#dancing!!

1 - the original idea - watchers:

grian was taken in by watchers when he was young ("given over" by his family), because he showed propensity for their kind of magic. it's a very unhealthy environment to be in, full of manipulation, abuse, strict rules and punishments, and moulding, trying to make grian into a perfect watcher fledging.

watchers are seen as these overseer figures, nearly-gods, with scary magic but also blessings to bestow. they're untouchable, revered, feared, respected. no one knows what goes on in their fortresses besides the very few rooms that are reserved for rare public events. (blessing-giving, passing judgements if it's in any case of relevancy or interest to the watchers, dancing balls...)

and since grian is one of them... he no longer gets a choice. there's no leaving once you're in. he's trapped, and alone, and... he feels stifled, and a bit hopeless about it all. wanting to remember who he used to be and cling to every sliver of humanity he can get his hands on. hence, sneaking out to masked dances! yay.

he uses his magic to shield himself from watcher view for a bit, but it's exhausting and he's not that good yet... but it works. for just an evening, every once in a while, it works. (his absence where he's meant to be, though, is a much harder thing to cover up...)

2- the second idea - nobility

grian is born in a wealthy, noble house. in that way, he's also untouchable and doesn't belong in with the commoners and their silly festivals and dances, but he's been here since birth and never really knew the other side of life. he has two younger siblings (gem and jimmy), and in this case, there's an immense pressure on him to marry well.

there's an expectation to carry on the name of the house. to keep them prosperous. to tie alliances, and hold onto power. he can't fail here.

well, any of them could do it, you know? if just one sibling marries to a well-off, equally noble and powerful house, the others can have a bit more leeway and freedom with their own matches/choices.

this means that if grian can marry a suitable, noble match, then his siblings will have more of a freedom to pick who they want to marry, instead of... well, whatever he is being pushed into. and gem has pearl, and jimmy has tango, and grian'd hate to take that away from them. besides... he doesn't have anyone himself... right?

in this version, it's gem who takes him out to the masquerade dances for the first time, instead of it being his desperate idea. she's been sneaking out to see pearl, and she just decides grian needs to unwind because he's a stressed-out ball of tension. (can you blame him? he hates every single person who tries to court him, they don't see him as a person but as something to own, as a means to obtain more wealth and power... but he has to pick from amongst them anyway. he has to.)

and so out he goes. and he meets this mysterious stranger. and oh, he's in trouble.

both options are really fun :3c

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note about the dance itself! ly had this idea of making it a partner-swapping dance, where maybe couples start on opposite ends and are meant to find their way back to each other. it's now a lot more loose than it used to be, young people just have fun with it, but that's still what it signified once upon a time—if you miss a partner swap and stay with your current dance partner, it's supposed to mean something.

the first round with a partner is more distanced, in that the hands are in more respectful places. on shoulders, hovering around sides but not touching, that kind of thing. then if you miss the swap and stay, the hand comes to the waist. (this way it's also obvious to everyone else that you made a choice with your partner.)

and now... please think of grian's hold on scar tightening the tiniest bit and them not swapping partners... :3c and of scar's hand finding grian's waist.

think of grian who hasn't been touched with any sort of care or attentive bodily respect or warmth in... well. a long time. and here scar is, delivering. providing.

scar, who is really just a thief, finding someone interesting and unfamiliar in the dancing crowd, sparking his curiosity. he was just meant to hide for a bit in this dance but... well, who can blame him for indulging, when this mysterious birdie clearly wants him to stay a moment longer?

in this all, grian really needs someone who could see him and treat him as a real person... at least for an evening. at least for an hour. at least for a few minutes. anything. he'll take anything to break his suffocation.

even with a mask on, face and identity hidden, scar somehow makes him feel more seen during these sneak-out outings that he ever feels with his face and name bared. but it's so hard to let that bloom, when grian knows it's not meant to be in his reach, ever.

Sutton twirled the flute of sparkling cider she held between her fingers and looked out over the room. Warm light gave the space a peaceful glow. Twinkling Christmas lights hung from the ceiling, looking like stars falling down to meet them. The scent of pine was heavy in the air with several large Christmas trees placed in various corners, each decorated with silver and gold baubles and rich reds and deep greens. A table along the wall was spread out with every holiday dessert one could possibly hope for. Iced sugar cookies, and sharp ginger snaps, and chocolate, and candy canes in decorative glass cups. Mingled throughout it were other types of treats, a different holiday tradition. Sweet latkes, fruit pies, rugelach, and matzo crisp. At least, that’s what Wanda had told Sutton they were called. At the end of the table sat a gleaming Menorah.

