Date: Fri, 12 Feb 2016 23:07:15 +0000 (UTC)
From: Andrew Bailey <feare909@yahoo.com>
Subject: Aquata Cove - Chapter 66

Aquata Cove
Chapter 66: Waltz In The Dream


Atarah sits in her hut as she dips a handmade brush into a vial of octopus
ink, and paints onto a large leaf with different symbols and elaborate
designs. She presses her brush to her chin as she ponders for a moment as
to how or what to base her next project on.

It's been a while since a merfolk showed up in her river, seeking help, and
thus is running out of materials and substances from the sea. She may have
to ask Belinda or Merrick for help in procuring more ingredients.

"... Hm?" She turns her head as she hears a flapping and the keen,
high-pitched squawk of a seagull. She puts down her brush, and gets up to
her doorway, to see the gull with a pouch tied around its leg. She holds
out her arm to indicate the large bird to perch, which it did.

Atarah takes the pouch, opens it up, and plucks up what looks like a fleshy
scale. She places it on her tongue, and promptly removes it. "Merreek?" She
said with a curious quirk of the brow, "He should steel hab more scales to
repel teh wata..." The seagull opens its wings, and flapped powerfully as
it took off while the ancient walks back into her hut.

She puts the small collection of moist scales into a large sea turtle
shell, holding a blend of different powders and dusts, and tossed them up
and about in the hollowed shell.

"I must make deese quicker," She says to herself, "As well, find a wey to
make odders for Amniens, as well as other Holsiens and Pisciens. Een cese
one must hide in humans..."

She puts the large shell down, and starts to browse her half barren
shelves, "I tink I should also make prices and deals for my halp..." As
much as she likes helping lost merfolk, she is running out of stuff to use
in her inventory; she probably only has enough materials to transmute and
alter these scales for Merrick.

"EEEYAH! EEEYAH!" The seagull caws out.

"Oh?" She turns, and looks to same bird from a few minutes ago. "So soon?
Deed I miss someting?"

Atarah walks to the gull, and accepts a leaf from its beak. As the seagull
flew away, Atarah opens the leaf, and blinks as she sees a lock of deep red
hair, and what seems to be a piece of flesh.


~~~


"Hmhmhm..." Triton Bertone smiles as he strokes Arnaav's head with one or
two of his fingers as he sleeps, "Still so young and endearing... I can
hold him forever..." Noita Rayette smiles as she feels his arm and pets her
son as well.

"I still remember... You always annoyed him while you held him like
this..." Rayette says, "And he'd bite you just to play..." Her eyes become
misty as she recalls baby Arnaav biting on Bertone's finger with his tiny
baby sharp teeth, they wouldn't even make a mark. It even developed into a
cute habit to where Arnaav would ride Bertone's back, and every once in a
while, surprise-bite on one of his ears.


Adra Nerissa draws a line of light along Merrick's chest, who is still
feeling very drowsy, "You seem to me well, but the Sazae miasma has still
not left your body."

"I see..." Merrick nods.

"We are still wondering how you are still..." Deilan fumbled for the words,
"You! As far as we can see, and from what the Triton told us, you were in
the fog of the Land Father's dreams. You should not have returned as you
are now."

"What, disappointed?" Merrick smirks.

"N-No! That is not what I meant!" Deilan quickly replied, "It is
just... How did you escape? How are you unchanged?"

"To be honest, I do not really know..." Merrick answered, "... Wait..." He
thought, "Maybe... It was my scales..."

"Your scales?"

"Yeah. The ones that turn me human in the water. I showed you in the ship,
remember?" Deilan's eyes widened greatly.

"Wait, what?" Nerissa says, "What do you mean, `turn human in the water'?"

"It is a long story, I am friends with the Forbidden Ancient," Merrick
says, "Very nice spirit, not at all forbidden."

"You mean to say that you were able to remain human under a Black Sun by
that trick??"

"I cannot say for sure." Merrick shook his head, "I do not have any scales
left -- I put all of them on me before the sun's shadow touched me. And
even then, I am told that I was buried under so much ice and ash. Even
though I am here now, I cannot say for certain that I may have evaded the
Black Sun's dreams. Something else might happen to me in time, or something
has already changed that I am not aware of..." He clutches into the sand of
the sea bottom.

"I think you are thinking too much." Deilan dismissed, "You do not want to
cloud your head with endless questions and fears. I believe that you were
just incredibly fortunate."

"What is done is done," Adra Nerissa says as she picks up Merrick's
harpoon, "We can only move forward, and listen to Deilan," She smiled
reassuringly, "I do not believe you will mutate in the future. It was just
a miracle that you made it out of the Black Sun."

Merrick closes his eyes as he nods, before taking his weapon into his hand.


