bakerstreet | That's not my waist.

[He had never really been one for parties. When he was a child, he never really had the chance to go and then, as he got older, well -- being in exile and then being exposed to Milly's parties really left him with a sour expectation when it came to them.

But it was expected, as Emperor, that he should have them and so he did. By making sure to invite delegations from all over the world. After all, he was working to strengthening ties between the countries, not ruining them.

So he let Milly organize this one (since she was the master planner when it came to these things) and after entertaining his sister for a dance or two, leaving her under the watchful eyes of Suzaku, he made his way through the party, greeting a person here, smiling an acknowledgment there.

Then he saw her. Zeroing in on her, Lelouch made his way calmly across the floor, stopping behind her with a hand out.]

May I have this dance?

[She was still so timid, given her past, and being around so many people she had never seen before, and most likely won't see again, she had taken to being a wall flower for a good portion of the evening. Lelouch's friend, Milly, had dragged her out shopping earlier that day for a gown and a general girl's day out since she had never had one. Ever. Milly Ashford wasn't going to let a travesty like that stand for long.]

[As per Milly's instructions, her hair and makeup was professionally done, all of the colors soft and natural since she was so pale and her hair was an unusual color (who has white hair naturally as young as she was?) she didn't want the girl to look overloaded. It was an interest effect, to say the least. She turned down a few dances, not really know how and only making polite conversation amongst people that she did know; Rivalz, Milly, and briefly Suzaku and Nunnally at one point. She was not even sure she would get to see Lelouch at all that evening.]

[Of course, he would be the one to easily spot her and ask for a dance. That didn't mean that she had to be rude. She reached out her own hand to take hold of his.]

I... I don't dance very well. Just a warning...

Don't worry, I won't force you to do any of the fancy ones that I had to learn as a child.

[Lelouch had no desire to make a fool out of her, after all. Besides, it was partly at his assistance that she was here. The more allies he had at these gatherings, the easier it was for him to move through the crowd freely.

And he might have had something to with setting Milly on her, although he'd never admit to it. But he had gotten the impression of Ryou that she hadn't had many a chance to be relatively 'normal' when it came to life outside of the ring.

Perhaps he should suggest that they all have a girls day out with Nunnally. He knew his sister would enjoy that and he could always ask Kallen to accompany them as well. Considering everything that had happened recently in their lives, they could probably use it.

Taking her hand in his, he guided her out towards the floor, before turning to her and nodding with his head to where Ashford's former student council president stood.]

Although I do feel duty bound to warn you that Milly might corner you about this later. That demon woman never did know when to leave well enough alone.

[Yes, it was fairly rare that she had the chance to do pretty much anything that would be considered 'normal' for a girl like her. Even getting new clothes was a rare treat, especially clothes that actually fit her and made her feel, dare she think it, kind of pretty?]

[She hoped that Milly hadn't told him about her almost breaking down into tears of happiness earlier at buying a new notebook specifically for her so that she could continue writing her memories in it, given her memories lapses thanks to the Spirit. It was sort of silly, thinking about it now; crying over something as simple as a new notebook.]

[Though when he nodded towards the woman in question, she looked over her shoulder to see her watching them, like everyone else, with a soft, encouraging smile on her face.]

...What's there to corner me about? [It's not like they're dating or anything. Just a friendly dance. That's all this is supposed to be, right?]

[If there was one thing Milly was good at, despite the way she acted most of the time, it was keeping secrets. She had, after all, kept the secret of his and Nunnally's true heritage secret. She still hadn't actually told anyone she had known this entire time, although giving the Ashford's connections to his late mother, he didn't believe that that information would stay secret forever.]

The details of this conversation, I would imagine. Anything else that tickles her fancy. This is Milly we're talking about.

[She did get the impression that Milly was certainly... an eccentric when they met, but her heart was in the right place, so it was kind of hard not to like her, despite her being... a tad bit pushy on a few things.]

[The music started off soft and slow, with a few strings beginning the piece, almost having a magical effect over the room. It almost felt like the real world was disappearing for the moment. Various couples were also out on the floor, making her a tiny bit self-conscious. Remembering what she saw from watching the other dancers, her one hand remained in his while the other went to his shoulder. Okay, she can live with that.]

What's there to talk about? [She certainly didn't know what to talk about.]

