Wow... it's been a long, long time since I touched this, and I appologize deeply. None the less, I finally finish this tale. I hope you enjoyed it, Salinye. *bows*
The Hostel blazed with lights, lighting the path leading to its door as the evening sky darkened further, the deep, deep blue turning to black, sprinkled with glittering stars. Far below the glowing stars, a carriage rolled to a halt in front of the Hostel, and Salinye stepped from it gracefully, not needing the aid of the driver. She smiled and thanked him before slowly walking towards her Hostel, her evening dress reflecting the sky above her. Deep black velvet, sequins scattered seeming at random, but with a precision that showed the expert skill that went into the gown. The sides of the gown were slit up to just above her knees to allow her the freedom necessary to dance, and she smiled as one of the workers opened the door, nicely dressed in a tuxedo and with his hair slicked back.
"Jeffery!" Salinye exclaimed. "I didn't know you could clean up like that." she teased, patting him fondly on the shoulder.
"I don't think Melissa thought I could either." he admitted with a chuckle, offering Salinye his arm, which she accepted, and leading her through the Hostel, passing by the closed doors to the main hall, instead stopping at the door to a smaller room off the main hall. Opening the door, he let the soft glow of candles spill out, along with the scent of fresh roses. "Ma'am, your date awaits you." he said, his formal tone belied by the roguish twinkle in his eyes.
"Why thank you, kind sir." Salinye said fondly before stepping into the candlelit room, enjoying the scent of the roses. "You better not have hurt my rosebushes, GyrE." she warned, smiling at the half-elf standing next to the table with his own smile.
"Of course not, I asked Ardavial for his help and he coaxed the bushes to produce a few extra flowers." the half-elf said, grinning as he stepped forward. Each corner of the room was decorated with roses, with another vase at the table in the middle.
"A few?" Salinye asked skeptically, looking at the sheer number of roses.
"Well, a few per bush... it did sort of add up." Gyrfalcon said, bowing gracefully and kissing the back of her hand before straightening again. Smiling, he took her fingers in a gentle grip and led her to the table, pulling out her chair and letting her seat herself before helping her slide it back in before taking his chair. As if on cue, a woman that Salinye recognized - Hiraka, one of Yui-chan's retainers, slipped through the doorway and slipped their salad plates onto the table with an economy of motion and grace that took years to perfect. Bowing slightly to them, she withdrew just as silently to return with two glasses of wine, which she set before the two of them. She gave them a deeper bow, and then slipped back through the door, smiling as their thanks reached her ears.
The dinner moved along nicely, course following course, the two eating quietly for the most part or chatting lightly about different things, teasing each other about what they had been doing with the other's home the past few days. Finally, Hiraka cleared away the plates from the meal, and Gyrfalcon smiled at Salinye. "Ready for dessert?" he asked, eyes twinkling with suppressed mischief.
"What do you have planned, GyrE?" she asked suspiciously as Hiraka slipped through the doors and placed small pot in the middle of the table, from which rose the delicious smell of melted chocolate.
"Chocolate fondue!" Salinye exclaimed with a wide smile as Hiraka returned with a two plates, one filled with strawberries and cherries, the other with little squares of cake.
Salinye immediately picked up one of the strawberries, dipping it in the chocolate and ate the treat with a shiver of delight. "Mm... perfect."
Gyrfalcon chuckled and sampled one of the bites of cake with the chocolate and nodded. "This is really good... Taron wouldn't let me sample any beforehand."
Salinye just grinned at him as she sampled a piece of the cake, while he grabbed a cherry and bit into it carefully, avoiding the seed.
Several minutes later, they settled back contentedly, and Salinye smiled happily at Gyrfalcon. "Thank you GyrE, that was wonderful." He grinned back at her.
"Oh, that wasn't everything." he says as he gestured, and the doors were thrown open, revealing the banquet hall, brightly lit by the chandeliers, and many familiar faces smiling at the couple.
"Feel like some dancing, Salinye?" Gyrfalcon grinning at her look of surprise at their many friends smiled, raised glasses in toasts or cheered. In the corner, a small orchestra struck up a simple dancing tune.
"I would love to." Salinye said, rising with the half-elf and accepting Gyrfalcon's hand as he guided her into the middle of the ballroom. She was surprised at the number of guests... many of the Pennites were present, and she could see Peredhil talking with Mira, while Guido and Nuncio swapped tales with Jonathan Wolfe. Yui-chan smiled radiantly on Aegon's arm, while a distinctly uncomfortable looking Daryl paid attention to a stunning young woman. "Who's that, GyrE?" Salinye asked quietly.
Gyrfalcon took a look and grinned. "That's Jehane, Daryl's girlfriend... I see she managed to get him into a tuxedo after all." he said, before turning to face her and stepping back to bow.
"Might I have this dance, dear lady?" he said formally, and Salinye could feel a blush rise to her cheeks. "Of course." she said, offering her hand, which he accepted. As they began to dance to the melody, other couples stepped onto the dance floor, joining them for the first dance of the night.
The orchestra continued to play, and the candles burned down as song after song and dance after dance passed. Finally, as it approached midnight, Gyrfalcon smiled at Salinye "Might I have one final dance?"
"Of course." she said, smiling back as he took her hand and surprised her by leading her towards the doors to the garden rather then the dance floor. The others followed, Daryl and Jehane slipping out ahead of them. The garden was lit by softly glowing globes hanging from the limbs of the trees in the garden, or decorating the many rosebushes. Dominating the center of the garden was a three-tiered fountain, filling the air with the sound of gently falling water. As the orchestra took up their positions in the corner of the garden, Jehane whispered softly and touched the water of the fountain, causing a shimmering ripple to work its way back up the flowing water. Stepping back, she smiled at Gyrfalcon and Salinye.
"Alright, that should do it." she said, smiling as Gyrfalcon lead the Salinye to the fountain. Without hesitation, he stepped up onto the water, and Salinye blinked in surprise as he stood on top of the flowing liquid, offering her his hand to help her up. She smiled as she realized the nature of Jehane's magic and took his hand as they found their way to the top tier, just enough room there to dance slowly.
And dance they did as the orchestra played softly, their friends dancing around them and the moon rode high overhead.
