# Two-Step (Step Two)

Author: DarkSoulsSauron
Tags: Classic Jazz, M/M, Melodic, Smooth Jazz, Swing, ninetales

Two-Step
Step Two.


Weeks
drifted by, starting at a blazing pace and slowing down to a crawl as
November came closer to a close. Soren equated this convoluted flow
of time with how confident they were in their abilities. Soren was
enthusiastically sponsored by the lab. His boss even hinted at a
raise if he got far enough into the competition. Eli was keeping up
to Shadows and Electric Daisy Violin with ease, and Soren was
actually enjoying the dancing. There still wasn't a good place to
practice in public, as no one really wanted to go outside in
November. People could only take so much of overcast skies and
almost-freezing temperatures, so Soren was worried that they both
might cave under the pressure of hundreds of people watching them.


Today
was rather nice though. The temperature was higher than 55F and the
sky was cloudless on a Saturday afternoon. Soren and Eli had been out
at the park since eight in the morning. It was approaching four o
clock and neither of them had taken a break from the dancing. For the
last few days Soren was coming home early so he could build up his
endurance. His boss was actually OK with this, as long as Soren put
his nose to the grinder while he was at the lab.


It
was five to four, and there was actually a crowd of curious onlookers
that were watching for the last fifteen minutes. The shuffle pulled
up the final song, the 6u5
remix of Communications.
It was a fairly easy dance. It wasn't too fast, though it retained
6u5's habit of putting elements in the middle of measures. They kept
step despite their exhaustion. As the song wound down, they finished
the final step and collapsed on the bench beside them. The crowd
dispersed as it was clear the two foxes had finished dancing.


"Whoi,"
gasped Soren as he released an exhausted sigh. "I think we got the
dancing down. We should be able to get to the routine at any rate."


Eli
was panting too. "And there were so many people watching us today.
It didn't phase you at all." The beige fox grabbed an apple out of
a bag and took a bite. They hadn't eaten or drank anything at all
since they had started. "At least at the contest they give you
water every half hour."


Soren
swigged from a can of coke. In reality he should have gone for water
first, but coke was much more refreshing to him, even if it
technically was dehydrating. "You said that they give us a half
hour before routines start?"


"Yeah,"
said Eli after he took a swig of water. "They make you go one at a
time too, so sometimes you can get a longer break. I've done this
four times. I got to the routines all four times, but when I went
later in the queue I did so much worse. It's better to keep momentum.
I want us to volunteer to be first. You OK with that?"


"I'll
trust your judgment," said Soren, now starting on the water. He
pulled up his computer and plugged in his portable speakers. He kept
the lid closed. Both of them had stopped needing the sheet music
weeks ago. They managed to keep their exhaustion at bay as they went
through both Shadows and Electric Daisy Violin three times each. They
didn't miss a note or a step.


Packing
up the violins and equipment, they walked back home. Their paws were
throbbing and sore, their tails drooping, their limbs like lead. Eli
went to take a shower while Soren went to make something light to
eat. Just a tossed salad and some fruit.


Eli
came out of the master bath as Soren finished the last of the
chopping. They sat and ate, chatting about inconsequential stuff.
They both had the competition on their minds, both secretly hoping
they wouldn't disappoint the other. Soren finished his food and went
to shower, letting the hot water ease up the tension in his limbs.
Soren worked a little on his dubstep project as Eli finished off a
few paintings, but they went to bed around eight. They were just too
tired. They massaged each other for a while as they lay folded in the
sheets, letting their hands and mutual affection ease the last of the
tenseness out of their bodies.


Soren
woke up around nine thirty, his arms and tails snaked around Eli's
smooth back as the beige fox still slept. He rubbed his cheek against
Eli's velvety beige chest tuft and slipped out of the bed. He snooped
around the fridge, thinking of something good he could make them for
breakfast. "we
really need to take a trip to grocery store," he
thought as he stuck his head farther into the fridge. He pulled out
some eggs, cheese, sausage, and bacon that were all dangerously close
to their expiration date, and got to work.


Eli
walked into the kitchen, his nose preceding him, drawn by the smell
of bacon. Soren deftly served them up a healthy sized omelet. They
didn't want to eat right
before they started, but they needed something that would last from
noon till nine. They discussed the contest, going over things that
tended to trip them up, the steps in the routines, the harder dances,
and the like. For once in his life, Soren was actually excited to go
out dancing.


The
two foxes walked towards the event, dressed in tight black tank tops
and slightly loose fitting shorts with firm black belts. They wanted
something comfortable that didn't get in their way. The people
running the event had commandeered the local athletic center, rolling
up the curtains that normally separated the basketball courts. Tape
was laid out across the sprawling wood floors, the same 6ftx10ft
squares that Eli made them practice in, numbers placed in the middle
of them. Pokemon of all types were milling about.


