Sweet Music

by fic Write Off

Melody of Solace

You know, music's a real drag sometimes, let me tell you. Ponies go on and on and on about how great this composer is or how magnificent that musician is. It's all a bunch of hooey, I tell you. I'm serious--nothing but a bunch of fake smiling ponies showing off like a bunch of high-class wannabes.

Let me tell you something about music: I used to hear music all the time. I guess it started with my grandmother. My grandmother, you see, she was a pianist. Well, I don't know if she actually played for money, but boy, she should've. Anyway, so my grandmother, every dang time I went to her house she was playing the dang piano. It wasn't a big one or anything--one of those upright ones you can tuck in a corner and forget about, you see--but she sure did make that old thing come to life. I'm not lying. It was like when she sat at that piano, you could sit on the floor next to her and completely lose yourself--I mean completely.

My grandmother--her name was Dandelion, by the way--she'd sit for hours just playing and playing away. Of course, she didn't use her hooves or anything--not like me. No, she would just sit there with her forelimbs hanging at her side and her horn aglow, the keys depressing and filling the room with intangible beauty. It was magic, obviously, but that was her special talent. Well, not her special talent. Her cutie mark was a large flower and she'd been a florist by trade. But boy, could she play the piano.

Anyway, so whenever I went to my grandmother's place, it was like time would move in fast forward. I'm not kidding. My sister Willow and I, the first thing we'd always do after bursting through the front door was whine and whine at Grandma Dandelion to play that piano. Oh, of course she'd put up a big fuss and all at first, but eventually she'd concede. She'd drag her creaking old body draped in this tacky flowered dress she always wore over to the bench, all the while moaning about some chore that had to be done or cookies that were burning in the oven. She was that kind of pony, you know-—the kind that pretend not to want to do something just to get on your nerves. She was a nice old mare, though. I think she had just been teasing us. Secretly, I think, she loved that piano more than anything in all Equestria, even more than flowers.

Willow and I would just sit there and listen, our ears perked as an aura of green magic tickled the black and white keys. It was kind of relaxing, you know? Like that feeling you get when you come home from a long a day of baking or sewing or moving clouds around or whatever, and all you want to do is pick up a good book and lose yourself. And then you look up at the clock and it's five hours past midnight, or something. That was what it was like when Grandma Dandelion played. Pure bliss.

So, as you can imagine, one day I up and decided to give that old piano a go. Grandma Dandelion was in the kitchen or asleep or something, and I snuck into the parlor and scurried over to that dusty old piano. You should have seen me. I swear, I was like a regular old creeper. Anyway, I snuck up to that piano and sat down, my hooves just barely reaching the pedals. But that's when I had to get creative, not having a horn and all. You see, they always said I was creative pony. And I was, I really was. You see, I took my hooves and sort of tilted them sideways so that only the edges would touch the keys. Then I just started pounding around like I knew what I was doing or something.

Wouldn't you know, though, I eventually picked up on these patterns--the way the notes progress in a scale and whatnot. I'll never forget the look on Grandma Dandelion's face when she came through that door to the parlor. Boy, was she angry! Her face was as red as the apples she used to bake her pie. But then, when she saw it was me playing the piano, her body sort of relaxed a little bit. I swore she was going to faint and break a hip. I mean, you could just see the anger melt away. Then, she dashed over to me and scooped me up in a big hug. I never saw an old pony move that fast in my life. I guess it had been those scales I was playing. I'll never forget her words that day.

“Melody,” she said, looking down into my wide eyes, “I had no idea you could play.” Her voice was really soft, like she was telling me some kind of secret.

“Uh, I can't!” I squeaked. “I just sorta fiddled around and pressed the keys. You're not mad at me, grandma, are you?”

“Mad? Oh, dear, of course I'm not mad!” She released me and started in the direction of a large bookcase that was kitty corner to the piano. “In fact, you have made me more happy than I've been in a long, long time.”

When she reached the bookcase, her horn started to glow. Something small and sort of roundish floated down from a high shelf and settled in front of her face. Grandma Dandelion stared at intently, squinting her eyes ever so slightly, as if trying to remember something that had long been forgotten.

