not a fairytale

ten

 We got served the entire meal last and I sat there making conversation while distracted by Jeanne all over Logan at the front of the room. After we ate, we all migrated toward the dance floor in the ballroom part of the banquet room. Jeanne was obnoxious about dancing with Logan for the first dance of the night, it was to some piece by a Meldevan composer from the north, she said something about it being about spring or some other bullshit but I was too busy ignoring her to pay attention.

I hated how all over him she was, she was way too comfortable back home. I didn't think she'd slept with him before, she acted way too snooty for someone in this world who was okay with casually sleeping with other people, but she sure was all over him like she knew him that way.

It pissed me off because I hated her and it pissed me off because I wanted to be that all over him but everyone would clutch their pearls and probably have me kicked out of Meldeva for being a whore or something if I acted that way.

I zoned out after a few minutes and hardly noticed when the songs changed and everyone else found people to dance with, leaving me alone once again. I didn't really care though, I just wanted this to be over with and wanted to get the hell out of the freezing cold mountains and away from Jeanne having home field advantage.

"Dancing not your thing?" Logan's voice asked as he came up behind me.

"Watching Jeanne dance is not my thing," I replied with a small grin.

"I wish it could not be my thing," he remarked, an identical grin, "She's a little, overzealous since we've been here."

"I think it's all for a show," I laughed quietly.

"Everything she does is," he replied as they announced that they'd be playing the Meldevan waltz next, Logan's favorite, Jeanne had to point out, "Would you like to dance?"
"I would love to," I smiled as I took his outstretched hand and everyone sort of stood there and watched as we danced.

I spent hours learning this stupid dance and remembering how to ballroom dance, I was hoping and praying I wouldn't fuck it up in front of everyone like this.

"You're tense," he remarked, his face not changing as he spoke so nobody would know what he was saying.

"Trying to not mess up my steps," I replied, "I spent hours learning this, I'm not about to mess up in front of everyone."

"Just follow my lead, relax," he said, his voice calming my nerves as we danced on a nearly empty dance floor, "You know, if I look just right I can just see the start of your tattoo."

"Which one?" I asked.

"The flowers on your chest," he replied with an ever so slight wink, hinting at the bouquet of flowers I had tattooed on my sternum, starting right where my dress did and going down to almost my bellybutton, all in an outline in the shape of a diamond.

"Ah," I smiled, "Alessia made sure it was covered, thought maybe it wouldn't go over well."

"I like it," he said.

"That's all I really care about," I smiled.

"You didn't hide the one on your arm?" He asked.

"It's an acceptable place to have a tattoo I guess," I smiled.

"You mean you don't think that the heart with the Italian flag on your hip is acceptable in Meldevan court?" He grinned.

"Probably not," I smiled, "Or the one on my thigh, the one on my back, I can cover in places to make it not look like it's leading somewhere scandalous."