Edited 2013-02-22 14:47 (UTC)

[Lelouch slowly led her into the first steps of the dance, allowing her time to get used to the movements. This hadn't been, after all, some strange attempt to embarrass her or anything. Ryou was among the few he counted in his circle of friends and someone that he knew he was going to depend on for support, even if he never admitted, especially in the coming months.

His response, when he gave it, was dry, the curving of his lips giving only the slightest hint of his amusement to her complete non-understanding of the situation.]

You're dancing with the 99th Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire, Ryou.

[It did take her a minute, especially when reminded of his title, to realize the implications and gravity of the situation.]

[...Oh.]

[The pink in her cheeks could probably be seen across the room, it was that bright.]

Y-you've probably danced with plenty of women this evening, I'm sure... [She at least remembered him dancing with Nunnally, remembering how sweet and endearing it was.]

The only other woman I've danced with so far tonight has been Nunnally and no tabloid in their right mind would ever run a story about anything between us.

[Because if they did, he'd visit that office, Geass burning. There are still some things sacred as far as he was concerned. Nunnally might not be innocent, but his relationship with her was something that was clearly off limits for any type of speculation.]

[Well, of course no tabloid would run a story of a brother and sister dancing together. There was nothing scandalous about that, as far as she knew. It would have to be a really slow news day before something like that would run.]

[Meanwhile, her on the other hand, was not his sister. Or even a princess or anything like that. With her, it would be a tad more...scandalous. Her hands clenched slightly, one on his hand and the other the fabric of his clothes.]

Can you... I don't want anyone to really know that I'm carrying the Ring. [It's not exactly something she carries openly, given its perchance to be stolen, or people being hurt around it, herself included. A close, tight-knit circle of people knowing that she had it was enough for her.] I don't want any trouble...

[Scandals were not something that Lelouch was unaccustomed to, as he and Nunnally were the by-products of one, if they were to be honest. Or so many of his father's consorts had believed at the time. It probably didn't help that his mother had apparently been on of his favorites as well.

The fact that he would even be seen dancing with one would probably just be written off as "like mother, like son". After all, as Emperor, he could have as many wives as he chose to have.

Not that he was planning it, mind you. Marriage and things like it were the furthest things from his mind at the moment, although they were sure to come up in the future.]

Of course not.

[Lelouch acknowledged her worries with a nod. Although, if he was forced into honestly, he would acknowledge before more worried about the fools who came after the Ring, then the bearer herself. Lelouch and the Thief inside might not be best of friends, but Ryou's safety was something that they could both agree on, even if they didn't exactly agree on how to go about keeping her safe.]

[Her hands relaxed again, feeling a tiny bit of relief. If anyone could keep this quiet, it would be Lelouch. He was Emperor, after all. Surely he wouldn't let anything too embarrassing happen to her.]

Thank you.

[Though, with being reminded of him actually being Emperor, it gave her some things to think about. From what she had seen and heard, the previous Emperor had had many wives and mistresses, Lelouch's mother one of them. From what she seen, Lelouch didn't seem to be interested in taking a wife. The Empire was in flux right now, so it was probably something to ask him about once things were more stable.]

[Preferably much more stable, maybe after a few years or so. If she was still around by then.]

[Besides, she already was close to Lelouch, all things considered. Any closer and she would be more worried for his safety from the Ring Spirit. She felt like he would use her against Lelouch, if he hadn't already. Even the tentative friendship that they had right now made her worry at times.]

[He's fully prepared to Geass people if he has to, despite knowing that both Nunnally and Suzaku would not approve. He had agreed, after all, that he would not use it unless the situation had become unavoidable.

Of course, unavoidable was completely left open to interpretation and Lelouch was nothing if not a master of the oral argument.

Arguing for Ryou's protection wouldn't even cause him to break into a sweat and once he told Nunnally what exactly it was for, he knew his sister would reluctantly agree.]

It's not a problem. Information leaking about the Ring that I didn't expressly authorize would be problematic.

[She certainly didn't want any information leaked that wasn't more than necessary. She didn't want anything to happen to the others if it was found out that she was carrying it and how close she was to the royal family while she was carrying it. People wouldn't look to kindly on that if they knew.]

