The Festival - Part 2 They left her house later than she had intended and the festival was in full swing. Aria pulled Liam along until they were in the heart of it. There were games, plenty of food to try, dancing, music, arts and crafts, storytelling, and so much more. Aria spotted her parents at the face painting area and waved to them. “What would you like to do first?” She asked him. “We could have some samples of food to get our energy restored once more or we could go play a game?” There was so much that they could do and that she was excited to do with him, but she also didn’t want him to feel too overwhelmed.
There were so many people celebrating, and so much going on that it took Liam a moment to take it all in. It reminded him a little of the old state fairs he went to as a child, only this seemed a lot happier, and they're likely wasn't going to be huge roasted turkey legs to eat. He was happy, but a massive drumstick still would have been amazing. “Definitely food.” Liam replied with a smile, remembering with great delight that somewhere there was literally cheese with his name on it. How he'd managed to trick a woman as amazing as Aria into falling for him was still a mystery.
“Then we can go play a game. I'll even dance with you if you want.” Liam shimmied and moved his hips and shoulders awkwardly to the beat of the music that seemed to fill the air around him. He didn't have any sense of rhythm, so hopefully Aria could tell he was just having fun. “My moves have only gotten better with age. I hope you'll be able to show some restraint when I really bust them out.” He added with a grin.
Aria laughed, putting her hand up to muffle the sound as she watched him attempt to dance. “It’ll be incredibly difficult to do, but I’ll try my hardest to keep my hands to myself.” Since the community did not eat meat, their food choices were of the vegetable and soy products, but there were several different dishes that Liam could try if he wanted. There were also several different loaves of bread they could try and desserts. “Is there anything in particular that you would like to have? One of my favorites is the stir-fried rice noodles with tofu and vegetables.” Aria said, looking at the table that was serving it. “Have you ever had tofu?” Aria knew he was a meat eater, so tofu likely wasn’t something he would find very appetizing.
“I mean, trying your hardest is the best you can do. If you fail, I won’t be upset, I promise I will still love you.” Liam joked, turning his attention to the food. Stir fry definitely seemed appealing, though tofu he wasn’t quite sure about. He’d never tried it, but Ramona had ordered it a few times when the family went out to Chinese. It seemed very bland and….spongy? “I have never tried tofu, and I admit, I’m kind of afraid of it, but, I think if you hold my hand, I might be brave enough. Plus rice noodles and veggies are fine, so I can always not eat the tofu if I don’t like it.” Liam didn’t really consider himself very adventurous in most realms of life. When it came to food, however, he was willing to try just about anything once. White floppy bean gel included.
“If it’s made properly, tofu can mimic whatever food it is that you are intending to make.” Aria explained. She loved tofu, but since the chef’s here were accustomed to making tofu with just about every meal, they knew how to cook it accurately. She made her way to the table with the stir-fry and grabbed two bowls of it. “Let’s find seats.” She said, looking around for a free bench. She found one not too far since most people were enjoying the games and music and took a seat. “If you do not like it, do not feel the need to finish it. We can experiment with the foods to find one that you truly enjoy.”
“But can it mimic bacon?” Liam was mostly joking as he posed his question. He'd tried turkey bacon before, and that was fine as long as you weren't actually expecting it to be like bacon. His sister had convinced him once to try this terrible soy bacon, and that just tasted like dog treats. Not that he would actually know what those taste like. Regardless, he'd determined that there was just nothing that could compare, so even if tofu could mimic bacon, it just wouldn't be the same.
“Oh.” Aria gave a thoughtful look to his question. She had never had bacon or any sort of meat for that matter, so she really couldn’t say with certainty whether or not the tofu really did mimic those proteins. She had only ever had the assumption of them doing so. “I don’t really know.” She finally answered, looking a little put out for not being able to give him a concrete answer. “I’m sorry.”
“There is no need for apologies! Truly, there is nothing like bacon. It's often imitated, but never duplicated. Like you, you're the bacon of all other women. That's romantic, right?” He said with a smile as he sat down next to Aria and relieved her of one of the bowls. Surprisingly excited to try something new. “I will say this, it smells great. But I think I've just worked up an appetite from the tour you gave me.” He said with a sly smile before turning his attention to the food. If Aria were the sort of girl who was easily embarrassed, she might have blushed at his comment, but since she felt no shame in what they have done, Aria simply grinned and wrinkled her nose at him playfully.
