[Silver]

This was it! The day was finally here. She had spent entirely too much time on her costume but it felt like there was so much still to do. Inspire had stayed up all night for multiple nights this week in order to get everything just perfect but it never felt like enough. Just another stitch here, another sequin there.

"Woah it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," Gyre said as he walked into the room.

Inspire jumped up, clearly startled by his sudden appearance. "Oh there you are darling," she said as if nothing had happened. "Just in time, could you hold this for me?"

[Silver]

"Huh? Oh yea!" Gyre ran over to help, nearly tripping on his own feet on the way across the room.

"Wait let me…" he set the coffee and donuts he had been holding on a nearby table and reached out to do whatever it was Inspire needed.

"Oh do wipe your hands dear," Inspire said. There was donut icing on his fingers and she couldn't risk getting any on her rare and expensive fabric for the headpiece. He rubbed his hands hastily on his jeans and nodded.

"Now hold this here," she said, "and this here."

[Silver]

Before long he had both of his hands and even one of his legs tied up in the project. He was balanced delicately and holding his breath so that he didn't disturb anything. He had gotten pretty used to it after all of this time helping her with the costume.

"Ah!" he shouted, but he didn't dare move. One of the pins went right into his thumb and he bit his lip so that he didn't shout out again.

"Oh, sorry," Inspire said. She was clearly quite tired and having trouble paying attention to the very fine details.

[Silver]

"When do you think we'll be done?" Gyre asked, trying not to sound impatient. He knew that the festival was going to start soon, and they still had to finish, get everything on, and go down there so they could participate.

"Just a second, darling," Inspire said in her sweetest tone. She really did appreciate all the help he was giving her, but she needed him to be patient just a little longer so that everything was perfect. There was no way she could enter the contest with even a single stitch out of place! He had to understand that.

[Silver]

"Alright I am done with this piece, you can let go," she said, taking a step back to admire her work. This was even more perfect than last year's attempt! She was so proud of herself and what she had accomplished. "Have a donut and take a break, then we can pack it up and be on our way!"

Gyre looked at the piece, then the rest of the costume. Was this everything? Was she sure? He didn't dare to ask lest she changed her mind and tore everything up to start again. He really adored her, but she could be crazy about this stuff sometimes.

[Silver]

Inspire sat down with her cup of coffee which was now barely above room temperature. She sipped it slowly and looked over what she had accomplished. If she was being picky, she might find something she would want to change, but she knew there was no more time. She had to accept it as it was and save up her plans for next year.

"Alright, dear, I think it's time to go," she said as she plonked the paper cup back onto the table. She didn't take a donut.

"Uh, right," Gyre said. He shot to his feet, wiped his hands off yet again, and immediately got started on the parts of the costume they had already packed away.

[Silver]

One by one he fit the various costume pieces into a large suitcase and gently closed it. A little bit of fabric was caught in the hinge and poked out at an odd angle, but Inspire didn't seem to notice. That probably wouldn't be causing a melt down later. Probably.

The rest of the costume had to go on Inspire herself. She would have to wear a lot of it there, and make sure that she didn't get any dirt on it as she traveled to the parade. She excused herself into another room and slipped the clothes she would wear underneath on and came out for help with the rest.

[Silver]

Gyre coughed awkwardly and tried to focus on anything other than the idea of her naked. He blushed a bit and tried to hide it with his arm as he grabbed a bit of the dress laying on the table for her. Since he had helped her sew it, he knew how it fit and that he needed to do the zipper part.

"H-here," he said, coughing again. He held up the fabric at the shoulders as she slid her arms in, then zipped it up the back. Finally, he took a step back and couldn't help but to let out a huge grin at the sight of her. "There's no way you can lose," he muttered.

[Silver]

"Thanks, darling, you've been such a great help all of this time, too. I don't know what I'd do without you!" Inspire pulled some gloves on and double checked that she had everything she needed to go.

