(Author's Note):
I am horrible at writing dancing (especially waltz dancing), so you have been warned. :'D
Also thank you for reading this far into the fanfiction! I hope you really like and enjoy it!
I'll admit, I had a fun time writing this specific chapter. I listened to waltz music as I wrote, so I felt really immersed into the story at the time. The reason I chose to make a ballroom dance chapter was because of in one of the Season 3 Episodes: "Beginnings", I remember the Koto ballroom dancing that Rapunzel and Cassandra did. (Hence why I referenced it, ha ha.)
(I originally thought Koto was called Galcrest for some reason? So, um, I'm thankful I noticed this before I published Arc 2, ha ha.)
Enjoy!
~ VarianLeAlchimiste
Chapter 24
Dance
Koto was known for their ballroom dances.
For you see, Koto was quite the fancy place.
They had important, equally-fancy etiquette, even outside of the palace.
The Kingdom of Koto also liked to host many events.
"Ballroom Dance of Water and Ice." Cassandra read the flyer. "Hm. I know how to do the famous Kotoian Dance, I had to do it once with Raps for some competition in the Kingdom of Corona. It would have been fun if Raps had acted like she had common sense."
"She's a goofball, huh?" Varian giggled. "Yeah, but somehow I miss her." Cassandra shrugged.
"I wanted to try and do the Kotoian Dance again, but I never had the time until recently for obvious reasons." She said, walking away from the notice board. Varian stared for a moment at the flyer, then followed after her quickly. "Maybe you can join the Ballroom Dance of Water and Ice? It's today!" Varian smiled, his hands behind his back.
Ruddiger crawled onto Varian's other shoulder and sat down on that one.
Cassandra looked at Varian for a moment before she responded; "Don't you want to go somewhere more interesting than a stuffy ballroom dance?" She asked, raising a brow.
"I mean, I'll go anywhere you want me to, I don't mind. So if you want to go to the ballroom dance, then I'll come with you." Varian nodded softly while looking at her.
Cassandra thought about it and she did really want to try doing the Kotoian Dance again. "Fine, if you insist." Cassandra shrugged again and then grabbed Varian's wrist. "Come on, you, we're going to the Ballroom Dance of Water and Ice!" Cassandra ran off with him.
Varian nearly tripped, "Whoa! Hey, wait Cassie! Sheesh!"
Cassandra had changed into her blue dress for this event. "How do I look? Good? Or will I get snobby looks because I'm wearing the wrong color blue or something." She asked Varian.
Varian went to speak but all that came out was a simple, "Ye."
"Repeat?" She asked. "Yes! Yes, you look... you look good..." Varian shook his head and panicked.
Cassandra raised her brow, she thought it was funny though. "You'll need something presentable if you want to go out there." She said. "Uh, oh... I don't have-" Varian pouted. Cassandra looked around and saw a box of spare fabric for dress repairing. "Think you can make something out of this?" Cassandra held the fabric to Varian, dangling it in her fingers.
"Do... I look presentable now?" Varian came out with, not a tuxedo, but a blue vest with coattails. Cassandra looked him up and down, "Well, it's not a tuxedo, but I think you'll be good. Looks nice on you." Cassandra said. Varian's face went completely red, "O...Oh, thank...Thank you, Cassie..." He had to resist hiding his blushing face from the black-haired.
Upon walking out on the ballroom floor, Varian felt a little out-of-place, after all; he had been a thief all these years, he's never been to a ballroom dance. "Well, uh, have fun, I'm just going to stand here, and uh, watch here. Yeah." Varian stood in a corner awkwardly.
"You're not going to dance?" She raised her brow.
"No... I...don't really know how..." Varian crossed his arms.
"Well, that seems like a waste of a vest, I know that much. I can teach you if you'd like." Cassandra said. Varian paused; wait, dancing with Cassie?
"I mean, if you insist- Whoa!" Varian held his hand out and Cassandra pulled him along again.
They went to the middle of the ballroom floor and stood next to each other. "First off, you have to put your feet together and stand straight." Cassandra explained. Varian stared with a delayed reaction and then quickly stuck his feet together and held his head and back up straight.
