Chương 58: Book 2 Chapter 10 - The Marsant Ball

They began slowly dancing through the room again, this time without the song so that he could speak.

"We have presented you as a scion of a wealthy house. The prevailing theory here in Easton is that your family might be from Ventalia, a rumor which I have done nothing to dissuade. The rumor is your house sent you here to begin building up their holdings in Eshela, and for you to gain experience leading house business without their direct support or influence.

As such, your wealth here would be just a fraction of the wealth your family possesses, and as a young scion of the house, you are a very eligible bachelorette." She pulled away from him momentarily to look him in the eyes.

"I'm not interested in any type of romantic relationship right now." He nodded once.

"I know. That's not the point. Many young men will simply see that as a challenge. Others are used to the idea of arranged marriages, and might try to simply get to know you well enough to establish connections with your family." She scrunched her eyebrows up in confusion.

"My family?"

"Well," Dustin amended, "the family they imagine you have somewhere in Ventalia. You don't have to try to remember any of this stuff though, feel free to be as honest as you'd like, or at least as honest as you're… allowed to be." She nodded appreciatively. He continued, "I doubt anyone will outright ask you about romantic interest though, there are more subtle methods that are common instead." He pulled her back close to begin dancing again.

"To gauge your romantic interest, they will read your body language while dancing, for example." He suddenly pulled her even closer, until their bodies were pressed against each other. The pull was gentle and inviting. It felt nice, honestly.

"This for example," he explained, "might be used to gauge how receptive you are to a potential suitor. If you remain like this for a few moments, or even lean into it, you are communicating that you would like for the gentleman to pursue you romantically." Kiara instinctively pulled away, not wanting to send the wrong message. Dustin laughed again.

"Not me, don't read too much into this right now. I'm just teaching you the basics here." Kiara blushed again. She realized she had been doing that a lot tonight.

"Pulling away like that would be considered rude," Dustin explained.

"To politely reject the offer, simply step back slightly during the next few steps, re-establishing distance during the dance. Don't linger in the closeness. Let's practice." They began dancing again. After a moment, Dustin pulled her closer. Over the next couple of steps, she pulled away slightly, back to their original distance.

"Perfect," he said.

"Now, if the same gentleman asks you to dance more than once, a similar question is being put forth. He's wondering if you'd be interested in further meetings in the future. Not necessarily as a sole suitor, but as someone to get to know better, with potential marriage in mind down the road.

"It's polite to accept the first request to dance from anyone that asks, but a second request is acceptable to turn down. Probably best, in fact, given your current aversion to romantic pursuits. You can simply tell them that you need some rest, and they'll accept that for what it is, even if you dance with the very next person that asks you. At a future ball, the dance counter resets, so it's always okay to dance with anyone that you'd like at least once at any given event."

"That sounds complicated," she replied.

"Nah, you'll get the hang of it," he said.

"Now, most of the events that I've been to in Easton have been fairly classy, so I doubt you'll need to worry about this, but let's cover it just in case. This is the normal set up for paired dancing." They stopped dancing, and he moved his hand lower down her hip.

"This is not. If someone does this, simply use your hand to move theirs back to where it should be. If they do it again, feel free to leave the dance floor and refuse any future dances with them." He moved his hand up too high, onto her rib cage.

"Same thing here. Simply guide their hand to the correct location, then expect it to stay there. If it does not, feel free to disengage, even mid-dance."

"Okay," she replied with a nod. That all felt very intuitive. Dustin pulled away and bowed to her.

"After each dance, the gentleman should bow like this, and you should give a bow or curtsy of your own." Kiara curtsied.

"While you dance," Dustin said, "expect them to talk to you about your house, your interests, their own house and interests, things of that nature. For any detailed business discussions, you can simply direct them to me if you want, tell them that I manage the estate, and then leave it at that.

"Discussions while dancing is where they will try to gain leverage in some fashion or another on House Yountal. Don't feel the need to try and navigate those waters though, just be open and honest, and let the pieces fall where they may." If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Fair enough!" Kiara replied. Having made a few laps around the room, she felt familiar enough with the dance steps to avoid embarrassing herself the next night. * Their new clothes were delivered the following afternoon. The seamster brought them himself so he could explain the details. He had a rare smile on his face, he seemed quite pleased with his work. Before letting her try the gown on, he explained the changes.

"As form-fitting as the original dress was, there were no folds or frills to hide expansive material in," he began.

"I sewed a new one from scratch, using material that has some natural give to it." The dress looked the same to Kiara's eyes, she hadn't realized it was a new one. She reached out and felt it, the material was still very soft and comfortable. She pulled it gently between two fingers, and it did have some give to it now, much more than when she had originally tried it on. The seamster continued, "As a base design, this should allow you to move much more easily, but not enough for a proper duel!

