Once the lantern was lit, it would throw off a beautiful multicolored light, but Misha could tell from Geord’s face that this wasn’t the result he had been hoping for.
“You said you’re good with a knife, right?” Misha asked, gently pulling the paper off the lantern so it wouldn’t rip and drawing simple lines to create flowers on it. “Try cutting along these lines. If possible, leave the pieces you cut out intact too.”
“Got it.” Rather than the small knives prepared for them by the stall, Geord pulled out his more familiar belt knife and got to work. Though he had no aesthetic sense to speak of, his dexterity with his fingers was incredible.
After cutting out the flower shapes, Misha covered the holes with more sheets of thin white paper, then reattached the flower cutouts in other places.
“Whoa! That looks incredible now!” Geord said, imagining how light from within the lantern would pour out of the new flower-shaped holes. All of the flowers Misha added were white or pale, giving the whole lantern a remarkably refined look.
“All thanks to the coloring you did,” Misha said with a smile, showing her own lantern, which displayed the bright flowers that Geord had cut out, making their two lanterns look like a perfect match. They both were decorated with strips of paper cleverly crafted to look like leaves and vines.
“Huh. Now they make a pair. Sounds like a good idea for lovers or close friends. I should try suggesting that later,” the owner of the stall murmured to herself, trying her hand at making the flower decorations in the way Misha had just taught her. She also sold some premade decorations for those who didn’t have the time or skill to make anything for themselves. The more elaborate decorations were more expensive, making the creations inspired by Misha one of the higher priced items in her shop.
“A lot of people make them with the idea of seeing how they light up at night, but three-dimensional work like this makes them fun to look at during the day too. Thanks for the lesson,” the owner said with a smile, thinking about the profits she could still make with half a day still ahead of her. There were plenty of similar stalls around the city, so anything that set hers apart from her competitors was a welcome addition.
“No, thank you! This was a lot of fun!”
As thanks, the owner let Misha keep her lantern for free. Misha was just as happy, though, so she continued by folding paper into a small bird and leaving it on the display piece the owner had set out. While the owner stared stunned at the decoration, in disbelief she could make something that complex out of folding a single sheet of paper, Misha and Geord left the stall behind. They might have had a lot of time on their hands, but they didn’t want to risk being asked to stay longer for Misha to give additional lessons.
“Let’s drop them off at the altar, then.”
“Yeah.”
Lanterns in hand, they headed for the shore of the lake. Since most of the lantern-making stalls were situated quite close to the beach, it didn’t take long for them to arrive. As they walked, the number of people carrying lanterns like them started to grow.
“Is that where we’re supposed to take them?” Misha asked, pointing at a line of people beside the plain wooden altar.
“Looks like it. Apparently, people used to just throw the lanterns all over, which created some problems when they went to start the fire. I guess Tris did mention something about them being more organized this year. I think they borrowed some knights to get it done—probably,” Geord muttered to himself.
Misha sighed. “I know it’s a holiday, but could you take your job a bit more seriously? You’re going to make Tris mad again.” She knew Geord didn’t like it, but being so close to Ryan meant Geord actually had a high rank within the knighthood. While he was reliable enough when it came to taking command of his subordinates, Misha had heard plenty of Tris’s complaints about how Geord sent delegates in his place to all the important meetings and ran off.
“Don’t worry, I’m doing my job,” Geord said with a shrug as they joined the line.
The line seemed rather long, but thanks to the reception being well staffed, they moved through it fairly quickly.
“Next, please.” In short order, they were called to the front, where they were greeted by an unexpectedly familiar face.
“Mr. Mort!”
The young man taking their lanterns was none other than the one who had first guided Misha through the library. He was actually Tris’s younger brother, but his standing in society getting out would be more trouble than it was worth, so he had dyed his hair gray and started work in secret. He always seemed busy, but whenever they met at the library, he would take the time to recommend some books to her. He was always quite helpful.
“Oh, I see you made it to the festival.” Mort was equally surprised to see her, but his shock soon gave way to a smile. “Please write down how many lanterns you’re offering here,” he said, handing Misha a pen while he took the lanterns from her and Geord.
“So they pulled you guys from the library too, huh?” Geord commented.
“The library is closed for the second day of the festival, so half of the staff was sent to help here.” Mort looked around a little bit, frowning as he failed to find any other escorts for the pair. “You didn’t bring Misha out here without permission, did you?”
“Don’t worry, everyone’s just undercover,” Geord said quietly, before continuing much louder in a joking tone. “Would you hurry up? We don’t have all day.”
“Come on, please tell me you got permission to bring her here. My brother is going to be furious with you,” Mort sighed. Taking the lanterns, he looked at them with a bit of confusion.
“These decorations are a bit too complex for something ready-made. And they look way too good for something you made. Did Misha make these?” Knowing full well that Geord lacked artistic skill, Mort took a small jab at him while Misha finished signing for the lanterns.
“We made them together,” Misha replied. “Geord painted and cut them for me, so he did plenty of the work himself.”
“Yeah, that’s right. They’re great, aren’t they?” Geord puffed out his chest proudly.
“Yes, yes. Misha must be quite skilled to be able to account for all your failings.” Geord glared at that, but Mort ignored him, handing the lanterns back to Misha and urging her forward. “Go ahead and place your lanterns on the altar, doing as that priest over there tells you. Have a good day.” Mort then called the next person in line, giving Geord no chance to respond.
The knight could only shrug, following after Misha. It was true Misha had saved his lantern from the miserable fate he had prepared for it, and it wasn’t a conversation worth stalling the line for anyway.
“You can place the lanterns anywhere in this section here,” an old priest instructed with a gentle smile. Misha took a look around.
The area had been divided up into clearly delineated sections, and the one Misha had been offered was filled with lanterns covered in flower decorations.
“How about right here?”
After the two of them gently placed their offering on the outer edge of the collection, Misha clapped her hands in prayer in front of the statue of the harvest goddess at the center of the whole display. It was a beautiful sculpture, a look of peaceful grace on her face as she sat surrounded by countless lanterns.
Please give us a happy autumn. And also...
As Misha prayed, a gentle breeze blew in from the lake like a soft caress on her face.