“Don't give me the option to try everything Aria, you'll see how big of a glutton I can actually be.” Liam leaned towards her and whispered, just to keep others from hearing how suggestive he was being. He didn't mind, and they very clearly couldn't keep their hands off of one another, but he wanted to be respectful. He didn't know who could be sitting next to them. ”Unless, of course you want to help me burn it all off later.”
Aria frowned at him, “Is that one of those sayings that I do not understand?” She asked him. “Because I really do not wish to burn anything off of you later.”
Liam laughed and kissed Aria on the cheek. Some of their misunderstandings lead to a few of his favorite moments. It didn't matter how many times he needed to explain or clarify, he didn't mind. “Yeah, I don't want you to burn anything off of me either. I mean help me exercise off all the calories from this food. Break a sweat. Get my heart rate up….you follow?”
Aria smiled as he kissed her cheek. She felt normal with him in a way she never did or would with another. This was what being blissfully happy was and she never wanted to,stop feeling it. He completed her and made her so much more. “Oh, is that what it means?” She asked, her eyebrows rising. “I would love to make sure you get your exercise in later...if you aren't already tired from our earlier...workout.” She replied, making sure to use the same terminology as he had. She grinned and took a bite of food, suddenly feeling ravenous.
Liam laughed, and the fact that she went along with him, made it even better. “Thank you, love. I'm going to have abs in no time with your help.” He said with a smile before turning his attention back to his bowl. He pushed the tofu around the bowl, trying not to make a face at the texture. Finally he grabbed a bit of everything on his fork. “The perfect bite. Alright…I'm going to do it. I'm trying tofu.” He took an exaggerated breath before tasting the stir fry. His brow furrowed as he chewed, trying to discern whether or not he liked it.
“Ok.” He said after swallowing. “Alright.” He nodded and he loaded up a second bite. “It's different, the tofu. But it's not bad. It kind if picks up the flavor of everything else. It's a flavor sponge!” He announced as he continued eating.
Aria watched him with interest as he tried the food while she ate her own food. She would not be upset if he ended up not liking it, but she truly enjoyed the fact that he was at least giving it a try. This community was one full of Vegans and Vegetarians, so tofu was in quite a bit of the meals. “A sponge is a good way of looking at it.” Aria said enthusiastically with a grin. “It is really okay if you do not want it eat it though. There are plenty of meals around here that do not have tofu in it.” Aria commented, placing a hand on his leg and resting against him for a moment. “Or when you are done with this, we can go searching for that cheese I promised you earlier.” Aria suggested as a reward for eating food he might not necessarily enjoy.
Liam was torn. He wanted to try more things, but... cheese. He was particularly eager to try it since Aria had it made just for him. He ate more of the stir fry, tofu included, and he really didn't mind it. The texture took some getting used to, but it wasn't bad at all. He actually kind of liked it.
“I don't want this to get back to my family...but...I think I like tofu…” He admitted, almost sheepishly. “However! I am nearly done, and I've been thinking about that cheese all day.” Maybe that wasn't the whole truth, there were definitely times when his mind was on other things, but he was still so surprised that she'd done that for him. “You're definitely my soulmate.” He said with a grin before finishing up his food.
Aria laughed and shook her head at him. She finished her bowl and took his once he was completely finished with it. She gave the bowls to an elderly woman who was running the stir-fry stand and respectfully bowed to her and thanked her for the meals. Returning to Liam, Aria smiled and reached her hand out for him to take. “Gérard will probably be at his milk stand with the cheese.”
Liam took Aria’s hand and pushed himself up off of the bench they’d been sitting on. “That was really good. Thank you for expanding my horizons. Now, to the milk stand!”
Laughing, Aria led the way through the festival until they came across the milk stand. “Gérard takes care of the animals. They are treated like royalty and he is quite diligent about their schedules.” Aria explained. She was vegan but she understood that others enjoyed dairy and as long as the animals were treated well, she saw no reason not to enjoy the milk naturally produced.
“Hello Gérard” Aria greeted, putting her hands together and giving a bow of her head respectfully. Gérard was a meaty sort of man. Large and hairy in a Viking sort of way. “This is Liam.” She introduced, indicating her companion. Gérard’s face lit up and he clapped a hand onto Liam’s shoulder.