"We
need to grab a number," said Eli getting in a long line that
circumnavigated the dance floor. "If they see someone screw up they
just call them out."


Soren
looked up and down the line. The attendees ran the gamut. There were
some who were there to honor loved ones lost to cancer, others who
wanted to socialize, and more who looked like they were here to kick
ass and dance swing... and they were all out of ass. The line moved
relatively quickly, and it didn't take long for Eli and Soren to grab
a number and move to their spots.


The
opening ceremonies were pretty standard for a cancer charity event:
the national anthem, heartfelt stories of survivors and victims,
announcements. Soren normally paid at the very least respectful
attention to such things, but right now he was too anxious. He wanted
to start dancing before he lost his nerve. There were a
lot of
bodies packed into this gym, and while many would be occupied with
their own dancing in the beginning, Soren know many, many eyes would
be on him as people started dropping out. Soren also tried not to
think about how many spectators were looking down on them from the
running track one floor above.


There
were four large displays, each placed on a wall. Each screen
displayed the next three songs on the line up as well how many
participants were left. Right now the count was over 150 pairs. Eli
and Soren were pair number 76.


There
was a 60 second count down. Soren was starting to get nervous. They
didn't even show the starting line up of songs. It was clear the
administrators wanted to surprise them, as dancers had only five
seconds to find a beat for each song. His disposition significantly
improved as the first song began to play, a snazzy tune with upbeat
clarinet and percussion. Both Eli and Soren recognized Geraldine's
Routine by
Tape Five. This was a personal favorite, and it conveniently happened
to have a dance routine right in the lyrics. The two foxes started in
a Charleston step. Eli smiled and said, "let's show off. We'll do
the whole routine."

Soren
thought perhaps this would be a bad idea, but he would protest later.
He trusted Eli's judgment, as this was the fifth year he was doing
this. So the two foxes shook their tails as they waved
their paws in the air, spun about like Fred Astaire, slipped them
five as they could jive (that's Geraldine's routine)...and
so on."
Soren
was keeping up and was really enjoying himself. The song was rather
fast but he wasn't phased at all. He took that as a good sign.


Geraldine's
Routine was short, just barely over three minutes. The play list
moved to Pirates
by
Caravan Palace. It was a medium speed song, and the two foxes clasped
hands and stepped together, taking a short break from the fast dance.
Soren looked around at the other contestants. Two Gardevoirs were
dancing together, bobbing to the music and hovering with telekinesis.
"Lucky bastards," muttered Soren, "floating like that should be
against the rules."

"Not
really," smiled Eli. "Endurance contests are as much about mental
fortitude as well as physical strength. When they dance by floating,
both the physical and the mental stress is consolidated into their
brains. We're better off on our paws." Eli smiled and moved their
arms between them, swaying a bit to the music.


Hours
flew by in weird stints. Some times the dancing seemed to last
forever while other times it slipped by in a flash. Soren equated
such anomalies with how much he liked the music. It was three hours
in, and a song he vaguely recognized started to play. Soren read the
name off the display one of the walls. La
Voix Humaine by
G-Swing. It had a slow-medium pace, which suited him as his paws were
starting to get sore. Eli looked like he was hurting a bit too, but
he had done this before. Eli grasped Soren's hands and began to move
them between each other. "You need to do something to keep your
brain in the game," he said. "Sing the scat with me." Soren
listened to the scat on the first part of the refrain, and by the
second repetition he had it down pat, letting his experience with
brass instruments help him maintain the rhythm.


As
the sixth hour passed by, Soren saw many of the other contestants
drop out over the past hour and a half. The display showing the song
line up and the number of pairs remaining said that less than 50
pairs were left. Soren was feeling the pressure of all the eyes of
the former contestants raking the dance floor, looking for
contestants showing signs of weakness. Soren was on the point of
dropping too, but he was determined to go to the end with Eli. He
didn't want to disappoint him.


The
next song up gave them a bit of a breather. City
of Lights by
Tape Five. Eli grabbed their hands and held their bodies close
together, swinging and stepping to the slow music. The physical
contact was a wonderful pick-me-up. He smiled as they swung and
revolved within their allotted space. Enjoying the sweet, sad, and
romantic lyrics and melody.


"Get
a room," hissed an Electabuzz dancing with a Jynx. "How dare you
display your deviance in public?!"

Soren
and Eli responded in the standard fashion. Keeping in step, they
leaned in for a passionate kiss. They abstained from raising their
middle fingers, as such responses may have angered the judges. To the
foxes glee, the two dancers looked horrified. A minute later, they
lost step and tripped, and the judges called out that pair number 73
was eliminated.


