AN: Well, it's officially 2021! I hope that this one was better than the last.

Chapter 7 Music Notes

Roy took a sip from the new coffee cup that Ludwig had given him. The classroom was now clean from stem to stern. It smelled good too, like a combination of bread straight out of the oven and mowed grass. This was mostly thanks to the air freshener that Celia had brought in. Roy took in a deep breath, trying to ingrain the smell into his brain.

"Oh yeah," he said with a smile. He placed the coffee cup down on the teacher's desk. "Who knew that a classroom could smell so good?"

Celia chuckled.

"Yeah," she said. She walked over and set the bottle of air freshener down right next to the coffee cup. Roy noticed that there was a sweetness to her expression, a confidence that she didn't usually have. "I've gotta admit, this place is starting to make me wish I actually attended middle school." She giggled. "I bet that the classes would have been fun with you teaching them."

Roy felt a surge of pride. His chest puffed out, almost like it had been turned into a balloon.

"Well, thank you." He smirked smugly, displaying his teeth like they were prized trophies. "I know for a fact that I'm going to do amazing tomorrow."

"Ahem," Ludwig said from across the room. Roy, thinking that he just had a cold, ignored him. Instead, he placed his hands on Celia's forearms, allowing the warmth of her skin to travel into his hands.

"Besides," Roy said with a confident expression on his face. "Kids need someone to look up to. They need a firm teacher, someone who can really present them the facts in a good way. And who better to present them the facts than me?"

"Ahem!" Ludwig said again. Once again, Roy decided to ignore him. Interestingly, Celia's smile started to disappear. She looked up at Roy with a sort of hesitance.

"Um, don't you think that is a little cocky to say?" she asked. Roy smirked.

"Pfft. No! I am certain_absolutely certain_ that when I see those kids tomorrow, I will be able to teach them music in a way they have never been taught before!"

"AHEM!"

Finally realizing that Ludwig was demanding attention, Roy raised an eyebrow and turned his way. Oddly enough, Ludwig's expression wasn't one of anger or frustration. If anything, because he had a smile on his face, it looked to be one of sincerity and happiness. At least, it seemed that way until Ludwig spoke. When he did, he seemed to be trying to hold back some of the aforementioned anger and frustration.

"Hi, I'm Ludwig; I don't think we've met. Actually, we have met, because I'm your brother." Ludwig telekinetically brought a folder of papers over, allowing it to float right next to him. "Um, I've compiled a list of notes going into detail about music. I mean, I think I know what I'm talking about; after all, music is my passion. Oh hey! Do you know what a symphony is? I've written one or two. Or, you know." The smile on Ludwig's face completely disappeared as he spoke through gritted teeth. "Nine hundred and twelve!"

Roy let go of Celia. He looked at Ludwig's folder of notes, floating in the air like a lightning bug.

"Uh, thanks for making some notes for me, Ludwig." He looked back at his brother, speaking with a hint of hesitance. "But I don't think I'm gonna need them."

Ludwig crossed his arms and let out a sarcastic laugh.

"Ha! You don't think you're gonna need my notes." He telekinetically shoved the folder into Roy's hand. Once again, the smile on his face was replaced by a look of held back frustration. "Well, you'd better think again, bozo, because if you don't at least look at them, you're gonna crash and burn!"

Okay. Clearly, Ludwig was being difficult. Roy didn't want to get him angry, as he knew that would not end well. So, he let out a breath.

"Fine. I'll look at the notes." He opened the folder and started to search through. There were a ton of words written in Ludwig's handwriting, some of which (actually, most of which) Roy did not recognize. He looked up at Ludwig. "What's a sonata?"

Ludwig's face lit up. Actually, genuinely lit up.

"Ooh, I'm actually a big fan of sonatas. You see it's..."

"Okay, great, thanks," Roy said, trying to prevent his brother from going off on a rant. He directed his attention back down toward the folder again. "What does adagio mean?"

"Oh, that's another good question. You see, musical tracks can have varying speeds; they're called tempos. Obviously, you've got the basic tempos, like slow and fast..."

"Okay, I got it; thanks," Roy said again. He flipped the page before looking back up at his increasingly frustrated older brother. "Can you tell me what a concerto is?" There was a pause before Ludwig crossed his arms.

"Well that depends, Roy; do you want the long version or the short version?"

"Whichever's easiest for me to understand."

Ludwig put on a sarcastic smile.

"Okay then! I'll give you the version for dummies! It's a song."

Despite the insult, Roy actually felt good upon hearing his brother say this.

"Ohh, okay, I think I'm starting to get it!" He flipped the page again. "Hey, is an allegro a song?"

Ludwig let in a very deep breath. The expression on his face was one of pure, unadulterated scorn. At first, Roy got a little bit scared, expecting his brother to start shooting fireballs at him. That is, until he let out the breath, and the scorn in his expression eased up a little.

"Why yeesss..."

Roy heard a sound that was very similar to a boiling teapot. He and Celia looked over at the desk and saw that the mug full of coffee was shaking. This was due to the fact that underside of the cup was glowing with blue fire. The contents of the mug burst out like an erupting volcano and splashed onto Ludwig's head. His hair was instantly ruined, the brown liquid dripped down the sides of his face. Nevertheless, Ludwig himself looked completely unfazed.

"Of course it is," he said sarcastically. In that instant, his head erupted in blue flames. Celia shrieked, rushed toward the door, and returned with the fire blanket that the classroom was supposed to use during fire drills. She threw it on Ludwig's head, smothering the flame.

"Okay!" she said with an off put tone. She clasped her hands together. "I think that's enough review for right now!" She looked up at the clock that was hanging over the door and let out a gasp. "Oh wow guys, look at the time! It's three thirty already!"

Roy looked up at the clock and saw that Celia was right. He chuckled.

"Wow. Where has all that time gone?" Grasping the note folder in his hands, he smiled confidently. "What do you two say we head back home before it gets dark?"

Before Roy had even finished the sentence, Ludwig had zipped like a cheetah out the door. Roy exchanged a look with Celia before smirking.

"I think that's a yes," he said. Celia nodded and started make her way toward the door. Roy followed her, but not before putting the folder of notes in the trash can.