“The cheese man, I love it!” the large man said excitedly. He looked through his stored items before pulling out several packages of various types of cheeses. “Aria said she wasn't sure of your favorite kind, so I experiment to create various kinds.” He eagerly gave them to Liam to have with a large grin on his face.
“Wait, I thought you were the cheese man?” Liam joked, happily accepting all of the various cheeses. “Gérard, I can’t tell you how excited I am, thank you so much for doing this.” He liked this guy, and he honestly wasn’t sure he could pick a single favorite cheese. He had more like a top five. “Give my best to your cows as well, would ya?” He wanted to try them all right then, but wasn’t sure if that would be appropriate or not.
Gérard laughed heartedly at the comment, “I should tell you that I was excited to get the request! Experimenting to get the right flavors and cheese was a right joy for me!” He was a lively man and his cheerful disposition was always rather infectious. Aria gave a soft laugh even though she did not really have anything to do with the topic of cheese, she just couldn’t help it. “You’ll have to come meet the gals the next time you’re here for a visit.” Gérard commented to Liam, glancing at Aria to make sure such a request was okay. Aria grinned at him. She would have offered to visit today, but there was too much going on to pull him away from his table. “Have a great time with the festivities, please let me know what you thought of the cheese.” Gérard stated, saying his farewell and returning to his fellow members.
“Well, I'm glad to have been the reason behind your experiments. I will definitely stop by some time after the festival with a full report. Again, thank you so much, Gérard, it was a pleasure to meet you.” Liam was positively beaming by this point. He'd expected a cheese, not an entire variety.
Aria walked with Liam and hummed as she went, “Do you want to sit and eat your cheese or did you want to eat while we play games?” She asked him, looking at the packages in his hand.
“We can do the latter.” He said with a smile as he began to offload the precious cargo into the pockets of his shorts. He gave Aria quick kiss on the cheek to show his gratitude. “You're the best. You know that right? I don't even think I know what your favorite food is.” Liam admitted, scratching the back of his neck with a now empty hand. “Also, I should warn you, I get pretty intense when it comes to games. So, if I crush you, know it's coming from a place of love.” He added with a smile.
Aria chuckled, “I don’t really have a favorite.” She admitted. She loved food, but she couldn’t say that there was one in particular that she necessarily enjoyed over the rest. “But I think strawberries are a strong contender.” She told him and then laughed when he admitted his competition involving games. “You’ll just have to remind me about that place of love later.” She joked.
“Hmm...good to know.” Liam wasn't sure exactly how at the moment, but he imagined that bit of information would come in handy at some point. “You know, I think I read somewhere that strawberries are an aphrodisiac.” Not that the two of them needed much encouragement when it came to that sort of thing.
“Is it?” Aria asked but was cut short when she heard her dad calling to them.
“Alright lovebirds, it’s time to see what sort of compatibility you have when we tie your legs together for the race!” Her father called out, coming to meet them and then quickly rushing them off to the three-legged race that was starting soon. “If you can manage to work together and make it to the end of the race without fighting or falling, you’ll have my full blessing.” Kai stated, his face held a smile, so it was difficult to see if he was teasing. “Winning is not necessary, just working together.”
Liam’s eyes widened as Aria’s dad approached them. He hoped Kai hadn’t heard what he was just saying. He felt he still had a lot to prove to the older man, and having him know about the intimate aspects of his relationship with his daughter felt really weird. He couldn’t help but laugh at the vision of the two of them tied together for the race. He had a good foot of height on Aria, so it was going to be interesting for sure. It looks like he’d be proving himself to her parents sooner than he’d anticipated. Liam was a good sport though. Considering he didn’t know Kai well enough to tell if this was a serious test or not, he was going to give it all he got. He didn’t want anyone to question whether or not he and Aria were meant to be together. He already knew the answer.
“Oh, we’ve got this. Are you and Ember going to race too?” Liam asked with a smile. “Show us how it’s done?”
Kai laughed but shook his head in answer. “I’m judging the race this year with some of the other Elders. And Ember is working the pie booth at the moment.” He replied “But you should have seen us last year. We were the couple that everyone looked up to for inspiration…” Kai looked wistfully off in the distance as though he were remembering some grand moment. Aria rolled her eyes and laughed. “Ignore him, Liam, they fell flat on their faces after taking two steps.”
