A/N

Ello all! Glad to have you here, still working on my tablet (somehow) I should be getting my computer back, but the shop said they couldn't fix it due to the parts being all the way in china (who knew?) I'll continue to try and get these out as I can so till then enjoy CH 7!


(Schnee) Arc:

Ch. 7:Ballo Particeps

~But we did what we could for them.~


In White Rose: Room 3

Heiter's Pov-

I was slightly confused.

One moment I was watching Wiess do her exercises.

The next moment I blinked , heard a small clap , and then she teleported in front of me.

I stared at the light blue eyed girl who had just performed this miracle as if nothing had occurred.

Her face turned an unhealthy shade of pink and then she spun on her heel , back facing me.

"Your up now? Good, head over to Mrs. Dion. She has need of you for the lesson."

Wait what?

Didn't we already cover this? I can't speak!

I sigh and reach for my knees with both hands. I then push them as I stand up and begin to follow Wiess towards Mrs. Dion.

"Glad to have you with us Heiter. Now we can continue with todays lessons."

Umm hello?

I point at my throat , then flap my hands in front of my mouth to demonstrate something coming out and finish by crossing both my arms to form an X. (cue incorrect answer SFX)

"I'm well aware of your mute condition Heiter. I do not expect you to sing."

I relax at this.

"What you can do, however is partake in the dance lessons."

I make a small O with my mouth and then wait for instruction from her.

"Now Heiter before we start I need to know something. What level of experience do you have in dancing?"

Wiess seems lost in her own thoughts , but then she follows her- our instructors gaze and expectantly awaits my answer.

I think for a moment and for once the fog doesn't come up.

Oh that's new. I think a little bit deeper...

hmmm. I squint my eyes and cross my arms as I dig deeper and realize something profound.

I know absolutely nothing about dancing.

The look of enlightenment on my face then freezes at this realization.

I slowly look back at Mrs. Dion,then uncross my hands . I then with a little flair, raise my right hand forming a O with my thumb and pointer finger as I whip my wrist slightly.

"You have no prior experience with dance then?"

I give a thumbs up and smile, but then follow up by pointing at her.I then clench and lift my left fist and hold it in place, following this action I bring my right hand next it horizontally and move it in a semi-circular motion relative to my left hand and then point both hands at my feet.

The instructor smiles with a merry light in her eyes.

"indeed I will".

Wiess frowns and looks lost as to what transpired.

I repeat the motions I just did and then point towards my partner instead of myself.

Mrs. Dion nods and looks to the girl. "Dear, he originally said that I would fix his lack of experience with dancing."

"and the second time ma'am?"

"he wanted me to fix your understanding about what was "said", speaking of which you do communicate pretty well for someone who can't talk Heiter."

I grin and point my thumb at myself. I then put both of my hands on top of each other and then spin them around in a circular motion , eventually releasing by raising my hands in the air with a shrug.

A knowing light appears in Mrs. Dion eyes as she smiles.

"that you do."

I point towards Wiess again who is once again squinting at me.

"dear, you really have been hitting the books too much haven't you?"

The girl snaps to her head up in attention and looks at the instructor.

"pardon me ma'am?"

"Your partners way of expressing themselves is thus far limited to known phrases and images.

I hope you have heard the phrase "I roll with it"? if not would recommend studying up on some of the phrases us common born use".

Ohh now that would have had a sting to it if Mrs. Dion didn't lightly pat the back of her student with a smile. Said student was caught off guard by this.

"why should I study slang?"

Her teachers pats her once more while shaking her head.

"Because my dear, you want to understand what is being said by your friend, else he's going to have repeat himself for you."

I got you Wiess.. I clap briefly to get their attention, which works.

I then proceed to point my thumb at myself once more. Guess that's going to mean "I" until a substitute for my current method of communication is learned. I soon after follow with my crossed arms forming X, and finalize my message by tapping my index finger against the top of my skull.

Wiess looks at me for a moment as I look back, hopefully encouraging her. She then coolly looks back at the singer.

