08.11.3013: Dance Lessons
Summary: Antaeus comes to his mother and sister for dance lessons and political relationship advice.
Date: 12 August 2013
Related: None
Ancelina Antaeus Ariana 


The Great Hall — Sky Palace, Nubilus
A domed room with a spectacular 180-degree view of the Nubilus cityscape.
11 August 3013

In the upper section of the Dome that is Sky Palace exists the Great Hall. This expansive room is where many a meeting is held, as well as dances and dinner parties. The main draw to the hall is the 180-degree views of Summit's cityscape and the heavenly clouds which practically envelope the city as a whole. Ariana is seated besides her mother as she works on a bit of embroidery which is beginning to learn how to do. As her long, elegant fingers move deftly, going through the motions of embroidering, she has brought up a topic of discussion and something which greatly troubled her for most of last night and the earlier part of the day — after her return from the Arborenin forest. "There is a lack of sunlight to be found, unless you are lucky enough to happen upon a clearing and those tend to be as lovely as any meadow I've ever seen in the Vale." Her tone comes off as light and chit-chatty rather than complaining and her attention is kept on her own handiwork, "Young Lord Declan told me that there are many such gems to be found…. if only you could feel your way through the twisted roots and vines of the forest to get there."

The sunlight pours into the Dome of the Sky Palace and swathes mother and daughter in radiant glory. In the backdrop of those breathtaking city views are gliders and other ships sailing through the air. Within the Dome itself, the sound is peaceful and serene. Delicate piano concertos pipe in through the sound system. Ancelina is decked in a dazzling sky blue gown which accentuates her figure but is age appropriate for a woman of her status. The pattern she and Ariana are embroidering is a difficult one with intricate scroll work. The frame will serve as a place to hold Ariana and Declan's monogram for their wedding present. Lady Larent lifts a brow after her daughter speaks and smiles faintly. "Are you not enjoying your time on Arboren? Or is this just an excuse for something which bothers you more deeply, my child?"

"There is very little to enjoy, though the Young Lord dares to make me change my mind about his forest and woods." Ariana says without much of a sigh escaping her lips, though by her words alone, she may be feeling far more exasperated by it all than she lets on. "I mean, I'm sure there is some beauty that can be found anywhere. Obsidia is beautiful," She brings up the other primary tourist destination in all of Haven. "Despite how dark and ugly their own landscape is. I just think that if several," Read that as many! "Of the trees were trimmed back a little so that more sunlight can venture through the thick leaves and branches, then perhaps it might make the twisted pathways look all the more friendlier. To be honest, with how dark it is and the very thought that I felt that eyes were upon me at all times, I couldn't help but be a little frightened." Hearing her brother's footsteps, she turns to regard her brother with a warm enough smile reserved for family; all the while her fingers continue with their intricate work. "You can have the Arborenin forest. Though Young Lord Declan said that there are many a waygate placed within the woods that can bring me to various sections of the forest, including beautiful locations such as a waterfall among other things."

"You are a child of the sky, my dear. You are feeling many things all at once which I can understand when I put myself in your position. There is a lot of nervous anxiety brewing and you have always been so calm and collected." Ancelina looks upon her daughter with a proud smile. "Your father and I will be sure to give you a glider so that you may always be close to the heavens." As a mother, Ancelina feels her daughter is merely having wedding jitters and the anxiety of separating from her family and the only home she has ever known. Summit is quite a city and no one could ever say they would not want to live here. It's a miraculous sight. When Antaeus makes his appearance, Ancelina puts down her embroidery and rises from her seat to greet her son. "My Antelope!" She says gleefully, embracing her golden boy and placing a kiss upon his cheek. "I am faring well, indeed, my son. And you? Nothing wrong I hope. My, you look dashing. I swear, more and more like your father each day."

Antaeus simply nods to Ariana, not sure that using waygates would be quite the same experience as actually trekking through the forest. He wants to tell his mother that it is unnecessary for her to stand, but he isn't quick enough. Returning his mother's embrace and placing a kiss on her own cheek, he smiles at her, nodding. "I am doing very well, thank you Mother, though…" He trails off, first glancing to Ariana before returning his gaze to Ancelina, then back to Ariana, then Ancelina. "I, uh, hesitate to bring this up between the two of you, but since there are more weddings coming up… I was wondering if I could ask about who I could go to for tips on dancing. I think… I think it's something I should actually bother to learn now." Yeah, he admits to shirking some of those types of lessons as a youth in favor of swords and warfare.

Her thoughtful gaze lifting to view her mother's kind words to her predicament, Ariana maintains that expressionless mask now when speaking of the forest, "Oh, but you were able to come live here in all of the beauty and glory that is Summit! Did you have any second thoughts on coming to live here, Lady Mother? Phylon itself is beautiful enough and I don't think I would have that feeling of being trapped so much as I do in the Arborenin forest…" Even with her brother's presence, her eyes lower to view what the intricacy of the embroidery which she and her mother are making. She is far too distracted to catch much of the conversation between mother and son, but the word. She even misses the term of endearment that Ancelina normally uses for her golden boy. The word 'dancing' just so happens to draw her back into the conversation and she just has to ask, "You don't know how to dance?" Is that a smile on her lips?

