Ireland's famous rains appeared the next day in full force. It was impossible to tell the sun's position in the sky, the cloud cover was so thick, a massive, soupy swirl of iron and pewter and bone stretching from horizon to horizon. Mist and fog clung to anything and everything; trees, rocks, blades of grass, the weave of fabric. Banks of moisture rolled in like a silent army, cutting the field of vision down to fifteen feet at best. In the morning, the cool blankets swamped the land, greedily swallowing sound and light as if they were its favorite meals. As the day progressed, the moisture became more aggressive. Dew dotted the windows, the tiny gems of water growing heavier and heavier until they trailed down the glass panes like tears. Finally, around lunch, the clouds eased open their gates, and it began to softly drizzle.
Suzaku, however, had other things on his mind besides the decidedly wet weather.
He was standing in the studio, which was something he'd been yearning to do since he'd first set foot in there. The faintest give beneath his feet brought back memories of bamboo sparring floors in the dojo of his mentor. The flexibility was designed to avoid broken bones when you hit the floor, but it didn't make the falls bruise any less. And Todoh did like to send Suzaku flying when he'd been especially cocky or stubborn. He hadn't really needed to beat the attitude out of his pupil when the floor did it for him. In the early days, it had happened more than he would like to admit.
Sparring, however, was not the reason he was here, much to his disappointment. Kendra's word was law in this matter, and she hadn't yet deemed him ready. She had, however, cleared him for another sort of activity. It was the activity Aurora and Kendra had decided on that was making his chest tighten with nerves, his palms the slightest bit damp. Because this was going to suck. Thoroughly.
The pair of women had decided that the best way to ease him into contact combat was, of all things, dancing. And Aurora was delighted.
When she'd informed him over lunch of her plans, he'd struggled to keep the horror from flashing in his eyes. He'd never been terribly fond of the sport, but he now knew the immense skill of his designated partner. And Suzaku suddenly understood with aching familiarity how fresh recruits had felt when matched against him initially out of boot camp. Because he'd earned a name for himself, and it was something of a punishment to be paired with Private Kururugi your first day in unit training. Only the best, or the worst, got thrown his way. Now, it was his turn to be thrown to the proverbial wolves. The jolt of inadequacy made his guts strain like stretched rubber bands.
His partner, on the other hand, could hardly contain her excitement.
Her skirt, which appeared to be a simple black affair falling to her knees, seemed utterly ordinary when she was still. As soon as Aurora moved, however, it bounced and belled around her legs with a flirty energy. It almost made this whole prospect worthwhile to see how it would flow around Aurora when she danced. Almost. Her top, pretty but sturdy, was caught somewhere between royal blue and jewel green, tailored to her feminine figure while managing to maintain its comfort. And even though his knowledge was limited, Suzaku knew enough to recognize the vintage-style black heels she wore were specifically designed for this hobby. In other words, Aurora was prepared and eager for the afternoon's endeavor.
In direct contrast, Suzaku felt a little green. His fists tried to burrow deeper in the pockets of his black jeans, but had long ago been shoved as far as they would go. Struggling between the urge to hunch his shoulders or keep them straight as his earlier training had demanded, he kept his eyes on the mirrors. An excuse to keep his gaze away from Aurora directly, while carefully watching her movements.
Because what could he say? Both women had decided dancing would be a perfect way to transition Suzaku through his recovery to his ultimate goal. He'd foolishly assumed that since he was working his way towards combat, he would be equally acquainted with all other aspects of his rehabilitation. But this was Aurora he was talking about. He should have known better.
She'd already lectured him about all the benefits of dance earlier with the fervor of the passionate. Or obsessed, but passionate sounded less derogatory. Strengthening bone and muscle without damage to his joints; toning his entire body; improving posture and balance, stamina and flexibility; the list went on. In theory, it sounded great. In practice, he wasn't so sure. Because it had been over a decade since he'd been dragged into ballroom dancing, and the very last thing he wanted was to look like a fool in front of Aurora. Although, come to think of it, he'd already crossed that bridge, laced it with explosives, and blown it sky high. For some reason, that didn't really make him feel any better.
Aurora was scrolling through her playlists, the look on her face betraying just how seriously she was taking all this. Was that better or worse? Because his attitude was as pessimistic as the weather, Suzaku leaned towards the latter.
Finally, Aurora seemed to decide on a song that met her expectations. Suzaku doubted he would be so lucky. She settled the player in the cradle of the dock, but quickly punched Pause before turning to him. Cutting her thumbs through the hair above her ears and back along her skull, Aurora scraped her hair into place, the half tail a glittering fall over the slightly darker remainder that waved down her back. Once satisfied, she brought her left hand forward and pulled the hair tie around her wrist off with her teeth. That flash of white at the vulnerably soft, pale skin of her wrist made Suzaku's heart pound like the thunder he could almost feel in the floor, booming miles away. But he swallowed the panic, and repeated what Kendra had said, which was quickly becoming a mantra he clung to whenever arousal weaseled out of his control.
