I wasnâ€™t positive how I felt about Katherine teaching me to dance. I wanted to learn of course I always had. I had a great fascination with learning new things as often as I could no matter what they were, but this was a bit different. I usually learned things on my own at my pace in my own way. There was trial and error and no one to watch me when I failed. I had tried so hard all day to appear as something more, something better than I am and now we were doing something that would surely preset me in a less favorable light. I didnâ€™t much like the idea of undoing all my hard work to impress her today, but I knew that I wasnâ€™t going to turn down her offer to teach me to dance. I would never say no to anything if it involved her. I could tell I was falling fast and the more time I spent with her the more hopeless it was that I would be able to go on if she wasnâ€™t with me.<br/><br/>I could feel my heart beat speed up as our fingers entwined. I knew that my face was probably going red and there was a sensation almost like being struck by lighting but pleasant traveling up my arm from our connected fingers. I had to wonder if she felt the same sensation that I did. We had spent a good deal of time together, but touching her was still new to me. I had only touched her a few times and I was usually prepared for it when it did happen. She had taken the initiative to grab my hand this time though so I hadnâ€™t been expecting the contact, which made my normal reactions to her heighten ten fold. I wasnâ€™t used to such strong reactions to anyone. I was completely consumed by them.<br/><br/>I didnâ€™t even realize how far we had gotten from everyone else for quite sometime. She was dangerous. I wasnâ€™t afraid of being alone with her. I wasnâ€™t worried about being away from the celebration or even learning how to dance. She distracted me so completely and though it didnâ€™t matter much in the village in the market or the woods it could lead to being caught stealing or hunting or even worse, doing magic. If it was just my own safety and life I wouldnâ€™t have cared, but anyone associated with me could be in trouble if it was magic I was found out in. I couldnâ€™t loose focus the way she made me. Being alone with her would help me practice being around her but paying attention to everything anyway.<br/><br/>I had to release an inward grown. Right pay attention. I hadnâ€™t even been paying attention to what she was saying I was distracted by the feel of her hand in mine, and had completely tuned out her words in favor of watching the care her lips took in forming them.<br/>What had she said? Right she had asked if I was OK. I felt my heart flip a little at her smile and not trusting my voice to be steady I just nodded in response to her question. I had to swallow the lump that rose in my throat when she placed my left hand at her waist. They didnâ€™t dance like this in the village. This was the way the courtiers danced not us. I had been nervous enough about learning to dance the way the people in the village did, but this was completely different. I wasnâ€™t sure I could do this. I tried to calm my ragged breathing as she placed my other hand where it belonged and her own right hand rested lightly on my shoulder.<br/><br/>I was just able to slow my breathing enough to pay attention to her instructions when they started. Ok left foot forward, right foot forward, left . . . oh no! I knew I wasnâ€™t made for dancing. Of course I had stepped on her toes. I wanted to pull back, but she seemed determined to continue. We danced in a small circle. I didnâ€™t step on her foot again, but I felt fairly certain I would have if I werenâ€™t being so careful. I realized I was actually rather light on my feet even if I wasnâ€™t a very good dancer. I suppose it came from walking in the woods so much, where sound might frighten away skittish game that might cross my path. We reached the end of one rotation and she said I could give her a twirl. I knew how to do this I had seen people do nothing but twirl in the village sometimes. I took the hand she removed from my shoulder in the hand that had been on the waist and twirled her around gently. In the village a twirl meant lifting your dance partner and spinning around and around with them, but I knew that wasnâ€™t what she meant when she said twirl. I let go of her right hand and placed my left hand back on her waist with a smile that clearly asked if I was doing well.<br/><br/>She seemed pleased with my progress and let me take the lead for the next rotation. We stayed in our own little world for the next three dances. We didnâ€™t change the actual steps of the dance, but as long as we changed with the tempo of the song it didnâ€™t much matter. I stepped on her feet no less than six times, but for the most part I think I did pretty well. I didnâ€™t step on her feet at all in the last dance and just for a bit of fun I twirled her the way we would twirl out dancing partners in the village by lightly lifting her by the waist and just spinning rapidly. It made me a bit dizzy and I decided it would be best to stop after that. I had made good progress anyway. I couldnâ€™t learn everything in one night anyway.