Backstage
Quistis and Seifer followed Selphie backstage, dodging the screaming crowd that panicked and pushed towards the exit. The death of the patrons had become the talk of the room, and in fear of being the next victim of this mysterious death, the people immediately fled, leaving the concert without so as much as a final applause. Meanwhile, while the audience was making a disorderly beeline towards the door, Quistis, Selphie, and Seifer had finally reached Rinoa's dressing room. And only inches before the door standing was Irvine Kinneas, the pianist who had entertained them earlier this evening.
The auburn-haired pianist knocked gently on his friend's door. "Rinoa, can I come in? It's alright. The concert is over."
When there was no answer from the other side, Seifer decided to barge in. "Allow me Mr. Kinas," he said while indicating the pianist to move aside.
"Kinneas," Irvine corrected.
Seifer knocked on the door just a bit louder this time to catch the artist's attention. "Miss Heartilly, we are just a group of nice people who want to talk to you. If it is convenient with you, will you allow us to come in?" he asked in a very nice tone.
The group outside the dressing room waited for about half a minute before the received the answer, "Please open it, the door's unlocked."
Seifer turned the knob, with Quistis, Selphie, and Irvine following. When they closed the door behind them, Quistis noticed that Rinoa was looking at the mirror as if she were in a trance. Her knuckles were white from clenching, and she had the appearance of someone who had just seen a ghost. On one side of the room, the Seduzione's case lay open with the scores she had just played that evening scattered in it. The instrument on the other hand was gingerly displayed in an airtight shelf.
'Probably because they don't want the three hundred year old instrument to catch mold?' Quistis wondered as she observed her surroundings.
"It happened again," came the silent remark from the genius violinist.
It was Irvine who approached her this time. "What happened Rinoa? What happened again?"
Still facing the mirror, she replied, "This has happened before, you know."
Irvine put his hands on her shoulders and gently turned her to face him. Her eyes were sunken and moist, with dark, puffy circles surrounding them. She had been crying. "What happened before? You should tell us Rinoa. It is better if you do that. We may be able to help you," he suggested as she just stood there, staring blankly at Irvine.
After mustering enough courage to tell them what she had been intending to hide earlier, she finally said, "People—my patrons more specifically, have died before in three of my recent concerts. One was held in Berlin, the other in Osaka, and the most recent one in Rome. This isn't the first time someone died in my concert."
Selphie took a step forward and asked while clasping her hands over her bosom, "You mean this happens all the time during your concerts? But why?"
Rinoa finally snapped out of her strange trance and answered, "It doesn't happen all the time. The Seduction of the Violin tour started only recently, and so far I've held three concerts before the Carnegie Hall recital. Strangely enough, after I played the last few songs, patrons began having seizures or heart attacks. The funny thing is, although some of these men were healthy, the doctors who conducted the autopsy on their bodies suggested that they died of heart failure or stroke. I've known some of these men very well. They don't rough their bodies out. And then this happened. I don't even know if I should continue on with this tour."
Seifer suggested, "Miss Rinoa, with all due respect, I don't think it would be advisable to stop this tour. People will only get the idea that the deaths had something to do with you. But perhaps you can delay the tour a bit, maybe postpone it to a latter date?"
Rinoa smiled at Seifer and said, "Thank you kind sir, but I don't think it would do me good to postpone my tour. I mean I want to, but doing that would be a bit risky. People have already bought tickets for my next few concerts, and I'm flying to Los Angeles next week and to Toronto for my concerts here in North America. I can't just blow away these audiences."
While everyone was spending some time talking with Rinoa, Quistis had taken the liberty of examining the Stradivarius Seduzione, the legendary violin that had the power to captivate even the most stubborn classical music hater. She then asked her favorite artist, "What if you used a different violin for your next few concerts?"
"What?" Rinoa asked, apparently confused by the question.
"I mean, my theory might seem odd, but if you think about it, the violin may be the cause of these deaths. Remember those articles in Ripley's Believe It or Not where some people die during stage performances and they found some object that was thought to be cursed? What if the violin is cursed? Replacing it might just be the solution," Quistis said.
Rinoa pondered on her words and shook her head. "No, I can't do that either. Some big shot people come to my concerts to listen to my violin. If I so as much as use a different Strad, those people will know. And besides, this violin is...somewhat precious to me. It contains several memories that I cannot part with it," she said while she hung her head on her shoulder. Her eyes were starting to tear now, but she decided that it would not do her good to cry in front of people she barely knew.
"Well what can we do?" Irvine asked as he slumped on the dressing room couch with Selphie. Seifer and Quistis soon followed and Rinoa was the only one left standing in the room.
