Dancing to a Different Tune [ENDED]

[Chonico]

Inside the Ballroom of the Palace, many ponies could be seen making merry. Some were enjoying themselves while dancing to the light tunes coming from the orchestra, while other simply stood chatting with old and new friends. A few other ponies could be seen walking from one group of ponies to another, perhaps saying their simple introductions or greetings. All in all, it was a plethora of colorful gowns and merriment, a place where something as simple as a pony observing the festivities would just be one of many faces in a crowd.

Clay stood near the entrance to the ballroom that led from the buffet area, and further led from the Royal Gardens, silently looking at the mass of ponies that had gathered inside. 'Wow, didn't expected such a huge crowd in here. Better not make the same first impression as I did in the Gardens.' He thought to himself as he let out a small chuckle that was quickly followed by a shallow sigh and a somewhat hanging head as a small realization dawned on him… Dancing, one of his more annoying weaknesses, something he never bothered to master for the exact same reason he nearly strangled himself while trying to fix his bow-tie... He simply thought he would never have a need for it.

'Well, at least it's slow dancing, that seems simple enough for me.' He muttered to himself as he raised his head once again and observed a pair of ponies on the dance floor seeming to float with grace to the music. Observing the pair, his hoofs began to move slightly. 'One hoof out, the other in… one hoof out, the other in and raise front hoof… now two-step trot to the right, then back to the left and around your partner… and again, one hoof out, one hoof in….' Clay's hoof moved in sync to his silently mumbling mouth as he kept track and a concentrated expression formed across his face.

Then, still observing the pair of ponies on the dance floor, confusion and a tinge of slight panic began to form across Clay's face. 'One hoof out, one hoof to the right… no, in, not to the right, no wait, two step trot to the left… err, to the right… By Celestia! I'm going to step on her!' He cringed as he imagined the scene and then hung his head a bit in shame. Yet, as he did this, oddly enough, a somewhat silly smile formed across his face. 'She was very gentle and kind…' Clay told himself in a somewhat silent voice as he raised his head back up and his ears perked up a bit, his hoof moving up to his bow-tie careful not to actually touch it.

'And, she was very attractive!' This time he said it in a somewhat louder voice with a sillier smile across his face, confident no pony would hear him in such a crowded place. 'She likes music too, but I wonder what kind? Hmm, guess I'll have to ask that and more.' He quickly sat on the floor as he closed his eyes for a bit to focus, and allowed his content silly smile to remain across his face. Perhaps the perfect chance for anypony to sneak up on him.

[BlindJester]

MelodySpark entered the ballroom with a expression of complete happiness and belonging. She looked around at the gorgeously decorated room the neatly polished dance floor, wonderful drapery, great classic music played spectacularly, the ponies in their beautiful attire. Melody could hardly contain herself with all the things that went on in this ballroom it was simply to much to take in, but she was here on a mission not just for the music and dancing.

Melody weaved graciously through the dancing ponies looking for a certain stallion after a few moment she finally found him sitting off by himself eyes closed and a goofy grin spread across his muzzle, Melody smiled as she went around the crowd to sneak up behind him and gently rested her head ontop of his head. "Do you always sit around like this in your spare time?" she asked

"I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find you in this crowd but luckily you made it easy for me" giggling slightly waiting for a response.

[Chonico]

'Evening Miss Melody, glad I made it so easy for you to find me.' Clay addressed the soft object that now rested atop his head as he opened one eye and slightly tilted his head up allowing himself a small glimpse of the tip of a muzzle. 'Are we comfortable?' He kept looking up at the muzzle as his content 'goofy' smile remained clearly visible now with a slight blush to it, his somewhat extended and slightly frazzled wings being the only thing betraying the fact she had nearly caused the nervous Pegasus to fly out a window.