~~~


Adam rolls his head to crack his neck as he walks down the hall. Time for
his next show at the Waltz -- he's become quite a favorite at the club,
good singer, looks handsome in almost any decorative costume he dons on the
stage. This time, he wears bright sky-blue garments lined with a red sequin
vest, and sparkly white shoes to match.

"There you are, decided to show up this time?" Comes a woman up next to
Adam.

"Sup, Chloe?" He asked as they went.

"Nothing much. You gonna sing the right notes on your parts this time? Or
am I going to have to carry your loose ass around the stage again?"

"Tell you what, Chloe, I will if you promise not to lip-sync this time."

"You're such a bitch." Chloe smirks as she lightly punches Adam's
arm. Chloe is wearing a white sequin one-piece dress. With long, shiny
sky-blue leaves, and blue slippers, besides the sunshine yellow wig under a
white diamond hat.

"Nice dress, by the way. Did the kindergartener you stole it from fight
back at all?" Adam shot while snickering.

"She bitched, but I gave her some candy in my Dad's van, we're cool."

"PFF! Oh my gaa-wd," Adam laughed.

"Love the it on you too. You do realize that comes in a men's size, right?"

"Aw, but if I got anything bigger, what could I lend you to wear to
church?" Adam says along as they went.

"Screw you, cocksucker." Chloe smirked.

"Lick it, trash-hoe." Adam snidely gets in before the door opened, and they
walked right up to the stage. They smile bright, big gleeful smile as they
wave and walk along the Spring-decorated stage. Huge flowers decorate the
stage as well as fake grass and enormous, seat-like mushrooms around here
and there.

Besides Adam and Chloe, there are a handful of other dancers wearing very
tight white sequin pants, and are otherwise shirtless as they wear
buttoned-up blue vests. The audience cheers as they wave walk into their
positions. The lights dim quickly, and the house came into total darkness
as Adam and Chloe stood back-to-back.

"Wow. Surprised you didn't make out with the crowd this time." Chloe
muttered very quietly, so that only Adam can hear her, "Feeling frigid?"

Some faint, playful melodies started to trickle in through the black.

"Please. I'm just giving them some recovery time after you blew them out
after your last performance." Adam whispered back as they turned on their
mics on their ears. Adam digs in his pocket for his Prop Mic -- a fully
functional microphone that is more customizable to fit decorative purposes,
but is turned off if the performer is wearing an ear-phone. Chloe is also
getting hers out too -- Adam's mic is decorated like a red rose, while
Chloe's mic resembles a yellow tulip.

"Remember, don't sing with your mouth full." Chloe whispered one last time
as she can surmise that Adam's mic is in front of his mouth. He opened his
mouth to retort, but the show's about to start. She wins THIS round.

The bright yellow spot light snaps on Adam and Chloe like a direct ray of
sunshine over them. Adam puts his mic up to his mouth, and takes a couple
of deliberate steps while holding out his other arm.

"~You don't have to look like a movie star~," He gracefully steps around to
Chloe as he begins to sing, "~Ooh, I think you're good just the way you
aaarrre~" He moves around to playfully trace his hand to her chin, "~Tell
me if you could, would you up and ruuun awaaaay~ With me?~"

"~You don't have to roll like a millionnnaaaiiirre~" Chloe sings as she
coyly turns and brushes off Adam's hand, "~Baby I would go with you
anywhere~" She takes a few steps away from him, with Adam taking the same
measured steps behind her, "~We don't need no gold, we'll be shining
aaanywaaay~" She turns her head and grins playfully, "~You'll see~"

Other lightly warm-toned lights started to come on as the other male
dancers chimed in their voices as Adam and Chloe danced the next few
verses. "=You know can't nobody get down like us= We don't stop 'till we
get enough= C'mon, turn it up 'till the speakers pop=" Adam and Chloe take
their hands, and moved as if to walk away from each other "Break it down,
show me what you've got="

"Ooh my my, baby don't be shy~" Adam sings as strides rhythmically in the
smooth-flowing song, "~I see that spark flashing in your eye~" In a
sleight-of-hand move, he puts the prop mic away so the audience didn't see,
while he interlaces his fingers and pats his duo palms on his chest, "~My
heart beats fast 'cause I want it all~" He prances over to Chloe in a few
steps, "~So baby come with me and be my ooh la la~" Chloe twirls away from
him as she goes to a large white daisy.