"I honestly don't know," said Rinoa blankly.
A few minutes later, a knock came on the dressing room door.
"Who is it?" Rinoa asked.
"Rinoa, may I come in?" asked an old, gentle voice.
"Please do," she said as she opened the door for the Carnegie Hall manager and his wife. They had been avid supporters of her talent since the beginning, and Rinoa had grown to become good friends with them.
"Mr. Kramer, so good to see you," said Rinoa as she shook his hand. "And Madame, you look lovely as always," she complemented the elegant woman dressed in black.
"Why thank you Rinoa," said the woman called Edea.
"Rinoa..." started Cid.
"Sir, if it is about what happened earlier, can we rather not talk about it?" she politely asked.
"Yes, I know but this is somewhat of a problem. You see, my dear, we have found someone who may be able to inspect your instrument thoroughly," he began again.
Rinoa tilted her head on one side in confusion. "What Cid is trying to say is we might be able to help you," Edea silently added.
"You can?" Rinoa asked, her eyes beaming.
"Yes Rinoa. I just talked to your manager a few minutes ago and told him that it would be better for you to continue your tour after a three month hiatus. Let's just say that you've gotten sick in the public's eyes. We took care of the commotion a while ago, and told the press that you had collapsed on the floor and had given the patrons a heart attack," Cid told her.
"You told them what?" she exclaimed.
"Rinoa, calm down. A break will apparently give you some time to sort out any problems with your concerts. I also had the chance to contact a man who studies a variety of antique instruments like yours. If you will only be so cooperative as to take these..." he pulled out a plane ticket from his pocket and gave it to Rinoa. "You might be able to find the root of your problems."
"Milan? Who am I going to look for in Milan?" she asked the pudgy old man.
"Ah! I almost forgot! Here is the calling card of the person whom I've set you up with. His name his Professor Loire and he is based in one of the old universities of music in Cremona. I'm sorry dear, but it's not going to be a shopping spree in Milan. Anyway, this man has studied antique and so called possessed instruments before and might just have the answer to what has been causing all these deaths," Cid told her as he flicked the calling card from his pocket and handed it over to Rinoa.
"Uh, Mr. Kramer, I just have one problem. I don't speak Italian," she told Carnegie Hall's manager.
"Oh don't even worry about it! Professor Loire has lived here in the United States before so he should be well versed in English," he said with a hearty laugh.
"Dear Rinoa, you must find this man. He may not be well known, but I do know for a fact that he has helped several people in the past," said Edea as she put one hand on Rinoa's right shoulder. "Listen to me dear. If there is one man who can lift curses from ancient instruments, this man can do it. I don't want to see you get blacklisted by the press just because of a Stradivarius."
Rinoa nodded and Cid said, "Well Rinoa, I wish you luck on your trip. I'm getting old so I hope you don't mind if I retire for bed. By the way, you will find a man called Zell Dincht waiting for you in the airport. He is Professor Loire's butler...sort of."
Rinoa nodded again and asked, "Uh sir, can Irvine come with me to Cremona? I think I need someone to accompany me there."
Cid clapped his hand on his forehead and said, "Oh I almost forgot! Mr. Kinneas, I have your ticket here with me. Goodness knows all this commotion can get into an old man's head." He slowly walked to the pianist and gave him his ticket.
"Would your friends like to come as well?" the chubby manager asked Rinoa.
"Ah, we'll just pay for our own tickets. My father works in the Italian embassy so that will be a breeze for us," Seifer said. "But thank you anyway sir for your offer."
"Alright then, all of you have a good evening," he wished them as he stepped out of the room with his wife.
"You too sir!" Rinoa called out.
"Wow! We're going to Italy!" Selphie beamed. "I heard that the Gucci's, Ferragamo's and Prada's there are cheap!"
Irvine put an arm around her and said, "Hey, don't get your hopes up. This is an exorcism thing remember?"
"Aw Irvine you're no fun! So Seifer, can you get us the tickets?" she whirled over to the blonde who had his hand on Quistis' lap.
"Sure. What time is the flight tomorrow Miss Heartilly?" he asked.
Rinoa looked at her ticket and replied, "The plane's leaving at 6:30 tomorrow evening. And please call me Rinoa. As long as we're in this room, I am your friend and not some Prima Donna, kay?"
Seifer chuckled and said, "Okay Rinoa. So do you want us to come?"
Rinoa beamed and answered, "Oh please do come! I need someone to come with me. I mean I don't know the place very well."
Selphie and Quistis stood up and said in unison, "That settles it then! We're going to Italy!"