'I enjoy sitting and relaxing when I can. Relaxing means I am not stressed, and not being too stressed means no shaky hoofs. Shaky hoofs are no good to a potter.' He answered with a jokingly smug expression on his face as he raised a hoof up in the air, perhaps trying to show what he meant, only to have it be slightly shaky itself. 'Err…Well, that ain't stress, I can guarantee you that.' That noticeable blush returned to his face as his wings finally managed to make their way back to a resting position on his sides.

Clay did one quick scan of the room and realized he was the only pony sitting down. Well, at least the only one that was clearly visible among the crowd. Looking back up at the small bit of Melody's muzzle atop his head that was visible to him, he remembered the questions he had about Melody and decided to start off the evening getting to know the pony that has helped him out of a pickle in the Royal Gardens.

'Hmm, I'd imagine that you don't often rest your head atop other ponies' heads while relaxing in your spare time. Not that I mind, mind you.' He said as he let out a slight chuckle. 'Or is it something you like to do while listening to music? Which by the way, what kind of music do you enjoy? When I saw your gown I couldn't help think you are a musician of sorts.' The content 'goofy' smile had returned to his own muzzle as he waited for an answer and tried to pay attention to the music playing, looking for something slower paced to start off with.

[BlindJester]

Melody giggled as she removed her muzzle from the top of Clay's head "Yes I was indeed comfortable but very unladylike of me so I must apologize" she stood next to him a warm smile glowing from her face. "And no I only rest on ponies I know and doesn't mind me doing so"

Thinking carefully about the question she wasn't sure how to answer Melody likes all kinds of music the slow beautiful sounds of classic and jazz but also enjoyed the up-beat and loud sounds of rock and pop. Being a voice coach she had to have a wide variety of different music so she can talk to and teach her students effectively in all types of music. "Well. . . . " she began slowly " I like all kinds of music really nor do I have a favorite so I can't quite answer that as well as you'd expect."

She blushed at Clay's comment about her dress "Well I guess it does give off my love of music huh? Well I'm a voice coach actually. I really enjoy sharing the magic of music with everypony else" she sighed happily as she thought about all the wonderful students she had taught so far and whom she will teach in the future. "So what about you Mister Clay? I know you're a potter what kind of pottery do you do? Will I be able to get some from you?"

[Chonico]

Clay could tell he had asked Melody a somewhat difficult question when he asked her about her choice in music. As she explained that her taste was extremely broad however, he could not help but let out a small chuckle and a smile as he decided to stand up as well, and face his guest for the evening. As she spoke about her joy in sharing music with everypony else, he could sense that she had a great deal of pride in her work, although admittedly he had never actually met a voice coach in person and had somewhat of a difficult time picturing Melody in her profession.

Yet, as he tried to picture it, he could not help but feel that her gentle and kind misdemeanor must be a great asset to her. 'If you coach others in signing, I can't help but imagine you have a very gifted and lovely signing voice. I would love to hear it sometime, Miss Melody.' Clay said this as he returned the warm smile and winked at her.

'As for myself though, I suppose you could call me a sort of renaissance pony when it comes to pottery.' He tried his best not to make it seem like he was tooting his own horn. 'I had a wonderful teacher that taught me everything about the trade. Thanks to him, I delve in anything from hand-build to wheel thrown methods and I'm more than comfortable using anything from fine grain mediums like porcelain, to coarser grain clays that feel like sand paper on your hooves.' This last part he said as he slight dragged a hoof on the marble floor and chuckled a bit.

'In fact…' Clay continued addressing Melody as he shot one quick glance at his tuxedo. 'More often than not, I am covered in dry bits of clay and dust. I doubt anypony that knows me would recognize me now seeing as most ponies in Fillydelphia refer to me as Clay, The Clay Hermit.' He patted himself on the chest, as he often did when he mentioned his nickname to others. 'I clean up rather nice if I do say so myself.' He shot his tuxedo another glance. 'Well, with a little help of course.' This time he pointed at his bow-tie as he smiled warmly at Melody.

