Shall We Dance? (Open)

[Lux]

The Dance Hall at the Grand Galloping Gala was filled with all types and colors of ponies who had come to such a great event. Some were conversing with each other, swapping tales and making new acquaintances while some were partaking of the delicious food set out on the once side of the room. But as the music began to play, some ponies felt to need to get out on the dance floor and strut their stuff.

Fire Heart entered the dance hall dressed in a beautiful dark gold dress thanks to a visit to the Carousel Boutique. She felt nervous being at such an event like this where it seemed all of Canterlot was at and even beyond! There was a nagging fear that she wouldn't be able to control her fire magic and thus her reputation, like perhaps part of the Gala, would be reduced to ashes. Yet, she tried to maintain her composure as she trotted out to the dance floor and letting the beat wash over her began to dance.

"This feels great being here," she said, "Time to have some fun!"

[Lilia]

It was all Charming Masquerade could do to keep himself from running away from the Gala. He was nervous, and admittedly a little scared. The crowd intimidated the shy stallion, who had gone to great lengths to look good for the most important night of his life. His normally long and flowing mane and tail had been cut and styled into a dashing style, and his suit was ordered from the remote region of Stalliongrad by his mother. He shifted from hoof to hoof just outside of the dance floor, his golden eyes trying to find something, anything, to focus on. He saw a mare approach the dance floor and stopped everything. She was beautiful. He shook his head. Beautiful, yes, but hardly in his league. He was, as he constantly heard from the mares of Trottingham, not at all attractive for being a potion brewer.

'Come on, Charming! That's a good lad, perk up. You'll never know if you are likeable or not if you stand here all by yourself! Just put one hoof in front of the other and...oh. Listen to that. Perhaps now would be a good time to ask that mare there to dance?' He mentally told himself, his peppy self on overdrive tonight. He hadn't realized that he had managed to get close to the mare in the gold gown.

"H...Hullo....I'm...I'm Charming. Would you like to....to dance? With me?" He stuttered, giving himself a good hard kick in the flank for the stupidity of even daring to talk to a mare like the one before him.

[Lux]

Fire Heart was so happy dancing, she almost forgot about everypony around her. The red unicorn then heard a nearby voice, one that sounded like it belonged to a pony that was unsure of himself. She turned to see this charcoal grey stallion standing before her, looking like a strong breeze was about to blow him over. She wondered what was making him so nervous. After all it wasn't her, was it?

"Hello, I'm Fire Heart," she said thinking that maybe this dress she was wearing was like a good luck charm attracting ponies to her, "Sure I would like to dance with you!"

Fire Heart moved in closer to him, but not too close to worry the shy stallion and resumed dancing.

"So Charming, where are you from?"

[Lilia]

Charming blushed when Fire Heart agreed to dance with him, a smile breaking through his shyness.

"I'm from Trottingham. A wonderful place, but nowhere nearly as majestic as Canterlot! Are you from here, Miss Fire Heart?" He asked, pleased that he hadn't stuttered again. He moved gracefully, truly grateful to his mother and father for forcing him to take a ballroom dancing lesson when he was a colt.

[Pretzelparty]

A yellowish tan mare slowly entered the dance hall. This young traveling painter was greatly out of her element, her Saddlebags of art supplies gone and left at the door with her scarf ,her mane all brushed and tidy and not having a hat on top of her head. This would have felt completely unnatural if her upbringing hadn't subjected her to parties like this and constant dress ups as well.

The mare mostly stuck to the wall and watched , her icy blue eyes almost glued to the dance floor as she watched all the various ponies dancing about. "This would make a great painting!... gotta remember to start work on it when This is all over." she thought. Despite her enjoying of the seen... it was still kind of awkward to just stay against the wall staring at all the other ponies having fun, but what could she do? She wasn't hungry for anything or thirsty at the moment... even though this fancy dress was slightly warm for her. Her hooves covered by fancy looking horseshoe-slippers, the only thing atop her head being an expensive Tiara: a gift from her parents And a long dress that covered her hindlegs and Tail. She had to admit she looked pretty spiffy... but it was hard to walk and getting appreciated for good looks over her painting skill was rather unsettling for the poor mare.

