to the ends of the earth

Being fully honest, the way Silas fumbles over his words Laslow finds is utterly endearing. In a way, he thinks it sweet that he could get so worked up as to trip over his own tongue and yet, still he does not back down or refuse him.

As their eyes lock, Laslow makes his first move. When he shifts his steps, he’s far behind the pace of those around them, taking each one carefully at a time. He would only speed up once it seems his companion has a handle on the pattern, but no sooner. After all, what good would it do either of them to try and rush this? Why, none at all! Besides, he’s rather enjoying his role as an instructor. It almost feels like he’s revealing a well guarded secret that he’s elated to finally get off his chest. 

“Do tell me if you’d like to go in for a dip,” he gently teases, hoping the comment might shake his tensions loose, if only for a second. 

It doesn’t escape Silas’ notice, the way Laslow goes more slowly just for him. Rather, he’s just a bit touched at the gesture; it’s sweet, even if he can’t understand why Laslow would want to dance with him, of all people. A clunky, armor-clad knight... and he usually fought on horseback, to boot. He couldn’t have picked a more graceless dancer if he’d tried--! ...But, well, he isn’t wearing his armor right now, and if he’s honest, he’s pretty happy that the man still chose him.

“Hm...” The knight chuckles softly, and does his best to keep up; it gets easier, just by a little bit, with every step. “I’ll keep you up to date on that.” 

Laslow’s little joke seems to work, at least. The tension drains, slowly, from Silas’ shoulders, and while he’s by no means a proficient dancer, his growing ease is apparent. He tilts his head just slightly, as if his dance partner has suddenly piqued his curiosity, and smiles. 

“I’ll be certain not to take it personally.” He winks, with jest in his tone as he speaks. Truly, he could not blame Silas if he did – not everyone could be so graceful on their toes as he. That said, he still retains a certain amount of confidence in his friend! So long as he could be an ace teacher, he’s positive Silas will make for a fine student. 

That’s precisely why he does not hesitate to tug the knight onto the dance floor, lips parted by a broad grin. Despite all the heated bodies and cumulative chatter, it truly seemed that this is where he belongs. Once they attain their own spot, Inigo is quick to interlace their fingers with one hand and the other he places gently upon Silas’ hip. Distance between them narrowed, his expression turns a bit bashful, but that still doesn’t stop him. “Now, I’ll start slowly. So, keep your eyes on mine and try to follow my lead, alright?” 

Silas almost manages to joke back at him, but then Laslow’s pulling him onto the dance floor and this was maybe-- probably-- definitely a bad idea, because that 54% is now a solid 100% and he’s making an even bigger fool of himself than usual already. 

“I, uh, do-- best--” He clears his throat, and chuckles nervously. “I’ll do my best.” And if you take away the nervousness and embarrassment, it’s actually sort of... nice. It would be useful to learn how to dance, anyways, never mind the fact that his parents were probably chagrined by the fact that he didn’t already know. 

He met Laslow’s eyes, a bit shy.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Silas scratches the back of his head, looking at the endless walls of shrubbery surrounding them. He’d never been to a hedge maze before, but he was pretty sure it would be bad manners to try to run directly through a bush. Though… Now that he’d thought it, it was strangely tempting. …No, really, he really shouldn’t do it.  

“It’s not required that you have skill – just that you’re willing to try!” That said, he offers the knight a charming grin and holds out a single, gloved hand in his direction. He does take notice of the rosiness seeping unto Silas’ cheeks, but he assumes it to be from embarrassment at his own skill – something that had often plagued Inigo in his earlier years. But this is a festival! Why not enjoy it? Besides, surely they won’t be the worst pair to have ever taken the floor. 

“If you’d like, I’d be more than happy to teach you a thing or two.”

Laslow makes a convincing argument, even though Silas isn’t sure that he was making an argument at all-- and despite his hesitance, he finds himself taking the man’s hand with a somewhat bashful smile and a definitely sheepish laugh. 

Courtyard: The main festival area.

🍷 - give someone a cup of mulled wine or cocoa 🍎 - give somebody a snack (specify) ☄️ - give somebody a firework to light. 🍏 - play a trick on somebody. (specify) ✨ - watch the fireworks together. 🔫 - Use your skills to shoot targets and win a prize - or miss and cause problems.

Garden: The quiet retreat.

🐸 - hand somebody a frog. Perhaps it has something meaningful to say? Perhaps it wants a kiss? 🐰 - you see a rabbit in a hurry - Grab a friend and follow him!! 🌿 - You and another person are stuck in the hedge maze. 🍁 - enjoy the Liminal Castle’s carefully maintained leaf piles. 😘  - Invite somebody to a quiet corner where you won’t be found~. 🏃 - steal something. Food? Clothing? A kiss? (specify)

Ballroom: The Party Room. 

