It's a Love Hate Relationship {Naomi}

[Akira]

Naomi raised a hand to her mouth, and gave the most shocked look she could muster. I truly had no idea! She shook her head and stared at him in feigned shock, her eyes dancing with mischief. She ignored the bite that was in his voice as best she could, but let’s face it, she was still affected by it even if she didn’t show it on the outside. That’s when she got the distinct impression that he wanted to throw or break something before leaving the tent, but the fact that all he did was pull up a chair and sit down, mind you a bit hard, but he still sat down instead of leaving. That was a big enough surprise in and of itself, she was almost positive that he would have left by now. She really was actually enjoying this challenge, and started to believe that this was turning in to a big game.

Naomi tilted her head curiously when he turned away from her, and wondered if he was actually studying the people dancing. That thought made her wonder if he was actually trying to learn how to dance to a fast paced song. That amused her more than the fact that he was there at all. She raised an eyebrow when she saw him start tapping his foot, and swaying to the beat. Oh no, he would never live this one down. Not for as long as he lived. That’s when she noticed another man coming towards them, but the fact that he looked intimidated when he looked at Korvin had her feeling as though he had done something when she wasn’t looking that had scared the young man away. Now she really was starting to doubt what he had said about disliking her in the first place.

[Zirin]

She was mocking him. He could feel it, he could see it, and shard it if he was going to let her win.. whatever this was. "I know, shockin' isn't it?" He grumbled, "Th'ugly wild man is picky abou' women." His eyes hadn't left the dancers and from the way he was watching them it was rather obvious he was completely lost to the steps. At this rate he was never going to figure out this stupid dance!

"These harpers 'ave a horrible taste in music," He grumbled, not knowing what else to say. In truth he was beginning to regret coming in here at all. What had he been trying to prove by doing this?

[Akira]

Naomi lifted her eyebrows as she watched Korvin; she really had it a nerve hadn’t she? You know, I never did say you were ugly. Her voice was soft, and she made sure she was looking straight at the dancers, and even kept her breathing calm and relaxed. It wouldn’t do to let him know that she actually thought he was pretty handsome, especially now that he had shaved. She watched the dancers feet and tried to memorize the steps that they were doing, but upon realizing that she couldn’t do it, she effectively looked away and looked calmly at Korvin. I think they have a pretty nice taste in music, though, I guess someone with two left feet wouldn’t like faster music now would they? Here she was, openly teasing him once again, oh yes, this night really did have promise didn’t it?

[Zirin]

Korvin's couldn't help but look over at Naomi, his expression one of unsure curiosity. Did that mean she thought he was attractive or that she had simply not stated her opinion on his appearance before? "I accept I ain't as flashy as these 'ere Weyrmen." He shrugged. In a battle of survival appearance didn't matter at all so he didn't actually care too much about his appearance. The thought though, did cause him to subconsciously scratch his chin, once again feeling oddly naked without his facial hair.

"Ar'yu implyin' tha' I can't dance?" He gave her a dirty look, as he stood up to glare at her. once standing though, he remembered that he could, in no way, rise to the challenge even though he wanted to. He stood there rather awkwardly, not knowing what to do.

[Akira]

Naomi nodded her head slowly when he said he wasn’t as flashy as the other men, but what she wouldn’t say is that she liked him this way, well she also liked him with a little bit of facial hair, but beggars can’t be choosers now can they? She gave him a quizzical look when he scratched his chin, and wondered if he missed his facial hair. She turned her head and listened as he spoke, and saw the dirty look he gave her as he stood up. I apologize if I have offended you Korvin, but no, I don’t. From what I can see it doesn’t look like you have very much confidence in your own abilities either. She smirked as she spoke, and even shook her head at him before turning back to watch the dancers. She was actually wondering just how long this song was gonna last.

[Zirin]

Korvin growled as Naomi hit the problem right on the mark. No, he had no confidence in his dancing abilities. Did that mean he was going to just fess up to it? No. This was definately getting him no where though, and at this rate he was going to be completely beaten by this 'new and improved' Naomi. That was worse than the embarassment of failing to dance.

