Woman and Man Dancing [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczPJeuUOWyIuFqAc_j2vxZdCbvk06qfLqFwT0DuUbhBptyBQl9j0kKWk_Prktpr8OlEZFe3SFeI_ssEAyf4QWUP8LlO5tBfGYVKbICdgfNtBGA02XBcO2lBiAZo0ea3KcgDyWYtO0I6tGsLG1ZHOFkwx=w639-h958-s-no-gm?authuser=0]
Phoenix was huddled up in her bed under her covers when Saiya found her. She had been concerned that the introvert might have caved to the pressure of her sister along with the woman trying to court her and might be regretting some choices. It seemed like the only choice the little ball of anxiety was partially regretting, however, was agreeing to attend the Soiree with Polissa.
“What has you hiding from the world this time?” she asked as she approached the nebulous bed.
“Dancing, Saiya!” red curls peeked out from under a new blanket, followed by a pair of wide green eyes, “I’ll have to dance! In public!”
“Ah,” she said with a bit of sarcasm, “Well, since I’m already well aware you don’t like doing anything in public, I’m thinking it’s safe to assume you don’t know how to dance.”
Phoenix gave her a flat look and returned her sarcasm tenfold, “Yes, because there were soooo many opportunities to learn to dance while bedridden.” She dove back under the blanket and groaned, “Why did I say yes?”
“I’m guessing because you actually like the idea of going on a date to a party,” she replied. The emerald eyes reappeared to look at her like she was crazy, and she laughed, “Oh, come now Phoenix. You and I both know that you’re going to fret and complain and when you get there, you’ll be a bundle of blushes while secretly loving to finally experience something you were never allowed to have before.”
“Am I really that readable?” Phoenix asked with slight chagrin.
“You know I can cheat at that,” she said with a smile, “You’ve never been great at hiding your emotions, though, which I much prefer, considering how much we see Uriel struggle.”
“I guess that makes sense.”
“You could just send her a message and say you changed your mind. You don’t have to attend the Soiree with all of us, but I know we would love to have you there with us,” Saiya pointed out.
“No, you’re right that I want to experience it… at least be there and see everything. I just don’t want to make a complete idiot out of myself by tripping over my own feet and people laughing at the Saint of the Celestial Pantheon being a complete embarrassment.”
“You don’t have to dance, but I’m fairly certain you can learn. You’re Sapphire Caste, after all. Why don’t you just ask Rayna to teach you? She’s a wonderful dancer, far better than me, though I can do well enough.”
Phoenix seemed to relax slightly from that idea, “You think she could teach me quick enough? It’s less than a week till then.”
“You seem to be a fast learner when it comes to most activities,” she said, not wanting to point out the very slow learning the Wayfarer did in regard to other social situations, “If you want to learn how to dance, then just go learn it.”
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“Seriously?! Stop, just stop,” Rayna said in frustration. They had been practicing dancing for a good two hours already after Dazien got outvoted for training during the end-of-moon festival. Uriel had made plans to meet with Priest Jacob before lunch, and Saiya had decided to visit the Traveler’s Temple.
Their leader decided to finish filling out some of the paperwork he had been planning to get to a bit later while making plans to meet back up with both Uriel and Phoenix later to visit the Temple of the Parent to check in on their little kingdom and see how the new additions were doing.
This left Rayna with the unpleasant task of teaching Phoenix how to dance before the Soiree at the end of the week. Phoenix was struggling with the task, having difficulty keeping up with Rayna’s quick and fluid movements while also getting less-than-helpful instructions, “I told you a dozen times now. It’s a one, two, hyaa, three, four, hyuh. Punch to the left, then a spin kick to the right.”
Phoenix was on the brink of tears as she whined in her despair, “I thought we were dancing, not fighting!”
“Same difference,” the Shatter Bard said with a shrug, “Now, try again!”
“Can we take a break? I think my brain is going to melt trying to think of all these different steps and… swishes at once,” she asked, sitting down on the canvas mat of the training room.
“We haven’t even tried it with music yet, Phoenix. You can’t give up already!” Rayna groaned but sat down next to her anyway.
