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The Beginning of the End
Topic Started: Jun 10 2012, 11:01 PM (299 Views)
Marluxia
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The smile Hyacinth aimed at him had Marluxia wondering if he had misspoken. Her words themselves spoke the obvious: as far as Marluxia could tell, everyone was fond of Fiore in one way or another. It shouldn’t be amiss if he was fond of him as well. But Hyacinth’s tone and that odd look on her face, as if she knew more about him than he did himself, told Marluxia she had picked up a little more than he had intended to give.

He started to argue, but found that the words simply would not come to him. He was not in the habit of lying when he could help it, and it was especially difficult to deny it when he was a bit unsure himself. Honestly, he was very fond of Fiore. Perhaps too fond of him, all things considered. But that was something he was denying even to himself right not. Surely he could not care that much about someone he barely knew. That would be ridiculous. Besides, half the time Fiore acted as if Marluxia’s presence was a little difficult to deal with. The Makaiju prince certainly went out of his way to explain things to him, to introduce him to the others and help him grow accustomed to life here. But at the same time, Marluxia saw moments when he became frustrated with having Marluxia right behind him. It was obvious the man did not want him to watch over him like he did. Marluxia simply could not help it.

Perhaps all Fiore really wanted, deep down, was for peace to be obtained quickly and without any lasting commitment between the two of them, so Marluxia would finally vanish and leave him in true peace at last. But Marluxia couldn’t share that wish.. He may not overly trust these people, but he felt more at home among them than he ever had his own race. He felt as if he belonged here, and he wanted to keep following Fiore, watching over him when possible. Still, perhaps he needed to try a little harder to find peace without that becoming the reality.

He was completely lost for a response, so it was fortunate that little Kannella woke up to distract her mother and himself at that moment. Marluxia felt himself instantly take a liking to yet another Makaiju as the little girl spoke to him. Like her brother, Kannella’s speech was a little difficult to make out at her age, but Marluxia had always been willing to listen to children carefully. He smiled back at her immediately. “So nice to meet you, Kannella. I was hoping I would have a chance to see those pretty eyes open someday.”

He likely would have spoken more to her, but his eyes kept wandering back to the stage where Fiore was finishing up his performance. “Beautiful..” Marluxia found himself murmuring to himself. He looked so different on that stage.. Marluxia could not believe the change in the man. He found himself smiling slightly, because it was nice to see Fiore like this. As if there was one place he felt truly at home, at peace and free and in control. That place was the stage.
When the show finally came to an end Marluxia watched Fiore leave the stage. The two women from before seemed to converge on him, keeping Fiore from making his way over, but Marluxia was a little distracted with Kannella so he barely noticed.

“Mar, you have pwetty hair,” was Kannella’s shy comment, to which Marluxia smiled back at her. “Mine is nowhere near as pretty as yours, though,” he said back, earning a smile from the child as she became a little less shy. No doubt he was asking for trouble, encouraging her to feel safe enough to speak to him. Children had a tendency to innocently state the worst possible things when you least expected it, especially when they felt at home speaking around you. And if she was anything like her mother Kanella was going to pick things up swiftly. But of course, one never thinks of things like that in time.

Fiore managed to make his way over at last, and although he did seem to be losing a little of the confidence he had displayed onstage, still he seemed… happier, Marluxia supposed was the word, than before. The smile Fiore aimed his way had Marluxia grinning back.

“Fiore, I’ve never seen anyone dance like that. It was amazing.” He could not seem to find the right words, and was perhaps a little shy in saying what he had. There was no way to express how much he had enjoyed watching Fiore dance. And even if there were, he was slightly wary about saying them since Hyacinth seemed to have already taken his words astray before. He did not want to start any rumors before they decided to go through with their plan, and he certainly did not want to cause problems or stress for Fiore.

“Mar thought you was beautiful!” Kannella piped up just then. Marluxia looked over to the little girl, who’s attention was on Fiore. He felt sure his face was reddening slightly, but he tried to ignore it. “..it was a beautiful dance,” he managed to amend for her, still looking at Kannella rather than Fiore. “I hope someday my people can watch and appreciate dancing like this.”

He looked back to Fiore after a moment, checking to make sure the other was not overly tired from the performance. “You enjoyed it,” he stated, approving smile still on his face. “I’ve never seen you look truly happy until you danced, Fiore.”
Edited by Marluxia, Jun 29 2012, 08:04 PM.
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Fiore
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"Mar thought you was beautiful!"

