Read Online Dance of Fire by Yelena Black - Free Book Online

walked away, broom in hand. Vanessa was sure her roommate was lying, but she would have to prove it. Meanwhile, she had to get to work.
    Cleaning.
    When they had finished with the chores, they gathered at the centre of the room.
    Enzo clapped his hands together. ‘Now we begin.’
    He fiddled with the waistband of his sweatpants, then yanked them off. Underneath, he was wearing a pair of white tights that left nothing to the imagination.
    â€˜ Rowr ,’ Svetya muttered.
    â€˜You are all here because you know what it feels like to dance perfectly,’ Enzo said. He straightened his back, extended one arm and began a complicated step. It was a deliberate series of movements, each one slowed down as though he were moving underwater.
    â€˜You all know that when you dance perfectly, it can sometimes make the room spin and fade.’ He flitted across the room in a strange slow-motion cabriole, his ponytail gently whipping across his face. ‘It makes the floor seem to shift and the walls close in on you.’
    Vanessa’s breath caught. All this time she’d thought she was the only one who experienced strange things when she danced. Apparently that wasn’t the case. Had this happened to Justin too? Why had he never told her?
    â€˜It makes your chest swell with heat,’ Enzo continued. ‘Your veins pulse with fire, your eyes burn with light.’
    When he said those final words, Vanessa could have sworn Enzo’s eyes met hers. But he was moving so rapidly that his entire body became a blur, and then he disappeared.
    A collective gasp filled the studio.
    Vanessa spun round, as did the others, searching for him.
    â€˜But none of you knows how to harness that power,’ Enzo said from the furthest corner of the studio, bringing his arms to his sides.
    Vanessa blinked. Had she just seen what she thought she had? He had travelled across the room so quickly it was almost as if he’d been moving invisibly. But that couldn’t be possible. Could it?
    â€˜We call that step le flou , “the blur,”’ said Enzo, walking towards them, ‘when you move so quickly, with steps so perfect that you become virtually invisible.’
    â€˜Perfection is not enough,’ he said, slipping across the room in a slow glissé . ‘To elevate yourselves above the mere level of motion, you need to master the dance. Harness its power and use it to bend the light around your bodies, to mould the room around your shape, to make the floor shift at your direction!’
    He twirled once, twice, his body swaying as if he were about to fall, and disappeared again, reappearing behind them, mid-pirouette. ‘When you are able to do that,’ he said, ‘anything is possible.’ He traced his left toe up the inside of his right leg, and leaped into a petit jeté . There was a tiny blur in the air, and again he was gone.
    The only trace of him was a soft patter of footsteps across the wooden floor. Vanessa turned to follow them, but the sound seemed to bounce throughout the room, echoing off the walls in a dissonant jumble.
    Then Enzo reappeared right in front of her, landing in first position, his ponytail slightly loosened, his heels tucked together as if he had never left. It was impressive – magical even – but would a fancy dance step really save Vanessa once the demon caught up with her?
    As if sensing her unease, Enzo said, ‘Trust me, mastering this will help you.’ He looked around the room. ‘But for now, we will work on your solo dances for Monday.’
    The rest of the afternoon was gruelling. Not even Josef had worked them this hard, Vanessa thought. Svetya and Geo were brilliant dancers, better than anyone she’d seen back at NYBA. Their form was incredible and, best of all, they looked as if they enjoyed dancing. Svetya actually came to life – her eyes brightened, and her smile seemed to take up half her face. ­Vanessa could