Here Again [Closed]

He agreed. He actually agreed to play a bit more. Standing at the doorway in the shadows, Lamia opened up the binder and flipped through the pages, her eyes reading over the titles quickly. Perhaps it was because she had wound up accumulating all of the songs her brother sent her into one binder, but there were so many that ranged in different skill levels. The worst part was, none of them were exactly simple; some started off a bit easy but the difficulty skyrocketed halfway through or others were consistently challenging until the very end during the last few measures. If she had known that he couldn't read it that well, she could've brought some easier arrangements... which were stuffed somewhere in one of her many cabinets. "Uhm... I'm n-not sure." How could she be? Which one worked best? Did it even matter?

She stopped looking through, her hand resting on another page, as she glanced at the composition. It seemed like a simple enough piece but it was one of those songs that got trickier as the player went along. Tilting her head upward a bit to look at Magic, Lamia was hesitant to give an answer. She didn't know his skill level, but the ones that he did play before weren't exactly the easiest things ever. For some reason, she didn't know what to expect from him, but at the same time, it never crossed her mind that he could just be joking with her until now. Taking a deep breath, Lamia finally replied.

"A-are y-y-you alright with Canon in D?"

Canon in D? It sounded familiar.. He had probably seen it before, or he had heard it before.. He wasn't too sure.. but he was good with it. "That works." He called back to the girl. He would probably recognize the song or something of the sort while going through it or something. He trusted her judgement on the song. Or he might crash and burn who knows. He returned to the piano waiting for Lamia to come into the room as well.

Oh, right. She had to walk into the place and away from the dark to give him the book. If she didn't, then he'd suspect something was wrong. If she did, he'd see immediately that something was off. Either way was a lose-lose situation, and her only bet was that Magic wouldn't notice. Nobody seemed to pay attention to those trivial details about her anyway. Reluctantly, Lamia followed him inside and once she reached the piano, the binder that had been resting on her hands was gently placed on top of the stand, slanting a bit backwards. The sheet music was sealed inside transparent files and looked as though they were practically new in mint condition. White pages were filled with lines upon lines of music, notes scattered about in what seemed to be almost a random order; but when they were played, it produced something no one expected. The first few measures looked easy enough, so he shouldn't have a problem playing it. Hopefully.

Blue eyes rested intently on the piano, and she waited, her mind wandering off to recall what exactly she had inside that could be easier. There were a few duet songs in there, she knew that, but maybe it would be better to avoid them. Kearn had written a few messages at the top or in blank spaces at the end, and she couldn't remember if there were any that he didn't. Maybe one. By the time Magic started playing, Lamia only just realized that his last letter to her was tucked at the front pocket of the binder along with some pictures. And she had written her actual name, there. Nice going, idiot. She had to bet on the fact that he wouldn't try and take a look at any of her things in there... especially the front. And probably the back. And probably nowhere else except the sheet music in front of him. She forced herself to keep smiling a little.

He blinked when the music was placed in front of him. He didn't really remember what any of this was. Honestly it took him a moment, he had to remember what so notes were, and both clefs too. Man he was really rusty. He scanned through the music first, some of the rhythms were familiar some weren't, but it shouldn't be too hard to play. The beginning seemed easy enough.. He made sure he had at decent grasp on everything he saw before he set his hands on the keys.

He played a few notes out of habit, then decided to actually play the song. The start of it was easy, and even though it picked up a bit of difficult, it was easy to deal with the changes in notes. There were a few spots where he had to slow down to get the rhythm of the notes, but soon after the tempo picked back up to normal. It didn't sound to bad to him, but it wasn't fantastic, could have been better, but that was his fault for not looking at music for so long. After the song was over he glanced over to Lamia for a second. "How was that?" He asked.

He did want to look through the book to see the music it contained, but he didn't because it was Lamia's book, and you just don't go searching through someone's stuff. There seemed to be some stuffed into the front pocket of the binder too from the way it sat. What was all in there?

Everything started out as smooth as ice, slipping and sliding around without a care in the world, and there was almost a kind of grace to the music. It was mellow and gentle, but even when the tempo was inconsistent and some notes were emphasized when they shouldn't be, the way he was playing was enough to know that he was trying his beset and persevering all the way until the end. Each sound was like icicles and little sleigh bells mixed into one, cascading around on the stage in a rainy rhythm. The way his fingers strode over the keys in a dance-like manner and how focused and intent he seemed to finish everything - she envied that kind of tenacity and at the same time, admired it. Her smile widened itself a little once the enchanting tune drew to a close, the vibrating sounds coming to a slow halt on the last chord. Lamia had been so caught with his performance than it took her a few moments to realize that he had spoken to her. "H-huh...?" was the first thing to come out of her, and she immediately regretted how absentminded she had been.

