AMORE OBBLIGATO

Chapter 2: Dolcissimo

She just couldn't help herself. The music itself was already heartrendingly touching, but seeing that it was this mare making it just floored her. She moved with a grace rarely seen in earth ponies and possessed herself with an air of demure gravitas that put many pure-blooded nobles to shame. Coupled with her beauty, it made for an impressive impact on the stunned Twilight Sparkle. That's not to say that she had not ever seen a mare as beautiful, or graceful (indeed, she counted Celestia as superior in both), but this mare, this tutor was a cut above the herd.

Octavia was starting to get worried as the seconds stretched on as a gaping unicorn filly just silently stared at her. I had heard that she wasn't as snooty as most unicorn nobles; were the rumors wrong? Determined to succeed with or without her student's cooperation, she cleared her throat and said, “Milady? Is everything alright?”

This had the effect of snapping Twilight out of her impromptu reverie. She blinked a few times and tried to look her in the eye, but could not do so without a blush coming to her cheeks. “I- I- I'm sorry, Miss?”

“Octavia Melody, Milady,” she replied with a small curtsey. “I do hope that we will be able to get along. I have been looking forward to this for some time.” Twilight could only nod dumbly in response. Octavia was just relieved that their apparent class differences wouldn't prove to be an impediment. Gesturing to a chair opposite the one in which she had sat, she said, “Let us be seated so we might be about our business?”

Twilight nodded, but made no move toward the indicated seat. They stood there a moment longer like that until Octavia finally grew tired of wasting time and moved towards the filly. With a, “Pardon me, Milady,” she put a hand on her shoulder and guided Twilight to the chair. After closing the door, she resumed her own seat, leaning the cello against the wall behind her. “Now, then. A few questions first, Milady will help me determine just where to begin. Do you have any prior musical training or talent for music?”

Twilight shook her head, not trusting her mouth to not say something wholly inappropriate.

Naturally, this would not do for Octavia. “Milady, this would go a lot easier for both of us if you were to talk to me... with words.”

With a surprised squeak, Twilight said, “S- sorry. I- I'm just really s-n-nervous.” She took a deep breath and exhaled,using the motion her old foalsitter, Cadance had taught her. Serenity restored, she finally answered her question. “I'm afraid I have no prior experience playing an instrument, and my dance instructor was less than thrilled with my lack of rhythm.”

Octavia nodded. “Very well, then. I believe we may strike percussion instruments from the list, as it were. What instrument most intrigues you, Milady?”

“Twilight,” the filly said.

Octavia tilted her head in confusion. “Sorry?”

Twilight was staring at her hands which were clenched in her lap as she said in a slightly louder voice, “P- please call me T- Twilight. I- it would make this a little... easier, I think.”

Leaning back in her chair, Octavia gave a brief, small smile. “Very well then, Twilight. What instrument most interests you?”

The filly looked around the room, taking in all the various instruments. She considered the oboe before moving on to the harpsichord, then the guitar, the accordion, the Fancy horn. The sheer number of choices available overwhelmed the poor girl, and she spaced out after a moment, seeing nothing.

“Do you not see the one you like most here?”

Octavia's voice wrenched Twilight out of her stupor, and she looked at her new instructor with wide eyes. “Huh? No, it's just... er, a little overpowering trying to choose one. They're all really, um... great and all...”

Octavia smiled at how the filly's voice trailed off to a mumble at the end. She reminds me of myself before I discovered my talent. Reaching down, she pulled up the case that was sitting next to her chair and settled it on her lap. Opening the latches with a double SNAP, she said, “Well then, why don't we start with one of the more popular instruments, the trumpet?” The musician pulled out a beautifully polished trumpet and attached the mouthpiece with a little twist. After checking to see that the valves were in proper working order, she handed it over to the astonished filly.

Twilight gingerly took the trumpet, and was astounded by the weight. I didn't think it would be this heavy. Holding it awkwardly, she tried to remember how she had seen musicians hold it, but didn't think it was quite right. She looked up to her tutor in askance, but only saw an encouraging smile, quite reminiscent of Celestia's own patient expression. “Um... how do I... Do I just blow into it?”