After that short exchange, he stood there silently for a few seconds as many new questions raced through his mind. He wanted to know more about Melody, things ranging from taste in food to favorite musical groups, although he did realize the latter might include an extensive list. 'Well, you hopefully have most of the evening to chat with her.' He thought to himself as his ears suddenly perked up as he heard a change in the music coming from the orchestra.

'I would really enjoy learning more about you, Melody. But for now…' He took Melody's hoof in his own, and placed a kiss on it as he extended his wings keeping them low to the ground and bowed at the pony whose hoof he held. 'It would be my pleasure if you joined me for this dance, Miss Melody.' Clay tried to control the blush across his muzzle, and somewhat slight tinge of panic, and began to lead Melody towards the dance floor after a short pause, confident that the current song would be slow enough to fit his inexperience.

[BlindJester]

Melody sat back on her haunches as she listened to Clay talk about what he does and all the experience he has gained over the years of practice. She laughed at how he described what he usually looks like on day to day bases and imagined his tuxedo covered in dust and clay as dirty as it seemed in her imagination it seemed that he pulled off the look well almost in a sporty matter. "Well I'm sure you look as dashing covered in dust as you do all fancied up" she admitted to the stallion.

"W-well I don't know" she stuttered as she was pulled towards the dance floor. MelodySpark never thought of herself as much of a dancer and surely didn't want to embarrass herself in front of her new stallion friend. 'Don't act like such a foal it's just a dance! What's the worst that could happen' she thought happily. She bowed down to her partner once they stopped in the dance floor "A dance with you would be wonderful"

[Chonico]

'Coming from such a beautiful dance partner as yourself is enough to make anypony want to BE as wonderful as possible.' Clay returned the gesture and bowed to Melody as they both stood on the dance floor, a confident smile on his face when in reality, the voice in his mind was spewing out a steady stream of, "focus, don't step on her, focus, don't step on her..."

Still trying to hear the rhythm of the song that was being played by the orchestra, his thoughts suddenly took a slight tangent. 'Odd, for a moment back there, while walking out to this here floor, I thought I saw a hint of doubt or worry on her. Maybe she wanted to start off with something a bit faster paced… Or maybe she doesn't dance either. HA! Yeah right Clay, she probably won dance competitions.' He thought to himself as he smiled at his dance partner. 'No no, now is not the time for that Clay, focus on the song and remember what you practiced and for Celestia's sake don't step on her!' And just like that, after a few seconds, his hoofs began to move to the music as he tried his best to keep his gaze and smile on Melody and not on his hoofs.

The music that was playing was the standard slow dance music, and, although Clay had heard it before, he could not recall the name. But that was the least of his concerns as he did his best to not get his hoofs tied up. 'One hoof out, the other in… one hoof out, the other in and raise front hoof… now two-step trot to the right, then back to the left and around your partner… HA! I think I got this in the saddle ba *BUMP*' Clay slightly bumped into a pony that was next to him on his right but quickly recovered. 'My apologies sir, and to your partner as well, it was the banana peel on the floor.' He tried to make a slight joke of it as he addressed the somewhat annoyed looking stallion, who obviously didn't think it funny. Clearing his throat a little, he told himself not to let it ruin his focus, and continued to dance.

'Close call… one hoof out, the other in…' Clay continued to keep track of his hoofs as he smiled brightly at Melody, a slight dampening of his brow now slightly visible from the focus.

[BlindJester]

Melody danced with Clay a smile wide on her face happy to see that she wasn't the only one worried about her dance skills. She giggled as she saw the stallion in what looked like deep thought, Melody was worried about her dance skills as well but no so much that it would dampen her enjoyment. 'Maybe I should help him out a bit so he'll relax more and enjoy dancing' she thought as Clay bumped into another stallion she giggled. "You know Clay" Melody began "You shouldn't worry to much about dancing or else you'll be so concentrated on your hooves that you'll bump into others" she smiled sweetly as she pointed a hoof in the other dancing couples direction "Just relax a bit and let the music move your hooves for you."

