#reddragonprincess

"Happy birthday, my sweet little sis!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around her tiny body, careful not to tight the grip too much, since she knew she could be a bit rude at times.

"The moment I saw this, I thought of you…" she trailed off with her words as she let go of their embrance, slowly making her arms drop. She then crouched a little to pick up the package placed nerby her feet. "This is for you" and she offered the package to her sister.

Inside, Maria wuld find a very cute cooking apron, all finely decorted and chosen by Minerva for the vivacious pastel colours; the perfect gift for a future expert cook like her.

Among the best parts of her birthday (because she cannot pick just one!) is hearing that knock at her door and knowing exactly who it is. Macedon's youngest imagines throwing open her door with reckless abandon even as she carefully pushes it open instead. Between door and frame, a rosy eye and one corner of an upturned mouth peek out.

"Sister!" As if she had ever doubted. Still, there's joy to be had in the simple act of finding her there. All the birthdays where she could not open her door, all the birthdays where she knew no one waited for her -- she forgets them a bit more each time she plays this little game.

Sunlight falls over and through the threshold; arms reaching toward the sky, Maria wraps them around her beloved big sister, the side of her head squashed adoringly against her cheek. For just a little longer, the gift doesn't matter, until Minerva pulls away to pass it over.

"Hee hee... me?" Well, how can her curiosity not be piqued after that? Giggling to herself, she pries the lid from the box, eyes growing wide and round at the sight of the gift within. Immediately, she presses her fingertips against the fabric, brushing it over lace and frill.

"Wow... It's so cute!" Pulling the apron free, she lays it over her dress and pins one of the shoulder straps beneath her chin, stretching out the tie from side to side. "Thank you, Minerva -- I love it so much! Hee hee... and the first thing I make in it, I'll make for you!"

FRESH STALKS OF EUCALYPTUS IN ARM ,　𐂂　she's dropping them off in one of the buckets where only a few last strips remain when she spots an empty gap at one of the tables ; easy strides slide in to fill it easily——"hey hey ~ !"——and a cheerful greeting brings the next customer in. mom used to tell her she'd run a great shop in a big city near the capital somewhere when she still had the energy to dream, and she thinks of that out of the blue now as she listens to the woman's question, weight resting on an arm braced on the table top.

maybe if things had been different, she would be doing something like that: ' ananke's flower shop ' didn't have a bad ring to it, but it'd never have brought in enough money.

"honestly? i'm actually best at wreaths. but that's not what we're doing today. we can do bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, crowns ; something simple, something complex." she gestures as she talks, indicating the different buckets of flowers and filler greenery they have available, encouraging the stranger to start with anything that catches her eye. "just make sure you leave enough for everyone else. it's gotten pretty popular, but once the flowers run out, they're out."

"Your appareance is stunning, you made the right choice indeed" she complimented her, then exchanging a sincere glance, continuing, "How did you do in this first round?"

A second voice outside of her teammates calls to her. Though Yuzu is met with another flash of red hair, this bright hue is much more familiar to her. One that makes the warrior smile almost instantly.

“Lady Minerva!!” the student exclaims with a prideful bow toward her instructor and friend. But although she could easily make out the general’s voice and hair, Yuzu is still thrown into a bit of a shock upon seeing Minerva in…well, it certainly didn’t look to be battle armor. At the very least, it does look to be a mage’s garb. Based on all else she’s seen so far, perhaps Minerva is being challenged in the weapons department as well.

But on the subject of wear, Yuzu is quick to bounce a fist on her green-and-brown armor no different to bouncing off the compliment. “Aye, the choice wasn’t entirely my own…but I’d say looks turned out well for the both of us. As for my round…mhh…”

Hesitation is illustrated further by the closing of her eyes. It’s true she attempted to remain positive, constructive at worst, with the outcome of the round to her allies. But could she truly bend the truth to her instructor?

“...We were incapable of lasting until the assault’s end,” she confesses. “Fie, this sword was capable of felling a fair few of my foes, yet its true nature still eludes me. Much more unusual than say…a katana.”