Quistis and Seifer followed Selphie backstage, dodging the screaming crowd that panicked and pushed towards the exit. The death of the patrons had become the talk of the room, and in fear of being the next victim of this mysterious death, the people immediately fled, leaving the concert without so as much as a final applause. Meanwhile, while the audience was making a disorderly beeline towards the door, Quistis, Selphie, and Seifer had finally reached Rinoa's dressing room. And only inches before the door standing was Irvine Kinneas, the pianist who had entertained them earlier this evening.
The auburn-haired pianist knocked gently on his friend's door. "Rinoa, can I come in? It's alright. The concert is over."
When there was no answer from the other side, Seifer decided to barge in. "Allow me Mr. Kinas," he said while indicating the pianist to move aside.
"Kinneas," Irvine corrected.
Seifer knocked on the door just a bit louder this time to catch the artist's attention. "Miss Heartilly, we are just a group of nice people who want to talk to you. If it is convenient with you, will you allow us to come in?" he asked in a very nice tone.
The group outside the dressing room waited for about half a minute before the received the answer, "Please open it, the door's unlocked."
Seifer turned the knob, with Quistis, Selphie, and Irvine following. When they closed the door behind them, Quistis noticed that Rinoa was looking at the mirror as if she were in a trance. Her knuckles were white from clenching, and she had the appearance of someone who had just seen a ghost. On one side of the room, the Seduzione's case lay open with the scores she had just played that evening scattered in it. The instrument on the other hand was gingerly displayed in an airtight shelf.
'Probably because they don't want the three hundred year old instrument to catch mold?' Quistis wondered as she observed her surroundings.
"It happened again," came the silent remark from the genius violinist.
It was Irvine who approached her this time. "What happened Rinoa? What happened again?"
Still facing the mirror, she replied, "This has happened before, you know."
Irvine put his hands on her shoulders and gently turned her to face him. Her eyes were sunken and moist, with dark, puffy circles surrounding them. She had been crying. "What happened before? You should tell us Rinoa. It is better if you do that. We may be able to help you," he suggested as she just stood there, staring blankly at Irvine.
After mustering enough courage to tell them what she had been intending to hide earlier, she finally said, "People—my patrons more specifically, have died before in three of my recent concerts. One was held in Berlin, the other in Osaka, and the most recent one in Rome. This isn't the first time someone died in my concert."
Selphie took a step forward and asked while clasping her hands over her bosom, "You mean this happens all the time during your concerts? But why?"
Rinoa finally snapped out of her strange trance and answered, "It doesn't happen all the time. The Seduction of the Violin tour started only recently, and so far I've held three concerts before the Carnegie Hall recital. Strangely enough, after I played the last few songs, patrons began having seizures or heart attacks. The funny thing is, although some of these men were healthy, the doctors who conducted the autopsy on their bodies suggested that they died of heart failure or stroke. I've known some of these men very well. They don't rough their bodies out. And then this happened. I don't even know if I should continue on with this tour."
Seifer suggested, "Miss Rinoa, with all due respect, I don't think it would be advisable to stop this tour. People will only get the idea that the deaths had something to do with you. But perhaps you can delay the tour a bit, maybe postpone it to a latter date?"
Rinoa smiled at Seifer and said, "Thank you kind sir, but I don't think it would do me good to postpone my tour. I mean I want to, but doing that would be a bit risky. People have already bought tickets for my next few concerts, and I'm flying to Los Angeles next week and to Toronto for my concerts here in North America. I can't just blow away these audiences."
While everyone was spending some time talking with Rinoa, Quistis had taken the liberty of examining the Stradivarius Seduzione, the legendary violin that had the power to captivate even the most stubborn classical music hater. She then asked her favorite artist, "What if you used a different violin for your next few concerts?"
"What?" Rinoa asked, apparently confused by the question.
"I mean, my theory might seem odd, but if you think about it, the violin may be the cause of these deaths. Remember those articles in Ripley's Believe It or Not where some people die during stage performances and they found some object that was thought to be cursed? What if the violin is cursed? Replacing it might just be the solution," Quistis said.
Rinoa pondered on her words and shook her head. "No, I can't do that either. Some big shot people come to my concerts to listen to my violin. If I so as much as use a different Strad, those people will know. And besides, this violin is...somewhat precious to me. It contains several memories that I cannot part with it," she said while she hung her head on her shoulder. Her eyes were starting to tear now, but she decided that it would not do her good to cry in front of people she barely knew.
"Well what can we do?" Irvine asked as he slumped on the dressing room couch with Selphie. Seifer and Quistis soon followed and Rinoa was the only one left standing in the room.