So I added a few more features." He flipped the dress over, pointing to the ties on the back that laced the dress up.

"The ties are woven with rare shadow spider silk, known for its stretch and flexibility, as well as its durability." He pulled on one, demonstrating the stretch. It easily doubled in length with very little effort on his part as he stretched it.

"This will allow the dress to be laced up properly, while also allowing for full range of movement in your upper body, if necessary. You should feel very little resistance, even with the most strenuous of movements." Next, he gestured to the seams on each side of the dress skirt. They were almost invisible, they were sewed so skillfully.

"These seams are break-away seams. Hidden underneath is extra fabric, also woven with shadow spider silk. With normal movements, the dress will maintain its current shape and form. In an emergency, however, extreme movements will cause the seam to break, revealing the extra folds underneath. The dress will look slightly different in that case, but will allow a full range of movement as needed."

"It's perfect!" Kiara assured him. He insisted she try it on before he left, which she did. True to his word, she could move quite comfortably in it, and didn't feel hindered while walking around normally. Satisfied that she was pleased, the seamster left the estate with a bit of extra pep in his step. * The Marsant Estate was on the other side of Easton. When they arrived, the sun had already set, and the stars were twinkling in the night sky.

The pathway leading into the estate was lined with floating lights, spaced every twenty feet or so. A steady line of carriages was working its way down the path. Once they stepped inside, Kiara's breath caught in her throat. It was absolutely gorgeous inside the mansion. The large staircase in the entryway led up to the second floor, where the grand ballroom was. The banisters were lined with ribbons and what looked like grapevines, lights strewn throughout. Beautiful, soft rugs led from the entryway to the stairs.

Servants greeted the guests pleasantly as they entered, and Kiara noticed that the servants truly seemed to be enjoying their part in the evening. The guests were all dressed in the finest suits and gowns, some entering in pairs, others in large groups. Waiters canvassed the ballroom with plates of snacks and drinks, while guests mingled amidst soft prelude music.

The live band in the corner looked suspiciously like the same one that had attended her tribunal, and she wondered if the Marsants had a hand in the way that evening had turned out. Dustin was well known in Easton, but Kiara couldn't help but notice that more people than not were more interested in talking to her, rather than him. Some new faces introduced themselves, while others she recognized as having met at her tribunal. They all seemed eager to be friendly with her, which felt nice.

Soon enough, the guest count hit a critical point, and the band's volume increased with a lively tune, and a group dance began on the floor. Kiara didn't know any of the moves for group dances yet, so she sat the first one out. While she watched, a handsome young man approached. He was tall, with sandy blond hair, and a neatly trimmed beard. He looked to be in his mid twenties, and he had an easy smile. He bowed once he was in front of her.

"Lady Yountal, I don't believe I've had the pleasure. My name is Marcus Tanner." She bowed in response. He was one of the most attractive men she had ever seen. His smile was enchanting, and the perfectly tailored suit wasn't hurting his case, either.

"Might I have the pleasure of the next dance?" he asked. She nodded, blushing slightly.

"Of course! I'd be honored." He held out his hand, and she noticed the current song was coming to an end. The people from the group dance began leaving the floor, other than those that had already paired off for the upcoming dance. She took his hand, and he led her out onto the floor. His timing was perfect. If he had asked her any sooner, they might have had to stand there awkwardly until the song ended. Any later, and someone else might have swooped in.

She wondered how he knew what type of dance would be up next. It didn't seem to be a big secret, since plenty of young gentlemen had asked young ladies to dance. There must be some kind of pattern or schedule that she wasn't familiar with yet. The dance was a perfect start to her night. Marcus's steps were confident and smooth, and he guided her through the room with an elegant grace. He didn't pull any of the 'secret language' tricks that Dustin had warned her about, and pretty soon she relaxed into the flow.

She found that she rather enjoyed it. The dance ended, and Marcus led her off the floor, bowing to her one more time.

"It was a pleasure to formally make your acquaintance, my lady!" She curtsied in response.

"The pleasure was all mine, Marcus, thanks for the dance!" The next dance had already begun, so she got to take a break and grab some refreshments before the next gentleman asked her to dance. The night evolved rather splendidly, as she danced with quite a few young men, snacking in between. None of them seemed comfortable enough with her yet to try and push the subject of romantic interest, which she was thankful for.

She was able to enjoy the evening without worrying about the intricacies of scheming and politics that Dustin had made sound so natural at these types of events. About an hour into the evening, when things were still lively and no one had drank too much yet, the doors to the ballroom opened. They had opened throughout the night, letting people drift in and out for one reason or another, but this time felt different. A man walked in, wearing a crisp black suit.

His tie was black to match, and he had a green and silver pin on the lapel of his suit coat in the shape of a snake. His presence could be felt, to such a degree that the band faltered in their playing, and the dancing stopped. Everyone's heads turned to look.