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Of Askr’s two Summer Festivals, Hinoka liked this one much more. Though, she supposed that was to be expected - it reminded her the most of home, after all. From the market stalls that were set up each year, to the summer fireworks show each night, it was so close to a Hoshidan festival that she had sometimes been drawn into memories of years past.
It was also a chance to spend some quality time alone with her retainer, as much as that word didn’t seem to accurately describe their relationship anymore. It hadn’t for quite some time, in fact. She and Setsuna were both dressed in simple yukata, fitting for the occasion. Hinoka held her tightly, arms wrapped around her waist. They’d been laying like that for a while now, and Hinoka could hear Setsuna’s gentle snores, with her head resting on her chest. She smiled. No, ‘retainer’ didn’t fit their relationship at all.
But it didn’t really need to, either.
Hinoka looked up for a moment, then ever-so-gently shook her retainer’s shoulder. Enough to wake, but not startle.
“Setsuna?”
Setsuna stirred. “Hm?”
“I think we still could’ve had an afternoon like this outside of a pit trap.”
“You’re only saying that because you fell in after me.”
“Because I was trying to help you!” Hinoka let out an exasperated groan, looking back up at the sky. Or rather, as much of the sky as she could see, from their place a few feet into the ground. The day was quite pleasant, with not a cloud in sight. And here they were, stuck in the underground shade, unable to enjoy even a single ray of sunlight.
“Who even bothers digging a pit by the festival? What were they supposed to catch?”
“Giant crabs, I bet…” Setsuna’s voice had the same airy quality as it always did, and when she followed it up with her little laugh, Hinoka was equal parts swooning and annoyed. For such a sweet, kind, pretty woman… sometimes, Setsuna was awful at reading the moment. Perhaps nothing made that more obvious than her turning this whole fiasco into an hour of cuddling.
Hinoka’s thoughts were interrupted by Setsuna staring at her.
“…What?”
After another moment, Setsuna burst into a snickering fit. Some part of her must have felt the indignant glare from Hinoka, because she then said, “It’s just that your hair is red, your yukata is red, your eyes are red… I guess whoever set the trap caught that giant crab after all!” She laughed again.
“I-Wh-You…” Hinoka stumbled over her words for another moment, which certainly didn’t keep Setsuna from her giggles. “Well, what does that say about you?! You fell in here first! I only— I only slipped on a rock trying to pull you out! So what about that?”
Setsuna giggled again, brushing a bit of her hair out of her eye. Without missing a beat, she followed up with “Crab bait.”
Hinoka stared at her for another moment, then felt herself burst into a fit of giggles. “You’re impossible,” she said through a smile, before drawing her closer to her chest once more.
She often struggled with saying it, but this was part of what she admired so much about Setsuna, and part of what had drawn her to her retainer in the first place. No matter what the situation was, no matter how dire things seemed, she was always able to find a sliver of humor in it, able to find a way to smile. Some who didn’t know her well called it naiveté, but Hinoka knew better. It was her way of making these things a little easier to tackle. And sometimes it rattled Hinoka. When they’d first met, it was infuriating. But over time, it had become a comfort. A reassurance that things weren’t so bad.
“…But really,” Hinoka eventually muttered. “Who digs a pit here?”
“Who knows,” Setsuna said in her dreamlike voice. “Enemy forces? Some hunter?” Her shoulders moved in an approximation of a shrug. The real thing was difficult, with how tangled the two of them were.
Hinoka closed her eyes and let the air remain still for a second longer, content to rest before she went about getting the both of them out of this pi-
“My, my, what beast left these droppings?”
Hinoka’s eyes flew open.
There, standing at the edge of the pit, looking down at the two of them, was Azama. His eyes were closed, and he had that usual smug smile on his face. Right now, Hinoka was feeling a mighty urge to punch it. If only she wasn’t in this damned pit-
Realization and rage flew across Hinoka’s face in rapid succession. “Azama!” She did her best to separate from Setsuna, to better yell at her other, decidedly less beloved retainer. “Did you dig this blasted pit?”
“Why, my lady Hinoka, I’m hurt!” Azama put his hand to his robed chest in mock pain — of course he was dressed for the festival — and shook his head. “I would never do such a thing, no matter how funny the sight is. I’m simply taking it all in.”
Setsuna laughed again, while Hinoka began to scramble, her hands trying to find some kind of purchase on the dirt walls of the pit. “You- lower a rope, or something! Help us get out of here!”
“Oh, you look like you have things well in hand, Lady Hinoka,” Azama said. “I’m off to buy some dango. Don’t wait up, you two!” And with that, he disappeared into the parts of the sky Hinoka still couldn’t see.
At least that meant he didn’t see when the dirt gave way under Hinoka’s fingers, and she fell right on top of Setsuna. The latter let out an “oof” at the impact.
“It’s a good thing you’re smaller than me,” Setsuna said. “That might have hurt.”
“You…” Hinoka sighed, and began to lean on Setsuna now. “I guess we just have to wait now.”
“Someone will come help us, I’m sure,” Setsuna said, now wrapping her arms around Hinoka’s waist. “Any moment now.”
Hinoka closed her eyes. At least this was a nice place to be stuck, she thought.
Setsuna closed her eyes as well, silently thanking Azama for not telling Hinoka that she’d dug this pit in the morning.
After all, what was the harm?