RP:Leotard Larz Learns Ballet
Summary: Lard & Llama meet up at the orphanage and teach ballet to the eager children. Lana surprised Larz with a glitter-covered leotard, much to everyone's amusement. Just another crazy adventure for these two!
The Orphanage of Gualon
The elaborate sign swinging from the doorway designates this building as the orphanage, as does the flurry of commotion that greets you when you enter. Half a dozen soot-smudged children push past you and into the sunny streets of Arena Avenue while you are greeted by a receptionist who inquires if you are dropping off or picking up. Paperwork is thrust your direction and unless you manage to get in that you are just visiting, you may find yourself the sudden and proud parent of a bright-eyed, street-wise urchin. The orphanage itself is a rather grand affair taking after the subtle decadence of the rest of the city. The first story is a veritable playground with plenty of activities and diversions for Gualon's younger population. If you manage to fight your way upstairs, past the orphans hanging around and off the wrought iron spiral staircase, you'll find yourself in an illuminated hallway with plenty of rooms to spare. There are two beds in each room, while two larger rooms at one end of the hallway house four. There is a nurse tidying up one of the rooms, arranging flowers from the exotic gardens of Gualon in an expensive vase on the nightstand. She directs your attention to the common room where giggles and peals of laughter can be heard echoing up the hall. The common room functions as both playroom and nursery, and a large skylight lets natural light in during the day and serves as a built-in nightlight during the evening hours. Back downstairs, you notice some of the urchins ducking outside a back door, but a couple of brooding teenagers spare you looks that suggest you might not want to follow. The nurse, both cautious and wary, mentions that the building has been magically warded against any sort of arcane attack. A towheaded six year old pulls at your hand and wants to know if you'll play tag along the river. You can stay and entertain the orphans or follow a group of them spilling out onto the cobblestone streets of Gualon.
It’s mid-afternoon and the Shelter for Younglings is in high spirits today, as several members of the Bard’s Guild have shown up to play soothing music for the children and monitor’s. The soft sound of harps, guitars, and flutes, fills the ears of those gathered in the cafeteria, which has been arranged so that the tables and chairs have been pushed to the far side of the room. The spacious center of the room is to be used as a makeshift dance floor and several of the young children eagerly await their instructions from a beautiful ballerina. About twenty orphans, sixteen of them girls, stand in pale pink tutu’s, while the four boy’s wear black leotards, and satin slippers adorn their feet. They range in age from four to ten, and are of various races. Some of the pre-teens stand to the side, either too shy or too ‘cool’ to dress in costume or take a dance class. The staff sits in the audience, maintaining a watchful eye for the children, as they enjoy the melodic music, and another group of children sits in a separate section, after having signed up for next week’s dance class. Tap Dancing! The brunette at the front of the group of children can’t help but grin as she arranges them into neat columns, making certain that the shorter of the kids is up front. They all looked so cute, and were so excited to dance! Once the arrangement is complete, she leads them into some breathing exercises, and some light stretches, as a warm-up, of sorts. Lana is wearing a leopard-print dance leotard, and likely has chosen such a vivid pattern, so that the little ones would easily be able to spot her, should they become disoriented from so much spinning. Her long hair has been pinned into a tight bun atop her head, and she wears black pointe shoes on her feet, also known as ballet slippers. The warm-up continues for about ten minutes, and her gaze frequently is drawn towards the entrance to the room, hoping that Larz would show up, as she had slipped a note beneath his door early this morning. “Okay! Are you all ready to learn some ballet moves? We’ll practice each move three times, and then we’ll add another step, and so on. Focus on me, and don’t worry about rushing, okay? This isn’t a race or a contest, and the music is just for fun. Later on we’ll dance to the beat, okay?” The little girls at the front of the line, thus the youngest and smallest, eagerly bob their heads, as they look at the prima ballerina with adoration in their eyes.
