Autumn's Appetite[Rio, Yuri]

A sheltered noblewoman once, Rio rarely paid any attention to seasonal events. Autumn, winter, spring, and summer... four seasons barely recognized, hardly acknowledged to any memorable degree. Of course, that was the past. Presently, Rio had determined to dictate her life and approach the unknown with unrestrained zeal. One of her servants had informed her of an autumn festival taking place in the Seireitei. As always, expected at this point for an unemployed noble, Rio had nothing of particular note to tend to, nothing to prevent her from enjoying this event to its zenith.

Preparing herself before a mirror in the Shihoin estate, Rio adorned an autumn-themed Yukata that complimented her deceptively attractive figure quite well. There was only one thing missing from the picture. A companion to share the day with. To be certain, it wasn't necessarily required, but Rio definitely welcomed the company. Why spend a day alone in the festivities when she had a blossoming friend group with whom to share it?

She ruminated on it for a moment, contemplating the partner candidates to bring along for the festival. Igen seemed to grow busier as the days passed given his duties as an officer in the first division, and she had only met Nao a few days ago. What about Yuri, then, she wondered. The woman spoke of how determined she was to lead Rio toward brighter days in the future, and she certainly enjoyed her company during the first outing. She supposed it was worth a shot at least, texting the woman through her mobile device as she exited the estate, heading towards the Koyou Festival in the Seireitei.

[Txt]There's a festival today in the Seireitei. Let's hang out if you're not too busy, Yuri.

Fall was such a lovely time of the year for this sort of thing. Plenty of little celebrations and festivals for the changing of the seasons. Honestly if you took a look at the rukongai around fall, chances were that one or more such celebrations would be taking place in one of the districts. So when she received the text from Rio on her device, a playful little smile formed on her lips. She had to admit, even WITH her own little machinations aside. Rio had proven to be quite sociable. She took one look at her phone, and then a glance across her desk at the pile of paperwork she'd spent ALL damn day getting through and decides that she'd earned a little...respite to be sure.

[text]:Sounds like a good time! I'll meet you Outside the Sixth Division Offices. Do you mind if we swing by the shopping district? I don't have a Yukata that fits me.

She sent the message and smiled to herself, promptly getting to her feet and taking the time to promptly finish sorting the last of the stick. One pile for Oju to pick up and take to First Division, and another pile that would go to the Vice Captain's desk for final approval. Both piles no longer her problem. There was a brief moment where she stood there, smiling with satisfaction at her work. Good on you Yuri~

And on that note, she promptly made her way out of the offices to wait outside, a playful little hum spilling from her throat as she took a moment to eye the surrounding area, sharpening her Reikaku as she vaguely wondered just how far out Rio WAS. Honestly she'd been hoping for something like this. A little relaxation, some games, nice food. And a chance to wear something nice and pretty~ Something to stun anyone who recognized her~ Heh, she couldn't wait.

[Txt]: Not at all. Heading over now!

A radiant smile lined the Shihoin's lips as she headed toward the sixth division barracks, employing shunpo to accelerate her stride. Arriving at the Sixth Division barracks, Rio's gaze would wander around in search of her chosen partner for the festival. Thankfully, the search was far from difficult as golden eyes recognized the raven-haired woman immediately. Approaching her with a measure of excitement in her gait, hips swaying about at a playful pace, presenting herself before the woman with a graceful pose, curious to gauge her opinion on the yukata she'd chosen for the occasion.

"I haven't worn one of these in some time, what do you think, Yuri? Time to head off to the shopping district and get you dressed up, too. How've you been since our last outing?"

Yuri raised her brows when Rio came sauntering over to her, popping a brow in curiosity as the woman seemed to be showing off a nice fancy Yukata! Yuri couldn't help but smile slyly. "Well well well, look at you all dressed up. And not looking bad. Got a bit of swagger in your step too I see." She noted playfully, folding her arms and looking Rio up and down to assess the outfit. As expected of a Noble, it certainly was very nice. But she wasn't too bothered by that. Nope. Not at all a bit prickled that she was probably going to get shown up a little. Urgh. The notion of getting something nice and showy promptly died. No... no no no She wasn't losing here. Rio had a nice, autumn-themed outfit. Matching. And accenting the woman's curves for sure. This was no time to be losing her cool. That smile widened just a bit. "My my my, looking to catch a little more than just good times, are we?" She teased, promptly gesturing toward the shopping district and starting to walk that way with Rio. Giving her plenty of time to give explanations for her nice showy attire~

Yuri in the meantime was already planning her move. Trying to be drop dead stunning might not be the look. No, she ALWAYS looked fetching. Perhaps a little...Gap Moe would be in order. Something simple and warm, humble even. Foregoing any notion of sultry elegance for the girl next door look. She could even play up the nice girl act a little.