Ancelina's thoughts are often in the clouds therefore every now and then she will say something silly to lighten the mood on a situation. What appears to be something of unhappiness stemming from her daughter's lips does draw concern, but the raven haired lady of the house wishes to keep things as neutral as possible. She is about to ask Ariana an important question when she is sidetracked by her son. "Tips on dancing?" She is just as surprised, but unlike the boy's ruthless sibling, Ancelina smiles warmly. "But of course! I am ashamed of myself for never having taken the time to properly show you. Are you sure we've never done this before, Antaeus?"

Giving what is kind of an embarrassed shrug to both mother and sister, "I know how… sort of, I just never focused on that sort of thing before. Now that there are some weddings coming up, it might be important for me to start mingling with single ladies." Or more likely a certain single lady that he promised to dance with at one point and he's determined to keep that promise. Glancing at his mother, he shakes his head. "No, no mother. You taught me a long time ago, so it's my fault that I'm not very practiced. I decided that other avenues of training were better for me at the time."

"I do believe that I am getting the hang of this. It's such tedious work that I always felt was best left to the seamstresses." Ariana comments lightly on the embroidering, "But you are right, Lady Mother, it would be far more special if I had a hand in the creation process myself." And oddly, in the young Larent's quiet ire, she seems to work faster as she uses this as a way to let off some steam. Never slowing in her steady pace, her cold blue eyes look between mother and son right now, when she asks, "Oh, shall we give Antaeus some pointers here and now? With the way things are heading, a wedding reception party could be held at any day now." Of course, she is kidding! Because if one were to be held any day now, they would all have their invitations. But in a few days time… "Why the Cindravale-Ibrahm wedding will be happening in a week or so. Plenty of time to get in some practice."

Ancelina nods in agreement with her daughter. "Yes, Nanners, I think we should give him some pointers now before we all forget and he is left looking awkward on a dance floor. Your father is an exceptional dancer and he is a naval captain. There's no excuse to put aside social etiquette for your military duties." Chiding Antaeus a touch, Ancelina glances to Ariana and gestures towards the floor. "Shall we, my dear? You are by far the best and most graceful of my little chickens." It might be a ruse, but mother surely likes to talk about her flock and maybe insinuate a little friendly competition between siblings. It is sort of like pageantry which is very Cindravalean of Ancelina to do.

Frowning slightly, Antaeus fidgets ever so slightly at being chided for shirking his social etiquette. "I'm sorry, mother. It's my own fault, I simply made assumptions years ago that are coming back to slightly haunt me." Of course, Veryna would have to be so darn stubborn about getting a husband, and there's this damn war going on… who knows, it could very well be that he may find himself in her position, something he never really considered back in his youth. He should have, but dreaming of being a captain in his own right kind of dominated his thoughts back then. Nodding at Ancelina, "Of course, mother." He heads out to the floor, following her. He glances back to Ariana and offers her a slight smirk, "Yes, I suppose I could use that time to practice. I wouldn't want to appear a fool in front of all of those people."

Ariana more than likely does believe that she is the best dancer among the Larent children, even if she doesn't come out and openly say so! Carefully, she sets her embroidery and materials aside as she rises to stand; making her way towards a decent enough spot in the expansive hall. When the room is cleared out like this, there is a wide open space to dance in, surrounded by heavenly clouds. It's like dancing on air. "Are you still trying to impress Lady Sir Viannea?" The youngest Larent pipes up and gestures for her brother to come closer as she already takes well-practiced steps, her arms up to indicate her imaginary partner, as she steps and glides about the dance floor. "One, two, three. Then back again."

Ancelina is also counting with a flamboyant gesture of her hand that makes her seem like she is crafting something magical out of thing air. She sways back and forth a touch, the hem of her skirts swishes and rustles against the floor. "So beautiful, Ari!" She coos and gushes over her baby girl. When Ariana starts to tease Antaeus about Viannea, Celina tsks softly, but glances towards her son, curious of his reaction. The Larent women always find out what they want to know one way or another. "Now now, focus on the steps. Antaeus, mirror your sister, but you will place one hand on her back while lightly taking a hold of the other. It is the man's job to lead the lady through the dance. This symbolizes a man's place in the relationship. A lady will often judge a man on the way he leads in dance." And naturally she does not continue to say how this often reflects a man's behavior in the boudoir, but clearly, ladies like it when a man knows what he's doing!

Watching them both, Antaeus studies the movements of their feet. He blinks and glances up at Ariana as she mentions Viannea's name. "Perhaps I am, sister. Here I would think that you would be encouraging me to get to know, and impress single ladies." He offers her a sweet smile, but it falters as his mother gives him instructions. "Do I need to take hold of her now?" He asks this as he mimics the steps that they were doing, not sure if they want him to risk stepping on feet already.

