The Rhumba and the Trot Hop! [ The Jedi Academy ]

[Jaxton Ravos]

[member="Anastasia Rade"] [member="Kian Karr"] [member="Ian Milàn"] [member="Jacen Voidstalker"] [member="Kira Talith"] [member="Taheera Sollo"] [member="Jacen Shadow"] [member="Mark Sage"]

Learning to ballroom dance, depending on your part, was largely learning how to give signals through contact, or read the signals that others were giving you. The more time one spent dancing with a partner the better connection they'd get, but for a class of people who were just learning to dance? Connection with a singular partner wasn't as important as it was to figure how different people had their own variations. So what was a teacher to do, to help students learn to follow and lead better?

"Switch partners!" Jaxton yelled, and the room, or at the least the NPC's in the room, would do so. Jacen, well, both Jacens, would be finding new partners, some nice young ladies would notice [member="Mark Sage"] and [member="Aiden Zarc"] and try to get two boys to dance with them, but as Anastasia and Ian hadn't started to dance yet they likely wouldn't be interrupted by people finding partners. Jaxton would watch young Jedi attempt to dance for a couple more minutes before igniting his lightsaber in the air again to garner their attention. That, and also because he just liked turning his new lightsaber on.

"Alrighty, now that you all have a feel for your frame we're gonna split back into the lines of leads and follows again, leads on my right and follows on my left." He said as he looked around the room, showing a brief smile as he caught vision of [member="Taheera Sollo"], but not letting it distract him for more than a second. Had to be professional and all.

"Now every step you take is going to be a complete weight change from one foot to another. You will never split your weight between both foots. After you take a step with your left foot all your weight will be on your right, and vice versa. How often you step is based on what dance you're dancing. Today I'm teaching you the 'Classic' Waltz so it'll be every beat, and three beats for every count. One. Two. Three. One. Two. Three." Jaxton would snap his fingers at every number, them each being spaced out equally. "One. Two. Three. One. Two. Three and so on and so forth." Jaxton would continue snapping in time as he spoke, hoping the rhythm would start to get ingrained in the minds of the young jedi.

"Every dance, waltz included, starts with 'basic' that'll normally take one or two counts. The basic is what you do by default, when you're not throwing a lady out for a spin or bringing her in for some promenade or going out in a chasse. Depending on the dance it'll keep you in place or let you walk around the floor, and set you up to do other moves as long as you have the room to do so. The prequel to the more advance waltz basic is called 'The Box' and it'll take two counts." Jaxton would stop snapping and get into the lead's frame.

"The lead will almost always begin left-foot-first, barring a few more advanced dances such as the Zeltronian Tango. In Waltz we'll take a simple step forward." Jaxton would step forward with his left foot. "Then to the side with our right foot." The zeltron would step straight to the side. "Then take our left foot back under our shoulders and collect. On the next beat we'll go backwards with our right foot, then to to the side with our left, then we'll collect with our right. Basically the exact opposite of our first count, bringing us right back to where we started." Jaxton would continue to illustrate the moves as he spoke, some of the padawans following his motion a step behind, others content to just watch and see what he was doing.

"Now leads follow me as I do the steps and try to keep in time. One. Two. Three. One. Two. Three." Jaxton performed another simple box, the majority, if not all the class, doing it with him this time. Some would pick it up almost instantly, others had issues keeping in time, but they all seemed to get the general gist of what Jaxton was saying. He smiled and dropped his frame, then adopted the frame for the Follow.

"Ladies, just like the guys normally start a dance with their left foot forward y'all will normally start by bringing your right foot back. From there you'll take your left foot to the side, then collect with your right." He'd continue to demonstrate the steps as he spoke. "Then forward with your left, to the side with your right, and collecting with your left. Again, following me and with timing. One. Two. Three. One. Two. Three." The motion would be finished.


"You may notice that you're doing the Lead's steps in reverse, which will generally be your steps when you're just travelling instead of going out for a spin or a dip or something like that. I know that I'm teaching to practice the moves by yourself now but when you're dancing, even when you know what the guy is going to Lead you to do, it is very important not to anticipate what he is going to do, but wait for his lead. Don't rush him into a step, wait for him to come to you." Jaxton would smile.

"Now Leads, find yourself a partner that you haven't danced with before and see how you do it too music." Jaxton said, and began fiddling with his datapad. A song would begin to play throughout the hangerbay. About halfway through the song he'd probably lower the volume a bit and yell something like "Switch." before turning it back up again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41qBffVg154

 

[Aiden Zarc]

Aiden lay on the ground, too tired to dream his normal nightmares or rare neutral dreams. Aiden might have stayed that way, had it not been for a small girl with blonde curls who bounded over to his position. But how did she know about him? The Force seemed to work in mysterious ways. Aiden was certainly a living example of that. She came to his spot, bent down, poked him and said, "Wake up, sleepyhead! Do you wanna' dance?".

