A Winged Masquerade [one x one]

[Rivkah]

Well yes, there's that too, but figured we can just get another dance lesson over so she warms up to him as a "Winged" and then she can start to warm up to him as a human. cx

[rose;]

[okay. working on it now ^^]

[Rivkah]

Kay, I may or may not respond tonight cx

[rose;]

dammit. I had almost the whole reply typed up. Dx
I'm terribly sorry, but I'm gonna have to put this reply on hold again... I just hate retyping things D:

[Rivkah]

Don't worry and take your time. cx

[rose;]

roѕαlιe
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The week really didn't go as well as Rose had hoped it would. Not that any week was real eventful, but she had fallen ill halfway through the week with a terrible flu. Being sick with no one to even really notice you were gone really sucked, but it wasn't as if she could ask someone to take work off to come take care of her; she wasn't good enough of friends with anyone to be able to do that. Her biggest worry was they she was going to be unable to go to the ball on Saturday night, but that morning she felt well enough to do so, and drug herself out of bed to work around the house as she did every other day. On the days she had not been sick she had taken pains and great care to avoid Kane, as childish as it seemed. She was just so worried that the dragon, or her scar, might be recognized. It was a dangerous game she played, one that might end in terrible consequences for her.

By Saturday night, when she was finally done and getting to shower, Rose was exhausted. She was pale and shaky, but she wasn't going to give up her night, even if she was pretty sure she might just drop dead the next day if she didn't get enough sleep. She dressed quickly, not caring to spend too much time standing to get ready. She knew she would be unable to dance for too long without taking a break, but it was better than nothing. So, she slipped from her room a short time later, looking pale and a bit unsteady, but she hurried down the hall so that she wouldn't be spotted in the servant hallways.

Once inside the ballroom, Rose skirted the edge of the room, looking for Kane in the middle. When she found him, her eyes lit up, no matter how sick she felt still. If he had been talking to someone, or had a drink in hand, she wouldn't have done if, but since he was not, the young girl came up behind him and stretched up on tip toe to cover his eyes lightly with her hands, a small laugh escaping her. "Guess who?" She asked, laughing a bit more. She was sure he wouldn't have too much trouble guessing who it was, but still. It was cute. "Good to see you again, Kane," she said, brushing her lips against his cheek once more like she had before she had left the time before.

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formatting credited to C6H12O6

[Rivkah]

Kane

Kane arrived in the ballroom about ten minutes after it actually started, not wanting to miss his chance at seeing McKenzie again. The first couple minutes he ate and drank something from the refreshment table so not to get lightheaded. Then, being the tall and easily picked-out-in-a-crowd type of Winged he was, he moved to around the center of the ballroom, keeping his eye out for her. Sure, she was behind a mask, but her dragon was always with her and she had the prettiest eyes. After about five minutes he started to get worried that she was held up, late, or not coming at all. At least, until she covered his eyes and he heard her sweet voice behind him.

He went red a bit as her lips brushed against his cheek. Playfully he muttered, "Tease," while the area she had kissed - if it was even enough to be called that - colored slightly. "It's good to see you too, McKenzie. Shall we go outside?" With that, he led her out of the swarming hordes of winged struggling to find a spot on the dance floor and out to the open air. Nightbirds sang and fireflies lit up the garden in a beautiful way. It was the perfect place to dance, as it was right outside the ballroom and they could still hear the music with no problem. Kane found it to be serene and tranquil. Utterly relaxing, in fact.

"I figured I'd go back and teach you the dances I introduced last week," he offered, "So I can break it down and you can learn it step by step." There was no time better than now to learn. That was why they were meeting, after all. Clearing his throat, he offered her his hand and teased in an exaggeratedly stuffy voice that was not unlike the other males of his species, "May I have this dance?" He then winked at her, unable to keep his dull, boring mask of a face on and his features broke into a broad grin. He never thought he'd ever be dancing with a girl, let alone someone as beautiful and sweet as McKenzie. Most women made it a cultural norm to avoid him and his ugly wings. He had become used to it, really. It didn't bother him as much anymore.

[rose;]

Rose laughed lightly, a nice sound it was. She hadn't laughed all week, and she liked laughing. She didn't like that she didn't ever get to though. There was nothing to laugh at though, to laugh about. It was always work, work, work. Never anything different, and really, no one really talked to her, apart than to order her to do something, or to tell her she was doing something wrong. To yell at her, to punish her. The young girl had no good friends among the other servants, but it wasn't as if she tried either. She didn't want to be friends with them- they were quiet, obediant, and just did as they were told. They never argued like she did, and they seemed to have no wish to leave. They were... content like this.

