Requiem for Innocence

[Espi]

((Alice Baker continued from Not My Tempo))

It was a state of trial and error. Fluctuating uncertainty.

The performance was simple enough; Alice knew every note, every permutation of her fingers drawing the bow across the strings. She knew exactly how the sound should be, where each note should connect to the next, and how the piece sounded if everything went right.

Of course, that was all theoretical. The piece had been written by an amateur, namely herself, so whether it worked was a different story.

Alice sat in her 'music chair' which was just a wooden chair without armrests. Her eyes were open, contrary to the popular image of a violinist, because she needed to read the sheet of course. Her breath was slow, even, and controlled so as to keep her hands as steady as possible.

The music...did it sound right? Were the sounds too high, low, unchanging? Did it swoop and fall like she'd intended, or was it bland and flat? The recording would tell her, but so could her ears, right now. Did it feel good to play? Was it a cohesive piece?

Alice hoped so. She'd been writing music for only a short time, and it wasn't easy. She was certainly not a prodigy, but perhaps she was learning? This was her best work yet, or she'd thought so. But she was almost done...

As the speed climbed and the notes crested and the strings sang, Alice felt a pang in her chest, chills ran down her arms, and as she finished with a final strong note, she realized she'd been holding her breath.

She smiled. Then; "Alice!" she froze. Molly was banging on her bedroom door, yelling her name. Startled, Alice carefully returned her violin to the case, and rushed over to the door, nearly stumbling in the process. Molly stood there, hands on her hips.

"Alice." Molly's face wasn't angry, though. She seemed startled, surprised. Alice's jolt of fright receded into confusion.

"W-what is it, Molly?" Alice looked up at her sister. They shared some things; both had the fine, blonde hair of their mother and the round face and short nose of their father. But Molly was tall and willowy, while Alice was petite, waiflike. She had strong, imposingly pretty features, clashing with Alice, who was almost childlike.

And of course, personality-wise, they couldn't be more different.

"I...I wanted to say I liked your song. That's all." Molly seemed to be missing her usual confidence, and Alice wasn't sure why. Still, she wasn't about to shrug off a compliment.

"Oh! Thank you. I tried very hard." Alice smiled, and Molly smiled as well, just a little.

"I noticed. Hey, I need a hand taking out the trash. Come help me." Molly's pushiness returned in short order, and Alice quickly hurried after her sister to help with the garbage cans.

ALICE BAKER: CONCLUDED
CONTINUED IN V6