"O-oh, I m-m-mean... Uhm..." Her hands began to wring themselves behind her back in all of her nervousness and anxiety, and she could only hope that her face hadn't turned a little red out of all her stupidity. "It was r-really n-n-nice... I-I enjoyed it." She didn't know why she still went through with her tedious, queasy habits. How would they help when everything was numb to the core? Perhaps it was just it. Out of habit. The whole thing sounded stupid in her mind, but at the same time, it made sense, so she accepted it. For now. Everything was fine. Lamia was half-hoping that he would ask her to play, but at the same time, that was such a selfish request that she didn't want him to.

Why the hell was she always contradicting herself? Life was complicated enough as it already was.

He couldn't help but disagree with her slightly in his mind. He thought it was honestly bad. Then again he wasn't to fond of anything he did. He honestly didn't feel like playing again at the moment. It was hard to read the sheet music, and he probably really screwed it up. "Do you want to play?" He asked the girl who stood off to the side, finally getting a good look at her. Blue? Weren't her eyes a gold color? Now that he thought about it, she looked paler too. He wanted to ask but he avoided it. There wasn't a point in asking, she would just toss aside the question.

To hell with the world. It was that kind of irony that made her wonder whether she was easy to read that she was practically covered in neon signs that made it so obvious about what she actually wanted. Aspen managed to figure out that she had been trying to tell them she wanted to use the karaoke machine, and no offense to her friend, but the Autumn never struck her as someone who paid attention to detail. Magic could just hear whatever was in her voice that betrayed everything that she wanted to hide, and worst off, he was observant enough and not the kind to just forget something important. Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, Lamia lowered her head a little, one foot tracing shapes on the ground as she attempted to stall any kind of answer. He knew she had come in here for that in the first place. Who carried sheet music around except to head to the studios anyway? That, or they were bringing them back from said area and to their dorm. A hushed nervous laugh bubbled up her throat. "Well... I w-wouldn't mind, i-i-if you're a-alright with th-that." Just to make sure before she did something stupid. Again. Like always.

He stood up off the bench. "Go ahead." Gesturing for her to take the Piano. He walked over to the wall of the room, and sat down leaning against it. He was getting tired, and he knew it was getting late, and the piano music didn't help with his slight drowsiness, but he knew he would get over it soon. "If you want me to do something just ask." He stated. It was mostly for if she needed an accompaniment to the song she was playing, but that probably wouldn't happen.

Lamenting on her options left, she probably couldn't refuse at this point - not that she wanted to. Lamia walked over to the old, worn instrument and adjusting the bench as needed, considering how far back it was when it was most optimal for Magic's height rather than hers. Her foot slowly placed itself on one of the golden lever-like pedals below as her hands hovered over the black and white keys as she tried to think. Should she search for a song in the binder or go off one by memory? Which choice would be better? Would a quiet song or one that was fast, rapid, and loud be best? What would someone prefer, especially in the middle of the night? There was always that one song her mother was fond of, saying it was from a game she played during her childhood. Taking a deep breath, forcing herself to calm her nerves and shaking hands, her fingers did the work for her, slowly starting the song with delicate, rain-like steps.

There was a melancholic sweetness that filled the room from the simple melody. It was something that seemed so easy yet left enough of an impact to draw the attention of people listening in, some claiming it sent chills down their spine whether from just the sound or out of nostalgia. Everything about the start was soft and hushed, but the tempo was consistent enough as her fingers danced across the keys. The change was subtle, but there was a slight crescendo as the tune seemed to change from a series of single eighth and sixteenth notes before the keys were pushed down in octaves, the bittersweet feeling growing into a dramatic mixture of sounds.

Her figure swayed gently back and forth as she poured her very essence into just playing. She forgot about her worries, all of those stupid things that made life complicated, and completely forgot that Magic was in the room. It was just her and the piano in a figment of her imagination of what she considered a perfect world. The piano, her family, and herself. A world where the sky seemed just as endless as the stars and it was a complete stasis where nothing changed and everything stayed the same.

If only everything were that perfect.

Lamia's eyes fluttered close, allowing the music to wash over her, washing everything away. She didn't look up, simply leaning forward over the instrument, the tune evolving into something with greater force and volume rising, her left hand flying in comparison to her right hand, which danced about with the grace of a coryphee, the piano practically beginning to shake a bit. Just as suddenly as the exertion grew, it steeped back down into a soft rumble before skyrocketing back with the prominent, familiar tune replaying with more detail. The haunting melody almost seemed to pause as it came to a close, concluding itself. Finally, she hit the last notes with her hands, letting the soft, angelic chords linger in the air.

