Rue and Ahiru talked about Mr. Cat, wondering who the teacher was for the academy now. Although eccentric, they found his quirks rather endearing now that they were no longer being screamed at that they'd have to be his bride. Well, Ahiru wasn't being screamed at, Rue was always so good at ballet. And to be honest, Mr. Cat had been a rather good instructor. Fakir talked to Mytho about the shop that they had been to and the weird owner who had wanted them to dance for her. Mytho shuddered, commenting how unfair it was that they had been forced to dance by Lilie later. Fakir agreed, with a sidelong glance at Ahiru, but admitted that it wasn't so bad.
After lunch Fakir and Ahiru began to clean up while Rue and Mytho went to look for a place to stay nearby. The two girls giggled together and said they'd catch up later before they parted, Ahiru waving a lot as Fakir merely smiled. Once they were out of sight, Fakir pulled Ahiru back into the house to help him clean.
"So, what do you want to do about class tomorrow?" Fakir was inviting Ahiru to be his dance partner, but in such a vague way that Ahiru just stared at him, smiling in a confused manner. "I mean, uh, what should we dance?"
Blushing, Ahiru almost dropped the plate she was drying, and then laughed loudly, her nervous laugh, before she began to stutter. "Oh, um, I-I think that we should dance to Giselle. I l-love that dance when she's giving the man the flower.." Ahiru itched lightly at the back of her head and Fakir smiled, finding her to be adorable. He nodded, making a mental note that they should dance to that song. They finished cleaning and Fakir set to work on finding a place for Ahiru to stay, not wanting to be improper and suggest that they might share a bed.
Rue and Mytho looked up and down the street for a house that they could stay in temporarily. They were all small houses like the one Fakir and Ahiru lived in, painted in similar shades too. Rue looked from place to place, liking the one at the end of the street. Pouting, she looked at Mytho with large, watery eyes, a trick she had learned to use sometimes when he was too daft to understand she wanted something, but she was too stubborn to just say she wanted it. He looked a bit confused, but sighed after it clicked in his brain, a faint smile showing as he ran his fingers through his hair. "Oh, alright." Chuckling, Mytho went up to the house and knocked. A young woman came to the door and smiled, welcoming the king. After a brief discussion, they shook hands and the woman welcomed the two in. They were given the large attic and told that they could come down for meals at any time. As Rue walked around the attic she ran her fingers over the wood, smiling warmly.
"It's perfect." She smiled brightly at Mytho and the two stood at the window, holding each other and looking out at the view.
Ahiru walked with Fakir down the road, the young woman giggling softly as she watched all the flowers and trees sway in a gentle breeze. Fakir looked down at Ahiru and smiled, slowly reaching around and resting a hand on her shoulder. Watching her blush, he laughed quietly, quite liking his housemate in such a state. "So, you want to dance to Giselle?" Ahiru nodded as they walked into the furniture store. After Ahiru's long and loud protest at Fakir purchasing a goose feather bed, they went home, workers at the store bringing the bed with them, promising a frame to be completed in a week or so.
On the way back, Ahiru saw Rue walking hand in hand with Mytho and waved to them, calling out loudly to her friends. They turned and Ahiru skipped off towards them, hugging Rue around one shoulder and Mytho around the other. "I've missed you both so much!"
"But Ahiru, we just saw you a couple hours ago..." Rue giggled, wrapping an arm around her friend's waist and kissing her temple. Mytho also hugged Ahiru, and then looked over to where she came from, seeing Fakir.
"Oh, would you like to join us?" He smiled innocently, and when Fakir stiffened and pursed his lips Mytho laughed. "I was only kidding... Come on, let's go back to your house."
Fakir sighed, bringing the three to his house and muttering to himself about why he doesn't like company.
