Gift: Celes and Leila's Carnival Date

Summary: Celes the slime girl and Leila the lamia have a fun date at the carnival. An anniversary gift for AltrixWrites

[Story Listing]

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"Wow, the carnival's awful crowded today..." Celes muttered with a mix of awe and concern, her indigo eyes scanning the throngs of people.

"It's Couple's Day, so... I-I think they had some kind of promotion." Leila tilted her head. "I dunno if this was a good idea. What if people gawk at us?"

"Mm... they can gawk all they want. I'm here to have fun." Celes linked arms with Leila, cozying up to her in turn. This elicited a fierce blush from Leila, her eyes drifting around.

"B-But am I even gonna fit on any rides? I'm, ah... kinda on the broad size of things."

"Ahhh, there's more to do at a carnival than go on rides!" Celes beamed. "They have all these crazy concession stands, and I know you got a sweet tooth~"

"...I-I am a little bit peckish." Leila admitted with a weak smile.

"Part of the fun is seeing all the weird and insane food items they come up with! They'll put anything on a stick and deep-fry it if you let them." Celes smirked.

"Wouldn't we just get really fat on that kinda thing?" Leila wondered, frowning slightly.

"Ah, I've been good. It's a special occasion after all! It's our first anniversary!~" Celes squeezed Leila's arm tenderly.

"Uwah!" Leila squeaked. She grinned bashfully, the tip of her snakelike tail wriggling anxiously. "I-I guess we can... we can indulge ourselves a bit."

"Ooh, ooh, we can check out the midway!" Celes was getting herself pumped up, her hair tendrils flailing in turn. "I wanna win you a prize!"

"Oh right, they have games there!" Leila's eyes lit up momentarily. Though as she thought about it more, she tilted her head. "But... carnie games are supposed to be scams, right?"

"Mmmm... yeaaaaaaah..." Celes folded her arms. "...But I guess that makes it a bit more exciting? When you're playing with the odds stacked against you and win, it gives you an adrenaline rush!"

"Is that how you think..." Leila rubbed her chin. "Well... remind me not to let you go into a casino in the near future."

"W-What? Heyyy!" Celes sputtered with a pout. "I'm very responsible with my money..."

"Hehehe!" Leila chuckled, clapping her hands, before extending her palm to Celes. "Let's take a look at what they have to play..."

The rows of booths on each side, each displaying colourful, gaudy stuffed prizes for all to see, definitely drew the eyes of customers. Leila seemed taken in by the particularly enormous prizes; there was a giant pink teddy bear the size of Celes herself at a few of the booths!

"Ooh... oh my... some of these don't look too bad." Leila folded her arms, taking in the sights.

"Aaah, be careful. That's where they get you." Celes cautioned Leila. "They make these things look more fair than they actually are. Some of these look like all you need is skill, but they're total crapsh- ...total luck."

Celes blushed slightly. Leila nodded.

"Ahhh, I see..." Leila' mouth flattened. "It seems there's more... strategy to these games than I thought."

"My brothers and me would all go out together, and we put our heads together to solve them!" Celes beamed. "Some are a little stacked, but with enough elbow-grease... ah, I see just the ticket!"

Celes pointed to a booth to the left; metal bottles were stacked in pyramids of six. A man was already tossing some softballs at the center stack, but...

CLANG! Even with a direct hit to the center, they barely seemed to wobble. Leila's eyes widened, wincing with the harsh sound.

"O-Oh my... th-that guy was dead on, wasn't he?"

Celes tilted her head with a nod. "Weighted bottles... but I think I can manage. See anything you like, Leila?"

"Ah?? U-Um..." Leila's eyes narrowed, scanning the hanging prizes. "...Th-The swan looks cute. And plush..."

"Consider it done!" Celes was already hurrying over to the booth, fishing for her wallet. "I want three balls!"

"You're really taking initiative on this whole thing, aren't you...?" Leila folded her arms, watching Celes take an armful of balls.

Celes felt the weight of the ball. She squinted, holding it straight...