There was a mixture, or rather a conflict perhaps, between flattery and confusion. She was flattered, of course, by the woman's praise, welcoming the compliment with open arms. What invited confusion was, quite simply, the second comment she made that rattled her a little.

Casting a cursory glance toward her figure, Rio certainly felt as if her outfit was appropriate for the occasion. Was it something about her aura? Her body language? Shaking her head as she hid the shade of pink setting in against her ebony skin. Rio stifled the urge to delve into what she may have meant by that, and simply chose to maintain her playful air, taking the tease in stride as she followed Yuri toward the shopping district.

Her excitement was admittedly a little higher than usual, no doubt, and genuinely found herself intrigued by how their day would unfold, and to see what Yuri picked out. To be honest, spending the day with someone like this beat sitting around in an estate all day with little to do other than talking with the servants. It wasn't a slight to them by any degree, but Rio welcomed interacting with someone whose opinions weren't dictated by hierarchy and obligation.

"Oh, hush. I thought it was a fitting outfit for the occasion, and I thought it fit me quite well. I haven't been to a festival in some time, so my excitement is sky-high at the moment. I appreciate you for taking me up on the offer, too, Yuri."

Yuri waved a hand at that and shook her head dismissively. "Oh reeeeally? You just had THIS little number lying around? It looks like it costs more than my office." She shook her head, still smiling smugly. She was, of course, teasing Rio. Taking a moment to ...eye the woman a bit. Actually, now that she looked at it, no it was just a really nice Yukata. It was Rio's egregious curves that made it seem so ....sultry. Tch. She felt her ego deflate ever so slightly, resisting the urge to look down at her own proportions. But thankfully any thoughts of jealousy were banished as Rio slipped into such earnest appreciation.

Yuri blinked, kinda.....startled. How on earth had Rio managed to not go to a festival in ages? Surely SOMEONE would have invited her? Maybe the woman was more reclusive than she thought. "Eh? Are Festivals really not something you nobles attend? What do you just have private parties instead?" She ventured. No, actually that made a bit more sense. They didn't mingle with the peasants, they probably had ....parties or galas or whatever they were called.

"Still, I'm a little flattered that I'm the first to take you to a festival in such a long time~ Lucky me." She chimed playfully, giving Rio a playful little nudge with her elbow before stretching her arms and starting to walk toward the shopping district. "Still, you must have been to plenty of these in the past. I was thinking about what kind of Yukata I would get. What do you think I'd look good in?" She ventured with a tilt of her head. Giving Rio something to do as she composed herself while they walked.

Rio offered a humorous pout in response to those teasing retorts, but there was no personal offense taken. She actually enjoyed friendly banter between companions. In her eyes, it was the ideal way of increasing a sense of familiarity between friends. For a moment, she wondered how the composedly stoic Rio would've replied to such jests, but paid little heed to it when Yuri inquired about why it such a rare event for the Shihoin to attend a festival.

Rio herself supposed part of it boiled down to being so ingrained within her past philosophy of maintaining the strength necessary to protect and honor her family's name, in a period where her sister simply had no desire to do so. Another part of it likely fell in line with what Yuri surmised. Private celebrations held away from the public eye.

"Part of it was self-imposed, I must admit. I never paid attention to festivals in my pursuit of getting stronger. As I said before, I had a habit of being far too stringent, far too rigid on such a path. Your conjecture isn't incorrect, either. Even when I bit the bullet, I attended private events as a representative of my family."

A soft chuckle would escape her lips as the woman nudged into her, playfully shrugging her shoulders at Yuri's playful comment. Was it really lucky? She simply found the woman personable, unquestionably one who would find an event like this to be enjoyable. Furthermore, she was really curious to see how Yuri conducted herself in such events.

After all, she had an idea of how Igen might react, but Yuri was a complete unknown. Stroking her chin softly, Rio observed Yuri's figure as they walked, in response to the woman's inquiry about her own outfit. As a whole, Yuri looked quite pretty. There was a natural elegance to her gait, to the way her frame moved about as they walked. Her whole air radiated a playful nobility. Rio rose a finger up as if a light bulb had flickered on in her head.