Largakh came home from his patrol before shopping for liquors and snack foods because it was his turn to host poker night with the guys. He slipped on the friggin note and fell right on his arse, but luckily the liquor bottles didn’t fall on the hardwood floor and break. With a grunt he sat up and glared down at what the heck he slipped on. A note!? A bit of anxiety washes over him as he reached for it, but let out a sigh when he sees it’s just from Llama and even though he’s a little perplexed as to why she was letting him know he said aloud, “she needs a witness?” An amused smirk before he goes back to setting things up for the night, pulling out a foldable card table and making sure he’s got enough tumblers out for everyone, but that cigar is still untouched - maybe it’s not even his. He nearly forgot about the note a little while later until he sat down and felt his sore butt muscle and cursed, “dammit Llama.” He stood right back up, grabbed his soft leather jacket that has the badge of the city guard on it before locking his door, but bumped back into that woman from before. Whoops, tonight isn’t a good night either, she’s pissed. He doesn’t care and continues on his way toward the orphanage. Fashionably late as he stands in the entrance, not to impose on the class, on of the teens that are ‘too cool’ for dance class gives Larz a fist bump. A little half feline girl no older than four who was doing her best to keep up spotted Larz though and screeches, “Lar-lar!” Giggling all the way toward the half orc and he crouches down to accept her hug with one of his own and lift her up, “wow, look at you,” he whispers to the girl. She lays her head on his shoulder before he mentions she’s missing out so she tries to squirm out of his arms to take her place once more.
Lanara goes through the routine once more, motions to the band to resume their playing, and walks up and down the columns. One little girl is having a hard time with the moves, and the elf politely helps the child to correct her posture, before she moves on to the next, a boy who can’t quite figure out how to do a pirouette, and so on. She had been teaching them for over an hour, and so far, she was impressed with their performances. They never had any sort of previous dance lessons, though they all had thrown themselves into the stretches, the splits, the strange posture holds, and relied on the strength of their arms and legs. One boy had left, realizing that ballet just wasn’t his thing, though she was certain he had eyed the sign-ups for next week’s tap class. After surveying each student individually, Lana returns to the front of the room, clasps her hands together and announces that it’s now lunch time and they’d have a half hour break. A long table to the far right of the room had various meat and cheese platters, fresh baked rolls, salads, and chips. To the left of that was a small dessert table, with platters of gooey brownies, chocolate chip cookies, fruit salad, and cupcakes with the icing resembling ballet slippers. Obviously the food was catered, and the baked goods were homemade, all courtesy of Professor Lanara. The woman wasn’t one to scrimp and save when it came to the fine arts, and she honestly had a soft spot for orphans, though she wouldn’t admit it. As the children excitedly run to the tables, she wags a disproving finger. “Eat your lunch first! Then dessert! And then we will go through the routine a few more times, and do some more light stretching.” She grins, enjoying herself, when one of the children runs past her with her little arms outstretched. Turning, she comes face to face with Larz, and she approaches the half-orc, her eyes full of mischief. “Lard! You missed the first half of class, but not to worry. You can be my assistant for the next part. I brought you a little something…” The smirk on her full lips likely would tell him that her intentions were wicked, as she grabs his hand and walks him over to a chair, which has a black male’s leotard, with so much glitter, that it sparkled from all angles. “I thought the kids may get a kick out of you dancing alongside of me. Maybe you’ll learn something… Or I’ll school you again, like I did in cards the other night?”
Largakh takes in the sight of the spread with an impressed whistling sound, but as the one kid was trying to exit the room he gently grabbed him by the bicep of his arm. “Sit,” he told the kid with a grin and the kid obeys because he respects him. Larz ignores Lanara’s rules and picks up a brownie while answering her, leaning down a little to explain why he was late, “bumped into some sleeze in the hallway.” He shoves the whole brownie square in his mouth and chewed with his lips closed, chewed some more…. Swallowed and finished his story, “needless to say she wasn’t happy when I told her I was going to dance class, but really I couldn’t because it’s card night,” A short chuckle, but his humor was gone when she provided him with a glittery leotard, “this is karma.” A long sigh, “I’ll be right back…” He takes the leotard with him and asked Minnie to direct him to a changing room. After a long moment he comes back to the cafeteria shamelessly in all of his vitiligo glory, but got a good laugh out of the kids and Larz didn’t care - he liked it when they laughed. Coming to the center of the room he gives the room a slow turn and doesn’t even blush at how too tight the damn thing was. Looking like all arms and legs, “I am ready to learn Llama.” He sticks his tongue out at her. She probably assumed he would be all alpha male and say ‘no way!’ But this half-orc is full of surprises in his green and blue skin. A hand held out to Lanara, “shall we?” He was going to have fun with this even if he was horrible at it.
