In Tune

(Prompt: Kris plays the piano for Susie.)

Dragon claws were much sharper than you had envisioned.

You swallow a lump in your throat, pulling your head back against the faded yellow wall and as far away from the razor-sharp nails clasped against your mouth.

"Damn birdbrain has it out for me, I swear. This is like, the third time this week that-"

Your eyes go wide as the girl's palm tightens across your face.

The scaled girl dashes away from the door's window, holding close to your side as footsteps echo in the distance.

"Crap!" She hisses, fangs glimmering in the dim sunlight streaking through the dusty room.

You sigh, the air burning against your face. As you begin to slacken against the wall once more, you peer out, silently searching for a distraction as you hid from sight. Between the patterns of mauve scales and sharpened claws, you notice stacks of books and excess school supplies, all thoroughly coated in a grey powder, likely forgotten by even the most veteran teaching staff. Each pile was haphazardly strewn about the room, many of which having fallen over throughout the years of storage, a colorful mixture of picture books and markers peeking out through the mounds. You quietly grunt to yourself. You knew the space hadn't been used for several years, but having an entire classroom to store supplies no one seemed to remember?

Your eyes narrow, a familiar picture book hiding within the nearby pile, various plants and animals in vibrant hues marking the cover.

So that's where your mom put it. You hadn't seen that book in years.

You raise an eyebrow, staring at a particularly oblong-shaped illustration of a local plant on the side of the book.

…water sausages? That's what they were called you th-

"Alright, he's probably gone. Took him long enough."

Cool air washes across your face as Susie steps away, brushing her palm against the folds of her jacket.

"Eugh…you lick me?"

You roll your eyes, stretching away from the wall, "No, but when you nearly shove your hand down someone's throat…"

You brush a bit of dust away from your sweater, peering up at the dragoness ahead, her scales turning a deeper purple in the fading sunlight.

"I-I didn't-!" She grumbles, tossing her mane to the side, "Look, I just…I don't know! I reacted or whatever!"

You wander back out into the middle of the dusty classroom, stepping over various mounds of young adult novels and broken crayons.

"Berdly's just been on my ass for everything lately. Didn't want to deal with him today, and I saw you wandering down the hall, and…"

"You kidnapped me."

"I saved you!" Susie drags her palms across her face, her grumble quickly becoming an exhausted sigh, "I mean, come on! He'd have asked you a bunch of questions and you'd be stuck dealing with all that for hours."

You pause, peering off into the distance, "…true."

"See?! So we're all good! Hell, should be thanking me for saving your butt."

You raise and eyebrow, shaking away from the thought.

"So…mind, uh…chilling here for a minute? Make sure he's actually gone?"

You turn back to the dragoness, a sheepish smile pulling at her lips. You tilt your head to the side, staring back, her gaze meeting yours. Within moments her eyes dart away, amber irises obscured under her black mane. She drags a clawed hand along the sleeve of her jacket, clinging to the patchwork material tightly.

You shrug, "Sure. Was trying to find you anyway."

You spin back around, resuming your search, a stammering sound from behind you echoing out. You carefully plod along the visibly worn tile, nearing the edge of the room. You begin tracing a finger along the dusty cabinets and shelves, a single line being drawn through the grey coating.

"I-I mean, like…cool! Yeah, we'll just hang here for a bit. In a classroom." Susie groans quietly, "Yep, this is how I wanted to spend the day. Ugh…"

You continue brushing along the wooden surfaces, your fingers eventually catching on a stouter cabinet. You stop, squinting in the dim light streaming in from the grimy window, studying the oddly familiar bit of furniture.

"Could've been halfway to the lake by now…hell, could've gone to the Dark World today." The dragoness pauses, "Crap, why didn't I just hide in the Dark World?! Damn it!"

You wince, the girl's complaints breaking into a proper roar. You shake your head, leaning down towards the rounded front of the wooden desk. Your finger floats along the base of the curved surface, gently pulling up, eyes going wide as the clasps on the sides allow the rounded frame to lift with a gentle creak. You freeze, eyes dancing along the white and black keys hidden away.

