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As the boys’ dance ended and they made their exit, Kip watched for Navalia. She had convinced him to participate so he had a reason to be up at the Palace for young princess Aralia’s first public birthday party. She was eager to see the formal court dances, which wouldn’t start until the local performances ended. And he owed her a favor.
As they rounded the hedge, she was waiting. Tapping on Basil’s shoulder to get his attention, Kip passed over his wreath and armbands, then fell back to join her. He drew on the tunic she passed him, which covered his rather scant grass skirt. It wasn’t comfortable, but if anyone spotted them, he’d look more like one of the wait staff than a dancer.
“Where are we headed?” He trusted Navalia to have a practical plan for what was next. Clia and Irene would cover for her after the dancing, as Basil and Dimiter were covering for him, so their mother wouldn’t wonder where they were. She’d also got Aunt Zema, who worked with the caterers, to agree to bail them out—at the expense of working off the debt—if they got caught.
“I cleared out a space behind the banana plants at the northeast corner. Marco wanted some help setting up, so I just acted like I was supposed to be doing that between wrestling all the potted plants in place.”
“And to get there?” He did not want to get in trouble so soon after he and Basil had tried to take the conch shell from the Dolphin’s dining room. His mother and a number of aunts and uncles had had words with him, and the cousins were still teasing him about it.
“I stowed trays just over there. Let’s wait for the torch dancers to go on, and no one will be looking this way.”
The torch dancers were not from the Vangavaye-ve or even the Wide Seas, and it annoyed Kip that they’d been included, but they did make an effective distraction.
“The flames will keep this area in the dark, true enough.” Kip was sure of that.
“I thought dancers wearing nothing but tiny loincloths would keep everyone’s attention, but no doubt you’re right too.” Navalia seemed to think that was funny for some reason.
And in fact, they were able to get to and pick up the trays piled with rumpled napkins and head up to the Palace with no interference at all.
The spot Navalia chose wasn’t comfortable, a bit cramped for both of them to squat and wait while the orchestra set up around the corner to their left and the court and guests made their way from the lower terraces up to the level of the Palace. Then the Poz gave a drunken ramble, which only ended when he noticed his glass was empty and signaled for the music to start. By then, Kip was having trouble staying still enough not to set the plants rustling.
In a way, it was even harder to stay still once the dancing did start. Kip hadn’t expected the strong rhythms and fast twirling that the dances featured. They looked fun to do. The youngest dancers seemed about Kip’s age and mostly danced with their own gender. The full adults were mostly in opposite-gender pairs, the men doing some very athletic lifts.
Kip glanced over to see Navalia’s rapt expression. She had talked about learning the women’s dances as if they were a chore, but he could see that these more flowing movements fascinated her. She did not look tired from a long day but ready to leap into the dances herself. Forearms against her shins, her hands were following the beat while her first two fingers seemed to mimic the footwork. He raised his right hand to echo her movements on her knee, and after a startled glance, she brought her hand up to partner his, rewarding him with a broad smile as their fingers danced together.