The Makaiju blushed deeply, and looked over at Marluxia with questioning eyes, but he felt a bit disappointed when he corrected her. "It was a beautiful dance." Fiore smiled, if nothing else, he was glad Marluxia had liked it. “I’ve never seen you look truly happy until you danced, Fiore.” He blushed a little more and nodded, "It's been a while since I've danced. I. . . missed it." He hadn't danced much since his partner passed away-- only special occasions when he was required to. Dancing alone was never as enjoyable as dancing with a partner-- especially a partner as talented as Zafeíri had been.

After a moment of hesitation, Fiore shifted and fiddled with the bangles on his wrist, "Marluxia, I need to talk to you about something." He looked over at Hyacinth, "Could you give us just a minute?" The prince reached down, ruffled Basile's hair, "I'll catch up with you guys in a little while." The family departed, leaving their prince to his guest; though, there was no real privacy in the market. "There is a festival coming up-- I have to dance. . . . but I need a partner." Fiore tucked a stray lock of hair behind his ear, "Dahlia and Chrysanthemum want to take you on as a student-- they promised they could teach you on time, and I can't dance with someone else. So. . . . will you do it; please?" If all else failed, he was certain he could use the "for me?" approach. He was not a spoiled prince, but he knew how to bat his eyelashes just the right way.

--

Dahlia and Rys seemed to pick on the conversation and peeked over from around the side of the stage, watching the exchange between the two. "The prince likes him. A lot," the older twin stated, grinning triumphantly.

Rys nodded, "That's true, Dahl. And that pinkie Mar likes him a lot, too." She glanced over at them, "This could be a very good thing. . . someone to pull him out of his shell. He's been so lonely without his pair."

"What a damn shame." Dahlia mumbled, "We have to get those two together."

"At the festival," the younger twin offered.

"Yes! At the festival, we'll set it up. And I think I know where we can get some help. . ." She smirked, spotting Hyacinth and her little family, "Operation: Get the two princes together, go!" The two sisters slapped hands and set off to put their plan into action-- after all, they only had a few days to set everything up.

--

Fiore felt a bit naked in these clothes, but they were loose and a bit more revealing than the things he normally wore-- dancers' clothing always was. It was designed to be sexy and entrancing. Their dances would catch the eye in more ways than one. "It's not. . . an easy dance, but Dahlia and Rys are excellent teachers-- they taught me. I'm certain they could teach you in time-- and besides, the secondary part isn't as difficult."
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Marluxia
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Marluxia was shocked and only managed to blink in response to Fiore's request for a moment as he attempted to sort out his own feelings on the matter. So many thoughts and responses were suddenly vying for his attention that Marluxia opened his mouth--then snapped it shut again. He could not simply answer when he hardly knew what words were going to make it through his voice first, so he gave Fiore a pained look before casting his eyes downward, hand going to his chin in an expression he tended to assume when giving something important a lot of thought.

He let his jumbled thoughts roam free in order to sort them all out and decide on the best answer. Fiore was asking him to learn to dance? But he couldn't possibly have talent enough to keep up with Fiore.. Was that really not clear to them all? The Makaiju appeared to be blessed with such grace that Marluxia knew he could never compare. Part of him even wondered if this might be a strategy of Fiore's: make the human look like a fool so that the Makaiju no longer felt as threatened. Could that help them to accept peace?

A long time ago perhaps his kind had been capable of dancing.. He had read somewhere that the Royal Court in particular had been well known for the art. But roughly a century ago the war had become all his people could concentrate on, and many skills and arts had been lost seemingly forever with only the barest trace left over. The only dance his people ever witnessed now was a slow swaying to somber music, and Marluxia had never done more than watch. Any occasion that merited such a 'celebration' usually found him seated next to his father, meeting with war officials and nobles one at a time. He simply had no experience to rely on, and that made him nervous.

But perhaps Fiore was truly just this desperate for a partner.. It sounded as if this festival were going to be important, and if it was true that he could not dance with anyone else.. whatever the reason behind it--and he could only assume that it was the proposed plan they had discussed this morning that would require him to choose Marluxia--then perhaps they really had no choice.

However, it was still the performance itself that Marluxia was concerned about. He was not certain he would be able to do it justice not to mention the clothing was.. a little less than he was used to, to say the least. The movements looked complex and Fiore's body had seemed to move in ways Marluxia was certain were beyond his own abilities.. The root of the issue was that he was terrified that he would end up disappointing Fiore.. But the young prince had not needed to say the words 'For me?' for them to find their way through his tone and the look on his face, and in the end Marluxia caved once again.