Time seemed to have stopped for those brief few moments, traveling at a snail's pace. Slowly, she drew in a sharp intake of air, curling her hands on her lap, scarcely realizing the faintest of smiles was etched across her features. Blue eyes turned over to the side, glancing at Magic briefly, and she almost saw just the flicker of Kearn holding his violin and smiling back at her in the same way it always did whenever they finished playing the piece together, whether on their own or for their mother's birthday. Her gaze wandered back to the piano, and she only realized how lucky she was that she hadn't made a mistake, didn't stumble save for the tempo of the octaves before causing a few barely noticeable mishaps. What if her fingers had slipped?

Muscle memory was more important than she remembered, and she was grateful for it. A breathy, sweet giggle escaped past her lips as she shook her head. "No good... I-I still c-c-can't play th-this one like I u-used to." If only she still had the strength to play fortissimo decently, her forte only just reaching the peak. There wasn't anything worse than having improper emphasis when trying to use any instrument. Everyone had a different style of playing and when they attained it, it gave each song a different kind of feel and message depending on the player. And she lost that precious part of music because of her own selfishness and stupidity.

Her hands reached up to close the binder as everything seemed to reach a heavy silence. Should she talk now? Wait for him to say something? God, Kearn would've made fun of her performance there, only slightly to tease her before listing off every single tidbit that she managed to excel in. He was too nice and an exceptional person in every way. No wonder she paled in comparison... Why did she even try to match up to him before?

The gnawing, unending stillness broke when a phone began to ring, blaring out whatever tune it was assigned to play.

When she began playing the song, he had already know what it was. He played the song the other day, it was the song he played before he tried to disappear. Rather coincidental. Though the way she played it was different from him. He couldn't quite explain it. Her version was just as beautiful as his probably more.

He closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax and listen to the song. He hadn't really heard anyone else play it before so it was a bit new to him. He could feel the slight emotion in the song. She got lost in her playing just like he did. It was a good thing, it helped people relax. Magic cracked one eye open and looked at the girl. She seemed relaxed and worry free for once. It was a nice sight to see. He couldn't help but smile himself.

Once she was done playing, he stood from his spot and walked over to the girl. He leaned slightly on the piano, and looked at her. "What do you mean 'no good'? That was really good." He was about to say something else, but flinched at the loud ringing of the cell-phone. Why did it have to be so loud? He closed one eye again like it would help muffle the sound, forgetting that he could muffle it himself. He forgot about that part of his gift a lot.

Her lips thinned, her eyes flickering towards her bag. That was her phone, her ringtone, and the one that was used whenever her brother called. This was awful timing. Really awful timing. Wasn't it already midnight for him? And just as she was about to answer Magic's statement as well. Lamia shook her head softly, her hands wringing themselves nervously with one another as she mumbled "S-sorry..." under her breath. It was still ringing. How long had it been? When would it just switch to voicemail and that she would call him another time? Her phone's volume was too loud for Magic, she might as well pick up. Slinging her bag over her shoulder, her hands reached into one of the pockets and grabbed the mobile device as she walked back out into the dark hallway. He'd probably still hear her and since it'd be rude not only to leave but to not explain anything afterwards, she didn't wander off too far. Not like she could when the exit was locked, after all.

Trying to shrug off a bit of her uncertainty, her eyes focused on Kearn's name at the front, thumb hovering over the bright red "DECLINE" button. Why did he call her? Was he mad that she hadn't replied for so long with a decent message? Taking a deep breath, she finally answered, swiftly pressing "ACCEPT" before she could change her mind. "H-hello...?" There was static on the other line for a few moments, and Lamia almost thought it was because she had been too quiet and her phone's mic hadn't picked up her voice. It didn't take too long before another voice crackled to life on the other side.

"Hey, it's been awhile since we talked, Adeline."

Lamia nervously cast a glance over her shoulder, and another shaky breath escaped her. Would he mind if she switched? He would get the message, wouldn't he? "미안..." He'd understand enough. He always figured her out, no matter what.

There was a deathly still silence on the other line until an abrupt hacking coughing fit escaped, and she had to force herself to stay calm. That was mom... always so sick and trying to work too hard just to sustain them. It was because of her stupid mistake that her dad left and they were placed in this stupid situation. Her mother wouldn't have had to work as much and she'd still be going to school with Kearn. She was caught up in her thoughts again that it took her a few moments to realize Kearn had been trying to talk. "Sis, are you there?"

