N/A I regret the absence of the last week, which has been due to computer problems. Thank you for your patience and for reading on.
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Brass
They stayed a while longer in the wind instrument classroom. Cecile taught Sev how to dry and store the trumpet and showed them the rest of the brass family, in the last rows of the semicircular arrangement.
"This is a French horn. As you can see, it has also three keys, you only operate it with your left hand, also very easy. And you will love the sound, much warmer than that of the trumpet. It lends itself to more intimate music, I think it will sound much better than the trumpet with the flute or oboe."
"It's a shame it's so big, I can't take it," Sev lamented.
"Carry it in your hand, by Floo."
"I was going to carry the bass, to play in the group with Valerie, Andrew and Paul."
"Leave the bass for next year," suggested the Gryff. "You don't have a place to rehearse and you're going to catch the bass alone. Plus, you would need an amplifier and everything, you couldn't rehearse at home."
"You're right. Andrew will teach me with what he has learned about guitar."
"That is. Bass is easier than guitar." Cecile opened another case. "I suppose this is a flugelhorn. As you can see, it is very similar to the trumpet, somewhat larger and not as strident. You may prefer it instead of the trumpet."
"If I try it, we'll have to dry it, right?" Sev asked.
"Of course, honey, we'll have to dry it, otherwise it will spoil. But that's okay, try it, it will also fit in your trunk."
"Prince! We came to try instruments for me and in the end the one who is playing the most is you," Hippolyta told him.
"True, I'm imposing," he said.
"Honey, you have already chosen and he has helped you a lot, he got really dizzy with the oboe so you could listen to it," Cecile told her. "Now it's his turn."
"Of course, of course. Sorry, Prince," said the girl.
"There is nothing to forgive," he said.
Sev tried the flugelhorn, he liked it better than the trumpet. "I'll take this one," he decided.
"Have you seen, Hippolyta?" Cecile said. "You have to try."
"You have to try to know what you like, one of Prince's favorite phrases," said the youngest.
"That's it," Sev confirmed.
"Well, now dry it, Sev, as I have taught you with the trumpet," the Gryff proposed.
He did it and kept it.
Cecile took the case to the entrance of the classroom, where the flute, oboe and trumpet were already there. She restored the latter to its place.
"Next instrument, trombone. There are two, two types, rods and pistons, let's see which is which." She opened one of the cases. "Pistons. This is activated like a trumpet. The one with rods is better, you will see why. We'll open the other box and I'll explain it to you." She closed that box and opened the other. "Do you see the two U-shaped tubular pieces?"
"I do," Sev answered.
"They fit into each other and are operated by inserting and removing, making the tube longer and shorter. It has infinite notes. At the right distance are the notes that coincide with the twelve of the chromatic scale, but to go from one to another you don't have to do it in jumps, you can slide through all the intermediate sounds, which is called glissando."
"Oh…"
"In my opinion, it is the best brass instrument, by far," she continued. "It is not as strident as the trumpet and flugelhorn and it is also used in jazz, a lot. Maybe you prefer it to the French horn, which is why I haven't taken the French horn away yet."
"Ugh... now I want to learn them all…"
"Do you see? What was happening to me, silly," Hippolyta told him.
"Of course, of course, now I understand you, honey."
"You have to choose, Sev, try them if you want," Cecile proposed.
"Booff… the others come at seven."
"And what time is it?"
"A little after five," he replied.
"Then I don't see what the problem is, we still have almost two hours."
"Right, here I go."
"Let's see if I know how to assemble it, huh? This is more complicated. Try the French horn in the meantime. Better sitting, rest it on your open legs."
Sev took the French horn out of his case, put the mouthpiece on it, and sat down. He rested it on his legs and operated the keys with the three fingers on his left. He had a harder time making it sound than the trumpet and the flugelhorn, but he managed it too, and played for a while. I love the way it sounds, it's true that it's very warm and intimate, it's wonderful.
When he stopped, Cecile explained, "This one cost you more because it is bigger, more air to make it sound."
"Yes, and the mouthpiece is also different," he commented.
"Narrower."
"That is. Did you like it, Hippolyta?"
