The Gloam of the Party

Preparation

"Hey, Varunaaa! You wouldn't believe this!" Yatsuma slammed the guest bedroom door of her house open, her smile widened with excitement as she flipped one of the lights on. Her eyes were glittering in joy as she smiled at the blue-haired woman, who was lying in her indigo bed alone in the heavy dimly lit darkness. Varuna groaned while trying to sit up cross-legged and frowned from the interruption of her constant sleeping.

"What is it that you want now, Yatsuma..." Varuna scowled with grim, half-lidded eyes.

"Have you heard of a mas--" Yatsuma asked her, but paused to read whatever was said in the piece of paper she had in her hand. "A mas-kyuuu-raaaid ball?"

Varuna corrected her. "A masquerade party? Heard of them, but... Never been to one," She cocked her eyebrow slightly. "Were you invited?"

"Yeah! And I was allowed to bring another person there! It's not too far from here, in the city!"

"From who?"

"A good ol' friend of mine Ashe gave me some invitations," The brunette answered. Varuna has only met Ashe a few times. Younger than Yatsuma, but quite smart and powerful for his age in beyblading and crafting. He was a kind soul, and because of his kindhearted nature, it was no wonder he and Yatsuma were close, like siblings. "Quite a rich fella y'know, but doesn't flaunt it that much. Anyway, I couldn't think of an alternate choice to join me, so-"

"You chose me right?" The older blader blandly questioned in a low, monotone voice.

"Er... Y-Yes." Yatsuma staggered.

Varuna froze as she looked away and down her lap, which was covered by the vine-designed indigo bed comforter. "Hrmm.. Sorry, I'm not a fan of parties anymore. I don't feel comfortable with social stuff nowadays..." She flipped her body the other way, her back now faced her brunette friend, and pulled her comforter towards herself. The upper part of the indigo comforter that was not tucked under the firm mattress soared over her with a soft flap and leisurely descended onto her thinned frame.

Yatsuma broke her formal and straightened stance and proceeded to walk up to Varuna's bed, then placed her dainty hand softly on her comforter-covered arm upon leaning forward. "Cmon, Varuu," she encouraged while using her known nickname. Only those closest to her was allowed to address her that way. "It's going to be fun! I promise you on that! I already have some dresses you can try on!"

"Dresses...?" The woman groaned.

"I mean... I have some, but I'm not sure if they fit you, but I think you're not too far off from my size! It can't be a masquerade party without a dress!"

"Hm.. I don't know. I wouldn't want to ruin any clothing you give me..."

"Don't worry about that!" She straightened her body and stuck her fists on her hips, smiling. "I already know how to handle troubles like stains on fancy clothes. Mostly, you have to be gentle on them when you clean them. But that's beside the point! You're coming with me to the party!" She flipped the soft comforter off Varuna's body and grabbed her arm, attempting to drag her out of bed.

"Wha??" Varuna's eyes widened from the sudden movement.

"Come on!"

"I said no!" She shouted in protest, trying to force her to let go with her raised voice. Eventually, she slid off the bed on plunged to the hard floor with an awkward slide from the overflowed bedsheet on the side.

Yatsuma responded with a frightened "Eek" as she fell off, embarrassed with what happened. She stared at Varuna's annoyed gaze, which was aimed at the white ceiling. They remained there for several seconds in silence, until the brunette broke it.