Well excuuuuuuse me, princess

Without warning, he gently pressed their lips together, making sure she was alright with it before parting to whisper, “I… enjoy this. I enjoy being with you.”

She was cut off from her question by his lips pressed against hers, even if for only a bit it made her cheeks heat up even more than they were already. When he moved away to speak again, a hand moved to her lips to touch at them, not sure what to make of any of this.

[He sends it before erasing the last line.]

The last line takes her aback, not quite sure how to feel about it.

To: Hongou From: Lotus

To: Hongou From: Lotus

"Hazuki… I was given someone very important to me as a reward."

He points to the cat in the room, who meows in greeting.

He was dragged along the steps, trying to maintain the feeling in his legs, but could barely walk. He felt frozen solid, his breath coming in short bursts as he was pulled. One hand, however, was still firmly around the gun.

He could still hear Ace’s voice.

I killed her… I would have rather she died with less suffering… A bullet in her brain, perhaps, would have been ideal…

I believe I caught her just below the shoulder blade…

My first thrust went right between her ribs… Her flesh was so soft…

That feeling was… I confess, I feel rather excited…

Someday, perhaps, I hope I can feel it again…

"But what do you-"

Before he could protest - that he shouldn’t need a ribbon as he had received an invitation himself - she grabbed his collar and yanked him down, causing him to look her straight in the (blank) face, and laced the ribbon through his hair of all places.

"Why-"

"I preferred it in your hair, but fine. I thought you wouldn't want it on your wrist considering... Well. You know..."

She trailed off and decided to focus on the surroundings, watching all the couples--or just dates--enjoying themselves. It was nice, watching everyone have fun. She wasn't sure if they would end up having as much fun, but she could try at least.

Curiously, he asked, “What is that for?” It wasn’t a mark for… dates, was it? Did Hazuki consider them ‘dates’? Did he? So many questions, and not any way to find the answers.

"It's to let you go in and out of the ball, you idiot. And you're going to wear it. Since you didn't choose where to tie it, I will."

And with that, she tugged at his collar to bring him down to her eye level, threading the ribbon through his thick hair and tying a tight bow. There. Right on top to the left side. It may look a little silly, but he had the option of choosing a wrist to tie it on but didn't.

Smiling, she patted his cheek and snaked her arm around his.

He hoped that was enough. If she needed it, he was still there.

Walking silently behind, he followed her to the dance and promptly sped up only to open the door for her. It was only polite, after all, and at the risk of this seeming like the action of some preteen attending his first middle school dance.

Clicking over to the place for the ribbons, she took hers and held it in her hands, debating where to tie it. She was already wearing bracelets on both wrists, and her hair was adorned with enough already. She took to tying it around her neck, the bow of it resting towards her right side. Turning to Hongou, she held out her arm.

It would probably always be there.

He splurged (not really splurged, as he had a well-paying job now and was used to spending a lot of money on clothes) on a high-quality brown leather-trim trenchcoat and selected a dress shirt, and tie to go underneath it.

Making sure his hair was fluffed (and held its usual degree of spikiness with some gel), the older man exited the bathroom and looked over at her with a small smile.

"You look beautiful," he commented politely.

"...Thanks. Let's get going already."

She turned and threw the door open, intentionally keeping from commenting on how Hongou looked. After everything, she felt she'd opened up maybe a tad too much to Hongou. They'd agreed what happened to mean nothing, yet both relied on the other in heart wrenching--one quite literally--situations, and she wasn't too comfortable with that fact.

After all, he did hold her to gun point once.

// Good evening, Hive City. It’s come to the attention of some that this holiday season has started.. rather grim. There hasn’t truly been any sort of merriment or revelry to be had by all. So let’s change that, shall we?

On Saturday December fourteenth, a large ball will be held in this city, courteous of Prince Edward. This is a very formal event, everyone is expected to wear their best. Invitations will be sent out and are required to gain entry. Upon arrival, guests will be given a blue ribbon to tie around their wrists as both a memento and a means to show you may come and go as you please.

This city has seemed to sap the joy out of it’s residents, spend an evening enjoying yourselves and simply being happy. We hope to see you all in attendance.//

—-

[[Alright, people, here’s the deal. This city’s been sad as hell because of the latest event and I think it’s time to have some fun, so here’s what’s gonna happen. Reblog this post once, just once, and your reblog will count for an RSVP of sorts. Once you’ve reblogged this post, MAKE SURE YOUR SUBMIT BOX IS OPEN. You’ll be sent an invitation that way.

Obviously, not everyone’s going to be here on Saturday, so the next week of replies will count towards the ball. Just tag your open with #Citta winter ball or #Citta mini event. It’s not an official event, it’s just something fun to do for the holidays to get rid of the pain and sadness of breaking our muses for a while.