The Flower Dance

Bex heard the muffled announcement from the Mayor to signal the main festivities and cursed. "Thanks for doing business," she said, shaking hands with Rasmodius. "I look forward to doing more in the future. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a prior engagement." With that, the woman lowered herself down the cliff to scramble back down as quickly as she could, leaving a rather puzzled but intrigued wizard up on the ridge.

When the cosmetologist finally made it to the base of the cliff, she brushed off her feet in the grass and put her shoes back on. "Now where is that pelirroja bonita?" she muttered to herself, hopping the fence back into the field proper.

It was then Bex spotted Leah and Haley, queuing up for the dance together. The bilingual woman sighed forlornly at the lost chance to dance with Leah. "Perdí mi oportunidad..." She glanced at a few of the samples she received from the strange man above her. "I just hope it was worth it..."

Mayor Lewis saw Bex standing alone. "If you'd like to dance with the other young people, you'll need to find a partner," he told the visitor curtly. "We're about to get started."

Bex waved him off, "Sí, sí. Lo sé, viejo." Looking around, the tall woman noticed that two men were approaching Violet. Bex smirked and wondered which of them would reach her first.


Violet stood watching all the other couples gather for the dance and glanced around to see if anyone else was missing a partner. She noticed Harvey approaching her and the doctor paused briefly, adjusting his tie. "I -" he cleared his throat. "I would hate for you not to participate in your first flower dance," he offered politely. "Would you like to be my p-?"

The mustached man was cut off with a shout from behind the farmer. It was Sebastian, resting his hand on his knees as he panted to catch his breath. "Violet..."

The pastel-haired woman was unsure of what to do. While she certainly knew Sebastian better than Harvey, the doctor had technically asked her first. "Oh, hello..." Violet greeted the dark-haired man. "I was just about to accept Harvey's invitation to dance..." she told her friend.

"Well, that would be incredibly rude, conejita..." Bex's voice entered the conversation.

"Bex, you're back! Where have you been?" the farmer demanded to know.

Her best friend shrugged, "Acá y acá," she answered dismissively. Instead, Rebecca immediately went on the offense. "Don't you know it's improper to accept an invitation to dance when you've already asked someone else?" The other three sets of eyes watched Bex, wondering what was going on.

"What do you mean?" Violet wondered aloud, trying to determine what her friend meant.

She jutted her chin toward Sebastian. "You asked Sebastián to dance last night and he graciously accepted," she explained to Violet, quickly giving the black-haired man a pointed look for the last part of her sentence before returning her gaze to her short friend. "It would be rude to go back on your word, wouldn't it, conejita?"

Sebastian studied the cosmetologist's face, trying to discern why this woman would lie to Violet for his benefit. The dark-eyed woman winked at him discreetly and for some reason he felt a sense of unease. What's her angle?

Violet's face reddened. She did not remember asking Sebastian to dance the previous night, but if Bex knew, someone must have said something to her last night. "Oh..." The farmer turned to Harvey. "I'm sorry, Harvey," Violet apologized. "I had a bit to drink last night and didn't remember I was already committed. Please don't think I intended to-"

The doctor smiled weakly, "Oh, it's okay, Violet. I understand. I'll sit this one out..." He began to turn when Bex cleared her throat.

"This is my first danze de la flor, too." Rebecca extended her hand toward the odd man out. "It is your duty to escort a lady to the dance floor," she informed Doctor Harvey. While the doctor was certainly not the person Bex originally planned on asking to dance, she was not about to let the poor man sit out because of her schemes.

Harvey adjusted his glasses slightly, before offered his hand to her. "Oh! Of course, Miss..."

"My name's Rebecca, but I go by 'Bex,'" the woman replied to introduce herself to the doctor. "I'm Violet's best friend from la cuidad."

"I'm Harvey, the local doctor," the bespectacled man offered in response. "Shall we?"

Bex allowed herself to be lead away to where the other couples were congregating and turned her head to grin at the remaining couple. "You two coming?"