"You gonna throw it or what?" The man running the booth placed a hand on his hip, shooting Celes with an impatient glare.

"...Mmmm..." Celes stuck her tongue out, gesturing to the side. "...Y-You should think of stepping, aaaahhh, three paces that way. I don't want you to get caught in the crossfire."

"...Pfft, alright, weirdo." The carnie played along, stepping gingerly away.

"Oh! She's gonna bring out that trick!" Leila realized, clasping her hands together. She stared at Celes' arms, watching the right arm clutching the baseball grow in size. As if it was swelling with well-conditioned muscles and ligaments right before her eyes.

Of course, this didn't escape the carnie's watch. He grimaced, realizing he probably made a mistake. Celes wound up her arm, aaaaaaaaand...

CRASH!! Whipping a fastball at blistering speeds, Celes hit the dead center of the bottles, sending them clattering in all directions!

"Criminy, miss! You're gonna dent my cans! They're a family heirloom!" The man spat, shaking his head. "Just... just take whatever you want."

"Heheh, easy!~" Celes winked. "Grab the swan for me. The light blue one."

"Yaaaaaay! You did it!" Leila clapped gingerly, bouncing giddily on the base of her tail. Celes hurried over to her, prize in hand.

"Hey, I got two more balls. You wanna try?" Celes offered the two remaining balls in her grotesquely mutated hand.

"Ah, well... sure! Why not?" Leila smiled, taking one in each hand. She slithered over to the counter, towards a fresh pyramid. She lined up her shot, like Celes did...

...and completely whiffed the toss. It sailed a foot off the mark, pounding against the backboards.

"...oh." Leila blinked. She looked at her remaining ball. She tried tossing it underhand for a bit more accuracy. But that one merely pinged off the bottles, bouncing out of sight.

"...ohhhhh..." Leila frowned.

"You wanna buy more balls?" The carnie muttered. "S'long as you don't pass them off."

"No... no, I'm good." Leila rubbed her arm. She returned to Celes with a somewhat forlorn expression, taking the swan from her arms. She looked it over, staring into its button eyes with a smile.

"Thank you for the gift, Celes. It's really a cute thing." Leila cushioned it against her chest. "I'm sorry I couldn't win one for you too..."

"...Ahh..." Celes didn't like seeing Leila so sad from a second ago. She smiled reassuringly. "It's okay! This one's kind tricky to aim the ball. It takes practice, so..."

"Of course." Leila nodded. She was determined not to let this setback sour the mood more. "We can put our money towards food anyway~"

"Yeah, exactly!" Celes nodded. "Let's head over to the concessions, they got a ton of weird stuff!"

The two of them stuck close together, Leila squeezing her swan. Her eyes wandered around the carnival, taking in the other fun booths.

Her wandering eyes settled on a giant teddy bear, hanging from the booth of similarly enormous stature. Narrow rope bridges were tied up diagonally, and some folks were already trying to climb all the way to the top.

"Omigosh, I saw that one before!" Leila pointed out the teddy bear. "Look at the size of that thing!"

"...Wow, it's huge!" Celes' eyes widened. Her eyes lowered to the game offering it up. "...Ohhh, it's that game."

"Eh? Is it hard?" Leila turned to Celes. "It's just a rope bridge you have to climb, right...?"

"It's reeeeeeeally tricky. You see how it's only tied on one end for each side?" Celes pointed it out. "It's a lot harder to maintain your balance..."

One man teetered precarious, flailing his arm. Soon he was hanging by one arm... and then by one finger, in futile resistance to gravity. Letting go, he fell several feet to the ground with a cushioned thud. The girls winced from a distance.

"They use big prizes to tempt people." Celes explained with a grimace. "It's possible, but-"

"I wanna give it a try!" Leila beamed, pumping her arms.

"Eh? But..." Celes looked over Leila's enormous, serpentine body. This particular game wasn't designed for lamia.

"I got an idea! I think it'll work." Leila nodded. "I really wanna see if I can't win you something in return. Even if I'm not as strong, or coordinated..."