"Eh, whatever. Maybe there's something in here to do." A rumbling voice echoes out, "Hey, you spot any cards or anything? Oh, if you find something sharp, I saw this game in a movie where you see who can stab between their fingers the fastest! Guess we could do that with a marker or something…not really as fun but-"

You blink, "Uh, n-no, I haven't…" You stammer out, fingers instinctively forming along the proper keys, the specific notes hazy in your mind.

It was…high to low? No, that was the song Asriel always wanted you to play. How did it go? The nurse at the front counter always loved the song when you'd play. There weren't too many notes at the beginning. The start was mostly just vocals, but then you fade in softer keys to accentuate the lyrics. You squeeze your eyes tight, barely tapping the surface of the ivory. What were the words? If you could remember the words, at least the start, then…

Your eyes open back to the dull orange light, excitement surging through your body.

Right!

It went…when the light is running…

You allow yourself to fall into the rhythm, notes slowly forming back into your mind as the room is filled with a gentle melody. The song feels worn at first, your hands shaking against the piano long forgotten by the world. But within moments, you forget the anxiety twisting in your chest, the worry in your movements. Music flows along to the lyrics in your mind, echoing in the darkened space. Each strained pull of the piano's strings brings forth a somber sound, haunting in the moment, bringing you back to hours spent with hospital staff and patients circled round. Your eyes soften as you toss your head to the side, swinging the curtain of hair from your vision. How long ago was it? Since you waited for your mother to finish her meetings, anxiously playing song after song in the hospital's waiting room, finding peace in the melodies brought forth.

Too long to remember, but not enough to forget how to play.

The gentle tones hit a peak, finishing with a cleaner note, lighter and higher in pitch to allow an end to the imagined singer's carried words. You sigh, fingers still hovering over the keys. You close your eyes, taking a deep breath, opening back to the silence around you.

And to a pair of amber eyes staring back at.

"GAH!"

You jump back, arms pulled tight to your chest.

"…huh."

"C-Crap! S-Sorry! I-" You begin stammering.

Did Berdly hear the piano?! Was he outside the door, waiting for you to finally walk out?

You spin back around, peering through the door's window.

"Crap crap crap…!"

He was probably just biding his time now, waiting to strike, an entire clipboard's worth of questions ready to interrogate you with.

"Dude."

You allow a shuddered breath to escape your lips.

Okay, worst-case scenario, you tell Susie to hide in one of the cabinets. Then you would be the only victim here.

You swallow sharply. Or maybe there was room for two people? There could be enough room. You'd have to squeeze in pretty tightly and then-

You flinch, the dragoness' claw gently poking your forehead.

"Dude, chill."

You brush away from the girl's finger, "But I just-"

Her claw returns, tapping you once more, "Birdbrain would've already beat down the door if he heard. Chill."

Your breath hitches in your chest for a moment, soon flowing out in an exhausted burst of air. You dejectedly stare up at the scaled girl, barely able to meet her gaze, a sudden heat flushing across your features.

"…sorry. I just found the piano over there and…" You gently bite the bottom of your lip, "Wanted to see if I remembered."

Silence rings throughout the room as you cling to your free arm, gaze locked onto the mounds of school supplies scattered about.

"…didn't know you could do that. Like, music and stuff."

You risk a glance above, an unreadable expression on the dragoness' maw.

You limply shrug, "…a little. Just a couple songs. Mostly did it at the hospital when I was bored waiting for my mom to finish at school."

"She teach you?" Susie crosses her arms, leaning back against a metal cabinet.

"Nah. Dad did. Taught me and my brother when we we're younger, but I don't think he remembers how to play much. He was busy with other stuff; was always out at track and field."

"…huh."

You feel another knot begin to twist in your chest as you watch the dragoness' face, much of her pensive expression hidden under a pitch-black mane.

The quiet strains in your ears as you begin squeezing your fingers, desperate to fill the open air.

"I-I know I'm not really…n-nevermind. Maybe Berdly's gone home now? I could lean out and-"

"Can you play that song again?"

You blink, the knot in your chest unraveling as you spot a soft smile broaden across the girl's maw.

"…'s kinda nice. In, like, a dorky way. I dunno." She scratches the back of her neck, barely able to hide the blooming grin, each shining fang glimmering in the dim light.

