The Point Of It All

Writers: Bree, Eimi
Date Posted: 7th November 2006

Characters: M'galec, Abrei
Description: M'galec tries to teach Abrei to dance, but his attempt goes very poorly.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 13, day 29 of Turn 3

Abrei

Abrei glared at her glass of juice, wishing more than anything that she could have slipped a little bit of something stronger into it. There were a lot of things about her new "lifestyle" that bothered her, but coming to celebrations like this and being denied anything stronger than a little bit of watered down wine was the worst.

"To the new turn, Master Abrei?" M'galec said, raising his own undiluted glass of wine in a toast.

For a moment, Abrei considered dumping her juice over his head. "To the new turn," she echoed grumpily, waving her glass in his general direction. If she _did_ throw something at him, she'd have to at least make sure he deserved it first.

"Is your stomach bothering you?" M'galec asked, noticing her less than enthusiastic mood. "Or is it life in general that seems to be troubling you today?"

"My stomach is always bothering me," she replied, shrugging one shoulder. "But not as much as it was, I admit."

"Good. Perhaps you would be up for a dance then?" the bronzerider asked giving her his most inviting smile.

Abrei laughed in spite of herself. "I don't dance. I don't even know how, and I'd likely injure myself trying."

"Well, what if I teach you? I am an excellent dancer, and a patient teacher. Come on now," he said, setting his glass down on the nearby table and snatching hers from her hand as well. "If you can master the human body, you can at least learn one dance."

"M'galec..." Abrei's protest seemed to fall on deaf ears as M'galec pulled her towards the dancing. It had been so long since the last time she'd danced that Abrei actually, literally _could not remember_ when it had been. She had the sneaking suspicion she might have still been an apprentice at the time. As with most things she showed no talent for, she'd given up trying fairly quickly.

The bronzerider wrapped one arm around her waist, his hand resting against the small of her back while he took her other hand in his. "Look at where the other women are putting their hands and follow suit,"
he said with an encouraging nod.

"I'm not an _idiot_," Abrei snapped, resting a hand on his shoulder lightly. "I just am not particularly graceful at this sort of thing."

"Abrei, I never said you were an idiot. Quite the contrary in fact." He was not about to let her sour mood ruin this. "Now when I step forward, you step back. Your feet should be the mirror opposite of mine. When I move my right foot, you move your left. Is it coming back to you?"

"There's nothing for it to come back to," Abrei replied, trying to follow his movements. "Do you think I got my Master's knots at thirty and still had time to learn things like how to dance?"

"Well, then, perhaps it is time you back up and learn all you have missed." He used his hand to gently prod her in the direction he wanted her to go. There was nothing fancy in his movements, and he made sure not to trod on her feet. "You are doing just fine," he assured her.

Abrei was silent for a moment, most of her attention focused on not tripping over her feet or M'galec's. She couldn't seem to find the rhythm of the music no matter how hard she concentrated, and her own natural clumsiness was not making it easier. The bronzerider began silently tapping the rhythm with his fingers against her back, trying to help her find the beat. "One, two, three -
One, two, three," he whispered quietly. "There, you're getting it. And one, two, three..."

His words distracted her from watching her feet, which resulted in the immediate stomping of his toes followed by a stumble. Flushing brightly, Abrei glanced around to see how many people had noticed. "Really, M'galec... I'm not good at this."

Luckily M'galec's boots were sturdy enough to take the brunt of the blow. Besides, Abrei's force was mostly in her temperament, not her body size. "You just need a bit more practice is all. If you keep telling yourself you will fail, it is inevitable that you will."

"I just don't see how this is supposed to be fun," she muttered, wincing as she trod on his foot again. "Well, I think part of the point is how close you get to stand with your dance partner," the bronzerider pointed out. "If they are someone you enjoy being in close proximity to, the dance really does not matter as much." "Oh." Well, she couldn't deny that M'galec was nicely muscled and perfectly pleasant to be close to, but any real enjoyment she might have gotten out of it was rather spoiled by what had happened the last time she'd gotten too friendly with him. "Well, then. Why are you dancing with me?"

"Because I like being close to you," he replied honestly. "Because I cannot help but wonder sometimes what might have happened between you and I if I had not found Lenala first. You are quite beautiful, you know. And intelligent, talented, strong. You have a lot of qualities that I admire in you. I am happy with Lenala. But it does not stop me from noticing you."

Abrei snorted and pulled away. "What would have happened is that I would have left you the first time you treated me the way you treat Lenala.
How she puts up with it is more than I can understand."

"Ah, but I would not have treated you like I treat Lenala. You are _not_ Lenala, and she is not you. You both have different talents, and different needs. I can appreciate the difference."

"Well, you've shown your cruel side to me once or twice already, too."
Abrei released his hand and stepped away from him, vaguely annoyed on Lenala's behalf. Maybe she didn't like the woman, but she didn't deserve being treated like a pet by M'galec. "I think I'm done dancing."

"In my defense, Abrei, you have not always showed my your kindest side. You have delighted in provoking me when all I have ever done is tried to help you to the best of my ability. But that is all in the past." And he had thought that they had agreed on that. "And please do not step away from me as if you think I will drag you off into some dark corner just because I tell you my honest opinion of you. I am with Lenala, and I will be going home with her tonight, and going home to her tomorrow and the nights that follow. I am only saying, I am a man, and it is natural for all humans to wonder about the path they did not chose."

"You couldn't drag me anywhere I didn't want to go," Abrei retorted sharply. The sharding _arrogance_ of the man! "I'm stepping away from you because I am not enjoying myself, and I rather thought that was the point of all of this."

"Yes, that was the point," M'galec conceded. "I apologize for pulling you away from enjoying your drink. Thank you at least for trying to enjoy the dance."

Feeling entirely unnerved by the entire experience, Abrei turned on her heel and strode away, not even stopping when she reached the table where M'galec had set her drink. She wanted fresh air and a little peace, and she wanted them both now.

Last updated on the November 11th 2006

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The Point Of It All