[Lux]

Fire Heart smiled as the stallion seemed to relax after speaking with him. There were many times in her life where she felt something similar to his current state, although her reason was to her unpredictable magic. She didn't know why the stallion was nervous, unless it was that he was not used to talking to mares.

"Hmm... never been to Trottingham before, but then again the only place I visited besides here was Ponyville. Yes, Canterlot is my home town. This is where I grew up and where I now study."

She could see that the pony dancing with her seemed to have some experience with classical ballroom dancing making him look more graceful than his initial introduction.

"You dance well. Is your talent dancing?"

[TheHybrid]

Rusty slammed his hooves at the food and drink bar, frowning "What d'ya mean 'all out of grape juice?!' Ah've been waitin' in this line for over a half-hour to get some of this stuff! It's the only reason Ah even attend these silly froo-froo dance things!" the light-brownish orange stallion was attracting a lot of attention from the crowd, and not the good kind. He was angry, he only came to the Gala to buy a barrel of their premium grape

juice, and he hated coming because it meant he had to dress up for it. However, he did look very nice, wearing a charming royal looking suit, with his usually chaotic mane combed and trimmed down, he even had his messy tail made up. However, he still had his old, falling apart top-hat on, although it added an eccentric flare to himself.

Some gaurds apprehended the 'crazy' stallion and took him off to a different area.

[Pretzelparty]

Presteza's ears perked up and she looked around, noticing the crowd gathering around the juice bar. She poked her head up over the crowds and smirked as she saw a friend of hers at the bar,"It is 'im... same ol' Rusty." she thought to herself. "Maybe I can brighten up his evenin'..." With that thought she Galloped-- well tried to gallop only to fall on her nose as she tripped over the hem of her gown, it took a fair bit of willpower not to let out a cry of pain. Some other ponies came over and helped her up, the mare blushing and mumbling to herself as she got to her hooves again and rubbed her slightly red muzzle. Politely bowing to them and thanking them for their help she carefully walked with urgency back to her parents and arranged for their extra stock of grape juice to be given around to the rest of the party.

Returning to the ballroom she asked a serving stallion there if he would take a cup to the slightly rowdy looking stallion matching Rusty's description and tell him the one who sent it would be at the juicebar waiting for him.

[TheHybrid]

Rusty trots back into the room, being careful to avoid gaurds as he made his way to the juice bar, "Wonder who this pony is? Must be a real good friend if they went through the trouble to... send... me..." his eyes locked on to Prestza, stunned for a few moments. Then he laughs aloud, "Oh I'm such an idiot!" he trots up to her, smiling warmly "Howdy Pressy!"

[Pretzelparty]

The mare laughed and strolled over,"Nice ta see you again,Rusty! Still as hot blooded as ever I see!" she said happily if still sounding the tiniest bit unnatural coming from a mare who usually drifted in-between thick and moderate Trottingham accent. She looked over the older stallion and smiled,"You really look quite dapper in that outfit. I'm glad you kept your hat though... wish I could've done the same" she said with a chuckle tinged with nervousness,"I thought you weren't gonna recognize me for a second form you were staring before."

[TheHybrid]

Tilts his head, "Huh? Oh yeah, that." he grins wide, looking her over once more "It's just thatcha look real amazin'! Could hardly recognize ya for a second." and he honestly couldn't, he thinks to himself. He wasn't used to seeing her like this, all done up and such, it felt... weird to him. Unfamiliar... a strange feeling. He thought she looked nice, but... at the same time... he thought of how unnatural it felt for her to look like this. It didn't 'sit right' with him, and he soon frowned "No disrepect, Pressy, but as much as I love how ya look, I also hate ta see ya like this! I mean, honestly speakin', you look great! But... it feels so... unnatural for you. How about you? How do you feel about all this?" he asked, with eyes filled with curiosity.