Violet glanced nervously at Sebastian. "Sorry for almost double-booking myself," she apologized, twisting some of the material of her dress in her hands. "I didn't realize-"

The young woman was cut off as her partner grabbed her hand with his and started walking her toward the other dancers "Don't apologize," he instructed Violet, making sure she was still behind him as they walk so he would not see the color of his face. "I was literally hiding from people until the dance started, so I shouldn't have expected you to be able to find me." He sighed, "It all worked out anyway, didn't it?"

The farmer noticed that his hand felt warm and a little bit sweaty. Was Sebastian just as nervous as she was? While Sebastian could not see, Violet beamed. "Yeah, I guess it did..."


Those of the older generations - in addition to Jas and Vincent - all gathered around the young couples in an oval as the music started. Robin leaned over to her husband and smirked with delight. "It seems both our children have new companions this year," she squealed quietly. Demetrius was still not amused. "Maru is dancing with that Alex boy..."

"Oh, it's fine, honey," the carpenter told her husband, giving him few reassuring pats on his broad shoulder. "Alex seems like a nice boy. He is very respectful of his grandparents." The red-head shrugged, "Besides, it's wonderful to see Maru all dressed up every once and a while. It's such a rare occasion to see her curls."

The scientist muttered to himself grumpily, but did not contradict Robin. Pam, who had been standing close-by, approached the two. "Have either of you seen my Penny?" she asked the couple, the concern apparent in her tone. "It's not like her to miss this..."

Robin's confusion was palpable. "Pam, Penny is with Elliott. Don't you see her over there?" She gestured to the pair farthest from where they stood.

Pam's heavily decorated eyes drifted toward the couple. "Her hair!" the woman shrieked. "It's not red anymore."

The natural ginger's head slanted to one side, "You mean you didn't know?"

Frowning, Pam shook her head. "No... I didn't," the shorter woman admitted guiltily. "Penny kept that thing on her head until after she left..."

Fixing her gaze back onto the young people, Robin noticed Penny danced with a quiet grace and Elliott's fluid movement complemented hers so naturally, it appeared as though they were characters in a fairy tale book. The carpenter could not tell what was going through Pam's head at the moment, but Penny's mother remained silent the rest of the dance.

The blonde had trouble discerning why she felt her heart drop when Penny laughed at someone Elliott said. I hardly recognized her with that big smile on her face, Pam thought as her cinnamon-colored eyes followed the couple.


Jodi could not stop the grin from forming on her face as her oldest boy danced with his new girlfriend. Sam seemed to be taking all of this so seriously, cautious not to step on Abigail toes. It reminded her of when she and Kent were still young. Samson looked so much like his father, it would both a blessing and a source of sadness for Jodi.

She heard Evelyn and George making quiet conversation next to her. "The children do look lovely this year..." the elderly woman sighed to herself wistfully. "It reminds me of when we were young, George. Do you remember our first dance together?"

"I can hardly remember when I ate for breakfast three days ago," George grumbled. "What makes you think I can remember something so long ago?"

"Oh, I remember it like it was yesterday..." Evelyn chuckled to herself, resting her hand on his shoulder. "You were so distinguished in your suit, dear." Granny noticed Jodi looking at them. "Oh, hello, Jodi. Come to join us?" she asked the younger woman.

While it was not her intention, Jodi could now no longer linger five feet away, so she stood next to Evelyn as the three of them watched the dancers. "Young Sam looks very handsome today," Evelyn stated. "He and Abigail make a beautiful couple."

Jodi could not take her eyes off of her son and Abigail, but nodded in agreement. "They do look happy, don't they?" she replied, though her words were laced with the loneliness she felt missing her husband.

Wise old Evelyn seemed to catch on, so Granny reached out and gave Jodi a squeeze on her hand. "It will be alright, dear. I'm sure Kent will come back safely sometime soon..."

"I hope so." The light-haired brunette did not think that Kent's letters were indicative of that potential, but Jodi appreciated Evelyn's attempt to comfort her. "I hope Kent can join us all next year..." she agreed.


