The Festival of Lights (open)

Today was a special day. For the first time in years, they were having a festival. Reia looked around the town of Stohess in wonder. The streets were filled with food vendors, colorful banners hung over all the roads, and everyone was having a great time. They were all so carefree. It was as if, for one day, they didn't have to worry about the titans.

Reia glanced down at the dress Petra had picked out for her. It was a beautiful shade of purple, complimented further by the banners that adorned the city. Petra had said that it brought out her eyes.

Her squad was currently scattered around the town square. Reia could see Petra and Oluo over by one of the vendors. Oluo bought Petra a smaller version of the banners that were hanging above the streets. Reia shook her head. He would do whatever it took to win Petra's heart. However, this time it seemed like he actually did something right. Petra was beaming as she admired the gift. Reia glanced to the other side of the square and saw Eld and Gunther enjoying some giant soft pretzels with Eren. Technically, he wasn't supposed to be out in public like this, but what the higher-ups didn't know wouldn't hurt them. Besides, he wasn't likely to get hurt and turn titan here. They had given him a disguise though, just in case anyone recognized him and freaked out. She couldn't see Levi, but she knew he had to be here somewhere.

Reia herself was seated on the edge a fountain at the East edge of the square, taking it all in. She had never seen anything like this. The closest she had gotten were the regal parties that her parents used to throw. But that was before...

She banished the thought from her mind. She would not think about that, not today.

Suddenly, Reia heard beautiful music. A group at the opposite end of the square had pulled out instruments and was playing a light dance. People started clapping along, and then they began grabbing partners and dancing. Reia stood up to get a better view. It looked like fun. Reia found herself wishing that she could join them.

Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice beside her, "Would you like to dance?" Reia turned to see Levi holding out a hand to her. Reia could hardly believe this was happening. Levi wanted to dance? She decided not to question it and instead to just enjoy the moment. She took his hand, and they joined the masses that were whirling around the square.

Reia couldn't stop herself from smiling. And this wasn't even the best part of the festival. What Reia was most excited for would happen after sunset, when everyone would light a paper lantern and release it into the night sky...

Sebastian wasn't one for this kinda gig but he decided to go anyways, he was wearing a light black suit fashioned with a bow tie black pants and dark dress shoes, he did look good though in his opinion,however he felt kinda iffy, but he shrugged off the feeling and looked around he had been to a festival once but it was with the robbed men.

Sebastian sighed and swayed lightly to the music peacefully.

With the song coming to a close, Levi dipped her. Reia took a quick look around the square and saw Sebastian swaying lightly to the music before Levi pulled her to her feet again. They took a step back from each other. He bowed to her, and she curtsied to him. Reia smiled at the formality of it all. The etiquette, her dress, Levi's black suit and white cravat. It reminded her somewhat of her old life, except this was different, less empty, more magical.

The musicians began another song, and she and Levi came back together for another dance. Despite the height difference, they made a good pair. And, surprisingly, Levi was an excellent dancer. Reia hadn't pegged him for the dancing type.

Ernest watched the festival play out from the safety of a rooftop.  The Lance Corporal wore his usual military uniform, minus the jacket.  He also had the Anti-human 3DMG on.  Almost all of the high-up, important members of the survey corps were going to be present here, and for the AHSS, that was a rare opportunity.  
A few members of the squad were below, moving about the crowd.  Ernest had elected not to, so that he could observe from a bird's eye view.  Definitely not any social anxiety or anything.  
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, a welcome pause in the lights and noise happening below.  Nope, no anxiety here. For sure.

Nick went to the Festival. He had nothing better to do. Plus, he was low on money, so he could pick-pocket anyone. He was wearing a long, brown coat, a vest with the same color and a shirt underneath. He had brought a spare 3DMG, but this was a little more customized. Even tho both of the sword triggers were fine, the blade only measured 10 inches, that were being hold with a sheath in his upper back. He did not had any spare blades, so he could not replace the blade. It was more discrete that way. The gas tanks and the gas expelling gear where hidden under the coat. After being rejected to dance 5 times, he decided to look around. He saw a familiar face on top of a roof top. "Horatio! What is he doing over there?" he thought. He went behind the building and fired his hooks. "Hey Horatio!" said as he incorporated back up.