"...You know what, I think you can do it." Celes warmed up to the idea with a soft smile. "Let's talk to the guy running it. Hey, mister?? My girlfriend wants to go for a climb!"

A bearded man watching over the people trying their luck glanced over to Celes and Leila. His eyes drifted from Celes, to Leila... then over to her tail. Then back to Celes again.

"...Pfffffffft." The man couldn't stop himself from snickering. "Alright, pay the fee. This I gotta see."

Celes scowled, fishing for her wallet. She leaned over to whisper into Leila's ear. "Don't listen to him, Leila. Just try your best."

"...O-Okay." Leila was suddenly having second thoughts about this, but now all eyes were on her. She would just have to go through with her plan.

Leila slithered to the bottom of an unoccupied rope bridge, testing its tensile strength. She lowered her body flat against the bars, feeling herself sway back and forth. She tried to pull herself along, but the further towards the center she crept, the less easy she felt about advancing. It was like she was walking along a tightrope with her whole body...

...But Leila had a secret weapon. Or rather, a rather obvious weapon, but used in an unorthodox way. She glanced back to her snake-like tail; she carefully wrapped it around the rope bridge, tighter and tighter.

Leila was looking more and more wobbly, swaying anxiously as her tail wrapped. Celes gasped as it looked like Leila was about to fall!

"...W-Whoa!"

After a few loops, Leila felt the bridge spin to the left. She clutched the wooden bars, trying not to fall off... even as her backside faced the ground. And yet, she was snug; the powerful muscles in her tail were wrapped around the bridge; the muscles in the trunk of her tail kept her torso close and pressed against the bars.

Leila raised her head, seeing the floor above her. The rope stopped swaying for a time; and yet, Leila was holding on!

"ALRIGHT! You go, girl!" Celes fistpumped, cheering Leila on. The bearded operator jaw dropped, astounded that the young girl hadn't let go after that!

"...O-Okay. I'm right where I wanna be..." Leila crawled forward, using the strength in her serpentine muscles to pull herself along, wrapping herself around the length of the rope bridge. Inch by inch, she pulled herself along, her tail slipping along behind her.

It was taking forever, but there wasn't a time limit. Leila was using her massive, long body to give herself leverage, control, and security. She ascended higher and higher until...

Dingalingading! She reached forward, ringing the bell at the end.

"YAAAAY! You did it!!" Celes clapped her hands, bouncing up and down.

"Now I have to... unwrap myself, and... oh, whoa, whoa!"

As Leila carefully unravelled herself, her torso slipped free, facefirst towards the cushions.

"...Oop!" But it was Celes that rushed to her rescue, catching her by her shoulders. Leila dangled from the bridge, the tip of her tail still caught between a few bars.

Leila blushed slightly, looking aside. "...N-Nice catch." She grinned bashfully.

"You did that on your first try!" Celes beamed. "And no practice, neither! How'd you figure it out?"

"Aaaah, I just... do what comes naturally." Leila smiled, prodding her fingers together. With a few more wiggles of her tail, it fell free of the rope bridge with a soft thud. Leila reared up, dusting herself off, as she turned to the operator. "Um, I would like the-"

"Nope." The operator shook his head. "That's cheating is what you did."

"Cheating??" Celes blurted. The two girls looked aghast for a moment, but it was Celes who was quickly gearing up to go to bat for her girlfriend. "Now listen here, her feet never even touched the ground! No part of her ever touched the ground! Read your own sign, the rules are right there!"

"She don't have feet to begin with! Can't let freaks dodge the rules like they own the place!" The carnie blurted. "And besides that, you... you... urgh..."

The man visibly relaxed all of a sudden. His posture swayed unsteadily, as if he was suddenly inebriated. His face went slack...

"Freak!? You can't go and say things like... like... huh?" Celes trailed off, squinting as she leaned closer. His eyes took on a strange, yet familiar quality; vibrant patterns of blue, yellow, and red pulsated, replacing the whites of his eyes with a kaleidoscope of colour.

