposed.

One thing was for sure. With the light garments adorning him, he didn't notice the weakness in his leg as much. It was easier to move like this, especially considering all of his gear had been left behind. He ran a hand through his hair, which they had given up trying to set. It was too wild and untamed, it would not be made to look any other way.

He was snapped out of his daydreams by Mana's shout. He missed most of it, but he caught his name. The sudden volume stunned him, and by the time he'd noticed, Mana was storming out of the tent looking very upset.

Wyatt just looked from Mana to Elias, confusion very apparent on his face. "What in the burning lands did you do?" he asked Elias. He wasn't accusatory, or even angry, more confused by the sudden outburst from Mana. He saw her slowly walking, obviously having a bit of trouble in her own formal attire. He delayed for a moment or two to let Elias respond, as he made his way towards the exit to follow Mana.

[Elias]

Mana lit up a bright red and EXPLODED like and overfull fire spell, just spewing her flame everywhere and while Elias should probably feel guilty or bad or upset, instead he just sort of smirked and snickered to his self. He didn't derive pleasure from pressing other people's buttons, but the way Mana just erupted on him for such an innocuous comment was kind of funny. Then there was the reason she got mad, which is a real contradiction that only proved how she felt. If she didn't care about Wyatt, why'd she act the way she did over the mere implication that Wyatt might find her attractive? She didn't even bother to reply to anything else he said, just that he was the devil and was so mean and then she stormed out.

They were talking quietly enough that Wyatt couldn't hear earlier, but the was entirely sure the whole encampment could have heard that, so he wasn't surprised when Wyatt strode up to him. Looking a bit out of place because of his outfit, but his limp was less pronounced. Well he wasn't wearing a billion pounds of steel it only made sense, but that wasn't the point. He seemed confused, maybe a bit upset. "What did I do? I said she looked nice in her dress. I'm a monster apparently." Elias shook his head with a sort of a sigh. "You should probably go after her, she doesn't want to hear from me. I bet anything I say will just rile her up more after all." He shrugged. "I'll go bathe or something. I could really use one after running around all day. I smell like horses." Elias made an excuse to bow out of whatever these two were gonna do. It was funny really, he just met up with them and now he was leaving again. Perhaps a whole day alone wasn't enough, or something. He did hope everything worked out, he would be there forever to try and nudge them together after all. Once Wyatt was healed enough, he was gonna go to Lycia to research a certain thing he had almost forgotten about all this time.

It was sad to leave the two, but in a way he felt like he didn't quite fit anyways. They were a duo, and he was a strange awkward third leg. Still he wasn't leaving today, so he didn't need to worry about that right now. "She couldn't have gotten far." He finished with an awkward but sincere smile.

[Mana]

Great...This dress wasn't suited for someone with quick feet like Mana. She kept stumbling everytime her leg stretched the layer to its limit, making short awkward steps. The girl didn't really know why she wanted to run away from the gentlemen. Maybe it was because she couldn't look at their eyes, especially Wyatt, after that daring outburst that almost sounded like a confession. Well, she hadn't spilled much but there was enough embarassing things within those words.

When she finally got out of the tent, Mana felt limp which came from the combined exhaustion and frustation. She looked behind and realized that her escape actually hadn't been far enough, they could easily reach them. She had to run again....after a short rest, of course. The girl then realized that her shout had invited some unwanted attention from some people, although it seemed none was caring enough to ask her what happened. It was better this way, she couldn't possibly explain the reason. Okay, now the real problem....why she did that? Sure, Elias had said some embarassing thing but why she lost her composure and yell at him? The reason was pretty obvious but sometimes it wasn't easy for oneself to understand it.

"Maybe I should go back....and apologize for Elias....But, uuuh...." Mana thought to herself as she scratched her cheek. It wouldn't be easy to face them after that. Also, Wyatt might have heard all she had said, or maybe just some part of it. Anyway, it would be awkward.

[Wyatt]

Wyatt eyed Elias suspiciously. He didn't think that the mage was lying, but that couldn't have been all there was to it. Apparently Mana had been upset at Elias complimenting her attire, maybe she didn't like getting 'dressed up'? Mana didn't seem like the type to be entertained by such 'girly' hobbies like fashion and such, so he supposed her reaction could make sense.

It still seemed weird to him, however.

Wyatt didn't move much faster than Mana, since he was still getting used to the awkward feeling of such loose clothing. Still, she was easily in sight when he got out of the tent, and he called out to her.

