The Faire, Part Eight
Part Eight
Audrey and Cassidy had been going to the Renaissance Faire ever since they were kids. Even after outgrowing things like playing make believe, they still enjoyed fantasy when it came to books, movies, and the occasional costume. The Faire only got better when they were teenagers, as they had more freedom to explore without supervision. That meant watching the better (as in, the more mature and explicit) shows, and shopping without feeling self conscious about parents judging their selections.
But since they were teenagers, their interests began branching out in different directions. They still shopped together as sisters, as it was helpful to have a second opinion, but they often divided and conquered for a good portion of the day. Cassidy, for example, would double back to a few shops she had refrained from lingering in since it was clear that Audrey had seen all she wanted to see. And she’d see a show that was happening at the same time as another one that her sister was more interested in. It was just more efficient, and roaming the grounds alone was also liberating in its own way.
Since that was the day Cassidy had expected as a now nineteen year old, she was in for a rude awakening when Audrey decided to be in charge for the day. Committing to the lie that Cassidy was her ‘little sister,’ to Audrey’s obvious amusement, clearly the pink clad girl couldn’t be trusted to walk around all on her lonesome. Someone would think she was some lost tween, and then she’d be right back at the entrance of the park while the staff tried to figure out who she belonged to.
“Then give me my ID,” Cassidy had said.
“You don’t have pockets,” Audrey had replied, without missing a beat, “Besides, look at you. Anyone would just assume it’s a fake or something. Do you want your driver’s license to be thrown away? No? I didn’t think so.”
When Cassidy tried to insist on it, Audrey just said the same thing. ‘Stop freaking out over nothing, sis.’ It was a phrase Cassidy’s younger sister had coined years ago, one that was often thrown around at home to make her look like the bad guy. Since the older sister was supposed to be the responsible one, it tended to look bad when the younger of the two called her out for being immature. Especially since Audrey’s completely unfair growth spurt made it easy for her to be taken more seriously compared to the whining of a petite girl. Also unfair, since said complaining was always because of the buttons Audrey pushed, all while playing dumb and/or innocent about it.
As the hours passed at the Faire, Cassidy submitted herself to being Audrey’s younger sister for the day. At first, she tried to push back on all the patronizing things. Being called ‘Cassie,’ the constant hand holding, and the insistence that she always had to stay in sight even when they weren’t connected. It was humiliating, as a college girl, to be treated like a child. Even worse, everyone seemed to buy it. Standing side by side with a sexy wench with all the height and curves between the two of them, no one once doubted which one of them was the big sister.
Cassidy could already tell the whole day was going to be shot. It honestly would have been better to just stay home. The only highlight of the day so far had been shopping, but even that had been soured by Audrey weighing in more like an authority figure than a sister. Trying to avoid any criticism, as she was already self conscious enough from all the cutesy compliments some vendors gave her, Cassidy begrudgingly went along with everything. She responded to ‘Cassie’ without correcting it any more, she laced her fingers into Audrey’s without argument, and she even sat still for a little face paint–a sparkly pink butterfly on her cheek, to go with the rest of the ensemble.
Whatever show Audrey wanted to see, that’s what they saw. Same with what they ate, though sharing a turkey leg was hardly a meal. Cassidy also ended up holding onto two empty water bottles that she had drank all by herself, as Audrey had fussed about making sure she stayed hydrated. It was a summer day, of course, but it was also cool enough that Cassidy wasn’t too worried. She tossed them out when they eventually found a trash bin, and then Audrey was taking her hand and tugging her towards the next event.
There was a music group that Audrey wanted to see, though Cassidy preferred the kinds of shows that engaged more with the audience. It wasn’t until after their last set that she really regretted not getting a chance to use the restroom before starting the day. Once again, Audrey’s fault, especially since they had already made it to the front of the line that would surely be longer now that it was midday.
“Come on, little sis! The next show is about to start.” Audrey took Cassidy’s hand, “This way.”
“Audrey, wait.” Cassidy held her sister’s hand without thinking about it, but stood her ground and resisted the impatient pull on her arm. “I need to pee.”
“Cassie.” With a squeeze of her hand, and a small frown, Audrey said, “That’s not very appropriate. How would a good little girl say that?”
Fucking brat. But swearing wasn’t the solution. Letting out an annoyed sigh, hoping that Audrey would get the memo that she was pushing her luck and testing Cassidy’s patience, she replied. “May I please go to the restroom?”
“Just hold it, sis. The bathroom is all the way over there, and we don’t have time right now.”
“Then save me a seat,” Cassidy rolled her eyes, “It will just take a few minutes.”
“I don’t trust you alone, Cassie! What if you get lost?”
“I’m not going to-”
“Hush.” Placing a finger to Cassidy’s lips, she gave the petite girl a warm smile. “You’ll be fine. You’re a big girl, aren’t you?”
Lightly blushing, Cassidy nodded. It’s not like she could say ‘no’ to that question, even if the context insinuated the opposite.
“Good,” Audrey nodded, “Then let’s go!”