Winter Ball

Kestrel was glad that Nathaniel didn't dwell on Andy, though she found aspects of her... condition to be very desirable. The night-vision was really convenient these days, though it had royally messed with her depth perception at first.

Anyhow, her perspective on the issue allowed her to shrug at his sort of mopey comments about being received by the school poorly because he didn't have powers. "As long as you understand and keep your students' perspectives in mind," she said almost noncommittally. "It's true that you won't be able to share that bond with them, but that's certainly never stopped an administrator before. Example: you get admins for inner-city kids who never had a moment in their own childhood where they wanted for anything."

She paused to take a drink, trying to enjoy the taste of the effervescent fluid. The conversation at hand, though, made it difficult to relax fully. "I'm new to the power thing, but I think the constant struggle is to maintain an identity that isn't directly related to the power."

Kestrel sighed. "People don't like change, Mr. Kandless. It's difficult and it requires work. And there are many staff members who are very loyal to Ms. Kandless." She drained her glass and placed it on the counter.

"Let's talk about something else. What brings you to the dance this evening if you're not a chaperone?"


---o0o---

Felix could feel his eyes crossing a little at the torrent of explanation that came forth from Jason. There was a whole lot that meant very little to him; he just wanted to dance now. The particulars of Jason's power were interesting, but that was an investigation for the future.

"Much appreciated," he said to Jason's back as the other guy left with his date.

Meanwhile, Sandra was ready to dance too. He joked with her, "You could always set the bar on fire- I'll just warm up there." Felix silently agreed with her sentence, even if he didn't agree with the use of the word 'ain't', following her out onto the dance floor.

Once they'd reached an acceptable area, he held out a hand and suggested, "Let's try out our new accessory. May I have this dance, milady?"

Jason put Jupiter at ease, "Don't worry, this won't effect my dancing skills one bit."  Jason escorted her onto the dance floor.  "I'm not that nice am I?" Jason replied to her question with a smile, "I am just helping a friend who helped me immensely on my first day here at Foresta.  Plus I think everyone deserves a chance to enjoy the dance and not be held back because of their powers."  As they approached a good spot to dance, Jason turned to her. "So are you ready to begin?"

TIME IS 8:00PM

Nathan stayed quiet as Kestrel talked, finding different qualities of the woman very attractive. Her mannerisms made him want to reach out, but the man had to remind himself that if he were to be in charge of this school any time soon doing anything romantic with any of the teachers was strictly against the rules. "I asked Martina if I could stay in the school and observe everything that goes on and I just so happened to see that this dance was going on. It seems as if some of the students here are very industrious when they want to celebrate." Nathan commented to Kestrel lightly - still admiring the decorations that had been set in.

Nathan also didn't bother to mention that he had already been observing the school for a year now, he had a feeling that the woman near him would probably consider that strange. Instead, Nathan turned his attention back to Kestrel instead of the dance itself. "I'm sorry if you've already told me, but what did you say that you teach?" Nathan asked the woman, moving his body slightly in his chair to face her.

---

Even though Jason was trying to put her mind at ease, Jupiter still fit just a bit worried about Jason using his powers so actively. She then realized though that he probably used his powers a lot more than she did on a normal basis. The thought caused her to nibble on her lower lip with just a bit of anxiety. As he talked, Jupiter nodded at him "You're right, people do deserve the chance to have a good time." As he turned to her though, Jupiter pulled back momentarily having been surprised at catching a bit of glaring light in her eyes.

She turned toward the source and realize it had actually been a flash of light from a camera, shaking her head Jupiter looked back at Jason with a nervous smile - her knee's feeling just a bit wobbly from the whole situation. "I'm not sure," she then said to the boy feeling completely unlike herself. "Can we start off slow?" she then asked Jason - not bothering to reach out for him but instead waiting for him to start whatever it was that prompted dancing.

“Yeah, but that would require me actually knowing how to use my power” she jested back as she continued through the crowds of dancers. On most occasions she wouldn’t be comfortable with bumping shoulders within a large mass of people, but tonight was a night for her to unwind and forget about the issues with her body.

