Prompt 4 - The Meaning of Dance (Closed)

[Kyar]

(technical difficulties, see post below)

[Kyar]

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Moonlight hovers over the campground, as the sound of insects distantly humming, the wind through branches above, and the cool night air fill the silence with sensation. The crackling firelight dances over your faces as you start to wonder what you'll be doing the rest of tonight.


"Do you dance?" Al-Asha asks, a broad smile over his face now. You can see that he's been waiting to ask you this since you first arrived.

"I am a prince, where I come from," he explains. Suddenly his enviable upright posture and formality makes a bit more sense.

"But I do not wish to be known for my name, or my title," he explains. "I speak the truth of my heart in dance." Getting to his feet, Al-Asha returns to his cart, and as you peer over your shoulder, you watch him retrieve a large, decorative mask. It's adorned with feathers and beads, bright colored paints and seems to be built around this skull of some unfamiliar animal. "My face isn't what matters," he explains, passing you the mask. It's heavy, actually. How does he dance with this on?

"The dance itself speaks for me."

"What about you?" The gleam in his eye is so deeply curious now. "What role has dance played in your life?"


Tell Al-Asha about how your kalon reacts to dancing!
Please be sure to meet the requirements posted on the main page of the event.

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[chanhee.]

Dominic's face lights up at the question and he straightens his shoulders as he really thinks about his answer. He leans against the cart and looks into the distance dramatically, really playing up his desire to be the center of attention.

"I'm a sailor, you know. Open seas for months on end with little entertainment other than brawls and music. Dance is one of the few things we have to keep us busy out there on long nights so still you feel as though you're not moving, or on raging waters so strong that if you go above deck you stand a strong chance of not coming back down."

Dom moves as he speaks, hands animatedly mimicking his words. It may not be true dance, but it's rhythmic how he speaks and how his hands follow his words.

"Music, in general, is... something that keeps us from losing ourselves out on the water. Bad days above deck are put to rest below, where you let yourself be free and move without care. When you have to care so much about what your every move means for your ship, letting your body relax and letting yourself have fun is so important. I may not be the most useful person on board, but I can help people relax and, in my eyes, keeping your men sane and relaxed is better than keeping them strung up and waiting for a chance to turn to mutiny."

Dom's hands stop moving as he shrugs and relaxes again.

"That's just my look on it, though. I can't wait to see you dance, Al-Asha," He gives a small salute as he heads back into the crowd, not waiting for a reply.

[285]

[roelian]

The black haired man grins so brightly, you would almost think he was waiting to be asked about dancing. "Dancing almost burned my house down!" He smiles like he's proud of the fact. He continues, as if it isn't a bizarre statement. "That was the first night Beck came to my apartment, good times."

Jin's smile gets sappy, as it always does when he thinks about his fiancé. "I was so nervous when I invited him over. I mean, I'm always nervous around Beckett. He's so great! Have you met him? We're getting married! I love him!" Jin bubbles about this man for a moment before remembering he actually has a story to tell. "Right!"

Jin sits up a bit and shuffles around in his wallet. "Here he is! Anyway! I always put on music when I cook food - we had kielbasa and cabbage that night, it's one of my favorites! So I'm frying up this sausage, and dancing along to whatever was on the radio. And Beck just. Comes up beside me and takes the spatula." He laughs, a little blush on his cheeks as he thinks about his lover. "And he just danced with me in the kitchen. Id never seen him look so happy and loose before, and I guess he knew how nervous I was. Though, it worked way too well because I burned the kielbasa. But he still gave me a little kiss on my cheek when the song ended." He tucks the photo back into his wallet with a smile. "I think that little jam session was the start of our relationship, or at least the first cobblestone anyway."

(276 words)

[Swishy & Broken]

akeno cast a distasteful glance over the strange kalon's coat, crinkling her nose for a second before recomposing herself. "dance is dumb",she said simply. "i've never once had a good experience with the art of dancing and i don't ever plan on revisiting it."