“Not giving up. Resting,” Phoenix corrected, pulling out some fruit juice from her collection and handing a cup to the bard, who accepted it with a half-hearted grumble.
Temporarily giving in and changing the subject, Rayna asked, “So, have you decided when we’re leaving yet?”
“What?”
“Now that the blood moon’s over, we can go on your quest soon, right?” she said as though it were obvious.
Phoenix blinked owlishly, “I can, can’t I?”
The bard burst out laughing, “Seriously? Did you forget about it? We’ve just been waiting this whole time for that.”
“I didn’t forget about it. I just… have been busy with other things? Besides, Daze said he was going to take care of all the travel arrangements and other stuff since he had been the one to talk with Paul previously. We just haven’t really talked about the specifics yet.”
“Shouldn’t you be a little more invested in your own divine quest?”
“I’m invested! I just— I’m delegating! That’s what a good noble does, right?”
Rayna rolled her amber fox eyes at her and said, “You passed the Bit to Daze so you could read books instead, didn’t you?”
“Presley has a lot of stories available. Did you know there was a whole library in the vessel just filled with books from all over the cosmos? Presley said they were copies of what was available on their main ship, but there are so many fantastic tales!”
“And that just bought you another hour of dance training!” the bard said mercilessly, “You’ve got responsibilities here on Makera to focus on, Princess. Starting with getting through this dance party. Now, break’s over. Try it again.”
With a groan, Phoenix got back to her feet and continued to trip over them.
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Phoenix wearily walked through her portal toward her destination after being mostly mentally exhausted by Rayna’s teaching methods. She had barely made any progress and felt doomed to the ultimate humiliation of falling in public while everyone watched.
As she arrived at the Temple of the Parent, she noticed Dazien already in the side yard playing with a cluster of the children there, carefully lifting them into the air and letting them each have a turn attempting to fly.
Rex was fully manifested and lounging languidly under the large amethyst Gemveil Tree as more children and a small black kitten climbed on top of the large winged lion or hugged his soft golden fur.
Uriel was leaning against the trunk of the Gemveil Tree as he idly petted the Familiar’s shimmery mane and watched his partner from a short distance away.
A child’s squeal of delight caught her attention, and she couldn’t help but smile at the scene where the stalwart protector was playing with toddlers. His normally flirtatious yet dignified disposition was hardly discernible in the snowy yard glittering with violet light from the amethyst tree over their heads. She realized then that despite not wanting Dazien to become a Paladin like Paul, she did believe Daze would make a good father someday.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Her brother looked up as her aura brushed against his in greeting. He seemed to perk up at the sight of her, then waved for her to come join them. This caused some of the children to notice her too as they began shouting “Princess!” or loudly whispered in awe, “The Starlight Phoenix!”
Aside from the ceremony for Dazien’s mom, it had been too long since she had visited the group of orphans just to chat and play. There were a lot more faces that she didn’t remember being there before. She felt her chest tighten when she thought about them being there because she couldn’t save their parents sooner from the Soul Reapers or the monsters that had continued plaguing the tundra for the last ten months.
Dazien frowned at her expression as he walked over to greet her and asked, “Was Rayna really that harsh?”
Phoenix shook herself from her melancholy and hinted at the real reason for it as she softly said, “Yes, but I don’t recognize a lot of the kids here…”
His expression turned to a mixture of understanding and pity as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “It’s the monsters’ fault, not yours or mine. We can’t be everywhere at once, so it won’t stop happening.”
“I know, I just… I wish I could do more.”
He chuckled softly, “I don’t think there’s much more anyone could ask of you. Anyways, what we can do is try to give them a few moments of happiness to help chase away some of their dark clouds, yes?”
She nodded, and he took her hand to lead her over towards the center of the yard, where he introduced the newer kids to the “Starlight Phoenix” they had all heard about, who had summoned the Champion’s Paladin Kara to save their city. Then, to her horror, he added, “She’s been trying to learn how to dance for the big noble party next week. Should we show her how it’s done?”
At the chorus of agreeable cheers, he flashed her a mischievous grin, “Well, Princess, are you ready to learn?”