Sebastian took a deep, calming breath as the music started, watching Violet dip and twirl to the music with the other women. It was clear she did not actually know the dance - the others must have forgotten to teach her - but she was quick on her feet to watch and mimic their movements as quickly and gracefully as she could. The farmer was trying to hide her silent panic, but the programmer saw it the slight rise in her eyebrows. As the pairs narrowed the gap between them for the next portion of the dance, he tried to ease her worries. "You're doing fine, Violet," he assured his partner quietly. "No one expects you to do everything perfectly the first time."

"Is it obvious that I have no idea what I'm doing?" she asked quietly, so the others would not hear her self-doubt.

The dark-haired man shook his head and it was then that Violet got a good look at his face up close. Sebastian's bangs were swept up and back toward the back of his head. Strangely, Violet liked being able to see his whole face and her eyes traced the outline of his features as they met in the middle along with the other couples. The pastel-haired woman stood breathless for a moment as her dance partner grinned at her.

As they danced, Violet recalled more of what she told her fellow nerd the night before. Sebastian had not judged her when she told him about her past. Instead, he continued to treat her as he had always done, teasing her at first, but there for her when she needed someone to hash out her feelings. As her dark blue eyes met his inky-black ones, Violet became distracted as the rest of the world seemed to melt away around her as she allowed her mind to ponder on the possibility of letting this man into her heart. She felt a pounding in her chest and she could not tell if it was from anxiety or her body's excitement from being in such close contact with Sebastian. They had never even held hands before today. Sure, he had carried her to safety while she was unconscious, but this was the first time she could actively feel the warmth of his hand in hers. Violet discovered she liked the way his hands felt. The softness of his palm, but slightly rougher fingertips.

Sebastian tried to keep going with the dance, even with Violet so intently focused on him, and offered his hand to spin Violet according to the choreography. Yet, the farmer did not take the cue. "Perhaps I spoke too soon," he teased the spaced-out farmer, gripping her hand firmly for a moment before releasing the pressure. "You still in there, Violet?"

"Sorry!" The young woman realized her blunder and spun quickly to catch up with the movements of the other dances, her dress and hair flaring outward as she did so.

"Calm down," Sebastian ordered Violet, trying to fight the urge to flee immediately with all the eyes upon them. Luckily for him, the dark-haired man's muscle-memory allowed him to continue the dance while distracting himself from his fears. Sebastian could not help but notice the dress Violet wore showed off her curves quite nicely. As the music began to fade, the dark-haired man noticed Violet visibly relax. The worst of it all was over. Now everyone could just enjoy themselves for the rest of the evening without the pressure of everyone watching.

"Let's party, Pelican Town!" rang out the voice of Violet's loud best friend, Bex. A speaker began to blare some kind of Latin dance music and Sebastian's face fell as Violet's lit up in recognition. "This dance is all the couples here today!"


As the couples danced, Marnie noticed that Shane's steps were heavy and awkward, but Emily adjusted well to compensate for his uncertainty. The sapphire-haired woman took her nephew's hand and gave him an assuring smile. Once the man focused on the woman before him, his fumbling lessened significantly. It warmed Marnie's heart to see Shane happy like this.

"I don't understand why Emily bothers with Shane," Lewis scoffed, ruining the rancher's fuzzy feelings. "She's a nice, respectable young lady."

Marnie could feel the heat in her cheeks. "That is my nephew you're talking about," she snapped, more angry than she had ever allowed herself to be in public, though her volume was still relatively low. Then Marnie reminded the Mayor of another connection, "And Jas' godfather."

The grey-haired man shook his head, "That's another thing! What kind of parents would entrust their little girl to him? He's a train wreck!"

"I will not have you disrespecting my family!" Marnie spat back, her hands balling into fists at her side. "If you are really as concerned a Mayor as you claim, you would try to help build him up rather than speak so poorly of him, Lewis," the rancher added accusingly.