"A lot, I liked it a lot," the girl responded. "What Cecile said, this one is better to play with the flute or oboe, the others sound very abrupt."
"Very strident, honey."
"That is. I wouldn't be listened to."
"Sure."
"Here, Sev, the trombone, I've managed to assemble it, I'm going to dry the French horn," said Cecile. "Hold it with your left and grab it here with your right, move it back and forth. You won't know where the exact notes are, so you won't be able to test it well. Search, what sounds to you, and make glissandos."
"Thank you, Cecile." He played the trombone, also the first time, and tried out single notes. Wow… I love it, what power, but it's not estrident, it's fantastic. Ugh… I want to take both… Later he made glissandos. Wow… how cool. I already told you that this is the best. I'll take this one, I'm sorry for Hippolyta. I'm going to pretend to consult Cecile. "Cecile, I'm very undecided. Which of the two would be more difficult to learn without a teacher?"
"The trombone, of course, because you should look for the notes yourself," she replied. "On the French horn you can look at them in the methods."
"Well, that's it, decided, I'll take the trombone."
"Very good choice, yes sir!"
"You haven't asked me, Prince..." Hippolyta complained.
"What I told you this morning, honey, everyone has to know how to make their own decisions."
"It's true, it's true, I have also decided to take the flute and oboe without consulting you. But you have complained."
"Yes, honey, I'm very sorry," Sev apologized. "Sometimes I'm very silly, you know."
"Almost always."
"True, almost always."
"And you can also learn the flugelhorn without a teacher," said Cecile. "By learning to get a good sound on the trombone you will also achieve it on the flugelhorn, the mouthpiece is the same. If you took the French horn you would need a teacher for both of them."
"Sure."
"And not only that, an accessory called a mute can be attached to the flugelhorn and trombone, there is none here, so you can rehearse at home without Muffliato and not bother your neighbors too much."
"Wow... great..." he was happy.
"I'll take care of buying them for you, they're very cheap, a little gift I'm giving you."
"Thank you, Cecile."
"Later, at Christmas, you'll take the horn and also take classes, when you already control your fingering, to get rid of sound vices."
"Sure."
"Come on, let's learn together to dry the trombone," she proposed.
They did it. Then they went to the last two cases, one of them huge. "Euphonium and tuba. Brothers too. I'll show you the tuba so you can be amazed, the euphonium is the same but smaller." She opened the large case.
"Wow…" Sev exclaimed.
"The lowest instrument of the wind bands, and together with the double basses, of the orchestra. They makes single notes, the basses. As you see, it has four keys."
"It must be boring to play."
"Like is the bass in rock groups?" the Gryff wondered. "No instrument is boring, each one has its function. The bass is the foundation on which everything else is built, you know."
"Of course. The heart of the group, as Valerie says."
"Of course, it makes harmony and rhythm at the same time. Do you want to try it too? You could take the euphonium."
"No, no, I have already decided, I will try these in September," he refused.
"Great. We have been missing the saxophone family, we'll leave them for September, I think you will love them too. They are the kings of jazz."
"Oh…"
"Do you want to try them now?" she suggested. "You're not going to get a good idea, huh? They're going to sound worse to you than these."
"Sure."
"For those you would need a teacher, both for sound and fingering."
"Then I'll do it later, Cecile, we have a lot left to do."
"Okay. Trombone then." Cecile carried the trombone case into the entryway and then headed to the bookshelf, which was sorted by instruments. They went with her.
"Very well, methods of initiation to the four instruments, let's look for the most complete ones, one of each," the Gryff proposed. Cecile chose the thicker volumes of flute, oboe, trumpet and rod trombone and looked through them, especially the first pages, and passed them to Sev. "As you can see, there is no flugelhorn, because it is very similar to the trumpet, and these are perfect, the fingering is very detailed to learn on your own and also how to make the sound. The bad thing is that they are thick to transport them. Will you have room in your trunk, Hippolyta?"
"If she doesn't have it, the family will take them," Sev proposed.
"Okay then. And to take them home now, how about? You have only brought a backpack."
"Because we were only thinking in a small instrument."