To demonstrate Melody closed her eyes and let the music take over her body, she danced along with the beat in a graceful manner until she stepped on the hem of her dressed and tripped. Blushing heavily she looked up at Clay "Well maybe a little more graceful than that" she told him laughing at herself slightly.

[Chonico]

Clay watched in amazed shock as Melody danced with her eyes closed, feeling a bit ashamed that she had noticed his attention was on his hooves and not in the dance itself. 'She's right you know.' The voice in his head told him as he began to smile while watching Melody dance. 'You need to relax a bit and enjoy the dance. Look at her, she's dancing beautifully and her eyes are closed. She's dancing gracefully, she's enjoying herself, she… she just fell…' Clay looked at the blushing mare looking up at him and with a bit of shock and concern on his face he immediately offered his hoof to her to help her up. 'Miss Melody, gracefully done, but are you okay?' A slight mild giggle was clearly audible in his voice which he quickly tried to hide by clearing his throat.

As he stood there with Melody's hoof in his, the music suddenly became more upbeat, something along the lines of a spring time fanfare. He bowed to Melody and released her hoof as he began to dance again, this time a brighter smile adorning his face. 'Come on Clay, enjoy the dance and let the music move your hooves for you.' He told himself as he began to feel the music reach his ears and creep into his hooves. He closed his eyes, and began to allow the music to guide his steps. It was working, he was dancing a little less rigidly, his moves were smoother and kept contrast to the music and as he kept at it, his smile became broader and broader. Suddenly, eyes still closed, he approached Miss Melody and put his hoof underneath her right arm around her waist and took her left hoof in his right. Dancing like this had been spontaneous and he quickly unfurled his wings to help his balance as he kept his eyes closed and began to lead his partner in a series of left and right twirls across the dance floor.

He was enjoying himself; the music had completely taken control of his hooves. With each upbeat note the orchestra played, he added a small skip in his step as he kept guiding Miss Melody in a series of left and right twirls, pulling her in closer, the whole time his eyes closed. As the music sped up a bit, so did he, his skips becoming slight small jumps as he lifted her along with him. Suddenly, as the music reached a high note, so did he as he pulled Melody even closer to him and with a powerful thrust of his wings lifted himself and her into the air in a spinning twirl, a clear foot above the head of every other pony in the room. Following through with the momentum from the jump, as soon as he landed he used that moment to shoot out Melody and immediately pulled her back in towards him like a yo-yo and led her into a tip, carefully not to let her hit the ground with a firm hoof holding her back. Still holding her in that position, the smile on his face could not be wide enough to show just how much he had enjoyed it as he opened his eyes to look at Melody.

'That's not Melody…' The voice in his head was quick to point out. 'That's not Melody at all… Who is she?' The smile on his face froze as the rest of it became a bright red flush. 'You grabbed the wrong pony!' The voice in his head yelled as he quickly helped the unknown pony to her feet and looked across the crowd of faces awkwardly looking at him, quickly spotting Melody standing two or three ponies away from where he was. He immediately looked back at the pony he had mistaken for Melody while dancing with his eyes closed, but before he could say anything *slap* came the left hoof of the unknown mare causing his face to turn sharply to the left, lips slightly puckered from the force. The unknown mare quickly made her exit off the dance floor giving off a loud 'HMPH' as Clay just stood there, head turned puckered lip and all as he slowly snapped out it.

'Wait! Miss! Was that graceful?! I thought I did a good job!' Clay called out as he rubbed the right side of his face a bit and turned to smile sheepishly at Melody.

[BlindJester]

Melody was shocked at how well Clay was dancing now compared to a few moments ago he really took her advice and she felt proud of him for finally cutting loose. 'It's nice to see him having fun' she though to herself a smile crept onto her face as she saw him smile 'Better than worrying about where to put your hooves down' nodding her head in agreement with herself. When the music got more upbeat and saw that Clay had mistakenly grabbed another mare to dance with Melody giggled at the event as it unfolded before her he was a good natural dancer once he stopped worrying and she was sure the mare was enjoying it despite the sudden surprise of being made part of a huge dance number.