// flashback sequence engaged//

akeno, a young kal, is seen watching a ballet recital for one of her friends. her mother, dress up much fancier than necessary, sits to her left while her father, in a suit, seems to be focusing on something deep in his subconcious. akeno doesn't seem very entertained by this whole ordeal and is playing with the edge of her dress. it would be her turn to go up soon for evaluation- but it's so nerve wracking waiting like this.

the camera pans over to an older kalon, something about them seems to claim authority over the room. "akeno, up" akeno stumbles to her feet hastily, forgetting about a funny fold in her skirt and dashing over. "just like we practiced" akeno is seen on the edge of the stage, curtsying then doing some sort of twirl. the adult kalon grimaces and attempts to fix her posture. "you're still not doing it right" akeno keeps trying but nothing seems to work. then, from across the stage, a male kalon voice rings out "akeno saito? please step to the center stage"

something seems to go wrong within the next few minutes of the scene, akeno falls and there's screaming. maybe it's her mother? someone is calling the police while the screen is slowly fading in and out. there's no closure to the scene, but it's clear that akeno will not be preforming again.

[-pidge]

"D-dance....?" Jasper swallows, a huge gulp echoing in the silence. Al-Asha eagerly awaits for an answer. "Well... um... it's complicated." Jasper mumbles, his checks growing redder by the second. "Go on," The kalon nudges him enthusiastically. "I..." Jasper begins. "Yes?" Al Asha cuts in. "Like..." He takes a deep breath, what has he got to loose? "Ballet." He blurts out, shamefully bowing his head. "I love ballet!" Al-Asha comments, then adds, "Nothing to be ashamed of!" His words bring comfort to Jasper, causing a small smile to spread across his face. "Really?" He squeaks. "Absolutely!"

No longer embarrassed, Jasper laves, only to return with a pair of ballet shoes and pink fur tight leggings. "Want to see?" He begging slipping on his shoes. "I'd love too!" Al-Asha's eyes light up. "Ok!" Jasper nervously settles into a position, before hitting a bottom on a small, broken down radio. As Jasper began, Al-Asha's jaw drops, for a guy of Jaspers size, who would've thought he could move so elegant and gracefully? It where as if he feet didn't touch the ground. Jaspers face was shut tight, deeply concentrating on his every move. Al-Asha watched quietly, radiating such awe. When Jasper took his bow, Al-Asha rose up, clapping and cheering as if he were preforming at the Sydney Opera House. "Bravo! Bravo!" His voice chirps. cooling down, Jasper took a seat. "I'm glad you liked it." He panted. "It was spectacular my friend!"

"So, tell me, why did you decide to learn ballet?" Jasper hesitates, pondering of the question. "I had alway contained a strong passion for it, I loved the way they moved, the way they danced as if they where floating on air. It was a way to express my self in a whole new understanding. The only thing that held me back where the people in my life. You see, I had a hard time growing up, I was different than other kits, they were tough, I was gentle and sensitive..." Jaspers eyes become watery. "I had it hard enough when I would knit scarfs at lunch, but if they knew I also practised ballet? Oh god, I wouldn't of made it through school. My dad loved it though, he was my number 1 supporter in everything I did. He encouraged me... he was the only person who really new me, wo really understood me." Al-Asha fell silent at Jaspers words, "I understand," He whispers, hugging tightly onto Jasper.

[409 words]

[PleaserOfCrowds]

“...Dance?”

Dragonfly isn’t sure what to make of that question, but eventually after a long silence, they respond to Al-Asha.

“No... Not anymore at least. I used to.”

But the word did resonate within them, having not paying any mind to to it before. The word does seem to bring a bit of old memories back.

While they didn’t know it yet, it would be their final year in the village. The fall harvest’s festivities had just started, with adults and kits all alike celebrating. There was plenty of food to go around, enough that they felt a bit sick after eating quite a bit of it. Even as time went on, the small village was united under one roof. The village’s musicians played all sorts of music, and other would dance, including who was Dragonfly at the time.

Actually, they were pretty good back then. What happened?

After a long awkward silence from Dragonfly, they decided to continue on with the mask in hand.

“Well... back when I lived in a village, every year there was this festival where I did a traditional, folk dance with other kalons. I remember I had it memorized by my heart, and when we we performed it was a lot of fun. However, the last time I did it was many, many years ago, when I ended up leaving the village that summer.”

Not by choice, Dragonfly thinks to themselves. They took my home away.

“When I made my way back, the village was just gone. But by then, I’ve forgotten how the dance goes.”

Taking a moment to observe the mask, Dragonfly remarks it does have some familiarity, although they couldn’t place where, before handing it back to him.

“I don’t really enjoy the dances at where I had to leave for, so I’m guessing that might have to do something with that. I don’t mean to be rude, but it was nothing like the ones I had grew up with. I never was able to get into it.”

