THE OMASHU BALL

Itamatsu listened as the man welcomed the people and introduced her family's circus. Well, her, anyway. Her family had decided that the event just wasn't "bigtop" enough for them. Simply meaning that if they couldn't pitch a tent and have their way, they made Matsu go.

She stood behind the curtain, waiting for the man to finish, checking her reflection in a mirror and stretching. Her beautiful face was done with dramatic makeup, her eyes lined in black, orange and yellow, her lips painted a deep red and her ears bearing surprisingly light dangling earrings, also yellow. Her hair was pulled up into a high ponytail, her bangs framing her face and she brushed them out of her eyes with her fingers as she tightened said ponytail. Her clothing was what she always wore when performing, a sleeveless orange shirt that ended just below her ribs, leaving her waist and hips bare. Her skirt was loose and flowing, red, ending just above the knee. The shorts underneath were yellow, as was the sash that she had tied around the top of the skirt for dramatic effect.

The man finally finished, and she stepped out onto the stage, taking a deep breathe before sending herself spiraling into the air. Her hands released multicolored glitter, and she landed softly on the stage as she airbended the glitter away from the fancy guests, letting it settle on the fancy tablecloths, giving them a fun look. She then began a routine where she floated midair and did multiple flips in a matter of seconds, landing on the stage with her weight on her left leg. It was bent, her right sticking out to the side in a stylish fashion.

She continued in this manner for a little while before finally launching herself up into the air for the grande finale. The glitter which had peacefully rested on the tablecloths was once again brought to life, levitating upward and then shooting at Matsu with a blinding speed. She then surrounded herself with an orb of air, the glitter spiraling all around it, and the next second, the orb practically exploded, sending a gust of air over everyone's heads, the glitter shooting upward and out of site. And there she was, on the stage, her body taking the exact shape of a lion turtle.

She then unfolded herself gracefully, first legs flipping over her head and then her arms until she was standing. She smiled at the guests to the ball and bowed before skipping off of the stage happily. She'd be back for act two, but for the moment, she needed some tea and a moment to catch her breath.

Matsu hurried up and jumped off of the top step to the stairs, not believing who'd she'd seen as her performance had come to an end--RIN! She squealed with delight and was almost out into the crowds when the stage manager grabbed her by the waist and tossed her back up the stairs. She landed easily enough on her feet, automatically using the air to straighten herself up as she'd been flung backwards.

"Hey! What's the big idea? I was going to go say hi to my friend!" she said, not necessarily angry, just a little frustrated, and she stood with a slight pout to her lip and her hands on her hips. She wasn't used to having rules--or rather, she never listened to them. Ever.

"You're not to leave the stage until after everyone has finished eating and the tables have been removed. The musicians will then play for everyone to dance, and then you may join your friends. If you've got a problem with it, take it up with the King, he's the one who hired you," the manager said gruffly. She stuck her tongue at him, then stalked off, back onto the stage for the second act of her three part performance. Once there, she waved excitedly at Rin and a young man that she assumed to be Rin's date.

Then, clearing her throat, she motioned to the stage manager to lower the trapezes for all to see. She'd had these installed before her performance, making sure that the ropes were properly reinforced with metal cables, and were placed correctly on the metal bars. Best thing about hiring her family? They always had what they needed. You just had to give them room to do it.

When the trapezes were sufficiently lowered, she winked at Rin with a huge grin on her face, and then floated upward to the center of the three. She seated herself simply upon it, before smiling at the crowd and saying in a loud, clear voice, "I will not be using my airbending during this next act. The dangers of this act are now as present to me as they would be to a nonbender." And she truly meant this. While airbending was a part of her acrobatics act, it was the only thing that she truly needed airbending for; using airbending for special effects during her contortionist act, she didn't use it to make her any more flexible; she didn't use airbending for the trapezes, or for the tight rope, either, unless she knew that she was going to fall and then, and only then, would she use it to prevent injury.

She then slid off of the trapeze backwards, looking as though she were about to fall, when she caught herself using her ankle on one corner of the trapeze, the rest of her body suspended in the air. She then started swinging her arms back and forth, looking as though her ankle would slip at any moment and she would fall to her death. But she didn't, and caught the trapeze on the right with her hands, letting go of the middle one. The trapeze swung back and forth slowly until it stilled, and then she used her arm strength to do a perfect hand stand on the bar before touching her toes to her hands and then standing on the bar, bringing her hands up and then launching herself at the middle one.

She caught it easily, her slightly callused hands used to the abuse of the metal. She flipped around and around the bar, her hands almost slipping on the seventh flip, and it was then that she released herself at the third, and just barely caught it with her leg, knee holding tightly. She took a deep breath, the professional in her not showing her fear, and she finished the rest of her routine flawlessly, ending with a basic pirouette, on the center bar. She normally managed this flawlessly, but her foot ended up slipping off of the bar and she caught it with her arm. The ropes attached to the bars were then lowered enough for her to step off of the trapeze, and with a bow, she walked off of the stage, slightly breathless. She'd never lost concentration in an act before, and the fact that she'd slipped twice frightened her greatly.