"This is stupid!"
"Shut up."
"No, I'm with Grunt on this. This is mal."
"I'm not giving you a choice."
"I'm out of here."
"Those who leave die."
"I don't think it's so bad."
Everyone turned towards Baxter, who quickly shrunk at their stares. Maybe he should have just kept his mouth shut and stayed out of it. "Nobody asked what you thought of pipsqueak." Grunt said poking his forehead. "You're part of the reason we're getting roped into this. You just had to get caught with that football didn't you?"
Jake gave Grunt a light smack to the head. "I was going to make you all start getting along with one another at some point anyway, so don't go trying to blame the little one. If anything you should be following his example and trying to get along with the girls." He said patting Baxter on the head.
Miguel rolled his eyes. "He's only doing it because he's got a schoolboy crush on Tanis. He's always blushing around her and looking all shy. Grow a back bone Niño." He said walking forward. Right now they were on their way towards Ms. Grimwood, much to the displeasure of all the cadets.
Jake had gone with the classic rule of ladies first, and now they were on their way on to a stupid dance class. The boy's reactions ranged from indifferent to furious. Grunt in particular didn't seem to have any desire to go, and he wasn't going to shut up about it either. "Look, no amount of complaining is going to get you out of this. So man up and deal with it." Jake said.
They reached the front door and Jake quickly knocked. "Besides, dancing is one of the many skills that can be used to attract the ladies. If you can lead a lady on the dance floor her heart is almost already yours. So pay attention." After a few seconds the door opened and Matches sat before them. "What? How did you… oh, you have thumbs… weird."
Duncan barked loudly and suddenly jumped from Baxter's arms. He made his way around Matches and jumped up, biting his tail. The dragon looked mad. He took a deep breath and the boys were about to jump in, but suddenly Ms. Grimwood appeared. "Oh don't be such a bully Matches. It's only a pup. You can't even feel his little teeth through your skin."
Matches stopped, and then turned away grumbling under his breath. He gave his tail a shake, knocking Duncan off. The puppy kept jumping up trying to grab it again, but he kept lifting it out of his reach. Ms. Grimwood laughed before turning towards Jake. "Hello there Mr. Jester, and hello boys." She greeted.
"Hello Ms. Grimwood." The boys greeted.
Jake bowed slightly. "Greetings Ms. Grimwood. I believe you ordered five dance partners for your students. Well here the Calloway cadets are, at your service."
Ms. Grimwood stepped aside to let them in. "I can't thank you enough for this boys. Having an even number of kids makes dancing much easier. The girls were growing tired of just learning ballet." She explained. "I have to say, I was surprised when you told me you knew so many forms of dance. Most young men aren't so interested in the art."
He didn't want to tell her he only took the elective to get close to girls. "Well, I wanted to culture myself a bit." He said as they made their way up the stairs. The upstairs, unsurprisingly, was just as old, dusty, and dirty as the rest of the place. He was glad he was here in the day time, he couldn't imagine being here at night. It'd be pretty creepy.
She led the boys to a door at the end of the hall and opened it. The girls were already inside, chatting with one another. They all turned towards them when Ms. Grimwood clapped. "Alright girls, Mr. Jester is finally here. I hope you're ready to begin."
Jake gave them a wave. "Hey girls."
"Mr. Jester has brought the boys just as promised, and has told me that he knows a number of dances. He's going to be teaching your lesson today." Ms. Grimwood explained.
The girl's reactions were all different. Tanis and Phantasma looked excited. Sibella and Elsa seemed indifferent. Winnie didn't look pleased at all. "I'm going to go prepare a lunch for you all. Please treat Mr. Jester with the authority and respect that you would any of your other teachers. Understood?"
"Yes Ms. Grimwood." They all chimed.
Ms. Grimwood nodded towards Jake before walking out of the room. Jake turned towards the cadets and ghouls. "Okay everyone, let's get started." He said signaling the boys to stand near the wall. They took their place beside the girls, some of them keeping their distance. "So from what I hear you girls are tired of ballet?"