"Ah, don't mention it," he said, still blushing. He would do anything she asked, and not just because she was beautiful, either. He was lucky that she didn't intend to take advantage of that... beyond getting him to carry her luggage, that is.

Gyre grabbed both suitcases and looked around the rest of the room. This had to be everything, right? Even if they were forgetting something, who would notice? Inspire would, but she would probably still win the contest anyway, he thought.

[Silver]

The two of them darted from one place to another, dodging people left and right. Inspire could run surprisingly fast for someone in such elaborate shoes! Before they knew it they were approaching the tent, and to his own surprise Gyre even managed to keep up while lugging two huge heavy suitcases.

"Don't worry, everyone, I am heeeere!" Inspire cheered as she burst into the tent. If anything had gone awry, she had completely missed it.

Gyre looked over his shoulder before plonking the suitcases down. "Uh, did you hear that?" he asked. Something seemed weird but he could barely hear it over the sound of his own heart thrumming in his ears from all the running.

[Join the contest.]

[Silver]

Inspire. Was. Furious. She worked so insanely hard on her costume for so long, and now she was denied entry to the contest? How could that be? There had to be some kind of mix up! She was showing a range of emotion on her face all at once that was somewhere between crying and screaming. Gyre pulled the suitcase up near his face as if to hide behind it. He dreaded what would happen next.

Perform together? Inspire hated the idea of sharing the spotlight, but if it was the only way her costume would be seen, then she might just have to give it another thought. She bit her lip and looked down at the beautiful shoes she had picked out and worn all the way here for the occasion. It would be such a shame if nobody saw them...

[Silver]

"Alright, you have a deal," Inspire said. She had to force herself not to sound too bitter. The guy was a bit scruffy, sure, but she had a feeling that with her expert skills and a great deal of help from her assistant, they could whip him up something spectacular. Well, not too spectacular. She couldn't be overshadowed, after all.

"We need to get started on your costume," Inspire said, looking him up and down. She was taking in his build and drawing a costume on him in her mind. "Just your luck, I already have the best Golden Seraph costume here, so you'll make the perfect dragon companion."

[Silver]

Inspire snapped her fingers and pointed at the ground near her feet. Gyre knew what that meant. He waddled over with the heavy bags and plopped them on the floor. He tore them all open and looked up expectantly to see what she said next.

"Ah, good, I brought some extra materials," she said looking up at Auberon to continue getting a feel for his size. "You'll just have to trust me, darling. I'm a professional!"

She pulled a length of cloth out of the bag that she had brought to repair her own costume if it needed it. She would have to do without. She tossed it over Gyre's head and pointed to Auberon's shoulders. "Pin this here, and here," she instructed. That must be simple enough that he couldn't screw it up.

[Silver]

Auberon was a little weirded out by the pushy stranger and her young assistant. It was one thing to perform together, but the way she was looking at him was really intense. Well, at least he didn't have to talk that much. She was doing enough of that for both of them.

"Hey my name's Gyre, and this is Inspire," he said as he pushed a pin through the fabric to hold it in place at Auberon's shoulder. He only narrowly missed stabbing him. "Trust me, she seems a little crazy, but she's really good at this stuff." Gyre whispered that last part as quietly as possible. He really didn't want Inspire to know that he thought she was a little crazy, even if it was technically a compliment.

[Silver]

It was like magic. Inspire used the supplies that were available along with bits and pieces she had stored around, and before long the dragon costume was complete! It was nowhere near as elaborate or detail oriented as her own, but it wasn't the sort of thing a kid would have made in the garage, either.

She took a step back and beamed at her own work. Truly magnificent. "Oh darling you look fabulous! I knew we could make it work. Now, I have a whole dance routine prepared, and luckily for both of us, there's no singing involved. I've got the music ready and everything. Do try to keep up, but if you can't manage... well, just don't get in the way."


[Team up with Auberon and work out your outfit and performance.]