She watched Rudy from the corner of her eye making sure to stop when he did, otherwise she might’ve lost him to the crowd behind her. She twiddled her fingers for a moment “oh, I’d be a tease if I said no” she retorted with the largest plastic grin she could make. She answered his gesture with her palm on his and scuttled in closer to the boy. The atmosphere of the dance changed when the music switched to smoother and lighter tones, obviously playing in contrast to the more party and cheery sort of songs since they were delving deeper into the night.

“Ah, of course they start playing the slower songs once we get here” she spoke in slight disappointment. “Alright, you lead. Slow isn’t my strong suit.”

Kestrel quirked an eyebrow at him when he explained that he had been given permission to stay in the school. Watching a dance would not have been her first inclination in his stead, but to each his or her own she supposed. "I see," she said, thinking politically. This man might wind up her boss, so she had to start thinking about keeping some things to herself. Like Andy, for instance. If she could keep the muttering down to a minimum, she might come off as halfway credible (not to mention sane). "Yeah. It might be the fact that so many of them have destructive powers. Perhaps having a chance to do something constructive every so often appeals to them."

A bartender refilled her glass without asking and she picked it up again. She didn't plan on drinking the liquid since the first glass had been enough, but it felt rude not to pick up the drink now that it had been poured. Andy muttered something about the amount of chitchatting she was doing with this one guy, how she should just do something and get it over with. She warned him internally not to be so vulgar, and that that definitely would never happen. Even without the politics, she didn't sleep where she ate, metaphorically. Or with complete strangers. Nor would she ever do anything because Andy suggested it. Andy's suggestions had one of two horrible outcomes: she would do whatever it was (usually under the influence of something) and hear about it later and feel awful, or she would do whatever it was while under the influence and get back into control after she'd been caught. Either way, it was a mess and she refused to have any part of it.

It took her a moment to realize that Nathaniel had asked her a question. She gave him a sheepish grin and said, "Sorry, I zoned for a second there. Mind repeating the question?"

---o0o---

Felix tilted his head. "We could practice until you hit the bar," he persisted in mock seriousness. "You would totally light up the room."

He paused, realizing that he'd gone with a pun. The boy made a face and shook his head at his own folly. So much for maintaining a purposefully cool persona. Slipping puns into conversation was anti-cool unless he was doing it ironically. Even so, it slipped into hipster territory and those waters were difficult to navigate without being written off as an idiot.

He reflected her plastic grin back at her as his free arm snaked around her waist. "Teasing is easy to deal with. Sincerity is what usually throws people."

When she gave him permission to lead, he did so with a flourish, twirling her out, then close, then dipping her. "I would love to lead," he said to her right before righting her. "However, I've been told that I usually take it too far."

    Jason could see Jupiter was a little nervous about the whole dance.  She seemed to have been dazed by the flash of the camera.  "Don't worry we can take it slowly till you are in the grove of things.  Here, put your hands around my shoulders."  As Jason said this he put hi hands around Jupiter's hips.  "This is the easy one, we just sway from side to side, slowly spinning in a circle."  Jason couldn't help but  smile, he was really enjoying the night, but at the same time he had to keep part of his mind focused on Sandra. He didn't want to slip up and let Felix get hurt.

TIME IS 8:30PM

Nathan nodded along easily with what Kestrel was saying about the students feeling nice about doing something productive. Having not realized that the woman had zoned out when he had been talking to her, Nathan repeated his question with ease. "I was saying before that I'm sorry if you've already told me, but what is it that you teach?" he then asked the woman. To anyone from the outside looking in, it would seem as if the conversation that these two people were having was incredibly boring. In truth, Nathan from some reason had never been a very interesting man. It was either not knowing how to apply himself in such a way to be interesting, or it was that it just would never work for him. Nonetheless, being in the presence of this man longer than five minutes without yawning was quite a feat indeed.

---

"Oh, okay." Jupiter replied, easing her hands where he had asked her to place them. His hands on her hips though, suddenly made the young woman feel a lot more self-conscious about everything going on. "Where did you... learn this?" Jupiter then asked Jason, following the directions that the young man had given her. Thanks to her parents the young woman had never really had a chance to experience the finer things in life, such as learning how to dance like this. It didn't help that despite the fact that her dress looked fantastic, Jupiter felt totally out of place. "How long does someone dance for?" Jupiter then asked the young man she was holding onto. Her grip on his shoulders were loose though, almost as if she was too hesitant to try and do anything more. Naturally one would expect a shy girl such as Jupiter to do such a thing.