"Uh…" You hesitate, staring back at the piano, "I-I guess I could…if you want?"

The dragoness freezes, her eyes going wide as her scales flush a deeper crimson, "W-Well, no, like, I mean…" She coughs, "Y-You just looked like you were having fun! And you're face was all happy and it was nice, like, seeing you look all-"

A growl emanates from the girl as she nearly launches off from the cabinets surface, dashing past you and towards the dusted window.

"J-Just play something, alright?! A-And it better be good! No lullaby crap like Ralsei does or whatever!"

You open your mouth to speak, only for the words to fail you. Shaking away from the sight of the enflamed dragoness, you meander back over to the piano, fingers instinctively returning to appropriate keys. Glancing back over to the scaled girl, you catch her amber eyes peering back at you from under her mane. You quickly avert your gaze, pretending you didn't notice the watchful stare. Stifling the excited grin on your face, a gentle tune begins to flow into the room once more, drowning out the screaming thoughts in your mind.

You find yourself falling back into the rhythm once more, each note stretching the piano's wires away from the dust within, a confident, deep sound sweeping past your ears. Your fingers dance across each key, sinking gently and quickly into the ivory surface, allowing a natural pause for the imagined lyrics to take over. You continue playing, fading in and out of the song's moments of calm, slowly noticing a rumbling sound filling the empty spaces. Wordlessly, and without taking your fingers away from the keys, you glance over, the dragoness still facing the dusty window at your side. You focus in on the rumbling sound, attempting to tune out the piano's thrumming tones, slowly picking up on a deeper, almost guttural hum in between each note.

You listen closely to the nervous sound wavering in and out, the noise a mixture of a soft growl and almost a…purr?

You swallow sharply, reorienting your fingers to the keys. You'd never heard Susie try to sing…or hum? She was humming. Susie was humming to a song you were playing. And you were still alive to hear it?

You feel a choking sensation rise in your throat as your face begins to burn. It's not that the sound was unpleasant. Anything but. It was soothing in a way. Like the rumble of a cat but…with a hint of sandpaper-against-gravel tone. You gently bite the bottom of your lip. Not the description you would be vocalizing.

The notes begin to fade into a crescendo, the higher pitch settling alongside the imagined lyrics. The dragoness' humming grows louder for a moment, the silence of the piano allowing her voice to echo through. Within seconds the humming is gone, stifled with an exaggerated coughing sound as the girl lurches forward, covering her mouth.

"That's…uh, that's the song." You flare your hands as if to celebrate the conclusion, only to nervously place them at your sides, "So…yeah. I-I mean, I like it."

"…yeah." Susie turns back to you, heat continuing to radiate from her face's scales, "You're…actually really good at that. I knew you were good with drawing and everything, but I didn't think you could do music too."

The dragoness chuckles, a cruel grin blooming on her maw, "I mean, come on. You can play piano, you can draw dragon girls, you can fight in the Dark Wo-"

"I-I draw all kinds of people!" You stutter out, panic in your eyes, "You just, you didn't see the other sketches that-!"

Your shoulder sink down as you feel an inferno build on your face.

Susie squeaks, the noise soon exploding into laughter as she sweeps along your side, wrapping an arm over your shoulder, "Nah, it's cool, it's cool. Just didn't think you had all this stuff going on. Always so quiet all the time. Didn't know you could play decent music."

You grumble, eyes narrowing at the girl's wicked grin, "Uh-huh. Guess the song's better when I've got someone humming along. Really adds something."

You smirk as the girl's fangs soon hide away, her bemused smile draining within seconds. The shades of purple marking the girl's scales sear into a burning crimson, to the point you begin to feel a familiar twisting in your chest.

Was that too much? Her humming was cute, she shouldn't be ashamed of-

Your throat seizes as you begin to sputter. You shakily contain the thought, scrambling to mitigate the ongoing disaster.

"It was…n-nice. It was fun! Yeah! I…like your voice."

You swallow down another painful tightness in your throat.

"AH-HA! THERE YOU ARE!"

The door suddenly bursts forth as dust is thrown throughout the room, the bespectacled avian stomping through.

