Dance of Discord 5: A Tap, & #TDWC challenge door

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene

Wednesday, May 14, 2025

Wagner Festival Theatre door by Miriam Hurdle
Wagner Festival Theatre door by Miriam Hurdle

 Welcome back to our serial story, The Dance of Discord.  No, you aren’t mistaken.  I’ve posted a serial episode midweek, rather than on the weekend.  Remember that for this serial my posting schedule might be as random as the “random reader things” that drive the story.  However, it’s also a Writing Challenge post because I’ve worked one of the inspiration doors into this installment of the serial.  The door photo is by Miriam Hurdle.

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Even if you haven’t been following the serial, I’m sure you can follow the episode well enough.  However, here are links to the previous episodes 1: Afoot,  2: A Note , 3: A Code, and 4: A Door.   Since this is a spy story, set in the somewhere around 1905 to 1909 or so.  I’m writing as a pantser (by the seat of my pants) according to sets of 3 random things, supplied by readers.  The things for this installment are from history blogger, G. P. Cox.  They are map, oil lamp, and laced boots.

Now to the new episode.

Dance of Discord

Rainbow n cherry blossoms at Washington DC Teagan via Night Cafe
by Teagan via Night Cafe

5: A Tap

Patches of brilliant blue slowly waltzed in and out as the clouds shifted in their dance with the sun.  The stormy sky met a line of demarcation where white light separated into colors.  That rainbow arced high above the Capitol Building, causing a pronounced contrast with slate gray on the outer side of the refractions and palest gray on the other.

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“A rainbow,” Milo Quick muttered.  “Ironic isn’t it, Dutchess?  To have such a good omen in the same moment that Maria Christina sends her regrets that Spain must remain neutral,” he grumbled adding a sneer to the word regrets, but he sighed.  “No doubt the queen regent of Spain and young Alfonso XIII have their hands full with their country’s conflict with Morocco.”

♣

The young agent paced, from time-to-time glancing at the view beyond the upstairs window.  Stepping back to the table, he took a look at the map, which was spread there.  He murmured to himself about taking steps to ascertain the attitude of Russian and Japanese representatives in the city.

♣

“More importantly — at least presently, I believe Prince Albert of Belgium is secretly in the Capitol,” Milo went on slowly.  “Naturally, on such a mission, he would not come as a publicly accredited ambassador…  No, he would be using another name.  He would also avoid the big hotels.  Of course, the first thing to do is to find him.  The rest will be simple enough.”

♣

“Felina, you are an excellent sounding-board,” he proclaimed.

♣

Milo gave my chin an affectionate tweak.  He straightened his bowtie.  Then, with lightning reflexes, he abruptly had his hands around my neck.  I flinched, but it was over before I could run away.

Emerald collar necklace in box by Teagan via Night Cafe
by Teagan via Night Cafe
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“There!” he chuckled, quite pleased with himself for being quicker than me.  “You always look your best, but now you’ll dazzle them,” he added, turning me to face the mirror where emeralds sparkled at my neck.  “Uncle Elgin specified in his will that this piece belonged to you.  Feel free to come and go as you please among the guests in the ballroom.  No need to be shy.  Now I must go downstairs.  Soon the merrymakers will walk between those stone columns to knock on the newly painted black door.  I must be there to greet them.  They’ll begin arriving presently.”

♣

He rolled up the map, placing it in a canister.  Then he extinguished the oil lamp as we left Elgin’s secret room.

♣ ♣ ♣
Wagner Festival Theatre door by Miriam Hurdle
Wagner Festival Theatre door by Miriam Hurdle

Brushed until it shone, my hair was sleek, unlike the elaborate coiffures displayed by most of the female guests.  The emeralds twinkling at my neck were sufficiently extravagant for my tastes.

♣

When I appeared at the foot of the curving staircase, Milo Quick had already greeted most of the guests.  As host, he need not make an entrance.  Although it was as much my home as his, I was unable to speak the languages required for such greetings.  So, I pondered whether or not I should do something rather grand.

♣

As one more pair of guests arrived, a dratted moth fluttered in behind them.  Aghast, at the audacity of the bug marring the elegant festivities, my eyes darted, quickly following the insect.