After a while, she spoke. “There's something I want you to have, dear,” she said. She trotted over to me. “This here belonged to my mother, and I think it's time I pass it on.” As she floated the small object to me, I was able to make out its features. It was a little round box, with three ornate legs jutting out from the bottom. The surface of it was adorned with intricate designs and floral patterns that were painted in vivid blues, greens, and reds. It almost looked like one of those make-up containers my mother kept in her room. I had no idea.

“What is it?” I said.

“It's a music box. Here, let me show you something.” She outstretched a shaking hoof and released a latch on the side of the music box. The lid popped open revealing a small pegasus with a feather in her mane and a flower on her flank. Her eyes were closed and she was posed elegantly, reaching out for an invisible partner.

Then, it started to play music. It was really quiet at first, just a whisper, but it slowly got louder. The pegasus rotated around the box in a lonely dance, spewing forth her somber tune. Grandma Dandelion got real slouched all of the sudden. I mean, she'd been so happy when I pounded on the piano, but now her posture betrayed her feelings. She closed the lid of the music box and looked at me. Even though she was kinda smiling, I could see that there was something more behind her eyes.

The green cloud of magic surrounding the box faded as she set it down in front of me. “You will bring great joy to the world, Melody.”

Anyway, that's basically what sparked my love of music. My previous love, that is. Oh, sure, I used to love music, back before they kicked me out of this place. I mean, it's not like I wanted to get kicked out of the Canterlot School of Music--they do say it's the greatest music school in Equestria, and all--it's just, well, I guess I sort of deserved it.

It all started on induction day in my first year. You see, none of my friends from school were attending the Canterlot School of Music. Heck, none of them were even going to school in Canterlot! It'd been really jarring, just sort of moving cities like that, and I was super nervous as I walked through the front gates.

There were ponies everywhere. I never saw so many ponies in one place in my entire life. They were all first year students too, making their way to their assigned dormitories. Now, you're probably wondering why I was nervous and all. Well, you might not know this, but music is traditionally a field of study reserved only for unicorns. It's not like they don't allow earth ponies and pegasi to enroll, it's just that playing instruments with magic is so much easier with magic than with hooves. As I looked around that day at all the ponies eager to meet their roommates and begin their studies, I couldn't help but notice the fact that almost everypony was a unicorn.

I wondered why in the world there weren't at least more pegasi. They could at least use their wings or something. I looked more closely at the scurrying crowd. There wasn't a single earth pony there besides me, so far as I could tell. I was so bewildered that I didn't realize I stopped dead in my tracks. I felt somepony bump into me from behind.

“Hey! Watch where you're going!” somepony said.

I whipped around and came face to face with a scowling, blue unicorn. He had some friends with him, each one with a small, black instrument case floating beside them.

“Yeah, no-horn!” one of them said. “Whadaya doing here, anyway?”

I backed up, trying to lose them in the thinning crowd. “I, uh--”

The one who had spoke to me first turned to his friends. “Hey, guys. I wonder what she plays!” He looked back at me. “You do know the plow isn't an instrument, no-horn?”

I could feel tears forming in my eyes. “L-listen here! You can't just--”

“Can't just what? You gonna stop us?”

I was about ready to sprint back out the front gates when a mint green pony pushed her way through the crowd and ran in front of me. She had a small case with her, too.

“Hey, jerks!” she said. “Leave her alone!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” said one of the unicorns. “Somepony comes to save the day for a scummy little earth pony! Now nice.”

She spread her limbs in a defensive stance, letting her instrument case fall to the ground. “Yeah! And if you don't leave her alone, I'll kick all of your flanks!”

Their eyes opened wide at this. “Well... whatever,” one of them said. “See you losers later.”

“Yeah, see you later, no-horn!”

The group of unicorns laughed and trotted off, leaving the two of us standing in the courtyard.

My nose was still running, and I wiped a tear from my eyes. “Wow, uh, thanks.”

“Not a problem! Name's Lyra, by the way!”

She extended her hoof, and I shook it. “Melody,” I said. “Nice to meet you.”

“You shouldn't let those guys get to you. They're just jealous,” she said, levitating her case back to her side.

“Jealous?”

“Well, yeah! You managed to get into the best music school in Equestria without the benefit of magic! If you ask me, that's pretty spectacular. Come on, let's go find our rooms.” I followed her as she started in the direction of the main entrance. Most everpony had already gone inside.