"Well if yer so confident, why don't'cha show me 'ow it's done?" He held out his hand for her to take if she rose to the challenge. His expression was one of complete determination. He would learn to do this stupid dance and he would one up her! Eventually. He waited, wondering if she was going to reject him or not. In truth, it likely wouldn't matter, as by the time they got to the dance floor, the harpers would be finishing up the fast song and beginning a much slower one.

[Akira]

Naomi raised an eyebrow when she heard Korvin growling, and figured she had nailed it. I’m guessing that means I was right. Her words were more for herself than anyone else, but if he was paying close enough attention to her he would hear what she had to say. She had to admit, she really did like this little game as she had come to think of it. Whether he shared her view on this was unknown, but then again, she didn’t really care either. She was having fun, and had managed to learn more about him that she would have ever thought possible. Just how terrible his dancing skills really were exactly, was beyond her. But she aimed to find out, and soon apparently. She didn’t have to wait long for him to give her just the chance she had been waiting for.

Alright then, if you insist. Naomi acted like the perfect little lady, and even curtsied to him as she took his hand. He probably believed that she would mess up somehow or other, but she was bound and determined to show him that she meant business, and she wasn’t about to just give up and let him win after she had worked so hard at staying calm and not letting him see that she was a complete and total wreck on the inside. If keeping her mask meant dancing with the man she was trying to fool, well then, she was gonna have to dance and hope to hell that she didn’t fall over her own two feet. She was actually more worried about him falling over his own feet, or hers for that matter. She didn’t know what he could do and she really didn’t want him to be stepping on her the entire time they were dancing.

[Zirin]

"Don't ge' all full o' yerself," He replied, feeling more and more with each passing moment that he was making a big mistake. Where Naomi was having fun with the game, korvin was feeling an awful lot like the underdog. He knew he couldn't dance, and from Naomi's confidence, he was beginning to think she could. Would he make an utter fool of himself then?

He blinked stupidly as she curtsied, wondering why the hell she had done that when they both knew she was no Lady. Even still he took her hand, nervously, and gave the exit a longing look before swallowing his worry and manning up to the situation. With careful steps of his own he lead Naomi to the dancefloor, hoping and praying that the music would change before he had to start. It did change, though to a short, but equally fast paced song. Finally accepting that someone had it out for him, he stopped and turned to face Naomi.

He probably looked awkward as he moved closer to her, placing his hands on her back as he had seen the other dancers do it... though they were placed way too high on Naomi's back. He waited then, for Naomi to get into position as well. It was easy to tell, from his poor positioning and the look of uncertainty in his eyes that this was as much as he could figure out. Once the dance started he would fail. "W-Well?" Had he just stuttered? Shard it all!

[Akira]

Naomi just smiled innocently at Korvin’s words, knowing full well that she had hit the nail on the head. She had unnerved him, but the fact that he was willing to dance with her to try and salvage his pride was something that was a little unnerving as well. She could feel that he was nervous, and wondered if she would get out of this unscathed or not. Well, there was only one way to find out now wasn’t there? She let him lead her out onto the dance floor and wondered if he was upset by the change in music. This new song that the band played was still fast paced, but it was shorter, and she wondered if either of them would be able to live through this experience unharmed. She turned and faced Korvin, just as he had turned to face her, and she looked confidently into his eyes.

Naomi knew that was a mistake, but she did her best to hide the shiver of longing that she felt when she looked into his green eyes. On the outside she looked totally calm and composed, on the inside she was a complete mess that not even a dragon could dig through. She couldn’t help but notice Korvin’s awkwardness, and wondered just how scared he was of being on the dance floor with her. She moved into position and looked at him curiously when she felt him place his hands way too high on her back. You know very well that we can’t dance like this. It is too awkward. Her tone was matter-of-fact as she reached back to reposition his hands where they were supposed to be. Then she too placed her hands on his arms, seeing as there was quite the height difference between them, it was all she could reach.