"He doesn't mind."

I grin at the girl and twitch an eyebrow playfully at Mrs. Dion. Who then proceeds to chuckle a little.

"I see, well don't take advantage of your partners generosity dear. On that note, I'm going to need you to lead in the lessons. Consider it a pop-quiz.

"excuse me?"

Ok… I've seen her become multiple shades of color. First red , now. I've seen her pink,and I've seen her confused. I have not seen her a act like someone froze her.

Speaking of which is it cold? Must be my imagination.

I think of what to "say" but it's a little complicated so I go with something simple for now.

I extend my right hand and make a victory sign with it. Wiess looks back from me to her instructor.

"Right…well then Mrs. Dion what would you like me to start Heiter on?"

"I will leave the instruction to you, I will not be commentating on how you teach him until you have finished. This will ,however be a full review however of the basics."

Mrs. Dion begins to walk over to the line of chairs we were formerly using.

",Until then I will stand over here"

I suddenly feel like I was left to out of some greater plan and now the joke is on me.

Well then… I glance my to my partner,whom appears to be concentrating on the floor while holding their chin with a hand, all ears on what I'm supposed to do.


Wiess's Pov-

Terrific.

Completely and utterly appalling.

That is a less than adequate portrayal of the position I have found myself in.

I was hoping to demonstrate my own dancing capabilities, but now I'm having to teach a complete novice how to dance. To add to my compounding predicament I'm being graded!

I shake my head slightly.

Ok Wiess time to consider what I'm being judged on. This is a full review, by definition I need to teach all of section one from my dance lessons.

I should also be graded on how I tutor Heiter.

This should mean that his performance will not effect my grade, rather the quality of instruction will.

I spot a pair of black topsiders as they enter my sight.

My vision turns upwards to see the boy with both hands in the pockets of his grey khakis. His brown eyes gaze at me , giving me his full attention as he awaits my instruction.

I walk past him. "Follow me." I quip and continue towards the stage I was practicing on earlier.

I ascend the three steps that lead to the wooden stage. My hand raises and points to the back of the stage.

"Stand against the wall, I will demonstrate a series of steps that I want you to repeat."

Heiter walks past me and sticks out his left hand with the thumb up.

He reaches the wall and puts the right foot behind his left and twists to the right, pivoting on his position until he faces me.

I file away that he knows an about face.

"Good, now that you are in a suitable position to learn from me I would like to stress a few key points before we begin.

First I will need your continued and complete attention." To this Heiter puts both hands behind his back and spreads his stance slightly, with his shoulders back taking what is apparently his attentive posture. It appears militaristic in nature.

His eyes are meeting mine with what could be the first serious look I have seen from him… never mind he still has the grin.

I make an unnoticeable sigh .Guess that's what I'm going to get from him for now.

"Good, we will cover three types of steps that will make dancing much easier for you to comprehend. the Box step, the Triple step, and the Rock step. These three elements, when combined with forward walks and backward walks will be used to make up the dances that we will use."

I turn around and face my back towards Heiter.

"For now I will be starting with my left foot, just to simplify the process. The first element I will teach you is a box step. It is very simple. Even a dolt could learn this with no problem. The box step is exactly what it sounds like, a box."

I begin to slowly move as I dictate my instructions.

"You take a forward step with the left, side to the right and make sure your feet come together. You will now want to shift your weight so that you are standing on your left you stand back with your right foot and go backwards, then side to the left and bring you feet together once more."

"I will demonstrate again. Its forward , side, and together , then backwards, side , and together. If I counted off the steps for you there would be six counts made. Here I go again."

I take my step forward "One,"

Then step to the right "Two ,"

I bring my feet together "Three ,"

My right foot goes backward. "Four,"

My left takes the side step across the box I''ve made. "Five ,"

I finish by bringing my right foot together with my left "and Six."

I spin back around toward Heiter.

"A common mistake made by beginners is forgetting to shift your weight, and then stepping with the same foot twice. I can hope you imagine why this wouldn't work."