They sigh, remembering their village a bit.

“I’ve tried to do the folk dance that was unique to my village, because I think I remember it somehow, deep inside somewhere. But, I can’t say I’m a dancer, at least, not anymore. I still appreciate dance as an art at a distance.”


(388 words)

[Thani]

The night was still and silent, With the moon hanging above the treelines, casting its light onto everything below it.
Adeline stepped out from her home onto the grass as she pulled her cloak tighter to her body.
A moonlit night full of magic...she could feel it. Slipping off her shoes she turned to cast a small spell on the wooden figures lining the shelfs in her home.
One by one they jumped down from their shelf and sprung to life, following behind ade as she moved through the forest.
Coming upon a clearing in the trees ade slipped her cloak from her body and closed her eyes, beginning to twirl around, casting her arms up towards to sky.
Her wooden familiar figures danced around her in a large circle, the magic being stronger and linking them all together.
For a moment it was like the forest came to life, chirping and hums could be heard..almost like music. The firefly's rose up from hiding and danced around Ade and her familiars, as she danced gracefully in the night.
For her this was a tradition, something she learned from her mother and her mothers mother. It was a way to let loose your own magical abilities and let them be refueled by the magic that surrounded the earth. Sort of like stripping away the old and being given the new.
To her dancing was a way to keep herself and her abilities in check. Something she had done often and never really took the time to think twice about.

[~Levi~]

𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘐 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥. 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘪𝘧 𝘐 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 - 𝘪𝘵 𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥.


𝘐 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘸 𝘶𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘴. 𝘞𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴. 𝘞𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴.

𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘱 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘮𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯. 𝘔𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘶𝘴. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘫𝘰𝘺.

𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘥𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘳 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘺 𝘴𝘰𝘧𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘨𝘰 𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘐 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘤𝘳𝘺 𝘯𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳. 𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘴𝘩 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘱𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘧𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦.

𝘔𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘷𝘪𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘸 𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘺 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘶𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘰, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘸𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘶 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴. 𝘐𝘯 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘭.





𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘵𝘺𝘱𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯’𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

𝘐 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦. 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘹 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸. 𝘖𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘳𝘮𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘐 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘬𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥. 𝘛𝘰 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘐 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘳 𝘶𝘱 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘬𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦.

𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱, 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴. 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘺𝘯𝘤 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘪𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘐 𝘯𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘥𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴.





𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨.

𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺. 𝘋𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦? 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯, 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦. 𝘐 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘐 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘫𝘢𝘨𝘨𝘦𝘥-𝘦𝘥𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘮𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴. 𝘐𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯, 𝘫𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳-𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘮 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘴.

𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘥. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘔𝘺 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘨𝘰𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘐 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘵.




𝘚𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘐 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵, 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵, 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘐 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘮𝘺 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘹𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘻𝘰𝘯, 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦, 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥.



𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵, 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘮𝘦.

773 words

[Mnemosyne]

Aethel considers the question, cocking her head to the side. "I don't know that I'd consider myself much of a dancer, though I do enjoy it from time to time." Closing her eyes, she start swaying a bit, as if to unheard music, then lifts a paw. The scattered leaves and blossoms around her lift up from the ground and begin to spiral lazily around her, spinning and whirling. Aethel opens her eyes and laughs aloud, then begins some kind of waltz, her movements languid and overly-relaxed. Then, suddenly, she stiffens up, the leaves freezing midair, and she sends them cascading into a pile next to her.

"I work a job where grace and control tend to matter a great deal, so while I don't spend as much time actually dancing...it certainly feels like I do." Aethel laughs, her tone light. "Flexibility, dexterity, and poise matter for me on a day-to-day basis. In fact...wouldn't that mean I'd really be an ace at dance?" Humming to herself, Aethel tried out a twirl and giggled as she spun. The wind tousled her hair, adding to the carefree look she already had.

"Perhaps this would actually be a good hobby for me to pick up, to kill some stress. It's a little bit more effort than my current hobby of choice. Well, it's not quite a hobby, more just...sunbathing?" She smiled cheekily at Al-Asha, taking in his expression. "I know, I know. But trust me, work is pretty stressful, and if the weather's nice, why not take advantage of it? I wonder if I could get a dance group going on in the main square. At the very least, some of the grandmas and grandpas I see every day would probably be happy to join in." Daydreaming of potential future plans, Aethel began to hum again, letting everything else slip away... [ 308 ]