Her father feigned hurt at his daughter’s claims, but his face gave way to his sweet smile as he gave his daughter a hug and patted Liam on the shoulder. “Good luck to the both of you, I’ll be secretly rooting for you.”
Liam laughed at the exchange between Aria and Kai. He couldn’t help but appreciate how much they very clearly loved each other. It made him miss his own father a bit. He always missed him, but it was always a dull ache in the back of Liam’s mind. Moments like this made it a little harder to ignore. Scott was fine, but Liam only saw him on occasion so he didn’t really have a father/son relationship with him. He was glad his sisters got along with him really well though, he would have hated for them to miss out on stuff like this.
“Ok Miss Yale, we need to strategize here. Do they tie us, or do they trust us to tie ourselves? I can honestly say I’ve never done one of these before, but I imagine we’ll have to communicate when to step.” He stopped for a moment and rubbed the back of his neck. “Am I over thinking this? Because it feels like a test.”
“They bind us at our thighs and calves.” She answered with a smile. She had ran the race a few years ago with her father. They hadn’t won, but it had been a fun event for her to participate in with him and she was really looking forward to doing it now with Liam. “He’s not really testing you. He just wants to make sure you have fun. Try not to think too much into it and just enjoy it.”
While he still wasn’t sure that it wasn’t a test, Aria’s comment was reassuring. “Ok. Let’s do this!” He said as they approached the starting line with the rest of the contestants. He stood close to Aria, wrapping his arm around her so they could be lashed together. He smiled down at her before turning his attention to the other people participating in the race and sizing them up. From his perspective, things looked good, but he still hoped that the connection between them spiritually would translate to their legs.
“Just so you know, even if we lose, I’ll still love you.” Liam’s mind flashed to the cheese in his pocket, magical pants or not, he couldn’t imagine that it’d be good to fall. Not that he wouldn’t still eat it if it were smooshed, it was just further motivation to win.
“I'm not sure if I'll still be able to love you should we lose.” Aria teased back. Aria greeted one of the witches who was assigned the task of binding the participants together. When she politely smiled and went off to the next group Aria whispered, “She's new here. She doesn't talk very much, but she's very nice.” Aria remembered the day she arrived, covered in bruises and begging for a place to stay. Aria imagined what a terrifying past the woman must have had. But they welcomed her with open arms.
Liam furrowed his brow and opened his mouth in faux exasperation. It was quickly replaced by a grin as the witch came and went without comment. He nodded in understanding when Aria explained about the woman, he couldn’t really forsee anyone in the community being unkind. He supposed it was possible, but it just didn't fit that someone rude would choose to live in such a harmonious place.
“Slow and steady is our best bet for not falling.” Aria commented, feeling rather awkward being bound to him. “We should start on our opposite legs and then move our joined leg. We probably won't win, but that should keep us on our feet, as long as you don't make me leap when I take my steps.” Aria stated with a laugh.
“Sounds like a plan! Not the most optimistic one, but a plan nonetheless.” He couldn't help but laugh at her comment about step size. “Don't worry, I know you have little legs.” He added with a kiss on the top of her head. “It looks like we're almost ready to start.”
Aria stood next to Liam, her arm wrapped around his waist to keep herself steady. He was so much taller than her that their bonds hit closer to her pelvis than it did on her actual leg so it was a bit uncomfortable, but she tried to not think about it. The sparks shot up, signaling the start and Aria stepped out with her opposite foot and then her bound foot. It was slow and not at all easy, but she was easily laughing the entire time. She held on tightly to him as they hobbled along and watched as some people fell around them and others run ahead. Surprisingly, they stayed on their feet.
As predicted, they did not win, but the cheering of the crowd and the effort she and Liam had done together made her feel as though they had. When their legs were untied, Aria excitedly jumped up and down, cheering with everyone else. “We did it!” She exclaimed, looking up at Liam with jubilation. She jumped up into him, her arms wrapping around his neck and shoulders and kissed him unabashedly. When she pulled out of the kiss, she grinned at him. “I love you, we were a wonderful team!”
