"…"- Denotes speech
Italics – denotes thoughts
~~~ - Denotes a change of time
On Wings of Song
BIP-BIP BIP-BIP BIP-BIP
He looked at the alarm clock: 8:52. Why was he up so early again? Oh yes, Valentine's day, big meeting, big concert. He was about to turn over and go back to sleep when he felt something scratching his lower back. He reached over; there was something in his shorts!
It was a card, one of those plain white ones with blue text printed on them. His actually said 'rise and shine 'cos you're my sunshine'. On the back was written, "happy valentine's day, love", in a handwriting that he knew too well.
Why, he'd never thought that his lover had a sadistic streak! I should have guessed, though, somebody that rises at the brink of dawn to practice his flute can't be normal…
Said lover was actually outside, practicing his flute. I wonder if he found my card yet. He was practicing for his concert that evening. He was well aware that his 'manager' had chosen that particular orphanage because it was the one he was sent to after he got lost during a holiday in Athens1. I was only four then, and I left a bit before I turned twelve2, when Kanon came… But he wasn't willing to dwell on that particular subject. The only good that came from that part of his life was that he met Julian.
He started playing again, thinking back to the orphanage I wonder how Mrs. Leonidakis is doing…she must be eager to see me gain…at least I hope she is. I hope she's proud of me, I really do…
He was shaken from his thoughts as he felt a shadow over his face.
"That was a beautiful song you were playing, I never heard it before"
"I was just practicing for the concert. Did you like my little surprise?" He seriously hoped that the abrupt change of subject would go unnoticed.
His lover smirked: two could play that game. "Was there some hidden message in the way you placed it?"
Sorrento looked as angelically innocent as he possibly could: "what would make you think that?" Both of them knew that Julian didn't buy it for a second. "So, what are our plans for today?"
"Well, I have a business meeting so I came to ask you what you wanted to do until the concert"
Sorrento chuckled "you already have something in mind, don't you?" they knew each other so well they could almost read each other's thoughts.
"When I was arranging the concert a certain Mrs. Leonidakis wondered if you had any spare time while we were in Athens…"
Touché, he thought, seeing the sparkle in his lover's eyes.
Sorrento couldn't understand why he was so exited about going back to school. But then, it was Mrs. Leonidakis, she was the pre-adolescent tutor: she teached the age groups through what would be considered the second half of primary school. Even as Kanon had come to find him, Sorrento had waited for the end of the year until he left: he didn't want her to worry over him.
Why was he so nervous then? After the battle against Athena's saints the first thing he did was to write to her, asking for guidance. She was the first to suggest his musical carrier (he didn't tell here what he was really doing, he told he had lived with friends those past four years). And then, two months after Hades' defeat she was the one to encourage him to reveal his feelings to Julian. She had always encouraged him to go on.
He hadn't seen her for six and a half years now…
"Why, I see that my little boy grew-up a little!" Said a voice from behind him. He turned, eyes wide. She was the same as he remembered her: a nice, smiling, grandmother type of person.
"Welcome back Peter3, or is it Sorrento now?" she said, hugging him, referring to his 'stage name'.
"Sorrento" Peter died with the first opponent I killed during my training "I missed you too grandma" he replied, hugging her back.
She laughed at her old nickname: she was the official 'grandma' of all the kids of the orphanage. "Aren't you a bit old to call me that?"
"Never!"
"And where is your 'manager'?" she asked, winking at him.
He blushed "at a business meeting" he quickly changed subjects "you're with the eleven year old group now, aren't you?"
"I see you still know how to count. I thought you'd like to join us today, you always liked Valentine's Day"
"Class I'd like to introduce to you – "
"PETER!!!!"
Within a second of the shout Sorrento found himself being squeezed to death4 by a little girl about the height of his waist.
"It's Sorrento now, Mika sweetie". He wondered how she still remembered him. After all, the last time he saw her she was five. "Now go back to your seat before grandma gets angry"
"Thank you" she turned back to the kids "remember I promised you a surprise? Well, let me introduce to you Sorrento who will perform at the concert tonight. He'll join our class today."
"Now did you all do your homework?"
"Yes grandma!" they all chorused.
"So who wants to go first?"
