Written For:

Quidditch Fanfiction League Competition: Caerphilly Catapults - Round 11 - Keeper
Write about a character known for musical talent

Betas: S. L. Blake, NevilleGonnaGiveYouUp

The Hardship of Talent

Daphne walked along the empty corridors of Hogwarts, a binder held to her chest as she stared straight ahead, going along her familiar route without having to think about which turn to take.

It seemed she spent more time using this route than she did in her regular classes, but alas, that was why her parents had sent her to this fancy boarding school in the first place. So she can explore her gift.

Sometimes, she wished that she hadn't been born with this blasted gift. She continued to walk down the corridor until she came to the room that she spent so much of her time in.

Daphne sighed and entered the elegant space. It was empty, except for a large grand piano, shiny black, shimmering as if it had been recently polished.

She stepped up to the piano and opened her binder, turning to her most recent song, the one she'd be performing at the winter festival – Ravel's "Gaspard de la nuit." She placed it on the music stand, pulled the piano bench out, and sat down on it.

She adjusted her posture, got her foot ready at the sustain pedal, and placed her right hand in the starting position.

Daphne mentally readied herself, emptying her mind of all thoughts, except the music that was in front of her. She took a deep breath and played. Her hands flew over the keys as her eyes read the music, nearly faster than her brain could keep up with.

She came to the end of the first section and stopped. She needed to work on the next section a little slower before she could get it up to tempo. She massaged her wrist and wiggled her fingers, loosening them up as much as possible.

Just as she placed her hands back on the piano keys, a throat clearing behind her caused her to stop, and her hands fell down to her lap. She shifted in her seat, turning to see who was behind her, her chestnut ponytail whipping around with the movement. "Hello, Blaise."

The Italian smiled. "Hey, Daph. That sounds great."

"I know it sounds great," she stated matter-of-factly.

"Never one for modesty, are you?" he asked in amusement.

"Why bother with modesty when I know how good I am?" she replied flippantly. "Why are you here?"

"I just finished up today's training and was heading to the dorm, to rest before dinnertime, when I heard the music. I thought I'd stop in and see how you're doing."

For the first time, Daphne realized Blaise was in his gymnastics garb. "Oh, I'm doing fine."

Blaise tilted his head, his eyes narrowed as he shrewdly looked at her. "You okay?"

She stiffened, her eyes narrowing right back. "Of course. What kind of question is that?"

Blaise arched an eyebrow. "Really? Because I've known you for almost seven years now, and I always know when something is bothering you. It's like my sixth sense."

She slumped down, staring at her hands that were resting in her lap. "Let me ask you something. Do you ever get tired of it all?"

"Be more specific," Blaise gently ordered, coming fully into the room and taking a seat on a chair that was against the wall.

"We come to this boarding school to focus on our gifts, whether it's music, sports, academics, whatever. All we do is practice and perform. Like trained chimps. Do you ever want to say enough is enough? Do you ever just want to give it all up and be a normal teenager?"

Blaise's answer was quick, no uncertainty in his tone whatsoever. "No."

Daphne's head raised so her eyes met Blaise's. "How?"

"Because I love gymnastics. I hope to go to the Olympics one day, and when I'm too old, I still want to have some part in the sport, as a coach or maybe something else. I can't imagine my life without gymnastics. And every minute I'm training, even on the harder days, I love it."

"That's the difference," she murmured.

Blaise stared at her and nodded to himself. "You hate piano, don't you?"

Daphne shrugged. "It's okay. I like that I'm great at it."

"Is that the only reason you like it? I've watched you play, and no matter how beautiful it sounds, you never smile while you're doing it. On the other hand—"

"On the other hand, you can't wipe that grin off of your face when you do your tricks," Daphne interrupted.

Blaise nodded. "So, besides the fact that you're great at it, do you like the piano at all?"

Her answer came as easily as Blaise's had earlier when she asked if he ever wanted to give it all up. "No. Sometimes, my gift feels rather like a curse."

"My gift has never felt like a curse, so why are you doing it? You're wasting your time on something you can't stand."

"Tori takes after Father. She has a mind for business and will most definitely be taking over the family business, one day. My mother was a classical piano player. She gave it up when she got pregnant with me. When she realized I had a natural talent for her instrument, all she cared about was me following in her footsteps. She'd be heartbroken if I gave it up."

"That's not a good reason to keep doing something you hate, Daph." He took her hand, rubbing his thumb soothingly across her knuckles. "Let's try a little exercise. Close your eyes."

She looked at him as if he was nuts. "Close my eyes, really?"

"Just do it," Blaise said.

She sighed and did as he said, her eyelids fluttering shut, hiding her sky-blue gaze from him.

"Now imagine that you weren't a piano player. That you weren't going to Hogwarts School of the Gifted and you could do anything you wanted. What would it be?"

"Not really one thing. I always wanted to try acting and dancing. Actually, I think I'd like to try a bunch of things." She opened her eyes. "My mother played piano for nearly twenty years. She'd never understand me choosing to walk away from it when I'm talented."

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to do something I love, even if it's not something I'm particularly good at. I'd rather work harder on something I enjoy doing."

Blaise nodded. "So, what are you going to do about it?"

"It's time that I had a talk with Mother and Father. I think Father will be on my side, and hopefully, he'll help my mother see reason."

"Do you know the only bad thing, besides your mother's reception, about you giving up the piano?" He still held her hand.

"Hmm?" She asked, tilting her head slightly as she leaned forward, eager to hear his take on what could be bad about her finding some happiness with her pursuits.

"You'll be leaving Hogwarts, and in essence, you'll be leaving me." Blaise's intense stare made butterflies flutter in her stomach.

Daphne blushed. "I may be leaving Hogwarts, but I won't leave you. Not fully. And that's a promise."

Blaise bridged the gap between them, kissing her lightly. He pulled back. "I've wanted to do that for months. And it figures, I finally get the courage to do it when you most likely will be leaving Hogwarts."

"Then we better not waste any more time." She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him back, so their lips touched in a kiss that was far from chaste.

She still had to talk to her parents and make them understand why she was giving up something she was so good at, something that would make her famous one day, but for now, she just wanted to enjoy this.

XX

(word count: 1,297)