Sandra rolled her eyes, as much as she tended to be a sucker for puns, this time was not one of them. “Man, Rudy do you save you’re A material for some comedian night job I don’t know about? Wouldn’t surprise me, next thing I know you’ll turn out to be Batman or some shit like that” she further teased the three year older man.

Felix’s secretiveness didn’t bother Sandra too much, in fact it made the hunt to learn more about him all the more interesting. There were very few people that she was unable to crack, she wasn’t going to let Felix be one of those people. Her persistence knew no bounds. That is once she found something worth pursuing.

A bright blush grew over the girl’s upper lip, she didn’t even know she was scientifically able to blush given the nature of her body, but it happened as he touched her waist. She was trying her hardest to avoid the thought of his arm being blown off from a random point-blank discharge, but that was another potential danger that she imposed on him. Though as the man began to whirl her around and swing her body as he saw fit, her thoughts were quick to detract.

“Over the top works for me, dance away, what was it you were going by during the masquerade, Chamois Hunter? I might be butchering the pronunciation, but just go with it” she stated as she allowed the man to use her body however he may please still, her feet trying to match the energy he put forth.

Kestrel shrugged. "I teach the art classes and some seminars on coexisting. Electives, basically." She was hedging on elaborating on the whole boring subject, but was saved when she spotted a couple grinding on each other on the dance floor.

She shot Nathan a lopsided smile and said apologetically (but without any real feeling), "I have to go do my job. It's been nice, Mr. Kandless. Enjoy the rest of your night!" Kestrel gave him a salute and made her way across the dance floor directly, tapping the boy on the shoulder and gesturing the couple off the dance floor for some quiet words about decorum.

---ooo---

Felix grinned at Sandra. "Batman? Nah. If anything, I'm the Joker. Or the Riddler." He paused to dip her, winking when he held the pose for a beat. "Why else would I have dropped such an excellent joke on you? I'm also definitely not one of the good guys." He arched an eyebrow at her and asked, "Are you one of the good guys?"

He continued to dance, making sure to keep it classy (even if some of his favorite moves were borderline steamy) so that they wouldn't be pulled off the dance floor like another couple near them had been.

Her question about the last dance took him by surprise and he had to think back. "My title was Chamois Hunter, yeah. Chamois are some kind of mountain goat or something. The character came from an obscure Hans Christian Anderson story. For all of the research and reading involved, the costume sure fell flat. I really shouldn't have expected anybody to guess. The character's name was Rudy, so I kind of leaped on that." Felix's mouth twisted into a wry smile. "I'm glad you were able to guess that it was me at the end, but you didn't use your nickname for me."

A moment later, he asked, "What inspired your getup for that dance... Ice Maiden?"

    Jason was slightly embarrassed to mention where he learned about dancing.  "Well when I was young there was this electronic store that had all these TV's in the front window.  Growing up in a country where they had a king and queen figure head we often heard about these lavished dance parties they would have for keeping up appearances on the news."  he explained to her.  Jason couldn't help but smile noticing how the entire room was spinning in his peripheral visions, but his beautiful date stayed stationary in his view, occasionally bobbing up and down when she stepped.  Jason then continued after a small pause, "I had always hoped that if I learned to dance well enough that I too could be invited and try and be taken in by these wealthy people, so I practiced in secret every now and then to keep my skills sharp, but sadly I learned that they didn't invite people just because they could dance well.  But I guess that is the point of growing up is to learn these lessons.  As for when to stop, you can stop whenever you want, but most people do it after the current song ends."

    Jason could feel her loose grip on him,  "Do you not want to dance anymore or is something bothering you?" he inquired of her.  Jason then leaned in close to her ear, "Would you like to dance in private so we aren't surrounded by all these people, but maybe continue enjoying then dance?"  Jason had a clever trick in mind so Jupiter could be a little more relaxed and really enjoy herself.

