[Michael Kempler]

10

What an event! Looking around at all the people, Michael was excited to see where the night went. He'd made a point to do the maze first and now he stood near the dance floor. His costume was a well-tailored hood to represent a Swellow's head, face, neck, and chest feathers along with a pair of custom-made wings that were folded against his back but that could spread if he wanted to and had the space.

His shoes, pants, and shirt were just appropriately-colored, but not specifically tailored pieces of his attire. Dark denim jeans worked well, along with dark blue sneakers and a white tank top. Fluff was nearby, trying to get her paws on a snack of some kind from a table. She had her own costume, but it was really just a very realistic-looking crown and jewelry on her forelegs. Royalty!

Koray Starr
144.
notes.

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[Koray Starr]

Words: 255 | Tag: Michael Kempler | Notes: ---

Koray had already spent most of the night dancing and was having the time of his life. Looking around for his next prospective dance partner, he spotted what appeared to be a rather elaborate looking Swellow. Mmm, perhaps they would be a good dance partner. He'd already been pleasantly surprised several times by the skill level of his past partners. The Swellow could be interesting, if nothing else maybe he could talk to them. It looked like there was a Stufful nearby too which Rowan took an interest in. The Phantump even gave her a nearby snack like the helpful ghost pokemon he was.

His outfit was inspired by none other than Dusknoir. Mummy like bandages covered his legs while a long black trench coat with tails that touched the ground covered most of him. An equally long white frilly blouse was the underneath the coat. A neck piece with long spikes, a single red pendant, and eye barrets completed the ensemble. More bandages covered his neck while a black and gold phantom of the opera mask completed the ensemble. Koray's brown hair was dyed black and rather messy all things considered, but it was purposeful and would no doubt get messed up from all the dancing regardless.

Approaching the Swellow, Koray smiled in greeting, "Quite the elaborate event, isn't it? The costumes and everything are beautiful, just like your Swellow attire~," he mused, offering the Swellow some punch. He needed a short break from dancing and the punch was quite delicious.

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[Michael Kempler]

10

Fluff was positively ecstatic to receive a snack from the Phantump and emitted a delighted squeal before mowing down on the treat she was offered. Only once she'd munched away at it did she express her thanks to the ghost and reached up to attempt touching him.

Michael returned the smile and nodded his head as he gratefully took the punch. "It is pretty fun," he agreed, "and your costume is pretty detailed. Must have taken a while to get ready and it was worth it, I think." He grinned a bit and took a sip of the punch. Ah, that was good. Normally, this would be the point where he'd introduce himself but it was all anonymous so he bit his tongue on that part. "The whole lengths they went to to put this on are pretty impressive, aren't they? Perfect anonymity and that maze. Something else," he remarked, trying to make some small talk. He obviously wasn't very good at it, though.

Koray Starr
164.
notes.

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[Koray Starr]

Words: 279 | Tag: Michael Kempler | Notes: ---

Rowan giggled at the Stufful and nodded at the thanks given. Seeing the paw reaching out to him, the Phantump floated a little lower to the ground and held out his own ghostly hand. The high five that was given was perhaps a little colder than Fluff was expecting, but Rowan seemed happy just the same and even floated back up to get a couple more treats, one for each of them.

Koray took a sip of his punch and listened as the Swellow complimented his costume and the attention to detail. Grinning brighter now, he bowed slightly, chuckling a little softly, "Thank you, the prep work was perhaps the hardest, but I do think it was worth it in the end~," he agreed, not wanting to think about how long it had taken to wrap his arms, legs, and some of his neck in mummy-like bandages.

The conversation turned to the ball and Koray hummed in agreement, taking a sip of his drink. "It truly is a spectacular evening, but that is in part thanks to all the ghost and dark pokemon I believe. Perhaps you should direct some of your thanks to them~," he'd already made his thanks known when he stepped in to the beautiful sight that was the ball.

After finishing his punch, Koray felt better and wouldn't mind another dance or two on the floor. Extending a hand to the Swellow, he smiled, "Maybe it would be more fun if we had a dance or two?" It was something to do rather than talk but heh, if the Swellow said no that was fine too.

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[Michael Kempler]

10

Nodding at the mention of thanking the Pokemon that made this all worth it, Michael went ahead and turned around a bit to call out toward the ceiling, "Fantastic job, to all you Pokemon making this night possible!" Truth be told, he'd been referring to anyone and everyone, Pokemon and human included, with his initial remark, but hey... Couldn't hurt to really make his gratefulness known.