The man blinked, clearly not used to the brunette being so openly upset with him. "Of course I care about the people of Pelican Town. That's why I think Emily should not waste her t-"

A fury flashed in Marnie's eyes that made Lewis pause. "Say one more word, Lewis and I swear..." she warned the mustached man beside her.

The Mayor's mouth twitched. "If this atrocious behavior is because I won't make the nature of our relations public due to my position as Mayor of Pelican Town..."

Marnie huffed angrily. "Your heart is as dried out as the rest of you!" the brunette growled, leaving the old man to stand alone. The rancher walked along the fence so to avoid getting in the way of the dancers as she returned her spot in the northwestern corner of the clearing. She felt the hot tears of frustration well up in her eyes. If only her husband, James, had not died when the Gotoro Empire first attacked all those years ago. Marnie was sure that Shane and Jas would have adored him. And then she would never had been reduced to begging for the affections of such an old prune. Lewis was only a local mayor, after all. Why did he care about how it would look to the other villagers if he were in a relationship? Did Lewis really think that the people of Pelican Town expected him to stay single so long as he held his political position? It was ridiculous! But it was so hard to find a man to provide physical comfort and companionship for a woman her age, especially in such a small town. So what other choice did she have?

"You - uh... Look upset, Marnie," a deep voice said gently. Oh... The rancher turned her head to see a man with grey hair and a single steely blue eye, holding out a handkerchief toward her. The eye patch and attire made him look quite rugged, the woman noted to herself. Marnie had never spoken to the man, but he tended to show up at the Pelican Town Festivals. Marnie was not sure where he lived, but she figured he must live close to town if he knew her by name.

"Oh, thank you, sir," she responded gratefully, accepting the cloth and dabbing her eyes. "Some men are just so dense," Marnie complained generally.

The man chortled heartily, "Well, if we weren't, we might be done in by our own foolishness," he laughed, gesturing to his leg. "Luckily, I got away mostly intact."

Marnie made sure that Jas was nearby and supervised as the young people finished up their formal flower dance. "I would love to hear that story," the rancher replied. "If you don't mind, that is..."

He raised his bushy eyebrows in surprise, but his lips curved upward slightly behind his beard. "Of course, ma'am. I would be happy to oblige, if you don't mind an old man's reminiscing."


"It's a bachata, this is super easy!" Violet promised, grabbing his hand and pulling him closer, so they were only about elbow-length apart. "Here, look... One, two, three, tap your foot like this. Five, six, seven, tap..." Applying gentle pressure, Violet lead Sebastian along with steps and sure enough, he caught on easily enough. He could not help but watch as Violet's hips moved in an appealing figure-eight sway. The other couples seemed to catch on between the two sets of demonstrators - Bex and Harvey and Violet and Sebastian.

Violet beamed at Sebastian and he could tell her confidence was slowly returning after spacing out during the flower dance. He could not help but think of how lovely Violet seemed when she smiled and Sebastian wondered what caused the farmer to lose focus so badly.

"So what caused the blank stare earlier?" he asked casually, making sure to pay attention to his feet so he did not step on Violet.

"Oh..." There was no hiding her embarrassment when they were standing so close together. "I... just thought you look nice tonight, that's all."

Sebastian's dark eyes flickered in surprise. "You don't think this suit is ridiculous?" he asked doubtfully.

"I don't really think about clothing when I look at a person..." Violet's deep blue eyes widened in panic. "Not that I think of people without clothes, I just pay attention to their faces more often."

The programmer chuckled, "There's nothing wrong with thinking of people without clothes..."

"I'm not undressing everyone with my eyes!" Violet countered, scandalized by Sebastian's words. "I'm not a pervert!"

The young man paled. "I was agreeing with you, not saying you should imagine people naked," Sebastian shot back defensively. "And who even said I was talking about everyone?!"

Sam and Abigail, who had slowly begun dancing toward the bickering couple cackled when they overheard the last portion of the conversation.

"Sounds like you two are already making plans for later," Sam observed with a mischievous waggle of his eyebrows.