Aiden stirred, sat up, and wearily blinked. He was shaking somewhat because there were a couple of small patches of glistening, melting ice on his clothing. His exposed hands were reddened and freezing. She grabbed him by the hands and helped him up. Aiden didn't understand what was going on, but he had been trained to be compliant while drowsy during his time as a lab guinea pig. Not that Aiden could remember anything of that.

"You're hands are cold!" She stated. Guiding Aiden (who was wearing a white shirt, black sweats, ratty black tennis shoes and had a couple small, glistening ice patches on his clothing) over to [member="Kira Talith"]. she tugged on her clothing and stated simply, "He's cold."

[member="Jaxton Ravos"]

 

[Marcello Matteo]

Long golden locks partially obscured the glacier-blue gaze of Marcello as he quietly entered the room. The Jedi Master had only arrived on the planet very recently. His first trip to investigate this Jedi Academy. Until this point, Marcello had been quite content to maintain a respectful indifference. He'd been at the forefront of extending the olive branch, increasing cooperation and training amongst the various sects of force users in the past. Eventually, it all came down to what one organization wanted over another. Politics inevitably crept into what should have merely been about improving one's connection to the very life force of the galaxy in order to safeguard its inhabitants. Well...the ones that desired such, at least.

Beyond forcing his own beliefs and experiences upon others, Marcello had taken a step back from even so much as teaching in recent years. The continuous state of war demanded too much of his time...time he'd otherwise need to fully devote to a student as he'd done in the past. Besides, his best apprentice was a member of the Jedi Council now. That was plenty good for Marcello.

However, someone had insisted he take the time to see what the Jedi Academy was all about. Multiple someones, in fact. Both females. "Figures..." Folding his arms across his chest, the large Jedi Master walked casually along the edge of the room. His eyes recognized several individuals...well...perhaps not several. [member="Kian Karr"] and [member="Kira Talith"] were the only ones currently present that he'd had any real level of interaction with in the past. "Go see the dance class to get a feel for the Academy..."

This has to be a joke.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Jacen Shadow"] [member="Jaxton Ravos"]

Her instinct was to step back with her right foot. She accidentally kicked Jacen in the shin. "Oh. Sorry!" Before she could discuss her hunch about the foot-forward foot-backward thing, the instruction came to switch partners.

She stepped back from Mister Shadow.

"Good luck, Jacen," she offered a warm smile before she was swept up with another lead.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Aiden Zarc"] [member="Marcello Matteo"]


"Oh!" the heavily pregnant woman would turn as a another would call for her attention. Her bag of dried muja berries would have to wait though, as her eyes would bulge at the rather perplexing discovery of a small youngling practically trembling in the cold.

"What is this?" she would as, suddenly concerned, stuffing the bag into the front pocket of her jumper. A moment later, she would reach out to take the little boy's arm.

"Your arms are like ice!" what strange thing, she'd muse. "what are you doing here like so?" she'd would ask, her eyes searching around, barely catching the brief attention of Master Matteo. Quickly, she would slide off her sweater, a bright aqua thing, and began to wrap it around the boy.

Well it might not be the best fashion statement, but at least it would warm him up.

"Silly youngling! Should have worn something warmer!"

 

[Aiden Zarc]

Aiden, still very sleepy, welcomed the warm sweater. Through his slight haze, he noticed his arm being taken up. As his arm was lifted, the shirt would slide back and reveal patterned ink lines along his arm with circles that were drawn around important blood pathways. If she inquisitively touched these circles, Aiden would sleepily say, "Ouch..." and tears would spring to his eyes, half from sleep deprivation and half from pain. He wanted to go to sleep, but he knew he needed to stay awake in this foreign environment.

[member="Marcello Matteo"] [member="Kira Talith"]

 

[OriginsoftheJedi]

Mark sat alone for several minutes more. He watched all of the others' feet and movements. He'd never tried anything like what they were doing before, and he'd never really planned to. He'd probably be pretty bad at it. And he didn't mind being out of the spotlight sometimes. His simple little life alone was enough. No strings to be pulled on, only himself and the force.
"Though," he remarked to himself with a smirk, "I probably look like a complete weirdo."
The song changed. And here came the next round of people just now joining in or switching partners. He'd just have to hope he'd go unnoticed. He doubted he would for much longer, but at least he could try.