Lanara widens her eyes as she finds that this is the -second- occasion in which she foiled his neighbor’s plans for an evening of romance with Larz. She feels terrible, of course, though she can’t stifle her giggles. “Love, lust, erm, your arrangement? It’s all overrated. All that nonsense brings you is heartache.” Clearing her throat, she glances away, before his mention of a night of cards with the guys has her returning her attention. “That sounds like fun! I can’t remember the last time I had a girl’s night… Oh, I guess it was about three years ago, now. We went shopping and had too much wine. Not really my idea of fun.” She shrugs, and nibbles on a cookie as Larz heads to the changing room, and a few of the kids run over to show her some moves of their own that they’d made up. She even goes as far as asking them for pointers and lets them have a turn at playing teacher. It’s all in good fun, and the kids seem to love the witch, though the tides turn as soon as the green-skinned half-elf enters the room and steals the show. The leotard clings to his figure like the color white on rice, and at first she means to burst into a fit of contagious giggles, though, her eyes do appreciate his form, and she immediately turns away. The last thing she wanted was to show any interest, in any man, ever again, least of all her favorite male to pick on. The music kicks up again as Larz approaches and extends his hand, which she takes, and tugs him to their designated place. The children line up and immediately work on their stretches, such good little students, though Lana can’t help but peek at Larz. “Lard. You missed this part. Here, first we must work on our legs. So… Drop into a center split. Like this.” His hand is dropped as her legs part and she lands on the floor, in a flawless split, her legs perfectly aligned, as her toes point out to the side. Even a few of the young boy’s struggle with this particular split, so she can’t wait to see if Larz is capable. If he were, she’d then use her hands to prop herself up a few inches, and maneuver into a forward split, so one leg pointed before her, and the other pointed behind. She’d give up on the torture, whether he was or was not able to keep up, as she was only teasing, and she’d rise to her slippered feet, and motion for the kids to do the same. “Alright. We are now going to work on a lift. Everyone grab your partner, please.” Before class she’d arranged it so the older kids, or the boys, would be paired with the smaller children, thus, preventing any injuries. Turning to Larz, she hesitates, as she looks into those tuscan yellow hues. “I will run, jump gracefully into the air, and you will grab me here…” She points to her lower rib cage, on each side. “ Fingertips pointed down, as you lift me over your head, until my waist is aligned with your cranium. You then will shift your hands, so your fingers point upwards, as I’m held in place. Okay. Let’s practice. Children, observe!” Lana looks somewhat nervous now, as though she doesn’t trust the six foot, seven inch, male to catch her, let alone hold her in place, as she gave the instructions for lowering their partner. “Lard. Don’t you dare drop me. Trust does not come easily to me and I don’t want any of the kids to get hurt….” Her voice trails off, as she speaks from the side of her mouth, so the kids wouldn’t overhear her lack of confidence.
