CS Formal part 4 of 4

Catori clung to Landon’s right arm, her cowboy boots lightly clicking unto the kingdom’s marble floor, the sound of music faintly playing off in the distance. The closer they got, the more nervous Catori felt. She glanced over without turning her head at Yari who was holding unto Landon’s left arm, her face full of the confidence she always had; Catori held down her small tinge of jealously at Yari’s ability to excel at everything she wanted. As the main doors opened, the sound of music became much louder, as did the voices inside.

 She hummed The Ladies lullaby in her mind, reminding herself to breath normal, trying to keep her hands steady so neither Landon or Yari could tell that Catori felt a small panic attack coming, and they weren’t even fully inside yet; the stubborn side of her refusing to run away before she even gave the formal a chance. Landon waggled his arm a little bit, breaking Catori’s attention to what was going on inside, and pulled her attention back to him, "Relax, if things get too overwhelming just let me know and we can leave. Easy as that. Okay?"

Catori gave a weak laugh, “Sure, though I hope it doesn’t come to that” sounding more confident than she felt. Mentally she kicked herself, she would not let herself be the party pooper that night; even if she was already missing the blanket fort back in Landon’s apartment. Landon’s small smile made Catori relax a bit; enough that she could turn her attention to The Lady of the Stars, who was at the main entrance, greeting everyone.

Catori released Landon’s arm so he could take the Lady’s hand in his own, placing a soft kiss on the back of her hand. The ladies presence brought a sense of calm to everyone around her. When Catori shook her hand, there was an underlying emotion, she wasn’t sad; in fact she felt a sense of excitement at seeing the three of them, but something that made the spirits tell Catori everything wasn’t 100% either. Catori shook off the tugging feeling and didn’t show any sign of the acknowledgement, it wouldn’t be proper or even considerate if she started to question the legendary Lady in front of everyone; instead just gave her a nod and a wave as they continued unto the ball room floor.

Most of the other constellations were already there, some mingling while others were dancing to the music playing up above. Catori felt Yari’s excitement to show off her own dancing skills, eager to show everyone what she had taught Landon over the years and blow them all out of the water. Catori gave Lan’s arm a light squeeze before letting go of his arm again; “alright, you kids have fun; I’m gonna go…. Get used to the area.”

 “Aww come on chica, at least let me teach you how to Bachata, if I can show this lug, then your hick ass can certainly learn.” Yari huffed.

 “As exciting as that sounds, I’d rather not be learning anything in front of all our peers, thank you very much.” Catori shook her head, looking at both their concerned faces “I’ll be fine really, the fact that I’m here is a huge step for me, and I’d just rather not overdo it by being in the center of everyone’s attention; besides, everything Yari does is always the center of attention.” Catori smirked at Yari, waggling her finger in her direction.  “I’m gonna go mingle with people, so I promise I will not just be looming in the corner by myself.” Catori put her hand lightly on Landon’s cheek, his face bringing a warm smile to her face, his eyes on hers made the room a bit more quiet; letting Catori let out a small exhale of relief.  “This is more of your guys’ shtick anyhow, but feel free to call me over if you need a line dancer.”

 Landon lightly kissed the tip of her thumb “Or if they call out the belly dancers?” He asked teasingly, a small glint in his eye. Catori patted his cheek with the rest of her fingers, a smirk spread across her face “I am wearing too much clothing for belly dancing silly,” She waggled her eyebrows at him, flirting a bit before turning and making her way to the edge of the ballroom; leaving a very confused Yari to question Lan.

 The first person Catori came upon was Arina sitting in the corner, Catori understood her frustration at all the loud noises everywhere, and sat down next to her. They made small talk for a few minutes, but quickly excused herself when she felt Arina’s need to escape to the forest outside; just because she couldn’t personally run out the door didn’t mean she was going to stop anyone else either. Catori spotted Priss as she was on her way out to the dance floor. Not wanting to stop her, she patted on her own chest and flashed a peace sign, puckering out her lips. Priss returned the gesture with a stuck out tongue before stepping out.

Catori looked around, everyone seemed so busy, the voices sounded like a rampart blur mixed in with the music and people actually talking. Her legs just randomly leading the way, giving waves to people and small bits of asking how they are doing. Catori walked back around, her sight stopped upon The Lady. She remembered the undertone feeling she got earlier and made her way over, most, if not all the constellation were already here, so it wouldn’t hurt to go chat.

The Lady smiled warmly as Catori walked beside her “Why hello Catori, why aren’t you dancing with Yari and Landon, you came with them didn’t you?”

 Catori shrugged, “I am not huge on formal events to be honest; dancing in a crowd of people tends to overwhelm me, even the small crowds.”

 The Lady gave an ‘ah ha’ face and smiled warmly, “Yes, the former Lynx was not big on fancy events either, she’d have much rather been outside playing than inside surrounded by everyone.” For a second, her expression changed, the look of loss and nostalgia together, before returning to her warming presence.

