He twirled me around the dance floor expertly and dipped me as the song ended
Sorry this took so long, please let me know what you think. I tried really hard to get it out as soon as I could, it just took me a long time to get it started once again!
Thanks to: ffgirlmoonie, jojodacrow, sailorserena141,starangel07, sailorstars16, Visionsblue, Caytlyn Rose, inunkag4ever, Amanda, Snick3rDooDl3, stargazer32316, AbysSerenity, Starlit Warrior, Moongirl818, Melody87, lovedlost, SarahLynn86, koldy, srsmoon, BloomAmber, MikiUsako90, b, LightningRose, artstarcarolaina, gina, skye668, Champion of Justice, serenity11287, raye85 , supersaiyanx, Princess-Anime, universeprincess911,anokas2757,srsmoonally0212,Jingy5,small876, evelynvm29, Connie, UFGator1, Trixie, Michele, chibiangel413, And of course I can't for get the person who really helps me get the guts up to post the next chapter: Caytlyn Rose, she really is a wonderful person and takes the time to read my dribble, she did edit this one before it was posted.
Please let me know what you think. By the Way I gave Caytlyn Rose chapter 8 so it should be posted in way less than six months. I promise.
The Dance
He twirled me around the dance floor expertly and dipped me slightly as the song ended. All in all it was a wonderful dance, but somehow I felt that it could have been better. He led excellently, but sometimes I barely managed to go the direction he wanted me to. The cues were off or late. And a few times I found him staring across the dance floor. As the song ended we separated. As I curtsied he fell into a polite bow.
"You truly are a wonderful dancer." He spoke rising back to his full height.
"Thank you!" I said, wondering if I should say what was on my mind. After a moments hesitation I spoke up.
"I don't intend to be rude, but were you distracted while we were dancing?" I asked the man that stood before me.
He stared at me for a moment, a slight bit of shock on his face. Then suddenly he blushed as he looked away from me.
I smiled knowingly. "So you were watching Mina. I thought you might be, a lot of your cues were late and some I had to guess by the way you were leaning as to which way I was going." I spoke without thinking.
He turned back to me with a look of shock.
I covered my mouth with my hand. Now it was my turn to blush. You were never supposed to tell a man what he did wrong in dancing. Females were nothing but a partner, the man led and the woman followed. My training came from experience, a thousand years ago. My mother had several male dance teachers teach me many ways a man would signal he wanted you to turn right, left or that he was going to take you in to a spin or twirl. The dance instructors were very tough on me and I had to pick up on the slightest cues and had many lessons where I was hurting when we finished as usually I would move the wrong way and have my foot stepped on. I guess even after a thousand years one could still remember the hours spent learning the same dance over a hundred times. I did learn well and eventually learned more dances much faster.
"I'm sorry Kunzite, I don't know what came over me, and you dance divinely." I covered quickly removing my hand from my mouth and curtsying to him.
"According you what you just said, I am in need of dance lessons." He countered with a smile on his face.
I broke out into a smile. "I'm sorry, I meant no disrespect, I just couldn't help notice you were distracted by the fact that Darien was dancing with Mina."
"How did you become such an expert on dancing, may I ask?" He began leading me to the refreshment table.
"Um, I've had dance lessons!" I replied lamely.
"Well I can most assuredly tell that you have had dance lessons. If you had not, I most assuredly would have stepped on your feet several times." He replied with the corny smile that I had seen occasionally on the moon.
I smiled up at him and glanced back to the dance floor. Darien was dancing with Mina again. I could tell from Darien's face that it had been Mina's idea. On the moon he hadn't cared much for dancing. At least not with the same woman two dances in a row. Him and I would often dance several dances together, and he never seemed to mind. After a long night Darien would dance with me and comment on some of the women he had danced with as I would on the men. We thoroughly enjoyed our rivalry at who had danced with the worst partner. Usually it was him, because the woman would want to win his affection and completely forget that she was dancing. The woman would then proceed to make Darien step on her foot. This was so she could have his affections, while helping her off the dance floor. Darien had mastered the technique of reading this in women and would usually surprise the woman and end the dance flawlessly.
Yet Darien and I had never complemented or pointed out anything about each other when we danced together. I never found a flaw with Darien as my partner. And yet this evening I had yet to dance with him.