I looked at her case floating steadily beside her. It was this odd shape, not anything like any instrument I'd seen before.

“What's in your case?” I said.

“Oh!” she said, look to her side. “That's my lyre! I know, I know. You probably haven't heard of that before.” She laughed.

“It has a beautiful name.”

Lyra chuckled, looking down. “Oh, you know... it's all right.”

We walked through the halls of school following the signs that lead to the room postings. The halls were lined with classrooms that seemed to stretch on forever. I peeked into one of the rooms as we passed it. It was dark inside, but I was able to make the forms of several pianos in neat rows, just waiting to be played. This place was really a dream come true.

We reached the end of a long corridor where a large poster was hanging on the wall. Several other ponies were standing in front of it, searching for their names amid the massive wall of text.

Lyra trotted over to one side of the of the board and looked up. “Hey, here we are!” she said. “Building six... I think we're on the same floor!”

I didn't hear at first, though. Something else had grabbed my attention. Posted beside the room assignments was another bulletin hanging at eye level. “Lyra, look at this!”

She came over to me and read the notice, cocking her head. “A competition?”

“Yeah!” I said. Boy, was I excited. A million things came rushing into my head at once. “It looks like they do this at the beginning of every year!”

Lyra looked at me with a raised eyebrow. “But, why?”

“This is the perfect opportunity for me to show everypony that I'm not some wannabe! That can I actually play music!” I was jumping all over the place at this point.

“You don't need a competition to do that! Just do well in your studies.”

I wasn't listening to her. “With this though, nopony will ever dare to say that a earth pony can't play music!”

“But, there already are tons of successful earth pony musicians!” Lyra said.

That got me thinking. It really did. I knew I didn't stand a chance against those other unicorns. They'd been using magic their entire lives and probably had taken formal lessons. I played in my free time mostly. I remember when I convinced my parents to buy my first piano. They wouldn't budge at first, but after we went to Grandma Dandelion's house and they heard me play, well... let's just say they were more than thrilled. We stopped at a music store and picked up a piano that very day. They had spent a lot of money on that piano. Thinking back, that's probably why they never bought me lessons. That's okay, though, because I was basically a natural. It was one of the only things I was ever truly good at. You know, I'm really going to miss it.

That's when I told Lyra about my plan to win that competition, the plan that landed me here. She was really reluctant, but she said she'd think about it. I kind of wish she had slapped me.

The competition wasn't scheduled until after the winter holiday, which I suppose they did in order to allow the contestants a break from school to practice. I spent the holiday at home with my parents. A few days before I went back to Canterlot, we paid a visit to Grandma Dandelion. It'd been at least a year since I'd seen her last. I remember it like it was yesterday.

When we got there, I was fully expecting to be greeted with a sweet tune coming from the parlor, but the house was silent. Oh, the piano was still there in the corner. But it was all dusty, and the bench was tucked neatly under it.

Grandma Dandelion was in her bedroom. She was very sick, lying in a crumpled heap on her bed. When I got to her bedside, she reached out to me out and placed her hoof on my shoulder. She wanted to speak with me alone.

When she spoke, she opened her mouth only just enough to allow the words to escape past her lips.

“How are your studies, dear?” she said. Her voice trembled ever so slightly. It was hard for me to see her like this.

“Good,” I replied. I didn't want to ask her how she was feeling. I decided to discuss a more lighthearted topic. “I entered a music competition!”

“That's wonderful, dear.”

I sighed. “But I don't think I'll win. Pretty much every other student there is a unicorn. How do I even stand a chance?”

At this, she smiled that same comforting smile she had given me so many years ago in the front of her piano. "Melody," she said, "we go through life like sailboats on a windless day. Every once in a while, though, a strong breeze comes and fills our sails. But we mustn't settle there, no. For if we do not man the rudder, the wind will surely blow us astray."

I didn't know what to say to this. I just kept staring into those deep brown eyes. I kinda hate it when ponies get real philosophical, and all. It really kills a good mood.

She had to take a few breaths before continuing. "You have found your direction, and you must never lose it."

“Grandma,” I said, “I promise you, I'll make you proud. I couldn't bring myself to tell her my plan.