"~Take my hand, we can go all night~" Adam takes her hand after he dips and
swerves to the side over to her, "~And spin me round just the way I like~"
Chloe twirls beautifully as Adam holds her hand, before she spins softly
with her back to his chest before tilting her head to look up at him, "~It
feels so good, I don't wanna stop~" She twirls away and holds onto his hand
"~So baby come with me and be my ooh la la~"

Their hands moved about, and parted before each one went to a respective
plant -- Adam going to a couple of mushrooms, and Chloe to a pink
poppy. Adam takes his prop mic up again.

"~You don't have to wear no designer clothes~" Adam waves his hand and
pulls at his dazzling red vest, "~Just as long as we're dancing on the
floorrrr~" He and Chloe do a quick prance-across, passing each other in a
playful dance, all the while, the other men dancing and back-up singing,
"~Fingers in my hair and I'm letting go tonight~" Adam pushes his own
fingers in his head as he tilts his head back, "~So freeee~"

Once again, the other male dancers chimed in their voices as Adam and Chloe
danced the next few verses. "=You know can't nobody get down like us= We
don't stop 'till we get enough= C'mon, turn it up 'till the speakers pop="
Adam and Chloe take their hands, and moved as if to walk away from each
other "Break it down, show me what you've got="

"~Ooh my my baby don't be shy~" Chloe sings as Adam spins from her, "~I see
that spark flashing in your eye~" She traces her fingers deftly along the
upper left side of her face, "~My heart beats fast 'cause I want it all~"
She swerves her hips as she holds her hands and prop mic to her chest,
before holding her hand out, "~So baby come with me and be my ooh la la~"

They pranced and danced together and held hands again, "~Take my hand, we
can go all night~" Adam sings, "~And spin me round just the way I like~" He
twirls from Chloe circling their arms, "~It feels so good, I don't wanna
stop~ So baby come with me and be my ooh la la~"

The beat of the song pops and jumps as the dancers chant `Ooh la la' in a
hip-hop fashion, while Adam and Chloe waltz and jump and leap like a pair
of swan lake dancers, until the music slows to a dreary pause as the other
dancers become sluggish as well. Adam and Chloe face away from each other
while still holding hands, before parting, and holding their own mics to
their mouths with both hands.

"~Ooh my my baby don't be shy... shy... shy~" Chloe hymns and echoes
gradually.

"~I see that spark flashing in your eyeee... `your eye... `your eye~" Adam
sings back as the music plays along slowy, before picking right back up.

"~Ooh my my baby don't be shy~" Adam sings up as they commence with the
dance furthermore.

"~I see that spark flashing in your eye~" Chloe collaborates as they spin
and waltz opposite each other in a playful chase and run about the spring
scenery.

"~My heart beats fast 'cause I want it all~" Adam moans in a melodic
longing.

"~So baby come with me and be my ooh la la~" Chloe sings they hold their
both hands and do a half-spin.

"~Take my hand, we can go all night~" Adam takes Chloe's hand.

"~And spin me round just the way I like~" Chloe continues as she is spun
around by Adam's arm.

"~It feels so good, I don't wanna stop~" Adam sings as their backs meet
again.

"~So baby come with me and be my ooh la la~" Chloe counters as they
continue to hold hands, while the other male dancers swarm and dance around
them in a circle.

"~Baby come with me and be my ooh la la~" The two dance more as the song
and music flows into a finishing downpour of harmony.

"~So baby come with me and be my ooh la la~" The song finishes as Adam
holds Chloe in his hands while the other blue-vested dancers kneel, stand,
just posing in a neatly symmetrical fashion.

The crowd cheers as they smile and pose as the warm spot lights fly all
around them, as the newly installed curtain descends over the edge of the
stage. The dancers and singers stay in their pose, up until the curtain
touches the floor.


"You are so gay." Chloe scorns while they keep posed.

"And you, madam, are a knuckle-dragging dyke." Adam retorts.

"Oh, shut up, you are so full of shit, your eyes are brown."