Rue and Ahiru stayed up talking about dancing while Mytho and Fakir went over their plans for tomorrow, which included going to the academy to practice, and then looking at the ballet shop as a group. When the clock in the main room struck nine, Rue and Mytho went to their temporary lodgings, not wishing to arrive back too late, and leaving Ahiru and Fakir to finish setting up her room. It was in the back, with pink and white sheets, a water pitcher, and an old dresser. It looked a bit cramped, but it had been used for storage before he moved everything to a closet next to the kitchen.
"We'll get you more things for it tomorrow," Fakir promised, giving Ahiru a kiss on the forehead. Blushing, Ahiru nodded, looking completely embarrassed.
Ahiru got changed into her night gown, undoing her braid and letting her hair fall down to her hips. She took a long while to brush it out, but once she finished she tied it back again. Glancing at the lavender tipped kitten who came into her room, Ahiru scooped it up and brought it to bed with her. "Oh, hello Rosa," she said softly, hugging the fluffy creature close.
Fakir got ready for bed, taking out a long night shirt and putting it on before he ran his fingers through his hair. Mr. Cat was on his bed, stretched out and sleeping soundly. Mrs. Cat was curled up with the rest of the family, minus Rosa. Fakir climbed into bed, wondering just what sort of enemy could be about to rear its head.
Rue changed into a long night dress and let Mytho brush her hair. As he did, Mytho placed soft kisses to her locks, murmuring his love for her. Blushing, Rue touched lightly at Mytho's hand, and once he had finished brushing her hair, they sat for a long moment together, simply enjoying their company. "Mmm, Mytho, don't you want a child?"
Mytho began to blush, tensing slightly. "O-of course I do Rue, but... We have plenty of time for that." Rue smiled, sighing as she leaned against him. Mytho held her close, heart pounding. He wanted to be with Rue in every way, but he was so embarrassed and shy, and guilty about the darkness he had inside of him, he didn't know if he could bring himself to do something like that yet. The two went to sleep after a while, Rue dreaming of a family, Mytho dreaming of being with Rue forever.
In the morning, Ahiru woke up with a start, thinking she was late. She stumbled through the dark for a candle and matches, lighting the match and holding the flame to the wick. She looked through her clothes and found a pink dress that came down to her knees, fabric flowing with every step she took. It was cinched at the waist, a dark pink sash tied into a bow separating the top of the dress from the bottom. Buttons went from a high collar to the middle of her torso, sleeves ending with cuffs at her wrists. The shoes she grabbed were soft leather boots dyed the shade of a pink rose, ending at her calves. Finding a mirror, Ahiru did her hair up into two pony tails on either side of her head, braiding the remains and twisting them into coiled buns on either side of her head, letting strands hang down against her neck that were left over.
"You're up awfully early," Fakir said softly, standing at Ahiru's doorway. He was dressed in a formal shirt and fitted black pants, his hair tied at the nape of his neck, per his norm. Chuckling, he took Ahiru's hand and pulled her close, running his fingers along her cheek and jaw. "You look beautiful."
Ahiru blushed, shaking her head. She swallowed, stiffening as Fakir placed two roses into her hair, one in each ribbon that her hair was held in place with. "Thank you Fakir," she said softly, kissing his cheek. Both showing embarrassment and affection on their faces, they went out to meet up with Mytho and Rue, walking close to one another, fingers brushing often.
They ran into Mytho and Rue standing at a street corner, Rue's hair tied up on top of her head, wearing a knee length sleeveless navy blue dress, the pendant Ahiru had given her around her neck. Mytho was wearing white pants and a matching shirt, looking up at the sky and watching a bird fly by. "Oh, Ahiru." Mytho smiled and the pink haired girl waved at them, oohing and aahing over Rue's beautiful dress. The four of them walked onto the academy grounds, young students staring. All of them had heard of Rue, Mytho, and Fakir, but none of them knew who the pretty pink haired girl was with them. Suddenly, Pike and Lilie came out of nowhere and grabbed Ahiru.