"I think you'd good in something elegant, graceful, something that accentuates the way you move. From the moment we've met, I've always that impression about you, so why not go with that? I can even help you pick it out when we get there... if you want me, to, of course. It's your choice, either way, Yuri," she commented, smiling brightly in the woman's direction as they continued to traverse the district.

Yuri couldn't help but furrow her brows just a little. "That seems a little silly. I don't see how a party now and then would get in the way of getting stronger. Training is important, but so is rest. You're lucky you weren't one of my students or I'd have given you a talking to about that." She noted with a little prod to Rio's shoulder.

All the same, she raised her brows and couldn't help the sly smile that caressed her lips as Rio took the time to give an assessment to what she should wear. No less the logistics once they actually GOT there. Yuri rolled her eyes and sighed. "Oh dear Rio. If I wasn't going to have you help me, I wouldn't have asked you to come along. That said, Elegant hm? We can certainly give something like that a try." She noted as the pair of them made their way into the shop. Graceful and Elegant? She couldn't help but feel a small course of smug satisfaction at the assessment from Rio. Even more, the attention to her figure was nice. She certainly was fond of it. She offered a wave to the shopkeep and promptly made her way toward the back where the Yukatas were.

"Alright now, let's split up. We'll both pick a few that seem nice, then we can go to the fitting room and I'll try a few on. You know how to help someone into a Yukata right?" She ventured. After all, it was usually a bit easier with someone to help, but she was a little curious if Rio was even that familiar with the process. On one hand, she was a Shihoin. But on the other hand, she may have helped other members of the family with theirs. So it was really Fifty fifty in Yuri's mind.

"I don't doubt that for a moment. I'd imagine you would've been rather at odds with me in the past as a student," Rio commented, a light chuckle dancing from the Shihoin's lips. Her unbending work ethic certainly did turn her into something of a steely woman who, while not entirely difficult to approach, only had her eyes set on one thing. It was nice to shift away from all that, truth be told. It made adapting to outings like these far easier.

Of course, Rio was happy to hear that Yuri was receptive to the idea of allowing her to have a hand in choosing her outfit. She got a bit of a prideful aura from Yuri somewhat, but perhaps that was misguided. In any case, Rio would follow the dark-haired woman as they arrived at the shop. Turning toward the woman as she relayed the gameplan, the Shihoin would offer a nod of assent, confirming that she was familiar with helping others into a Yukata.

She had spent the better length of her entire life around women in the Shihoin family. Sure, she was certainly always going a her training with a madman's zeal, but she never let it sway her from helping her family in any way they desired.

"Of course. As much as I wavered on attending events, that certainly didn't stop me from helping any of my other family members. Here's to hoping you'll like what I pick out," she quipped, parting with a playful wink of the eye as she nudged the woman's shoulder and set off into the shop. As she said, she imagined Yuri's figure going well with something that held that natural air of elegance and grace to it, something that could capture the eye without being painstakingly flashy. Yes, Rio would ensure her outfits were too good to pass up. She studied the contours, the fabric, the color, and picked out a few that would be difficult to turn down unless she really preferred what she picked out. Why so confident? She couldn't say for sure. A bit of that competition coming out, perhaps...

Yuri smirked a bit to herself, unable to help but pause and admire the woman as she went to the task with such gusto. Certainly it was interesting to say the least. She usually didn't get to such a position with someone who wasn't a student. She was so used to simply molding people as a teacher. Her authority was the took she often employed. But this was .... new. And she couldn't help but relish the challenge and the mystery of it all. Watching as Rio began looking around, she turned her attention to some of the nearby racks.

A few..... stray thoughts crossed her mind. Musing. There was no rush, after all. For now, she simply smiled and enjoyed herself. Picking a pair of Yukata, slipping one inside of the other and smirking mischeivously to herself. hmph, she was sure that her little trump card would no doubt impress Rio. Though she did find herself wondering just what sort of elegant getups the woman would being about. It was rather fun to enjoy the mystery.

All the same, she made her way toward the Fitting room and waited patiently for Rio to come in with her own picks. She herself had gone with what she'd planned before. There was a fairly plain yukata on the outside. But on the inside? A Nice, homely down to earth pick. A warm rich red, but not quite fancy. It was simple and had a homely feel to it. Just the sort of contrast she was looking to have with Rio's own outfit. But all the same. She planned on trying out Rio's choices first. After all, why not see what she came up with?