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Momo slipped through the door and made her way down the hallway, trying to make the clicking of her heels against the floor as quiet as possible so that none of the staff would be alerted that someone had strayed from the ballroom. When she stepped out into the garden she breathed a sigh of relief, appreciating the crisp night air, and slipped her heels off, letting her bare feet touch the mud and grass. She had always hated attending balls and parties, and from a young age she had learned out to sneak off to the garden in the middle of one without being noticed (for the most part at least). But with this ball she had an even stronger desperation to get out than usual. Now that she was of age, her parents expected her to find a prince to marry in order to form a new alliance (though there was no doubt that her parents were hoping that she’d take a liking to Prince Shoto Todoroki, considering his kingdom’s size was second only to Toshinori Yagi‘s). And so she was expected to dance and talk with all her potential suitors.
Momo made a face to herself. Even just thinking back to it made her feel uncomfortable. But it wasn’t as if she hated her suitors per se, they had all acted very kind to her and made for very nice guests, but something about the whole ordeal had just made her feel off.
During the whole thing she had found herself wishing that she could have been up on the castle rooftops with Mina, where despite there being much better places to talk, the rooftop felt like a sacred place after so many nights and so many conversations spent there. She knew that Mina was most likely inside the ballroom right now, but she would be standing along the wall dressed in full armor as is her duty as a newly appointed knight. And people would be suspicious if they saw the princess spending the whole night by the side of a royal guard.
Momo sighed again, and took a step to go deeper into the garden when she heard someone clear their throat behind her. She wiped her head around and was stunned to find Mina, still dressed in full armor besides the helmet she now held at her hip. Mina giggled “I thought I’d find you here.” Momo looked at her, confusion written all over her face. “Ah right, you probably didn’t think to find me here, huh? Well, the queen noticed that you weren’t in the ballroom so she asked for a guard to go look for you, and I volunteered since you’ve told me you come here a lot to get away from all the commotion during balls.”
Momo smiled “I did tell you that, didn’t I?”
“Mhm! And you’ve also told me about the first time you rode a horse and you were so nervous that you-“
“Yup! I did and I regret it but since we both know it it would be kind of pointless retelling it, wouldn’t it?” Momo cut Mina off, knowing she was just poking fun but man did she regret telling her that story.
“Hm, I suppose you’re right.” Mina grinned, stepping forward and looping her arm with Momo’s. “How about you show me the garden instead? I don’t think I’ve ever seen it at night.”
Momo felt her heart flutter and dearly hoped that Mina couldn’t see her blush in the the moonlight. Even if her arms were covered by her dress and Mina’s arms were covered by her armor, they were still touching in a way that set Momo on fire in a way that she both hated and loved. Because she had finally accepted why her heart had been beating faster when talking to Mina and how casual touches no longer felt casual, but now she didn’t know what to do about these newfound feelings (though she knows that these feelings aren’t technically new, she had been feeling them for a long time). She knew that Mina couldn’t feel the same, and even if by some miracle she did feel the same way, Momo was still expected to find a prince to marry by her 21st birthday.
Mina must have noticed the distress on Momo’s face because she stopped and stood facing Momo, holding onto one of her arms “Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” Looking into Mina’s concerned eyes, Momo felt backed into a corner. She didn’t want to lie to one of her best friends, but there’s no way she could tell her the real reason she was so upset. Momo looked away, hoping that if she didn’t respond Mina would drop it. But like the good friend she is, Mina persisted. “Are you still feeling overwhelmed? Was the music louder than normal? Did you have something weird to eat? Do you feel sick at all?” Mina interrogated her, and Momo gently shook her head each time, smiling slightly at how much she cared about her. Mina’s eyes lit up and she snapped her finger as best she could with her gloves on “I bet it was the princes! They were probably all snobby and boring weren’t they? I bet half of them couldn’t even dance properly! Did one of them step on your feet?” Mina gasped and wrinkled her nose, leaning closer to Momo and fake whispering said “Did one of them smell?”
Momo let an involuntary snort out, which then evolved into a fit of giggles, that Mina joined in on as well. Momo leaned into Mina for support, waiting for them both to calm down before she spoke. “No Mina, they weren’t any of those things,” She paused when Mina shot her a look “except maybe just a bit boring.” Momo finished.
Mina shrugged “I dunno, some of those guys seemed like pretty poor dancers. I know I’d make a better dancing partner than any of them.”
Momo cocked her head “Oh really?”
“Yup! and I can prove it! Here let me just-“ Mina discarded her gloves and tool one one of Momo’s hands, and let her other arm rest around Momo’s waist. Momo felt that fire coursing through her veins and let her body move on instinct as she rested her free hand on Mina’s shoulder and Mina began to lead her through a dance. Despite the lack of music, they found an easy rhythm as they moved, their eyes locked on each other. Mina was right. She was a significantly better dance partner than any of the princes she had danced with that night. Momo lost herself in Mina’s brown eyes, and she swore they looked golden in that moment.
As a final move, Mina led Momo into a dip, both of them breathing heavily, foreheads pressed together. As Mina held her in that position for a moment, she let her eyes stray from Mina’s eyes for the first time since they started the dance, and let them land on her lips instead. Momo found herself desiring nothing more than to be able to kiss Mina. To be able to see for herself if her lips were as soft as they looked. She was debating on whether she should take the risk when all of a sudden she didn’t have to make that decision anymore. Mina had leaned in just enough for their lips to brush together, and Momo feels as if a fire had gone off in her blood. As Mina was about to pull away, Momo surged forward and connected their lips once more. Mina’s lips weren’t as soft as they looked, in fact they were fairly chapped, but Momo found it intoxicating. She moved her hand from Mina’s shoulder to her face, deepening the kiss. Momo had never felt more alive in her life.
Mina broke away first, and brought Momo back up into a standing position, her own hands moving to Momo’s face, gently holding it in her hands. Momo stared at Mina, only able to process how beautiful Mina looks flushed and out of breath with only the Moon illuminating her, and how her lips still feel on fire. They simply stare at each other for a moment, both awestruck.
“I’ve wanted to do that for so long” Mina whispered, afraid to break the moment the had created.
“Me too,” Momo whispered back, “Me too.”