Well what? If you are referring to what we are supposed to be doing, we dance. Naomi raised her eyebrows at him, and gave him an expression that clearly said, “Really?”. She just had to last through this one dance, and then she would be home free. Well, that’s what she hoped anyways. She knew she wanted Korvin to stay with her, but whether or not he would if he failed at this dance wasn’t something she let her mind dwell on for very long. She stood confidently in his grip, and waited for him to lead, just as all the other male dancers were doing, whether or not Korvin would rise to the challenge, was something this young woman was eager to see. At least then she would learn the extent of his dancing knowledge, which she didn’t have that much confidence in in the first place.

[Zirin]

Somehow Korvin doubted he would be slavaging any pride by the end of this. He should have left when he had the chance. It was too late now… if he left it would be with his tail between his legs and his head hung in shame. No… his only option now was to try and pray to Faranth that he’d somehow luck out. He gulped ever so lightly as they met eyes and he saw the confidence lying within them. He was never going to live this down and he doubted even running away from the Weyr again would change it. No doubt she’d hunt him down just to taunt him.

He huffed as she corrected his hand placement in an attempt to cover the fact that, no, he didn’t ‘very well know’ that they couldn’t dance like that. Brilliant, they were off to a fantastic start. He looked down at her as she spoke only now realizing the difference in height… had she always seemed so short? He was shaky slightly… so lightly it might go unnoticed if Naomi wasn’t paying attention.

“You don’ hav’ta state th’obvious,” He grumbled. His eyes shifted quickly away from Naomi’s to glance at the dancers before looking back to the woman. Left foot… right…. Left… back…. As he moved, his eyes continually glanced between Naomi and the other dancers as he tried to figure out how to move. Of course, he was paying so much attention to HOW to dance that he wasn’t doing too well with actually doing the steps. He was doing the steps… some of them at least… but they were sloppy, shaky, and it was obvious he had no clue what he was doing. He misstepped then, losing his footing and stumbling to the side awkwardly, though he didn’t fall.

“Shards…” He could feel the deep blush of embarrassment.

[Akira]

Naomi rolled her eyes at Korvin’s grumbling words, and she didn’t miss how he had glanced away from her. She wondered if he was trying to learn the steps to the dance they were doing by watching the others. Either way she had little time to think about it, for soon the two of them were dancing, though she had to admit, she was doing much better than him. You know, you’d do better if you didn’t stare at someone else’s feet. She made sure to whisper just loud enough for him to hear, after all, she didn’t want to completely humiliate him. She could tell that he had never done this before and was starting to wonder if she should take over the lead when he miss-stepped, and lost his footing. She was just glad that he hadn’t stepped on her feet, and that she had been quick enough to avoid him.

You need to relax Korvin. Don’t worry so much about if you are doing it right or not, just listen to the music, and the rest will just happen. She gave him an encouraging smile, and even though she was being nice at the moment, she could feel the taunts welling up inside of her. She would just have to wait till they were alone to unleash the harshest of the teasing. She raised her eyebrows at him when she saw him blushing, and couldn’t help the smirk that spread across her lips. Oh yes, he would definitely be in for some hard times after this. But for now she would play the part of concerned dance partner, and do her best to make sure no one suspects her to be anything else. Though she had to admit, it was taking a lot of effort on her part not to break out laughing.

[Zirin]

“I’m not starin’…” Korvin barked back, though his voice held a hint of defeat. He couldn’t believe she had stuck with him this long… unless she was doing it just to put him through as much torture as she could. If that was the case though… why was she speaking so quietly? It was obvious no one around had heard her teasing. Mind you, most of the nearby dancers had moved away to give the crappy dancer more space, yet another attack on his dignity. He looked back at her in time to see her preparing to speak, and he couldn’t stop himself from wincing in preparation for the verbal onslaught that was no doubt coming.

He blinked in surprise as her words were kind. He stared at her, his expression changing from surprised to wary. There was no way she was being this nice about it. Maybe he was with the wrong person? Or maybe she was going to make him drop his guard before taunting and teasing him for his poor dancing. Oh shard it! Now she was smirking at him! In a way he wanted to just break away and leave like he had before. She already hated him enough for that… and it would give her the victory, and he wasn’t quite ready to just hand that over without a fight. He knew there was no way he could fake it anymore. He knew Naomi was well aware of how terrible he was at this. Korvin took a deep breath to calm himself.

