Dance Routine

~~~✨~~~

The sun was already setting over the walls of the central courtyard when the magic training began again. The breeze was soft, the temperature pleasant… and Rei’s face, very annoyed.

"Pff… this…"

Leonoris tried to keep a serious expression, one hand resting firmly on her chin. But the subtle curve of her lips betrayed her. A smile lingered, one she tried to suppress with dignity, though every time the cardboard beak sewn to the front of his hat flapped in the wind, the princess felt her composure unraveling.

"Focus, Hero," she said, her voice barely trembling.

Rei’s face was red all the way to his ears. He clenched the Ether crystal as if he wanted to grind it into dust, struggling not to look at anyone.

"I can’t focus with this damn…!" he muttered.

The cardboard beak shook on his forehead. Nessus was no longer laughing—he was roaring, hitting the railing with the palm of his hand.

"You have to honor the bet, Rei!" he shouted between fits of laughter. "No one takes off the Seagull Hat until the full day is up!"

That was when Leonoris lost all composure. A crystalline laugh burst out of her, ringing through the courtyard like glass chimes. Realizing what she’d done, she tried to cover her mouth, but it was too late. Rei glared at her, frustrated, though it was impossible to stay angry with such a sweet smile. The inventor sighed in resignation.

"Fine, you’ll see! Solaria, let me see!"

Rei turned quickly to his side, clumsy, but failed to conjure the spell. His attempt to shut them up failed miserably, and his frustration doubled.

"You’ll never manage to cast anything stable in the middle of real combat," Leonoris said. "You’ll leave yourself wide open."

"I know that!" Rei snapped, before sighing and trying to focus again. "By the way, did you talk to Sylve? Did she say anything about the pirates’ kidnapping?"

"Well… yes, I did," Leonoris answered. "She said she didn’t know why she walked toward them." Her tone grew pensive. "She realized it was wrong only when we arrived. Like everything seemed normal until she suddenly ‘woke up.’"

Rei frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Maybe someone had too much wine."

"Nessus, you idiot!"

Leonoris, furious, sent a flash of light into Nessus’s eyes, blinding him for a few seconds.

"Ah! My poor divine eyes!" the blond groaned, clutching his face. "Calm down! It was just a joke!"

"I don’t know," Leonoris lowered her gaze. "But as crazy as it sounds, she said she was convinced she had to follow them. And when we appeared, it was like she woke up."

"Is there any kind of magic that can control minds?"

"No. No race has it—or at least, none that we know of."

Nessus whistled low. "What about the wine race?"

Leonoris glared and sent another spark of light at him, leaving him shaking his head and muttering curses.

"Enough already!"

Rei, on the other hand, took it as a challenge.

"Well, it doesn’t matter what they do. What matters now is protecting ourselves from the next wave. And for that, I have several things in mind. Many are already in the works."

"‘Things’?" Nessus raised a brow, still recovering from the temporary blindness.

"I can’t reveal much—secret of the inventor," Rei winked. "But you’ll see them soon enough."

"Ha! I can’t wait to see your extravagant gadgets again, ‘Mr. Seagull.’"

For a fleeting moment, Rei considered hurling the same blinding spell at him, but restrained himself. He had already failed once. Better to continue training—and plot his revenge later.

"Damn it. I can’t even cast the spell while turning."

"Well, that’s something you’ll need to learn if you want to use magic in battle."

Leonoris resumed her role as teacher. She lifted the Ether crystal onto her palm, letting it shine for a moment, then looked at Rei.

"If you want to cast to the side, it’s not enough to turn your whole body. That throws you off balance. You need to move with a lateral step. Keep one foot on the ground and slide it. Like when you dance in a royal ceremony."

Rei arched a brow.

"Dance? I don’t…"

"Try it."

Despite his doubts, he tried. He made a clumsy lateral step, dragging his foot too much. Leonoris shook her head gently.

"No. Look." She demonstrated the movement herself. "It’s like sliding your foot in a line, letting the weight pass through your waist. It has to flow."

She showed him, elegant even in her shyness. Rei copied, better, but still stiff.

"Mmm… I can’t get used to this. Too rough for my blacksmith’s feet."

That’s when Nessus suddenly jumped in with a mischievous grin. "Then practice together! If it’s like dancing in a ceremony, dance that way!"

"What?!" they both exclaimed at once.

Nessus laughed.

"Don’t look at me like that. You’re the Hero of Solaria and the Princess who summoned him. You need coordination if you want to fight the pirates and not die trying. If you can move your feet together, syncing your magic and aim should be as easy as roasting a chicken." He paused. "Damn, now I’m hungry."

Leonoris blushed to her ears but didn’t object. Rei scratched his neck awkwardly, but didn’t back down either. Their eyes met. At first glance, it seemed they didn’t want to… but was that really the case?