♣

In that moment of distraction, Milo suddenly swept me up into his arms.  Startled and astonished, I struggled for an instant, until he whispered in my ear.

♣

“Play along, Felina.  For anything related to the Secret Service, I’m supposed to be a bored, ineffectual, nonsensical dandy.  Keeping you at my side as much as possible goes a long way toward preventing these upper crust swells taking me seriously,” Milo murmured playfully as to my dismay, he carried me into the ballroom.  “I’ve even left instructions that a place card bearing your name be at the seat next to me at the dinner table.”

♣

My eyes were still wide with surprise as Milo carried me into the ante-room.  A man wearing a monocle made an offensive remark about me wearing the emerald necklace.  He boldly reached out and touched it.  Whereupon I forcefully slapped his hand away.

♣

A woman with an interesting face and amber eyes chided him about taking liberties.  Although she kept a light tone with her remonstration, so he would not be offended.

♣

Distressed by the encounter, I kept my eyes downcast.  My shyness overcame me.  When the woman shifted her position on the settee and revealed her feet, all I could do was stare at her lace boots.  The uppers were velvet, covered by Valenciennes style lace in a floral pattern.  They were tied by a fluffy ribbon bow.

♣

At least one of this so-called smart set has the potential to be acceptable, I thought grumpily and then I fantasized about sneaking away to hide in Lord Elgin’s secret room.

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Savoy Hotel Restaurant c 1900 Wikipedia
Savoy Hotel Restaurant c 1900 Wikipedia

Milo Quick chatted idly with Señorita Olivia Silva, daughter of the ambassador from Colombia.  By all appearances his eyes wandered listlessly around the newly transformed ballroom.  The manor was ablaze with garlanded lights.  The whole place was alive with a multi-colored chaos of uniforms, many of them covertly employed Secret Service agents.

♣

All but glowing were the bare shoulders of begowned women.  From farther away came the plaintive whine of a small orchestra.  A breeze fragrant with the clean, fresh odor of lilacs, stirred the draperies that covered the doorway to the conservatory.  There the branches of palms and ferns rustled gently.

♣

Milo’s eyes rested upon a woman who sat a dozen feet away.  It was Olivia Silva, the daughter of the Colombian ambassador.  She was severely gowned, but gathered around the top of the bodice was shimmering sheer fabric that fell away from her bare shoulders.  In an animated voice she spoke with another young woman.  She glanced up, frankly meeting his gaze.  Her lips twitched as though she held back making a comment to Milo.  Instead, she smiled at her companion.

♣

“They’re wonderful, are they not?” asked Olivia Silva, her bubbling enthusiasm bringing Milo’s attention back to her.

♣

“Aren’t what wonderful?” he asked lazily.

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“Why, Mr. Quick…  Her eyes, of course!” Olivia replied in pretend exasperation.  “Every person has one dominant feature.  Miss Jouret’s are her extraordinary amber eyes.”

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“Miss Jouret?”  Milo repeated.  “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure.”

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Discretely she indicated an elegant woman in black, who stood with the Belgian delegation.  It was the woman from earlier, the woman with amber eyes.

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“You don’t know Miss Zola Jouret?  I suppose not…  She only arrived in the city recently.  She’s my guest at the Colombian legation.  When an opportunity comes, I shall present you to her properly.”

♣

Olivia ran on about an assortment of other things, with only an occasional remark from Milo Quick, who appeared to be preoccupied.  I however, realized what secretly held his attention.  Somewhere, punctuating the chatter and gaiety, mingling with the music, was an indistinct but rhythmic beat.  It was only noticeable because of its monotony.  

♣

After a moment Milo shot a quick glance at Miss Jouret.  She was the source of the subtle sound.  It was the tapping of an elaborately carved hand-fan that she held in elegantly gloved hands.  She was talking and smiling, and gesturing with the fan.  Yet meanwhile she tapped the fan against the cherrywood arm of her chair.

♣

I recognized the motions she made as the language of the fan — fanology, which many ladies used for playful coded communications.  It was, after all, widely considered inappropriate for women to speak in public, particularly to men.  However, Milo seemed to perceive more.  The tapping was not part of fanology.

