(No Subject)

Kina's head bobbed up and down, "Oh! I could change into one of my new outfits." Her shoulders came up and she swayed excitedly. "I just got this adorable little orange dress and heels that I need to break in. I'll just need to find somewhere to change." The orange dress, along with Kina's other new things, was stuffed into Itachi's saddlebags. Kina wondered where Varsha was keeping her extra clothes.

Seeing that Varsha was done with her food, Kina stood up and pushed the chair back under the table. "I thought we could head over to the entertainment district a few blocks away from here. I hear there are lots of parties thrown over there, and I'm sure it would be easy for a couple sexy ladies such as ourselves to get in." The little brunette winked at Varsha as she slowly headed towards the door.

Kina grabbed Itachi's reins, which he was presenting to her as she passed through the doorway of the shop. The girl walked alongside Varsha, quite at ease, with her ferret-lizard trailing right behind her. His short legs moved swiftly, the sharp talons that tipped them making soft clicking noises against the stone streets.

It wasn't long until the two came to what seemed to be the border between the restaurant and entertainment districts, where a couple of small inns were located. Kina also spotted a stable, so she pulled Itachi to a halt. "Hey, Varsha, I should probably leave Itachi in there if we're going to be out for a while. It would be easier for him to guard my bags if I left them with him in a stall, and he wouldn't have to be weighted down by them. The stable might have a bathroom or closet that we could change in as well."

Kina led Itachi toward the stable. The man who ran it asked for a fee to rent one of the larger stalls for the night. Kina had more than enough coins in her pouch to pay the fee, so she handed the money over and walked Itachi into the stall. She made quick work of relieving the steed from his load, casting the many bags to a corner. After giving Itachi a kiss on the nose and making sure the water in the trough was clean, Kina rifled through her bags for the orange dress and the black heels. She found them and exited the stall, closing the door behind her.

Kina spun, turning to face Varsha, and asked, "Do you see a bathroom anywhere? Or maybe a closet? There's got to be a closet around here somewhere." She was holding the dress in one hand and her shoes in the other.

"That would be perfect!" Kina said delightedly. She draped her orange dress over her right arm - the one that was also carrying the shoes - so that she could use her left hand in an attempt to flatten her unruly hair a bit. As always, she failed. Her hair simply was not interested in complying with her wishes. "And no, I didn't already find a place to stay the night, so I'd love to crash with you after we party if you don't mind." Kina trotted smoothly alongside Varsha, letting the other woman lead the way.

Kina smiled as she entered the room. "Nice place," she commented, already stepping over to a corner of the room.

Kina set her black heels on the floor and threw her dress over the back of a chair. She pulled her feet out of her slippers, sliding them under the chair. The firebender shimmied out of the outermost layer of her simple brown kimono after untying the dark sash that held the ensemble together. Kina folded both items neatly and laid them onto the seat of the chair. She was left in nothing but a pale cream strapless undergarment that fell just past her hips, tickling the tops of her thighs.

Turning, Kina asked, "Do you want me to put these in a drawer or would you rather I just left them here?"

As Varsha replied, Kina quickly gave the older woman's body an appreciative glace up and down. She couldn't help the sly smirk that manifested itself on her face at the sight. An indifferent shrug later, Kina turned back around to slip the orange dress over her head. It fit her snugly, but not tightly enough to be uncomfortable. The fabric was soft and light, able to breathe easily. Next came the heels, which were not nearly as easy on her feet as the slippers had been.

Kina took a few tentative steps around the room in her heels to test out their parameters. Satisfied that she would not fall flat on her face trying to rush around the city, Kina smiled proudly. The firebender winked at Varsha and stated, "Well, I think I'm ready. Time to go party?"

Kina giggled along with Varsha at the complement. She gave a quick spin and an exaggerated curtsy. "Thank you," the firebender cooed. "Your dress is gorgeous on you, by the way. Absolutely regal, in fact." Kina strut out of the room, making sure to give her wide hips a bit more of a snap than she normally would.

