Rio pushed aside the brush that led to the clearing Kiros had showed her the night before. It wasn’t as impressive in the daylight, but it was still beautiful nonetheless. As she had thought, the sunlight sparkled on the top of the small pool, casting of sparkles in the ripples from the small waterfall that fed it. The trees around the tiny meadow provided a fair amount of shade; half of the area was in the sun, and the other awashed in shadows. The ground was smooth and clear of rocks. It would be a good place to teach Lume the basics.
She was, however, a little concerned with how well Lume would take to the art. It was in his blood, of course, but he had always been so....reckless. Her son was impulsive and yearned for danger. Dancing was the complete opposite. It required careful thinking, smooth, even movements, and attention to detail. If Rio was going to properly teach her son how to dance, she would first have to change his way of thinking. “Tell me, Lume. What do you already know about the dancing?” She asked, turning around to face her son.
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The young leotah couldn’t help but gaze in awe at the sight of the clearing. It was absolutely gorgeous. Lume could definitely understand why his mother had been so easily wooed by the male that has brought her here. He himself was getting all shivery under his fur! The glistening light of the sun on the water made it seem like the pool was filled with molten gold. Lume could only imagine the bright silver colour it would take on in the moonlight. And there appeared to be fish in the pond as well. This was definitely a place where someone could settle down.
But alas, such was not their lifestyle. They were roamers, wanderers, nomads. They belonged nowhere, had no home. His mother would bat him across the ears if he ever told her that. We belong to the land itself, she would say. What a load of elephant dung.
Lume snapped to attention at his mother’s voice. His ears flickered backwards at the question, his eyes darting back and forth around the meadow as if the answer could be found somewhere in the foliage. What did he know about dancing? Surely his had said something in the past. Lume wracked his brain, trying to pick out a memory. Something she had said while he was a cub... “Uh, it comes from the heart?” He tried.
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The leopardess scowled at her son. “Next time, phrase your answers as answers, not as questions. You either tell me or ask me, not both.” She corrected. So indecisive, and unwilling to make commitments most of the time. Dancing would not come as easily to him as it had to her. “Anyways, you are right. Dancing is an expression of you are on inside. It is emotion and feelings in form of movements. Abstract into concrete.” Rio closed her eyes, drinking in the rhythm of the area. It was rich with life and energy. If Lume could not feel it here, he would never feel it anywhere. “Every living thing has movement, has energy.” She began to sway back and forth, paws swirling in the dirt. “The very air is alive with it. You feel it, harness, use it to release your own energies out into the world.” Rio twirled, neck rolling with the movement. It was calm and serene, inviting and encouraging. Perfect for a first-timer. The dancer came to a stop, red eyes opening as she smiled at her son. “Your turn now, hijito. Close your eyes, feel the world around you.”
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Lume gave his mother skeptical look. Energy? In the world around him? That seemed about as likely as a rabbit killing a rhinoceros. But Lume respected his mother. He might as well give it a try. The male shut his eyes tightly, waiting to feel the energies his mother spoke of.
He felt absolutely nothing. The only thing he could sense was the sound of the waterfall splashing in the pond. A light breeze tickled his fur and rustled the leaves in the trees above, but there was no so-called energy giving him divine inspiration to prance about. Perhaps his mother was just out of her mind. Or maybe it was only a girl thing. Someone somewhere had once told him that females were more in touch with spiritual things than males would. It seemed as if he just wasn’t cut out for it. Lume sighed in frustration, about ready to give up. The sound of the waterfall was becoming deafening now, making him want to shake his head and roll his shoulders. The muscles pulled his bones down like gravity tugging water over the edge of the fall. His feet began tapping the ground, droplets of water splashing against the surface of the pool. Lume was moving with the water, body twisting and moving.
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Rio nearly cried out in delight as her son finally began moving. It was crude and jerky, but it was dancing. The leopardess circled her son, giving him space as he moved. He didn’t seem to notice her presence, which was expected. According to her mother, new dancers usually first experienced trance-like states when performing routines. Rio had felt it herself when she had first started dancing. The trick of becoming a good dancer was learning to master the mind while in the trance state, to control and utilize it. It would probably take Lume some time to do it, seeing as he never though with his head. It was an act in discipline, something that Lume lacked. It would be good for him, she knew.
As Lume came to a stop, Rio showed him a beaming smile. “Ah, Lume Flanco, that was wonderful. You captured the energy around you and it flow through you. I am proud.” She purred. “Shall we see if we can do it together?”
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He slowed his movements down, the sound of the water fading out to a normal volume. Lume opened his eyes, breathing heavily. He had done it? He had done it! He had danced. Lume returned his mother’s smile, prancing about in a circle around her. “I felt it, Mama Rio, I did! I felt the water!” His whole body thrummed with excitement. His mother was proud of him. He had accomplished something she had seen as worthy. Never before had Lume felt the same amount of satisfaction and self worth. It was exhilarating. The male lined himself up next to his mother, nudging her playfully. “You must watch out, Mama. One of these days I might even be better than you.” Lume teased, eyes shimmering with happiness. He might not have been the favourite in his youth, but this was something he and his mother shared exclusively. Lume squared his feet, ready to dance with his mother until the sun sank far below the horizon.