"Not necessarily tired. We just want to try something new." Elsa said.
He nodded. "Okay then. Well what other dances are your interested in or familiar with? I know a few of them, and even if I don't we can YouTube it. You can YouTube anything."
None of them said anything. Was ballet really all they were familiar with? "I know Samba, tango, rhumba, waltz, and a number of other ballroom dances." Sibella said proudly.
Jake nodded. "Okay, very impressive. So we already have one dance prodigy among us. I guess if that's the case we can start with some basic ballroom dancing. Everybody partner up." The boys once again groaned. "Just shut up and do it."
Everyone got up and stood across from one another awkwardly. Neither of the boys or girls were making a move. Jake sighed. He should have known he'd have to deal with this stupid teenage bull crap. Just as he was about to start assigning them partners, Baxter moved. He stepped towards Tanis nervously. "I just figured since we're the same height…"
Tanis shook her head. "Okay…"
Phantasma suddenly moved towards Jamal. "Partner with me?" She asked giggling. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Jake couldn't hear what he mumbled under his breath, but it must have been a yes since Phantasma covered her mouth and laughed.
Elsa stepped up to Grunt and smirked. "Bet I can dance circles around ya."
Grunt smirked back at her. "You're on!"
Tug watched as the others all paired off. He would have preferred to just stay out of this if he could, but Jake was going to make him. He turned towards Sibella, but was shocked to find that Miguel was already standing in front of her. "May I have this dance senorita?" He asked holding out his hand.
Sibella seemed just as surprised as Tug was. She hadn't expected Miguel, or anyone besides Tug to ask her really. Thinking about it, it kind of made sense. He and Winnie didn't like each other much, but she somehow still thought they'd end up together. She glanced towards Tug who mirrored her look. Eventually though, she smiled and then took his hand. "You may."
Tug hid the bit of annoyance he was feeling. If he had to do this, he would have preferred to be with his… girlfriend. It felt weird saying that. Now he hand to end up dancing with Winnie, the most vicious one of the bunch.
He turned towards her and scowled, and she returned it. "I guess if I had to be stuck with one of the cadets… you're not the worst." She said crossing her arms.
"Better than club foot over there…" He muttered looking at Elsa. Grunt had to watch his feet, otherwise she was going to flatten them.
Jake clapped his hands together. "Okay then, now that we all have our partners we can get started with some basics. Sibella, since you're already familiar with the waltz, why don't you show us the correct form to start off with." He instructed. She nodded and then grabbed Miguel's left hand. She held it up before grabbing his right hand and guiding it to her waist.
Tug narrowed his eyes. He definitely didn't like how close they were to one another. "Don't let those hands wonder Miguel, otherwise you may lose them." Sibella warmed with a mischievous smile. Miguel chuckled and smiled back. Tug raised an eyebrow. Since when was he suddenly so comfortable around her?
Surprisingly enough it was Elsa and Grunt who had copied their form first. Neither of them seemed to have any problem with the close proximity. Whether it was because they weren't affected by the embarrassing hormonal rage that most teens suffered from, or they just didn't care Jake didn't know. But they weren't arguing, so that was good.
Tug and Winnie had reluctantly gotten closer and taken their form. It was clear that neither of them was very happy with this situation, but neither was going to complain. Between him brow beating Tug and Winnie probably being nagged by Ms. Grimwood, he doubted they would.
Jamal had nervously moved his hands into place. Phantasma moved to her hand to lock with his, but it suddenly phased right through. Jamal shivered as she giggled. "Sorry, just teasing you." She said lightheartedly. Jamal sighed, but they took their positions and Jake turned towards the two youngest members.
The both of them looked terrified. Tanis had started by reaching forward and grabbing his hand. That alone had Baxter's face flushing a bright red. He hesitantly moved his other hand onto her waist. The two looked down at the floor nervously. "Aw, look at our little Tanis. That's so adorable." Sibella teased.