“That is the general gist of it, but you have to hold your lips in a special way, like so,” Octavia replied, wetting her lips with her tongue, then pulling them back tight against her teeth in a straight line. “Then you can place it against your lips and blow. Your lips will vibrate a little, but that is natural, and even necessary to play properly. You can also adjust the pitch depending on how tightly you hold your lips together; the tighter, the higher the pitch.”

After wetting her lips and arranging them as she had seen, she delicately put the trumpet to her lips and blew, eliciting a weak little BLAT that reminded her of a kazoo she had owned once as a foal. She was determined to not give up so easily and blew again, this time with all her might. She held the note for as long as she could until she had to finally take a gasping breath.

“How does it feel?” the gray mare asked.

Twilight lowered the horn, rubbing at her lips. “To be honest, strange. Are my lips supposed to tingle like this?” It suddenly occurred to her how the wording of her question could be construed, and she blushed again.

Octavia nodded sagely. “Yes, one gets used to it after a while. Believe me, it gets worse after playing in a two hour concert; even with breaks. Try not to get discouraged by that, though. All instruments have their own little aches and pains associated with them.” To emphasize her point, she showed Twilight the callouses on her left hand, which even showed through her fine coat.

Twilight nodded and handed back the trumpet. “I see. Well, let's try another instrument. We can always come back to this later on if nothing else strikes my fancy.”

Nodding, Octavia took it back, then surprised the filly by putting it to her own lips and playing a quick, but bright tune that sent a thrill through Twilight's chest. “Any music teacher will tell you that the three P's of learning something is 'practice, practice, and practice', but a great music teacher will let you in on the fourth P, perseverance.” With that, she placed the trumpet against her lips again, but instead of playing, she opened a tiny valve as she blew, and a few drops of water came out. “You have to clear the spit valve after you play, or it could corrode it from the inside,” she said by way of explanation.

Naturally, Twilight felt a little squicked out about something on an instrument she had just played called a “spit valve”, but that quickly passed as she realized that Octavia had not cleaned the mouthpiece before playing. She felt a furious blush coming on and tried to hide it by asking about another instrument. “What about that one?” she asked, pointing in a random direction.

Octavia looked the way she was pointing, and quirked an eyebrow. “The accordion? Not exactly the most popular among nobles. It's really only here because I asked them to bring every type of instrument they could find, but let us give it a try, shall we?” She walked over to fetch the contraption, giving the filly a chance to recompose herself. Setting the accordion on her lap, she showed her where to place her hands. “This particular one is a smaller model called a squeezebox. The larger ones require the player to wear them on a strap around their torso. Now, you can play it both on the in-stroke as well as the out-stroke, and these keys here alter the pitch. Go ahead and give it a try.”

The piano-like keyboard on one side as well as the dozens of buttons on the other confused the poor filly, but she was committed to at least try it now. Pulling the ends apart, a horrible screeching like a tortured cat assaulted their senses. Twilight would have covered her ears had her hands not been fitted into the side straps. As it was, she gingerly set the instrument on the chair next to her, like it was about to attack. “I- I don't think that's the one for me.”

“That is probably for the best. I only have a passing knowledge of the accordion, so I would not be as able to help with that one,” Octavia replied.

Twilight looked around at all the choices available, and suddenly felt overwhelmed again. “What would be easiest for you to teach me?”

Smiling at the filly, Octavia shook her head. “This is not about what would be easiest on me, but about what would be best for you.” She looked around at the collection, and suddenly felt a bit overwhelmed herself. “That being said, why do we not let me pick the instruments for a while?” She scrutinized Twilight appraisingly for a moment, before saying, “Let me see your hands for a moment, please.”

Twilight held them out nervously, letting the older mare turn them over and peer closely at her fingers. She nearly jumped when Octavia asked, “Which hand do you favor?”

“M- my left,” came the reply.

“Hmm, a fellow southpaw, eh? Ah! Yes, I see now the writing callous on your middle finger.” Still holding a blushing Twilight's hands, she rose to her hooves, pulling her up as well. “Stand tall, now, please,” Octavia commanded, to which Twilight immediately did as she was told. Doing so put her eye line just under a rather impressive set of breasts, the sight of which made her swallow hard. The mare put a hand flat on top of Twilight's head, then brought it to her chest in a straight line, until it rested several inches below her collarbone. “Hmm. You are thirteen, correct?”