Heiter narrows his eyes slightly. A look of comprehension appears on his face as he now returns his attention to me.

"Now I have also just taught you two dances with just the box step. Heiter tilts his head slightly, but continues paying attention.

I have taught you how to perform the Waltz and the Rumba. They are both based on the box step. "

I raise my right hand with one finger extended.

"The one difference being the tempos you use."

I now flip my right hand and curl a finger, beckoning Heiter to come toward me.

He almost bounces his way over, but slows upon getting near.


"Now we will demonstrate this, but in order to dance you must know how to hold your partner."

I open the palm of my right hand and hold it in a two o clock position relative to my facing.

"You will want to grab my right hand with your left and keep it in roughly a Ten o clock position in relation to you."

Heiter moves forward and tentatively grabs my hand, looking toward me for confirmation.

"Next you will put your other hand on my back, near the left shoulder blade, not the hip."

I lift my left arm and he slowly puts his right hand on my back as he holds me, at least he isn't rushing like some and almost slapping or jostling me.

I then lower my left arm and lay it on top of his, following the bend in the arm. I now get a firm grip on his upper arm.

"Now we will begin, please remember to start with your left foot. I will start with my right and will count off each step. Since this is your first time we will start things at a slower pace. "

"One." I slightly tug at Heiter as I take my step backwards and he follows with the left.

"Two" I take my left step and focus on my own portion of moves.

"Three , we come together, remember your weight. Four"

I take my left step forward. "Five"

My right foot heads out to our final destination "and six."

We bring our feet together and stop." Now this in of Itself is not one of the two dances I mentioned. The dance isn't so much about what your doing, but how.

We can be going with a motion of lowering ,swinging , and raising ourselves for the Waltz, or we can use a swaying motion and let our legs settle. This will have us doing the Rumba. Now they look different, but are actually the same footsteps.

Now go wait on the wall again, I will be demonstrating the second mentioned step.

Heiter takes a few steps to the back while his left hand crossed and right holding his chin, clearly trying to remember what I said, or at least that's what I hope he is doing.

He then faces me and continues to hold his current pose, but is watching me. I once more turn away from him.

"now I will again start with the left foot and use a triple step. You will take one, two ,three steps to the left. My weight is now on my left foot. My right will be usable. I can now take three steps to the right. Please make sure to keep your steps short and concise , these are not lunges, just steps."

I then perform the triple step a few times to the right and left, switching each time I finish one.

"Tri-Ple-step , Tri-Ple-step, Tri-Ple-step , One-Two-Three, Four-Five-Six"

I now have my weight on my right foot.

"Now a dance that uses the Triple step is the Polka. All you will do is use the triple step to got across the floor and occasionally rotate the group that consists of you and your partner as it is based on a rotary motion. I will leave that one as a bonus for you to figure out."

I don't mention it, but I dislike the polka as most of my partners have stepped on me, or at least those in my age group.


"The last element is the Rock step. I will again use the left foot."

I send my left foot behind in a eight o clock position relative to my right and put my weight on it.

"you will take one step backward, and put your weight on your left foot. This frees up your right foot so that you may now shift your weight to it. Now replace the weight"

I shift forward and begin to alternate between having my weight on my left or right foot.

"The rock step is extremely simple as it only has two actions. The rock step can go forward, back , left , or right. It can actually go in any direction. Now if you would join me again."

Heiter lightly skips forward in a motion that follows the triple step pattern and stops in front of me with a grin on his face once more. I lift both of my hands up to him in the eleven and one o clock position.

"Now grab my hands and we can get started with the next portion."

The boy reaches out and holds my hands.

"One thing I would like to state is that when in a partnership dance, which is what we have been doing, the partners mirror each other. If I'm stepping with my right, you are moving your left. This is different from freestyle where you don't need to worry about stepping on your partner, in this case, me. "

I raise an eyebrow. "I'm sure you don't want to step on me?" Heiter vigorously shakes his head with a worried frown plastered on his face. My lip curls upwards into a smile.