Both Violet and Sebastian turned crimson and snapped their mouths shut. The song ended as if on cue and the two immediately broke apart and headed off the designated "dance floor."

"Aw, come back, guys!" Abigail plead teasingly. "We won't judge!"


As the Latin music continued, older couples began to join in on the fun. Robin seemed especially enthusiastic to have a chance to dance with Demetrius with this kind of music. While her husband seemed lost at first, after several repetitions of the dance steps, the scientist worked it out for the most part.

There seemed to be a disagreement between Pierre and Caroline, the former wanting to get back to his booth to sell his ware, while the latter complained that no one was going to buy anything when the option to dance was on offer. After some hushed bickering and a tap on Pierre's shoulder from Demetrius, Caroline got her way.

The couple that really surprised the villagers, however, was Marnie and Marlon. The steps were slow and easy enough for Marlon's leg and therefore Marnie had asked the man to dance. Haley, who had discovered the relationship between the Mayor and the local rancher, poked her dance partner. "How jealous do you think Lewis is going to get?" she asked Leah.

"Do you think that's why Marnie is dancing with him?"

Haley shrugged, "It could be," she admitted, keeping in time with the music as she danced. "But sometimes it's not about getting revenge," the blonde explained to Leah, her bright blue eyes searching Leah's face for a trace of understanding. "It's about... finally noticing someone you never thought of as an possibility until you take another good look."

Leah tilted her head to the side, her long red hair following the pull of gravity. "What do -?" the artist stopped herself, choosing to ask a different question instead. "Did I... say something to you last night that's making you act this way?"

The blonde's coral-colored lips flipped into a frown. "Nobody's making me act any certain way. I just want to try something..." Haley leaned her lips toward Leah's, but the artist pushed her back.

The sculptor shook her head, "No, what I mean is..." Leah sighed, "Uh, forget it," the woman stated in frustration. "I'm sorry, Haley. I didn't mean to lead you on, but I'm not just here so you can experiment with your bi-curiosity to feel better about yourself and then run back to Alex whenever he's not already with someone else."

Haley looked hurt. "That's not why I asked you to dance, though," she assured Leah quietly.

Leah studied the blonde incredulously. "So you're saying that if Maru hadn't already asked Alex, you still would have asked me to dance with you today?"

The shorter of the two downcast her eyes, looking guilty. "I... suppose you have a point," Haley admitted hesitantly. "But that doesn't mean I don't like dancing with you, Leah. I'm really glad you accepted."

"That's sweet, I guess," Leah answered dismissively. "But that doesn't change the fact that I'm not the guy you wanted. So don't pretend this is a romantic evening and let's just dance as two people who sort of know each other."

Haley, feeling both a bit foolish and chastised, nodded slowly. "I'm sorry, Leah..." she apologized. "I shouldn't have tried to kiss you like that just to see if I... felt anything. That's not fair to you."

The ginger smirked slightly. "Maybe buy me dinner sometime first, eh?" she replied jokingly, though Haley could tell there was sadness in the artist's voice, too. But Leah did well to mask the feeling. "For now, let's just have fun!" Clearly, Haley had not expected Leah to forgive her enough to continue dancing together, but the upward curve of her smile indicated her happiness that the artist was so lenient with her.

"Thanks, Leah..."


Violet immediately headed to the table to get a drink and calm down after that word-vomit fiasco. The problem was, she was not the only person getting a drink.

Vincent and Jas were nearby, and were audible in their complaints for Haley's being crowned flower queen once again this year.

"Someday, I'm going to be the flower queen!" the little girl in pigtails vowed. "And I will rule over all the flowers and be the prettiest dancer in the whole Valley!"

"That's not fair..." Vincent protested, stomping his foot. "Why can't I be the flower queen?"

Jas turned to her playmate. "Because you're a boy, silly!" she huffed, sticking out her tongue.

The little boy searched desperately for some adult support. "Violet! Jas says boys can't be flower queen!" he informed the adult. "Is that true?"

