#8 - Founder's Frivolity

She might have been overthinking but she had been correct about having to get a partner for this evening to dance with.
Counting the beat appeared easy enough, however dancing was rather unknown for Reena and she had never seriously done it with a partner before so she already cringed a little on the inside.

She would have loved to ask Lindsey but as she had decided earlier she would give her and Tom a chance and judging by the sheepish look Tom gave her friend he was really thinking about asking Linds.

Looking up in surprise when Arthur approached her, she felt an awkward little blush start on her face. She had not expected to be one of the first to be asked and definitely not by a boy- a boy from a different house nonetheless.
Reena briefly thought about saying 'no' but she knew that would have been purely out of embarrassment and she did not want to shoot him down. Arthur was a likable guy after all and she was certain she did not have to question his intentions.

"Sure.", she said and gave him a smile she hoped did not appear as strained as it felt.
Seeing how professor McGonnagal had demonstrated where to put her hands, she assumed the same role as the transfiguration teacher and placed her left hand on Arthur‘s shoulder, offering him her right hand to hold.

Reena hoped he could not actually tell how awkward she felt. She also hoped he would magically know how to dance and help her get it right. But that was probably futile and they would have to work together to get this dancing thing.

If Rylan were to make a list of most awkward and cringe worthy moments he ever experienced at Hogwarts, he would definitely include this one near the top of the list. Ignoring the wold whistles (no doubt mostly coming from his own group of friends), he allowed McGonagall to place her hands where needed, before following her instruction.

As the music began, he looked down to the professor's feet (hoping that it didn't look as awkward as it felt) as he attempted to copy her movements. Dancing wasn't something he was well practised in, but thankfully his current partner was. He wondered who's had this 'honour' last year, and if they felt the same as he did right now, but that was neither here no there.

Thanks to McGonagall taking the lead, all he had to worry about was where to put his feet, as he attempted what appeared to be some kind of waltz. Embarrassing as it was, he took some solace in the act that he would at least have a bit of a head start over his fellow students. Maybe that would be worth suddenly finding himself able to blend in with the drapery of his house common room? Maybe...

Once released, it seemed as though his performance had been at least satisfactory, as he was given an appreciative nod before being sent on his way. Not really knowing how he should react, Rylan simply gave her another smile, before darting off back to the other.

At least he wouldn't be the only one blushing tonight, as it seemed most of his year just weren't feeling this either. A few had yet to partner up, so he found himself approaching a girl who looked as lost as he felt (not that it narrowed things down much), and offered his hand.

"Hey, you wanna parter up? I have experience!, he asked the girl, before adding in a little humour to hopefully defuse things a little. With a bit of luck, she would be keen to pair up with someone who'd had first hand experience McGonagall style. If not though, he would find someone, but then there might be little choice. At least, judging from the look on the face of Professor Rivera, in particular.

[OOC: Anyone who wants to be the lucky lady, feel free. Otherwise, it's npc time!]

It was a combination of the rush of a thrill and abject horror; Lindsey had bitten the bullet and asked him to dance. How could a person be both relieved as terrified? Embarrassment had to be thrown in there too, as Tom felt silly that he had been too shy to ask her himself. But regardless of how they got there, it was the outcome he wanted. He wasn't going to object or read too much into it.

"I'd like that very much." It came out as a squeak and maybe half an octave higher than his normal voice, but he managed to spit it out. He figured he owed her that much. He smiled at her and did everything in his power to block out all the other people in the room with them. In his mind it was just the two of them, dancing the way he had wanted to dance with her for a long time now.

He took her hand in his and almost pulled back after their first touch, but managed to keep his hand steady. He felt a jolt of electricity move through his body as his hand found her waist. He had to stare at his feet to keep himself grounded and keep his movements in time with the beat... one two three, one two three. He counted along with the beats in his mind.

"This will be good practice for the Founder's Ball," he told her. In his way it was him asking her to the dance. He wished he could be more direct, but what did she expect of him? He was already dancing with her in front of everybody. Some boys felt no shame about their feelings for girls, but Tom wasn't one of those boys... at least not yet. No matter how much he wanted to be.

When he took her hand, she felt the butterflies in her own stomach begin to flutter harder and she felt her face burn as she looked ahead of them, walking out with the others brave enough to dance. With careful eyes, she scanned the room for a moment before turning towards Tom as his hand was placed on his waist. It wasn't the first time she had danced with a boy. Lindsey had been apart of many Ceilidh dances, The Dashing White Sergeant and The Highland Schottische was just two that she had danced in competition, but this was still a little different. 

And, it was different because this was with a boy she really liked. Her face had to have glowed red at this point, even her ears were beginning to burn. As they began to dance, she mentally counted, but let him lead them on the floor. 'One, two, three... One, two, three.' She repeated to herself. 

At the mention of the Founder's Ball and how this would be good practice, she felt her chin go down and a small smile come to her lips. Was this his way of asking if she wanted to go with him? If her face wasn't already burning red, it would have been at this point. 

"Aye, tis very good practice," she said in agreeance to him as they continued the steps together. "Is that ye're way of asking me to go with ye?" She asked him with a slightly amused smile on her face as they continued the steps. 

Looking at his feet seemed to do the trick as Reena did not step on his feet again. The pose did feel strange though and after a while she looked up again, choosing to look over his shoulder and stare ahead to keep her concentration.

When this was successful she slowly started to listen to the music and found that she quite liked it. She had forgotten all about music as it was not very common in her home. Most music came in form of lullabies and even the youngest Ashworth was a little old now to sing to sleep.

It took her a while to realize that dancing went a lot more smoothly now that she was more relaxed and she managed her first genuine smile at Arthur.
Maybe it was weird and awkward but all in all she was glad to dance with Arthur instead of someone who might goof off or be less understanding to beginners' mistakes.

She wondered if this was the time to do some small talk but she feared it may throw her off her concentration and have her misstep again.
Besides, she did not quite know what to talk about. The only harmless topic that came to mind right now was musing about wether professor Snape had ever danced before. He must have had, he had attended this school as a student as well, hadn't he?

"Reckon the professors will be dancing at the ball?"
She had decided to try and chat eitherway. It may not be very goal oriented but maybe she could map out a plan to talk to the professors about traditions and legacies when she knew who was where in advance and Arthur might have more insight than she did.