He looked up at Fiore with a serious expression. "I have never once danced in all my life," he explained, hoping to alleviate some of the dread Fiore must have been feeling while he was making up his mind. "I rather doubt that I am capable of the perfect performance that you gave today.. I do not want to let you down, Fiore.. I will do my best to help you with your performance. I hope your teachers are better than you profess.. I think they may need to be miracle workers to teach me."

Despite his warning, Marluxia was smiling again. He desperately wanted to prove himself wrong. He wanted to lend his aid and help Fiore shine in this festival performance of his. if only because it was the one thing Marluxia had seen that made Fiore forget to worry and let him be happy for a while. He would do anything in order to see that again. And it looked like the only way to do that was to learn to dance himself. Marluxia was determined to do his best at it, but there was so little time..

Edited by Marluxia, Jul 10 2012, 09:16 PM.
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[The next morning; Early.]

"Here, try this on," Fiore handed Marluxia a small pile of neatly folded clothing. "I'm hoping these will fit-- when you learn you dance, you have to dress accordingly-- it's sort of. . . tradition." He blushed faintly, imagining Marluxia wearing one of the traditional outfits, glittering in gold and sequins. His own outfit was a bit revealing, but he seemed oddly comfortable wearing it. He wore a very light pair of cream colored slacks with slits up both sides, ties at the thigh, knee, and ankle, with a very light powder blue backless tank top, his hair tied back to keep it out of his face. A thin line of pastel skin was shown at his midsection-- the shirt was not quite long enough to completely cover him, and the gap increased when he moved a certain way. The Makaiju chose not to mention the clothes he was giving Marluxia to wear had once belonged to his pair bond-- he felt that it was unnecessary information. "You can go into the bathing room to change, if you wish."

This would be their first dance practice-- but Fiore had faith in his teachers and he knew they would work hard to teach this human their ways of dance-- besides, no one, absolutely no one, not even Fiore, was able to dance like they could. Then again, they were born into it; the sisters came from a very long line of dancers.

The young prince left Marluxia to change and made his way over to the table by the window to pick at his breakfast-- he was not very hungry, but dancing took a lot of energy, and with his already weak body, he'd need it. This morning they'd brought a spiced sunflower salad, two baguettes, a bowl of fresh picked pomegranate, already extracted from the fruit, and a cup of hot tea. 'A perfect breakfast,' Fiore mused, taking a small bite of the baguettes, which was still warm and carried a fresh, woody scent that came from being in the stone oven. There was an identical plate set up for Marluxia, though the cooks had kindly provided him with a side of egg whites as well. ( Makaiju did not typically consume products from animals. ) The sun was just beginning to peek out from under the rim of the horizon-- which meant they didn't have much time to get to the market-- Rys and Dahlia would likely already have started their "Good morning to the sun" dance by now, and they would want to start right away.
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Marluxia took the offered clothes with slight reluctance. Somehow, in the light of a new day, the reality of the situation was beginning to dawn on him. And looking at the way Fiore was dressed, he had a feeling he was not going to like these clothes at all.. But he said nothing as the Prince moved off toward the breakfast table and left him to change--hell yes he was going to use the bathing room..

He closed the door behind him and looked again at the folded pile of clothing in his hands. He looked at it for several seconds longer than necessary, almost afraid to unfold them and see what he was about to put on. His people did not consider what Fiore wore at all acceptable. The only ones who wore things like that... didn't have the best reputation. So Marluxia hesitated, before finally setting them on the counter and taking the shirt from the pile, letting it fall out of fold and holding it up for inspection.

It was sapphire in color, and only half of a shirt by his standards. It stopped well about the waistline, displaying his abs nicely, the neck cut down to an inch above where the material stopped and folded open to display even more skin. The inside was a silky white, so the parts that folded open were accented in bright contrast. And he noticed that a headband had fallen from it. He retrieved the band and stripped off his own shirt, replacing it with the surprisingly light material and adding the headband to restrain his hair, the blue vibrant against pink.

Then the pants.. Marluxia pulled them on without thinking studying them, and only when he had them in place did he look himself over. They were the same make as the ones Fiore had on, though these were white to match the open material of his shirt. They rested low on his hips, but were tight enough there that thankfully he would not have to worry they would fall off. The openings down his legs made him feel a bit exposed and uncomfortable, and he had noticed that the Makaiju did not wear footwear often, if at all, so he left his shoes off. Then, reluctantly, he opened the door and returned to Fiore, a worried look on his face.