Swallowing her anxiety, her response sounded awful and she regretted how she didn't seem to be paying attention to the conversation. She was talking to her brother, her twin, after so long of wanting to know whether he still remembered her. And here she was, staring off into space? God, she was fucking awful. "Y-y-yes... I'm s-sorry."

There were a hundred things she could've said, every single one of them worst than the last, but before she could even formulate a decent reply, her brother had spoken up again, his words laced with worry and concern. It was as though they were talking face-to-face and she could see the corners of his mouth turned downward. "You sound tired. You've been overworking yourself again, haven't you?" God, she thought he would switch languages. He normally did when she did, but... the fact that he didn't meant that he was serious and knew she was trying to hide something. Again. A nervous laugh escaped her, and she didn't know what to say.

"Stop using that laugh. It's the same one you use whenever you're trying to pretend everything's fine. What happened?"

Her hands clenched the phone so hard beside her ear, practically shaking and she wasn't sure why it hadn't broken in between her fingers. Was she even holding it that hard? The small rattled voice of hers answered gently. "I promise... I-I'm n-n-not. N-nothing's---"

"Please don't lie to me." He cut her off without giving her the chance to finish, and she could sense his growing concern with each word exchanged between the two. He hated to cut her off, and only did when... he was genuinely getting worried about her stupid antics. Why was she so awful at concealing everything? Another hacking coughing fit was in the background, and the static grew for awhile as the phone dropped. Distant voices were heard, and she knew why... She bit her lip, nerve-wracking chills traveling down her body as she dropped to her knees, leaning on the wall for support. There was another batch of static before she could here the phone again. "Are you still there?"

"H-h-h-how is...?"

"Mom's fine. She stumbled a bit at the stairs, but got up right after without a problem. She misses you." Her mom missed her as well? Why? What the hell did she do to deserve all of this? Why after everything was it that her family still bothered to care? She clenched her teeth, biting back any words that would anger her brother even more than he would be if he had figured out that much. "We saw you on the news."

Shit. Her heart was racing and her throat tightened itself, how was she supposed to answer that? That meant he saw the wreck at the airport and the fact that she had sacrificed all of that time for strangers whose faces she didn't even remember. Another sweet as a bell giggle, and she knew, his frown deepened. "Adeline. How much time do you have left?"

Silence, just complete silence. Her mouth hung open for a few moments, and she didn't want to answer. Goddamn, Magic probably heard this entire conversation. This was stupid. She shouldn't have picked up. She let her own selfishness get the better of her. Again. Why the hell couldn't she think straight? "Your eyes are blue. That's why you didn't send any pictures." A wry smile etched on her lips. Kearn always seemed to come to these kinds of conclusions without any problem. He was always that perfect student who excelled in everything and was out-going. He never seemed to have any shortcomings. Maybe it was because they were twins that she got the short end of the stick. Maybe it was because they were twins that they could figure each other out so easily.

A small chuckle was heard on the other side, but it was the hysteric kind. "We're twins - I know you better than you think. Please be careful. I don't want you getting hurt more than you already have."

"I-I w-w-won't..."

"Callum wouldn't agree with it if you were trying to sacrifice yourself again."

"I-I know..."

"Are the academy's studios open? If they are, head over there and play piano for awhile. You need to relax."

"I will..."

"Feel free to come home soon. Christmas won't be the same without you. I'll try and convince dad to come."

"I-I'll try..."

"Be safe then. I need to prepare for school tomorrow. Sweet dreams, sis."

The line died just as she answered. "Y-you too..." Taking a deep breath, her heart beating in an erratic rhythm, Lamia forced herself to stand up, forced another bright smile. No. If she went back inside, Magic would ask. Hell... he probably got bored and looked inside her binder by now. He'd see Kearn's letter. He'd see those collection of photos from before she came back to the academy, before Callum had been killed and they had first carved their names on that tree. He'd had seen those pictures where they climbed the tree before at night and watch the stars and during winter and everything. Fucking, he probably looked through the sheet music and reached the duet pages with her twin's messages written on them. What should she say now?

Numbly, she tucked her phone back into her bag and walked towards the piano with slow movements. She wasn't even sure if Magic had been sitting there and playing and she might've practically interrupted his session again. Nothing's wrong. Taking another deep breath, Lamia lifted her head up with a small smile. "I r-really owe y-you answers... d-don't I?"

When Lamia had left to take care of her phone call Magic tried his best not to listen. It was kind of hard not to seeing how she was just in the hall and he could practically hear everything. In effort to distracted himself from the conversation he ended up softly singing to himself trying to block out their words.

