#and yeah I had to add in that quick aside about the bonfire to justify Alice dancing around one

[victorluvsalice]

Valicer Multiamory Month, Day Twenty: Dancing (All The Fairytales AU)

We're well into Multiamory March (as prepared by @polyamships) now -- and it's time for another edition of "original prompt for this day didn't work for me, so here's one of the alternative ones!" Because while I like "Time Travel" (you all must know by now that I'm a huge fan of the Back To The Future franchise), I couldn't think of anything to do with it in a Valicer/Four Victorians Riding A Roller Coaster context --

Whereas "Dancing"...yeah. That was definitely a prompt that I could fit to my OT3/OT5. XD And, after a bit of thought, I ended up fitting it specifically to the OT5 of my All The Fairy Tales AU, because dancing is very important to that story! There's both a village midsummer festival and a royal ball that everyone ends up attending, after all. And while most people would assume that the royal ball would be the more important dance in a story that's mashes together a bunch of different fairy tales, as Prince Victor Van Dort shall reveal below, that's not necessarily true...

--

Whenever a visiting fellow royal or high-ranking noble asked him when he had fallen in love with his partners (often with eyes full of confusion over the fact that that word was not “wife” and was plural), Victor would always respond the same way: “Oh – it was definitely when we all danced together for the first time.” And this would be accepted with a nod and a smile and occasionally a knowing “ah” noise, because of course that made sense. For all of them knew of the grand ball Queen Nell had thrown when he’d been found after his disappearance post-assassination attempt, and that he’d spent much of that night dancing with three mysterious ladies and the Minister of Joy of Alton Towers. It was only natural that that would be when he fell in love, not once but four times. And so the conversation would move on, and everyone would be satisfied.

What Victor would never admit to these people – mostly because he wasn’t sure any of them would understand – was that the ball was not the first time he’d danced with Victoria, Emily, Alice and Smiler. No, that honor actually went to the Newcrest midsummer festival they’d all attended the night before he’d been discovered. Back when they’d only known him as a fled nobleman’s son now working for the local tavern and boarding house, and he’d only known them as two lovely seamstresses – one soft and gentle, one vibrant and enthusiastic – a sharp-witted dogsbody for the local orphanage, and a golden-tongued fairy with a quick, brilliant smile. The memory was a dear one to him – the five of them spinning and twirling and bouncing in the light of The Wickerman’s magical bonfire (once Alice had been assured it only burned wood and never flesh), the music around them as lively as the laughter that poured from their lips. He’d swung from partner to partner easily that eve, all inhibitions gone thanks to perhaps a bit too much of Smiler’s Joy Serum, taking equal pleasure in how Emily practically glided over the earth, how Victoria made every step look elegant and graceful, how Alice was quick enough to keep up with even the fastest dancer, and how Smiler threw themselves into every motion with open, pure delight. And the way the night had ended, with all of them collapsed against each other, warm and sweaty and smiling...well. He’d looked at them and known in an instant that he could spend the rest of his life with any and all of them. That he’d never know true happiness again unless at least one of them was by his side. And he considered himself extraordinarily lucky that things had worked out so that he was allowed to stay with all of them, and make more moments to cherish. Yes, the ball had played its part in their romance, he’d never deny that.

But if given the choice, he’d relive their true first dance every time.