"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music."
― Friedrich Nietzsche


Anzu Mazaki just couldn't believe her luck sometimes.

She stood on the brisk street, waiting to enter the Waldorf Astoria, dressed to the nines with her closest friends for a ball. A charity ball. An A-list charity ball, to be exact. If someone had asked her in high school where she would be when she was 21 years old, she would have never guessed New York City, accomplishing nearly every goal she had set for herself. It had been her lifelong dream to go to the Big Apple after graduation, but she didn't expect it to actually happen. As she stared up at the glamorous hotel, the brisk October wind rustling her blush colored evening gown, she felt a lump in her throat. She had come such a long way from being a young dancer with a slight interest in Duel Monsters. After several long years of hard work, she had landed a spot in the School of American Ballet and, shortly after, a coveted apprenticeship with the New York City Ballet with a promising career (hopefully) ahead of her. She had always been on the sidelines, cheering for others, but now this was finally her time to shine.

"Anzu? You coming?"

Anzu jerked out of her reminiscing by the sound of her roommate of three years. Cecelia was an aspiring jazz singer with a stunning set of pipes, and Anzu could attest to, since she often used their small bathroom as a personal sound booth while showering. She looked absolutely lovely in her turquoise evening gown, perfectly offsetting her russet skin, her black hair swept up in an elegant twist. Cece beamed at her and held out a hand, her bangle bracelets clacking together merrily. "Come on, Anzu! You know Kent doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Swallowing the nervous lump in her throat, Anzu returned the grin and eagerly grasped her hand.

When Kent Warrick had asked Anzu and Cece if they wanted to go to a charity ball as his guests, the girls couldn't accept fast enough. How many times could anyone say that they've been to a charity ball? As guests of someone on the A-list, no less! Kent's father, the owner of a research and manufacturing company, attended this ball every year, and naturally, Kent could tag along. And when Kent tagged along, he decided that Anzu and Cece should tag along as well. He stood just inside the lobby, his dark hair slicked back into a coif that could have come straight from the 1950s. His hands were shoved impatiently in the pockets of his tuxedo and he tapped his foot.

"There you are," he huffed, striding to meet them. "I told you to hurry up!"

"Sorry," Anzu apologized with a sheepish smile. "I just got caught up in the glamour of it all." Kent's coppery eyes fell upon the girls and their gowns, and his expression warmed, and Anzu knew all was forgiven.

It was hard not to get swept up by the beauty and charm that the Waldorf Astoria exuded. Anzu's heels sunk easily into the green, brown, and gold that made up the plush carpeting, and the lights bathed the room in a sultry glow that glimmered off of the paneled walls. In the middle of the lobby stood a grand golden clock, sitting tall on a wooden pedestal, surrounded by cream upholstered furniture. Everything seemed to shout "money," and usually she would roll her eyes at the pompous exuberance, but tonight was different. Tonight was special.

The guests were a sight to behold in their own. All she could hear was the rustling of skirts, boisterous laughs of businessmen, and the drone of gossiping women. Being in the middle of it all made it hard to keep a silly grin off of her face. This was New York in its finest.

The young dancer fell in step besides Cece as they followed Kent through the lobby and under a grand chandelier to a large room full of tables covered in white linen and people eagerly finding their seats. Once again, she was in awe of the sheer glamour of the ballroom, and she gaped around openly. Cream paneled walls with red trimming surrounded them, swathed in a shimmering glow. The tables were round and in the center sat a beautiful bouquet of orange calla lilies and roses. A space was cleared in the middle of the mass of tables to form a dance floor just in front of a mahogany podium.

Glancing at Cece, Anzu nudged her arm. "I can't believe this. Everything is so gorgeous!"

"I know, it's ridiculous!" Cece squealed, her eyes shining brightly.

It was going to be a good night, Anzu could feel it. Something in the pit of her stomach kept her heart aflutter.

Kent's previously antsy scowl had melted into an easy smile. "I told you this was something else." He inclined his head towards a table where his father stood, looking sharp in his crisp tuxedo and black bowtie as he chatted easily with an older woman with a jeweled cane. Mr. Warrick had always been a friendly person, giving off a vibrant air and he was very easy to talk to. Anzu vaguely wondered if those jewels on the woman's gaudy cane were real.

Mr. Warrick's eyes fell upon them and he quickly excused himself from the woman. "Anzu, Cece! How lovely to see you two again!" he boomed, spreading his arms wide with an enthusiastic grin. "And how lovely you look! Come, come, have a seat. This here is our table. Dinner should be served soon, I expect, and then the keynote will begin."