If Liam was upset by the fact that they lost, he definitely didn’t show it. Particularly considering how excited Aria was. He laughed and wrapped his arms around her, before giving in to the kiss. “I love you too, and I agree, we [i]are [/i] a good team.” He added with a smile. “Potions classes, emotional traumas, three legged races….I don't know that there is anything we can't get through together.” He meant it too. He was definitely starting to feel like she was his future.
“What would you like to do next, my love?” He asked, still elated that they didn't fall on their faces and make a spectacle of themselves. It was kind of neat how everyone has cheered for them, and he secretly hoped that Kai had been one of them. Sure, they'd lost the race, but Aria's father's approval was more important to Liam.
“Come on, let’s play some more games!” Aria suggested, taking his hand and leading him towards another booth.
*****
It was late into the evening when Aria finally opened the door to her home and reentered it with Liam. They had spent several hours outside with the rest of her community, playing games, stuffing their faces with various food and treats, singing, and dancing. Her poor Companion had several people introducing themselves to him and pulling him around to do something with them. Her parents being the worst of them, but Aria had enjoyed seeing him interact with people who were important to her and her parents really seemed to like him. Aria wasn’t sure where the future would end up for them, but she knew that she had her parents blessing.
Aria stretched and gave a soft moan as her aching body felt some relief. It had been a long day on her feet, but she had loved every minute of it and hoped that Liam had as well. She dropped down onto her couch and gestured for Liam to do the same so that she could snuggle with him. “You were so patient today with everyone, I hope it wasn’t too much for you and you enjoyed some of it.” Aria stated. They still had one more day of celebrating, but she didn’t think people would bother him so much on the second day as they had this day.
Liam sat down beside her and tried to hide a yawn with one hand as he put his other arm Aria and pulled her to him. It seemed like one of those lame moves he'd seen in movies where a guy was trying to be subtle about getting closer to a girl, but it was completely obvious. That wasn't what he’d intended at all, but he smiled at the idea anyway. It felt good to sit down after the action packed day they'd had.
“Of course I did! And it wasn't too much. I don't think you realize how awesome it is for me to see you in your...element.” Liam said with a grin as he leaned in to kiss Aria on the forehead. “It's nice to be able to put faces with names finally, and to be able to spend time with your family. Remind me, how many times a year do you have these festivals?” He asked as he kicked off his shoes in an attempt to make himself more comfortable.
Aria let out a soft giggle when he pressed his lips to her forehead. It was always so nice with how tender and affectionate he was with her. She knew that he was the sort of person who would bend over backwards for whoever needed him too, but she felt his love for her so deeply each time he kissed her or hugged her and every time he laughed warmly with her or patiently explained something to her. “When the seasons change, we celebrate the solstices and give our thanks to our Mother.” Her ‘Mother’ was Earth, but she figured Liam would understand what she meant. “My parents are fond of you.” Aria commented. “They enjoyed spending time with you today.” To be honest, they would have enjoyed that even if Aria wasn’t romantically linked to Liam because her parents loved everyone and Liam was someone who was easy to love. “But not as fond of you as I am.” She added, shifting in her seat against him so that she could kiss his lips.
He knew very well what she meant when she explained the solstices, but he couldn't resist making a terrible joke whenever the occasion presented itself. “Man, my mother would love that. She only gets one day of thanks. Two if you count her birthday.” He grinned at the mention of her parents. He was relieved, and thankful. It would be awkward to try and build a future with Aria if Kai and Ember didn’t approve. “Good! I’m quite partial to them as well. Today was really fun.” When she kissed him, Liam still felt the same exciting spark that had been there the first time.
“Thank you for having me…” He said, and he meant it. In every way.
“You should thank your mother every day.” Aria advised, knowing he was joking but still feeling the need to reprimand him slightly. “It was fun and you are welcome.” Aria said with a smile. “And you are always welcome here, I love having you.” Aria stood up, she didn't really want to move but she knew they would have another busy day tomorrow so they ought to get some rest. “Will you come to bed with me and cuddle.” She asked.
“Yes ma’am.” Liam nodded solemnly before his face cracked into a smile. “I’ll have to keep that in mind.” He said as he followed suite and rose to his feet, slowly, but surely. “I will absolutely come to bed with you.” It had been a long, action filled day and the prospect of bed sounded amazing, particularly being close to the one he loved. He took Aria by the hand and led her into the bedroom.