The Tamer and His Beast

There was a time that he remembered clearly, in which people would dance by a fire, mesmerizing those who watched. Through the dim light and shadows, the music and the movement, whether quick or slow, the entire event was hypnotic. It was that fire that Bruul remembered the most. For he could feel the heat from it as it fed off the earth and the energy that was around it. He would never forget watching a dance against fire.

But he would never forget this one either. There weren't many times in his life that he had seen such emotion come out of music and dance. While most were serious or dramatic, telling a tale through limbs that moved like crescendos, this had to be the first time that he had witnessed something that moved him and wasn't such a way.

The way the blond laughed and cheered, sang, danced on tabletops. It was the most joyous thing he had ever seen in his life. There was not a human or beast that he had seen show such pure happiness other than the man that played that stringed instrument. He was a masterpiece, for he didn't need any practice to do the twisting and twirling through the heavy crowds in the congested room. He used the room as his stage, even using his foot to keep the beat sometimes.

That smile on his face said it all. He looked like the weight of the world was lifted off his shoulders, the troubles all gone as he bumped into the others who played with him. Through his silliness, he got others to join in, even singing some.

He heard the blond say that he wasn't good at singing, but Bruul would beg to differ. There was something about his voice that reminded him of the nature that he helped make. It was not sweet, but it was soft, with a youth of a newly grown leaf on a tree that brushed against whomever passed it. Such a small interaction, yet he made it memorable. He calmed the core of his being, reminding him of clean air and fresh soil, eager to help the plants flourish and thrive.

There was so much that could be said about the man through just one song. Bruul didn't think he could ever put it to words completely. It was like the earth itself, because it could never be completely described, and it was never frank about its answers.

As soon as he was finishing on the last bit of the song, a gust of wind picked up, pushing through the open windows as if to have this dance with him. He swayed with it one last time, the lights of the building creating an angelic glow around him as the band finished their song at last.

Those eyes met his again, and Bruul was too mesmerized to look away. Through them, he could see a fleeting happiness that the man tried so hard to keep inside him. It dimmed ever so slightly in those troubling ocean eyes. It made him long to keep that joy in them. For they seemed to linger in it just a little longer simply by seeing him watch him so intently.

Or he was thinking too much. That tended to happen quite a lot when he didn't speak for too long. That music had just evoked emotions that had not surfaced in him in a long time. And those eyes that sparkled at him were too beautiful to ever ignore.

That song had made him deaf to all the other noises. He didn't hear the cheers as everyone else laughed with the man they all enjoyed the company of. Geoff really was a popular man. It didn't surprise him one bit. As much as the man said that everyone got annoyed of him talking all the time, there was a warmth about him that made you feel like you were home and could say anything. Even the wind enjoyed his company, the breeze forever playing with his hair. It was past his shoulders, with curls that stuck to each other, only fraying when the wind picked it up enough.

He remembered holding him the night before, and touching that hair. It was not the softest, but it felt good tangled in his fingers.

Bruul didn't hear much after that, the song resonating so powerfully. Instead, he sat and watched the man go around the room and mess with some more people that were there. It didn't take too long for him to get back to their table, but it seemed as if time had slowed if not for just a little while. He had truly never met a human like him before.