The food table is where Sutton found herself loitering. Perhaps it was just old habits, or a comfort zone of sorts. She just needed a moment from all the chatter and activities. It was already dark out, not that it took long for that to happen in the winter months, but it actually was starting to get late.

She sighed and fiddled with the stem of her glass as her gaze darted towards the exit. Tony had gone all out for this party. A sprig of mistletoe even loomed above the empty doorway.

Music was playing low enough for people to be able to converse normally, but she was still able to hear it transition from The Hanukkah Song, probably a humorous request from Clint, to White Christmas.

Sutton had shown up to the party promptly at its starting time and laughed and mingled the entire duration. And still, no one had asked her to dance. Or, rather, someone in particular hadn’t. Nat and Wanda and Pepper had dragged her out onto the dance floor a couple times, sure, but that didn’t exactly count. She huffed and downed what was left of her cider.

She was being dumb anyway. No one owed her anything. And dances were a touchy topic for some people. She should swallow her own pride and be a bit more understanding, especially given the holidays.

Her dress fluttered and Sutton gasped as a burst of air smacked her in the face. Pietro was next to her, grinning widely as he grabbed the entire pan of matzo crisp and winked at her.

“Do not tell Wanda,” he said. Sutton smirked and mimed zipping her lips.

“I didn’t see anything.” Pietro laughed.

“True! I am too fast!” He disappeared then as suddenly as he’d come and Sutton was left shaking her head.

With her drink gone and the evening winding down, Sutton felt like her decision was pretty well made. She pushed off from the food table and prepared to give her goodbyes when a shadow was cast over her.

“Might I have this dance?”

A couple of months ago and Sutton would have still been sent jumping at the low, honeyed tones of that voice. She cut her eyes up to Loki and tilted her head. He was holding out his hand and her gaze trailed up from the dark black of his suit jacket to the dark emerald tie that didn’t quite match the Christmas theme, but gave the impression of trying. His dark hair was brushed back, but not actually greasy looking, for once.

“A dance,” she asked.

“Generally it’s where two willing partners move around a designated area with twis-”

“I know what dancing is, thank you.” She crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her head up. “Just not sure why you’re asking me.” Loki tsked.

“Come now, I’ve been on good behavior for long enough to receive the benefit of the doubt.” Sutton cocked a brow.

“You said your people live to about 5,000 years old. You’ve been on good behavior for all of five minutes, comparatively.”

He grinned even wider at that, amused, but still pushed forward his hand.

“Just one dance. Consider it an addition to my apology for all that transpired.”

She hesitated a moment more before she relented with a sigh and slid her hand into his.

“Just one,” she said. Then she would slip out of the party and sulk in self pity on her floor until the morning.

“That’s all I need.”

“Wha-”

Loki led her out onto the cleared dance floor and pulled her closer. Sutton stiffened as he pulled her hand up to rest on his shoulder and then lowered his to her waist. She wasn’t an experienced dancer, not like Loki probably was growing up in a palace and in the courts. With feasts and parties and frivolity. She kept her eyes on his shiny leather shoes as he attempted to lead her through some simple footwork.

He let go of her hip to tap her under the chin and force her head up.

“You’re supposed to look at me,” he said. “And don’t try to anticipate where we’re going next. Just follow where I lead.” Sutton frowned, but kept her eyes up.

“This sounds alarmingly similar to some of your past statements,” she muttered. Loki rolled his eyes.

“Only when you look for it so doggedly.”

“Don’t worry. I can only mock and guilt trip you for about another seventy years.”

He quieted at that and they continued gliding around the floor. The music swelled slightly and Loki pushed her out for a twirl then brought her back in. Sutton found it was a bit easier to flow with him when she wasn’t thinking about it. Her face relaxed along with the tension in her arms.

“So what’s this really about?” Loki glanced down at her.

“I don’t know what you’re implying.”

“This party has been unbelievably prank free. And you don’t generally ask anyone to dance. So, what are you plotting?”

“Your Christmas is supposed to be a time of peace and goodwill, isn’t it? Maybe I’m trying to indulge in the season.”

“I’m just saying, you made Tony’s cake explode at his birthday party. I don’t see how you’d stick around this long without implementing even a little mischief.”

“Mmm,” he hummed. “You make a fair point.”

His gaze lifted, pinpointing somewhere across the room and he fought back a smirk at whatever he saw.