Largakh informed Lanara before going to change that there was no way for his bed buddy to hurt him because he doesn't care about her, “she's selfish and unkind, plus why would I want to be with someone who can't stand being seen with me?” When she mentions a fun girls night, “nah, this is hard liquor and betting. You gonna come steal all our money?” It was a joke, but he'd make room at the table for her. After his showing off in the leotard, he got a glance of himself in the reflection of a window, saw how his muscular orc behind was exaggerated in the outfit and smirks, “looks like I'm coming for your title Lanara.” It was entirely a joke and he chuckled with a grin, but that slowly was wiped away as he's instructed to do the splits??? It's painful to look at and a concerned expression washes over his face, “alright…” His slippered feet start to slide apart on the hardwood floor and all is well until he gets halfway down and he starts to feel the tension in his inner thighs, but it's too late as he sunk lower and the pain went higher. Letting out a sort of suffering groan as he was still a good foot and a half from doing the splits, yet he cannot get himself back up. So he braces his hands and tilts forward which caused him to sort of fall to the front. The kids are roaring, it was like some slapstick comedy special to them, some doubled over grabbing their sides at how hard they were laughing. Larz got back up to his feet and grinned widely at the sight of this while saying to Lanara over the roar, “I did it!” He knows he didn't, but this gets more laughter from them and he does a little curtsey. Now he's being instructed to do something else entirely, setting his gaze down into Lanara’s deep brown eyes and a nod given. He wasn't sure why she wanted to try something so risky with him because for a moment there he saw a flash of mistrust in her gaze. Well, it wasn't risky to him, she's small and easily liftable. Someone queue ‘The Time of My Life’! Once Lanara gets enough space he firmly plants his feet in wait for her to prance towards him. When she was close enough he bends at the knees, places his hands firmly without squeezing her just below her ribs as instructed and hoisted her right overhead. She sways just slightly backward, but he corrects it and goes to adjust his hands as she instructed. This is where he nearly loses her and she's falling behind him, yet the orc quickly turned and held out his arm effectively catching her and holding her to him. Suddenly he notices these leotards are entirely too thin and the ruggedly built front of him could feel every muscle next to her spine in her back. He set her down selfy and slipped his arm from around her waist, “I'm sorry Lanara, one more time. I've got this, we’re so close.” Sure he almost dropped her, but he made sure to catch her! He didn't care if he had to hit the floor before her so she had something to land on - he’d do it. Now he grabs her hand and tugs her back to the place she started before giving her another crooked grin, he was having fun with this, surprisingly. Once he was back in place, lined up to her he motioned for her to run at him, “let's do this.”
Lanara didn’t comment on the invitation to play cards with his orc buddies, for two reasons. One, she’d play the pants off of the not-so-bright greenies, and two, because she didn’t wish to be in a room full of men that would likely ogle her the entirety of the night. Not that she disliked being admired, she just didn’t want to feel uncomfortable. The comment made about Larz stealing the title for best arse does make her roll her eyes, but she laughs heartily, all the same. Minutes later, as they’re doing their splits, she can’t help but keep that grin plastered on her pretty face, as the children double over in laughter. Little Rowena in the front row, with two missing teeth, chuckles so hard that she falls over, and points at Larz, “Don’t rip your leotard! Miss Lana will yell at you!” And so, she perfectly plays the part of the scolding schoolteacher and wags a finger at the male, eyeing his barely there splits, as he claims he ‘did’ it. “Now Lard! Don’t you go splitting your glittery suit down the center! We are here to dance, not flash the children!” Even some of the staff giggle at both Larz’ nickname and the fact that he couldn’t get as low on the floor as the others. The elf finds that she can’t remain stern for too long, and she throws her head back and laughs. She’s pleasantly surprised that the male wore the god-awful feminine outfit, participated in acts that made him look like a fool, and that he was good natured and laughing amongst the children. Not many men would put up with the elf’s antics, though Larz flawlessly went through the motions and seemed to be having fun, even if it was at his expense. The laughter dies down as cushioned mats are brought out and are placed over the floor for when the children attempt the lifts, though there is no rubber landing beneath Lana and Larz as they are the instructors. “Okay…” Hesitation is in her gaze as she prances prances forward, as graceful as a gazelle loping through a field of flowers, and on the fourth step, she steps on the tips of her toes, and leaps into the air. A soft glide follows, as her toes point back, her slender arms point upwards in an arc, and her head is regally lifted as though she were looking at the ceiling. Her ribs are gently touched as he holds her in place, only to lose his grip and she bites her lower lip, knowing that he was going to drop her down the length of his near seven foot height. She didn’t fear the drop, as she’s taken many a tumble before when dancing, and her gymnast figure was used to a few bumps and bruises. The fear lies in the fact that it causes a flashback, and for a moment, the woman is disoriented as she’s grasped around the waist and lowered to the floor. Her curves glide along his frame and a faint blush rises in her cheeks, as she mentally curses the too-thin attire they both were wearing. “Uh, thanks.” Larz would notice that she was trembling, unable to meet his gaze, and that she gives her form a long once over, as though making sure she was whole. He had caught her at the last second, and for that she was grateful, but it was obvious something deeper was happening as an old memory struck a chord. “Very well. Again.” The show must go on. A feigned smile is give to the children, and she finds that some of them are still maintaining the hold, whereas her own hadn’t been as successful. Lana walks up and down the mat, correcting posture here and there, and this time her smile is genuine. “Very good, kids! I’m so proud of you all! Okay, I’m going to try the lift again with Larz, and then follow my lead as I break my hold, before he lowers me to the ground. Spotters! Please, come stand by the holders for this part. I don’t want anyone to get hurt.” Resuming her earlier position, she clears her throat, locks eyes with Larz and gives a small nod, before she takes off running towards his outstretched arms.
