Dream On, Kid (Bard)

[Kender Bard]

Erik walked through the guild, trumpet held close. As peace-time continued to reign in Anarlina, and his duties as a Beloved Knight not all-consuming, he'd thrived with his new pasttime. None had a trumpet shinier than his either.

He was currently looking for a practice room that he could occupy and work through a bit of new sheet music. He approached one, seeing it cracked open, and glanced inside only to find it occupied - by Lyra.

Blushing, Erik suddenly found that his feet were quite rooted to the ground. And he had completely lost his voice. But that was okay since standing there and watching Lyra silently wasn't too terrible of a position to find himself in.

She's so beautiful, he thought, and sighed.

[Darastrix]

Lyra was seated on a padded stool before a floor harp, completely unaware that anyone was watching her. The Anarlinan Maestra's eyes were closed as her fingers plucked at the strings almost unerringly, a small smile on her face. She loved it when she was able to feel so connected to her instrument that she didn't even need to see the strings. Of course, she did miss on rare occasion--that was why the C and F strings were dyed differently from the rest, so one could see where they were--but she just smiled and corrected herself, playing on.

After a few moments, she paused in her playing to massage her hands. Lyra had been playing for a while before Erik had stopped at the door, and her hands were beginning to ache.

"I think it's about that time again," she said to herself, arching her back until it popped audibly. "Oooh. Yes, Lyra, you've been working too hard. Come Silva, I'll see one of the priests about some loving touch."

[Kender Bard]

Erik, startled at Lyra's voice, jumped in surprise and smacked the back of his hand against the door. He cursed quietly at the pain and the door swung open wider.

Erik froze, blushing. "Um, hi Maestra!"

[Darastrix]

"Oh, hello Erik," Lyra said, rising from her seat. "Did you need me for something?"

[Kender Bard]

"No!" Erik yelped. He'd grown out of the point in his life where his voice would squeak and break but it still jumped up a few notes. "I, um, just, saw you! And was... I saw you there and you were playing very beautifully. Nicely!"

[Darastrix]

Lyra brought a hand up to her lips to hide her smile. The poor boy. "Thank you. I was just playing a little game with myself; it's much harder to play a harp or piano with your eyes closed. How have you been liking your trumpet lessons?"

[Kender Bard]

Erik clutched his instrument tightly, as though it was a holy relic. "Oh, I love them!" he replied enthusiastically. "It's a lot of fun and I find I really enjoy making music with nothing more than my trumpet and my skill. Learning to play is like seeing your progress at swordwork over time; very satisfying."

[Darastrix]

"I've never heard it compared to swordplay before, but I can understand the sentiment," she replied. "It is very fulfilling to be able to look back and see how much you've improved. Ten years ago, I didn't think I'd ever get to the level of skill that I've reached so far. Hand cramps, bleeding fingertips...." Lyra laughed suddenly. "Throwing my music book across the room at my little sister. Thankfully, I've outgrown that particular expression of frustration."

[Kender Bard]

Erik giggled slightly at the mental image but a look of concern passed over him. "Bleeding fingers? Oh, you didn't scar them did you?" He resisted the urge to go take her hand and see.

[Darastrix]

Lyra smiled and shook her head. "No, though they are calloused after so long." She held her hands out, palms up. Sure enough, there were thick, pale patches on all but her smallest fingers. "Most string musicians develop callouses. Otherwise, playing for long stretches would become painful," she explained. "Those who play an instrument with a neck like a violin generally get callouses on one hand that sometimes have imprints from their strings. Harpists don't press the strings like that, but we end do up calloused on both hands."