 ~~~💞~~~

"Come on," said the Princess, red as a tomato.

Under Nessus’s amused gaze, they stood face-to-face and began sliding their steps in mirrored motion. Rei’s foot scraped clumsily, Leonoris’s glided with delicacy.

"You’re rushing," she tried to correct him. "It has to be slow, calm, like this, and—"

Rei had stopped, and Leonoris quickly realized why. She froze when she noticed that, in trying to correct him, she had taken his hand without realizing it. The inventor was speechless, and soon she was too, while her brother nearly burst with excitement.

"That’s it! Now you really are the perfect dancing pair!"

"Shut up!" Leonoris’s ears puffed steam like a locomotive. "I’m only doing this to teach you, Rei. Follow me."

"Ah… sure," Rei was just as flustered.

Despite the emotional clash, they began moving again. At first, clumsy. But little by little, they found rhythm.

"Now, Rei!"

"Solaria, let me see!"

Taking the lateral step, sliding his right foot back, he let go of Leonoris’s hand and cast the spell. It came out weak, Rei still unable to control the magic fully—but it worked. Slowly, he was learning.

"That’s it, don’t worry," Leonoris murmured, still holding his other hand, relieved it had worked. "Step sideways, foot always steady, the energy will flow clearer this way."

"And if we stand still, we’ll get blown to bits," Nessus added with a smirk. "Good job, dancing duo. I’ll leave you to it. Don’t want to ruin your choreography, and I’ve got to clean the damned stables before sunset."

With a careless wave, Nessus disappeared down the corridor, leaving them alone in the courtyard.

"Alright, let’s practice one more round now that we’re calmer," Leonoris said, regaining composure.

"As you wish, Princess Tomato," Rei winked, his gesture deepening her blush, answered only with a reluctant smile.

"Fine, let’s go, Hero Seagull."

Leonoris burst into laughter again, nearly collapsing into her "dance" partner. The ridiculous hat made it impossible to take seriously, but that shared laughter in the middle of training made everything feel lighter.

"That’s it!" she exclaimed. "Very good!"

Their eyes crossed again, and Rei caught the playful face of the princess. The feeling was strange. There were no pirates, no attacks, not even Gorō or her brothers. For a moment, Rei could only see her.

Despite the hood, despite the blush she couldn’t hide, Leonoris was truly lovely and sweet. More than he had noticed before. He felt his heart skip, something he had never felt before and couldn’t understand.

"Alright, try again!"

They aligned, face-to-face. Rei charged the Ether crystal in his palm and cast the spell, involuntarily tightening his grip on Leonoris’s hand as he did. The light at his fingertips grew sharper, and hope stirred in him.

"Again!"

Rei shouted, determined. But Leonoris wasn’t expecting it. When he moved, his foot collided with hers, and he lost his balance. In a clumsy attempt not to fall, he dragged Leonoris down with him.

"Ah!"

They tumbled together onto the grass, Rei ending up on top of her.

The world seemed to stop. The princess’s green eyes widened with surprise. They were so close, their gazes locked, the tension thick enough to cut with a knife.

"S-sorry…" was all Rei managed.

"No… it’s fi—"

Leonoris couldn’t finish. Unintentionally, her hand had brushed her hood, and Rei had followed it.

The hood had slipped off.

Rei froze. His breath caught in his throat. He forgot where he was, the ridiculous hat, everything around him. Shock rooted him in place. But when he looked down he found Leonoris staring back with terror. Paralyzed. On the verge of tears.

"No!" she screamed. Her voice cracked. A cry that could've been heard across the city. She shoved him away, covering her face again with the hood. Like fleeing from an invisible enemy. "Don't look at me!"

"Leonoris!"

Rei staggered to his feet, stunned. His heart ached more than from the fall. He felt he had screwed up badly.

"Leonoris! Wait—"

He chased after her. But the Princess was fast.

In the hallway he caught only a glimpse. A whirlwind of white fabric. Then he ran out of breath. She rushed past Nessus, who was still nearby, leaning against the wall.

"Huh? Leonoris! What hap—"

Nessus turned at the sound of footsteps. When he saw Rei disoriented and shaken he understood immediately. He glanced at the empty corridor his sister had fled down. Then back at Rei, panting and pale. His lips pressed tight. His voice softened with sympathy.

"So you saw."

Rei lowered his gaze, fists clenched, realizing her family clearly knew—but he hadn’t.

"Yes… I saw."

For the first time, he understood the weight of the hood Leonoris always wore. It wasn’t for elegance, nor habit.

She wanted to hide something.

And Rei, his heart tight, understood why she didn’t want him to see her like that.