"How dare you! I understand you can only hold yourself to such a degree of civility throughout the day, but to glue my desk shut?! How am I supposed to retrieve my schoolwork I have tirelessly slaved over the past few days? How am I supposed to retain my own status as an honor's student with this…this display of barbarism?!"

Berdly sighs loudly, pinching the bridge of his beak between two feathered fingers, "Susan, I know it isn't fair to expect changes in behavior within such a short time frame, but please! If I cannot remain within the honor's program, I cannot provide the same kind of assistance and support to my fellow classmates! Think of the long-term consequences!"

You feel Susie's arm coil away from you as she groans, "Get off my case already! I didn't glue shit! You think I'd waste some perfectly good glue just to make your life worse? Come on."

You awkwardly stand off to the side, watching as Berdly sneers, arms crossed.

"That's the exact kind of excuse I'd expect to here from someone of such mischief! But no matter, the library, where I retain ongoing employment-!" He pauses, accentuating the words, "Has an antiadhesive that I may utilize for just such an occasion! So there!"

Susie rolls her eyes, huffing quietly.

"Well, I suppose then I will…take my leave!" Berdly's stance softens as he awkwardly begins shuffling back, "Just…just know I still consider you two colleagues and will provide assistance in educational matters per my responsibilities as an honor's-"

"Pretty sure the school is closing soon. May want to go grab the antiadhesive stuff before then." You mutter.

Berdly's beak hangs open for a moment, soon snapping shut as he freezes in place, eyes darting back to the doorway, "…r-right. Well then. I shall…erm…"

The avian dashes back through the door, his footsteps clattering down the hall.

Susie sighs as she stretches upwards, soft pops echoing out in the rapidly darkening room, "Always gotta blame me for that kind of stuff. You replace a guy's lunch box with a boulder one time…"

A snorting sound escapes your lips as a chuckle bursts forth, leaving an exhausted smile on your face.

The dragoness eyes you, a look of concern and amusement twisting along her maw, "Alright weirdo, come on. Don't wanna get locked in school either."

You nod, shuffling past mounds of school supplies, out into the hallway's cool air. You squint, the fluorescent lights burning in your vision as a clawed hand rests on your shoulder.

"Hey, so…"

You stare up and the scaled girl, burning purple still painting her maw, "…thanks for that. Like, was kinda fun. Didn't know you could play like that. It's cool."

The girl claps you on the back, sending you reeling for a moment as she passes by.

"Next time we get stuck somewhere, we're heading for the Dark World though, alright?"

You roll your eyes, barely able to contain the grin plastered on your face.

"Now come on, let's get-"

"Wait!"

Susie turns around, eyebrows raised.

"Sorry, gotta grab some stuff I left in my desk. Didn't think I was gonna be hiding in the storage room all day."

The dragoness groans, "Come on, it's almost dark out. What do you even need?"

You dash past the girl, twirling back with a look of glee.

"Superglue! Dad let me borrow some, just need to get it back before heading home!"

You twirl back around as a growl builds in the distance.

[Author's Note]

Yo.

Oh boy. Haven't been existing much, have I? Nasty case of writer's block, life shenanigans, and the good old-fashioned event of my brain deciding now is the time to stop putting out the happy neurotransmitters. It's been an experience, truly. So, general update for those that are interested. Next chapter for Day By Darkened Day is halfway done. After that, I have another chapter I want to immediately go into. Once that's all done, plan is to pop over into my other fics and build on those. Original stuff is still happening, but so is crippling anxiety related to it all. It be how it do. But it'll happen for those that, again, have interest.

For now, though, I was recommended by friends to try going back to my "write something dumb and quick" method. Which hey! Blasted this out in a night. I'm also not sure what happened during all of that…I mean, I wrote. I think I blinked, and drank water. There were likely some human activities during that frenzy of writing. Regardless, may see a few of these pop up to combat the combination of rust and writer's block I have.

So yeah. I exist, will continue to do so despite my brain's insistence upon melting into my bed like human pudding. Hm. Maybe not the most pleasant metaphor. But other stories will be updated in time. Writer's block is still an ongoing threat, but I'm working on it. Regardless, take care of yourselves out there. Thanks for reading this junk, see you in the next thing.