Didn't matter what he felt; what mattered was how he acted. So, wrestling that tingling stir in his gut into an emotional headlock, Suzaku kept his eyes on his wildly skilled teacher, trying to prepare himself to be completely humiliated. That was pretty effective at dousing the need sparkling through his blood.
"I want you to do me a favor, Suzaku."
Taking a deep breath, he met her gaze, and realized with a slightly sinking sensation that Aurora had been watching him with those raptor eyes, the color of cool water and lightning. Eyes that could tear the best of poker faces to shreds, which didn't bode well for his less than polished one. Suprisingly, her mouth crooked, softening the intensity of her expression.
"Relax," she said with laughing exasperation. Yeah, easier said than done. But Suzaku refused to whine. So he marshalled his confidence, what tatters were left of it, and straightened, even though his posture was already painfully erect. After all, he'd been taught by Todoh the miracle worker; he should be used to being miserably outclassed.
"I know you have some training. No politician's son doesn't know how to at least stumble his way through a foxtrot. Don't worry, I'll go easy on you. Remember, this is supposed to be fun."
Right. Fun. But that didn't sink into his brain very organically; in fact, the thought bounced around like a chilly marble. So instead, Suzaku twisted it into the idea of a test. He had to get through this to get to sparring. That, he could do. Sometimes, it seemed like his life had been nothing more than a series of tests, one challenge after the other. As if he were constantly trying to prove his worth, his suffering always judged to determine if it was enough to balance the scales.
Shaking off the creeping cold that spread at the thought, Suzaku grimly nodded. Aurora turned to start the music, and he almost jumped at the abrupt blast of trumpets. She faced towards him with a happy grin, and Suzaku dragged in a deep breath, then stepped up, taking her hand and waist in a firm grip. Outside, the rain began to fall in earnest, pattering against the windows like the thrum of fingers, almost in time with the music. The slight shift in her hand stopped him before he could begin dragging her over the floor in a march that was his inevitable version of a paired dance. Aurora's mouth crooked, brought close enough for him to notice how her bottom lip was slightly plumper than the top and the deep pink of rose petals. Frantically clearing his throat, it took a moment to absorb what she was saying.
"I'm not going anywhere, Suzaku. You don't have to hang on so hard." Pointedly, she glanced at their joined hands. He followed her eyes, and saw that he was gripping her hand hard enough to grind the knuckles together. Horrified, he immediately softened his grip, until their skin was barely brushing. She firmed her grip slightly, warm, soft skin, accented by whorls of callouses, against his, and he followed suit. Now their hands were comfortably clasped, the soft, easy press of the pads of her fingertips against the back of Suzaku's hand making blood beat through his veins with the bright rhythm of the song. He was cognitive enough, though, to soften his grip on her waist so he didn't crush her ribs.
She still reached down to his left hand; it wasn't to adjust the pressure of his grip, though. It was to slide his hand up her side until his palm pressed to her shoulder blade. Suzaku wondered if blushes could strangle him as one blazed across his skin. Imagine that as a cause of death: embarrassment asphyxiation. None of that, of course, erased the feel of her sliding under his palm, or the soft tickle of her hair against the backs of his fingers. Didn't matter; it was how he acted. His attention came snapping back when Aurora's hand landed on the point of his shoulder. For the first time all day, her gaze pinned him with utter seriousness.
"If your arm or shoulder start to hurt, you tell me, ASAP. No exceptions." She waited for him to nod at her adamant words. "Good. Now, let's take it easy. Nothing fancy. Just a little sway." Her mouth quirked, and Suzaku realized it was because she'd echoed the song. Heaving in a deep breath, he did as Aurora asked.
He swayed. Stiffly, yes, but he moved, eventually the rhythm of the music beating its way through the static in his skull. Determined to prove himself and get this over with, Suzaku stepped out, old memories tentatively resurfacing that directed his muscles into the first set of foxtrot steps. Even though his movements lacked the confidence and grace that his dance instructor had shrieked about – she'd had the voice and eyes of a vulture – Aurora followed him smoothly, her eyes locked on him even as she moved like his shadow. No hesitation, no uncertainty. Suzaku realized it was a struggle to look away when she was gazing at him so intently, her hand warm and strong in his grasp, her body's heat just a whisper he could barely feel. It was her scent, he eventually realized. It bridged the space that still remained between them, tantalizing him with the knowledge that the slightest tug would have her pressed against him. But not only was that a bad idea, it was rude.
His nerves put up a fight, but he managed to drag his eyes away, in time to realize they'd already crossed the floor and were nearing a wall. Grappling through his memories, Suzaku executed a rusty turn. Even though she had no idea where he was aiming her, Aurora followed with a supple curl of muscle and a graceful swing of her legs, her balance managing to polish his less than stellar direction. He risked a glance in the mirrors, and realized that they didn't look… off. It was largely due to Aurora's skill, her ability to extrapolate what he did into something elegant. Curiosity bloomed, and Suzaku couldn't help but wonder just how good she was.