♣

Abruptly she looked at him from across the room.  Holding the fan in her left hand, she brought it up in front of her face.  The gesture meant “I am desirous of your acquaintance.”

♣

Milo’s shoulders stiffened as he listened.  There was some significance to Miss Jouret’s tapping that I didn’t grasp… but Milo Quick understood.  However, he kept his features in that carefully practiced, bored expression.  Whatever he knew, he concealed his reaction.

♣

In Zola Jouret’s gloved hand, the fan repeated the rhythmic tapping.

1900s woman with fan and man ballroom Night Cafe

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End Episode 5

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 Thanks for opening this door to the Thursday Doors Writing Challenge (TDWC) and to my serial story.   Stay tuned for the sixth installment of Dance of Discord. Friendly comments are welcome.  Hugs!

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Of course, here’s the obligatory shameless self-promotion.

A Peril in the Vines

Universal Purchase Links

A Peril in the Vines

e-book:  relinks.me/B0DS4G7RSD

Paperback:  relinks.me/B0DS69GJDV

A Medium’s Peril full series link: relinks.me/B0CG2SXX24

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This is a work of fiction.  Characters, names, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2025 by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

All rights reserved. 

No part of this work may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.  Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

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64 thoughts on “Dance of Discord 5: A Tap, & #TDWC challenge door”

  2. Pingback: Dance of Discord 6 — A Cipher, & Double Poets, & #TDWC Writing Challenge – Teagan's Books

  3. You have run into some fascinating side streets with your writing, haven’t you? Fanology! I wonder if that were easier to learn than computers. I like the visuals of amber and emeralds!

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  8. I took a breath when Milo put his hands around the Duchess’ neck. It was a nice piece of business that took me by surprise. The tapping fan is something Milo and we will need to understand more.

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    1. Hi, John. I appreciate that feedback very much. I’ve been trying to show the Dutchess’ unique, unexpected perspective on things.

      Different subject, each episode has had clues to a twist that will eventually be revealed. I think you and Olga were onto me from the very beginning, but hopefully I’ll surprise a few people. LOL, and I don’t mean the surprise being Milo is a psychopath. 😀 Many thanks for reading. Hugs.

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    1. Hi, Marian. I knew “Speak Flowers and Fans: a Dictionary of Floriography and Fanology” would be a slim book, based on my notes and initial draft, but when I started formatting, it was even thinner than expected. I’m trying to collect more (relevant) information before I let it out into the world. However the information on fanology is harder than ever to find (mostly because of anticipatory AI embedded in every search engine… As usual, I thought it would be finished months ago. I really hoped to publish it by the time I reached (this) point in the story, where I expected it to come up. Oh well…
      I see from Dan’s blog that you have another Stephanie story. Looking forward to the read. Thanks for opening this door. Hugs.

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    1. I really appreciate that feedback, Kerfe. There’s a fine line between giving just enough description to bring scenes to life — and so much that it loses the story in the weeds. I try for bits that subconsciously prompt the reader to fill in the rest, like describing those lace boots, but not the outfit (at least not in that same scene), and the rustle of ferns rather than detailing the assortment of plants in a conservatory. LOL, and yet, I’m never sure whether or not I get that balance right. Thanks for reading. Hugs.

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  13. Teagan, your attention to the descriptions had me feeling I was in the room, weaving among the honored and honorable gusts. This is a delightful episode and such a treat to wake up to on a Thursday (I was absent yesterday). I am totally invested in this story and I can’t wait for the next episode. I hope having this out here a little early gives you a restful weekend.

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    1. Thanks, Dan. That’s great feedback. I hope you’re enjoying your blog break.
      Yes, I’ll probably have to take it easy. A new round of dust storms wreaked havoc with me yet again. But that (along with an extra ten degrees of summer heat) seems to be the new normal for southern NM. Such is life. Wishing you a thriving Thursday. Hugs to you and yours.

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    1. Thanks, GP. Your reader things really helped bring out the scenes. Re the tapping… I won’t say. 😉 However, I will say that in each episode, I’ve laid out at least one clue to a twist that I will eventually reveal. Don’t guess it out loud. 🙂 Big hugs.