Violet would have answered if not for Bex's intrusion. The cosmetologist came and knelt beside the child. "Niño, you can be a king, queen, duke, duchess - whatever your little corazón desires!"

Vincent beamed smugly at Jas, who pouted at the newly legitimized competition for the future title. "See! I can be flower queen, too."

Bex stood back up, towering over the below-average-height people around her. "Conejita, I need to borrow you for a salsa demonstration," Violet's best friend explained. "Tus vecinos no tienen idea de lo que están haciendo," the bilingual chuckled. "And I think I've already worn out the doctor. Poor man..."

Violet had always helped with dance demonstrations while the two were still in school together. The school tried to do cultural festivals and "strongly encouraged" the young women who were not of European decent to participate. It was a badly managed attempt to showcase cultural diversity, but in fact pressured all the non-white student to perform for their white counterparts. Either way, since they were an all girls' school, Violet always played the role of Bex's counterpart to the dances.

"Fine..." the farmer relented, taking one last drink of water. "I owe you that much."

Bex smiled. "Excellent, sígame por favor," the woman said as she dragged Violet back toward the other dancers.


"You know what? I admit it..." Sam announced, plucking a fallen daisy from the grass and adding it to the bun in his hair. "I really like flowers!"

Abigail smirked, "Aren't you allergic to them?" she reminded her boyfriend.

The blond shrugged, "Eh, allergy medicine does wonders. Besides, they look and smell nice and you rock them, Abi," indicating the flowers adorning her hair.

The amethyst-haired woman gave her Sam a playful shove. "Just don't expect me to wear dresses all the time."

Sam flashed a wide grin, "I have to say, you do look good in a white dress, though. I'd like to see you wear one again someday..."

Abigail blushed. "Sam, we just started dating!" The woman could feel the strange mixture of flattery, happiness, fear, and anxiety all culminating in her body at once. "You can't be thinking about that already!"

"It never hurts to think about," her boyfriend explained casually. "Heck, my parents got married younger than we are now." When the blond noticed Abigail's face go sheet-white he clarified, "Not that I'm suggesting immediate action!" Sam grew quiet for a moment before he added, "I'd... want dad to be here for something like that, anyway."

His girlfriend's bright blue eyes softened as she held him close, gently lowered his head to her shoulder. "It's okay, Sam," Abigail whispered with a comforting squeeze. "Your dad will come back safe and sound..."

The young woman felt the dampness on her shoulder and realized that Sam let out a few silent tears. Abigail figured it was in case Vincent showed up, Sam did not want to have to explain or lie to his little brother as to why he was upset. Her boyfriend was a considerate older brother that way. It was one of the many things that made him so endearing. "I'm here..." Abigail said, pressing her cheek against him gently. "You're safe, Sam. And your dad will be, too."


Sebastian was trapped behind the barrel of flowers with Sam and Abigail sharing an intimate, emotional moment just on the other side. On the one hand, he wanted to comfort his best friend, too. On the other, he knew that Sam did not often share his feelings with his self-assigned role as the happy, go-with-the-flow guy in their friend group. Sam needed this and Sebastian was not about to rob him of that support.

The sun slowly finished its descent over the horizon and after a while of painful silence on Sebastian's end, a familiar voice posed a question to the couple. "Hey, you two! Bex is trying to get everyone salsa dancing," Violet informed Sam and Abigail. "Do you want to join?"

"Sounds spicy," Sam answered, likening the dance to the food. "I'm in if you're in, Abi."

The hidden figure could tell from Abigail's voice that she rolled her eyes, "Fine..."

As the sounds of footsteps receded, Sebastian decided to peek out from behind the tub to see if the coast was clear and make an escape. Thought after standing to his feet, his dark eyes alighted on Violet's face looking up at him expectantly. "Found you, silly."

He jumped. "H-How did you know I was back here?" the man asked uneasily, backing away slightly so that their faces were not so close.

Violet laughed. "Because you told me when we were dancing that you had been hiding from everyone and this was the last place I hadn't checked," she answered, hiding her beautiful, enormous smile behind her hand as she continued to giggle.