"Hey, Mana! Slow down, I can't move too quick anymore!" he said. Technically true, his mobility had been hit hard ever since his injury. He could walk ok, but running was out of the question. "Try to cut Elias a little break, he didn't mean any harm. It's just formal wear, no big deal, right?" Wyatt was still addressing her back, since she had yet to turn towards him.

No big deal. Talk to her, relax a bit, and enjoy the rest of the festival. They'd invited him here as if he was family, and he intended to enjoy it and treat them likewise. It had been far too long since he'd been to something simple and fun like this, and he was starting to remember how much he used to love it back in his youth.

[Mana]

Although she didn't expect that Wyatt would go after her, the girl did think he would have one or two things to say after hearing all of those. Okay, this wasn't an easy situation. How should explain for that outburst? Especially some part of it where she embarrassingly confessed. Mana seemed rigid and flustered as she turned toward him. Her eyes was completely avoiding his, though.

But maybe explanation wasn't really necessary. What he asked was not the explanation she thought she would have to give. Well, it was both nice and disappointing. It would have been embarrassing if he knew about what she actually blurted out back there but for certain reason that outcome wouldn't be satisfying for her. And his comment about it was just a formal wear hit her hard. She still wasn't aware that he only heard half of her outburst, the other more important half escaped his ears somehow. She thought that he, after listening to all those words she spouted, was saying that the dress was nothing but a formal wear. No complement or nice comment. She had knew dressing like this was a terrible idea. Of course she didn't expect he would throw flowers at her and then knelt with a wedding ring but THIS...this was disappointing. Mana understood Wyatt was just trying to be nice in this situation (which he misunderstood, unfortunately) but..... "Ahahaha....you are right. What was I thinking? It is just a formal wear indeed!" she laughed, her expression had a mix between glad and angry as the darkness of the night hid it nicely from the red-haired man's sight.

"What have I done? I shouldn't have yelled to him! Hahahaa...." she said, trying to put up fake smile while acting cheerful. The act didn't go well because Mana had never been good at lying, especially when she was lying to herself. Her eyes was avoiding his, refusing to meet those gentle eyes. "Elias! Come out! I am sorry for that! I wasn't in right mind back there! Let go! The three of us should have fun and enjoy this night!" she then called her red friend, trying to end this awkward situation.

[Wyatt]

Wyatt was fine. Nothing unusual here. Nothing was wrong.

And then Mana turned around.

He finally got a good look at her in the formal attire. Her long hair, the flowing garbs adorning her slender frame. She looked so different, vastly so from the usual care-free girl he'd traveled around the world with. His mouth was dry as words seemed to run away.

"Ah... guh... uh... you look... um... really nice," he managed out awkwardly, stumbling over his words. What was wrong with him? This was Mana! The girl who had beaten him around a grassy field when they trained, had his back in more than a handful of fights for their lives, and had helped him come back from the brink of death along with Elias. Why did a makeover change all of that?

He raised a hand, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. Mana wasn't the only one having trouble meeting gazes tonight. "Elias is still... uh... getting ready. Y-you wanna head there now? He'll catch up."

Because I want you all to myself.

What?

Wyatt shook his head for a moment, clearing the delirium from it. "I mean, we should go check it out. You invited me, so I don't want to seem ungrateful."

Wyatt shifted uncomfortably in the flowing red garb. He was still having trouble getting used to how exposed he felt in the loose fitting clothing. He recalled something, from the harvest fairs that he knew from his youth. Without thinking on it further, he extended his hand to her with a half bow.

"Shall we?" he asked. It was more a legitimate question, since he had no idea how she would respond to the invitation. He was, after all, just a laborer with a nifty toy. Not a proud and honorable warrior like everyone here.

[Mana]

She would be lying if she said she didn't feel happy by the compliment. The blood rushes to her face, painting her cheek with bright red color. Mana just couldn't think for appropriate reaction to his words. Should she thank him or just ignore him and change the topic? Her fidgety was shown by how she moved rigidly while unconsciously started biting her fingernails. "Eeer....I...T-thanks....I guess...." she spoke, stammering. Although she had never expected him to give explosive reaction for her dressing up like this, this simple compliment had made her heart flutter. "You l-look pretty nice too, by the way," she added.