"Fiore.. are you sure this is necessary? ..I look ridiculous in this." The faint color in his face was a clear indication of how embarrassed he was at the lack of material on his body. Not that he had anything to be ashamed of, but it had been drilled into him that he was always to be appropriately dressed at all times and never, even on the battlefield, be under-dressed. Even his skin was the wrong color here.. not to mention his hair. He felt akin to a clown, or a bear dressed up as human and about to be taught to dance..
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Fiore
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'I can't believe I'm doing this.' Fiore had not put much thought into his decision of asking Marluxia to be his dance partner-- he knew if he did, he would decline the dancers' offer and risk offending them, which was the last thing he wanted to do. What the Makaiju prince had failed to tell his newfound companion, was that dancing was a very big deal to their race, and the upcoming festival was not only a celebration of a successful harvest, but a celebration of romance, and new life; the dance they would be performing was usually restricted only for pairs. 'Forgive me.'

When the young prince heard the voice of his friend, he jolted out of his dream world and back into reality. "Huh? --Oh." Fiore got up and walked over to examine Marluxia's outfit-- it fit him well, and it looked wonderful, in his opinion. His own cheeks colored a little at the sight of the exposed skin-- even though he was raised around dancers, he was not used to seeing such fair, milk-and-honey colored skin. Not to mention, Marluxia looked exceptionally good in those clothes. "I wouldn't ask you to wear them if it wasn't," the shorter man gave a shy smile, "Dahlia insisted, and you don't want to offend her-- trust me. She made those," he gestured to the outfit Marluxia wore. 'It's an honour to receive a gift from them." With careful attention to details, Fiore took notice of one mistake, however. "Your headpiece is backwards, Mar." Fiore gave a soft laugh and adjusted it.

* * *

"You two are late," Rys chimed, stepping down from the stage, quickly followed by her sister, who wore the same bemused expression. "Were we not clear on the time?" She glanced over at her sister, who aimed a look at Fiore, then sighed.

"You're off the hook today, but if it happens again, we will not teach you," Dahlia declared. Her tone made it clear that there would be no further word on the matter.

Fiore bowed his head and nodded, giving Marluxia an apologetic look.

The two sisters turned their attention to Marluxia. "First, we're going to practice with stretches and simple exercises. Now, do what I do," Rys instructed, moving into one position, waiting for him to mirror her. She rose up onto the balls of her feet, arched her back, and stretched her palms up towards a star-woven tapestry, which hung across the ceiling. Her thumbs and pointer fingers formed a triangle. "This is the default form which begins all our dances."
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"You two are late."

Those words were enough to make Marluxia flinch, It was entirely his fault, he knew. He'd been so nervous about the clothing he was expected to wear that he had not been swift enough to make it in time, and it was Fiore who likely bore the responsibility. Marluxia glanced at him, hoping to convey how sorry he was. But the sisters were already beginning the lesson, so Marluxia simply determined to make up for it with effort.

And it was a very good thing he made that decision. Rys spoke of 'stretches and simple exercises' but the 'default form' she showed him was enough to make Marluxia wish he had never agreed to this. For someone who had never done such things, it looked rather difficult. Simple? Perhaps for a Makaiju.. He found himself worrying silently even as he moved to take up the position himself..

Oh hell.. will my body even bend that way? ..I'm going to fall. I am going to end up flat on my back, and they are all going to laugh and tell me I am hopeless, and Fiore..

Well, Fiore was the only reason he'd agreed to this. If he allowed himself to fail, Fiore would be the one he let down. So Marluxia sighed inwardly and, as he rose up onto the balls of his feet, he frantically sought to find some way to believe that he could pull this off. And distressingly, what he came up with was the only thing he had been taught: battle. He'd had to be limber enough to dodge a sword no matter which direction it came from, and bending backward had saved him a few times.. Perhaps it was not so different? ...it was the only hope he had.

So, putting all of the doubt from his mind, Marluxia concentrated only on the task. The calm that suddenly came over him, the absolute confidence that had always aided him in battle, was just the miracle he needed in that moment. Marluxia took the movement much slower than his teacher, making certain that his balance was perfect every step of the way as he leaned back and mirrored her, hands perhaps not immediately touching perfectly, but almost instantly corrected. And he found that, awkward as he had feared it would be, it was not really that difficult to fall into.. Holding the position, however, took muscles he had never needed, apparently. After only a few moments he could definitely feel them burning a bit. He knew he was not perfect.. but at least he had not fallen yet. He considered that a major accomplishment. Even if his teachers would be well within their rights to criticize. He couldn't match a Makaiju. But for a human, it was more than he could have asked for.

"I think.. this is going to take a lot of practice for me," he murmured softly. He hoped Fiore wouldn't object too much to helping him between lessons. He was going to need all the practice he could get.
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