Prompt 4 - The Meaning of Dance (Closed)

[Soll]

"Dancing, you ask? I've been dancing for almost my entire life, it's a big part of me." Verin smiled widely at the question from the young kalon in front of him, he was happy to talk about one of his favorite activities. "Dancing to me is kind of an escape from all of the things happening around me, it gives me time to think by myself and let out all of the energy within me. Dancing is an art, my favorite type of art actually. There are so many things I can say about dancing, but I think to sum it up I could kind of just say dancing is.. powerful.." Verin continued, his body a little bit less tense now as he started to warm up to the environment around him and the kalon in front of him, he wasn't at all used to speaking like this to someone, he couldn't believe he was actually doing it in the first place. "Dancing was something that took my mind off of everything when I was young, my younger years weren't the best and in all honesty dancing was the only thing I could do to make myself feel free from the world I was trapped in. I've continued to dance since then, and as I continue to dance the more and more I find reasons to love this amazing art that I do every day, and I'm proud of myself for learning how to dance all on my own over these many many years. I hope others feel the same love for dancing that I do." Verin finished.

[268 words]

[Syd March]

Ginnie grew up going to the ballet with her father, quite often actually. She was enamored with the glamour of it all; the white costumes, the grace of each movement, practiced until perfected. That was what she truly loved, was always trying to find. Perfection. She convinced her father to enroll her in a class once. It failed miserably. She never wanted to practice something she couln't do perfectly the first time. There was something so beautiful to be sought after, but she couldn't seem to attain it. She continued going to the performances, however, knowing or feeling that she could find some way to be a part of what she on that stage, in her fantasies.

In school, she forgot to register for classes once, and was automatically assigned to a full course of classes that were practically empty; no one wanted these ones it seemed. However, she found one class particularly stood out. Costuming. She thought it sounded pretty easy, which she liked, and it brought up the idea of ballet once again. When she showed up to class, a full array of costumes her teacher had made were laid out on the table, one of which was a beautiful tutu, one that Ginnie knew quite well. This was the outfit that her favorite dancer had worn! She was so enamored from that moment, and knew what she wanted to do. She was going to become a costumer for the ballet. That was her way of achieving perfection, of being part of the ballet she had seen and loved so many times.

She wasn't that good at first. The thought of giving up now as she had done so many times before tempted her, but she was able to ignore it this time. She focused on that feeling she had touching the garment, that sense of awe and wonder, clutched it like keeping hold of it was her last hope in this world. She even went out and got her own sewing machine so she didn't just have to work on her skills at school.

[【Ｗｉｌｄｆｉｒｅ】]

-snip-

[huddson]

(Hal)
(Kiyoshi)

Kiyoshi, sitting next to the wagon with a cup of hot something, lets herself laugh before she sips her drink. In her pause, Hal speaks up, resting on her shoulder with the mask in his paws.

"I've never danced before," he confesses immediately, weighing the mask. It slips out of his grip and falls on his thigh, and he curses quietly in his surprise. "It's just not something that I've wanted to do."

With the cup now sitting next to her on the ground, Kiyoshi vaguely nods, her head tilted to the side.

She signs, "but you move so fluently," and before he has a chance to respond, adds, "I was taught to dance, once. I'm not very good at it; I can only really move my paws well." She's already demonstrated this with her signing. "It's fun, though. I enjoy doing it, and when Hal and I are travelling, I dance in our motel room long after he's fallen asleep."

"I fall asleep pretty late. How late do you stay up to do the dancing?" Hal interjects, making sure to get a few words in before she begins rambling, without realizing that this means that Al-Asha has no time to speak.

She smiles with her eyes closed, tilting her head further, and silently takes another sip of her drink. He seizes the opportunity to continue talking.

"It's not that I don't know how to dance, mind you." The words tumble out of his mouth, landing on the grass below him. "I'm sure that I'm a pretty good dancer! I'm just not interested." Kiyoshi taps his shoulder and he instantly relaxes them.

"I'm sure you are, Hal." Though there's no tone of voice to go off of, simply the motion of her paws, her words are far more relaxed and carry kindness with them. She spots the mask on the ground; "Oh! Could I perhaps try the mask on?"

Al-Asha hasn't finished nodding before she picks it up, holding it to her face. She turns her head and Hal wordlessly ties the ribbon around her.

She laughs; it's the first sound she's made all evening. She pushes it up further on her face, and as she turns back to Hal, hits him in the nose. He yelps rather loudly, and she recoils slightly.

"Oh, no no, it's okay." He's quick to reassure her, paws on her paws. "Here, let's try the mask." He pulls her to her feet and moves his paws to her waist. In a single motion, he dips her; she laughs again, louder this time, and, pulling herself back upright, reverses the role and dips him back.

If Al-Asha says something, they do not hear. The only sounds they pay attention to are apologies from the other for left feet and awkward positioning, and the occassional laugh as it fades into the night.

[Chickpea]

Oh no

[Foxglove.]

London and Cameron

[OswinTheFox]

Mark oswinthefox

[deerbroken]

ft. kallam and cas
-----

Kallam mulls over the question, when it leaves the other kalon's lips. "Dance," he says, a hand to his chin, his pale irises bright against the red color of his sclera. "I don't know that I'm much of a dancer, but I've had my fair share of them."

"My life has changed a lot, recently," he explains, and he sidesteps under the cart's shadow to avoid some of the sun's harsh rays. "It's strange, how things are now. I left my home for a long time. Five years, to be exact. I would dance with strangers in the taverns I visited, when the flicker of the candles grew dim and the bard on the main floor was singing and playing his lute. It was peaceful, elegant," he says, and there's a slight smile on his lips. "But it became tiring. I returned home, once again."