Sebastian saw Reia and smiled, he wasn't one to ask a girl for a dance but he decided even though the two were only friends to ask her out for a dance, Sebastian sighed and headed over to Levi and Reia and bowed to the two, "Sir Levi may i ask i take this Fine lady from your hands to dance?"

Reia tensed and glanced over at Levi. She wasn't sure how he would react to Sebastian cutting in on their dance. For a moment, Levi glared at Sebastian, and Reia was afraid for the boy's safety. But almost immediately, Levi resumed his usual nonchalant look. Reia doubted that Sebastian even noticed. "Sure," he said, bowing to Reia and rejoining the crowd at the edge of the square. Reia watched him go, and in a moment he was lost in the sea of people.

She turned to greet Sebastian. "Good afternoon, sir," she said, curtsying.

Sebastian smiled at Reia, he wasn't one to dance but he shrugged, "May i have the next dance me lady?" Sebastian raised a brow in question, he was surprised that Levi was giving him the death stare in the distance but he knew he wouldn't get killed because of this right?

Reia took Sebastian's hand. "You may," she responded. The next song started, and soon she and Sebastian were dancing along with everyone else.

The song was one of Reia's favorite waltzes, "Once Upon a December". It was an interesting choice, given that it was summer, but Reia didn't mind. It was pretty. She found herself humming along, singing the words silently in her head.

Reia's mind wandered to Levi. Obviously, he wasn't going to kill Sebastian outright, but Reia suspected that Sebastian might find himself cleaning the horses' stalls for the next week. She wondered if it was worth it. She also wondered if Sebastian even realized exactly what he had done...

He saw Seb taking a girl from Levi "Oh shit. He is pissed for sure" No one must ever mess with Levi. " Be right back" he said to Horatio. He glided to the floor, and got near the dancing couple. It was Reia!. He looked away. "Why am I looking away?" he thought. He gathered all of his courage and said "Hi Reia" Not a word came out.

Reia noticed someone moving through the crowd. It was Nick, walking directly towards Sebastian and her. Sebastian spun her, and suddenly Nick was standing right in front of them. She looked into his eyes, and he turned his head away from her. "What's the matter with him?" Reia wondered. Then, Nick looked back at her and opened his mouth as if to say something, but nothing came out. He looked like he was going to be sick.

Reia stopped dancing. "Nick? Is everything alright?" she asked. Reia prepared herself to jump out of the way at a moment's notice, just in case Nick really did get sick. She didn't want him throwing up on her dress. It was probably the prettiest thing she had owned since she ran away.

Sebastian blinked at Nick and the strange man who just took him away, he let go of Reia and said silently to her, "I'll let Levi get his girl back, he seems to be turning purple.." It was true levi had the death stare and was holding his breath trying not to flip out at Sebastian.

Nick threw out everything he had in his stomach. Embarrassing himself made him sick. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "She is Reia" He threw up a little bit more. "Don't even try. It's obvious Levi feels something for her."

Reia glanced over to the edge of the crowd. Her eyes met Levi's, and he did not look happy. Then again, he rarely looked happy, at least in public. Levi was clearly angry, but not in a blow-your-top kind of way. This was calm, cold anger, which was actually much scarier.

Reia nodded to Sebastian. "Thank you for the dance," she whispered back. "Maybe you could go check on Nick? Make sure he's okay?"

Reia turned away from Sebastian and walked over to meet Levi. Soon, they were twirling gracefully around the square. "Try not to kill Sebastian," Reia said. "He means well."

"Tch," was Levi's reply. Then suddenly, he spun her around and ended in a dip. It all happened so fast that Reia let out a gasp. She looked up to find Levi smiling, actually smiling, and chuckling at the surprised look on her face. It only lasted for a second, though. He pulled her up, and she lightly smacked his arm.

"Don't do that again."

He stood up from the fountain. He came near Sebastian. He extended his hand to shake it with Seb, but the urge to vomit again. He shouldn't have left the fountain so quickly. He pushed some people, trying to get an empty spot to throw up. But he threw up on a person. "I am sorry." He said recovering his breath. He looked up. "Oh shit." Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. He had thrown up on Levi. He was looking at Nick. Nick did not waited for a verbal response before running away.