"good boy. Now then we will rock forward and two one Start."

I step back with my right and he his left, but we don't let go. We then pull ourselves back together as we begin to rock.

"Rock-step ,Rock-step ,Rock-step. This swing is simple for us to perform. Now if we expand on this and add in the triple step."

I guide him to the right as we begin to use the triple step.

"tri-ple-step"

I return to where we were and add in the newest step for him .

"tri-ple-step. Rock-step"

we continue to quietly repeat the motions. "We are now.. performing the swing, or the jitterbug. If we remix those two steps again, say a triple step rock step triple step rock step."

We take a triple step to the right and rock in his direction then triple step back to our origin and rock in my direction.

"We can do the cha cha, now as you can see by now everything I have taught you is interchangeable."

I let go of him and continue.


"You now know the Box step, triple step, and rock step. The dances you know of are the Waltz, the Rumba, the Polka, the swing and the cha cha. You have Five dances built off of three steps. I would recommend practicing sometime to get used to the motions."

I look at my partner and notice his eyes are tracking something behind me.I pivot and turn to see Mrs. Dion had silently gotten on the stage at some point.

"Ma'am I finished my lesson, may I ask how I did?"

The lady ponders for a moment and looks back at me. "Ninety-Five" I stifle a response against the woman.

"The reason being is that you forgot to mention the distance that partners need to maintain." Mrs. Dion redirects her gaze towards Heiter.

"The ideal distance you need to try to maintain is one where your clothes are almost touching when moving around. Wiess here actually kept a little too much distance this time, something I assure you she can and will work on."

I'm reflecting on my mistake, unable to figure out why I made such an error. I then feel a hand on my right shoulder and turn to see Heiter looking at Mrs. Dion. He tilts his head, points at himself with his thumb ,something I recognize as "I" now, and then does an imitation of using a wrench, after that he points at me.

"Yes dear, you may help her" "Ma'am I don't-"

Heiter brings up his X to symbolize that something was interpreted incorrectly. He repeats the prior actions and then tilts his head, points to me, then himself and does the wrench.

"you want to help each other?"

Heiter smiles and takes a step forward and is now next to me. He nods in response to our instructors query. I feel that I did something wrong, but like earlier I can't figure out why.

"Very well, I can arrange for you to do more joint exercises. If you do well enough I can make additional arrangements for you two."

I perk up at this. "What will these be?"

Mrs. Dion's grins in response to my question. "to quote your sister , its classified."

I lightly smile at this as I think about Winter. "yes ma'am."

Heiter suddenly straightens up and walks toward the edge of the stage. From there he hops off it.

"Heiter?"I look at him as he walks around the table and up to the door, pulling it open. Behind the door is a redhead who's straight hair comes down to their shoulder.

I recognize her as one the maids, Suzie Cereza if I recall.

She is staring at Heiter in surprise, "umm" but redirects her gaze towards us and bows. "ah evening , miss Schnee. I apologize for the timing here, but Mr. Clutch sent me here to pick up the boy."

Heiter gives me a look that says "for the last time, I have a name! help!"

I narrow my eyes and look back from Heiter to the maid. "Cereza his name is Heiter. I would advise that you remember it" the words flow off colder than I expected them to , but I don't apologize.

The maid continues bowing ."yes mylady" She then straitens herself and looks toward Mrs. Dion.

"I hope I didn't interrupt your lesson ma'am? My instructor shakes her head.

"You did not. We had just finished our lesson. You may take him. " The maid nods and looks toward Heiter then back to Mrs. Dion." Mr. Clutch will be asking for updates as he gets the schedules updated."

"Understood, now don't keep him waiting." The maid bows once more" Yes ma'am."


She gestures for Heiter to follow her and they exit the room and take a left , likely towards the main building.I gaze at the exit and feel a hand on my shoulder at some point.

I restrain myself from jumping and look up to Mrs. Dion. "Ma'am?"