She closed her eyes and smiled. “I have no doubt, Melody. Now, leave your old granny be. I'm so very tired.”

My parents and I left her house then. I haven't seen her since.

Anyway, when I got back to school, the first thing I did was find Lyra. I found her at dinner, sitting at the table we always ate at. Her eyes lit up when she saw me.

She hustled out of her seat and gave me a big embrace before she said, “Melody! How was your break?”

“It was good,” I said, joining her at the table. “I did a lot of thinking. Yours?”

“It was excellent! You wouldn't believe the pieces I wrote! I'm really proud of them.” She raised the sandwich on her plate to take a bite, but stopped halfway through the act and looked at me, frowning. “Wait... are you still planning to compete in that competition?”

“Of course! Why wouldn't I?”

She put her food down. “It's just, well... remember that thing you wanted me to do? I'm not so sure I'm comfortable with helping you like that. I mean, it is cheating.”

“How is it cheating?” I said. “The unicorns get to use magic, so why shouldn't I? It makes perfect sense.”

“But it's against the rules! If we get caught, we'll both be expelled. Plus, using magic like that is dangerous. All I really use it for is playing my lyre. I've never actually used it on another pony before...” her voice trailed off.

“Listen, Lyra,” I said, “it'll be fine. Just do what I told you, and I'll have this thing in the bag.”

On the day of the competition, Lyra and I walked into the large auditorium together. It was a multipurpose room, I think, because the stage was sort of set up right in the center. All around the room, there were ponies preparing for their moment in the spotlight. Some were tuning their instruments, while others were pacing around and sweating all over the place.

Looking around, I felt my heart sink into my stomach. Every contestant was a unicorn. I mean, every single one. That didn't faze me though, not at all. I had skill and magic on my side.

I turned to Lyra, who was distracted by a pony playing a cello. I put my forelimb around her and brought her close.

“Okay...” she said, looking back to me. “So, how are we going to do this?”

I thought for a moment. You know, I never think things through long enough. That's probably why everything went wrong. They may say I'm creative, but I don't think that makes up for a lack of judgement or anything. Definitely not now. Maybe if I had thought longer, I would have realized what I was doing. But anyway, I thought for maybe five seconds before I spoke again.

“You see the doors over there?” I said, pointing my hoof in the direction of the grand entrance.

“Yeah?”

“Well, you're gonna stand outside, and when they announce my name, you're gonna cast the spell on me. Okay? Nopony will be able to see your horn glowing behind the doors. It's perfect!”

“Right...” Lyra said. Her tail sort of flicked back and forth. “What--er--what exactly do you want me to do again?”

“Just do what you do when you play your lyre, but focus on me instead!” I smiled. This plan was definitely going to work. It had to work.

The lights dimmed, and Lyra and I split up. She went off to her position, and I hurried backstage where the other contestants were already waiting.

I waited until my name was called. I was shaking as I trotted out from behind the curtain and made my way to the piano that was at the center of the stage. That walk seemed to last forever. The lights were bright in my eyes, and I couldn't see any of the ponies in the audience, but I could hear their murmurs. Really faint whispers, kind of like when something bad is happening but nopony wants to acknowledge it. I knew what they were whispering about, too. That was the worst part.

I finally reached the bench, pulled it out, and took a seat. I looked over the black and white ivory keys in front of me. They looked so familiar, yet sort of distant. I mean, I knew them pretty much all of my life. They were my friends, as well as my enemies. They were what at times told me to slam my hooves and give up, and at others urged me to keep holding on. I loved them, and I despised them. Sort of like family, you know?

But that's ridiculous. A piano isn't family. Music isn't family. Music doesn't hug you when you take something ordinary and create something beautiful. It doesn't hold your hoof and tell you that everything's gonna be okay, even when everything seems hopeless. And music certainly doesn't play favorites, picking one pony over the other for selfish or petty reasons. I kind of fell into that hole, though, where you get too comfortable.You get too cocky, and you reach for the unreachable, and then everything falls apart.

I reached out my hooves and placed them on the keys. I felt their balanced weight and their cold finish. I took a deep breath, and let it out real slowly. That feeling in my stomach wouldn't go away.

And then I started to play. It was normal at first, like how I always play. My hooves danced over the keys in their awkward sideways position. I must've looked pretty foolish up there.