"Now, face the lady and gently bow to her."
Varian turned to Cassandra and gently bowed. "Now what?" He asked, whispering.
"Hold out your hand and the lady will take your hand." Cassandra said, so Varian did so and Cassandra grabbed his hand, which flushed Varian's face a bright red. "Now, move your arm up like this, until our forearms touch and we look a bit like we're giving each other a high-five, but for a long, long time." Cassandra slowly moved her arm up, and Varian did so as well.
The music slowly began playing in the background, "Leave it to me, just follow my lead." Cassandra winked and began to walk in a circle, Varian doing the same. The violins, the cellos, the piano, the trumpets... They were all so wonderful.
Varian felt his heart race from excitement from not only dancing with Cassandra, but being some place new and beautiful that he had never seen before, doing things he had never done before, he felt so happy that he wasn't dealing with bullies or bad guys that wanted to steal from him.
Cassandra whispered, "Turn, use the other arm this time."
They both turned and then put their forearms on the other side together and began walking in circles again. Varian and Cassandra looked each other in the eyes carefully as they danced.
"Now, lower your arm with mine, then take my hand and put your other hand around my waist, then just step to the beat." Cassandra explained quietly. Varian nodded and lowered his arm with hers and slowly took her hand, his fingers in-between hers. He gently slipped his arm underneath Cassandra's, and then held her softly by the waist. It took him a slight moment to adjust to doing a different step, but he managed to get the hang of it.
"You're really short." Cassandra whispered.
"H...Hey! That's not instructions!" He glared and blushed embarrassed.
"Well you are." She laughed quietly not to interrupt the dance's music.
Varian and Cassandra stepped to the music for the longest time before the music sped up, "Think you can do this, kid? You'll have to twirl me." She said. "Uh, yeah I think so..." He frowned, unsure. At the proper moment, Varian tried his best... Varian loosened his grip on Cassandra's hand and tightened his grip around Cassandra's waist and spun her slightly across the ballroom floor, though she didn't get far. (Cassandra was a lot stronger than him.)
"Now continue what we were doing before." Cassandra added.
Varian continued the stepping to the beat, tightening his grip back on Cassandra's hand and loosening his grip around Cassandra's waist. "Now forearm again, same as last time." Cassandra said quickly. Varian and Cassandra both lifted their arm up and then walked in a circle, then afterwards, did the same thing, only the opposite way around, like last time.
Finally the music began to stop and Varian swiftly grabbed both of Cassandra's hands and stepped back, and Cassandra stepped back as well, and that's how the music ended.
"That was fun." Cassandra gently let go of Varian's hands.
"Y...Yeah, it was!" Varian smiled shyly.
After the ballroom dance, they went back to where they stayed and plopped down on their beds. "I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted. Walking around all these places and dancing." Cassandra stretched and gave a small smile towards Varian. "I'm kind of tired too." He rubbed his eyes and softly smiled. Ruddiger chirped and crawled into his lap. "Hey bud." Varian pet him on the head, warmly smiling at his raccoon friend.
"I hope Raps and Eugene's doing good." Cassandra said, adjusting her tunic. "Me too, I don't really know Eugene, but he sounds like a cool guy! I know Rapunzel though, from the blizzard, she's nice." He said, "And she has a chameleon." He giggled. "Pascal's a funny one too." Cassandra laughed a bit, gently laying down in bed. "Well, I'm going to bed. Goodnight." Cassandra wrapped up with her blanket and blew out the candle. Varian looked over and nodded, "Goodnight Cassie." Varian said before looking over at Ruddiger. "I think I'll stay awake a little longer and sew some of my clothing." He said, opening his backpack, and then his bag.
Eventually, Varian did fall asleep, holding Ruddiger gently in his arms, blanket wrapped up on him, sewing kit accidentally pushed to the floor and his half-finished sewing project on the bottom of the bed. Varian didn't feel 'at home' yet, but he definitely felt happy and thankful.