Phoenix scowled at him and crossed her arms over her chest, which was currently covered by a green dress, “Rayna just tried that for almost four hours.” Her posture bowed as she frowned and muttered, “I’m just not cut out for dancing.”
“I don’t believe that for a second,” Dazien firmly replied, “I’ve seen you dance plenty of times with a pair of swords.”
“That’s different,” she said, giving him a flat look, “This was four hours of me tripping over my own feet to try and do an actual dance because, apparently, I can’t even count properly.”
Dazien gave a soft chuckle, “Rayna’s great, I’m sure, and a phenomenal dancer, but she’s not exactly the best dance partner or leader.”
He conjured the door to his [Armory] and soon returned holding a magical device that would play music from a selection of rectangular metal plates he selected from. Her brother continued explaining as he set up the small device that they would sometimes use for meditation when Saiya wasn’t up to singing, “It’s hard to lead if your follower gets left behind. I think it’s difficult for Rayna to slow down to a less advanced level.”
“Did you just call me slow and less advanced?” Phoenix asked, narrowing her eyes at him as he finished setting it up. The soft music began to fill the chilly air and made the snow feel even more magical to her.
Dazien laughed as he walked over, holding out a hand for her to take, “Do you want help or not?”
She looked at his hand for a moment as if debating with herself, then rolled her eyes and groaned as she gave in, “Fiiiine…”
As soon as she took his hand, he pulled her into his own stride, not bothering with words to try and instruct her. Instead, he simply guided her body with his, pulling her along and gently nudging her into positions.
“The trick is to not really think about it,” he said with a grin, “I know how you can get wrapped up in your own head, sometimes. Uriel’s the same way.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Uriel called out with obvious sarcasm.
“He’s also terrible at lying when he knows I’m right,” Dazien said in a conspiratorial whisper. Then he said at a normal volume, “Just don’t think so much about what you’re doing.”
Phoenix scrunched her nose in frustration as she looked down at both of their feet, “It’s hard to keep track of the steps that Rayna was telling me to do.” As if to punctuate her point, she stumbled with the timing, almost falling as he tried moving her.
Dazien paused only long enough to raise her chin to look back at his eyes, “Don’t. Think. Just look at me and trust me to lead you.”
She flushed slightly, having been caught doing exactly what he said not to, and nodded silently, placing one hand back on his shoulder as he started guiding her again, “Just feel the music, the pattern in the rhythm. Until you become confident in your skill, keep choosing a partner to lead you until you get comfortable enough to lead others yourself.”
Phoenix scoffed, “Not likely.”
He chuckled again and continued to move them. Some of the children that had been watching began to start dancing with each other near them, and Dazien smiled, playfully encouraging the remaining gawkers to practice alongside them instead of sitting and staring at the shy Wayfarer.
“Where did you learn to dance anyways?” she asked after a few more minutes of not tripping over herself.
“A Knowledge Tome,” he replied with a cheeky grin.
“Oh, you cheated,” Phoenix said, rolling her eyes dramatically and giving her own smirk.
“It’s only cheating if it’s against the rules,” Dazien recited, causing her to chuckle.
Then her eyes widened as she finally registered what he had said, “Wait… there are Knowledge Tomes for dancing?!” Phoenix almost wanted to cry as she asked, “Why didn’t Rayna tell me?!”
Dazien looked at her with pity as he explained, “Well, they’re expensive and rare for one, but the Dewsong Clan and most voxen, in general, are notorious for spurning them in lieu of ‘proper learning.’ Of course, Rayna’s going to try teaching you the way she learned or the way she thinks you should learn.”
“Why didn’t you tell me!” she groaned.
He laughed, “I thought you knew about them. You used them for your fighting and magic; haven’t you already raided the Market District for more?”
“You can just buy them?!”
Dazien laughed again at her and placatingly said, “We can go see if they have one for you later,” he added, never pausing their movement as she let him lead her around the yard, “It’s almost Winter’s Break; maybe that can be my gift to you. Uriel got it for me as a gift one year.”
“Why would he get one for dancing?”