“Like this?” He asked. If he couldn’t beat her at dancing, at least he’d show he could handle it, show that he wasn’t afraid to ask. His stared into her eyes willing himself not to step on her feet, or trip over his own, as he tried to do the steps; albeit slowly. The tenseness in his arms hadn’t disappeared much, and his movements were still rigid and sloppy, but at least he wasn’t staring at the other dancers anymore.

[Akira]

Naomi heard the defeat in Korvin’s voice, and wondered if he was just gonna give up, though she had a feeling that things wouldn’t be so easy. It hadn’t surprised her much when the other dances moved further away from them after Korvin’s little…mishap. She tilted her head to the side as she watched his expressions carefully, amazed that she had been the cause for so many expressions to cross the man’s face. She had never seen him like this before, and wondered if she really was putting on that good of a façade. She got the feeling that he wanted to run away, just as he had before, but wasn’t sure if he was gonna actually run or not. It surprised her when he did the exact opposite, and asked her for help with his dancing. From what she knew, he had never asked anyone for anything.

Naomi could feel her heart race quicken with excitement and anticipation, why she was feeling these was a mystery to her, but she didn’t mind, the extra adrenaline helped keep her on her toes. She stared back at him, her smoky grey eyes never leaving his green ones. Though her eyes held a slight twinkle to them that he would no doubt notice, whether or not he would truly understand the meaning behind this twinkle she wasn’t sure, but that wasn’t in the front of her mind at the moment. No, she was more worried that he’d mess up again and actually step on her this time. See, now all you need to do is relax and things will come together better. She felt the tenseness in his arms, and wondered if that would ever go away, or if it would be a permanent thing whenever he was near her.

[Zirin]

Korvin was the type of man who did best when he was in his element. The dance floor, was as far from his element that he could get, and even the hunter couldn’t deny that he was just a ball of pathetic tonight. Even still, he was determined to protect that tiny shred of dignity, that little piece that said ‘I finished the dance, no matter how painful’. He could do this. He had survived felines and wild whers, the betrayal of his childhood, and the wilds for as long as he could remember. A stupid dance wasn’t about to beat him.

He kept his gaze locked with Naomi’s though the twinkle he noticed in them made him uneasy… as if she was taking great amusement from his suffering. No, he could almost guarantee it. Shards this was embarrassing… He tried to relax, he truly did, but each time he began to calm he’d misstep or lose where he was in the dance. Luckily, he seemed to be incredibly good at missing her feet… of that he was thankful.

“It’s not workin’.” He finally grumbled after a moment, his brow furrowed in concentration. Luckily, he didn’t have to fret for much longer. A few more moments of dancing and the song dwindled away as the harpers began switching up for different instruments and players. He stopped dancing and a look of pure relief flashed across his features before he finally seemed to get his wayward emotions under control again. He hadn’t removed his hands from her back yet, seemingly forgetting to do so in his elation at having survived. The next song to begin was finally something on the slower side. Korvin simply stood there dumbly.

[Akira]

Naomi was very thankful that every time he missed a step he would also miss her feet. She wasn’t sure what strange force was guiding his large feet away from hers, but she really was sending up a prayer of thanks. She had to roll his eyes at Korvin as he was once again grumbling. At least she didn’t have to listen to him complain for much longer since soon enough the music started to dwindle and fade away as the band began to change instruments and players. She giggled when she saw the look of pure, uncontrolled relief that crossed Korvin’s face at the change of music. If you would just relax you might make a decent dance partner. She was trying to taunt him into dancing with her once again, but she wasn’t sure that it would work since he didn’t seem to like dancing.

Naomi stared into Korvin’s green eyes, and wished she could just reach out, and make him say that he wanted to be with her, and that he truly did care for her. That’s when she noticed that he hadn’t taken his hands from her back, and she wondered if that meant that he wanted to dance again just to prove he could do it. She stared at him, motionless and soundless. She didn’t know what to do, or what to say for that matter. All she could do was stand there, and stare helplessly into those green eyes of his. She felt her control slipping away, but for some reason she just didn’t feel like trying to fix the situation, or trying to reinstate the control she once had over herself. Since she had no real control over whether he left again or not, she might as well just enjoy what little time she had with him left.