"I'm sorry, I won't do it if you wish," she said softly, ducking her head and letting her hair fall forward to cover some of her face. His comment almost made him feel as if she had done something wrong. She wouldn't do such things if he disliked them- she had grown so used to just taking orders that she didn't even think about it anymore. But then again, perhaps he felt none of the attraction that she did. He was only teaching her to dance, right? So was that all he thought about?

As they passed the table of drinks, Rose reached out and took one, hoping they would not mind if she brought a cup outside. She was careful not to spill as he led her outside, willfully coming along. Her dress tonight was orange, embellished with beads around the top and the bottom where it flared. She sipped at the drink, discovering it was bubbly and very good, and she assumed it was alcoholic, but she didn't think that it would have too much of an effect, since she was only having one glass. When they arrived outside, she set the glass down, coming to stand in front of him. The music was slower than the night before, and she assumed it was because it was still early in the night. "Perhaps we should try something... a bit easier, at least to start off with?" she asked, biting her lip. "I've been sick a good part of the week, and still am not at my best... Perhaps we should take it easy?"

[Rivkah]

As she began to apologize, Kane immediately felt guilty. "No, no," he shook his head firmly, putting up his hands as if to stop her from being timid or sorrowful. "That's not what I meant at all! It's just - I -" he said, falling silent a moment before he finally informed her in an ashamed manner, "I've never had a girl show me affection like that, no matter how friendly or casual." It was ridiculous, admitting such a foolish things like that. He felt like hiding his face. This wasn't the type of thing you shared with a pretty Winged girl like McKenzie. "I do not feel as if I deserve this type of attention, especially from you," he said softly. Oh how embarrassing this happened to be!

Watching her delicately sip from the drink and put it down, he nodded obediently. "Of course - I am sorry to hear you have been ill. It seems to be going around, you know, with it being autumn fever and everything. Quite a few servants have gotten it, poor things, and Winged too. Except you don't hear the servant girls kicking up a fight and sulking about not being able to go to one of the balls," he replied, this last sentence accompanied by an ironic smile. She did not live here - she was lucky. A couple days ago one of the Winged girls had a tantrum because she had a date and she was too sick to dance that night. The screaming had lasted for literally over an hour, and it had been a headache - literally. He hadn't enjoyed the experience.

Carefully taking her hands so not to roughly handle her - she had been sick after all - and showed her the steps to the dance. they both held one hand, side by side. Two steps forward, one back, one to the left. Then they stepped together, then apart. "And that's the whole dance in summary," he told her with a laugh. "It's very easy and repetitive." Indeed it was. Two steps forward, one step back, one step to the left. Together, apart. And then it went again. It was easy, and at a medium pace so it wasn't too quick for her to try and memorize.

[rose;]

Rose looked up, a faint blush staining her cheeks. "Oh..." she said, her eyes growing a bit more wide. She looked him over momentarily, and really couldn't wrap her mind around that fact. It couldn't possibly be true... He was so kind, and patient- how could any one of the girls dislike him? There was not one other man that she would have rather been taken in by here, taught to dance by. She couldn't imagine any of the others being any sort of kind. Hesitantly, she reached up and touched his cheek, smiling softly. "I think you do. You deserve it," she said, before blushing, looking down in embarrassment, embarrassed at her own boldness.

"Yes, quite a few where I live too," she said with a nod, and couldn't help but start to smile. They were talking about the same place, and the same people, but only she knew that. Her smile faltered when he mentioned the servant girls, and she looked away quickly. "Yes, I'm sure they don't complain much," she said.I wonder why? she asked herself, but tried not to dwell on things for long. Kane wasn't one to get too angry with the servants... There were a few incidents that were brought to mind where she had been called in to calm one of he girls, and none of them had been pleasant.

She took his hand and stepped closer though, smiling once more. "Did you take dancing lessons?" Rose asked, glancing up only occasionally, since her eyes were mostly trained upon her feet. "Thank you, by the way... for teaching me..." She stumbled as her feet, unaccustomed to trying to be graceful, tripped over a raised edge in the concrete. She did become better and better as they kept repeating the same steps, and she could look up for longer each time.