The Rainsworth School of Etiquette
Lesson One: Dancing
Word Count: 932
Spoilers: mentions of the coming up party in chapter / retrace 49, but nothing that happens during it. :)
"These clothes are uncomfortable," Alice mumbled.
"What was that?" Sharon asked. There was something under the sweetness in the other girl's tone, something that just dared Alice to repeat herself.
"Can't we practice in something lighter?" Alice said, adding for good measure, "Sharon Onee-sama?"
"There's no point in that," Sharon said. "You won't be used to the weight of the clothing for the party then."
Sharon had Alice in an ankle-length dress of chocolate silk. Alice was very aware of the color due to its affinity with food. That was how Sharon had introduced it, and Alice had a sneaking suspicion that had been Sharon's intention.
To Alice, it was just brown.
Underneath the skirt there were a couple of layers of petticoats, and Alice was certain her feet were going to be tangled into its useless folds and pleats. To top it off, a corset was claiming ownership over the small amount of air left in her lungs.
And Sharon wanted to her step lively and dance.
They stood in the middle of Sharon's sitting quarters. The furniture had been pushed to the walls, leaving an ample space to practice. The carpet felt thick under Alice's bare toes – the only thing that Sharon had acquiesced to, agreeing that dancing in proper shoes could hold off until the second lesson. Alice had been slightly disappointed – she had hoped perhaps she could pretend to injure herself and worm out of this whole event altogether, but she did not think Sharon would believe it if she "twisted" an ankle in her bare feet.
"I'll be taking the lead," Sharon explained. "As the man would be."
Alice realized what Sharon had said. "No. We should find Oz, or Seaweed-head, or the Clown –"
Alice found Sharon's finger wagging in her face. She fought the urge to grab it.
"This here is a serious problem," Sharon said. "You can't be so intimate with the names at this party, or someone is going to wonder about your relationship with those men."
Alice found herself nodding meekly.
"Now, if you wanted to request the attention of those men, what would you say?"
"Oz-sama," Alice said. She found a wicked idea brewing her in head.
"And the others?"
"Seaweed-san."
Sharon crossed her arms and Alice grinned. She was sure the other girl was itching to pull her fan out and use it.
Instead, Sharon turned and called through the open doors to the man standing on the balcony. "Break!"
He appeared in the doorway. "By the tone of your summons I get the feeling this endeavor is not going as smoothly as you had hoped."
"Will you retrieve Oz-sama? Tell him it's urgent."
Alice folded her arms. "Why? Clown-san can't dance?"
Break gave a glance in her general direction. "Clown-sama does not dance," he said. "There is a difference."
"I do not dance either," Alice said. "Problem solved."
"No, not solved," Sharon said. "You have to have basic dance skills for the party. You don't want to embarrass Oz-sama, do you?"
"What do I care? He's my servant."
Sharon turned on Break when he made the mistake of laughing. "Oz-sama," she said. Her fan had been taken out, and she waved it for emphasis. "Urgent. Now."
Alice noticed how short Sharon's sentences had become.
When Break left, they could hear his soft laughter continue down the hall. Sharon slapped the closed fan against her open palm, causing Alice to jump.
"Now, while we wait, I want you to practice the steps," Sharon said. "Count out loud while you do so."
Stepping to where Sharon indicated with the fan, Alice said, "One. Two. Three –"
The door slammed open.
"What's wrong?" Oz said, his face was flushed, and he heaved a breath. "Break said I was to come as quickly as possible…" He trailed off, taking in the scene before him. Alice looked perfectly fine, in fact in his opinion more so than usual.
Sharon looked nice as well, except for the fact that she had her eyes narrowed and a grip on the fan that was turning her knuckles white. "Where's Break?" she asked.
Oz looked behind him as if expecting him to be there. "Oh, he must have fallen behind."
Sharon just nodded. She would have to ask later what in the world Break had told the boy to have him arrive in that speed.
"I need a man," Alice said.
Oz's eyes widened.
"Dance," Sharon said suddenly, her voice coming out slightly higher than normal.
"Yes," Alice added, "A man to dance with."
Sharon came forward and dragged Oz into the room. "Please tell me you dance, Oz-sama."
"Well yes, but it has been awhile."
"That's fine. You would have needed a refresher course anyway."
Sharon placed him in front of Alice. She took Alice's hand and placed it on Oz's shoulder, and he put his hand on the dark-haired girl's hip.
"Let him lead you through the steps that we just went through," Sharon said. She stepped back and observed her handiwork. The couple swayed and moved effortlessly to imagined music, and when Oz continued through steps that Sharon had not shown her, Alice followed easily.
Sharon started when she realized Break was standing behind her. "There," she said. "They are doing fine, and you said I couldn't do it."
He shrugged. "If Alice-kun caught on so quickly, my lady, I would think that it was talent she had retained from her prior life. If anything, you probably only confused the poor girl."
The fan whistled by his ear, and he ducked just in time.