Largakh would have probably explained just because he's an orc doesn't mean all his friends were and he wouldn't let her feel uncomfortable in his presence. He watched a few practice and was quick to catch a little one about to fall flat on her face, but made it fun for her and had to soar like a bird before setting them down- mission accomplished he got a giggle out of the little one. Larz was confident he got the hang of it now, isn't everything trial and error? He'd never let her fall though and that he was sure on, maybe when she locked eyes she would see that flame flicker in determination. He was ready for her again, got her into the air, arched his back and succeeded in perfectly balancing her, even taking a few steps back so it felt like maybe she was gliding. She had not really instructed on how to bring her down so he sort of wings it, copying something he's seen at some talent show. Planting his feet shoulder width apart and staring by bending his elbows in while slowly straightening his back. They became close as he lowered her further and further down his own form, at a moment they were face to face and when he finally gently set her back on his feet he was just looking down at her, having to tilt his head down to do so. Thankfully a distraction presents himself as the little girl from before was tugging at his arm making him back away slightly, he knelt down next to her and had to clear his throat before asking, “hey Selina, are you having a good time?” The little girl nods and pulls in into that not-really-quiet-whisper, “Lar-Lar, will you be my boyfriend now that I'm a pretty ballerina like miss Lana?” He gives the girl a coy grin, “I would say yes even if you weren't a ballerina. Never change yourself for someone else,” he said kindly and the girl planted a small kiss on his cheek before running off to freestyle with the rest. He stood back up and tried to remain casual as he asks Lanara, “was there anything else you wanted to show?” He wiped his cheek subtly, not that there was anything on it, but he just felt he needed to.
Lanara holds the post in the air, and instructs the ‘flyer’ ballerina’s to bend their legs upwards, to their waist, and to place their hands atop the shoulders of the one that would be lowering them to the floor. They all manage to do it with ease, and thankfully, none of the children get hurt, though the descent is significantly longer for Lana, as Larz is much taller than even the oldest boy at the orphanage. Their figures are tightly pressed against each other, as she she slides the length of his form, and tilts her head to maintain eye contact. To the audience it would look as though they had practiced this move a hundred times, as it’s executed with flawless precision. And ballet often told a tale of love, or the male trying to capture the affections of the female. It was rather believable in the way they held their place for a lingering second, gazes locked, before Selina interrupts, and Lana steps to the side. The little girl was adorable, and she can’t help but smile as she asks Larz to be her boyfriend, and it gives her a moment to ease the blush that had snuck into her high cheekbones. She had underestimated the male, that was for sure. He was capable of holding his own on the dancefloor and in a fight, as he had recently proven both. “Okay. So now, remember the routine we learned earlier? We’re going to do it one more time, and at that lift at the end! Music, please?” A slow melody picks up, and she looks at the man to her left. “Okay, you missed all of this earlier since you came in late. So just do your best to keep up, okay? Good luck, Twinkle Toes.” She winks, counts to three, and the dance begins, in perfect rhythm to the music. They first start with basic movements of their feet, which is the first through fifth position, only to drop into a plie, followed by a saute, and ending with a releve. All of this is done in place, at a slow tempo, until the music picks up, and they’re off, moving to the left and right, gracefully swaying, and doing a trio of pirouette’s. The elegant steps become slightly more difficult, as they do a battement, which leads into a arabesque. The steps are repeated, thrice, only to be followed by five mini twirls, and the females drop into a center split, while the males aim for the attitude derriere position. At once, they all engage in floor movements, such as a backwards roll, and end in a forward split. They slowly rise to their feet, do another trio of twirls, a pointe, and then Lana prances to the right, and looks at Larz, hoping he would be ready for her, as she runs towards him, and follows with a jete, also referred to as leap. Her legs extend, her arms gracefully slide to the front and point up in an arch, as her chest and head point up towards the ceiling. Larz’ hands hold her in place, and she can’t help but smile, as she peeks at the children, excitement plastered on their faces. Despite the fact that none of the kids had previous training, and she had taught them some pretty advanced steps, the two hours of teaching had immensely paid off. The audience applauds, some of the staff gives a standing ovation, and even the ‘too cool’ kids are seen giving whistles and clapping for their fellow orphans. “We did it!” Lana whisper to Larz, before she gracefully pulls her long legs in, and waits for him to lower her to the ground.
