Title:Talent Night: Rodney McKay Plays the Blues
Author's Note: This is really not much of anything. Huh, some salesman I am. It's just me wondering what would happen if Rodney tried playing piano again.
Featured Characters: Rodney McKay, Jennifer Keller
Other Characters Included: John Sheppard, Teyla Emmagen, Ronon Dex & Maj. Lorne
Disclaimer: I have no rights to Stargate Atlantis or to Lady, by Regina Spektor. Lady is featured on the artists second commercial album entitled Begin to Hope. I strongly suggest you all purchase it and listen to is as soon as possible because it is one of the greatest albums ever recorded. This concludes the obligatory disclaimer.
Rodney McKay was absolutely flabbergasted.
"You want me to what?" He fairly screeched.
Jennifer rolled her eyes at him. "Oh, come on. It's not that strange a request." She giggled.
"No, I'm pretty sure it is."
"McKay, good grief. Would you lighten up? You'll be fine. You may feel awkward about it at first but, trust me, once you're in the moment, it'll all come back to you."
"You don't understand. I don't get in the moment." McKay retorted. "That's the whole reason I gave up piano in the first place."
McKay had been eating lunch in the mess hall with his team when Jennifer had joined them and made her surprising request, that McKay accompany her on piano during the upcoming talent review.
"Besides, I don't do well with crowds, recitals, things like that." McKay continued pettishly.
"I'm just shocked you have a musical bone in your body." grinned Sheppard. "You never told me you play piano, McKay."
"That's because I don't play piano, Colonel." McKay said irritably. "I played piano. Past tense, as in this discussion is over and will now be referred to in."
"Rodney, please?" Jennifer said softly. She was looking up at him through her eyelashes and, he would later swear, blinking them in some kind of hypnosis inducing way and suddenly he heard himself say, "Alright but don't blame me when we're laughed off the stage."
He had agreed. He had agreed? Idiot! How could he have done that? Granted, it was going to be quite nice spending all the time practicing with Jennifer but...Rodney hadn't played in so long. Not since he was twelve. Not since that day, two weeks after his mother's funeral when his exasperated piano instructor had pronounced he a good "clinical" player.
Rodney loved music. He had trouble understand the appeal of well written prose and even more trouble understanding any kind of poetry. The only aspect of painting he could really say he admired was technique. Abstract art? Finger paintings. But music, music was heart and soul interpreted and perfectly encapsulated by mathematics. But he hadn't been good enough.
Later, when they met to rehearse Rodney tried again to explain his apprehension to Jennifer. He recounted the remarks of his instructor and his doubts regarding his abilities. Jennifer had suddenly become livid.
"First of all, how dare he? You were twelve years old for goodness sake!"
Rodney loved the fact that Jennifer, even enraged, couldn't bring herself to utter even the slightest profanity and instead relied heavily on her Midwestern euphemisms.
"How much emotion is a dang twelve year old going to be able to bring to the music? Second, I know you Rodney McKay. If you can't be the absolute best at something, you don't want to do it at all. Well, I don't need the absolute best pianist in the whole blasted Universe. I need you."
Jennifer needed him. That was all he needed to hear.
The rehearsals were difficult at first. Though the piece wasn't technically difficult, it was a jazzy number and brimming with emotion. Rodney might have been less challenged by a classical piece. His fingers stumbled along the keys trying to reclaim that slight bend, the light touch, the ability to float millimeters over the wrong keys while applying varying levels of force to the correct ones.
He struggled on, often quite disgusted with himself, but Jennifer was a wonder. She refused to allow him to berate himself but sometimes he just couldn't help it. He was terrible.
The talent show was only two weeks away and while Jennifer was phenomenal, Rodney's playing was still horribly stilted and mechanical.
Jennifer usually stood to one side of the piano, facing the imaginary audience. But on this day, she instead stood behind McKay.
"Play it again, McKay." She said with amusement in her voice.
"Oh, har har." McKay replied good naturedly and started to play.
The hair on his arms stood up as he felt her hands on his shoulders. Then something inside him seemed to unspool. As she sang, it was like all of the emotions of the song were flowing through her hands and into Rodney. His playing evened out and suddenly the instructions to play piano or forte, or to play a crescendo were unnecessary because he could feel why those instructions were necessary.
The night of the talent show arrived. This was no contest. There was no judging. The show was merely an attempt to boost morale, give everyone something to capture their imaginations and pleasantly occupy what little free time they had.
Rodney was incredibly nervous. Lorne did a comedic recitation that had several people laughing so hard they choked.
Teyla sang a traditional Althosian song, with soaring vocals that filled the room with electricity.
Even John and Ronon took part, acting out the scene of the black night who wouldn't surrender from Monty Python's The Quest for the Holy Grail. John playing the slowly dismembered but undeterred black night and when he screamed the final line, "Come back here, I'll bite you're legs off." In his truly horrible impression of a British accent the last two words were lost in the roar of laughter.
Suddenly, it is time for Rodney and Jennifer to perform. Rodney can feel the curious stares as they take the stage; sure that most of the members of the expedition, like Sheppard, had been shocked to find Rodney had even the tiniest artistic leaning.
"Um, Hi everybody!" Jennifer says shyly into the microphone. Rodney takes a moment to marvel at how truly beautiful she looks tonight wearing a simple little black dress. "Rodney is going to be helping me out on the piano tonight and I'm going to be singing 'Lady' by Regina Spektor." Jennifer shrugs apologetically. "I hope you like it."
Rodney begins to play the low, dreamy music. The room stills and suddenly Jennifer's rich voice fills in the pieces the piano has left missing.
Lady sing the blues so well
As if she mean it
As if it's hell down here
In the smoke filled world
Where the jokes are cold
They don't laugh at jokes
They laugh at tragedies
Corner street societies
But they believe her
They never leave her
While she sings
She make them feel things
She says I
Can sing
This song
So bluuue
That you will cry
In spite
Of you
Little wet tears on your baby's shoulder
Little wet tears on your baby's shoulder
The song goes on and Rodney is possessed. While Jennifer's voice gently traces flowing lines of sound in the air, Rodney's playing is deep and dark; a perfect juxtaposition to the hope in her voice. The sounds together are hypnotic to Jennifer and to Rodney but most of all, to the audience.
Then, suddenly, Jennifer is singing the last lines
Lady lights
a cigarette
Puffs away
winter comes
and she
forgeeeettttsss
Jennifer spins the last drawn out note first up and then down until it blends with Rodney's dark playing. He plays the last refrain as it dissolves into an ever deepening ritardando. The music doesn't so much end as dissipate into silence.
The crowd doesn't react at first. They are too overwhelmed by the hypnosis of the music, the lyrics, Jennifer's voice and, yes, Rodney's playing. Jennifer bows awkwardly in the silence and it breaks the spell.
The recreation room explodes into deafening applause as the crowd gives the physician and physicist a standing ovation.
As Rodney steps out from behind the piano, Jennifer rushes into his arms in a congratulatory embrace. Rodney later blames the euphoria of the moment for the unexpectedly passionate kiss he gives his fellow performer.
But we all know better.