[Pretzelparty]

Presteza took a deep breath and went closer to Rusty and spoke to him in a hushed tone,"Honestly... I... I don' wanna say I hate it, but It really feels odd. I mean I spent alot o' my time as a filly lookin' like this and goin' to fancy parties but it just never felt right." She looked down at the floor a moment seeming downtrodden before she spoke up again,"But my mom and dad asked me ta come to the Gala and I haven't seen them face to face in almost a year!"

The Mare's posture began to loosen up a bit in her friend's presence as she spoke, slowly relaxing herself as she got all this off her chest. "Also a lot of other ponies must think a bit similar to you since I've been getting alot of stares tonight."

[TheHybrid]

He frowns, "Ah... Ah can't say I c'n relate to you on that level. My parents didn't force me to do nothin' I didn't want to do, and I came out all the better for it." he thinks, "THe way I look at it, when parents do that to a kid, it messes them up. Makes em' think they have to be somethin' they ain't, makes em' feel bad when they simply can't live up to what their parents want em' to be. I may of came out a little crazy in the head, but it's better then feelin' I have to live up to somethin'." he smiles warmly at her, "But if you came here just to see yur parents, well now, thats okay then..."

He didn't quite get her second statement, "Huh? Oh uhm... yeah I know I'm a bit outta place I guess. But I'm just here for tha grape juice... though I'm sure you've already heard..." he smiles sheepishly

[Pretzelparty]

The mare chuckled a bit as she looked at the many patrons, her eyes eventually finding themselves looking at the pair already dancing, Charming Masquerade and Fireheart. she chuckles and looks at the dancing couple. "They look like they're having fun, huh?" she said looking to her friend.

"And ya don't need ta worry, Rusty. I told them I wanted to dress up like this so I have to live with that choice." she said with a light chuckle,"But I guess I don't really look that weird in this outfit. I got a few compliments after all." She shrugs and looked to her friend,"I'd ask if ya wanted ta dance... but I haven't done any ballroom dancin' since I was a filly.."

[TheHybrid]

Rusty looks back at her, seeming to have faded out for a minute "Dancin'? Oh uhm... yeah I dance a bit... square dance and stuff... and other folk shuffles..." he scratches his head, "But uhm... I uhm...." he laughs nervously, "I uhm... never really... learned how to... uhm...."

[Lilia]

Charming smiled at Fire Heart, shaking his head in response to her question.

"No, my talent isn't dancing. My talent is Potionmaking. You can thank my mother for making me take dance lessons as a colt. I bet Ponyville is nice. Never been away from home until...well, now. What is your talent...um, if it's not an issue to discuss?" He asked, his shyness poking it's head up as his confidence wavered. He liked Fire Heart, he admitted to himself. He just hoped he wouldn't make her not like him.

[Lux]

The red filly's interest immediately heightened upon mention that the stallion was skilled in potion making. It was one of those many magical topics she studied in Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and she found it fascinating how a pony could take different herbs and other items and make them into something that could help others. Yet her talent wasn't in potion making, nor would she ever risk trying.

"Oh you make potions! That's a really neat talent, something I learned a little in school."

Fire wondered what the stallion meant by not leaving home. Was it that he usually stayed in Trottingham, rarely traveling to other towns and cities, or by home it meant he stayed at home with his mother? She wasn't a judgmental pony, but it did make her wonder more about the pony she was dancing with. He did still seem nervous around her, asking if it was ok for her to explain her talent when she essentially asked his.

"Oh it's ok for me to talk about my talent. I can create and control fire. I kind of had trouble at first with the control part but I'm much better with practice. So how did you find out you could create potions?"

[Pretzelparty]

The silver-maned mare chuckled a bit and pointed a hoof to the already dancing couple on the dance floor, "Well we can't let them 'ave all the fun can we?" she said playfully. Taking a moment to let Rusty's statement register in her head, the metaphorical wheels in her head turning before she perked up.