“What are you-”

He twirled her again, forcing her out further this time in a larger move. Sutton tried to catch a glance at where he’d been looking. Bucky was across the room. He elbowed the person next to him and nodded in her direction. But then Loki was pulling her back into the dance with more enthusiasm than the beat of the music strictly called for.

Sutton let out a surprised chirp as he situated her closer to him. She was nearly flush against him and his hand had drifted from her waist to her lower back. Her face heated and she shot a scowl up at him.

“Loki-” He shushed her.

“Just a second longer.”

Green sparked dimly from his fingers and Sutton let out an involuntary laugh as a tickling sensation ran through her.

“Loki!” She wasn’t sure what he was up to, but her face was still turned up in residual giggling even as she tried to eye him sternly. “Knock it off!”

He eyed the opposite end of the room again before he looked back down at her and grinned. Sutton stumbled and tried to keep up as he spun them around the room. He didn’t give her an answer, but his sharp grin only grew as each beat passed.

“Three,” he drolled. “Two… One….”

“Hey.”

They came to a lingering halt, Loki refusing to immediately stop at the interruption. Sutton’s head snapped to see Steve standing just to the side of them. His face was pinched slightly and his nostrils flared as he glanced at Loki. Loki’s fingers trailed lazily up her back and Sutton smacked his hand away. Steve’s jaw clenched.

“Are you ok,” Steve asked her. Sutton blinked and looked between the two men. She stepped away from Loki, disconnecting their hands, and tucked a stray hair behind her ear.

“Yeah,” she said. “Yeah, I’m fine. Loki just, uh, asked me to dance.”

“It would’ve been a shame if someone hadn’t.”

Loki’s tone was too smooth. Too honeyed. Sutton cut her eyes at him briefly. He was still up to something.

The last few notes of the song drifted off and Sutton rubbed at her arm.

“Well, thanks. That was, kind of fun, actually.”

Loki bowed at the waist, like the prince he was.

“Any time, Sutton. It would be a pleasure to-”

“Would you like another song?” Steve’s voice cut in sharp and pointedly. Sutton blinked. “What?”

The words seemed to twist inside Steve for a moment, but he breathed in deeply from his nose and managed to get them out.

“Would you like to dance? With me.” “Oh.” Sutton’s heart did a small flip and she bit her bottom lip. “Yes, of course. I mean… why not?” “I suppose that’s me being dismissed, then.” Loki sighed dramatically and Sutton’s lips twitched. Steve cut in front of Loki and held out his hand. She accepted it, only glancing at Loki long enough to see him wink at her as he sauntered away.

I’ll Be Home for Christmas was being crooned over the speakers now. Sutton remembered what Loki had said and kept her eyes on Steve. Let him lead.

He held her gently. Like she were delicate and he had to constantly keep that in mind. They swayed and spun around more than some of the fancy footwork that Loki had used, but Sutton almost liked it better. She could just breathe and not pay so much attention to what they were doing and focus on who she was dancing with instead.

Steve looked nice in his knit Christmas sweater over a pale button up. Someone had pinned a mini decorative candy cane to the left side of his chest and it was cute. This close and Sutton could even tell that he smelled good. He must have put on a cologne for the party.

“You caught me before I left,” she said to break the quiet.  

“I’m glad.”

His voice trailed off and Sutton chewed on her bottom lip again. They swayed in a small section of the dance floor some more. The tension in her arms was starting to creep back up the longer Steve said nothing. She broke her gaze away from his face and looked down at his shoes.

“You didn’t have to, you know. I didn’t expect you to dance with me and you don’t have to feel like you have to rescue me from Loki.”

He moved, a jerking sort of motion, as if her words surprised him.

“I wanted to,” he insisted. “I just- I guess I’m a little rusty on the asking part.”

A hopeful flicker sparked back inside of her, and Sutton dared to look up again. He looked sincere. But he was also Steve Rogers. He wasn’t going to want to hurt her feelings.

“I just don’t want you to feel obligated.”

Steve’s face actually crinkled and he let out a short scoff.

“I don’t think dancing with a beautiful dame is ever considered an obligation.”

“Beautiful dame?”

She watched as his face glowed pink and hers heated alongside him.

“Sorry. It slipped out.”

“I... don’t mind.”

Her muscles loosened again and their footsteps widened as they took larger strides. Sutton could almost lift her feet off the floor and let Steve do all the work. He spun her around under his arm and used that same excuse to pull her a bit closer.

“Well, in that case, maybe we can do this again sometime.”

Sutton couldn’t fight the grin.

“I’d like that.”

From across the room, Loki winked at her again, giving her a subtle thumbs up. Sutton mouthed silently from around Steve’s shoulder.