//------------------------------//
// 49 Waltz by jellybeanwubs 
// Story: Rhythm and Harmony: The Octascratch Prompt Collab 
// by lyra_lover777 
//------------------------------//


Waltz by jellybeanwubs



Octavia paced outside the door to her cello teacher's office. He had asked to speak to her parents before beginning her lesson today, and that could either be a very good thing, or a very bad thing.
She wasn't sure which one scared her more.
The prospect of doing horrible in her lessons scared her to death, she was so passionate about her music that she simply couldn't see herself taking any other path. But on the other hand, doing so well that she succeeded her teacher and would be placed in an entirely new lesson bracket?
Well.
Octavia Melody was not very good with change.
Glancing at her watch, Octavia noticed that only five minutes had gone by. She couldn't stand out here and pace forever, but unfortunately Octavia had left her cello inside the room. So a before-practice practice was definitely out of the question.
Then again, this was partially a music school. There had to be a spare cello around here somewhere! Of course, it would probably need tuning, and she'd have to be lucky enough to find a bow and resin...
Octavia was down the hall faster than you could say Canterlot Academy for Gifted Students.
Her music was her getaway. Anytime Octavia was overcome with any troubles, needed to clear her head, or had a problem she couldn't solve, she'd turn to her cello. Sure, it didn't give her all the answers, but it definitely let her release all her emotions to start thinking clearly.
And right now, that's exactly what she needed.
She peered into the door's windows as she passed, itching to get her hands on the strings. Door after door gave her nothing, and the one that DID at least have a bow was locked. Great. She huffed and continued her search, although now more so to kill time; hey, even the thought of playing had helped her for a bit, why not a little longer?
As Octavia made her way through the long halls, she heard the faintest tinkering of a piano. She paused to listen for just a moment and noted the pattern.
'A waltz,' she thought to herself, resuming her steps. 'A very sad one at that...'
Octavia continued down the hall, searching now for the room where this beautiful sound was coming from. She racked her brain for what waltz this was; was it possible that she hadn't heard this particular piece before?
It took Octavia less than three doors to find the room. She quietly entered, not wanting to interrupt whomever was playing, but also very curious to learn the name of this piece. As she stood, Octavia noted there was no second person in this room, so perhaps a teacher was playing? Even better! She'd be able to name this piece AND get some more information about it!
She smiled as the waltz grew softer, deconstructed minor chords going higher and higher up the scales. It was a haunting, almost music box tinkering sound, but still flowed with the same emotion Octavia had heard from the halls.
With a soft hand to the keys, the waltz grew slower, and had Octavia on her toes as each note passed. It slowed down almost painfully, but enough to keep the listener craving the final notes. And as they came, a deep low dissonant chord ended the waltz.
Octavia fought the urge to clap, but knowing how much she lost herself to the music, she could only assume this person was the same. Instead she waited, and with the scrape of the piano bench she eagerly awaited to meet them.
The cellist did not expect to see a girl not much taller than her, and by the looks of it younger of all things, step from behind the piano and put her hand to her chest as she was startled.
"Oh! I'm very sorry for scaring you!" Octavia played with the ends of her long hair. "Your waltz just sounded so lovely that I had to find out the composer. I've never heard it before..."
Octavia didn't wait for an answer before continuing.
"You're a very skilled pianist! The emotions throughout it were so amazing, and truth be told," she said with a nervous chuckle. "I thought you were a professor here...oh but! I'm sorry, here I am rambling and I haven't even let you speak...mom says I need to work on that, heh."
Octavia paused for a brief moment as the girl in front of her passed her a notebook, and gave her a weak smile before tucking her short blue hair behind her ears.
[You've never heard it cause I wrote it!]
Was the only thing written on the page.
Octavia looked from the sentence to the girl for what must have been a solid thirty seconds. She couldn't believe the words that were written in the page. This girl composed a waltz that could potentially rival Blue Danube?!
"You...you're remarkable!"
The girl shrugged and smiled, motioning for Octavia to hand back her notebook. Octavia did so without a second thought, and as the girl was scribbling something down, she asked, "Lose your voice?"
The girl shook her head no and turned the notebook back to Octavia.
[I can't speak. Never have, never will.]
Octavia felt her face flush as she let out a soft 'oh.' Now she knew why the girl had let her ramble on for so long. Just as soon as she was about to apologize, she heard a huff of air from the other girl, who had a big smile on her face. If there was sound, Octavia was sure there would be laughter.
"You get that a lot, huh?"
The girl nodded and pointed to her notebook again.
[My name is Vinyl. What's yours?]
Octavia smiled in return, and was about to speak when she said, "Do you...do you sign?"
Vinyl's eyes lit up and she tossed the notebook on the piano, hands becoming a flurry as she said something to Octavia. The only problem was, Octavia didn't sign.
She didn't know how to stop her without being rude so she slowly raised her right hand, signing out the letters to her name.
Vinyl's hands slowed down as she watched Octavia, and it suddenly clicked.
"I only know the alphabet..." Octavia sheepishly spoke. "Learned it from a poster in the nurse's office...I'm sorry."
Vinyl put her hand on Octavia's shoulder and raised her hand to give her a thumbs up.
Octavia's face lit back up and she exclaimed, "It's okay? Really?"
Vinyl nodded and gave her a small smile back.
"I'm really sorry I don't know more..." Octavia played with the ends of her hair again before grabbing Vinyl's hands in her own. "I have an idea! Would you teach me?"
Vinyl's eyes grew wide at the proposition. She'd met loads of kids at Canterlot's Academy for Gifted Students, but when most learned she was mute, they usually just passed her a note if they wanted to talk. And here this girl was, fresh out of the blue, wanting to learn to sign?
Who was she to say no?
She furiously nodded her head yes, and Octavia smiled, throwing her arms around Vinyl in a big hug.
"Oh this is going to be so cool! We should exchange phone numbers--er, would emails work? Oh! I could ask my parents to talk to yours! And we could set up days to learn! Maybe before practice here? Not that you need any practice, that waltz was incredible-"
Vinyl stopped Octavia from speaking by taking her hands and opening her pointer fingers, while closing the rest into a fist.  She mimicked the motion with her own hands, and held them up to Octavia's eyes. Hooking the two pointer fingers together, with one hand above the other, she quickly reversed the motion and signaled for Octavia to do the same.
Octavia mimicked the motion easily, and Vinyl gave her a double thumbs up. She was glad she was already learning, but she had one question.
"What does it mean?"
And with the biggest smile that afternoon, Vinyl spun her notebook around to Octavia.
[Friends.]