"Yeah yeah, and you're full of... Wait... Ah shit, the-the things are still
on!"

"Wha- Oh- Ah goddammit!" They quickly switch
off the buttons on their ears, but the laughter behind the curtain tells
them that the damage was done. "Alright, now get off of me," Chloe growled
as she shoved away from Adam, "I'm not a pile of jockstraps you know."

"Oh don't get your pussy dander up just because I look better in panties
than you do."

"And can you dance less like a crippled walrus? You couldn't even keep up
with me! Half the time, I was wondering where the hell you were off to."
Chloe ranted.

"Oh whatever!" Adam threw his arms up as they two of them start walking to
the door, "And what about you?! The only thing flatter than that last note
is your chest!"

The other dancers can't stop snickering as the two of them went at it while
walking, "Like watching a modernized battle of good and evil." One of them
said.

"Yeah, but which one's which?"

"Both, I think. Depends on what time of month it is."

"Aw, dude!"


"Ugh, I should be drunk when we duet together," Chloe bitched, "~`Oh baby
come with me and be my Ooh La La'~" She sang in a baby-like voice as she
waved her hands in a mocking fashion, before flopping them back down.

"Pfff, yeah right," Adam said, "You're more like my `Oh my God'."

"Ahhahahah," Chloe laughs, "What freakin possessed Jerry to put you up with
me?"

"I don't know -- I suppose every Piggy needs a Kermit -- maybe this is
Jerry's way of saying to cut down on the Snowballs."

"Oh hell no!" Chloe bites her lip as she swings at Adam, "Go blow
yourself."

"Working on it. I just barely found out that Auto-Felatio doesn't mean a
blowjob in a car." Adam replies to his dance partner's amusement, right
when they come to Chloe's changing room.

"Alright, here's where I get off."

"Right, I'll alert the janitor, tell him you're getting it on again."

"Hah! Ok, see ya, Adam."

"Kay, tell Rajani I said `Hi'~" Adam says with a girlish tone and smile.

"Chow." She says before she enters her room.

"Still fighting with your boyfriend~?" Comes a flirty voice. Chloe looks
up, and grins as she sees a welcome piece of Indian love wearing a rather
short green and neon pink cheerleader uniform, "Is he still mad that I'm
still wearing his costumes?"

"Pfff, hahah," She laughs, "Afraid so," Chloe walks in and locks the door,
"He just won't take a damn hint~"

"Oh, he's just sticking with you for the kids." Rajani says as she moves
her flashy pompoms up behind her head, "Doesn't he even know about me?"

"Oh no~" Chloe prowls over and sits on Rajani's lap, "If he ever knew, he'd
take my ass to court."

"Nuh-uh. Not while it's still mine."