Mana was startled by his sudden gentleman attitude. What was the bowing for? Well, it wasn't her first time in an festival and she had ever been invited by a guy before but for now she just didn't know what the right response was. It seemed the proper response was probably to take his extended hand if she accepted but for some reason it felt really embarassing. Mana then took a deep breath, extending then pulling her hand a few times, before finally putting her hand on his. "I-It can't be helped if...if Elias is still preparing," she said. Actually, she had seen that Elias had been ready for a go, but she wanted to just follow the flow. It wasn't like she ditched the eccentric mage anyway, she simply couldn't resist the temptation to spend the night together, just her and Wyatt.

Mana just stood here, holding his hand. She wasn't really sure what to next as waves of excitement filled her brain, even keeping her mind straight now was quite a challenge. "F-For a starter....h-how about finding some drink. If y-you want to, of course..."

[Wyatt]

Wyatt may not have been educated, but he wasn't stupid. He'd seen scenes like this with enough of the world to vow he would never be so clumsy and stupid when it came to him.

Of course, that was easier said than done. Mana was... someone special, that much was obvious. Honestly, Wyatt wouldn't have noticed the awkwardness of the situation if it wasn't in such stark contrast to how vibrant and active she usually was. They were trying to feel each other out, to gauge the other's response. That, in and of itself, answered the question.

"Hah! Ah, this is crazy. Look at us both, trying to be something we're not. Enough with all the formality and cautiousness. I mean, we've fought for our lives back to back, is it really so hard to just enjoy a party together?" he questioned, turning the graceful clasp of her hand into a more casual grab. "Come on! There's a lot to see here, I imagine, and I don't want to waste the life I've got worrying about what might be happening!"

In truth, he had no clue where anything was here. Well, that wasn't true. He knew where Kai and Terra had taken him before, but he wanted to see something else. "So? This is your festival, I'm just the guest. What is something I should see after we get something to quench the thirst? You don't intend to leave me lost in a strange festival, right?" he asked with a hearty laugh.

Wyatt wasn't one for social graces. It was so much easier to just relax and play things off naturally.

[Mana]

Mana had a startled expression when Wyatt tried to break the awkward atmosphere. She was even more surprised with the change of attitude he suddenly showed. He seemed to notice, too. Both of them weren't acting like themselves. Compared to how they usually talked and interacted, they looked rigid and flustered. Maybe Wyatt was right, they shouldn't think too much, sometimes acting naturally was the best choice. Still, it was easier to said than done. "I am not trying to be anything, you know..." she denied it. The swordswoman wasn't sure what to do, she had very little experience in this matter. Wyatt seemed more than capable to control his feeling, good for him, but Mana couldn't do the same easily.

How he was holding her hand puzzled and pleased Mana at the same time. The blacksmith gradually acted like how he usually did, surprising the smitten girl a little. "Look I am sorry if I acted like that...I don't know why but something's definitely wrong with me tonight," she said. "Must be what Elias said." Mana then took a deep breath, as if she was about to go for a fight. This calmed her a little although she still felt butterflies dancing inside her stomach. Didn't have anything else to say, or maybe because there was no need for words, Mana walked with Wyatt. They would enjoy the festival somehow. Probably she could sort out this strange feeling after some walking and liquor. The swordswoman still felt a little awkward but her steps gradually became more relaxed as they headed to the bonfire. "We are going to the bonfire in the center of our encampment. You can get free food and drink there...I am sure you will find our Sacae cuisine better than Lycia or Bern. And if you want, you could take try several games and challenges there. Nothing dangerous, just like the arm wrestling contest you did before." Mana had some of her vigor and cheerfulness back but it seemed it would take some time for her to completely get used to this. Sometimes she stole glance to their holding hands. Physical contact wasn't something new for her, in fact, she had even hugged Wyatt a few times. But for some reason it had been more difficult lately, especially since their little secret in Bern.

As they approached the center area, the music became louder and they encountered more people. Everyone seemed enjoying the festival, some were dancing, some were drinking, and some were playing games or challenges. A woman then approached them, carrying a big tray with a lot of clay cups of ale on it . Mana took two cup and thanked the woman. "For you...I guess we should have some before choosing what we will do next, no?" she whispered as she gave one cup to Wyatt. The girl actually had almost zero tolerance for alcohol but she drank it anyway, hoping the alcohol would help her getting loose. "So? What next? Want to compete with me in one of those games?" she challenged, smirking. "Or you want to skip those and go straight to the dancing part?" she asked.