There's a conflicted look on his face. He could explain further, that he became a vampire to share his lifespan with his lover, that his memory became warped and his personality took a drastic change after months in the cavernous underground being trained as a fledgling. He's learned to keep his ailment a secret, however, and even if this stranger is one that will pass him by, he can't bring himself to risk the confession.

"I wasn't met with a warm welcome, but..." He crosses his arms, trying to think of how to explain it. "We decided to wait out the storm. I slept on Casimir's couch, for a while. We lead separate lives, for some time. Things felt... awkward, between each other. Sometimes I'd wake from my sleep and I'd see him sitting at the table, staring at me. He'd look away as soon as he saw my head pop up over the back of the furniture. We kept our distance."

"One night, we had a bit of a disagreement. Casimir said some... harsh words. But it was something I needed to hear. We didn't speak, for a short time. He'd go back to his work as a salesman and I'd wander about town after the sun would set, come in before he closed up for the night. He had other things to do, some nights, but on this one he simply sat at the table in the foyer. I sat across from him, and there was silence. And then, as if on cue, someone outside of our shop began to play their instrument. It was soft, eloquent. A lute, I think it was. Something that many people enjoy playing where I come from," he explains. "We shared an awkward glance, but after a few long moments of playing I stood, and walked past him before I turned to offer him my hand. He looked begrudging, but he took it."

"We danced all night. My hands were gently rested on his shoulder and waist, and his the same on mine. He didn't look at me, aside from the occasional glance. His cheeks were flushed red, and he mumbled angrily, something about this all being stupid. And then he'd look at me, worried that I would be upset, and I would try to smile a little at him. He would grumble under his breath from time to time, he's a man of passion. But he doesn't mean what he says sometimes. He has a telltale look, when he wants to apologize, but can't. I remained quiet for the majority of the dance. I didn't want to ruin the moment." He smiles a little at the memory. "He mumbled something else, an apology. I remember saying that it was okay," he remarks, a hand wandering to one of the many braids of his hair to gently thread the strand through his fingers. "And we kept dancing. It was slow, and clumsy, and eventually the stranger with the lute had stopped playing and disappeared back into the night. But we kept dancing. We would whisper quietly, short words meant just for each other, as if the store was crowded in the middle of the day. When time came to part, he griped about how it was silly, but there was the hint of a grin on his face. I think we became a little closer after that."

[710 words]

[Foxghost]

Evangeline & Nico

Eva and Nico have been taking dance classes together for years. They both were currently learning salsa, but Evangeline has prior experience with ballet. This question made both kals think for a moment.
"What role has dance played in your life?"
Evangeline clasped her paws together and her eyes lit up a little.
"When I was a kit, I was very active with my legs, and this continued for so long that I asked to sign up for a ton of different leg-related activities! One of my favorites was ballet. I love the way they spin and glide and almost fly across the stage, like silent story telling fairies. I tried so hard to impress all the other dancers in class because I wanted to make friends, but after a bit I realized that that wasn't the best way to get people to like me. Especially since I wasn't the best! After a few years we had some new students came in, and that's when I met Nico! We don't hang out often, but we always have time for the dance floor! He only lasted three days in that class, but I liked his style so I joined him up for salsa and next week we start samba. I guess dance had helped me make a sort of acquaintance and dance partner, and it also let me have an outlet for all my restless energy!" she sat down a moment, taking a swig of water from her little blue plastic bottle.
Nico shifted and sat down as well, blushing from feeling nervous and on the spot.
"I mostly like to dance because I am a huge fan of family get togethers and friendly parties. I like the chance to spend time with family or hang out with all my friends at once, so I tend to host a lot of these parties. They aren't crazy or anything, but almost every time I end up dancing at least for a little bit. I used to just do my own thing and go nuts, but I started getting interested with all sorts of dance styles after watching shows like Dancing with the Stars. I sat in on some classes every now and again, watching them tear up the dance floor without a care in the world. It looked so freeing and fun! I made a list of different styles to try, but one I was the worst at was ballet. I would slide face down on the floor because I apparently had two left feet when I was out there. But it wasn't all bad- I met Eva! And like she said, we're doing salsa and samba right now, which is more my style! So I guess dancing opened up my eyes to a whole new world and gave me an opportunity to learn something new..."
They both high fived and sighed, relaxing in their memories.

(484)

[petrify]

imekari -

imekari blinked at al-asha's question, not answering at first as she grabbed the mask from his hands. placing it on her face, it seemed to fit almost perfectly to her face. she thought back to before her village was burned to the ground, and before she was taken by the orcs to be one of them. when her father use to dance with her, graceful and swift across the floor, and laughs filling the room. now, anything she did was brash and loud, and so not like dancing. she hadn't danced in years.

"well," she began as the two of them began their waltz across the floor. "i use to dance with my father. it was a great way to release stress, for either of us."

as they danced, ime noticed that it was almost like she had never stopped. her feet still remembered each movement and each turn. it was so... relaxing, in a way.

"he'd come home from working in the fields, and you think he'd want to sit down, right? but no, his way of relaxing was dance. and he taught me to do the same when i was stressed. i haven't done it... since..." she trailed off as they spun around, and then continued. "since he passed away." she wasn't going to tell the whole story, no, she wasn't going to tell him about how evil men had came into their village and burned everything down. burned people alive in their own houses, including her father. she wasn't here to do that. she barely knew this man, and knew most people wouldn't have cared anyway.

she shook her head, almost like she was trying to shake the emotions out of her head.

"sorry, i didn't mean to bring down the mood," she said with a soft, almost sad laugh as the song ended, and they began to pull away from each other.

"care for another one, al-asha?"

[321 words]