💃 - Invite somebody to dance 💜 - Invite somebody to slow dance 🐣 - Invite somebody to do the chicken dance. 🚑 - Invite someone to make a fool of themselves with you on the dance floor. 👠 - Challenge someone to a dance-off. Your status as a mover and shaker is on the line. 😓 - My muse finds yours on the balcony while trying to get some air.

The Dungeon: Win the crown if you succeed. 

A short time after fully moving into Renais’ center, Artur had had a cage-like holder made for the stone, to keep it attached to a necklace without damaging it. However, he finds now that it was completely gone, and must’ve broken off the stone when it fell. A small loss considering, though.

“No, no, I insist! Really, have you have no idea how important this stone is.” And he was happy to help, even if it wasn’t the case.

“Ha, I’m heading back into town now myself, actually.” Finding the wyvern stone a secure spot in his satchel, Artur gestures for him to follow. “You can just walk with me, if you’d like!”

At the man’s insistence, Silas couldn’t help the way the corners of his mouth quirked just the slightest bit upwards. It was easy to tell just how kind he was, though some might call him hasty for making a judgement on the stranger so quickly. He was just a stranger, after all-- nothing more, nothing less-- but... he could feel it. It was there in his manners, his inflections, his words... he was sure this was a good person. 

“I haven’t!” Funny, it had such a charming name. People liked charming things. It’s why so many people liked Lady Hinoka. You’d think more people would talk about the tavern since it had such a charming name. Oh well. “I haven’t heard of it before, where…” She trailed off a moment and frowned, tilting her head curiously at Silas. “What is pasta?”

Ah well. She dropped the question for now as they continued to walk. “Like I said, anywhere is good. I’m not hungry for anything specific.” Besides, she wanted to see the place Silas mentioned. He liked it, so it had to be good, right? Silas seemed like he had good taste. He worked for Lady Hinoka’s sibling after all, that was good taste already. “I’m curious about this place now.”

Setsuna gasped, one of awe and excitement, lazy as it still sounded, as he described the lantern lighting up. “Wow. That sounds neat!” And she’d never heard of this place before? Incredible. “I bet it looks really pretty…do you think we can see it?” They’d need to stay a while, but she was certain nobody would need her until then. Except Lady Hinoka, but she’d probably have enough traps around the castle to check for Setsuna to get back before it mattered.

He blinks for a moment at Setsuna’s question. What was pasta? “It’s like... noodles or other sorts of shapes made out of wheat and water. It goes well with lots of things, but you usually see it with some form of tomato sauce and cheese. Have you ever had spaghetti? ...Wait, no, that was a dumb question.” If she didn’t even know what pasta was, why would she have ever eaten pasta before? 

But his abashedness soon faded, and Silas flashed her a vague smile. “If you’re up for it, then shall we go? If we leave now, we might be able to get there before it gets too packed. Not that I’ve ever seen it get too bad in the first place, but... you never know. It is pretty good.” The only con he knew was that it was somewhat out of the way, but that was hardly a concern for them when pretty much everything was.

Setsuna giggled as he bowed to her. Silly. He was Master Corrin’s knight and she Lady Hinoka’s. Sort of. Was there knight codes about chivalry and such a thing? Still, the display was endearing and Setsuna bowed her own head slightly. Nohrians, she mused simply. Must all be tough, living someplace where you couldn’t see the trap two feet in front of you in the dark. Not that she was any better.

The thought of someone coming after her made her frown and she nodded her head. Though it’d be a shame if someone wasted their time looking after her, she supposed that was the price of them generously donating their time to her, in a way. “That would probably spoil the dinner a bit.” She agreed, before nodding off in the direction of the town. Time to get moving then.

“Did you have any place in mind?” She asked as they walked. Was Silas familiar with the town yet? Or were they just going to wander around until they found a place to eat. She supposed she didn’t particularly mind either option, but the walking might get hard on her leg after a time. “I’m not very picky where we eat.”

“I had an idea,” Silas admitted, following Setsuna’s lead and catching up after a step or two. “Have you heard of Lantern Tavern? I’ve eaten there a few times.” It was a bit of a chaotic memory, but not an unpleasant one, and he smiled to himself; he’d eaten there with... with... who? He couldn’t quite remember anymore. “...They have great pasta there.”

He shrugged the thoughts away, and focused instead on making sure to walk more slowly-- just half a step behind his comrade, ready to help right her should she stumble. “If you know any other good places, though, then we can go somewhere else.” Of course, she had said she wasn’t very picky, but... there wasn’t any harm in leaving her the option, was there? Just in case.