My instructor is smiling at me, but shaking her head. " My dear, I have rarely seen you that tense. I know I gave an impromptu quiz, but that shouldn't have made you stiffen like that". I realized that indeed, my muscles were all tensed up.

Wait why? Mrs. Dion stairs at me knowingly.

"Ma'am do you know the cause of this? I don't wish for it to get in the way of my performance."

"I may."

"Please tell me that this isn't also classified?"

"actually it isn't"

"well?"

"A certain copper haired boy was part of the cause, I believe the quiz brought out the rest."

I cross my arms at this. "excuse me? I'm used to both impromptu quizzes as well as boys ma'am. I have met several at the balls father has had me attend."

Mrs. Dion's eyes soften at this, but she still had the knowing smile.

"Wiess, there is something your forgetting, I believe you always came back from the balls stating how you never liked the company, I assume that I'm correct in say that you didn't like any of the boys?"

My complexion pales at the implications of what my instructor just said.

"M-Ma'am you mean to tell me that I like that radiator of cheerfulness? Something is catching in my chest.

The lady has an almost smug look, which she somehow makes look graceful.

"I would believe so, you named him, and gave that flattering description of him just now, there were also other signs, but I won't just tell you all the answers. I do believe that the combination of this and the impromptu quiz made you want to prove yourself. That caused you tense up. That is my analysis as your teacher and friend."

I give my instructor a serious look "what do I do? How should I handle this?"

"Just be yourself. You will do fine dear. I'll see if I can't help you a little by arranging an outing for you two, just continue to give me your full attention in the lessons" I straight myself ,take a breath,and look back to my instructor. "Yes ma'am!"

"That aside Mr. Clutch contacted me while you were teaching Heiter. He wanted me to tell you that any additional lessons for today were canceled as they will be altering your schedule tomorrow. Expect to get up at Six-Thirty.A.M. is what he left me. There will be no additional lessons, but he did instruct that you would be needed for a meeting prior to going to bed, so I would recommend keeping yourself available.

I did request that he give you ten minutes of heads up. You will be having dinner served in your room at Seven P.M." I nod at all of this stunned. I have hours of free time. I simply don't know what to do with my time.

Mrs. Dion looks at her watch and back to me. "I would recommend paying a visit to the CAGE center. You exercised you mind mostly today, perhaps some physical excursion would do you some good. Some training time with your new weapon might also be in order. You can set up the arena to a configuration you like. you could also just take your time off and find something else to do."

I nod at this.

"Thank you for the suggestions Mrs. Dion. I might go practice in the CAGE for a little bit.I think I'll pay the library a visit after. I need to find some books on sign language as well as a teaching manual for entry level English."

"Sounds like you have a plan, well I need to head home now. I will see you next time, please practice in the mean time. You need to work on that stiffness, so get Heiter to work with you on that. He was worried about you the whole time during the lessons because of the stiffness. He might have thought he did something wrong, or something was wrong with you. He does seem slightly on the clueless side, might be a side effect of being your cheerful radiator."

I huff. " your teasing me again, aren't you?"

"Yes" "

Please stop."

"One day" I narrow my eyes.

"when?"

"Classified"

I sigh in response to this.

"Well good luck dear. I have to go now." I see Mrs. Dion make her way towards the exit and wave to me as she makes her way out, leaving me in the room. "I should head over to the CAGE now, ah but I need to go get Myrtenaster from my room first In the main building."

I arrive at the door and begin to start my afternoon activities that for once I decided. I stop for a moment and note that this is a first. I enjoy the feeling that comes with that revelation and make my way out of White Rose towards my room in R-3 .


A/N

Ello all! Finding that I'm learning quite a bit as I write this. if any of you have ideas. Feel free to PM me! Just a word we will be in this arc for awhile. Now that that is out of the way I need to go back to finding cookie dough that Ruby hasn't already pilfered. That little red is fast! Its really hard to get to it before she does. I think she has a bloodhounds nose for cookies. Wish me luck. Till then take care!

-Merra