The Thief King

30 | A Moment of Fireworks

The dancers made patterns with their bodies. Sera was a stroke in that pattern, part of a design. She weaved and spun, and the others did the same. Her skirt flew around her like petals pretending to be wings. Cold air glazed over her skin, rushed past her ears, and caught her laugh. She smiled at Evelynn, who had just completed her pivot and briefly lost her balance.

There was freedom in dance. She felt it tingling under her skin, igniting her bones, firing up her muscles. Or was that the ale?

She grasped Evelynn's hand, and the next sequence began. Sera rounded Evelynn and dipped her backwards. Evelynn giggled, her red hair streaming behind her flushed face. Neither of them had partners, but Sera was not about to let that spoil her night. Kole was absent, and she was determined not to let it upset her more than it already had. Along with the men, Sera moved away from her partner, swaying and tapping her feet as the dance commanded.

She loved this dance. It had just enough beat to be considered challenging and left the dancers breathless with laughter and cheers. The band would play it again in a few hours when minds were further addled and memories clouded. By that time, Kole may have arrived and she could plunge herself to the sensuous movements that the female part required. Thin and awkward as Evelynn was, her movements were stiff and small, she loved dancing but lacked the rhythm it required. Sera had spent many hours with Nena teaching their friend the basics, and over the years, Evelynn had learned to dance with her needle legs and windmill arms.

Sera jumped back towards Evelynn, their fingers touching, a grin on their faces. They spun from one another, returned, ducked, swiveled, and glided across the cobbled square. Evelynn squealed when one of her feet caught in her skirt, but she recovered and giggled against Sera.

The music built to the crescendo they had all been waiting for; the fiddles trilled to their highest notes, the lyres and guitars strummed their fullest, warmest sounds, and the drums supported it all with a steady stampede of beats before they all crashed together, tied for one last moment before disintegrating into applause.

Her heart pounded along with her hands. Despite the cold, beads of sweat glittered on both her and Evelynn's foreheads and a warm flush coloured their cheeks. The crowd cheered the band, screaming for more, ululating their requests.

Sera caught Evelynn's elbow, leading her out of the bustling dance floor that, despite holding more bodies than was likely safe, was only growing fuller. Sera had to push and jostle against the tide that fought to keep her. Evelynn's thin fingers dug into Sera's, their owner no match for the current.

Finally, when all seemed lost and Sera was about ready to shove the next person that shoved her, they found the edge of the storm. Space welcomed them with an icy kiss, and the sweat dotting their foreheads froze immediately.

"There's Nena." Evelynn pointed, keeping her mouth close to Sera's ear.

They darted towards their friend who was leaning forward in her seat, her fingers curling a lock at her ear. She was smiling foolishly, her eyes shining and glazed over, ogling the stable-hand before her. He was handsome, Sera would give him that, but Nena was likely to find that a problem in a few days.

As if attracted by their stares, Nena's eyes darted in their direction, returned to the stable-hand and then once again to Sera and Evelynn. She waved, beckoning them.

"The two of you have been dancing for ages," Nena sighed as they took their seats.

"Ale?" the stable-hand asked.

"Yes!" Nena clapped her hands together, downed the dregs of her mug, and replaced it on the table they sat around. Most of the taverns, bars, and pubs had brought out their furniture so as to capitalize on the night's earnings. Some had built furnaces to attract people to the warmth, others had decorated their porches with delicate candle lights that sparkled and flickered like fireflies.