"See you at class," Pike called, Lilie giggling all the way to the building. Rue stared after them, sighing and mumbling about how those two never changed. She sounded only slightly hurt, but she knew that the trio had been quite close when they were young students studying ballet innocently, without a thought in the world of the dangers that were lurking back then.
In the changing room, Pike and Lilie examined Ahiru as they forced her to get dressed, changing her into a leotard. Once they were done, Ahiru stood up straight and her friends whistled. Ahiru's body had developed finally, revealing gentle womanly curves. She blushed as Lilie poked at her hips and bust before she swatted their hands away.
Ahiru went into the practice room with Lilie and Pike, and then went to the bar to warm up. As they did, the rest of the class came in. Fakir, Mytho, and Rue came last, all dressed for practice. Rue wore her favorite red leotard with a small skirt, Fakir in a black one piece that ended at his forearms, a navy shirt hanging over his torso. Mytho had on a similar outfit, except his shirt was white. The three stood off to one side, watching the class as they warmed up. Finally, the teacher walked in. He was tall and lanky, with long ash colored hair and dark violet eyes. He didn't seem too nice, thin lips pursed as he stood with crossed arms. Ahiru went over to her friends, hiding behind the three of them and seeming to tremble. Rue laid a hand on her shoulder as Fakir introduced them all properly.
"Then dance," the instructor said, frowning at Ahiru and watching her closely. She did not look as if she belonged with the group and narrowed his eyes at her.
Fakir and Mytho took the hands of their partners, twirling them into the center of the area that they called a stage. Ahiru looked nervous, but as Fakir slid a hand under her thigh and along her stomach, picking her up and holding her above his head, Ahiru felt her heart pound in her chest as she danced a pas de deux with Fakir, twirling her about and holding her close. A collection of oohs came up from the crowd as Fakir dropped Ahiru, an arm wrapping around her waist and holding her a few inches above the ground. She thought her heart might explode, she forgot just how handsome he looked in his practice attire.
As Fakir and Ahiru danced, Rue and Mytho practiced some complicated maneuvers, one involving Rue to balance on her toes as Mytho held her with one hand. The maneuver required complete trust and a lot of upper body strength on Mtho's end, with a steady core and firmly planted feet. The class gasped as Rue then leaped from Mytho's hand, his arms wrapping around her form and pulling her close as she landed, their faces close to one another as they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes.
The two pairs finished by switching partners, Mytho and Fakir throwing Rue and Ahiru up into the air, The girls spun, grasping the hands of one another before letting go, returning to their original partners.
The class applauded while the four of them stood before them and breathing quickly. The teacher stared at Ahiru, a slow smirk forming. Fakir saw his look and frowned, wrapping an arm protectively around her, glaring at the man. Rue and Mytho saw Fakir's reactions and smiled, thanking the class for allowing them to perform, but they had to go attend to business elsewhere. Rue grabbed Ahiru as Mytho pushed Fakir towards the door, the two of them laughing softly and waving as they forced their friends to leave.
"I think he's part of the story," Fakir said softly once they had left the room. Rue frowned, feeling a familiar pounding in her heart as when there was a heart shard from Mytho around.
Ahiru looked at Rue and watched as something odd happened. Rue closed her eyes and clenched the pendant that she wore within her hands, letting out a breath. Water seemed to cover her form and solidify into a light blue tutu, diamonds around the hem. The pendant turned into a choker, the egg centered on her throat, white wings wrapping around the pale white skin and overlapping at the back, just below her hairline. Her hair had pulled itself up into a bun, a white crown poking out of it. Fresh cloud hued ballet shoes encased her feet, and matching make up adorned her eyelids, eyelashes, and mouth.
"Rue... What..."
"I am the Princess of Hope," Rue said, smiling faintly as she bowed. "And inside there is a drop of chaos invading that teacher." Turning, Rue walked back into the room, leaving Mytho, Fakir, and Ahiru to stare.
2012 A/N:
2016 A/N: Still considering rewriting this story, but not sure, maybe I'll just make a whole new one instead.. hmmm...