Jake would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy the embarrassed look on Baxter's face. The kid was just so… innocent. The mummy cringed before turning towards her. "W-we're dancing! We're supposed to be close!" She sputtered.
Jake chuckled. "Alright, alright. No teasing. Let's get things going."
He had Sibella and Miguel demonstration of some basic movements. He had noted that Miguel was pretty graceful on his feet. He seemed to actually know what he was doing. Jake would have to ask about that later. He also noticed the glances that Tug was shooting towards the two. They were subtle enough that Winnie didn't even notice, but he did.
After a while he had the others started trying to do the moves as well. Winnie and Tug did okay, they didn't show enthusiasm about it, but they did get the moves. Jamal and Phantasma were having a little trouble, but only because she kept floating off the ground. Grunt and Elsa had taken a while to get the rhythm down, but were doing pretty well.
Even the two youngest had managed to get past their nervousness and, while not exactly the most coordinated, were enjoying themselves at least.
"Not bad kiddies." Jake said. "You got the basic steps down, and you're not stepping on each others feet. You keep this up and you'll be able to do an actual routine in no time."
Miguel chuckled and he spun Sibella around and dipped her. "I'm pretty sure I could perform a routine now. If you're interested Chica." Tug looked even more annoyed. What the heck was up with Miguel today? He barely even talked to Sibella before now, let alone flirted with her. But now he was acting all suave and cool.
Sibella giggled. "Settle down cadet. Let's let the rest of the class catch up." She said before standing up. "Besides, I believe today's lesson is over." She said looking towards the clock.
Jake looked up and whistled. "Yep. Sure is. Time flies when you're having fun huh?" He said chuckling. "Alright cadets, let's move out. Ladies, we'll see you tomorrow. We're going to be playing some sports, so brace yourselves." He said.
"Looking forward to it." Winnie said grinning.
Jake led the cadets back towards the school. He had been half expecting them to whine about the whole thing, but they hadn't. In fact, they were speaking pretty positively of it. "Elsa stepped on my feet a few times, but she actually had some rhythm. The way she always stomps around I figured she'd be falling all over the place."
Jamal scoffed. "You were stepping on her feet too, I saw you." He pointed out. "Anyway, just be happy she could keep her feet on the ground. You know how weird it was to have to keep up with Phanty while she was floating. And when one of us stepped on the others foot, it went right through and I felt this chill." He said shivering.
"I had fun." Baxter said smiling.
"I'm sure you did pipsqueak. You and the mummy looked so adorable together. We should just start ringing the wedding bells already." Miguel teased.
Tug sucked his teeth. "Yeah, cause you're one to talk. The way you were flirting with Sibella like that. Since when did you become a ladies man?" He pointed out.
Miguel shrugged. "Well, I can't deny that Sibella is pretty. But the main reason I do it is the tick off Winnie. The idea of us getting cozy with any of the girls riles her up." He explained. "The real question is why do you care? You couldn't possibly be jealous, could you hermano?"
Tug's expression didn't change. He just rolled his eyes. "As if." He wasn't saying that to throw them off either. It was true. Sibella was his girlfriend. He had no reason to be jealous of him, he'd already won her.
Jake placed his hands behind his head as they entered the school. "Well, I'm glad you runts are finally starting to learn to coexist with the girls. We keep this up and we won't have to worry about losing anymore balls over the fence." He said proud that his plan was working.
The boys were silent for a moment. "I guess we could try to learn to coexist. I mean they're monsters, and they're totally creepy but… they're not that bad I guess." Jamal said.
Grunt waved his hand. "Whatever. If we're playing sports with them that just mean I get to show up Frankenteen." He said cracking his knuckles.
Baxter smiled happily while Tug merely shrugged. "I still don't like the idea of having to hang out with them. The others I can deal with but Winnie, she's horrible." Miguel said shaking his head.