<br/><br/>I was breathing a bit fast. â€œI think I need a break. We have already had quite a lot of physical exertion today and I had no idea spinning like that could make me quite so dizzy.â€ I touched my temple lightly. I listened closely. The music had stopped. I turned to see all the people hugging and dispersing. I looked up to see that it was getting rather late by the position of the moon. I took Katherineâ€™s hand in my own and walked back towards the center of the village wishing certain people good night and just smiling or waving at other. Marisa rushed and hugged me around the knees tightly almost making me fall to the ground in the process. I shook my head lightly as the little girl rushed home. There were a few people diving up what little was left. I shook hands with one of the men. â€œWe saved you some fish bones for stock Angel and Daisy wanted you to have some of these.â€ He took a small pouch from his pocket and handed it to me. I opened it slightly to see the small tufted green peeking at me from inside. â€œShe found a full patch of dandelion greens and she knows how you like them.â€ I thanked him and walked over to my house.<br/><br/>I ducked in. I didnâ€™t really want Katherine to see where and how I liked, but I wouldnâ€™t stop her after all she had been inside my house before. She had fallowed me to give me back the other earring. I left the door open leaving the option to enter or stay outside to her. â€œIâ€™ll be right out I just want to get my bow and change my shoes. I donâ€™t want to risk anything attacking us on the way back since we will be taking a short cut through the woods tonight.â€ It would get her home much faster to cut through the woods than to take the road we had traveled to get back here from the village. I looked in the pot to see one of the women had already started the fish bones boiling for stuck. I gave them a light stir and emptied my small bag of green into the mixture before grabbing my bow and a small quiver of arrows from the pallet I used as a bed.<br/><br/>I slipped off my better pair of shoes and slipped on a pair that was more like moccasins really before returning to the door. I spun my fatherâ€™s ring on my finger once and ran my thumb over my wrist looking for my motherâ€™s locket. I had forgotten I had replaced it with Katherineâ€™s gift.<br/><br/>I panicked for a moment before I felt the smooth mettle at my neck. I sat down at the table letting the breath that had rushed out of me fill my lungs again. I took out my motherâ€™s locket. It appeared in my hand. I had to see it. I opened it and beckoned for Katherine to join me at the small table. I flipped the small clasp on the side. It popped open revealing the two tiny pictures inside. He held it out so she could see. â€œThis was my motherâ€™s she never took it off, but she left it for me. On this side are my parents on the day they got married. They were so in love. Later my mother added this second picture of the three of us. She used to say it was so she could carry around the two most special experiences of her life with her wherever she went.â€ I shrugged. I got up from the table snapping the locket closed and letting it disappear again as it slipped under the neck of my shirt. â€œI could tell you were wondering what I removed from my wrist earlier. I thought you had a right to know, after all you probably know more about me than anyone else at this point. Funny isnâ€™t it.â€ I was trying to shrug off what I had told her. I was also trying my best not to invite questions about my parents. If I made it sound as if they had just died maybe she would assume that is what happened.<br/><br/>I grabbed the bow I had thrown on the table and the small game bag off of a peg that hung by the door. â€œCome on girly I have to get you home or I will wind up in jail for kidnapping the princess, and I doubt that it would be as easy for either of us to get out and have our adventures if your father decides to cut my head off.â€ I shuddered a bit at the very idea. I was rather attached to my head and did not want it removed. I was about to leave before remembering that it was already very dark. I grabbed a lantern. There wasnâ€™t a candle or any oil in it but that was one of the perks of being a wizard. When you had magic you didnâ€™t need fuel for a fire to burn. I pointed my finger at the small platform and a tiny ball of flames burst to life lighting up the lantern and giving us enough light to at least see the path we would take out of the village. â€œTimeâ€™s a wasting and your parents are probably already getting worried.â€ I grabbed her hand in the one I wasnâ€™t using to hold the lantern as I closed the door using my foot. We had already spent too much time here.