"One, two, three, twirl." Ariana continues counting out the steps while following through with each one. She doesn't feel silly about dancing with an imaginary partner, for this is one of the ways she was taught to learn how to dance as a little girl! Nor does she feel awkward about dancing with her brother. For a young woman who, to many, wouldn't be considered a physically affectionate sort and tends to stiffen up at the lightest of touches… especially when contact is made from non-family members, Ariana doesn't overly seem to mind the close contact one must endure while in a dance of this nature; seeing it as a formal thing, very much akin to linking one's arm with another when one is being escorted. An amused look on her features, she says with a light laugh, "I was hoping that you would meet various young women… but Lady Viannea seems like a decent enough sort." At first, she merely dances around where her brother is practicing on his own, but eventually she times it correctly so that she slips in as his partner at the most opportune moment, all without losing her own steps. "One, Two, Three. One, Two, Three. One, Two Three, Twirl."

Continuing his practice, Antaeus is slightly surprised as Ariana slips in, but he quickly regains his composure, putting one hand on her back and taking her other hand, trying to do his best to lead as he follows the 'one', 'two', 'three', then does a twirl, laughing softly as he seems to pull it off quite well. "Hey, this isn't as bad as I thought it would be." He grins at Ariana, continuing the practice dance. "I've tried to meet several young ladies. Let's see, there was Lady Kiara Sauveur, Lady Sir Kassandra Cindravale, Lady Elodie as well, but you know about her. Lady Sir Viannea seems to have caught my eye more than anyone else though. Would you approve of her for me, sister? Should anything come to pass, that is."

"This, is merely the most basic of dances." Ariana says as a way to burst a little of Antaeus' growing ego-tistical bubble, but she quickly adds, "Saying that, it is a good start and something you can do when almost any song starts playing." She keeps these simple steps up for the longest moment, though she does dally in some chit-chat all the same, "I have yet to really meet Lady Kiara Sauveur, though I do know several of her Lady Sisters." A pause, "It is unfortunate about what happened with Lady Elodie, but that is how the political marriage game goes…. and as for Lady Sir Kassandra, I've only seen her at tourneys and during my visits to Phylon." 'One', 'Two', 'Three'. Twirl. "Well, it would not be a choice for me to make now would it." Her chin lifts to view their mother in the distance as the dancing draws them further away from the Larent matriarch. She looks to her brother once more, "But from what I've seen, she looks to be a fine enough young lady for my dearest brother." Quickly and out of the blue, she changes her tune, "Now keep on twirling and spinning about." And here she leads him into a waltz with a far more abundance of spinning to go along with their steps, but she does so in a slower pace asserting some force into the motion as she takes the lead, once against counting off the steps.

Antaeus offers his sister the slightest of frowns as she just has to go and stomp on his fun. "It is a start, and I suppose it could be worse. I could've fallen flat on my face several times already." This is said with the slightest hint of a grin. As she shifts into the waltz, he makes a few stumbles in the beginning, but it seems he quickly gets the hang of it. It's another several moments before he continues the conversation, "No, it's not a choice either of us can make. Though, I admit that I would rather wed someone that I can like than dislike. Is that selfish of me? Perhaps. Maybe I should ask father about it and get his thoughts, what do you think?"

"But you didn't fall." Ariana responds in a pointed tone, "Because you are a Larent." Welllll, that doesn't mean one doesn't fall out of the sky and crash into a mountain, the way some cousin did. But here on the dance floor? Larents do not fall! Spin, spin, spin. One, Two, Three. "Of course, that would hold the most appeal, to marry someone whom you can relate to in some fashion and of course," her ice blue eyes lift to stare directly into her brother's now, "A spouse who you find attractive, I'm sure." Even an ice queen must have some standards of attractiveness, even if people find different things attractive. "I certainly would be interested in what our Lord Father has to say on this matter. Of course, he would have different things to say to you, than he has said to me."

Smirking slightly at her tone, Antaeus does continue to concentrate on what they are doing. He can't very well get over confident now. Falling, or slipping up in a rather terrible manner now would simply give his sister lots of ammunition to use against him later on. Managing to get the steps and spins in order, he seems to be a quick study. Perhaps quicker than he was as a lad who cared more about swords and ramships. "Yes, there is some appeal in that." He murmurs, allowing his gaze to match her own. "If you must know, I do find her rather attractive." He offers a wistful sigh. "Is it wrong for me to be hopeful that Father will be receptive of this all? I think I've met someone who makes me want to do my duty rather than makes me feel that I need to do it."

Spin, Spin, Spin. Ariana continues to lead the way, but soon enough she the slight force which she used to guide her brother into the dance is lessened, so that she can see whether Antaeus has learned from the experience and is able to guide her instead. Then once more, she looks over in Ancelina's direction, flashing her mother a smile when they draw nearer to her, before they are pulled away once again. "I don't see that it would be wrong of you, I suppose, but I've always found it silly when the young feel that they can dictate who they marry. It really should never be in our hands." This can be said of her own betrothal to Declan! "I'm certain that our Lord Father will weigh the pros and cons of such a match. Like I had said, he is hoping to make a better connection with another House of the Lashes… but he has 2 other children to try and make that happen." And the pair continue on with their well-practiced steps for a good 10 minutes more. That should be enough for Antaeus' first lesson!

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