"I could leave you one of mine, I asked Remus for the second one, but I'm going to need both for the music theory and singing methods and works," she explained.
"Sure."
"Put everything that fits in the backpack and you carry it, Sev, and in each hand, the trombone and the flugelhorn, and whatever you don't fit in the backpack, let Hippolyta carry it in her hands. If we see that you can't manage it, I'll accompany you, because you also have to bring two music stands, so you can rehearse at home."
"Thank you, Cecile. This way you know the dungeon house."
"Okay, then let's hurry up so that we have time for everything."
Sev put the four methods and the oboe case in his backpack, the flute case no longer fit. Cecile taught them how to disassemble and reassemble the lectern, one of them also fit in the backpack.
"Very good honey. It's your turn to carry the other music stand and the flute case, okay?" Cecile said.
"But Prince is going to be very loaded..." Hippolyta objected. "I'm carrying the backpack too."
"Don't worry, honey, I can levitate the trombone," Sev suggested.
"Of course... how lucky we are witches. Then I'll levitate the trumpet."
"You're not going to have hands, honey."
"I can carry the music stand and the flute in the same hand," the girl offered.
"Better not, pretty." Cecile told her. "If you drop the flute it could break, it's delicate."
"Of course, of course…"
"Don't worry about me, I can handle the backpack and the flugelhorn perfectly, you know I'm strong," said Sev.
"Indeed," Cecile said, admired. "Like a bull."
Sev laughed. Another one who has been noticing me for a while. Indeed she has something planned.
"Very well, we'll leave everything here and return when we finish in the singing classroom," said the Gryff. "We have to demand a Complete Study Class for Music Theory and Singing with Piano Accompaniment."
They came out and demanded.
Cecile is also a magnificent organizer, completely dedicated, and I get along much better with her than with Deborah, Sev thoguht. I already have an alternative to her.
They entered, it was large, there was a Steinway grand piano and a stage with numerous music stands.
"Wooow... look what has appeared, for a choir," said Cecile. "Great." She went to the very wide bookshelf. "Take advantage if you want to play for a while while I fill my two backpacks with methods and works for you, honey. I have to look for the easiest ones for Sev too, so that you can play and sing together as soon as possible."
"Thank you very much, Cecile," said the girl.
Sev and Hippolyta played the piano and sang, he also taught her some chords. They also sang, with their chords, the spells of the Bonds. Meanwhile, Cecile spent about half an hour selecting methods and works for piano and solo voice, as well as duets.
When she finished she waited for them to stop and said, "It has been a pleasure listening to you while looking for material for you. There is everything for you to sing alone, Hippolyta, Sev alone or accompanied by me, and also for both of you to sing at the same time, some of which are very easy. You will be able to do it from the first day you try it."
"Good!" exclaimed the youngest.
"I already carry this in my trunk. It's still a quarter past six. Do you want to leave now?"
"Can you stay until seven, Cecile?"
"Of course I can, honey."
"It's because I want to talk to you, in private."
"Boof, Hippolyta... don't start, huh?" Sev told her, overwhelmed.
"Prince!" authoritarian. "If I have already talked about that with you, it is about asking permission, so that you don't get embarrassed, silly."
Playing as a matchmaker for me. I adore her, he thought. "Okay... okay... Let's go to the usual piano classroom then and I'll rehearse the new song that Cecile prepared for me while you chat."
"But there we are going to have to do it very quietly so that you don't find out and not bother you."
"It isn't necessary, honey, we'll Bond like you did with Sev and talk with our minds," Cecile proposed.
"Of course, Cecile!"
Sev carried one of Cecile's backpacks and they left, they asked for the Piano Classroom and entered. Cecile prepared the piano and Sev sat on the bench.
"Come on, hug each other with your heads together or hold hands, or hands and heads, whatever you want," he told them.
The girls did it, holding hands with their fingers intertwined and their foreheads pressed together.
"I'll give you the entry and play the chords, twice. One, two, three and…"
They chanted the incantation of the Bond as a Clanship. When they finished, they hugged each other very tightly.
How cute, they were very excited, they already love each other a lot. What I would give to attend the talk they are going to have, Sev thought. He waited for them to separate and bonded with them.
