A Very Fluffy Meeting

My first time visiting Valenoir was probably an enjoyable one. Just a few months prior to me going back to Elurra for the holidays and the New Year's Festival, I was fond of looking for more cute attires to wear for the next year. I looked around and found a cute shop, I decided to stop by and take a look at anything that could be of my interest, however, nothing convinced me so far, but a few clothes that had a cute aesthetic, but sadly, the colors didn't fit me at all. After a good time looking, I was wondering why no one had came yet to attend me, however, I didn't mind much as I was distracted with looking for more clothes. Later on, I found a really cute, and fluffy beret, so I decided to take it off the "mannequin" and try it on myself, it fit me perfectly! However, I heard a little shy voice whispering shortly after "H-Hey... that's my b-beret...! Can you give it back, please...?" I looked around the shop to find a bear girl hiding behind the clothes. I deeply apologized for the misunderstanding and started to think I probably did a mistake for not entering the shop without proper permission. "Um... May I see who you are, please?"—I asked—she tried to think about it for a little longer than I expected, but after she made her decision, she breathed in deeply and shyly walked towards me. After seeing her from head to toe, I was in shock, she was probably one of the cutest Annies I have seen in my life! She had such charm in her clothes, and her blushy face reminded me when I was younger. I couldn't contain but to compliment her about her clothes, her face and her fluffy ears; each compliment made her blush more and more, to the point she covered her face in shame. I was in awe, she was the most precious and shy girl I ever met in my life. A while later, I asked her about if she had any clothes that I could like, sadly none were my size or color, but a two-piece swimsuit with a high-waisted bottom, a transparent fabric skirt, clam-shaped bras, pearly and many more! Honestly, I never went to a tropical town before, not even this year, so next year probably could be the year that I would be able to show off my body at the beach—despite me being highly conscious of my looks—. She quickly went enthusiastic, but still conserving her shy nature; looks like she is very passionate about her job that it made her really happy to have a client! After trying it on, I decided to keep it and pay the little bear girl and invite her over an inn, as I was going to stay the night over, she didn't accept, but invited me to her home, instead! I decided to accept, we went to her home and stayed there, we didn't talk much, but I was able to open to her a little bit more, looks like I've made a new friend!

The next morning, I woke up early and gathered ingredients to make her a little cake as a sign of thanking her for being so kind to me. When she woke up, I received her with a hug and invited her to eat the cake, fortunately, it was still warm and enjoyable! As soon as she tried it, her cheeks went red and a face of joy covered her, that evoked such warmth in my heart… the feeling was satisfactory, but unexplainable. After she finished, I smiled to her and she smiled back, she was very pleased with the cake I made for her so I invited her to come and explore the town with me, she was kind of nervous about it, and denied my request, I insisted, but she still denied it. I got really disappointed about it, so I decided to take my things and leave, however, there was one thing I forgot to ask her… 

—Hey, may I know your name?"

—"I-It's Maríe... what's yours?"

—"It's Mimi! I hope I can see you again the next time I come around Valenoir!"

Before I closed the door, I got interrupted by her voice.

—"Wait!"

—"Hm? Maríe? What's wrong?"

—"I... um..."—She was trying to express what she wanted to say but I couldn't quite understand what she meant...—"p-please take me with you!"

I was able to see the courage it had to take for her to say that, she was being serious about it. The result was a very warm smile from me and a slight blush. "Very well, Maríe! I'll take you and We'll explore Valenoir together!" I held her hand carefully and left my stuff at her home, since I decided to stay a couple days more to explore the beautiful town. We went to most places of interest, we met many Annies in the way, such as Felicity! We had such a fun time together it didn't felt real, but it was.

After a week, I decided to part to the next town, I took my stuff, I kissed Maríe on her forehead and went my way, but before, I told her about Elurra.

—"Elurra is the northernmost town over Aster, there will be a celebration for the new years and I'd love you to be there, don't worry, I'll make you some cute and comfy clothes so you can resist the extremely cold temperatures of my town. I'll see you there, please don't miss it."

She was fulfilled with joy and accepted my petition, I waved to her, she smiled and waved back, but that smile wasn't just a simple one, it was one filled with joy and happiness to know she found someone she could be friends with, however, I felt different, I felt a very comforting warmth on my heart, I felt fluttery and so filled with joy... could I be in love? Most likely.

After that day, I sent her letters every so often, and after coming back to Elurra, I made her some comfy clothes and sent them to her, I also made her a kimono, but that one was going to be a surprise for when she comes over to the festival.

"There's just a couple days left until your arrival, I hope you're doing ok, Maríe.

Best wishes,

Mimi 💙"