"Mrawr~"


~~~


Adam huffs as he steps into his own changing room, removing his red sequin
vest. "Lucky bitch... Gets to get laid before me..." After hanging up the
vest, he starts to unbutton the blue shirt while looking at his roster. His
lips mumble as he looks along the names and times for today's performances.

"Okay, on again in 15, think I'll do New Divide... Then a duet with
Drake... Then recovery and set-up..."

-Knock Knock Knock-

Someone raps on his door three times, just as he shrugs off his shirt. He
walks over, and opens it to flurry of plastic wrap and flowers.

"EEEEE ADAM, you were phenomenal!!" Before Adam could respond, he feels a
very quick constriction around his arms and torso.

"HNNH!" He winces as he backs off, just before the sudden guest does, "Ahh-
Easy, easy!" He grunts as he gently pushes away Jessica.

"Oh my gosh, Adam, I can't get enough! I-I-I just need to hear more, you
know?! And oh my gosh, you're just so freakin perfect!"

"Th-Thanks, Jess, I really appreciate it." He says awkwardly. Jessica,
Adam's biggest fan. A couple of weeks after Adam became a part-time
performer at the Dream Waltz, this woman comes to Adam's dressing room just
to gush over him -- she never misses a show, and she always has a huge
bouquet of flowers for him every time. He's really flattered, but he still
feels awkward about meeting a fan, he doesn't quite know how to respond to
such fawning.

"Oh my gosh, you were fantastic as always! And I- Oh these are for you!"
Jessica thrusts the flowers into Adam's face, just giving him moments to
grab them.

"Thanks, Jessica, these are um, these are even better than yesterday's."

"Oh~" Jessica shakes her head as she swoons, "Anything for you, Mr Bryant~"

"Please, just Adam." He says as he turns and puts the flowers on the vanity
desk, "Sorry, I forgot to put a shirt on. I was just-"

"Oh it's not a problem, Adam~!" Jessica pipes, "You're just so gorgeous;
you're stunning in voice and sight~!"

"Th-Thank you, um..." Adam said, "Listen, it's been GREAT seeing you again,
but uh, I gotta tell the stagers the next song I wanna sing."

"What?? No! Can't you stay??" She begs as she takes Adam's hand, "I've been
waiting all day to meet with you!"

"I'm sorry, but I really don't have time, Jess," Adam says a little
hastily.

"Ok! Ok, I'll just wait for you in here then!" Jessica says as she sits
down on the chair.

"Actually, you can't be in here alone." Adam told her, "You don't work
here, and this is where I change my clothes."

"It's ok, I'll be quiet, I promise!" Jessica smiles brightly.

"I really can't have you in here, even with me is pushing it. Come oonnn,"
Adam takes Jessica, and leads her to the door, and closes it.

"O-Ok, OOH! I almost forgot!" Jessica says, "You wanna go to Red Robin
tomorrow?? My treat, I know you love it there!"

"Shhhiit," Adam smiles, "I would love to, but I have the night shift at the
Fish House."

"Ok, how about lunch??" Jessica persisted as Adam walks backwards away from
her.

"I'm helping a friend move!" Adam called
back. 

"Wednesday??"

"G-Guitar practice!" He lied again.

"OOOOHHHH!" She screeched with delight, "You play guitaaarr?? I LOVE the
guitar!" Adam pulls his phone out, and swipes it once.

"Ah shit, I have to go! There's a huge mess out back, I'll see you later,
Jess!"

"O-Ok, bye Adam I love you!!" Jessica called back while a shirtless Adam
jogs down the hall, and takes a left turn. He huffs as he leans his bare
back against the stone-brick wall, letting out a stressed sigh.

"Jumpy one, ain't she..." He mumbled before he smiled. He looks down, and
realized that he's not wearing a shirt, "Ah dammit..." He grumbled before
walking away from the spot to let the other performers know what he wants
to sing next to make the best-suited preparations.


~~~


Bertone whimpers as he looks down upon Arnaav, who is still sleeping in his
arms, and also looking to the sea.

"Betone..." Rayette says as she gently feels his arm, "We must leave."

"But we cannot..." Bertone despairs, "Not again... He's too young... H-He
has not awaken yet, I want him to see us again..."

"It will be alright," Samudra says, "He is in good hands. We all look out
for each other, like any pod does. And as well..." They look to Merrick,
who far from them, curled up on a soft patch, letting himself rest and
settle from this whole ordeal, "You know what he is willing to do to
protect him."

The big polar bear merman sniffles as he reluctantly holds Arnaav over to
Samudra, who then gently takes the boy off from his mighty paws,
"Goodbye... A-Arnaav..."

The otter Noita comes to him, and kisses the boy's head. "Please stay
safe..." She says softly.

"Th-The Capricorn can bring him to us, yes??" Bertone asked, "I-If he wants
to see us."

"As long as you are in the sea," Vanora said, "The Capricorn can find you,
and he may come back for short visits, per the Laws."

"Thank you, thank you," Bertone sobs as he brushes his fingers on Arnaav's
fur, "Goodbye... Son..." He whines before he and Noita Rayette turn, and
swim away.


Samudra swims forth to Merrick, and smiles as he lowers down. Merrick is
just barely awake, his eyes too weak to open completely as Sumdra slowly
brings Arnaav down to him.

"Mmnn..." Merrick moans as he brings up his arm, before Samudra gently
lifts it, and tucks the otter onto him.

"Rest easy... You have done much..." He mumbles. Merrick closes his eyes as
his arm holds Arnaav tighter against him, the little otter turning and
snuggling against Merrick's chest as he finally welcomes sleep again, and
thus begins to dream...



()()()



The palace is adorned in spiral, glittering draperies of endless galaxy
skies along the angelic marble pillars of the grand castle. Bells of pure
platinum ring visible waterfalls of light and sparks, small in comparison
to the enormous chandelier that shines with the breath-taking essence of
the moon and sun combined in an eternal
light.

Tonight is a very important night.