Silence. No one dared to even move from fear that their teacher would pick them to go first.
"If you don't volunteer yourself I'll volunteer you!" The class just grew stiller.
"I will!" Everybody turned to look in the direction of the brave soul willing to sacrifice themselves for the well being of the others.
"Good! Mika please read us your valentine's day poem"
Mika walked to the front of the class, clutching her paper "It's called 'Cycle' and it's a 'colour' poem5:
Red is a rose that you give,
It is Love,
Black is the colour of anger,
Grey is sadness,
And white is the end.
Then red comes back and
Everything starts over again.
That's it".
"Thank you Mika. Ianis, would you like to go next?"
The boy came to the front of the class "My poem is called 'like a chocolate cake' and it's a 'five senses' poem5:
Love is like a rainbow
It sounds like the nicest melody ever
It tastes like a chocolate cake in a birthday party
It feels like a new silk cloth
And smells like roses in the spring
It is the best thing in life"
"Thank you Ianis. Paul would you go next?"
One by one the whole class was coaxed into reading their poems. Each kid blushing a bit more than his precedor. Finally it was over, everyone sighed in relief but they had another surprise.
"Sorrento, would you like to read your Valentine's poem?"
"Me?!"
"Yes you, you enjoy writing poetry and you love Valentine's Day. I'll be surprised the day you don't have a poem ready for Valentine's Day."
He laughed: "yes grandma. I guess some of your bad habits rubbed off over the years." Like the others he walked to the front and introduced his poem: "It's called 'Light' it's in 'free style' and I wrote it for my sweetheart6:
In the moon light
Or the candle light
I close my eyes,
I become blind to the world
And lose myself in my dreams
In the sun light
Or the star light
I close my ears,
I become deaf to the world
And lose myself in my dreams
The light fades
As do my dreams
All but one softly shining lime light
A special light, a different light
The gleam of life and love: your light"
The rest of the day passed in a haze, finally arriving to the time of the concert.
"Come on Peter, you have to go and prepare yourself or we'll be late!" Mika hadn't let go of him during the whole day and insisted on calling him by his real name.
"O.K. Mika, but I don't know where they put my stuff."
"It's in the anti-chamber near the lunchroom, you know, where you used to practice. Come on!"
He shook his head as she sprinted down the hallway to the said anti-chamber. That kid has always been just a bit hyper. He continued walking at his own pace when-
"PETER!!" What now? "Look at the pretty flowers you got! And you got a card too! Are they from your girlfriend?"
"Kind of…hey! Give me that!" He quickly read the card:
~ ~ ~ Happy Valentine's Day love! Thank you for you present, it reminds me of you when I wear it.
Good luck tonight,
Your Valentine's ~ ~ ~
So he did found my little gift. Sorrento had gotten him a pin, shaped like a flute with a tiny heart, to hold his tie. That morning he had hidden it in Julian's pocket.
"There a present for you too!" It was a small box next to the bouquet of red and white roses. In it was a new mouthpiece for his flute with a golden engraving 'Forever'.
Sorrento took a deep breath, it was now or never: "I wrote and dedicate my last piece "On Wings of Song"7 for my Valentine's, thank you for the two best years of my life".
Owari
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Notes:
[1] In the chart it says that Sorrento is Austrian, I had to get him to Greece
somehow ^^;;;;
[2] His birthday is the 9th of September and he left the orphanage in June
[3] Sorrento couldn't be his real name; it's the best I could come up with, I kinda
like it though.
[4] Philip bleeeeeds ta death! And turns blueeeeeeeee! Sorry, private joke ^^;;;;
[5] I wrote those two for an 8th grade project, we had to write 19 kinds of poems
(please excuse them, I barely spoke English back then). But they fit because
11 year olds supposedly wrote them.
[6] Feedback on this one, I beg. It's one of my most recent poems and I'll
appreciate any comments on it (good or bad).
[7] "On Wings of Song" was actually composed by Mendelssohn. I can try and
get the partition if you guys want to see it.
What else can I say? I know! I want lots and lots and lots of C&C!!! ^^;;
Legal disclaimers: I don't own Saint-Seiya, it belongs to Kurumada-sama and whoever else has the legal rights. I am not making any money out of this so please don't sue me!
