Smiles

  -Charlotte-

  It was always the bright sun that shone directly into my face that got me awake each day. I stretched out all six of my arms, running a hand through my hair.

  I sat up, yawning.

  Across the room, Ava and Kira were still asleep, the sunlight that lit up the room casting indirect shadows across their faces.

  I got out of bed and quickly dressed myself before wandering out of the shared bedroom and into the front room. I noticed a paper flyer had been slipped underneath the front door.

  I picked it up and read it while brushing my hair. It contained information about a festival that was going to be held today, in celebration of the harvests and the year’s transition from autumn to winter.

  There would be magic shows, themed food and drink, and competitions and games for the people of the city to participate in. And it said that we students could join too.

  “Morning,” Ava mumbled as she walked into the front room with Kira right behind her.

  “Check this out,” I said, sliding the flyer across the table to her. She picked it up and looked at it, rubbing her eyes.

  “That looks like fun,” Kira noted. “Let’s check it out.”

  “I don’t have anything pnned for today that I can’t move to tomorrow,” I told the two vampires. “So I’m definitely going. You can come along if you want.”

  “Yeah, let’s do it,” Ava said.

  We got ready for the day and set out for the festival.

  As it was still early morning, the school was sparsely poputed, but the streets outside were already filling with people. There were vendors all around, with a huge variety of food, drink, and small trinkets.

  We walked out the front gate of the school and joined the crowd mingling through the streets of the city.

  At first, the vendors were just general ones, but as we followed the bright orange signs that pointed in one direction, they soon became only those of the festival.

  There was a huge market square, one of the biggest in the city, that had been cleared out for the festival activities.

  “There’s so many people here,” Kira noted, clinging to Ava. She looked both nervous and excited at the same time.

  “It’s a festival!” I said joyously. “Of course there’s tons of people!”

  “But it’s so early,” Ava said. “Expin that!”

  “Not everyone likes to sleep in like you two do,” I pointed out. “And besides, the earlier you get here the longer you can stay here!”

  I saw a sign that said in bold, bright letters, “Best Pumpkin Pie in Town”. It had an arrow pointing to a table nearby, where an array of ptes and pie tins were id out. There were also other baked goods strewn about the table.

  “Let’s try it out,” I suggested. “I’m hungry.”

  “Sure, why not,” Ava said. “I don’t think I’ve tasted anything pumpkin before.”

  When we walked up the the table, a squirrelkin man smiled brightly. “What can I get you fine dies this morning?” He asked. “Here’s a menu if you would like.”

  He indicated a small stack of papers that had the different items that he was offering on it. I picked one up and the three of us looked over it.

  “I want to try one of these,” Kira said, pointing to a delicious-looking cupcake topped with orange frosting.

  “We’ll split one, then,” Ava told me.

  “Alright,” I said. “I’m getting a slice of pie.” I turned to the man and said, “One pumpkin cupcake and one small slice of pie, please.”

  “Coming right up!” He excimed, getting the things we requested. “That’ll be five Silver and five Copper.”

  “I can pay,” Ava said, handing me a few coins. I counted out the amount I needed and handed it to the baker. He smiled and gave me two ptes, one with the cupcake and the other with a slice of pie.

  Kira took the first pte and took a small bite.

  “Oh, that’s delicious,” She said. She held it out to Ava, who bit off a small piece from the side.

  “It is,” The other girl agreed, smiling.

  Meanwhile, I ate my slice of pie in silence. The delicate pastry melted in my mouth and the filling exploded with fvor, a perfect mix of cinnamon, pumpkin, and something else I couldn't quite taste.

  After eating our baked goods, we wandered through the festival, trying the wide assortment of sweets as we went. At noon, there was a magic performance in the center of the square.

  It involved a huge dispy of carefully controlled fire magic with twining streams of pretty much every other type I knew of in a beautifully orchestrated show.

  By the time it was getting te and the sun was starting to set, the three of us were finally making our way back to the school.

  Throughout the whole day, I had noticed the subtle ways that Ava and Kira interacted that I couldn't.

  And it was really selfish of me, but I wished I could be with them. I didn't want to get in between their love, but at the same time I really, really wanted to join them.

  As we went back into our apartment, the two vampires turned to face me.

  "Okay, we could feel it all day," Ava said.

  "Huh?" I asked.

  "Come on, admit it," Kira said. "We like you too."

  "Huh!?" I asked again, my cheeks coloring.

  "Oh, for the love of the moon!" Ava cried. She took two of my hands in hers and pnted a kiss directly on my lips. I turned bright red as Ava pulled away.

  "There," Kira said, pulling both me and Ava into a hug. "You know, we could feel your feelings all day. That's what we were saying earlier."

  "Oh," I mumbled, embarrassed but incredibly happy.

  "You're pretty cute when you're flustered," Ava said. "Come on, let's have some fun."

  I nodded and let the two women that I was now in a retionship of sorts with pull me into the bedroom.

  Let's just say, there was only one other thing that happened that day.