"I honestly don't know," said Rinoa blankly.
A few minutes later, a knock came on the dressing room door.
"Who is it?" Rinoa asked.
"Rinoa, may I come in?" asked an old, gentle voice.
"Please do," she said as she opened the door for the Carnegie Hall manager and his wife. They had been avid supporters of her talent since the beginning, and Rinoa had grown to become good friends with them.
"Mr. Kramer, so good to see you," said Rinoa as she shook his hand. "And Madame, you look lovely as always," she complemented the elegant woman dressed in black.
"Why thank you Rinoa," said the woman called Edea.
"Rinoa..." started Cid.
"Sir, if it is about what happened earlier, can we rather not talk about it?" she politely asked.
"Yes, I know but this is somewhat of a problem. You see, my dear, we have found someone who may be able to inspect your instrument thoroughly," he began again.
Rinoa tilted her head on one side in confusion. "What Cid is trying to say is we might be able to help you," Edea silently added.
"You can?" Rinoa asked, her eyes beaming.
"Yes Rinoa. I just talked to your manager a few minutes ago and told him that it would be better for you to continue your tour after a three month hiatus. Let's just say that you've gotten sick in the public's eyes. We took care of the commotion a while ago, and told the press that you had collapsed on the floor and had given the patrons a heart attack," Cid told her.
"You told them what?" she exclaimed.
"Rinoa, calm down. A break will apparently give you some time to sort out any problems with your concerts. I also had the chance to contact a man who studies a variety of antique instruments like yours. If you will only be so cooperative as to take these..." he pulled out a plane ticket from his pocket and gave it to Rinoa. "You might be able to find the root of your problems."
"Milan? Who am I going to look for in Milan?" she asked the pudgy old man.
"Ah! I almost forgot! Here is the calling card of the person whom I've set you up with. His name his Professor Loire and he is based in one of the old universities of music in Cremona. I'm sorry dear, but it's not going to be a shopping spree in Milan. Anyway, this man has studied antique and so called possessed instruments before and might just have the answer to what has been causing all these deaths," Cid told her as he flicked the calling card from his pocket and handed it over to Rinoa.
"Uh, Mr. Kramer, I just have one problem. I don't speak Italian," she told Carnegie Hall's manager.
"Oh don't even worry about it! Professor Loire has lived here in the United States before so he should be well versed in English," he said with a hearty laugh.
"Dear Rinoa, you must find this man. He may not be well known, but I do know for a fact that he has helped several people in the past," said Edea as she put one hand on Rinoa's right shoulder. "Listen to me dear. If there is one man who can lift curses from ancient instruments, this man can do it. I don't want to see you get blacklisted by the press just because of a Stradivarius."
Rinoa nodded and Cid said, "Well Rinoa, I wish you luck on your trip. I'm getting old so I hope you don't mind if I retire for bed. By the way, you will find a man called Zell Dincht waiting for you in the airport. He is Professor Loire's butler...sort of."
Rinoa nodded again and asked, "Uh sir, can Irvine come with me to Cremona? I think I need someone to accompany me there."
Cid clapped his hand on his forehead and said, "Oh I almost forgot! Mr. Kinneas, I have your ticket here with me. Goodness knows all this commotion can get into an old man's head." He slowly walked to the pianist and gave him his ticket.
"Would your friends like to come as well?" the chubby manager asked Rinoa.
"Ah, we'll just pay for our own tickets. My father works in the Italian embassy so that will be a breeze for us," Seifer said. "But thank you anyway sir for your offer."
"Alright then, all of you have a good evening," he wished them as he stepped out of the room with his wife.
"You too sir!" Rinoa called out.
"Wow! We're going to Italy!" Selphie beamed. "I heard that the Gucci's, Ferragamo's and Prada's there are cheap!"
Irvine put an arm around her and said, "Hey, don't get your hopes up. This is an exorcism thing remember?"
"Aw Irvine you're no fun! So Seifer, can you get us the tickets?" she whirled over to the blonde who had his hand on Quistis' lap.
"Sure. What time is the flight tomorrow Miss Heartilly?" he asked.
Rinoa looked at her ticket and replied, "The plane's leaving at 6:30 tomorrow evening. And please call me Rinoa. As long as we're in this room, I am your friend and not some Prima Donna, kay?"
Seifer chuckled and said, "Okay Rinoa. So do you want us to come?"
Rinoa beamed and answered, "Oh please do come! I need someone to come with me. I mean I don't know the place very well."
Selphie and Quistis stood up and said in unison, "That settles it then! We're going to Italy!"