Our rendezvous on the balcony was short and not sweet at all. Moments after we had stepped out side Kunzite had burst through the doors and wanted to talk to Darien in the parlor upstairs. Darien had looked to me with an apology on his face and reluctantly let go of my hand and followed an angry looking Kunzite inside. Moments later Mina found me leaning on the balcony railing and rushed me inside to talk about Kunzite. I was prepared for this.
She had gushed about him for half an hour before she began asking about Darien. Luckily by then Darien and Kunzite had returned. Mina had stopped her gossip instantly and turned and asked Darien for a dance.
I finally looked back at Kunzite and noticed his gaze completely on Mina and Darien. On the moon he would do this as well, but it was usually watching Darien and his dance partner. He had been the leader of the four generals and had taken his role as seriously as Mina had as leader of the senshi. They loved each other immensely, but their loyalty was unquestionable. They knew their positions, were trained well and felt their roles as guardians were more important than anything.
"Don't worry Kunzite; Darien doesn't look interested in her in that way!" I spoke softly. He turned toward me with a guarded look.
I chuckled softly.
"I don't know what you're talking about." He replied.
"Kunzite it's truly hard for me to believe that you are watching Darien like that." I replied turning my gaze to the pair at the song ended. Darien bowed quickly and excused himself and began walking toward us. Smiling as he caught my gaze. I blushed and looked back to Kunzite who was no longer there. I blinked several times and then looked back into the crowd to find him making his way to the orchestra. What was he up to?
Mina soon reached my side and gushed in my ear.
"He is an impeccable dancer Serena. He is also a divine teacher. He's very easy to follow; he's actually a better dancer than Kunzite."
I looked at her with shock, on the moon we had quarreled about who was the better dancer. I opened my mouth and closed it quickly. The moon was off limits, she had no memory of the past and so I could not quarrel with her like we use to. She most assuredly had no memory of Kunzite, not one year ago and certainly not a thousand years ago.
"Ah refreshment, I'm a bit parched." Darien commented coming up next to me; I had purposely placed myself next to the punch bowl.
I instantly held out a glass of punch to him. With a quirked eye brow he said thank you and gulped the entire glass.
"Serena!" Mina stated looking around Darien.
"Yes Mina?' I answered.
"Have you seen Kunzite? The ladies dance is up next!" She spoke
"Ladies dance?" I asked.
"Well some ladies are scared to ask a guy to dance so Kunzite sets up a dance at every ball he holds to have the ladies ask the man they want to dance with." Darien explained while looking around the room. I assumed he didn't want to dance with Mina again. She was a terrible dancer; she had stepped on his feet more than once.
I couldn't help but watch them, even though I knew Mina was interested in Kunzite and not Darien, a part of me couldn't help but make sure that Mina was not expecting anything from him. I was a bit relieved when I saw the look on Darien's face as he had walked toward us. It was a look of relief.
"He's over with the orchestra!" I said. But it had fallen on deaf ears. She had found him before even finishing her sentence and was off toward him. She apparently wanted to dance with Kunzite.
"She certainly is a talker!" Darien commented.
"Yes, a wonderful gossip and is certainly proud of it." I replied.
"How are your feet feeling?" I asked him.
"Huh?" He asked choking on his punch.
I chuckled softly and asked again, "How are your feet feeling? I know she stepped on them more than once."
"Luckily I missed most of the damage, I usually got my foot out of the way, so actually not too bad. She's not a bad dancer, but she misses the subtle cues that go on in dancing."
"Yes, she was never really one to be able to remember what the cues meant." I replied.
"Did you both take dancing lessons together?" He asked.
It was an innocent question, but to me I had just said something Mina couldn't back out of if asked about it, but how was I going to get out of answering Darien.
"Ladies and gentleman! It is that wonderful portion of the night where the ladies ask the gentleman to dance. While not in traditional style, I would like all ladies to ask the man of their choice to a dance. There are ladies here who are fearful of asking a man to dance and this dance is to help them with that fear. No man may ask a lady, it must be the ladies choosing."
That was my cue, even though I hated to ask a man to dance, it was the only way to get my foot out of my mouth. Darien didn't know about the past and I couldn't exactly tell him that Mina and I had learned to dance a thousand years ago on the moon.
With a blush, nervous hands and a quivering voice, "Darien, would you like to dance?" I asked. I couldn't look at him; I was prepared for him to say no.
"Of course Serena!" I looked up and saw Darien smiling broadly and holding out his arm. I aligned my arm with his and he led me to the dance floor where we waited for the music to begin.