Jake sighed. "What's your deal with her anyway? I mean I could see all of you have a rivalry, but you and she seem to really not like each other. Did she bite you or something?"
"I just… don't like her…"
"Is that all I'm going to get?" Jake asked him. Miguel looked down and Jake turned towards the others. The other boys tensed a little at the subject. They weren't going to tell Jake unless Miguel wanted them too, and clearly he didn't. "Alright, fine. Just do me a favor and try to tolerate her. You guys need to learn how to get along. Dealing with people, even ones you don't like, is a part of life."
Miguel sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "I only promise to try."
Jake patted him on the back. "Good man. Now you guys are free for the rest of the day. Spend your time however you like… scratch that, spend your time in a way that doesn't affect me."
"I'm going to the roof to play video games."
"Same."
"Ditto."
"Hey!" Jake yelled running after them. "I call first!"
Tug sat in his room looking irritated. He wasn't jealous of Miguel, that much was true. But he still didn't like him flirting with her, even if it was only to tick off Winnie. He sighed. This wouldn't be an issue if he'd just told them… okay, it'd still be an issue, but it would be a whole different issue.
He rolled over and tried to think. How was he going to break it to them? How was he supposed to just drop something like this on his friends? He was dating the leader of the girls they'd been feuding with for years. Sure Jake was trying to get them to get along, and it was kind of working, but they weren't ready for something like this.
"What you thinking about?" Tug looked over and saw Baxter standing in his doorway. "Um… sorry, you just looked like you were worried about something and… I'll leave."
"Hold on shorty." Tug said sitting up. Baxter stopped and turned back to him. Of all the cadets, excusing himself of course, Baxter had the best relationship with the girls. He and Tanis were always around each other, and the other girls seemed to favor him as well. "You like Tanis right?" He asked.
Baxter froze. He looked down at his feet blushing. "I… no, I just…"
Tug sighed. "Baxter, I'm not going to make fun of you. Just answer the question."
Baxter chewed on his bottom lip. "Maybe… I guess… yes."
Tug nodded. "I figured as much. You two are the closest of all of us." He said. Baxter blushed, wondering if he had made a mistake in telling the older boy. Tug reached out and patted him on the head. "I like Sibella." He said bluntly.
Baxter looked up at him wide eyed. He liked Sibella? The girl he was always scowling at? Well, they hadn't been fighting as much as usual lately, but still. What was even more surprising though was that he had admitted to him. "Oh… really?" Baxter said not sure what to do next.
He nodded. "Yeah. And… we're kind of dating."
The younger boy looked even more shocked. Liking her was one thing, but actually doing something about it… was something he wished he had the guts to do. "When? How?" He asked.
Tug rubbed the back of his head. "During the dodgeball training. She showed up and we kissed, and then we took it from there. I've been trying to find a way to tell the guys since we started. I am only telling you because I didn't think you'd react as bad as the others." He explained. "I figured I needed to start somewhere. Jake is trying to get us to get along better, and I think it's a good idea if we help. That way when I break it to the other guys it'll go down smoother."
The younger boy nodded in understanding. He knew what Tug was getting at, and he agreed. If they could get the group to start getting along, Tug wouldn't have to worry about breaking it to the others, and maybe he wouldn't be teased about Tanis so much. "How are we supposed to get them to get along though?"
That was a good question. Grunt and Jamal would be tricky, but doable. But Miguel was a whole different story. Getting him and Winnie to get along after what happened between them would take a miracle. He couldn't go to Jake with something like this, because Miguel would be ticked off if he told him. "I'll think of something…"
A/N: So, a pretty short chapter. But mostly because I didn't know how to write out actual dancing. I mean seeing and reading are way different, so imagining it in my head and trying to type it out are two different things. But I gave it a swing, and hope you like it.
The next chapter will be them playing a bit or sports, and maybe getting a little musical. I want to thank everyone for the support I've gotten for this story, it's very encouraging. I do have a solid plot planned out now, so unless my schedule gets in the way I shouldn't have too much trouble updating.