It's not too bad...a small price to pay for sight.

Mag comforted herself in her room. She often closed herself off to escape the inevitable reality of her life. She could no longer talk to Marni in the fond manner she used to. The woman that once seemed so selfless and angelic complained and complained about her own troubles; never really caring about how Mag was doing in the strange new world she had been dropped into.

Mag was ashamed of herself, and had no one to confide in about her decision. She had given in to Rotti's terms. Even now, she still didn't believe Rotti had given her an actual choice. Be blind or sing? What kind of choice was that? In fact, it wasn't even a choice. It was pure blackmail.

So this was how Marni felt…

Ashamed as she was of her previous thoughts of her friend, her pride wouldn't allow her to feel that Marni was the only one wronged in her behavior.

She glanced about the room, missing the familiar feeling of home.

She had been moved to Rotti's main house when Marni had deemed it necessary to leave their old home behind.

"We might as we get the most out of this." She had said with a dismissive smile. It reminded Mag instantly of Rotti's own condescending behavior. Did that mean she herself was below Marni? It wasn't something she wanted to dwell on for too long. She didn't yet understand the strange cycle of power that had been around since the beginning of time.

Mag had tried to explain that she didn't want to leave, but Marni had chalked it up to modesty and disregarded her opinion.

Having no choice but to follow her companion, Mag allowed her to take her away from familiarity and plop her into the unknown and stiff world of finery that Rotti had served on a gilded platter.

Marni seemed perfectly fine with this new life of luxury, but Mag felt like a lump of coal among shining jewels.

She was brought out of her contemplation by the sound of a piano, drifting down the hall. She stood, and hesitantly followed the sweet sound down the hallway.

It led her to a large room, the oak doors partially closed. A young girl's voice floated out. It wasn't amazing, but it wasn't ear grating either. She peered in through the small opening to see a girl of about 8. Her appearance matched her voice: ordinary. Dirty blonde hair was pulled into a messy ponytail. She wore a pair of ripped jeans, worn from obvious love and use. Her t-shirt was a little too big, hanging off her like a child playing dress up.

Her ruddy complexion was dotted with freckles, a sign of being out in the sun for hours on end.

A man about 19, Mag's age, sat at the piano. His long brown hair was tied in a low ponytail as well, his pale skin standing out even more from his black suit. His eyes were warm…something she hadn't seen in a very long time.

Both were concentrating on the music, so when the door creaked as Mag tried to get a better look, they both jumped.

Mag blushed, and mumbled an apology as she began to bow out.

"Wait." The girl commanded. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"Carmella…" the man scolded. "Remember what we talked about before. Don't be rude to people."

She rolled her eyes, and turned back to Mag.

"…so?"

Mag felt as if she had no choice but to respond.

"I am Magdalene. I heard music, so I…" she trailed off.

The man smiled warmly, and stood up from his seat at the piano bench.

"Magdalene, come on in." he persuaded.

Reluctantly, she stepped into the room. She had never really had a conversation, or interacted with anyone besides Marni and occasionally Rotti. It was in this moment that she realized how awkward she truly was.

Shy and distant was their first impression of the soon to be superstar.

The girl was curious, but was very careful not to show it.

"Since you're not wearing a uniform, you don't work here." She stated, trying to piece her identity together.

Mag shook her head, not too sure of what to say in response.

"Do you like it here?" Carmella asked abruptly.

"Well…I suppose so." She replied slowly.

"The name's Tawny. It's absolutely fantastic to meet you."

If Mag had been around people more, she would have known straight away that he was gay.

The way he spoke was extremely feminine and he had a way of walking that seemed more like a prideful strut.

She thought of him as a peacock, since he acted so much like one. The thought was funny, and made her smile. She had to bite down the laughter.

"See? She's smiling already!" he observed aloud, blissfully unaware of her rude thoughts.

"Oopsie!" he put a hand over his mouth with a giggle.

"Sometimes my thoughts come out my mouth when I don't want them too. At those times, please ignore me!" he grinned goofily.

She laughed softly, not exactly sure how to act around Tawny.

He stared at her eyes, suddenly aware of them. Mag soon realized what he was staring at, and looked away quickly. Tawny didn't seem to notice. He let out a long whistle.

"Damn girl! Your eyes are super cool!"

Surprised by the compliment, she looked back to him.

"Excuse me?" she asked, stunned.

"Oh, then you're that opera star Daddy was talking about." Carmella said with sudden realization.

Tawny clapped his hands giddily.

"Oo! A singer!"

He hopped over to the piano, sitting down with flourish. He began to play scales, looking over at her expectantly.

"Well? Let's go girl, I haven't got all day." He said with a playful bat of his hand.

She was a little put off by his sudden decision, and looked to Carmella for help. Carmella simply stared at her, openly curious.

"Go on." She urged.

Mag swallowed, and stepped up to the piano. Tawny began again, and signaled her to begin with a nod.

She took a deep breath and began to sing.

Almost instantly, Tawny slammed his hands on the keys, and snatched a sheet of music from the piano. He rolled it up, and smacked Mag over the head with it, as if she were a dog who had peed on the rug.

"No no no! What the hell was that girl? You can't even breath right!"

Mag flinched at the blows, and was filled with confusion.

"If I can't breath correctly, than how am I still alive…?" she began to ask seriously.

"Silence! Don't talk back to the teach!"

He hit her again, and Carmella gave a snort from the safety of the corner. He waved the rolled up music in her direction.

"You're next missy! Don't get so high and mighty!"

That shut Carmella up, but the condescending smirk remained.

Mag just wanted to sink into the floor. Her cheeks turned bright red, and with a small 'pardon me', ran out of the room.

"Honey, wait!" Tawny called after her.

The door shut behind her.

"…" he stood by the piano, still holding the music sheet.

Carmella walked over to join him, staring at the door as well.

"What a weirdo."

He smacked her over the head with the music sheet.

"What did I do?!"

"You scared her away!"

"I'm not the one that hit her…"

He hit her again, then put the music back on the piano.

"Hm…she's going to be an opera star?"

Carmella stared up at him, slowly realizing what he was going to do.

"You're not going to…"

"We'll continue this lesson later Caramel."

He abruptly left the room, ignoring her protests of his pet name for her. The wheels were turning, and once Tawny got an idea into his head, it was nearly impossible to stop him.

"Just wait and see Magdalene. We'll make you a star yet!"

And with that, he knocked on the door to Rotti's office.

NOTE
Yes, Tawny is an OC. He's named after Tawnyleaf, the fan who scarred my mind in our discussion of the MarnixMotti pairing. Let's just say it's revenge D now my therapy is complete :p. anyways, this chapter was supposed to be less emo, Tawny is my ONLY comedic relief character, so every scene with Tawny is meant to be funny…except for one. But you'll know it when you see it. Thanks for reading up to this point!

~Aqua