Melody felt a twinge of jealousy watching the two dance but once they reached the grand finale she was glad to even have watched. As the mare smacked Clay and left, his nervous smile at her made her burst into laughter "That was brilliant" she said "But be sure to pick a dance partner you actually know next time okay?"

[Chonico]

Clay made his way towards Melody, still rubbing his face a bit as a red hoof print was slightly starting to become visible. However, seeing Melody laugh and hearing her compliment him on his sudden unplanned dance number, he could not help but keep his nervous smile on his face as he began to laugh a bit as well.

'Yes, I can see how that would be beneficial.' He continued to rub his face with his hoof. 'Would you believe me if I said I thought I WAS dancing with somepony I knew.' He winked at her and then looked over to the orchestra as he could hear the music continue to pick up more, this time with a more rapid beat. 'I'd love to try for a repeat performance, with you as my dance partner that is. Not sure how I did it though, so no guarantees it will be as um..." He rubbed his face again. "Spectacular?... Or perhaps you would prefer to take a small break and we could go off to the side and talk a bit more' He asked with a content smile as he offered his hoof to Melody to let her choose to keep dancing or walk off the dance floor.

[BlindJester]

MelodySpark stared at his hoof as she pondered what to do. After seeing his wonderful performance she wanted to have her own dance with him to be lost in the whirlwind of spins and twirls her hooves itched for such a spectacular moment, but she also wished to know more about Clay. What he does in his spare time and what are his hobbies. Her curiosity won so Melody took her hoof and lead the stallion off the dance floor "I think you're the one who needs the break. Especially after such a great performance" she replied as they arrived to a quieter spot so they could talk in a more private environment "So do tell me a little bit more about yourself Clay. What do you like to do in your spare time and what are your hobbies?" she asked not waiting a moment before unleashing her wave of questions. "What sorts of pottery do you prefer? Do you like fast music or slow music?"

[Chonico]

Clay could do little more than chuckle as the onslaught of questions from Melody took him slightly by surprise. He was admittedly glad to have a slight breather after that improvised dance number of his, so now that he was off the dance floor and it was relatively a bit quieter, he could focus on also finding out more about Melody. As such, hoping it would not be too rude, Clay went ahead and sat on his haunches as he gave his attention to Melody and put a smile on his face.

'Hmm… Me?' Clay raised a hoof to his chin and began to lightly tap it. 'I'm originally from Cloudsdale, no surprise there, and I'm actually a very apt flyer, agile and fast. Although I assume many Pegasus ponies brag about it all the same, so um…' A sheepish grin took hold of his face as he said this but he was quick to shake it off. 'I kind of had to be mainly because my family planned for my brother and I to take over the family business. We are *cough* well off because of it.' This time he was unable to hide a conspicuous grin from taking hold of his face as he cleared his throat. '*ahem* We run the fastest rain cloud renting and delivery business… But yes, I found my love for wet clay when I was barely a colt and when I got older I traveled around Equestria with my teacher. Eventually we took our own separate ways after many a joyful year and I found myself in the Saddleveil Plains following a rumor about some clay deposits. And that actually leads to my hobbies come to think of it.' Clay tapped his two hooves together to try and give effect to the connection between the two.

'For starters, we can assume dancing isn't one of my hobbies. Although I'm starting to think it should be. I guess though, my work is my hobby but I do enjoy baking and flying a lot, especially flying…' He unfurled his wings for effect as he mentioned his joy of flying. 'OH! I style clouds into shapes when I can find some and nudge them close to my home, kind of like the styled hedges here at the Gala, except, you know, with clouds.' Clay paused as if lost for a second in thought and then perked up again as he remembered the next question on the list.

