Page 94 of The Last Syphon

“No, no, no. Stop. Stop.”

Inara huffed in agitation, lowering her hands back to her sides. Felix chuckled under his breath, and the urge to thump him in the head hit her hard.

It was nightfall, and Princess Phaedra, although the woman had not verbally said it, was at her wits’ end with Inara. The moment Inara had found out she would be required to dance, she’d sent Felix to find the Princess, and for the next two nights, practiced alongside her best friend, trying to get the moves down with no such luck.

She had known that would be the case.

Inara was good at a lot of things. Fighting. Magic manipulation. Talking shit. She was also known for making a delicious ox stew when the occasion called for it.

But dancing?

No.

It was something she didn’t entirely understand herself. Picking up hand-to-hand combat was easy, and by definition, dancing should be the same. The principles were similar. The constant motion. The movements. The fluidity. A lot of it was muscle memory.

And, yet, for whatever fucking reason, Inara just couldn’t get it. Couldn’t keep in time with the music. She kept tripping over not only Felix’s feet, but also her own.

It was a disaster. Horrid. The whole thing was horrid.

“You need to move at the same time your partner does,” Princess Phaedra instructed. Her hair was left free, flowing down her back in beautiful dark curls. “When he turns right, you turn left, and then meet back in the middle. Try again.”

Huffing, Inara assumed the position, standing opposite Felix. The music started. Inara moved. Forward. Back. Forward. Back? Step left—no, right? Left?

Inara clashed with Felix, her body slamming into his. “Argh! Fuck!” Her magic pulsed in the air around her in response to her frustration. Humour trickled through the soul-link, and an image pushed its way into her mind⁠—

Inara, moving in a completely ridiculous fashion, her arms and legs flailing.

Her gaze cut to the horse-sized dragon sitting next to Na-Ri in the corner of the room. “I do not look like that,” she said to the beast.

Another image, this one almost identical to the first, but with even more outrageous and embarrassing movements.

“Oh, yeah?” Her hands plopped onto her hips. “I’d love to see you do better.”

Fraener stretched, being careful not to hit Na-Ri with his massive wings, and trotted over, bouncing on the tips of his claws. He swept around Inara first, his motions smooth and fluid, his wings soaring through the air and curving as he pranced and turned. He circled Felix next, his legs almost gliding while he spun and spun. Everyone watched, utterly entranced by his performance, and begrudgingly, so was Inara. Goose bumps pebbled her skin. She was sure she had never seen anything so mesmerising.

It was nothing short of beautiful.

Fraener finished on a spin, and his upper body lowered into a beautiful, elegant bow before rising once more. His head moved to Inara, and although the creature did not possess eyebrows, Inara was sure the dickhead was arching a brow as if to say, How’s that?

Inara glared. “No one likes a show-off. Get back over there.”

Another bout of humour ran down their soul-link. Fraener flicked his head high and pranced back over to Na-Ri, sitting down.

“That’s gotta sting. Even a dragon can dance better than you.” Felix joked.

“Yes, well, he’s had about 2,000 more years of practice than I,” Inara snapped. She gazed lovingly at her Guardian. “He’s spectacular, though, isn’t he?” The warmth flooding her chest from their connection was something she truly couldn’t describe, and it had only grown stronger and stronger with each day. Each hour. Each minute.

Felix nodded, a small smile playing on his lips. “He is. Okay. Let’s go again.”

Groaning exceptionally loudly so everyone could hear, Inara took up the position once again and tried to remember Princess Phaedra’s words as she made each step. It didn’t make a difference. Inara still fumbled and tripped with almost every movement, and the light, warm feeling she’d had quickly diminished once again, replaced with frustration.

“Okay, stop.” Princess Phaedra sighed. Inara and Felix lowered their hands. “This isn’t working. I think you need to see what the dance is supposed to look like. Step aside, please.”

“Thank the Fates.” Inara stepped back.

The princess swept forward, all elegance and grace, taking a stand in front of Felix.

“Oh, yes,” her best friend sang, eyes alight. Felix ran a hand through his hair first, straightening his spine and puffing out his chest as he fixed his shirt, trying to make himself more presentable.