“He knew I wanted to be a king,” he replied matter-of-factly with a small shrug, “All the nobles put on grand parties.” Then he added with a grin, “Hence why we’re here now.”
Phoenix laughed, conceding the point, “He’s really all in on you becoming a king, huh?”
“Absolutely,” he replied definitively, “Even if he wasn’t, though, he still would have bought the gift.”
“Why is that?”
He gave a softer smile, “Because he knew it was important to me. He’s always been amazing at that.”
“At what?” she asked in confusion.
“Reading me. Knowing what I want. Then, trying his best to get it for me. He understands how I feel about gifts, like I explained to you earlier, and even though it might not be how he normally shows affection, he understands that’s how I do. It’s like learning to speak another’s language so you can better communicate with them.”
She chuckled at that analogy but continued with it, “So if he doesn’t speak in gifts normally, what does he speak?”
Dazien grinned at her with a mischievous sparkle in his eyes as he leaned in and whispered like it was some closely guarded secret, “Service. He likes to show through actions how much he cares, and I’ll often reciprocate to show him I care in his language as well.”
She thought about that for a while as they continued to move before asking, “Like what? I don’t remember seeing you perform any kind of service for him specifically.”
“That’s probably because it is not for your innocent eyes to see, sweet sister,” he retorted with another grin. “However, the core of it is that actions speak far louder than words or gifts when it comes to our mutual best friend.”
Dazien stopped moving then, surprising her as he turned to look at the subject of their discussion and called over, “Senesh? Why don’t you come practice with the Princess instead? I’m sure you could use some as well before the party since you didn’t get the same magically embedded information that I did.”
He frowned and replied, “I’m not the best teacher.”
“I’ll still teach, but I can do so for both of you at once. Come on, it’ll be fun.”
Uriel stood and moved to take Dazien’s place as her temporary dance partner. They stared at each other uncertainly for a moment before Dazien moved to position them like he had been before. He placed Uriel’s hand on her waist with her hand on a shoulder, and their other hands entwined and away from their bodies.
“I know you can remember the basics enough to lead for now, right, Senesh?”
Uriel’s cheeks seemed to glow in embarrassment as he nodded. Then, he started moving them to the music while Dazien watched and would call out little adjustments as needed.
A comfortable silence fell between them, filled with only the gentle music and the laughter of children. Phoenix had barely been paying attention to her body as they had conversed and as her eyes and mind began to wander back towards her feet, Dazien spoke up once more, “I’m looking forward to the party. We’d never been able to attend before, but the soiree was always highly praised by the nobles who would join my company. Despite your aversion, I hope Noble Teras will be able to help you relax enough that we’ll all have a good time.”
“How did you even hear about that?”
“I think Noble Teras is a bit smitten already and very excited about you agreeing to go with her,” he said as a half-answer.
She scrunched her nose, suddenly realizing that there would be no backing out now without hurting both her friend’s feelings and reputation.
He raised an eyebrow and inquired, “You do want to go with her, right?”
“Um… yes?” she responded as though she was the one asking.
Both men laughed, and Uriel twirled her around once more in time with the music as he pointed out, “You don’t sound very sure.”
“I’m not! This is all new to me!” she retorted, feeling flustered.
Dazien gave a relaxed smile as he moved from their path and said, “All the more reason for you to go and experience it. I’m sure plenty of young scions will want the opportunity to dance with you.”
“Do you think you could dance with me there?” she asked, realizing that Dazien was right and she probably wouldn’t be dancing with only Polissa at the party, “I think I’d feel better knowing you were there to lead and no expectations about changing our relationship.”
He gave her a soft look of indulgence as he replied, “I’ll always dance with you if you ask, Princess, but you shouldn’t turn to your brother for every song. Part of the fun of a party is meeting new people and figuring out if you want to build any kind of relationship in the first place or not.”
Phoenix glanced up at her current dance partner and wondered if her best friend would save her from her anxiety as she hesitantly asked, “Would you want to dance with me?”
Uriel looked at her for a moment, the odd glow of his cheeks becoming subtly brighter against the snowy backdrop of their dancing, and he softly murmured, “I already am.”