"Think 'o it as... like square dancing, except with twirls and getting up close with your partner. Besides I took a few lessons as a filly so I should be able to at least walk ya through the basics." she offered her hoof to the stallion,"Whaddya say?"

[TheHybrid]

He grins, and takes the offer, grabbing onto her hoof "Lead the way, Pressy!" he looks around the dance floor at the dancing ponies, and sees how happy they are... which begins to make him happy. He couldn't really explain the feeling, it was like he felt happy because others around him were. But he pushed back this thought, and returned his focus to the mare he was about to dance with, he didn't want his mind to wander now.

[Pretzelparty]

Presteza smiled, putting her hoof against Rusty's,"Now try and stay with me, I'll go slow and then pick up, okay?" she did indeed go slowly at first, making sure to lead her partner and at least let him familiarize himself with the dancing and Rhythm of the music, soon presteza was leading him into a slow waltz.

"hm... Maybe I could get back inta this, it's not as boring as I thought." she chimed in as the calmly drifted around around the room, occasionally passing the other pair dancing. Passing by the duo a third time she spoke up and greeted them,"enjoyin' the Gala?"

[TheHybrid]

Rusty followed his partners steps, awkwardly at first, but then just imagined it as being a very, strange, square dance. It worked out perfectly, as he was following Pressy's everymove, and he had to admit, "Hey Pressy... this uhm... isn't half-bad!" he smiled agreeing with her, "Yeah, a lot more fun then I thought it would be!" he felt full of confident energy, which was apparant when he said "Howdy!" to the other dancing duo.

[Lilia]

Charming sighed. His cutiemark story wasn't fun, but he would bring Fire up to speed.

"It started out like any other day...classmates teasing me because I was a blank flank, my mane and tail were 'Fillyish', whatever. I ran away from them, past a patch of poison joke. They charged after me and right through the joke. When they tried to make fun of me again, their muzzles shrunk to an impossible size then regrew when they stopped. It took a couple of days, blissfully quiet ones at that, but I figured out what happened...I helped them, made the herbal bath for them. That's when my cutie mark showed up. I've been making medicinal potions since then." He explained, failing to hide the tears as he recalled the cruelty of his class. He shoved the memories aside, however and brightened.

"It's wonderful to be able to control fire. Even if it's not mastered, fire is good. Then again...I don't think you can master fire, not really. Such a wild, untamed element like that shouldn't be mastered, but respected and given it's due....uhm. Sorry." He said softly, realizing too late that he might have insulted Fire.

[Lux]

"That's an interesting story about how you got your cutie mark. I heard those Poison Joke flowers are not really nice plants to come into contact with."

The red unicorn could see that once again the stallion appeared nervous speaking to her about her ability. Was it just her that made him nervous or was it mares in general? She hoped she could get him to open up more and relax so that whoever he speaks with in the future it would be easier.

"Oh you don't have to apologize. You're right, fire is a very wild element, both beneficial and dangerous at the same time. I was once told how I can't control fire but instead i can guide it to where and how I want it. I find that I can guide it with my emotions, which is a great ability as much as it can be a pain. I once read that fire was once seen as a symbol of the spirit, passion and energy. What do you think?"

[Lilia]

Charming smiled, genuine surprise radiating from it. She agreed with him, which was rare to hear in his case.

"I think it is a perfect symbol, fire is, in many cases, a form of life itself. Guiding fire is a great gift to have, especially for a pretty mare like yourself. I'm glad you agreed to dance with me...you're the first mare to not laugh at my stuttering...or at my talent..." He stated simply, finding the courage to open up to Fire. He bowed to her as the song ended, doing his best to hide the blush that threatened to creep up on him. She was nice, which made it easier for him to be honest with her.

[TheHybrid]

Frowned a bit when the other two didnt reply, but let it go "Musta not heard us... oh well." he kept dancing with Pressy, this wasnt as bad as he thought.