A good way to describe the day would be to say it was heartless. General Winter had the country wrapped in his icy cloaks. Snow billowed from the sky and winds howled. The December weather was enough to put shadows in anyone's heart.
Natalia had different ideas though. Her brother was out in the godforsaken weather doing god knows what. She thought he was crazy for going out in it, but then again, he was probably immune to it. She had no clue where the Baltics were so she decided it was safe.
Digging her old ball gown out of the closet, Natalia slipped it on and hurried down the long corridors of her brother's massive house. She slipped inside the ballroom without being caught. Some would say the beautiful woman was lonely. She'd deny it, of course, but then why would she go have a ball by herself? In truth, Natalia was lonely. All she wanted was her brother to return her feelings. Back when balls were in style, she had wanted more than anything for him to offer to dance with her. She wanted to be held in his arms and not have to be the one leading. She had only ever been to a ball once, and her brother had flat out ignored her.
So here Natalia was, standing in the empty ballroom, finding a record to put to the old gramophone. Once she found an appropriate one – a waltz – she turned it on and headed for the centre of the dance floor.
Curtsying to a non-existent partner, Natalia started her lonesome waltz. Holding her dress out, she swayed and twirled to the music, as if dancing with many partners, not just one, then she paused, acting as if she found her dream partner. She curtsied to him, and slowly held out her arms as if she was dancing with him. Then she resumed the twirling.
Ebbing and flowing with the music, the dance slowed and sped up with the mood of the tune. But Natalia's expression didn't change. Her face was open for once, looking up with awe at some invisible Russian prince. Her ice blue eyes were full of longing and adoration. The snow was still blowing outside, but it seemed as if it was waltzing with the music as well.
Natalia was so lost in the music that she didn't notice the door creak open. She kept up her graceful spinning. When the song ended, she stopped and curtsied once more.
"You're a beautiful dancer."
Natalia whirled around at the voice, embarrassed rage colouring her face. Who dared spy on her when she was being open and unguarded? Toris stood in the doorway, apron tied around his waist and a broom clutched nervously in his hands. He was staring at the floor, hair slipping out of its loose ponytail and falling in his face. She was still blushing furiously. Then she had an idea.
"Come here," the Belarusian demanded. Toris jumped slightly, but leaned the broom on the wall and walked over to her.
"Yes, Miss Natalia?" Toris asked softly.
"Do you know how to dance?" Natalia asked curtly.
Toris' eyes widened. "Um, I haven't danced in many years, so I'm probably pretty awful," he said humbly.
Natalia couldn't help wonder at why Toris was always so humble, always putting others before himself. Natalia could recall a different version of Toris, when they were younger. He had been a knight, a prince, a king. He had been a brave fighter, someone to be feared. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania, along with the Kingdom of Poland, had once been the largest and strongest country in Europe. But still kind and caring. Now here he was standing before her, nothing more than a maid who suffered more than he should. All because he put the safety of others before his own.
"Well, I can teach you again, if you like," Natalia said.
Toris' eyes lit up like leaves on a summer day. "R-really? Thank you, Miss Natalia," he stuttered.
Natalia nodded instead of giving a verbal response. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and instructed him to put a hand on her waist. Of course Toris blushed, but did it anyway. Natalia told him which leg to move and when. After practicing a little bit, she let him go so she could turn on the gramophone again.
Returning to her real-life partner, they took up the classic waltz position again and started dancing.
The dance started out awkwardly, getting into the rhythm of the music. Then it smoothed out and Natalia found herself not having to lead anymore. Toris led her across the dance floor, spinning and whirling in time with the melody. And Natalia found herself liking it. She was always the leader, but this time, she wasn't and it felt nice. She was being held in his strong arms as they spun across the dance floor. Their timing and movements were perfectly in time, neither faltering nor breaking eye contact.
Natalia always thought she loved her brother. But she knew what he did to Toris and his brothers. Natalia had always denied what her brother did and continued to obsessively love him. But her brother was always cold; his skin was like ice. Toris was different. He was usually smiling, and he cared. Natalia could feel the warmth of his hand through the fabric of her ball gown. She always thought Toris was fragile, but he really wasn't.
The kingly Toris was showing himself again as he led Natalia through the dance. Natalia also found she couldn't stop staring at his olive eyes as they danced. She felt as if she could see right down into his soul.
When the song ended, she found herself in his arms, a hand resting on his chest. Natalia had looked down for the briefest of moments. She looked up and stared into his eyes. Toris took his hand off her waist to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.
"You're very beautiful," he whispered, only loud enough for her to hear. Natalia saw that he was blushing slightly. She smiled, and it wasn't a dangerous smile either.
"You're quite lovely yourself," she said. And she meant it.
Toris blushed harder and looked down, hiding behind his hair. He looked back up at her. They leaned in closer together, about to kiss –
Then there was a crash and a yelp. Toris winced and Natalia slammed up her icy walls again. Toris sighed and backed away from her.
"That was probably Raivis; I should go see what happened," he said. "And I think I'll need my broom."
"Go then," Natalia hissed. Toris smiled, grabbed the broom and left the ballroom, shutting the door quietly behind him.
Turning back to the room, Natalia sat down in the middle of the floor, her skirts pooling around her. She had been so close to kissing him. And she didn't know how to react to that. He had called her beautiful, not scary. He wasn't afraid of her, either. For some reason, Natalia found that she would have let him kiss her had the others not made a racket. She wouldn't have minded. His warmth had also melted her walls.
Natalia found herself frustrated. Was she in love with someone other than her brother? Right now, it didn't matter. She was kind of happy for once. The snow continued its frigid waltz outside.