Chapter 2

Karkat was ehaughsted by the end of the day. His classes had all gone well, but Karkat despised how monotone all the dancers were. Even the smaller ones in Ballet 2 showed signs of an assembly line type instruction, so he was determined to destroy it. He pulled an old box from a high shelf in his dancing studio, and sat down with a box of strawberries. He pressed play on his remote, and the old VHS player whirred to life, static flashing on his TV screen before a small child, tanned and frowning in tights and a tunic top. He smiled at his younger self, laughing at how funny he looked with short black hair, and buggy orange eyes.

Karkat watched his tapes, the recordings of his old performances, and practices. He paused, and rewound, and studied closely the grainy films. He knew how to dance, but not how to teach dance, so observing himself would be the perfect way to study for the boys.

It was late when he finished his tapes, and he popped in the next ones. Terezi's childish frame danced around his screen, and sobered eyes watched he liquid movements, pure elegance and grace incarnate. He didn't even need to watch the videos, but something about the sickening memories that made his heart hurt left him needing more.

He crawled into bed late that night, videos neatly replaced in their box, and black silk sheets hugging his body. He slipped into a dark oblivion; sleep overtaking him as soon as he closed his eyes. His nights were often haunted by nightmares, but tonight was a rare treat where only darkness enveloped every corner of his mind, his vulnerable sleepself protected by a shroud of black thicker than the night. It was anything but a peaceful sleep, but it was the best he possibly hope to receive.

Karkat again made his early morning pilgrimage to the school, waiting patiently with a cup of hot coffee for his students to arrive. Rose was the first to show up, a good half hour before anyone else did. Karkat glanced at her, and she barely returned the look while she walked into the changing area.

She emerged not long after dressed in her leotard and tights.

"So you're really Karkat Vantas? From Alternia School of Dance?" She asked, propping a leg up on one of the bars, and stretching downward.

"Yeah, I really am Karkat Vantas. I was the top at Alternia." Karkat took another swig from the bitter black liquid in his cup, and set it down. He stood up, and went to stretch next to Rose.

"Why didn't you go big? I mean, you were big, but you just stopped not even a year after graduating." Karkat had his forehead pressed to his knee, and he sighed, closing his eyes.

"I just lost the spark. You know about me, so you probably know about Terezi too. After she couldn't dance, it just didn't seem worth it." Rose did know about Terezi, Karkat's famous dance partner, who was injured tragically.

"So why take this teaching position?"

"Something to do, maybe? Or something to experience. I guess I just wanted to let it live on, my dream, for a little while longer. I'm not too impressed so far with what the school has offered me, you're one of the better ones, Lalonde." Karkat smirked, and continued stretching.

"I will take that as a backhanded compliment." Rose said with a small smile. Other students had finally begun to trail in, and make their way to the changing room. When everyone had come out, Karkat called role, and they stretched, Karkat gave them positions on the ballet bars.

"What I saw yesterday was a mechanical, cloned, piece of shit teaching." He said blatantly, eyebrows furrowed as he walked in front of his students. "Whatever they've been teaching you here is an assembly line of crap. Now I could blame you students for it, saying you wanted to follow orders and what not, but I'm not going to, because I was a young dancer like you. I'm going to wipe your slate clean, and redraw your formula more fantastic than ever. Ballet 1, or Ballet 6, it doesn't matter. I can reteach you. I need a partner. Lalonde, come here."

Rose stood next to Karkat patiently while he did three basic steps. First position, and two short sashays. She was instructed to copy, and did.

"Too stiff. Move only your legs, make your upper body like water." He snapped, and Rose tried again. Karkat made a huff, and tapped her shoulders in a few spots, adjusting her positioning, and arms. He held her arms gently by the elbows.

"Go limp. Entire body. Just fall." He whispered, and she did. Karkat supported her as she elegantly dangled, and the other students watched in confusion, and awe.

"Ballet isn't about the footwork, or the moves, or the routine, it's about grace, fluidity, and the movement of the body in dance. Everything should flow together as one, each making up a component. Each and every one of you is too stiff to begin with. I made Lalonde here go limp, completely limp, like a wet noodle, because you need to know what that feels like." He propped Rose back on her feet, and called out another name, instructing them to do the same things he had just done with Rose, right down to holding the deadweight student.

He did that with every single dancer, male and female. When they got back on their feet, they instantly looked less tense. He told them all to do the moves he had showed them at the beginning. First position.

Sashay. Sashay.

Karkat smiled with the corner of his mouth, that simple exercise had developed a new sense in all of them. Their arms remained soft, while backs straight, and legs elongated. They were stretching themselves out.

"Good. Now you are the second most advanced class of ballet students here, so I expect you to be able to have these next things down pat by Friday." Karkat observed his new flock, eyes once again looking at the bored John Egbert.

"Egbert, get up here for these next few." He grunted, and John came forth, smiling with big buckteeth. Karkat showed him a few basic moved, part of a small routine he had learned as a child. John copied them almost perfectly, not stiff, but limber in actions. Karkat felt himself smiling with one half of his mouth, and showed him more.

He made John dance after him for a few more minutes, before breaking down and showing him the exercises he had planned. After class, he waited patiently until John walked out, changed from his tights back into jeans and a tee shirt.

"John, come here for a second." Karkat beckoned, and John strode up.

"Yeah, Mr. Vantas?" John asked confused, unsure if he had done something wrong.

"Call me Karkat, okay? And no, nothing is wrong, but something is very right. John Egbert, you have potential." Karkat leveled his orange eyes with brilliant blue ones.

"And I mean Potential. I don't know how you managed not to turn out like all the others, but you are the best dancer I've seen in this entire class. I bet you just floated along in your own little bubble through the system, right? Learning the dances, but never really applying. Absorbing the moves, but never learning. Goddamn I would have been so angry if I had been your previous teacher, but right now that's overjoying. You still aren't applying yourself, though. It's only been two days, but by the end of the month, I think you'll have drastically improved. You're not a carbon copy, and so you'll do well. Go on, then, that's all I really have to say, kid." Karkat smiled a weak smile, and John's eyes had lit up.

"Thank you Mr. Vanta- I mean, Karkat! I'll try my best!" John jogged off to meet a light blond boy named Dave Strider, the younger brother of Dirk. Karkat looked at the photo of Terezi, and sighed.

"I found a good one, Terezi. I found a really good one." He smiled sadly, and began preparations for his next class.

A/N: Wow, this has been accepted pretty well already! This AU was inspired by a prompt from Nevernoahh, an artist on Tumblr, who gave me the okay to write this! Thanks so much already for the positive feedback, and reviews, it's great! Love: Katy.