They took their seats at the table, and Anzu found herself between Kent and Cece. She glanced around the table and noticed that an attractive couple joined them. The man wore a standard tux and his hair seemed to be swept back in a tousled, brown coif. The woman at his side wore an emerald ball gown and her curled blonde hair spilled around her shoulders.

"I believe introductions are to be made," Mr. Warrick announced, his warm smile still secure on his face. He gestured towards the couple. "This is William Horan and his wife, Robin." Each smiled in turn. "William here works with me. And these fine young ladies are Anzu Mazaki and Cecelia Robles. Both friends of Kent."

William smiled kindly. "So you both go to NYU as well, then?"

"No," Cecelia chimed in, shaking her head. "I go to Juilliard, actually. Anzu went to the School of American Ballet, and she has an apprenticeship right now with the NYCB."

"Juilliard? The NYCB?" Robin exclaimed, her green eyes widening. "Impressive." Anzu smiled and flushed under the attention. "I used to be in ballet in high school, but I could never have gotten into the SAB with my skill. Congratulations to you both. I'm sure you've worked very hard!"

William had fallen into conversation with Mr. Warrick, and Cece and Robin were talking about the operas they have seen and discussed their favorite works. Without complaint, Anzu settled further into her chair and gazed around the room once again, drinking it all in. Someone nudged her arm, and she turned to see Kent grinning at her.

"It seems like someone's forgiven me for being late," she teased, winking.

Kent shrugged as he propped up his elbow against the back of his chair. "I take mercy on a few souls once and awhile," he replied with a smirk. "So what do you make of all this?"

The young dancer made a show of looking around, meticulously observing the whole room. "Well, I suppose it's adequate." Anzu surmised, shrugging her bare shoulders, earning an amused snort from Kent.

"I know it's not one of your elaborate Duel Monsters competitions, but at least pretend you like it."

"Oh, trust me, this is much better. So, what exactly happens at a charity ball?"

"Well," Kent began, fixing his bowtie, "there's a lot that happens. First of all, there's a lot of fundraising going on, since it's a charity ball. There's a lot of eating and drinking, too, and a brief speech by the keynote speaker, and dancing. Ballroom dancing."

"Ballroom dancing?"

Kent gave her a pointed look. "I would expect you to know how to waltz, at least."

"I know how." Anzu replied defensively. Of course she knew how to waltz, what did Kent take her for?

"Good. Then you'll promise me the first dance?"

"Promise you? Where are we, medieval court?" Kent leveled her with an annoyed glare, to which Anzu shrugged with an easy smile playing on her lips. "Maybe. We'll see how you behave."

Kent rolled his eyes as waiters began to serve them glasses of wine and champagne. Anzu accepted a glass of Chianti, and took a sip, the warm and heady flavor whirling and bursting around her tongue. She glanced towards the front of the room where an older man had occupied the large podium and was tapping experimentally on the microphone.

"Good evening, ladies and gentleman," he said a little bit too loudly, causing some piercing feedback. Anzu winced, a wry little smile working at the corners of her lips as the man pulled away in shock. He cleared his throat and began again. "Now that we have that out of the way..."

The audience gave a polite chuckle.

The man welcomed everyone to what would hopefully be the most successful charity event of the season, taking time to thank those who made everything possible. Anzu tried her best to pay attention to the speaker as he went briefly through the order of events, but it was extremely difficult, since waiters dressed in impeccable white suits began to weave between tables with plates of salad and baskets of warm loaves of artisan bread. She eyed Kent as he received his salad, looking for a cue that would tell her whether or not it was all right to start eating right away. Thankfully, he seized a slice of bread and began to butter it almost immediately. Following suit, Anzu dressed her salad with Italian dressing and began to crunch away, Cece mirroring her actions.

"Wow, the bread is excellent." Cece commented, reaching towards the basket for another slice.

"Wait 'til you get to the main course," Kent smirked, reaching across Anzu to yank the bread basket out of Cece's hands.

"And without further ado," the man remarked at the podium, "it gives me great pleasure to announce our keynote speaker for the night. Orphaned at a young age, this inspiring young man has devoted the majority of his time to his younger brother and the rest towards children in need, all while running a multi-billion dollar company with stellar reviews and incredible customer satisfaction."

Anzu chuckled to herself, taking another sip of Chianti. If I didn't know any better, she thought idly, I would have thought he was talking about...

"Please welcome Mr. Seto Kaiba!"