The yelling, of course, did draw some attention from people closest to them, but the Swellow couldn't care less. When offered a dance, Michael grinned and nodded his head. "Sure, let's give it a try." Instead of taking Koray's hand, though, he just motioned toward the dance floor with a small jerk of his head and headed out to begin dancing. Still a bit in denial over his sexuality, Michael was generally semi-reluctant to make contact with males unless absolutely necessary.

Koray Starr
147.
notes.

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[Koray Starr]

Words: 182 | Tag: Michael Kempler | Notes: ---

When Koray had suggested thanking the pokemon, he... hadn't actually thought the Swellow would do so. It earned a chuckle nonetheless as he shook his head. He'd already thanked the good pokemon in his own way, but now that eyes were on them, Koray thought that it was best to make sure they blended in with the crowd a little more. That meant joining the dancing which would hopefully prove to be a fun past time.

While he was a little surprised the Swellow hadn't taken his hand, as was custom in accepting a dance, the verbal agreement would be good enough for the time being. Once on the dance floor, Koray once again held out his hand for the Swellow to take. He didn't know how well the Swellow danced, but most dances in this kind of party required at least simple hand holding. "What style of dance would you like to do? I know several~. Though, tap would probably not be your best choice at the moment," Koray asked, winking a bit as he teased the Swellow.

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[Michael Kempler]

10

Michael, still very much in denial, avoided physical contact with other males (or honestly even masculine presenting individuals) as much as possible. He was less antsy about less intimate touching, of course, but even holding hands had its own touch of intimacy. Dancing, too, but... hell. Once they were out there and a hand was once again held out to him, the Swellow-clad teen hesitated.

With the tease, he let himself ease up and shook his head. "To be honest, I'm not very knowledgeable about different dances. You'll have to lead. I mean, if that's all right with you. I'm pretty light on my feet, though, so I should somehow manage not to step on you." He grinned a bit, extending his hand to take the Dusknoir's and preparing himself to follow the steps of whatever dance his partner chose.

Koray Starr
140.
notes.

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[Koray Starr]

Words: 209 | Tag: Michael Kempler | Notes: ---

Koray was beginning to notice that Michael was pointedly avoiding his touch. It was... curious, but there were others that were adverse to touch. Perhaps it was just a personal preference rather than something meant as an insult. He noticed the hesitation and was about to withdraw his hand when it seemed the tease put the Swellow at ease. Ahhh, so he didn't know a lot about dancing after all. That made more sense, though the suggestion about leading earned a soft smile.

"Ah, if that is the case, you needn't worry," Koray hummed, smiling bemusedly at the Swellow, pulling him closer while putting a hand around his waist, "Let's start with a box step, that's the foundation to most dances. Don't focus on your feet, focus on my lead. You can feel it in the slightest touch, the slightest push..." he continued, illustrating just what he meant by that.

"Take a step back, you can feel me pushing forward, yes? Then a step to the side, forward again, and to the side. See? You're dancing my fine Swellow~," Koray mused softly, continuing the movement, making sure the pace was slow, easy, at least until the Swellow felt more comfortable.

aeron at thq

[Michael Kempler]

At this point, with Koray's arm around him and the two decidedly close, Michael had to ignore his worries. In fact, he had to remind himself that no one here would recognize him anyway, so... what did it matter if he was dancing with a dashing man? The only person he needed to worry about was himself and if he needed to, he was sure he could find drinks later to drown himself in.

Instinctively, he did look down at his feet even as his dance partner told him not to focus there. He was quick to look back up, though, and focus on the subtle adjustments. Koray's body moved toward him and he swayed back to follow, the foot that would be stepped on moving in time with the other. A hand pressing faintly against him, indicating the direction they'd move next. He followed smoothly, smiling lightly. He was still a bit tense, but he was reminding himself in his mind frequently that this was fine. There was nothing wrong with this. The only person that was uneasy was himself and he still wasn't completely sure why he had this strange notion about men with men being... somehow less masculine.

Faintly shaking his head at his own internal monologue, Michael smiled at his dance partner. It was a somewhat grateful expression. After all, the Dusknoir was allowing him something he didn't normally allow himself and it felt... more right than what he tried to act was normal for him.