For the first time in her life, Reia was at a complete loss for what to do. Nick had thrown up. On Levi. She stood there, unable to move, her thoughts racing so fast that she couldn't grasp onto any of them.

Before anyone could react, Nick turned tail and ran. Reia was impressed. She didn't know that it was possible for a human to run that fast.

Levi was staring at his vomit-covered suit, a look of utter disgust on his face. "Tch," he huffed, removing his jacket, which had taken the majority of the hit. Everyone stared silently as he left the dance floor. Reia followed him out of the square and into an alley. "You should go back," he told her. "There's no need for you to miss the dance. I'll take care of this."

"That's alright. I'll stay with you." Reia looked around until she saw a clothing store at the end of the alley. "In here," she said, tugging on Levi's arm.

Reia and Levi were greeted by a smiling attendant. However, her smile faltered when she saw the state of Levi's clothing. "Oh my," she huffed.

"He needs a new suit. Fast," Reia told her.

"I should say so. Come along, this way," she instructed, herding Levi into a changing room. Then she zipped through the store, going through rack after rack until she found what she was looking for. "Aha!" She handed the suit to Levi. "Here, try this."

After a few minutes, Levi emerged, wearing a royal blue suit with gold lining. The attendant led him to a mirror so he could see how he looked. Levi straightened his cravat. "Tch. It'll do," he said. Reia thought it was perfect.

The shopkeeper turned to Reia. "Oh, not you too!" she exclaimed. Reia looked down at herself and gasped. Somehow, vomit had gotten on her dress.

Before Reia knew what was happening, the attendant herded her into a changing room and ordered her to take the dress off. She returned a minute later with a gold ballgown and helped Reia put it on. Reia moved toward the mirror, but the attendant stopped her. "No, no, not yet." She took Reia's hair and did it in an elegant half-up, half-down style. Then she handed Reia a pair of long, gold gloves and golden slippers. "Now, you're ready."

Reia looked at her reflection in the mirror, and she was speechless. Everything was so beautiful, and it all fit her perfectly. She was reminded of the outfits she wore to parties at the palace before she ran away. This one beat them all. Reia turned to find Levi staring at her. When she met his eyes, he quickly looked away.

Reia and Levi gave their messy clothes to the shopkeeper for cleaning. After paying her, they returned to the square. There were still people dancing. However, the sun was about to set. This would probably be the last song. Levi held out his hand to Reia. "Would you do me the honor?"

"Of course," she replied, taking his hand. They took their places on the dance floor and waited for the song to start. When it did, Reia couldn't stop herself from smiling. It was her favorite song to dance to: "Beauty and the Beast".

Sebastian huffed he didn't know what to do now Orchid wouldn't show up, she had been..gone for days now and he hadn't spotted her since the night they kissed on top of the tower then him and Ernest had become at a neutral line of friends and foes.

"Thanks mate" He really needed something to wash his mouth. And he was broke, so he could not say no to that proposal. "Actually, I think you may get a chance with that girl. You are not a douche after all"

The crowd on the dance floor had thinned to the point where Reia and Levi were the only ones there. Reia didn't mind, though. It gave them a lot more room, which meant they could do more spectacular maneuvers. When Levi spun her for the first time, she got a look at the entire crowd, and they were all looking back at her.

"Everyone is staring at us," Reia whispered.

"Let them," Levi whispered back. Then he whisked her into a series of turns that made the crowd gasp with delight.

Reia didn't hear them, though. In that moment, the crowd seemed to fade away, and it was just her and Levi. Her ballgown swirled around her as Levi spun her out and then into an underarm turn. When they came back together, they went into a natural turn that Levi actually picked her up for. Her feet left the ground, and she felt like she was flying. When they stopped spinning, Reia took the opportunity to rest her head on Levi's shoulder. It only lasted a few moments, though. Soon, he was spinning her again.

Toward the end of the song, their movements became slower and smaller to match the decreasing tempo. Finally, Levi dipped her. Reia could have stayed there forever, frozen in time, but crowd's cheering broke her from her reverie. And just like that, the dance was over all too soon. Reia was glad for the memory, though. In that moment, everything had been perfect.