Sebastian lowered his gaze, both embarrassed the farmer was mocking him and enamored with the sound of her laughter. "Why are you making fun of me?"

The farmer shook her head and denied the accusation. "I'm not!" she informed him, reaching up on her tip-toes to touch his hair. Sebastian froze, unsure of what the woman's intentions as he felt her fingers brush against him. "You just have a cute little frog on your head and your expression matched the look on its face perfectly for a moment." Violet lowered her open palms to show the terrified creature to Sebastian. "See?"

Indeed, there was a young frog in her hands and it stared up at the two giants with a horrified look before it finally mustered the courage to hop out of Violet's grasp. The two watched it hop away for a moment before Violet spoke again. "Oh, uh, let me wash my hands. I think it peed on me," she explained, kneeling down to rinse her hands in the river. Sebastian did all that he could not to openly stare at Violet as she leaned over, her dress showing off the curve of her body. Was it wrong of him to be this attracted to her? Violet had basically admitted she liked him too, but there was no definitive indication that she wanted to be anything more than friends right now. Sebastian figured he would just have to wait, something for which he had plenty of practice. Still, the local nerd hoped he would not ruin things before they even got the chance.

Violet rose to her feet and Sebastian looked the other way, trying to conceal that he had been watching her. "Do you want to go back to dancing or are you done for the night?" the farmer asked her dance partner.

Sebastian cleared his throat, trying to regain some of his dignity despite the situation. His scalp still tingled slightly where Violet had caressed his head to extract the amphibian. "I suppose one more dance before I sneak out of here wouldn't hurt..."

"Great!" Violet replied happily, taking his hand in her own. "C'mon, let's go!" she urged Sebastian. Yet he stood firm, surprising the farmer with his resistance. Her deep blue eyes scanned him curiously. "What's wrong? Don't you want to dance?"

The dark-haired man averted his gaze a moment. "I was hoping... we could dance over here," he confessed sheepishly. "I don't like being around so many people at once..."

Musing for a moment, Violet searched the area to make sure there was not anything to would trip them. "We could just dance here next to the river," Violet conceded. "It's nice and flat and the sound of the music carries over just fine." The farmer smiled up at Sebastian. Violet took both of his hands in hers, suddenly far more confident, as she tried to teach Sebastian the steps. "It's really just a lot of shifting your weight around," she explained as she counted out the steps.

It took more tries than Sebastian cared to count, but after some encouragement from Violet, it slowly began to make sense before the movements finally clicked with him. Violet grinned at him as they finally fell into a rhythm in time with the music. "Look at you!" she complimented Sebastian, her smiling face likely pink from the exertion or pride in his efforts, but the man could not tell which. Violet stopped looking at her feet, showing Sebastian her trust in his ability to lead now. The dark-eyed man felt breathless and worried his hands were too sweaty and that he had no business dancing with a cute girl like Violet, but eventually those thoughts began to fall from his mind as he focused on the woman's face in the bright light of the moon. Violet looked so happy... And Sebastian realized he wanted nothing more than to make sure that she stayed that way. He felt a slight pain in his cheeks as he realized he had been smiling back at the farmer this entire time.

When the music stopped, Sebastian did as well, but Violet - who had either not been paying attention or did not care that the music ended - bumped into her dance partner. Catching them both from falling, Sebastian's right leg fell back and braced himself against Violet's surprisingly dense body. For a moment, the two stood there in each other's embrace - a bit stunned by what just happened.

Violet found that Sebastian's body felt pleasantly firm against her and she looked up to find his face far closer than she anticipated. "Nice catch," she said, unable to stop the tinge of pink from coloring her face as she gently untangled herself from her friend. "Thanks for saving your last dance for me," she told Sebastian appreciatively with a shy smile. "I... had a lot of fun."

"Me, too," Sebastian admitted, much to his own surprise as he watched her walk away toward the light of the torches and the crowd of other party-goers.