The post-twilight city life was just as bustling as it was in the daytime, if not more so. There was no overbearing sun to beat down on the citizenry, only a gentle moon giving off soft light in a dark sea of stars that were surely there but could not be seen from an area so well-lit by the burning fires of human make. Kina felt refreshed by the cool night air and comforted by the company at her side.

The duo came to a section of the city that was rife with the younger generation, all in the fanciest things that they or their parents could afford to outfit them with. Most of the buildings were covered in streamers or strings of colored lanterns that had been strewn on. The smell of perfume overpowered everything else by a great margin, but there were also faint hints of sweat, hormones, greasy foods, and alcohol.

"Hm... which party should we crash first?" In all honesty, all of the parties were probably exactly the same. They probably all served the same sort of food, played the same sort of music, and were attended by the same sort of people. Of course, for whatever reason, certain ones were sure to be considered better than others, probably depending on how much money the hosts spent.

Kina shuffled closer to Varsha, not wanting to accidentally lose sight of her in the writhing mass of people. It didn't take more than a few steps in the right direction, following Varsha's lead, for Kina to realize which festivity Varsha found most appealing. Kina grinned and practically frolicked beside her new friend, hardly able to contain her excitement. The atmosphere was so filled with the smog of youthful activities that it was shockingly energizing. Kina's heart beat at the pace of the ubiquitous musicians' lively rhythms, so strongly that the pounding of blood could be felt in her ears.

The pair was greeted at the entrance to the party by a large man who could did nothing but smirk at them before waving them through. His eyes were shadowed beneath his heavy brow, but Kina got the feeling that he had been checking them out. Regardless, Kina inclined her head to him briefly before continuing onward. "So..." Kina trilled, nudging Varsha's hip with her own after they had taken a good many steps into the venue. "That was easier than I expected it would be. Perhaps I should go to these sorts of parties more often. Look at all that free food over there." Kina cast her gaze toward the long tables that bordered the large space. They were piled high with enough food and drink to sustain half the city for a day.

At the butt smack, Kina laughed aloud and a toothy grin stretched her face for a second before she agreed readily to Varsha's comment. "I think it would be great for us to do this again sometime, but we can talk about that later." Kina was moving towards the refreshments as well. "For now, I think we should probably have a little snack. It would be better to eat now than get too hungry after we've already started dancing."

The little firebender arrived at the table of food and grabbed the first thing that caught her eye - it turned out to be a large, warm, buttery roll filled with sweet white rice and a meat that could be either crab or lobster. Kina couldn't really tell the difference. There was a sort of green vegetable paste keeping the roll and all of its contents together. She gobbled it up quickly, never having tasted something quite like it. The saltiness stayed on her tongue and she savored it thoroughly.

After that, her stomach was completely sated and her energy was back up to its maximum level. She saw now that a band of five musicians played a song that was not too slow or too fast in a corner of the room, but they were loud enough to be heard throughout the building, even with all of the low, buzzing chatter going on. People danced in pairs and in groups and some were even dancing alone, too far gone to care about anything but their own feet groggily but determinedly moving slightly out of step.

Kina was comfortable dancing wildly on the streets but she was not sure what was expected in this kind of environment. She had no idea what moves were considered silly or which were most popular at this time. Looking around, she saw mostly controlled moves - girls wiggling "sexily" and boys swaying from side to side in a way that Kina wouldn't personally consider dancing. Giving an unimpressed huff, Kina stepped onto the dance floor with Varsha. "We need to liven this place up a bit," Kina commented, smirking. "I think once someone shows them how it's done, they won't be so hesitant to let go."

Kina was not far behind Varsha as the two made their way into the open space in the center of the area being used as the dance floor. The girl watched, wide eyed, as Varsha moved, dancing as fiercely and as gracefully as any warrior could ever hope to fight. She smirked and a brief thought crossed her mind, I have certainly found the perfect woman for me.

Surprised by the sudden change of direction that her thoughts took, Kina shook her head and began to dance beside her new companion. I'll just figure my feelings out later, Kina decided, for now, I just need to have fun. Her hips moved slowly at first, but gained momentum as she relaxed. Her wrists snapped here and there and her legs shot out, making the hem of her skirt fly around. She twisted and twirled and smiled toothily at those around her, encouraging them to join in.