Later,
as the 7th
hour came to a close, Eli and Soren were doing fairly well. They were
able to filter out the physical stress as they danced, and they found
small things to do to keep them mentally engaged. Small spins and
other dance elements that weren't too strenuous but kept them from
just mindlessly keeping step. The current song was another breather
song, Jazzhole
by
Free the Robots.


"See
the next song on the lineup," whispered Eli to Soren. "the Tape
Five remix of Dixie
Biscuit?" 


"What
are you planning," asked Soren shrewdly.

"Let's
do a Lindy Hop routine. Show them we've got energy to spare," said
Eli with a devious smile. "Psyche out the competition."


Soren
accepted the water being passed to him by a judge and took a swig.
"Do we have energy to spare?"


"Let's
find out."


The
hard and heavy clarinet and trumpet opened a brisk and jazzy tune,
the two foxes snapping their fingers to the new beat. Eli and Soren
danced hard and fast to the lyrics, Eli even doing an incredibly good
imitation of Tape Five's singer. He had the lyrics, pitch, and timing
down to a 'T. They started with a hard and fast Charleston and then
grabbed hands as they swung each other, taking advantage of their
extra space left by dropouts. They spun each other fast and kept in
step to the quick pace of the clarinet leading the melody. They
finished with a quick step that mirrored the scat that ended the
song.


Eli
and Soren were pleased to see jaws drop at the extreme amount of
vigor they displayed, even if they themselves was close to collapsing
themselves. Two pairs dropped out at the sight of their competition
seeming to be filled with limitless energy. The next song was I've
Got that Tune by
Chinese Man, which gave the two foxes time to recover.


The
next hour was difficult, the judges playing upbeat and fast tunes
designed to be danced to at a fast pace. Soren was almost regretting
the Lindy Hop routine, but he lost himself in Eli as they used each
other for a reference point. Soren looked up at the board and noticed
that there was only one song left in the queue.


"I
knew it," gasped Eli, "I knew they'd finish off with Douai
Charleston."
The final song began to wind itself up, and the two foxes returned to
their Charleston step. 30 seconds in they switched to a stationary
shuffle as the musics rhythm dramatically shifted. The song then
wound itself back up to the Charleston step, but now including new
elements and dramatic pauses in the middle of the measures. Both
foxes were out of breath and panting, but they powered through the
incredibly complex song. They alternated between the Charleston and
the stationary shuffle, and the song began to wind down. Neither fox
missed a beat.

Once
the music completely faded, both foxes flopped on their backs,
laughing faintly out of exhaustion and elation at getting this far.
Soren saw only 3 other pairs left on the floor. The displays on the
wall now showed a big clock marking 30 minutes to the routines. After
five minutes of lying stupidly on the floor, Soren got up and went to
the refreshments table. He found the coffee machine. Ignoring the
brew, he got two large cups of steaming hot water, and from within
his pocket he drew out his secret weapon, four packets of
Fukamushicha
tea leaves. He put a packet in each cup and handed it to Eli. They
downed the scalding liquid in one gulp. It was a much better
pick-me-up than coffee. Their whole bodies were invigorated, at least
for now. That wasn't to say they weren't exhausted, but it did help.
They savored the next cup, letting the warm liquid fill them up. They
spent the remaining time tuning their violins and drinking copious
amounts of water. Soren hoped that they had enough energy to get to
Electric Daisy Violin, which would be the tie breaker if people still
remained after Shadows.

Soren
and Eli volunteered to go first. They were both exhausted, but the
tea and re-hydrating helped a great deal, and they still had some
adrenaline in their systems. A good luck kiss from Eli behind the
curtain was probably the best pick-me-up for Soren. They walked on to
the stage, Eli holding the purple electric violin and Soren holding
his grandmother's acoustic. Soren actually felt confident. They had
practiced relentlessly, and his grandmother's instruments had never
let him down.


The
two foxes stepped onto the stage. There where whispers as the crowd
saw their violins. Soren and Eli bowed. As they straightened, the
music began. The short introduction to shadows led right into the
violin. Eli started the first few measures, as both foxes moved their
upper bodies to the flow of the music. Shadows really had a wonderful
flow to it. At this point they really didn't need to concentrate on
their movements, instead making sure they kept up with recording. So
far they were right on time and in perfect tune.


As
they moved through the song, they mirrored each others movements as
they became each others shadows, fitting considering the name of the
song. They always had their backs or faces to each other as Eli was a
lefty while Soren used his right hand to move the bow. They moved
about the cardinal directions as they faced and backed up to each
other, mimicking each others movements even if they were not watching
each other. Every few measures they passed the melody to each other,
allowing one to play and letting the other rest for a few bars,
sometimes synching up together for particularly intense parts of the
song.