[If only she knew how prepared he was to use the Geass to protect her. Like Nunnally and Suzaku, she probably wouldn't approve of unnecessary usage for her protection. That didn't mean it had to be known that he was using it for her, though.]

Do you have any leads so far? [She's still keen on the idea that to be rid of the spirit is to destroy him, but for now, she'll see out Lelouch's idea first, about seeing how the two of them could be separated without destroying one or the other. She's still not completely convinced on that plan, but see it how far it goes, for Lelouch's sake.]

I've heard a couple of things through the underground channels. Nothing concrete so far.

[Lelouch wasn't too keen on the idea either, but he had no desire to show his hand to the thief this early in the game.]

[It had crossed her mind, that Lelouch would keep certain things from her so that the Spirit didn't know everything that he was doing. She almost expected it, in fact. If she could see and hear Lelouch, why couldn't the Spirit do the same? Besides, she has her own secrets to keep, ones that she keeps from everyone, even Lelouch. The only one who did know was the Spirit. Not that he was going to say anything about them. He's not willing to show Lelouch his hand either. So, it was pretty much an impasse between the three of them.]

[She lowered her head and eyes down, feeling a little disappointed.]

I see...

Don't worry, it will come. If nothing else, I still have that man's notes to go by.

I'm still waiting to hear from my contact in Africa as well.

[She was almost afraid to find out what was in those notes, or what the Spirit would do if he ever found them. She already knew that there were seven items including hers. She didn't know powers they each possessed, or even what their true origins were or their purpose in this world, given what she's seen of the Ring's abilities. It was all so confusing and muddled.]

How far have you come in deciphering your-... I mean, the previous Emperor's notes? [Was it okay to call him Lelouch's father, since he did essentially abandoned them and disowned him and Nunnally? It didn't feel right, somehow though.]

I'm about halfway through, I believe.

[He spun Ryou, moving through the guests as he danced, every once in a while giving a smile to someone as he passed them, before returning his attention back onto his partner.]

I haven't had the time to devote to them fully as I had hoped.

[Meaning that while he had planned on working on them when he wasn't taking care of Britannia, Nunnally had found him and dragged him off to bed with a stern warning.

Also, he doesn't care what Ryou calls that man who fathered him. It can't be any worse then the names Lelouch has used for him, after all.]

[She had never been spun before, so the surprise on her face was quite clear. And her lack of experience was clearly evident in her steps. At least she had light-enough feet not to step on his.]

[Yeah, might have to ask her new friends about teaching her how to dance, in case she was invited to one of these again. So that she didn't embarrass herself, or Lelouch, like this again.]

I-it's okay. I don't mind waiting. [Might be a tad breathless there] The empire's needs are a bit more important than mine. [The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or something like that.]

[Don't worry, Ryou, he won't move you in a way that would completely embarrass you. He knows that this certainly isn't something that she would be use to.]

At the moment. [Acknowledged with a slight nod of the head.] But I will find answers for you, Ryou.

[Nope, not used to dancing like this at all. She was lucky that Lelouch was a forgiving partner. The ones that took dancing more seriously might be frowning at her though.]

[She wonders what kind of answers he will find. Would they be able to see each other again, if it was something that would tear them apart? Would she even be able to live a normal life again, or would things just spiral downward, like they always have before.]

...Take care of the empire first. That's the important thing. [If only to prolong their time spent together just a little longer.]

[As far as Lelouch is concerned, anyone that concerned about dancing needs to find something else to worry about. There's a whole world out there that needs heeling, the last thing he's going to worry about is how his partners dance.]

There's nothing that says I can't work on both at the same time.

[But he knows she's right, the Empire has to come first, at least for now, while they're only just starting this era of peace.]

You already do so much now. [The Empire needs him, his people need him, his friends and immediate family need him. It was a wonder how he found any time to himself.]

I don't mind the wait, really. [A slight pause.]

I doubt that I will be going anywhere just yet, anyway. [The Spirit wasn't an idiot, after all. He was this close to one of the most powerful figures in the world. He's not going to let this opportunity slip through his fingers that easily.]

Edited 2013-03-15 04:01 (UTC)

Yes, I know you don't.

[That was where Ryou differed from the thief, from him as well, if he was honest - she always put others first.]

Unless you wanted to. You're not a prisoner here, Ryou.

slow dancing

Continuing our little AU story that we have going?

Oh my, yes <3~

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