Autor arrived in the salle early, but he was already too late: Erina was stretching near the piano with a few of the other girls from the advanced class.

They all started in first position, then moved to second, then third-all but Erina. Her stretching and plies were in a different order, but one so familiar that Autor had no trouble picking up on whom she was copying.

She... she looks just like Rue, he thought, marveling. He watched his brunette dance with careful eyes, noting the similarities-there weren't many-and differences.

Thankfully, Erina was the last to leave-she was always the last to leave, he'd noticed-so he had enough time to gather his courage before she made it out the door.

"Wait," he said to her, standing abruptly. "I noticed that you warm up differently than the others."

"That's sort of creepy, Autor."

He flinched. "Is it? My apologies," he said, but the tilt to her chin let him know she was teasing him again. "Hey, Erina, this is important."

Erina folded her arms. "The warm up is empty," she explains. "It's burned into my muscles, so I just go through the motions with it."

"Where did you get it from?" he asked.

She closed her eyes and creased her brow. "There was... a person I wanted to beat," she said hesitantly. "To be better than. And I still have those feelings, even though I don't know who they are. I don't quite understand it myself."

"So all that's leftover... are the emotions?" he said, adjusting his glasses.

"I guess?" she said, raising her brows. "'Leftover' is a strange way to put it, but it makes sense."

If that's the case, then... Then is that how I feel about Rue, too? No, that can't be, he thought, carefully regarding the girl in front of him. But then what do I feel about Erina?

"Your dance is your own, though," he pointed out, and she glanced at her feet, cheeks stained with color.

"Yes," she said, clasping her opposite elbow.

What's this? Autor wondered. That's not like her at all. She's bold and brash and... and I...

"Erina," he said, taking her hand. "I like your dancing."

"You do?" she said, smile blooming on her face.

"Yes," Autor said, grinning back. "I do."