'I have a thing for wheel thrown pottery although hoof-built pottery has more freedom as far as the shapes in could take. Classical style pottery is beautiful, although more contemporary works are not without their own charms, but yes, definitely classical is more my style… Though, oddly enough, I like to listen to more upbeat music, kind of more modern sounds when I do my work.'

Clay looked at Melody with a warm content smile, happy that he was able to answer those two last questions in one go and that he was able to tie them together as he did.

'What about you Melody? I'd like to know more about the beautiful unicorn that has so far been a pleasure to accompany this evening.' Clay kept on smiling as he said this. 'I do not believe I know where you are from. What do you like to do with your free time?

[BlindJester]

Once Clay took got comfortable Melody did the same, sitting back on her haunches while listening intently to the speaker. MelodySpark nodded at the appropriate times as he spoke she was quite interested in what he said about stylized clouds near his home 'I bet it must be pretty cool to walk on clouds and shape them into whatever a pony wants' she thought blissfully for a moment imagining herself with wings instead of a horn being able to fly anywhere she wanted when she wanted instead of walking.

Melody's attention snapped back to Clay when he started to ask her questions and began to blush heavily when he called her beautiful "W-well I originated from Manehatten and um..." she paused for a moment to compose herself her heart beating fast from the compliment after Melody calmed herself she continued "What I like to do in my spare time is running I enjoy feeling the wind in my mane. I also like to go shopping in different areas like in Appleloosa, not that I've been there yet but I would love to travel all over Equestria really." she thought about all the places she wanted to visit Hoofington, Fillydelphia and many more "I've always dreamed of traveling but I don't know what I would do when I get there and wouldn't know anypony so I'll be stuck in Manehatten for a while. Is there anything else you would like to ask me?"

[Chonico]

Clay listened intently to what Melody was saying. He was surprised to find out she originated from Manehatten, but as he thought about it, it made sense since Manehatten had a reputation for the high class and culture. A pony specializing in voice coaching would fit right in among all the aspiring singers and such. He was however more surprised to find out she enjoyed running as well, seeing as he too shared a love for feeling the wind in his mane when he flew.

'You came from Manehatten? I have to admit that city was quite a distraction as I flew here from the Saddleveil Plains. The lights flickering from the buildings and streets, almost as if it was trying to imitate the night sky' He let out a slight chuckle as he said this, remembering that he had met Princess Luna herself a while ago in the gardens. 'But, I am rather surprised to find out you enjoy the wind in your mane. I don't mean to brag, but flying is perhaps the most intent feeling there is when wanting to feel the wind in your mane, what with all the barrel rolls and dives and loops. It's especially invigorating when you are traveling somewhere.' This time his smile grew and grew as he talked about flying, unfurling his wings and flapping them slightly and gently only causing a slight breeze.

After a short pause, Clay brought up a hoof to his chin as if considering something. 'Actually, on the subject of traveling, I have been considering expanding my business to further towns. Maybe if I find myself in Manehatten we could meet up again and chat some more. Or, if you ever find yourself going to Fillydelphia, you could send a mailmare ahead of you and I'd be more than glad to meet you for another round of chatting. Perhaps even hear you sign?' A cheerful and hopeful smile adorned his face as he said this.

'Actually, again, now that I think about it, if not too bold to ask, how did you get to the Gala?' He looked out a nearby window, realizing the evening had grown later than he expected.

[BlindJester]

MelodySpark moaned at the thought of how she got here "Well I walked. . . . . " she replied simply sighing at the thought of how she'll get home "And I'll have to walk back and I gotta tell you it's killer on the hooves, I'm quite jealous of you pegasi you get to fly everywhere to anywhere you want. I'd give my horn to go for a flight just once, but I'll be sure to pay you a visit in Fillydelphia after tonight." she smiled at Clay happy to have spent so much time with him "Oh and yea I do enjoy the wind through my mane despite the fact I'm from ManeHatten it's just to much fun!"

Melody enjoyed the night she had so far but was rather sad at the fact it might be a while till they ever had time like this.