Irene knelt beside the canvas bag she'd hauled down from the bluff, her face bright with anticipation as she reached inside.

"Okay! Everyone, circle up. You too, Bruno, put down the rugby ball for five seconds." Her voice echoed out with a teasing smile as she aimed at the rest of the party.

Resa crouched next to her, helping unpack.

At first glance, the contents looked like a tangle of tissue and bamboo, but as the girls set them on the sand. Everyone saw the elaborate lanterns, each one crafted into a different animal.

There were long-bodied dragons painted in red and gold, fish with luminous silver scales, birds shaped like swallows and cranes, even a pair of phoenixes with riotous orange tails.

The whole group gradually drifted in from their various amusements. Suzy jogged up, hair streaming wet down her back, while Nikki and Anna followed, arguing over who had actually won their latest race.

Klein, still shivering, wrapped himself in a towel and sidled over to examine the growing lantern menagerie with wide-eyed curiosity.

Reinhard hung back a moment, watching the others gather, and then wandered in, finding a spot next to Gran and Marie.

Irene held up a dragon. "We need to be careful."

"They're delicate. And if you mess up, it's your luck that sinks to the bottom of the sea."

"Morbid." Jake observed, reaching for a crane.

"Motivational!" Irene giggled.

Kite passed a phoenix to Bruno, who took it in his massive hands with exaggerated delicacy.

"You're trusting me with this?" Bruno asked, feigning terror.

Brunhilde accepted hers, which was a simple snow-white bird without a word, and Reinhard was amused to see her fingers caress the paper wings.

Irene worked quickly, threading and tying the lanterns to their bamboo anchors, then handed out little plates of tea candles and matches.

"On my count." She said, nodding to Resa, who was already striking a match to show the others how it was done.

Tiny flames flared, then settled, glowing through translucent animal bellies.

The transformation was magical. The dragons glimmered as if alive, fish gleamed as though backlit by sunlight underwater, and birds and phoenixes cast wavering patterns across the sand.

They all stood, the lanterns bobbing and dipping as the wind caught them.

Anasha started humming a little tune, something haunting and sweet, and soon the rest joined in with soft voices or whistles. Or in Klein's case, sound effects for the more ferocious-looking creatures.

Irene waited, holding her own lantern aloft, the flame just beginning to warm the air inside. "Ready?" She called.

"Ready!"

"Now!"

A dozen hands opened, and the lanterns leapt skyward, briefly tangling, then separating into a loose constellation of color and light. As the heated air filled the lanterns, they began rising up and swirling to the night sky in uneven but eager flight.

The dragons led, twisting in the air as if they were trying to show their movement; the fish seemed to swim through the air with lopsided grace. And cranes and birds sailed straight, as if remembering how to return home.

The whole group stood silent, necks craned, faces caught in the glow. Reinhard had a faint smile as he looked from face to face of the others. Anna's mouth opened in delighted disbelief, Marie's eyes reflecting the slow-motion fireworks, and Klein hopping up and down trying to keep his lantern in sight.

As the lanterns climbed,

Jake and Kite began a running commentary, narrating the "race" among the animals. "Dragon's in the lead!"

"No way, the phoenix is catching up, look at that tail action!"

"I bet the fish breaks formation and goes solo." Nikki said, and sure enough, one of the silver lanterns peeled away from the group, wobbling over the water.

"Classic." said Jessie, making a mock salute.

When the lanterns neared their apex, the wind shifted, pushing them gently out over the ocean.

The effect was mesmerizing.

A fleet of glowing creatures sailing into the starlit void, their reflections flickering on the low tide. For a while, nobody said anything at all.

The only sound was the hush of the waves, the occasional hiss of burning candle wax, and the far-off laughter of another group of beachgoers, blurred by distance and dark.

Klein pointed upward, voice high with excitement. "That's my dragon! It's beating the birds!"

"No way, look! The snowbird, almost to the clouds," Anasha countered.

They watched as the lanterns, now dots of orange and red, reached the limits of their flight and began a slow, dignified descent back to earth. Some spiraled in gentle arcs while others dropped in sudden verticals, caught by downdrafts or losing their candle power in the thinning air.

One of the phoenixes, its paper tail already singed, made a spectacular dive and vanished beyond the first sandbar.

"Rest in peace, you beautiful Phoenix." Suzy says softly, to general snickers.

As the last of the lanterns hovered near the horizon, the group's attention broke. Anna and Nikki immediately launched into a debate over whose lantern had gone the farthest.

Bruno challenged Kite to a rematch "with real kites, next time" while Gran and Joseph compared notes on the.

Marie, after making sure all the candles were out and no embers remained, wandered toward the tideline with her arms wrapped around herself, watching the stragglers sink.

Reinhard stayed back, studying the faces around. It was the kind of moment he would have scoffed at years ago, a waste of time. Now it felt necessary, just as Marie says, they should mix their life with lots of fun and joy.

He smiled, briefly, then joined the others at the water's edge, feeling the cool sand shift under his feet.

The lanterns reached their peak height, small orange stars among the white ones. Then began their slow descent toward the ocean, still glowing, still beautiful.

But movement down the beach caught their attention.

Other groups had gathered, such as locals and tourists, at the main beach area. Dozens of lanterns were rising from that section, more than they'd released.

And when those lanterns reached their height, they burst open with soft pops, releasing their own water rain.

Reinhard and the others laughed before the beach staff appeared, carrying long spiral tubes that shot pressurized water in wide arcs. They aimed them high, letting the water catch light from remaining lanterns and scattered torches.

The arcs created curtains of falling diamonds.

The staff swept the spirals across the crowd.

Water sprayed over the entire beach, a manufactured rainstorm of celebration. Cheers erupted with people jumping, arms raised, and welcoming the deluge.

Children ran through the falling water, couples embraced beneath the artificial rain, and strangers laughed together.

Reinhard's group joined the celebration, walking into the main beach area. The spiral sprays caught them immediately. Brunhilde's azure dress darkened with water, but she laughed. Marie spun in circles, arms out, face turned upward.

Joseph stood steady, letting water run down his face with a peaceful smile while the little ones shrieked and jumped, trying to catch individual drops.

Vanna's silver hair plastered to her head, glasses dripping, and she had a genuine smile that curved her lips. Gran gave up on his glasses entirely, removing them and accepting the blur while Roana and Nikki held hands, spinning together.

Scáth tilted her head back and held her arms to the night sky as the water passed over her. Reinhard chuckled as he walked through the rain, feeling it coat his hair and white jacket.

The spirals continued, painting water arcs against stars, and the beach enjoyed all of it.

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