He stepped back, spinning on his heel faster than any other move he'd made thus far. Careful to keep her supported and close, Suzaku watched to see how well Aurora would follow. She stayed with him like they were magnetized, and he could feel the brush of her skirt against his legs as it flared through the spin. She followed his every bend and twist, staying in time with him using what seemed to be an almost preternatural sense of where he would go next. Something warm nudged against the back of his sternum, and Suzaku caught a flash in Aurora's eyes. It took a moment to realize that it hadn't been the distant lightning; it was interest, and challenge.
She tipped back, an agile curve of her spine, bending like a flower, just like the lyrics said. Suzaku worked to keep his stance balanced, his grip on her steady enough to prove he wouldn't let Aurora topple backwards. When she straightened, the flush to her skin and the sparkle in her eyes nearly driving the breath from his lungs, Suzaku moved forward, unconsciously stepping faster to keep pace with the music, and Aurora's daring. She easily mirrored him, and the real dance began.
He may have been meaning to meet her challenge head on, but Suzaku's skills were still that of an ambitious child, and he made the occasional stumble or misstep. But even then, Aurora swung or stepped, somehow transmuting his mistake into a maneuver seemingly done on purpose. At one point, he even made a wrong turn, and she managed to make the brief separation of their alignments look artful. When they rebounded back together, like two halves pulled apart and clicking into place again, the music briefly stopped, and the air in Suzaku's lungs seemed to evaporate, because there Aurora was, face tipped up to his with a tiny, clever smile curving the edge of her mouth, her lean, long body mere inches away. Because he knew, with a certainty that seeped into his marrow, that he would never again in his life meet a woman this beautiful, this intelligent, this interesting. And even as his heart leaned forward, Suzaku stiffened his spine, schooling his grip so it didn't tighten uncomfortably on her again. Some things, he knew – better than most – simply weren't meant.
So, as the horns burst high again, he moved, and she followed. The ache, the yearning, was buried deep in the darkness still stitched through him, and Suzaku turned his considerable focus to the task at hand. They were nearly three quarters of the way through the song before he realized that he'd done exactly what Aurora had asked.
He was having fun.
A grin teased his cheeks, and he twirled Aurora around, watching her eyes light like suns, blazing with delight as her hair and skirt swirled out before she returned to his grasp. She seemed to take that as a sign she could turn up the heat and added a little extravagance to her steps and turns. Suzaku could feel the way she came scorchingly to life in his hands, his fingertips faintly tingling, as if simply touching her was electric. He'd suffer through any dance lesson if he got to experience the way energy crackled off Aurora when she moved like this. He vaguely realized with the fringes of his attention that the storm had worsened, the howl of wind and rain matching the rage of his beating heart.
As she moved faster and trickier, Suzaku felt like dead weight dragging her down, and tried to keep up. She flashed him a look he couldn't quite interpret and adjusted her pace to better reflect what he could manage. As the song hit its climatic end, Aurora hopped and danced out the final beats, the silence following the last crack of her heels against the wood floor sweeping through the air and pressing them close, their breaths mingling as they lightly panted. Not even a bomb going off could have torn their eyes away from one another, nor the extravagant rumble of thunder that faintly rattled the wall of mirrors.
Finally, though, Suzaku remembered where exactly he stood in more ways than one, and that he was entirely too close to Aurora for comfort. Clearing his throat, he dropped his hand from her back, softening his hold on her hand, but unable to truly let it go as he stepped back. Their fingers shifted, almost threading through each other as Aurora watched him, her eyes deeper than he could fathom as she watched him with an expression he couldn't quite analyze. Eventually, when the silence stretched thin enough to quiver like a tightened bowstring, she smiled, and gently pulled her hand from his as she turned towards the music player. Some part of his mind not absorbed in the line of her spine and legs realized that the rain had exhausted itself back down to a quiet drizzle, tame for the time being. In its absence, the beating of his heart seemed to echo in his ears.
"You were awesome! Acting like I was dragging you to detention when you've got moves like that." She tsked her tongue, a teasing exclamation point to her joy. "You'll be raring to go in no time."
Again, a smile flickered across his mouth without conscious command, and that warmth sliding between his ribs brightened at her easy praise.
"Thanks. I guess I was intimidated. You're… incredible."
She tilted her head, the expression swimming in the depths of her eyes burning like pride as a thoroughly feminine smile tipped across her pretty mouth.
"Aw, thanks, Suzaku. You're a good lead, so it was easier than I expected. Again?" She held out her hand in invitation, and already the next song was starting. He gazed at her palm and long, supple fingers. His eyes met hers again, and the rain light brightened the silver in Aurora's irises until they seemed to shine. He took her hand in his, and he allowed himself one tiny moment to imagine taking holding, and never letting go. But Suzaku allowed their hands to shift into the appropriate grip, moving into the sphere of her scent, willingly submitting to the torture of touching her but never quite holding her.
"Sure."
Wham, bam, would you look at that? Tango pumped out another chapter less than a week after she published the last one. It just happened; not sure how or why.
For those of you who requested Suzaku and Aurora dancing long, long ago – you're brilliant. Great minds thinks alike, and I've always planned on these two literally tangoing. ;D After heaps and heaps of angst, get ready for a little fun.
Updated song list on my profile. Speaking of which, I need to update it to include the revealed VA's, too.
You know what to do.
Hope you like it!
Love, Tango