The royal Prince stands in front of the thrones of diamond before the mass
of young, eligible people. His dark hair is groomed perfectly under his
small, golden crown to match is suit of sunshine gold. His gloved hands
hold behind him as he looks onto the crowd, all of them vying for even just
a single glance from his magnificent eyes.

Father insists that His Highness, the Prince, finds the star-crossed lover
that comes in every generation. Frankly, the Prince doesn't even think that
this meteor shower has any decent stars to race across the sky floor with
him tonight, but he has very little choice but to gaze at all of these
stars, and pretend that they have a chance of impressing him to his
chambers.


The Duchess of the Red Snows comes before the Prince. Her gown flows with
sparkling ruby sashes tied around her arms and waist, giving the room a
blaring glow of crimson as blood-red flakes sparkle from her tied-back
hair. The Prince looks into her solid crystal eyes as her rosy lips stay a
neutral expression.

She steps before the Prince and gives a formal bow to him to present
herself to him. The Prince gives a curt bow to the Duchess, and politely
acknowledges her before she takes her leave.


The Enchanter of the Dusk Cliffs waltzes down the aisle. True to his land,
the chanter is decorated with rays of waning, orange sunlight in every
stitch of his clothing -- from his amber broach, down to his dazzling
shoe-buckles, blinking specks of sunset light everywhere in the ballroom as
he comes to court the younger Prince.

The Enchanter's back erects as he looks to the Prince, who is finding it
difficult not to blink with the specks of orange light keep penetrating his
eyes. Once presented, the king takes his leave.


The Regent of the Clash Bluffs is unusually calm tonight, wearing an
elegant silver mask over eyes while the yellow bolts of electricity spark
and resist her dark cloud dress, hiding the canary-colored silk of her
body. Her golden eyes look to the Prince like an unsavory meal, as if
courting him is any worthy of the time she just can't fathom to afford.

The Regent only gives a gives a curt-like nod to him, if only to
acknowledge the fact that she may just be the wife the Kings and Queens
between them are hoping to betroth, before stepping away, figuring the
cider of eons will be more worthy of her attention.


The young Viscount of the Evergreen Skies strides down the carpet to
present to the Prince. The sapling seems a bit too eager for such an
elegant affair, what without even deciding what color flowers should bloom
around his robes, or even organizing the leaves of his sash. He can barely
manage the emerald clouds of his scarf.

The Viscount holds his hand out to shake the Prince's hand, only to have
his shoe pull down on a lily from the hem of his robe, and fall over before
the entire court! They smirk and chuckle as the Prince walks forth, and
helps the Viscount to his feet, and indicate a nice spot for him to set his
affairs in order.


The Lady of the Wings of Time drapes across the floor. Adorned with too
many royal blue feathers for her gown, with some of the down falling from
her garments quickly evaporate into invisible mists as the sapphires of her
tiara glisten in the light. No heirs and no predecessors, the Lady comes
once again to the courting affair, preferring if she can just return to her
domain to address the next few decades.

The elderly Lady comes before the Prince, and gives a formal bow as she
holds her feathered arms open in a humble curtsy to show her respect, and
thus earning the same from the Prince, before she takes her leave.


The Commander of the Star Sands comes to grace the hall with his
presence. His very suit is woven with the essence of the cosmos, dark with
spirals of violet and white light, the stellar fabric trailing behind him
as he walks purposely down the carpet to greet the Prince. Perhaps the
ruler of the stars to infinity could dazzle the Prince, if he didn't
already know that the Commander has quite the sizeable harem in his
galactic chambers.

The Commander smiles nicely to the Prince, nodding to him as a few stray
stars twinkle and sparkle from his nebula cuffs, before leaving to attend
to a dance partner, already deducing that the Prince is not interested.


The Empress of Past Shadow looms forward to address the Prince. She wears a
gown of pitch darkness, with only several large white diamonds to float in
the endless black of her outfit, as well as a very fancy mask, gleaming in
the light as she walks along the way of the carpet, looking unimpressed by
the ball in its entirety. Honestly, the Prince is a bit scared of her,
though as legitimate as any eligible person, her last three husbands have
left her due to marital problems -- though speculation persists that she
never killed them, the court thinks she would be a much better subject of
gossip and rumor if she did.

The monotone Empress reaches the Prince, and offers her intimidating yet
humble bow of courtship, unchanging in her expression even as she wafts
away, leaving the Prince in a single shiver.