Suddenly, I felt really cold. My brow broke out in a cold sweat, and my body started to shake uncontrollably. Around me, the world faded. My forelimbs took on a life of their own, authors of a melody I had never heard before. They moved faster and faster and caused the piano to recoil violently at the increased pace of the playing. I begged them to slow down, but they wouldn't stop. I tried to look in the direction in the door, my head whipping about violently, but the lights were still so bright.

Then, my mind went blank. I couldn't see anything anymore. I couldn't hear anything anymore. Well, except for the music. I still heard that. It went on for a while.

That's the last thing I remember, actually. I hope Lyra is okay.

The music box is over there, on the windowsill. I don't know who put it there, but it definitely wasn't Grandma Dandelion. I mean, she can hardly get out of bed anymore, I don't think. It was there when I woke up, though. I want to hear that familiar song again and see the dancing pegasus, but I can't really reach it.

They have a piano here, you know, in the waiting room. I tried to play it the other day, but it's just not the same, you know what I mean? It felt like that first time I had played Grandma Dandelion's piano, when I just pounded away at the keys. Except this time it wasn't any kind of music that came out. I had to stop because other patients had started to look at me funny. I tell you, it's just not the same. The music goes on, though. Maybe not with me at the bench, but it will go on.

Like all things timeless, it doesn't really matter who's waving the baton; the opus remains a constant. Life has a way of doing that, really. It sort of forgets about you and moves on if you're not careful, or if you do something stupid and end up like me.

That kind of depresses me, you know? In a good way, though, if that's even possible.

I dunno. It's okay, I suppose.

After all, I still have my memories.

Comments

[Pav Feira]

Melody of Solace
Hmm. I would've figured that this kind of narrative style would grate on me, but you seem to be keeping consistent in it, and it's got a sort of charm to it. I'll roll with it for now.

I want to comment about a pony being named Melody, and her granny's surprise that Melody is musically gifted, but I don't have time to go into a diatribe about pony names and cutie mark destiny [Edit: though, that's before I realized we were going for the earth pony vs unicorn angle]

Stylistically, I dunno. The opening paragraphs were all this very telling-a-story style of narrative, so it was a bit unexpected when actual dialogue appeared. I half-expected to see any dialogue be woven into the narrative, a la "Her voice was really soft, like she was telling me some kind of secret. Told me that she had no idea I could play like that. Course, I didn't think I was playin'. I was just plinkin' away at the keys!" I almost feel like going dialogue-less like this would fit the initial style better, but I'm not sure if that would actually make the story better or worse, so... hold that thought for now. [Edit: I could actually see that style working, if you committed to it. If you want to go for a more normal style with dialogue, then you might want to tone back the narrator a bit.]

Actually yeah, just a few paragraphs into the dialogue bit, the narrator's voice from the beginning has disappeared It's back again after the scene break, but yeah, if you're gonna do this, you gotta commit all the way!

The pacing got a little weird in the middle. The competition was supposed to be at the beginning of the year, but then suddenly we're at winter break and the competition is after winter break.

That... felt odd. Melody had a natural knack for things, was gifted enough to make it to school without any formal training, enters a competition to prove herself to her peers... and her first instinct is to cheat. I mean, karma gets her in the end, but it just felt like a surprising decision. Still, her acceptance of her fate does offer some pathos.

There's an interesting tale in here, but I kinda get the sneaking suspicion that the author was improvising the story as they wrote it. The end was good, and the beginning was good too, but the beginning didn't really feel like it led toward the end. Maybe if Melody felt less confident; more raw talent and less musical excellence. Give her some more time at school to be bullied, build the relationship with Lyra, and develop her reasoning not just for entering the competition, but for cheating at it. Changes like those could give the climax and resolution more emotional oomph.

[RogerDodger]

Melody of Solace
In which Holden Caufield plays the piano.

I liked the narration, much like I liked Catcher in the Rye's narration. Some people don't like the narration in that book. I think those people are weird.

Earth ponies don't study music, but there are many successful earth pony musicians? That doesn't add up.

Unfortunately, the time crunch is dreadfully obvious here. I can almost see the exact point where you began the mad rush to pull a resolution out of your arse. Needless to say, there is much more of this story to tell.