[Koray Starr]

Words: 123 | Tag: Michael Kempler | Notes: ---

Koray smiled when it seemed that the Swellow was much more relaxed than earlier. Another step, another push, and this time Koray opted to see if he could pull the Swellow into a spin and a following dip. This would happen fairly quickly, but Koray did adjust for any missteps that the Swellow would make. "See? You're doing marvelous," Koray whispered while maintaining that dip before righting the Swellow again. They would fall into that easy box step again with Koray mixing it up every so often. It seemed that the Swellow was growing more relaxed as time went on.

"There you go~, there's the smile," Koray hummed, "Are you enjoying yourself, now~?"

aeron at thq

[Michael Kempler]

Nearby, Fluff observed curiously. She no longer had anything to nibble on, but she was sucking on her paws to make sure she didn't miss even the smallest crumb. Completely entertained, she sat by the edge of the dance floor and stared at the pair, only occasionally blinking.

Michael was a little uncertain about what was being asked of him when it came to the spin and their smooth dance was temporarily interrupted by him not knowing what to do. He figured it out after a moment, though, and spun around, feeling like a giant dork. He laughed at himself and then yelped faintly at the dip. Looking up at Koray, a shocked look on his face, he was certain he was blushing and felt a little stupid.

Once righted and back into the simple steps back and forth, he cleared his throat and offered a milder smile and nodded. "Yeah, I guess I am." This was fine. He could enjoy this. He was enjoying this, more than he would have expected. Sooner than he would have thought, the song ended and a quicker paced one followed. Hm... Michael considered taking the lead and attempting to keep time with this one, but decided instead to see what his dance partner would do next.

[Koray Starr]

Words: 171 | Tag: Michael Kempler | Notes: ---

Hearing Swellow laugh was reward in and of itself. Koray was certainly enjoying himself and was glad that he'd managed to ease whatever fears and anxieties Swellow had as well. The surprised yelp at the dip followed by the blush was certainly endearing and Koray found himself smiling more as the dance went on. Once Swellow agreed that he was having fun after all, Koray smiled more warmly, "Good~, would you care to try leading for this next dance~?" he mused. The faster pace might be tricky, but they could always sit this one out if need be.

Rowan was enjoying watching the dancing in the meantime. Koray always looked so much happier when he was dancing. Seeing Fluff was sucking her paw, Rowan picked up another sweet and handed it to the Stufful, enjoying his own morself of a chocolate pastry that looked nice. It was, especially since chocolate was one of the Phantump's favorite treats. Well... aside from the poketreats that Koray made of course!

aeron at thq

[Michael Kempler]

Michael leading a dance, huh? He was usually fine with that, but then again he was more the club type so maybe. Looking thoughtful, he looked around at the other dancers and brought a hand up to rub his chin. "Sure. I think since it's a bit more my speed, we'll do something a bit different."

With a smirk, he took Koray's hand and moved a little more into the crowd. It wasn't hip-hop, but he could imagine this song being played in a club, probably. And so he began to swing his hips in a pretty stereotypical white-boy fashion. It wasn't bad, per se, but it wasn't very impressive, either.

Meanwhile, Fluff took a moment to notice the offered treat and perked up excitedly. Thanking the other Pokemon, she went about savoring the sweet she'd been given this time rather than just sucking it down. Ah, yummy human food... Sugar was so delightful! Why wouldn't Michael give her more?

[Koray Starr]

Words: 178 | Tag: Michael Kempler | Notes: ---

Koray smiled when the Swellow agreed to lead the dance. He was confident that he could match whatever his partner threw at him. From what he'd just experienced, the Swellow wasn't as learned as Koray was in the art of dance. Once the Swellow took his hand, Koray beamed and followed easily, watching for a moment as the other man began to swing his hips. Mind racing to come up with a comparable dance form, Koray had to stop himself and just follow the music and his partner.

Hands moved the Swellow's to his hip and shoulder while he mirrored the motion as well, swaying to the music just as his partner was. "Not bad~," Koray mused, smiling bemusedly, "Feel free to get creative, just relax and feel the music." It was the best advice he could offer right then and there.

Rowan meanwhile was glad that the treat had been well accepted. That was good! Oh! Maybe the Stufful wanted to dance as well? That would be a lot of fun!

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