Twilight answered with a nod. “Well, you are not going to get much taller, possibly another hoof, more likely less than that,” Octavia mused to herself. In a louder voice, she added, “Well, I think we can eliminate the larger instruments. As it is, I think the cello would be about the absolute limit of what you could comfortably play. Ponies as tall as you are now have been known to play larger instruments, but have to deal with problems both on and off the stage.”

“Like what?” Twilight asked.

Octavia smiled down at her. “Could you imagine trying to lug that thing around in a case?” she asked, pointing to a double bass. “I know you have magic, but it is better to leave the larger instruments to the larger ponies.”

“My brother's really tall and strong!” came the indignant reply. “He's in The Princess' personal guard, even!”

Seeing that she had touched upon a sore subject, the gray mare tried to placate her student. “I am sure he is, but your brother is not the one learning to play an instrument. We must all know our limitations, Twilight.” This seemed to mollify her, so Octavia moved on before she could dwell on it for too long. “You have such lovely, delicate fingers, why do we not try something suited for them; say, the violin?”

Twilight's blush returned tenfold, but she nodded dumbly.

Octavia returned with a lovely violin, holding it out for her. “Take the neck in your left and rest the body on your shoulder, then rest your chin on the black piece- there.” She smiled as Twilight followed her instructions almost before they were even given. She then took the filly's right hand and placed the bow in it, noting how the fingers instinctively closed around it in almost the proper grip. She adjusted the fingers a little and said, “And, there. Now, just slide the bow across the strings, and try not to get discouraged by the sound. We are just trying to find the right instrument for you. I do not expect you to play Vivid Alder's Four Seasons on the very first try.”

Doing as she was instructed, Twilight pulled the bow down, producing a not completely awful sound for the first time. With delight, she ran the bow across the strings several times, even experimenting with holding down the strings randomly. A smile spread across her face, the first since she stepped into the room.

Letting her play for a few moments, Octavia appraised her student for a moment. A cute filly; so earnest, too. She will break some hearts in a few years. She shook her head slightly to clear it of that line of thought. She seems to be taking to it nicely. It appears as though we have a winner. Clapping her hands twice, she got Twilight's attention and said, “Very good, Twilight. How does that one feel?”

Twilight stopped playing, lowering the violin to her lap. She blushed and turned away a little as she said with a shy grin, “I- I like it.”

“Then let us begin with learning the fingering positions as well as the parts of your new instrument.” Octavia then happily spent the next few minutes showing her where to place her fingers for the appropriate note as well as the correct terms for the various parts of the violin. It is actually a bit of a relief that she chose this one. Not only is it more accepted among aristocracy, but I can better help her with it than almost anything else. She was more surprised at how quickly Twilight was absorbing the information, however. She only needed to tell her once what each position was before she could repeat it on command.

That done, she pulled a music stand over and placed some sheet music on it. “Now this is a simple arpeggio scale. It hits all the notes you are likely to play on any given piece of music. I have labeled all the notes for you, so you will know which is which. This is middle C; do you remember where that is on the violin?” she asked, pointing to a note in the middle of the measure.

Looking down at her left hand again, Twilight placed a finger on a string.

“Very good, Twilight. Very good.” She placed a hand on the filly's shoulder, unknowingly sending a thrill of excitement down Twilight's spine. “Now, see if you can play these scales for me, now that you know where that one is.”

Twilight glared at the sheet music with determination and brought the bow up to the strings once more. She unconsciously stuck her tongue out the side of her mouth as she concentrated on the notes and her finger placement. Drawing in a deep breath, she clumsily played first one note, then the next, followed by another. She kept going, quickly correcting herself a few times.

It wasn't anything close to what anyone might graciously call musical, but Octavia nodded her approval. However, the true test of perseverance was yet to come. She sat quietly while Twilight struggled through the simple scales for many minutes. She started to feel a bit antsy, and so picked up the cello once more and ran through the scales with her.

Twilight was surprised by the sudden accompaniment, and stopped playing to look at her tutor. Octavia simply nodded her way and held her bow at the ready. Twilight finally took the hint and started over from the beginning; this time, with the much deeper, resonant tones of a cello to help guide her through her travails.