The King and Queen look over their son from the balcony. The ball has just
barely begun, but they still feel ill-at ease. While it's unheard of for
any ruler to have found their mate, or mates, within their first few balls
-- this is the Prince's 4th ball -- but it's like he won't even try. The
Prince is young, naïve, he thinks he has too much time and so much
to do before finding a suitable partner. He's far too busy riding the
Spirals of Reality, or slaying the Belts of Spikes, and other such trivial
activities. He just refuses to find someone that would have him settle
down.


The Prince sees the Duke of Raving Spades start to walk, when a bright
glint catches his eye. Behind the crowd of suitors, the Prince can only
make out shimmering glimpse.

The King and Queen blink as the Prince starts to walk away from the
thrones. Has the Duke grabbed his attention?

Wait, no, he only just walked around the Duke, much to the man's confusion
and breach of etiquette. This is very unorthodox, but the Prince isn't
ruining the ball at least, like the Queen did in her younger years. They
watch as the Prince bids the guests to step aside, and stride forward. The
King and Queen watch as the Prince walks quickly to one of the handful of
guests who have arrived fashionably late, sadly outside of the mass of the
other guests, usually having to wait until everyone else has made their
appeal before gaining the chance to court the presenting royalty.

For the first time since tonight began, the Prince feels himself smiling,
strange as it feels, as he comes to this suitor -- the Priest of the Water
Heavens. A young, fair male draped in beautiful waxen silk that shows his
arms and his right leg, with wisps of shimmering white spinning from his
fabric, tied around with a cyan sash that sparkles from the light as waves
of refract the white coming from his robe-like garment. He wears a circlet
of thin, silver crescent moons around his light yellow hair.

The Queen grins excitedly as they see the Prince holds his arm in front of
his torso, and his fist behind his back as he bows to the young Priest. The
Priest smiles as he holds his right hand flattened in front of his person,
and bows back to the Prince, before taking the Prince's hand, and is
escorted from the Priest to the main floor.

The King hastily signals for the orchestra and the minstrels to start
playing the waltz music immediately. The other guests start to pair up as
well as platforms begin to rise from the regal floor for the sake of
presentation.

The Prince and the Priest dance elegantly at the center, with their hands
holding each other and elevated, while the Prince's hand is placed upon the
Priest's hip, and his hand is on the Prince's shoulder.

The music flows around the ballroom as the two young males gracefully
circle and waltz about the floor, while the star-lit sky below the
transparent floor began to show the racing meteors as the two of them grace
the grand affair with the dawning of a new courtship.

The Priest's blue eyes shimmer as he looks into the warm eyes of the Prince
as they twirl slowly around the freed area of the ballroom floor. The King
and Queen smile with glees as they watch the Prince spin in a large circle
before them, having found his mate.

The night play through before the song comes to a gentle stop. Still
holding hands, the Prince and Priest bow to the guests, whom which give a
gentle applause before the ball resume to its formal festivities. The
Prince guides the Priest to the outside balcony to enjoy some fresh air.

Even in the evening dusk of the night, the Priest seems to give off this
subtle, beautiful glow. The Prince has truly been charmed by this denizen
of celestial tides; with just one waltz, the Prince can only think of the
end of the night, where he may lay with the Priest in his soft, yearning
bed of blue-moon silk and pillows of nimbus pillows.

He puts his hands onto the Priest's shoulders, gazing longingly into his
eyes, before gently pressing his lips to the other. The Priest softly feels
the back of the Prince's neck as he pushing his mouth against the other,
welcoming him as his new lover.



()()()



"Mmnnn..." Adam slowly feels his eyes open as the last, waxy images from
the surfaces of his imagination's memory linger lazily as he groans,
turning onto his back.

He stretches on his back, his body feeling more tired for having gained a
full night's sleep -- which is to be expected after vivid dreams. Adam
feels a strange trace of anticipation as he lies there, groaning as he
dreads having to take himself out of bed.

"Some dream..." He mumbles, "Eeerrrhhh... Wish I can go back to sleep... I
wanna know what happens next." He whines as he takes a couple of minutes to
linger.

-EEH EEH EEH EEH-

The alarm of his phone starts blaring out, elating a disdainful growl from
him as he reaches for it to shut it off. Adam then reluctantly gets up onto
his feet to get ready for work.