Largakh watched her and attempted the movements best he could and he doesn't do too awful… Meaning he at least didn't get in the way and maybe once he stood there stupified by how she managed to captivate the entire room. This may have been the only time his gaze lingered on every curve of her body, but it wasn't in that sleazy ‘Gods damn she's hot’ way, but appreciative on how she used every muscle to tell a story and this really struck something with him. When she was ready to queue, even though there was trust in her gaze this time there was a sort of loss in his own, but he was confident to lift her again and just as before convicts the move. Looking up at her and the way she seemed to light up the entire room. He thought her decent down wouldn't feel like it lasted nearly as long as the first time, but he was wrong and wished there was a way he didn't have to look right into her eyes while he set her down… It was a charged moment and the applause seemed so far in the distance, “yeah… You did.” He stood there, looking down at her for a moment while seemingly out of breath and eventually started to back away when the children crowd around her, hugging her and thanking her, asking when will she be back. Larz would slip from the room in order to try and find his clothes once more, jaw tense, gaze sort of clouded over. Once he comes back out he's at reception with Minnie, one of the kids are being adopted tomorrow and they wanted to see Larz one last time. He asked Minnie if she had an old potato sack laying around for him to put that glittery leotard in, even if he needed to return it he wanted to wash it first. This isn't the first time a kid wanted to say goodbye to him, but it was never easy. So he finds them in the courtyard and they sit, talk privately, the kid was happy, but in tears and throws their arms around Larz to which he comforts them for as long as they needed it…
Lanara looks up at Larz, those impossibly long lashes fluttering against her cheeks, as she drops into an exaggerated curtsey. “Thank you for the dance. You’re not so bad at this sort of thing, Lard. I must say I was expecting much worse from you.” She smiles, until she realizes that she still has her hands clinging to his shoulders, and she immediately lowers her arms and looks away. Their shared moment of intense eye gazing had caught her off guard, and though she was a dancer and was rather used to feigning passion with a look or touch, she wasn’t faking anything during that dance. Especially not in front of the children! The heat remains on her face, and she’s relieved that the awkwardness dies down as the kids crowd around them and she’s pulled into hugs and answering a line of questions about her dance experience. After thirty minutes of being fawned over, she excuses herself to a wash room, and she pulls her hair from the bun, and finger combs her long locks. The black leotard and leopard print tutu are placed upon a hanger and into a garment bag, and she dresses in her everyday clothing: leggings, a corset, and a backpack over her shoulders. She was happy that the dance class was a success and their little smiling faces had warmed her heart, and she was excited to teach the other half of the students a tap class in the coming week. The blush has left her face, and she looks into the mirror, to find that unwelcome tears are welling in her eyes. “Oh…” Dipping her fingers into the wash basin, she dabs at her face, and dries the tears, before doing some breathing exercises, and exiting the washroom. She briefly speaks with Minnie, who mentions that she’d love to learn some sassy, saucy, dance moves, and the two discuss another class that Lana offers to a select few. She had sworn off that class upon becoming engaged, but seeing as this was a woman, she obliges, and the two make plans to meet up in the near future. The elf says a quick goodbye to the kids, and exits the building, only to find Larz hugging a little boy in tears, in the courtyard. She waits until he catches her gaze, and she gives a small wave, not wanting to intrude. She mouths, ‘I’m leaving’ and turns on her heel, her as she clutches the hanger with her uniform to her chest, and heads for the path. With the shelter now out of sight, she sighs and looks to her left and her right, her mind momentarily clouded. “Hm. Where should I go next…?” Clearly, the woman didn’t have a plan, or a place to stay, or perhaps, she suffered from wanderlust and lived the life of a nomad.