Darien led me expertly over the floor and out of all the men I had danced with this evening I couldn't have had a better partner. He twirled and spun me with expertise.
I couldn't help but laugh at times, I was having so much fun. I didn't have to focus on reading his cues and I didn't have to watch his body language. He smiled every time I laughed and a few times pulled me closer than was strictly allowed in the waltz. I merely followed his lead.
He brought me into a twirl and as I reached his side again he swung me out once more and spun me several times before I returned to the normal steps. As the song came to an end he twirled me one more, brought me back to him and dipped me, causing me to giggle even more.
I opened my eyes as he straightened both of us from the dip. I then noticed that a few dancers had stopped dancing and were watching us. I blushed and looked to the floor. Darien held out his had like he had when I asked him to dance. I place my palm on the back of his hand and leveled my arm against his and we walked back to the refreshment table in silence.
As I reached the table Darien dropped his arm to his side and I let my arm fall to my side.
"Serena, you guys were wonderful, half the people on the floor stopped to watch you two dance!" Mina gushed pulling me in to a hard hug and releasing me quickly.
"You only had a few onlookers, not half the floor!" Kunzite said to Darien. Kunzite said this, because it was improper to bring attention to oneself and their partner. Darien hadn't really seemed all that bothered by the onlookers. At least he didn't show any concern about it. But he never really was one to show how he felt about something to everyone.
"Thanks Mina!" I said not too concerned about the onlookers.
"Thank you for the dance Darien!" I said turning toward him. I found him staring at me. I wasn't sure if it was for talking to Mina or for thanking him.
"Is something wrong?" I asked getting a little nervous. He never stared at me so intently when we were in public, ever.
"Would you care to dance once more?" He asked after a moment looking into mine.
"Of course Darien!" I said simply. I was very unsure as to why he had asked me to dance again. Most men didn't do so right after the woman asked him. But I really didn't care. He held out his arm and I place my palm against the back of his hand and we walked back out onto the dance floor. As Darien turned me around and we placed our arms in their proper positions, I noticed a few gentlemen standing near the refreshment table talking to Mina.
Mina motioned to me and several of the gentlemen looked in my direction. I blushed and turned my attention back to Darien.
"Thank you Darien!" I said softly. He nodded to me and spun me around. I returned to the original steps and watched as Darien avoided my gaze. Darien probably felt very embarrassed, seeing as I had caught why he had asked me to dance.
I then remembered what I had been trying to catch Darien for in the first place.
Darien sent me in to a twirl and after a moment I was firmly back in his arms. And we glided together over the floor.
"Darien, may I ask you a question?" I asked before he sent me into another twirl,
"About what?" He asked me as I came back into his arms.
"I..." I stopped myself and blushed deeply causing Darien to focus on my face. "I was curious as to why you hugged me earlier." I mumbled.
"What was that?" He asked swinging me around the floor again.
I laughed in delight. I loved to dance and especially with him. He always made me feel better, or could always calm my nerves without me asking.
"I wondered what you wanted to talk to me about in the arcade, when Mina came up." I spoke. This was something much easier for me to ask.
"I was going to ask you to join me at this dance!" Darien answered simply. I looked up and noticed a slight blush on his face and smiled happily at him.
"I would have said yes, I love to dance!" I revealed.
"I shall keep that in mind!" He replied.
Our dance ended and as we started back to the refreshment table I looked at the clock on the wall and gasped. It was already eleven; my father was going to kill me.
"Thank you for the dance Darien!" I said curtsying to him quickly before running off to find Mina. I suddenly stopped myself a few feet away from Darien. I wasn't fourteen anymore.
After a moment Darien's face appeared in front of mine and caused me to step back slightly.
"Is something wrong?" He asked straightening from his bent over position. He towered over me and had to bend over to place his face in front of mine
"I just thought I was late in getting home!" I chuckled, "Then I realized that I wasn't fourteen anymore."
His smile faltered and his brows appeared confused. He stared at me for a moment and then walked away from me.
I'd just said something wrong. I sighed defiantly. This helping Darien remember was much more challenging than I thought and he didn't appear to remember me at all during our dance, but that doesn't mean that he didn't, just that he didn't tell me about it. But for now I do think its time to go home.
I turned around and walked toward the refreshment table and lo and behold I found Mina surrounded by men and Kunzite nowhere in sight.
This would be a most interesting evening indeed.
I know you have all waited six months again; I truly hope this chapter is up to par, I really did try. It may be a little slow, but I like dancing.