Soren
began to really appreciate how hard Lindsey Stirling worked to dance.
The Foxes need to focus an extreme amount of energy on keeping their
arms and upper bodies solid. If they lost focus it would ruin the
sound of the violin. All the dancing was lower body and leg work, and
it was intense.

Halfway
through the song they began the cross-ups, moving behind each other
to switch sides, still not missing a beat. On the second cross up
they lifted their paws up to click them together, rotating on the
other paw, sweeping their tails across each other to make them look
like a single living being.


Entering
the most intense part of the melody, the two foxes stepped up their
dancing, pirouetting on a paw as they weaved their music together.
Then on the next cross up, Soren's heart stopped. In a moment of
fatigued clumsiness, he had stepped on one of his silver tails, and
he was losing balance. Time slowed to an intense and painful crawl.
The ground was rushing up to him.


Soren
saw only two options. He could take the fall and eliminate them both
from the competition, or he could attempt to throw out an arm and leg
to save himself. But that option had a dire potential consequence. If
he failed to save himself, his grandmother's antique violin would be
at serious risk for damage.


But
to Soren, that violin wasn't an instrument. It was memories, love,
and beauty solidified into spruce and maple. It was a legacy of
someone who cared about him when he was struggling through life. If
he damaged the beloved instrument, he would never forgive himself. It
pained him to let down Eli, but he shifted to land upon his back,
banging his head hard against the wood floor, keeping the precious
instrument cushioned in his arms.


The
buzzer rang, and Eli slowed to a stop, less than 30 seconds from the
end. He offered a hand to Soren and picked the silver fox up. They
embraced and walked off stage. They sat down and let exhaustion over
take them. Soren put the violins in their cases and then embraced
Eli. "I'm so sorry, Eli. I failed you tonight."


Eli
shook his head, but was alarmed to see that Soren's eyes were leaking
as he dug his face into his shoulders. "I saw how you fell. You
would've crushed that violin if you tried to save yourself. That
instrument is much more precious than winning a contest. I can't and
won't begrudge you for that... we made it so far." The beige fox
squeezed tighter, rocking their bodies a bit. "You wanna go home?
Get something to eat?"


Soren
nodded, his head in Eli's arms. Soren wasn't mad that they didn't get
the prize. He just felt terrible that he and Eli got so close. It was
entirely his fault that Eli didn't get the victory he deserved,
especially after he poured so much effort into his violin. They
walked home, exhausted and beaten, barely staying conscious from the
intense day of swing. Five minutes into the walk it started to rain.
It was the kind of rain that only November could deliver: the
freezing, whipping, and harsh wind and rain that chilled not to the
bone, but to the very soul. Soren and Eli didn't mind frigid air or
wind, but rain was one of the few things that made a fire type truly
cold.


Soren
was reminded of their first night together as they staggered through
the rain, arms around each other. He smiled. At least they weren't
drunk, though they felt the so called runner's high from all the
dancing, and the heavy fall still left Soren a tad punch-drunk. They
stumbled out of the elevator and into their apartment. Shivering,
they forwent food and moved into the master bathroom, letting the
water run to scalding as the scent of nectarines wafted through the
room. They undressed each other and Eli got in first.
Eli
massaged Soren as the silver fox slipped in after him. Eli wasn't
angry at all. But he was distressed. He could tell Soren was beating
himself up on the inside, and that was completely unwarranted.


"Are
you glad we did this," asked Eli, rubbing his hands on Soren's
collarbones. He gave the silver fox a light kiss.


"It
was fun while it lasted," sighed Soren, "I'm sorry I couldn't
keep up with you. It's my fault we didn't win."

"It's
no big deal. You were great. You got on my level in three weeks and
you were such a good teacher. We learned so much from each other.
Winning would have just been icing on the cake." Eli raised his leg
out of the water so Soren could wash it. He knew that would make the
silver fox feel a little better.

Soren
mood improved a fraction as he savored Eli's short, soft fur running
through his hands. He still felt bad that he chose a violin over Eli.
But Eli clearly wasn't mad. Soren finished with Eli's legs and
started on his chest. He just couldn't get enough of that tuft of
velvety beige fur. Somehow it was a talisman against any bad feelings
that plagued him.


Eli
and Soren were both feeling hungry now, but they didn't want to leave
the warmth of the tub or the embrace of the other fox. Soren broke
down and got out. He quickly toweled himself and went to search for
something easy they could share. He came back with some crackers,
cheese, fruit, and a bottle of dessert wine. It felt luxurious to sit
there with each other as they enjoyed the taste of the wine, despite
how cheap the snacks were. Soren felt the sting of his failure fading
away as his limbs loosened up, thanks to the hot bath and Eli's
gentile touch. They went to bed in each others arms, letting
exhaustion overtake them, content with each other, even in defeat.


]

Source: https://sofurry.com/view/566300