Celes glanced to Leila, her eyes flashing the same colours; a determined scowl crossed her face.

"I'll ask one more time. Can we have the grand prize, please? The one we earned." Leila commanded her with calm authority.

"...Yeah... you earned it..." The carnie muttered robotically, his body stiffly moving towards the giant teddy bear. He unlatched it from its hanging position, proudly on display for all to see, and he shoved it into Leila's arms.

"...Awww, thank you!" Leila beamed, her eyes returning to their normal, vibrant blue. She lowered herself. "Let's make a trade, Celes."

"...Oh! Yeah." Celes nodded, presenting Leila with the swan she was holding. Celes struggled to get the right grip on the enormous stuffed doll. Her mind was a little distracted on something else.

"Leila, you hypnotized him, right?" Celes tilted her head. "I-I know you don't like doing that sort of thing, but-"

"He was being a jerk." Leila frowned. "I think... I won the prize fair and square. And it was for your sake. I-I think it's... it's okay."

Leila tilted her head with a reassuring smile and a giggle. "I didn't wanna cause a scene about this."

"Ahhh... well, thank you, Leila. This is... amazing." Celes clutched the teddy bear closer. "This is turning out to be a great date after all!~"

The girls shared a laugh together, clutching their prizes.

"...Heh heh... heh..." The carnie laughed along in a creepy manner. His eyes were still flashing those vibrant colours. The girls paused, glancing over to him.

"...He's still zonked out." Celes grimaced.

"H-He'll be fine! I just... gotta snap my fingers, that's all!" Leila smiled reassuringly. "And then he'll be back to normal, but..."

Leila glanced down the midway. She glanced both ways.

"...Maybe it'd be better if you hurried off with your prize. He might have... opinions when he comes to." Leila glanced back to the man.

"A-Ah. Good call." Celes nodded, clutching the teddy bear close and hurrying away. "I-I'll meet you in concessions!"

"Yeah! I'll be right behind you, just gotta..."

Snap!

---

"Wow... what a view."

The girls shared the top carriage of the ferris wheel together. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, especially for someone like Leila. Her tail had to wrap around the seats, coiling around Celes to hold her close. The dolls were squished to make room for the two girls, holding each other close as they watched a romantic sunset falling across the carnival below.

"We're two hundred feet above the ground, Leila." Celes replied with a smile. "You can't get a view like this anywhere else."

"The weather's perfect too." Leila cooed, coiling up a little more snugly around Leila. Their chests were pressed against one another; they were basking in each other's tender warmth, sharing an intimate moment together, alone from prying eyes. Celes turned to Leila with a smile.

"I had my doubts, but... this was a fantastic day, Celes." Leila smiled. "...I'm glad I got to spend it with you."

The girls shared a kiss together, their lips locking. Leila loved the taste of Celes' lips; they tasted sweet, like licorice, and the aroma that permeated Celes' whole being was like walking through a rose garden. Minus the thorns, of course.

Celes pressed her body against Leila in turn, her malleable body smooshing against the crevaces of Leila's chest. Her hair tendrils extended, coiling around Leila's long ponytail, as the slime leaned in hungrily.

"Heheh... C-Celes..." Leila chuckled with Celes enthusiasm. "You're gonna make the cabin rock."

"...Eheh... I-I got excited." Celes blushed. "I guess we can just... let it all out when we get home."

"...How long has the ferris wheel stopped for, exactly?" Leila looked out the window again.

"Ten minutes? The view's nice. I don't mind." Celes replied, squeezing Leila's shoulders. "It means we get to enjoy it together that much longer."

"But what if we have to go to the bathroom?" Leila blinked.

"...I'd rather not think about that too much." Celes chuckled nervously. She settled for resting her head against Leila's shoulders; neither wanted to allow an inch of free space between them.

Together, they watched the bustle of the crowds below, the low tinny dins of music rising up to meet them. There were balloons, performers, the big tops in their most vibrant colours. And beyond the circus, the Agnes skyline, impressive against the orange, sunset backdrop.

A perfect end to their anniversary date.