Without even trying, Catori had discovered what it was the spirits were trying to tell her; The Lady that sat before her was happy to see all the constellations together for this event (Even those that were being anti-social) but she missed the former constellations too. Could there be any doubt, Catori knew The Lady had practically raised many of the former constellations like they were her own children and now they were all long gone.

Catori slowly kneeled next to The Lady, she was much different from the former Lynx, but the need to see her smile felt just as strong. She looked around slightly, no one was paying attention to the two of them; Catori tilted her head slightly “Ya know… I think I feel a bit of an itch behind my ear.” The Lady paused, slightly in confusion before her whole demeanor warmed, her finger tips scratching Catori behind the ear. Catori purred using her tongue, giggling a bit at how silly she felt; but as the lady started to giggle along with her, she felt better. After a few minutes, The Lady stopped scratching; Catori looked up at her and both of them started to laugh.

 “Thank you for that Catori, I had forgotten how much I missed that.” She shook her head slightly, the smile still wide on her face, “But shouldn’t you get back to the others?”

 Catori looked up, everyone looked like they were having fun; her eyes paused on both Yari and Landon, still dancing fabulously. “Nah, I’m good. Don’t want this hick to put a damper on the evening.” She smiled slightly, resting her hands on the arm rest before putting her chin on them. “I don’t see this event playing any country or the chicken dance so I’d just be hanging back anyway.”

 “Chicken… Dance?” An eyebrow raised on The Lady’s face; a sense of morbid curiosity arising.

 Catori put her forehead to her hands, shaking it slightly and laughing “It’s a seriously stupid dance taught to young kids around Easter time.” She stood up slowly, feeling her face turn red in embarrassment, but she told herself sternly that if she made her Lady smile once, maybe she could do it again, even if it was at her own expense. She looked around with no change to the environment and stepped back a couple of feet in front of the Lady of the stars.

Catori hummed the tune along with the moves, she had planned on stopping on the second go around when she heard an excitable “oh my gawd, it’s the chicken dance!” with a an equally excitable Iolana appearing next to her, her humming joining Catori’s. ‘Okay, one more person isn’t so bad,’ Catori told herself just in time for Bernie to appear, somehow managing to make the chicken dance look like the latest club sensation. Catori chuckled nervously, but kept up the dancing so long as the other two were in on it.

The Lady looked on in bewilderment as more people quickly joined in the humming and dancing, turning the volume of its silly tune to a noticeable level. Catori noticed Camryn and Fev dancing slightly behind her as well as Xhosa attempting to join in, mimicking the others moves. Catori’s face heated up even more, her heart beating faster than a scared rodent.

The vision of someone foaming at the mouth came to mind as Catori looked up, Yari stood a bit of a distance, her eyes wide in appalment before she heard her yell, “but they’re so bad! Landon James Shepherd let go of me or so help me I will hurt you!” her voice whined a bit “I have to teach them, Let me goooo!”

 “Crap, Cuban five-O!” Catori yelped, stopping all movement. Gentle words slide into her mind, “Thank you Catori; I’ll try to give you a head start…’ The Lady smiled, her hand discreetly pointing towards a door off in Catori’s direction before she stood up and turned towards the upcoming Cuban princess.

Catori slid away from the ever growing dance troupe of people and made her way to the forgotten door. As soon as she got it closed behind her she started off as a jog, then a full run as she made her way down the long hallway. Her breath wheezing slightly, she had done too much in too little time; too many people in what felt like too small of a space. She took two lefts, a right and then another left before reaching a random door that Catori pulled open and shut behind her. She leaned forward unto her knees, trying to regulate her breathing. The magic in the room activated, lighting the room dimly. Catori looked up and immediately recognized the room as the former Lynx’s (And later Lupus’ as well) bedroom.

Her heart still beating faster than she’d like, but her breathing almost returned to normal she stood up and slowly walked around the room, taking in the simple room, the main attraction was the bed itself, which looked beyond inviting. Catori slowly crawled unto the bed, kicking off her boots, taking in the scent of cinnamon and mint that emitted from the blanket and pillows, she put her head on one of the pillows while using the other as a sort of plushy, clutching it to her chest . Catori hummed herself The Lady’s lullaby until her whole being was calmed down.

“Too much too soon,” She thought to herself, her mind recapping everyone’s expressions that evening, from Priss’ passing by, to The Lady’s smile, to Landon’s teasing smirk; she couldn’t help but smile slightly; “But I am certainly learning.”

She would rejoin the formal when she felt ready, but until then she enjoyed the quiet and floating memories of sweeter times.

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See all the other parts here: 
   

Catori- Me
Lady Of the Stars- nickyflamingo 
Yari- hiddengardenia 
Landon- SailorAlcyone 
Arina- WingsForDreams 
Priss- snow-princess 
Iolana- KOSMOS-ver3 
Bernie- WanderingKotka 
Xhosa- kenlybop 
Fev- Shade-Arts 
Camryn- Sakura-Chirari 
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