The Ballerina who wishes to aim for the Stars | Volume 1

The Angel of Dance

"-Huh!? What do you mean you don't want to dance?"

The whole cast was stunned. A ballerina who didn't want to dance, how ironic.

Selene sighed and sat down on the edge of the stage as if the weight of the whole world was falling on her.

"I don't know, I just don't feel like it...The events that happened earlier have got me down a bit.
-But you can't give up!"

She sighed again and scratched her head.

"-I know it, I know it."

The ballerina looked at her friends one by one, pained. Castafiore spoke in a gentle tone:

"I think it would be better to leave you alone for a while.
-It would be nice...Thank you."

And the costumes disappeared, leaving Selene and Cotton alone. At her friend's apologetic look, Cotton walked away into the rows of velvet seats.

She stood up and began to walk across her stage, swinging her arms in a nonchalant, thoughtful manner. She had to dance even if she didn't want to. After all she had a ballet and a character to work on. But she had no outside help. The costumes didn't matter because they were part of her stage and therefore part of her own heart.

The character of Odile haunted her. It was the opposite of what Selene was. Odile, the Black Swan, was a seductress, a femme fatale. She took the lead and ran the show.

Selene was just sweet and the type to be seduced. Calm, kind, reserved, she let herself be guided.

She understood her teacher's remarks better. Perhaps she should "let go" a little more? Let herself be carried away by the dance?

She let herself fall violently and let out a cry of frustration.

*

**

"-As always the human heart is remarquable...The atmosphere and mood of this place is all the more comfortable."

Lance had been standing in the hall for the past ten minutes, contemplating his surroundings. Over the centuries, he had seen many stages. But this one was incredible and rich.

The Maestro often amused himself by inspecting each scene in detail, then trying to guess to whom this scene might belong. He already knew that this one belonged to a ballerina, but which ballerina precisely?

"From the looks of this place I'd say this ballerina is rather... dreamy and melancholic."

He raised his head in the direction of the celestial vault.

"-Head in the stars perhaps..."

Well, the only way to find out was to go see this person after all. He put his silver hair back in a hurry and did his best to look presentable, although the visitor would not see him. He had noticed the large door in front of him, but he definitely could not enter through it.

However, he knew a little about the structure of an opera house, after all it was pretty much like a theatre. And that's why he liked this Wonderworld so much.

Because he felt at home exactly like in a theatre.

He noticed a small door that should lead to the highest balconies. He decided to go through it discreetly. He guessed right, he ended up on one of the balconies with the best view of the stage. He decided to sit on the ledge at an angle where he would not be seen.

Lance felt a certain amount of stress. He didn't know who he was going to find. Would he be disappointed?

So he prayed that his daily migraines would not disturb him in the next few minutes. He was tired of feeling unwell, so he hoped that what he was about to see would entertain him...sort of.

From where he was he could only see a golden hair, as Selene was still on the ground.

"-Come on Selene, pull yourself together, Balan is expecting it!"

She stood up, her back to Lance. He could see the beautiful blue dress she was wearing.

"I want to see your face... Turn around, please..." he whispered, impatient.

Selene looked at her feet. She still had her ballet shoes on. She took a long breath and began to walk, slowly and gracefully. She closed her eyes and let her own steps carry her. She let herself go.

Lance began to hear a faint melody that grew louder and louder. Selene had started to dance and she hadn't even noticed.

He felt as if he couldn't breathe, his eyes were so focused on Selene. He knew absolutely nothing about her, but he was able to capture an ounce of her personality just by watching her dance.

The Maestro was shocked when he saw her. Her mouth was half open, the fingertips of her right hand rested elegantly on her chest and her eyes locked on the ballerina.

"Is she an angel fallen from heaven?" he thought.

In his eyes, she danced wonderfully. He remembered that Balan had mentioned a problem of self-confidence and priority concerning her.

And he didn't understand.

"-She dances so well...A Princess. So why shouldn't she have confidence in herself?"

It wasn't Selene who was leading the dance. It was the dance that controlled her. And Lance thought it was beautiful. She danced with such grace, such naturalness.

Yes, Selene was the Angel of Dance in the eyes of the Maestro.

Guragura let out a soft cry that brought Lance back to reality. He realized that he had been standing there for several hours watching this dancer. He felt embarrassed. Usually he would just take a swipe and walk away.

However, he felt this strong presence of negativity in the place, although he thought it was normal since she had just arrived. But he wondered if Balan was going to make it. The answer was obvious to him but knowing him...this girl seemed too calm and gentle for him. But maybe he...

"-No I can't, I promised."

He shook his head and replaced a lock of his hair.

"-Balan will know how to help her, there's no way I'm getting involved."

Guragura sighed.

Selene struck a final, majestic pose and opened her eyes. And without saying a word, she took off her slippers and put her heels back on.

"I've lost my way and now I've wasted my time. I need to focus on the priority of this ballet."

Ah, Lance knew what Balan meant by "priorities" now. He told himself that he would not see her dance anymore for the moment but his heart was screaming at him to stay and watch this golden angel a little longer.

Inwardly he wished he could get closer to see her more closely. But he couldn't do that. He snapped his fingers and brought up a thick diary with a royal blue cover.

For some time Lance had been writing in a journal. To talk about himself, about Balan, or simply to record the information he had about every resident who came and went. Sometimes he couldn't help but draw what was around him, what inspired him. It gave him a break from the tragic curse that awaited him.

He snapped his fingers again and brought out a golden fountain pen. The pen was actually a red Drop because Lance liked to write in red. It gave a less serious and more whimsical feel.

He opened the diary to a blank double page and wrote the title 'Prima Ballerina' at the top. He wrote down his impressions, feelings and observations. He had so much to say about this first "encounter". Then he decided to make some pencil strokes, to transcribe on paper the beauty of this ballerina who had more than upset him...

"I want to see her again."