TIME IS 9:00PM

Nathan nodded at Kestrel as the woman excused herself, looking after the teacher as she went go attend to her chaperon duties. Just as it was in the beginning of the dance, Nathan was now left too his own devices once more.

Jupiter as well was completely out of her element, but as Jason talked about where he came from the girl couldn't help but smile just a bit. It was interesting to her hearing about the boy's history. "Kings and Queens and TV's, I never thought I'd hear all of that in the same sentence." Jupiter replied in a shy manner with a slight coy smile. Their spinning around only made the girl feel dizzy for a moment before she concentrated on Jason's face, making the young woman feel a lot more steady as she looked into her companions eyes. "That's a shame that they didn't invite you," Jupiter then replied earnestly - feeling as if Jason needed the hope. "Oh, really?" she then looked surprised at Jason's end statement about stopping when the song ends.

Jupiter wanted to tell Jason more about her past, but the young girl found herself stopping short of opening her mouth to say anything. Instead, she looked indecisive for just a moment as Jason asked if there was anything bothering her and if she wanted to go somewhere more private. Private, intimate... with him? The thought gave the girl goosebumps. "I... uh, sure. Yeah, let's do that. Where could we go?" Jupiter then asked Jason - looking forward to leaving the distractions of other people behind them.

As her dance partner began to swing her around some more, Sandra was a bit more mindful of her glasses. She scrunched up her face to try and keep a good grip on her frames so that they wouldn’t fly off at any point, but there was a good chance they still might. “Nah, villains are always more interesting. Besides, being able to naturally explode would be wasted chaotic potential” she spoke, answering his brow with a sinister smirk.

Luckily Felix’s over the top dance style didn’t ask much of her besides follow along and let him use her as a puppet. Sandra was not one too knowledgeable in group dancing.

Despite explaining his character to her at the last dance, Sandra still didn’t know much about it. “Well, let’s just say your way of dancing kinda gave you away. I like to keep you on your toes, maybe I’ll call you by your real name and maybe I’ll feel like calling you Rudy. Don’t always expect consistency from me.”

She didn’t need to reflect on too much to give out her inspiration. She could come up with an interesting or well researched lie that she put a lot of thought into her dress, but if the man truly knew her he’d catch on quite fast that she was making something up. Her chin pointed at the broach at the neck of her dress. “Found that thing hanging outside my door, turned out to be a fake dress, bought a cheap mask, and there you go, my getup. If you want to make it sound more mystical or clever then you can ignore me and think up something better” she spoke easily and calmly.

Felix's eyebrow shot up. "Explosions aren't very subtle. And heroes blow things up too." He shrugged. "But villains are more interesting." He smiled at her face. "Aw, that's adorable."

He sighed dramatically when she told him not to expect consistency from her. "Ay, me. Why do I even try?" Then he tilted his head and grinned, breaking the moment of mock drama.

The boy listened to her with pensive silence, not commenting until after her snarky comment. "Har de har har. I don't usually go out of my way to think of clever backstories for other people... oh, well, maybe I do. I designed several of the things people wore at the last dance. Or, at least, a few." He tapped the side of his nose. "You know, you could have made something up and I would have run with it. I adore role-playing."

He twirled her out, then back in. "Besides, everybody does it. Even if they don't mean to."

    While the song went on, Jason continued to dance with Jupiter, navigating around the other couples dancing over to a door that lead to a balcony.  As he made his way over he started to feel a slight tug as he was reaching his limit of range for Sandra and Felix.  He pause briefly so he could give a small tug on the feet of them and try and lead them into the direction he was heading.  During the pause waiting to see if Sandra and Felix were going to follow, he resumed talking with Jupiter during the dancing.  "How would you feel about dancing on that balcony over there in the snow?"  Jason asked Jupiter hoping to give her the privacy she seemed like she wanted. 

TIME IS 9:30PM

Jupiter looked shy as Jason suggested going to dance on the balcony nearby. "Won't it be cold?" the girl asked Jason hesitantly as her eyes moved from his face and then over to Sandra and Felix just a few feet away from them. "And what about them? Can you do that thing if we're outside?" Jupiter then asked with a small frown as she returned her attention back to Jason, his silver hair catching her eye for a moment before she moved her eyes to focus on his face.

[ooc; bleh, short.]