In Search of Epsilon

We Shall Dance!

Francis realized very quickly why Życie thought these sorts of parties were a bore.  

The people were waltzing in a very coordinated manner. Normally, one would think that is the proper way of doing such a dance. 

But to adventurers such as Francis and Życie, it was a bore.  

These people did not move following the music. They danced not in self-expression, but in the mechanical manner they had been taught.  

“My Goodness, Życie, you were right,” said Francis.  

A lot of people had noticed the two entering the party and had already started to spread rumors.  

Another reason why Życie did not like these sorts of parties.  

“I want to show you that we can still have fun, even in these hellish places,” said Francis. 

Życie rolled her eyes, but she could not help to let out a small smile. 

“Shall I teach you how to waltz?” asked Życie.  

“Before we talk anything about dancing, let me do something first,” said Francis.  

He had requested a song. 

“I had no idea you even knew a song,” said Życie.  

“The old man taught me. Now, how about I teach you how to waltz?” 

“You? Teach me? You must be joking. I can waltz just like everyone here”  

“That’s the problem. But let’s wait until they change this insult to music” responded Francis.

A lover of classical music would have been angry at Francis’ statement, declaring that all type of this music is great. They are very wrong. Many classical songs express futility and frustration. The song that was being played showed the feeling of sorrow. 

This was an insult to such a beautiful genre of music. These are people that compose sadness not thinking about heartbreak, but they compose thinking that life is worthless.  

These types of songs are meant to break free of suffering.   

Happiness and life, the two things that Życie represented the most, had been casted away. No wonder she had such a terrible time inn these types of parties, thought Francis.  

Many would argue that one must need sadness to experience happiness. Such composers are fools. They accept pain as something that humans must feel. They say that it is necessary. But they are the critics that will never achieve happiness, because they confuse it for a fleeting emotion, and do not recognize its grandeur.  

And so, the scene continues, as the song requested was being played.  

“My lady, the waltz, when it was first introduced, was something considered improper,” said Francis.  

To this, her only response was a laugh. It was hard to believe that the robotic movement these people were doing was something considered improper.  

“Shall we teach these deluded souls how to properly dance?” asked Francis.  

And so, with the slight smile of a devil about to prepare a harmless joke for laughs, she gave in and took his hand.  

And they danced.  

It was akin to no waltz that had been performed anywhere in the world, for it was no performance. It was an expression of oneself. Francis was leading, and what he was expressing was life.  

The life that had once ceded and had gained thanks to her. In other words, he was dancing for love, not for the sake of imitating art. 

He was the embodiment of the art, as clumsy as they were. 

And it was not being performed, it was being created. 

At first, Życie struggled to keep up with his bizarre form of dancing.  

“Stop clinging to form and proper style. Let yourself be. Dancing is an expression of one’s soul. You follow the basic guideline, but you must add your own taste to make it great” Francis told her.  

As she let herself go, she started to lead him.  

It was now Francis who laughed.  

His grin was one that issued a challenge. He was not interested in ceding control.  

And so, their waltz became an expression of their relationship. A struggle between friendship and love. But it was a struggle that itself was a reward because not having each other would be suffering.  

It is not right to call it a struggle if one does not suffer, but any outsider would not view it as anything else.  

And those same outsiders had stopped and gathered to watch them.  

But the couple dancing never paid them any attention.  

All they could see was each other.  

The song ended in an explosion, and it let itself go to the void.  

The silence went on for a couple of seconds, as they continued to stare at each other. She had the smile of someone that had just discovered something amazing. He had the breathless stare of someone that had been enraptured.  

As they slowly separated, it was the people around them that had broken the silence. They were now asking to dance with her, the men and women alike.  

Francis had become isolated. The crowd had all moved towards Życie and had separated the two. They had no interest in him, but they were interested in her. 

It was at this moment that a mysterious woman approached him.  

She had the darkest hair and eyes he had ever seen. It was as if they were absorbing the light near them. But what made her stand out as much as she did was how he felt. A strange sort of kinship and melancholy came with her as she moved.  

“It seems like you have been abandoned,” she said flatly.  

“I have not been abandoned. Someone beautiful has already found me” said Francis.  

Even though he felt kinship, he felt an even greater sense of anxiety, as if this woman held the entire world in her hands. When nervous, his grandfather had taught him to be flirty. People will mistake it for confidence.  

“Your dance is filled with love,” she said. Her voice had no emotion. It was cold, as if the dead were speaking. 

“I have an absurd amount of love to give, so dancing with anyone in that manner is normal”  

The only acknowledgment she gave was the tilting of her head, as if begetting a question.   

She stopped looking at Francis and continued to walk around the ballroom. Francis kept staring at her and wondered why nobody was talking to her. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, with her pale white skin and black dress.  

But for some reason, people parted wherever she walked.  

It was not out of respect, fear, or anything else. If it was any of those things, they would have to look at her. But their expressions never changed. 

But it was more like they had no idea she was there.