Geord’s description of the town made Misha’s face light up. She had turned down all the invitations she’d received the day before because she’d been stressed out about the ball, so today her schedule was completely free. She was even starting to regret turning down so many of them now that she had been able to sleep and recover from the events of last night. She had no reason to turn Geord down now.
“I want to go! I’d love to see the festival!”
Her enthusiastic response got a similarly bright smile out of Geord. “Got it. I’ll make sure to teach you how to properly enjoy a festival.”
After enjoying a good breakfast, Misha headed to the gate where she had agreed to meet Geord to find him already waiting for her. Having been on his way back from work earlier he had been in his guard’s uniform, but now he was wearing his usual vest over a white shirt and black pants.
“Sorry for making you wait!” Misha said as she dashed over to him. Geord had said he was going to get some exercise in before they met up, so Misha had assumed she’d be here first.
Geord pushed himself upright off the pillar he had been leaning against. “No worries. I just got here too.” He smiled as his leisurely stride matched Misha’s pace perfectly. The fact he was considerate even over something so small brought a smile to Misha’s face.
“Walking together like this makes it feel like we’re traveling again.”
“Doesn’t it? But uh...please don’t get into any trouble this time, okay?” Geord muttered, flashing a mischievous smile.
Memories of their journey together flashed through Misha’s mind. “None of it was trouble! They were all wonderful experiences!” she replied proudly, pointedly not matching Geord’s gaze.
In turn, he could only chuckle. “I guess that’s what we’ll call it, then.” He shrugged.
Misha paid his teasing no mind, continuing at the same pace.
The walk from the castle to the lakefront where the festival was being celebrated took them about thirty minutes at that speed. But of course, that kind of distance was next to nothing for Misha, who had grown up in a forest, and she very much enjoyed the stroll through the city, decorated as it was for the festivities.
Ren looked up at the two humans as they walked, confused as to why they were in such good spirits. Normally he was left behind on outings like this, but since it would only be Misha and Geord—and they were just going out for fun—Misha had decided to bring him along. That said, with the crowds they were expecting to run into, they couldn’t let Ren just run free like he usually did. Not everyone was as fond of animals as Misha was, and with Ren’s small size, it was all too easy to imagine him getting lost or trampled among the crowds.
Thus, to ensure everyone knew he was harmless and to prevent him from getting lost, he was on a leash made of rope. Considering how rarely he strayed from Misha’s side in the first place, it wasn’t that much of a bother for the little wolf. He was just excited that he was allowed to accompany them, as indicated by the rapid swishing of his tail while he trotted along beside her.
And so the strange group of man, girl, and beast made their way to the festival grounds, arriving just as the window for breakfast was ending. With business at the various stalls starting to slow down, a number of beautifully decorated festival carts began parading around the area.
The floats were painted in a brilliant blue and embellished with a full rainbow of flowers and ribbons. Each decoration was its own work of art, making just watching the procession an exciting experience.
“This is amazing! Is that decorated with fruit? And that one with dolls! It’s so cute!” Pulling on Geord’s sleeve as she excitedly pointed at each of the floats moving by, Misha seemed very much like a girl her age. Geord, in turn, nodded along with a smile, casually shielding Misha from the movements of the crowd and guiding her along so as not to disrupt its flow.
After some time, once they had come to a place that was a bit less congested with onlookers, Geord handed Misha a cup of fruit-infused water he had purchased behind her back.
“Thank you!” She happily accepted the gift, having worked up quite a thirst with all her excited exclamations so far.
Geord grinned. “My pleasure. Too bad it’s not fizzy this time. I guess you can relax.”
Misha scowled as Geord poked fun at the memory of her first experience of a carbonated beverage, when they had run across each other by chance while walking through the old city and he had offered her a taste of his drink.
“Don’t tease me! I can drink that stuff no problem now!”
“Yeah, yeah. You probably would have been fine if I had given you kids’ stuff from the beginning. Sorry,” he said with a laugh, no shred of an apology in his expression. Instead, he pointed at a passing float. “These floats only come out on the second day of the festival. There are ten of them, and they only come out once in the morning and once at night. We’re lucky we made it in time to see them.”
“Oh, really? I like the different costumes everyone’s wearing too.” The procession of floats quickly had Misha’s undivided attention.
Geord watched over her captivation with a smile. The straightforward way she expressed her curiosity and interest on her face was enough to make the trip worth it for him. His attempts to draw those expressions out of her were the reason their trip back to Redford had taken so long, and why Tris had been so angry with him. He didn’t regret his actions in the least.
Today’s outing was one he hadn’t asked permission for, and so Misha wasn’t attended by any other escort. Geord had decided that since it was a familiar city, nothing untoward would happen. He had left a message back in the castle, though, which he imagined was just about reaching Tris and sending him through the roof right about now.
Come on, don’t you think you’re getting distracted too easily? You’re way too easily sidetracked, Misha.
Misha sipped at her drink, having already completely forgotten Geord’s teasing. He had to hold back a laugh as he enjoyed his own ale.
“They look great at night too, when all those lanterns on them are lit up, but unfortunately I don’t think we’ll be here that late,” Geord said, patting Misha on the head.
She turned back to him with a bright smile. “They’re already beautiful. Thanks for taking me to see them.”
After watching the last of the floats pass by, they walked around visiting a number of the festival stalls. Unlike during other times of the year, the stalls cramming the street now offered plenty of games for passersby, like target practice and ring toss. Occasionally one would catch their interest and they’d stop to win a prize. In particular, Misha had to laugh when Geord was unable to hit the targets with the toy bow they provided him, and he stubbornly insisted on trying over and over. For the first time, she learned how fun it could be to banter over a friend’s failure.