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  16. Fabulous! I love fans, and the secret code and all the mystery are making it all get very exciting. And there was a moment… Thanks, Teagan! Milo plays his part well but I think he needs to be careful. Big hugs to you and love to the Scoobies. ♥

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    1. Thanks so very much, Olga. Re that “moment”, I expect that you’re “onto me” with the clues I’ve left in each episode, but I won’t reveal that twist yet. 😉
      Big hugs winging back to you from the (very playful this morning) Scoobies and me.

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    1. You are so kind, Chris — thank you. I knew “Speak Flowers and Fans: a Dictionary of Floriography and Fanology” would be a slim book, based on my notes and initial draft, but when I started formatting, it was even thinner than expected. I’m trying to collect more (relevant) information before I let it out into the world. However the information on fanology is harder than ever to find. There’s much less of it.
      Have a thriving Thursday. Many thanks for commenting. Hugs.

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  19. Wow, Teagan! I’m delighted my door inspired your episode! What an intriguing story! The Wagner Festival Theater was under construction when I took the photo. Most of the walls were covered but the door was not.

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    1. Hi, Miriam. What a shame that you couldn’t get a good look at the theatre. It sounds like quite a place. I’m happy that you enjoyed this episode of The Dance of Discord. Being historical fiction in its setting, it’s more work for me than my past serials, but I want to get it right. Thanks for opening this door. Hugs.

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      1. I’m an opera lover, Teagan. It would have been wonderful if we could visit the theater.
        The advantage of historical fiction is you can do your research and put your imagination to work.

        Best wishes to your series. Hugs.

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  20. Excellent episode. We learned how to use fans dancing flamenco. In Spain, where women are very handy with fans, one can spot a foreigner instantly by how she handles a fan.

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    1. Thanks very much, Tim. It’s interesting that the fan language has carried over to modern days. Previously I had decided not to include the Spanish version in my dictionary of floriography and fanology. However, the “book” isn’t long enough. So that’s on my list of ways to enhance the book. Although the information I had previously searched no longer shows up. The Spanish fanology was different from that of the UK, and right now I don’t remember its name. It will take more digging… I really want to get that book finished… Hugs.

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      2. In flamenco, “floreo” is the movement of the hands when one dances flamenco. The fan is an extension of the hand. So there might be something about floreology that would go with the movements of the hands and use of the fan.

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  21. Well Teagan, Dance of Discord so far is Dance of Intrigue.

    I’m loving it. Of course the images are so lush and nostalgically romantic it compels on that alone.

    Miriam’s door is perfect for this episode!

    Big thank you’s and bigger hugs!

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    1. Thanks so much, Resa — for everything you said. I’m so glad you’re aboard for this story. Big hugs winging back to you and Misha. (The Scoobies have been very feisty today. I’m glad the latest dust storms aren’t hurting them. Cats can have such sensitive respiratory systems…)

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      1. Dust storms?
        That sounds eye irritating, cat or not.
        Misha sends a few purrs back to you and the Scoobies. She has just started purring now and then, so I’m happY

        Hugs!

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        1. OMG, that’s wonderful, Resa. I can easily imagine how happy that purr made you. A sign of true contentment. 🐱

          Yes, the dust storms have never been so relentless. It’s honestly taking a toll on my health. Usually, there’s a clear view of the nearest mountains. I know they’re half an hour away, but they look close enough to touch. BUT when the dust starts blowing, you can’t see them at all. It’s like a solid beige giant tarp is right behind the houses across the street. If I had a view of their back yards, I wouldn’t be able to see them.

          A couple of years ago I bought a medical-grade air purifier. Thank goodness for it. But I have to take it apart and clean it every couple of days (rather than the every 6 months the manual says). Like the (past few years of) 106 degree days for 3 months of the summer, dust storms are the new normal.

          Thank goodness for purring cats. ❤

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          1. OMG!
            It’s a dust bowl!
            Just take care. I’m glad you have the purifier, even if it does need constant cleaning. Maybe you need 2?

            YES! Purring – healing – appealing – love stealing! Hugs!

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