Can Can(youtube); watch?v=DHIV3OPRo4U

August 1915

Feliciano felt giddy as he marched onto the platform. He decided not to mention to Antonio what was happening, but left him a note instead. He followed the small crowd of other reinforcements to the nearest train. Feliciano had never even seen a train before, and now he was going to ride one. This was going to be an exciting day. He and the other soldiers were rushed towards the massive train by the commanding Officers. He kept on slowing down to stare in awe at the giant machine, which consequently earned him a small nudge now and again by the man behind to keep up. Someone was shouting something about departure and arrival at someplace Feliciano didn't know the name of. The other men were worried for excitable little Feliciano, they were older and wiser and had been called up to fight because of how many casualties there had been. Feliciano was the youngest and the most naïve, and obviously didn't quite know how serious this war was. Nonetheless they let him be excited, before his mind was ruined by the everlasting effects of the war. They had seen countless men come back for hospital treatment, broken empty shells of the men they once were. Feliciano had also seen these puppets and the other men had a mutual respect for him when his heart did not falter at the sight. Little did they know his heart would do soon, but not because of the broken shell of someone he didn't know. There was a small band playing in the background; it sounded quite sombre, so Feliciano decided to detach himself from the group and find whoever was playing. It took him a few minutes of pushing through crowds to get to where he wanted. There were five men playing various instruments; two violins, a cello, a flute and a clarinet, and they all looked as if they really didn't want to be there. Especially the man at the front with a violin. His right foot had been replaced by a stump and a dirty bandage which caused people to stare, ask penetrating questions, and grimace. The other men also had bandages somewhere on their body. Feliciano didn't stare or grimace though, he just asked a question. The men stopped playing.

"What's the matter?" He looked genuinely concerned and the man was startled at this kind of happy someone had asked. Despite this he still answered with a sarcastic drawl.

"Guess." Feliciano looked down at the stump leg, then at the violin he was holding, then at the man's face. He cleared his throat.

"Well I think it's a beautiful day to be playing Rossini."

The violinist looked at the other men, then readjusted himself on his chair. "Alright, got any requests?"

Feliciano kicked off his huge military boots and as he settled them neatly on the ground in front of him he said, "I fancy a bit of La Boutique Fantasque."

A highly celebrated ballet, the band knew what he was implying. They exchanged a few curt nods and started playing Can Can.

Feliciano smiled widely. He didn't know how they were able to play a song that needed a whole orchestra, but they did it somehow. They even had to include tapping their feet and whistling to make up for the lack of instruments, it sounded good nonetheless. They weren't even a few seconds in and Feliciano started dancing. He had been learning ballet from a young age, and although he hadn't been practising at all since Grandpa died he still looked amazing. Swirling in time with the music with ballet improv, Feliciano attracted a solemn crowd looking for a reason to smile. They formed a ring around Feliciano. Men started clapping along and the Station Master even provided music from his small whistle. Feliciano was soon pulling men out of the crowd, showing them a dance move and getting them to repeat it, then letting them retreat back to their companions. He did this several times with several different men, until he ended up holding his hand out to a rather stern looking man with a buzzcut. After a brief pause in the music, he finally had to drag the man into the ring and spun him around in circles. He then let go of the man and he fell back into the crowd, his stoney face replaced with a huge grin. Feliciano kept on spinning on the spot until the music ended, so he stopped with a bow. He first bowed at the crowd who burst into a huge applause and cheered loudly, then to the band who were also impressed by this seemingly professional dancing.

After the men were told to disperse, Feliciano slumped on the ground cross-legged breathing heavily. He looked up at the violinist he had first spoke to and chuckled.

"What is it?" The rest of the band was also confused by this behaviour.

Feliciano beamed. "I made you smile."

The violinist scoffed. "I suppose you did."

Feliciano's head snapped in the opposite direction when his group called his name. He stood, grabbed his boots and waved back at the band as he left.

"Keep on smiling!" The band could still hear his voice as he was swallowed up by the crowd. They continued playing cheerful tunes for the rest of the day.

"Come on, Feliciano!" Feliciano narrowly made it on the train in one piece; it started rolling out the station just as he jumped on. He giggled at the weird sensation of standing in a moving vehicle. The man who had warned him to hurry up frowned at this peculiar young man.

"Where were you?"

"Dancing."

"Dancing?"

"Yeah, so the man with the violin would smile."

The man concluded, Feliciano sure was an oddball.

"Alright then. Just don't be late again."

Feliciano saluted. "Yes sir."

"Sit down then, else you want to fall out."

"What?" Feliciano was so surprised and worried about this that the man had to reassure him.

"Don't worry, you won't fall out. Unless you want to jump out."

"Um, okay." Feliciano was still a bit shaken up. He sat down obediently. The man sighed. Did this young man who just wanted to make people smile deserve to go to war?

To be continued...