"Are you girls bonded yet?"
"Yes, Prince!" Hippolyta exclaimed.
"I'm not embarrassed anymore. Can I participate in the talk?"
"What do you say, Cecile?"
"Yes, of course," answered the eldest.
"You've already guessed what the topic is about, haven't you?"
"Of course, honey."
"You are not silly at all," the girl appreciated.
"I was before, huh? But I've gotten a lot smarter this past year, largely thanks to Sev."
"Come on, Prince, get up from there and let's all three sit in the chairs."
They arranged three chairs in a circle, very close behind the piano, and sat down.
"Another group of three, Prince, luck, luck…" said the girl.
"True," said Sev. "Come on, get to the point. You start, Hippolyta, since you were the one who brought up the subject."
"I have been planning everything this morning, Cecile, because yesterday I proposed to Prince, he was thinking about it at night and this morning he told me that he was fine with it."
"To the point, Hippolyta," said Cecile.
"If you already know what it is about, say it."
"Okay, I'll say it," said the eldest. "It seems that we both had the same idea almost at the same time, it occurred to me yesterday afternoon."
"Me too."
"Get to the point, girls!" Sev exclaimed, out loud.
"You say it!" both of them rebuked him, also out loud.
"No, no, I'm embarrassed," he responded bonded, very shy.
They both laughed.
"Well, you can hold on, things are in order, we have plenty of time," Cecile said, and to Hippolyta. "What I was telling you. It occurred to me in the afternoon and I immediately wrote to my parents to announce that Sev would sleep at my house if he felt like it, alone, with you or with Ariel, in my room, there are two small beds. If he wants to be alone with you, I'll sleep with my older sister, who has a big bed."
"Great, Cecile, thank you very much," said the youngest. "Prince, we no longer need Deborah to side with us."
"Better, I got angry with her," said Sev.
"That wasn't what I wanted to tell you, Cecile."
"I know, I know, honey," said the Gryff. "I know what you wanted to tell me and that has also been fixed since yesterday afternoon. I already hinted at Sev at dinner, that's why he agreed to what you proposed."
"You didn't tell me that, Prince."
Sev laughed. What a bream dialogue, no one mentions the subject. "Do you want to call things by their name?" he said, out loud.
"Okay, Sev!" Cecile too. "I'm telling you to your face! I have permission from Remus to do boyfriend things with you."
"Good…" said Sev and Hippolyta.
The three of them laughed.
"And you should know that even if he hadn't given it to me, I would have done it anyway if you wanted, because I am the owner of my body and my actions."
"But I wouldn't have done them, Cecile," he responded, bonded. "I would never do that to Remus without his knowledge and permission."
"That is precisely why I spoke with him, and if you want to make sure, talk to him tonight too."
"Ugh… it makes me very, very embarrassed, and besides, I trust you, I know that you are not lying to me."
"Well, I'll tell him to bring it up with you, so that you can stay calm and stop bothering you," she proposed.
"Better not, Cecile."
"Better yes, Sev. Don't let that trust be lacking between you both, he doesn't have any trouble."
"You're right, I'll talk to him, then."
"If you want, the four of us or the three of us can do it, whatever seems best to you."
"No, I prefer just with him, it has already been discussed with you both," he said.
"Okay, okay, male confidence, boy secrets. Leave us our girl secrets now, come on."
"Booff… anything dangerous this dwarf tells you, tell me, huh?"
"Of course, Sev."
"Before I leave you. How about Sirius? Has he recovered his thoughts well?"
"Yes, Sev, without any problem," very satisfied. "One hundred percent for two hours. He is already an occlumant too."
"Good…" said Sev and Hippolyta.
"Then we will also Bond with him tonight," he suggested.
"I haven't told him anything about the Ancestral Magic, so you can tell him," said the Gryff.
"Thank you, Cecile. We will do it between the two of us, you deserve to do it too, you have been his instructor."
"We will do it, Sev."
"And about his displeasure with Lily, how is he?"
"Fully recovered, hoping to do it with Valerie tonight, he has been hungry since before the exams."
"Good…" said Sev and Hippolyta.
"Three times, good luck."