Yuzu giggles at the small jab of a memory between their training. It’s enough to return a light smile to her face. “However, I’ve decided to double up on my efforts…hopefully enough to fly past my own expectations!”

She made a firm knock on the door and before the door opened, her fingers tighten a little on the package: it was finely decorated with a verdant paper, a small silver bow and actually nothing else, as Minerva wasn't really good in preparing gifts or anything like this. Inside the box, a saddle, especially used to flying mount and easily functional for those who recently started. Nothing too fancy, but definitely very practical and comfrotable.

As she met his gaze, the flying instructor handed the package, a brief smile as he greeted him.

"Happy birthday, Ashe"

An unexpected visit indeed!

"H-Huh? Oh, Professor Minerva! Thank you, I didn't realize you knew my birthday, but... I guess it's on my student record, h-hah."

Well he sure felt like a right fool. He got a tad startled at first, but of course, he had no reason to be intimidated by Minerva! She was rather awesome, yes, but after studying directly under her, it'd gotten less overwhelming.

It still distracted him from taking heed of the gift box, taken aback when he finally glanced down at it. It was... quite big! It had some weight to it too. Huh!

"Is this for me? Really? Well, let's..."

Ashe took it off her hands and tried to open it right there. After just a little bit..

"Wow, is this a saddle? Wait, this one's not for horses- it's for a wyvern, is it? I guess I shouldn't be too surprised... But- right, thank you so very much! It feels quite nice too..."

He touched it, feeling the leather, but of course, he wouldn't know just how comfortable it truly was until he sat on it himself.

●○○○○ | ATTRACTION ○○○○○ | AFFECTION ●●○○○ | INTEREST ○○○○○ | LOYALTY ○○○○○ | TRUST

(During the war back home, I had to make it a habit not to look at people's faces when I fought 'em. And I felt awful for it. The Battle of the Eagle and Lion was nice, because I could look people in the eye, knowing they'd be okay no matter what. And that I could meet 'em again, shake their hand.

I never even got her name. But damn, she sure knows how to swing a hammer. I can still hear my head rattle from it sometimes.)

"Glad to have you in my team, Miss" she waited for her to introduce herself, "I'm Minerva, nice to meet you!" and she curled her smile in a radiant grin, actually hopeful to see her new fellow partener in action. "I can wait to have some practice lessons with you" and she nodded, hoping it would be a great beginning for a productive collaboration.

One of the small jobs she tasked herself with was to organize bridles and saddles. She could understand students tossing aside the equipment after a lesson finishes, but as of right now, they are a tangled and unorganized mess. Saints forbid if there is an emergency that calls for mounting quickly. 

In the midst of this task, she’s greeted by a voice that startles her at first, but she turns quickly to see a lady who carries herself with confidence and grace. She blinks in awe at the woman, floored at first sight, and she is reminded a bit of her own sister, certain and kind.

Drinking and sitting wasn’t exactly the plan she was expecting to follow and as soon as she caught glimpse of a familiar headbands lover, she immediately placed the glass on the table and she lift from the chair with a seductive gaze on her face, walking with an incredible security despite the drinks she just had.

“You” she lured her with a low voice, though trying her best to captivate the spirit of her partner, “Give me your hand” and she impressively used much softness in her touch while she grabbed her right wrist, reducing the space between the two of them as she proceeded in guiding her to dance.

“You look nice in your burgundy dress, by the way”

"I almost didn't recognize you without your headband." No. No, that's so stupid to say but it's hard to think when Minerva is looking at her like that and reaching for her wrist.

"I mean you look bretty." Shit shit shit. "I mean preautiful." Fuuuuuuuuuck.

It had been so easy to talk to her when they were sitting together by the fire talking about wyverns and home. Minerva is still the same person that she's always been. Nothing has changed except the gorgeous dress she's wearing.

And the way she's holding Altena close as they dance.

Altena wonders if she can feel the heat radiating from her face. She hopes not.