Varian looked up at his opponents, feeling kind of incredulous. "You mean to tell me that Cassandra won... Again?!"
Cass, Eugene, and Rapunzel nodded. It took all that Varian had in him not to freak out in any way, shape, or form. He forced himself to gently put his cards down before addressing his friends-- and momentary opponents-- once again.
"So... Anyone up for charades?"
Rapunzel shook her head. "I'm sorry, Varian, but it's only five minutes until the big lantern release."
Varian sighed a little, nodding as he stood to join Cass, Rapunzel, and Eugene by the little snack bar that had been set up in their little parlor. He quickly snatched up a ham sandwich before glancing shyly at Cass. Rapunzel grabbed Eugene's hand, dragging him off to the balcony with a hurried good-bye to her other friends.
Varian froze, sandwich midway to his mouth. "Aren't you going to head out with them, Cassie?"
Cass shrugged a little, kind of perching on the ledge of the snack bar. "Yeah... They can wait for me a little longer, though."
Varian just nodded, already devouring his meal. Hee glanced at her again, for once glad that his hair kind of covered his face-- she wouldn't be able to see that he was looking at her, admiring her looks from afar.
Not that looks were all that mattered to the young alchemist-- NO!-- but... He couldn't deny Cassandra's evident beauty. He appreciated every little detail: the way that her dark, frizzy (and somewhat curly) hair framed her face, or the way that her lips and eyes contrasted her face's paleness...
Everything about her was perfect, at least to him. Everything about her completely captivated him.
He was head-over-heels in love with her: heart, mind, and soul. But he couldn't let on. No. They were both part of a great group of friends, and they had a great friendship themselves, and he was not going to throw that away, especially not for some silly, foolish hope of his.
"Tell me about some of the traditions here in Corona," he said suddenly, "I'd like to know how you guys celebrate the New Year."
She shrugged nonchalantly, popping a cherry into her mouth. "There's not many. I mean, you already know about the lantern release, though there are more, I suppose..."
Varian brushed some hair out of his face, leaning closer. "Yeah? Tell me more."
Cass smiled at him, finding his curiosity... Almost endearing. "Well, there's quite a few of them. And Xavier would probably be the best one to ask... A majority of them are either silly and stupid or old and outdated. I... I don't think you'd be too terribly interested."
But he was hanging on her every word.
"Some people toast in the New Year. You know, with... Adult drinks. Dad and I always used milk or juice. And then..."
She had forgotten what else there was. As she sat, stumbling around for any faint recollection of any other traditions, Varian gently took her hand in his, offering her a small smile.
"That's very interesting, Cassie. We hardly have any traditions in Old Corona-- not that I know of, anyway-- so it's always fun to learn about other places, you know?"
Cass nodded, about to reply. Then she realized that it was probably almost time for the lantern release. She grabbed Varian's wrist-- just as Raps had done with Eugene-- and began to lead him out onto the balcony.
"C'mon, you don't want to miss this."
As soon as they made it out onto the balcony, they hardly had a moment to catch their breath before the prince and princess released their lantern. It was soon joined by thousands of others, the villagers letting theirs fly as well.
"You see the coloration?" Cass asked him softly, " usually, our lanterns are lighter: pink, orange, yellow. These are dark purple and blue. It's supposed to symbolize that we're letting go of the bad things from the past year."
Varian just nodded, intrigued by the symbolization but mesmerized by all of the beauty around him. And then he made up his mind.
"There is one tradition we have back in Old Corona... Well, one that I remember, at least."
"Yeah?"
He nodded again, leaning in and kissing her.