He heard a few things here and there like twin, and Adeline, and a mention of a mother, but other than that he didn't hear too much more. Though some how he ended up laying on the floor when he was attempting to distract himself. When her footsteps reached his ears, he sat up off of the floor. He tried to act disinterested, but when she said something about answers, he straightened up.

"I would think so." He responded. He shifted slightly to look up at her. "If you are willing to give them, then I am willing to listen." He hoped she would answer, but he didn't want to get his hopes up just yet. He figured she wouldn't be one to rant about her life so maybe he needed to ask a few questions to start with. "I'm guessing Adeline is your real name?"

Her eyes glanced back towards the binder, which had remained untouched from since she left it there, to her relief. Lamia turned herself in his direction on the wooden bench, her fingers curling themselves on her lap. She might as well say something now after he heard everything, and he was considerate enough to start slowly. She didn't want to talk about it all that much, and if it was just a steady beginning, maybe she could do this. This wasn't the first time she had to say anything; Keirsta knew she was a murderer, Juliette knew her gift, Katsuo and Aiko knew both of those things. Half of them were almost strangers to her that she found in a random hallway. Once Magic asked her what her name was, she gave an almost imperceptible nod. "Y-yes... You d-don't kn-know m-m-my last n-name either..." If she thought about it... he really knew nothing. Did she hide it that well? Or was it because nobody cared before? It was obviously the latter; her acting skills were rather awful in the end. Everything had been dusted off with a smile and pretending that it was alright, just staying shut and quiet, and going along with what everyone else wanted. That was all it was. Nothing special.

"Tempo. L-Lamia was..." How should she say it? It was a nickname in a sense, but nicknames were supposed to be affectionate and the kind that made people bond together. This was the complete opposite and it pushed everyone away from her just from knowing what the name's meaning was. A monster. A child-devouring monster who killed people in the night. Inwardly, she mused to herself about how fitting it was. It fit really well. She murdered her peers at a young age, and every scene always was covered with blood splattering the walls and in puddles. There was always something unsettling about it, the more she kept thinking. Closing her eyes, she finished her sentence from before half-heartedly. "A t-title... D-do you know th-the myth?" Goddamn, even after all this, she was still being vague on purpose. It'd save her a lot of trouble if he could just piece it together from her surname and the old, ancient story.

If there was one thing she could do, she could explain a decent portion of it and leave out the essentials. Just basics was alright. Just keep it at basics, all the while keeping a tiny smile. Smile, don't break down, don't reveal too much, pretend everything was alright. Pretend... how much did Magic hear anyway?

Adeline Tempo huh? It suited her in his opinion. And yeah he learned about the Lamia myth think after they got back from the vacation. Warren mentioned something about it which caused him to look it up. "My last name is Stein if you didn't know.." He said to her, in an attempt to make this feel more about both of them rather than just one. This would be a learning experience for both of them.. well if she had any questions for him. "Who were you speaking on the phone with?" Another small question in his mind.

Her smile widened a bit at his small attempt to keep a conversation going. "I-It'd be k-kind of weird if I-I d-d-didn't know... It w-was on the sc-school news after the t-t-tournament, remember?" At least he was trying to not keep the focus completely on her. "I-I mean... uhm... s-sorry." It made her feel awful for hiding all of this away before, but there was no way she could give him every single detail. This wasn't about a lack of trust, it never was. She was just so stupid to give him that idea with all of her awkward conversations and wanting to avoid any kind of subject along the lines of their current discussion. Tucking another loose strand behind her ear how many times has she done this now, Adeline swung her feet back and forth from the bench as if it would help alleviate any of her tension or worries. Nope, this didn't work anymore, no matter how much she thought about it.

Who she was on the phone with? Oh, she never did say his name... But it was in context enough, right? Sort of? You're so selfish that you would just let him try and figure it out himself. Moron. There were many times where everything she did seemed to always center around her own self-interests, hiding her past being a prominent one, and she hated having to reflect on that. The focus wasn't supposed to be her, it never should've been, but he wanted answers, and in the end, she was a pushover. It took a good amount of effort to have kept this away from anyone for so long, so that was the only thing that made her decently satisfied with her achievements. "K-Kearn. M-my brother..." she replied, one hand reaching for the binder before she clutched in close. "U-uhm... tw-twin brother. H-he used to g-go here."

Speaking of used to go to the school, where the hell did Vince disappear off to? When she was sorting the student files the other day, his information was nowhere to be found. Did he suddenly decide to leave because he was so restricted or something? Or was it because he didn't want to be anywhere near Magic? Those two seemed to have been getting along better, too... Save for, well, that.