Chapter 120: Reason
Jien took Mrs. Romero's hand calmly under the gazes of all those present and began walking calmly toward the dance floor his back straight under the eyes trying to bore holes into him. It wasn't that that anyone was angry over the choice, simply shocked and desiring to dig through his mind to discover the reason for his choice. Despite everyone else's confusion there were two who understood his train of thoughts, one being Mrs. Romero who was accompanying him onto the dance floor with a knowing smile, the other being the ever aloof and cold Barret who would have made a similar move if the other party hadn't been his own mother.
As Jien and Mrs. Romero took center stage on the dance floor Mark and Emily walked until they were in parallel, shortly followed by Runa and Lord Losler to the opposite side. The first dance was to be a simple waltz as was tradition. The partners were to consist of the hosts and their chosen guests, and the waltz would be a slower pace but also more advanced variation to show the dancer's prowess. Following this dance the hosts would be able to move to have more dances or take a break, though the second option was seen as slightly rude unless there was a just cause.
Jien silently and calmly set his hand on Mrs. Romero's waist, and she did not hesitate to place her hand on his shoulder, their left hands joining as the band in the corner readied themselves for a few short moments. Soon a slow melody started to ring through the marble floored hall and the pair took their first step, followed by another. The dance was stiff at first as Jien was dancing with someone that he was not familiar with, but as the steps passed, he became more and more comfortable.
He hadn't spent his time being trained to dance for nothing, his steps calm and agile as he led his partner through the steps as was considered proper. They twirled with steps leading them to interweave with the other two pair as the speed of the music started to pick up. Gloria was able to follow Jien's lead easily from the start, having been trained as a member of the side family of the royals, not to mention her own martial prowess.
Once she noticed Jien become more comfortable her smile lightened up a touch as she began to speak with him, a common practice among these traditional dance exchanges. "Interesting choice, choosing me as your partner among everyone present." She commented this in a light tone as Jien led her into twirl that caused the hem of her dress to flair out like a blooming flower, matching the purple of Runa's and deep azure of Emily's.
Jien kept his eye contact with her as he had from the start, a more genuine smile on his lips than prior. "I'm sure you are aware of the reason for my choice." he stated calmly as they continued to move. "I have nothing against any of those present nor am I trying to ruffle feathers." With that he let the topic drop and Gloria did not try to add anything to it either. Indeed, she knew the reason he chose to dance with her over Rosalind or Olivia. It was simple really; he was just doing what Barret had done during the round robin by avoiding things altogether.
Barret didn't want to lead, at least not in an upfront manner and Jien begrudgingly accepted the role of 'leader' for this group but simply didn't want to draw any lines that could cause issues later. It was a matter of pride if he had chosen one of the two young ladies. If he chose one and the other took offense it would cause problems with the group dynamic. Even though such a thing shouldn't happen the hearts of humans were fickle.
Any conflict in the group before they figured out how they would work together would cause problems down the line. If the initial problem wasn't resolved quickly enough it would hurt everyone in the long run. They were brought together here to get to know each other so that they could attend the academy together in a few years, not to start a childish fight that could start a blood feud if things went too far south.
While it only took the adults a minute or two to come to this realization their children were still young. The fact that Jien came to a conclusion like this and chose a path outside their original expectations showed that he had a certain wisdom. The children however did not understand, and Rosalind took the choice a lot harder than Olivia had. That being said a bit after the dance had started, she managed to calm her emotions, trying to understand.
She discussed with the other noble children to try and understand so as figure out if it was something to do with them. At the end of a couple minutes of conversation Rosalind, Olivia Lesley and Bernard weren't able to figure it out. Barret had remained silently to the side as he listened to their back and forth. At the end of the conversation when Rosalind was starting to get a bit upset over it all the silent Barret light out a light sigh. "He did it to try and avoid exactly what is happening right now. He didn't want us in conflict." His voice was calm and a touch cold, but it left the other four confused. They couldn't understand what he meant.
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