For most of the rest of the hour, they played the same scales over and over again until Twilight felt a pricking of her fingers and pulled them away, almost dropping the violin in the process. Looking at them, she saw a reddish tinge that even showed through her lilac coat, and could even feel them throbbing.

Octavia peered at them and nodded. “It appears you were pressing down with your pads, rather than your fingertips. You only use the tips; anything other than that will just get in the way by pressing down on strings you don't want, and will cause you to blister faster. That also explains why you are not getting quite the right sound from it. Put the violin back in place and let me show you how to hold your hand once more.”

Twilight was surprised when the older mare stood behind her and gently positioned her fingers and arched her hand into the proper posture. She thrilled at the touch of her fingers, noting that even though they were rougher and more calloused than she was used to seeing on a filly, they still retained their elegant curves were surprisingly gentle. A tight, queasy feeling turned her stomach into a roiling cauldron of unease, leaving her slightly relieved that she was already sitting down, because she wasn't sure she could stand under the present conditions.

After making sure the filly's finger posture was correct, Octavia walked back to her chair, but was surprised when the grandfather clock in the corner chimed the hour. She clapped her hands together, gathering her student's attention. “Ah. It appears our lesson is done. We shall meet again after school in two days. In the meantime, I want you to practice your posture and fingering. You may practice the scales more if you want, but the important things are the posture and fingering, so I want you to take at least one hour out of the day, everyday, to dedicate to just that.”

Octavia gently took the violin from her and placed it on her own lap. Reaching into her school bag, the mare produced a brightly colored sticker on a sheet. She pulled the sticker free and with careful precision, placed it on the neck of the violin, under the strings. “There. That should help you remember your positions. Do not worry about the sticker glue, it will not mar the finish, and will likely wear off on its own by the time you have memorized all the positions.”

She took Twilight's left hand in her own and examined the fingertips again, causing the filly to blush. “You should be fine as long as you remember to use only the tips. Do not try to use magic to heal any blisters you develop, or you shall undo any callousing that develops. Unfortunately, this is just a pain that you will have to endure, but do not fear. The callouses will form quickly if you practice faithfully. Just be sure to not overdo it, understand?”

Twilight nodded, once more not trusting herself to speak to her.

The tutor rose to her hooves and shouldered her school bag and picked up her cello case. “Then I shall take my leave and let you get on with it. I shall see you on Windsday.” With a small bow, she let herself out of the room.

Twilight sat there in silence, contemplating the hand that had so recently been in the gentle grip a mare who was every bit as cultured as she appeared to be. A quiet knock startled her from her thoughts as a pegasus parlor maid entered. “Oh! I beg your pardon, Miss Twilight. I thought the room was empty. Have you decided on an instrument, or should I leave all these here for your next lesson?”

Twilight looked dumbly at the violin in her lap, having no idea when exactly it was returned to her. She clutched the instrument close to her chest and shook her head. “No, it's alright, Clean Sweep. I've chosen the violin.”

“Oh, my! The princess will be ever so pleased to hear that, Miss. She's quite fond of it, herself, you know,” the maid said as she starting putting the instruments away in their proper cases.

It suddenly occurred to the unicorn that she had never inquired just what Celestia played. I knew that The Princess has a marvelous singing voice, but which instrument was her favorite? She gave a mental shrug, deciding to ask her when she went to their usual afternoon tea. “I'm sure she will. Good day, Clean Sweep,” she said as she packed up the violin and left.

(\ /)
( . .)
*(“)(“)

Comfortably ensconced within a plush chair in her favorite coffee shop, Octavia was lost in a book of sonnets by Shaky Spear. She was so deep into her own contentment, that she didn't even hear the approach of another mare, who took advantage of her inattentiveness by gently flicking one of her ears. She yelped in surprise and looked up to see Vinyl Scratch grinning down at her.

Before the outraged mare could say anything, Vinyl leaned down and planted her lips on Octavia's, her tongue easily sliding in to briefly wrestle with the surprised earth pony's. After a moment, the parted and Vinyl said, “Hey Babe. S'up?”

Octavia glared at Vinyl as the unicorn took a seat in an equally overstuffed, but mismatched chair next to her. “You are lucky I am in such a good mood, or I would have popped you for that,” she said as she rubbed her sore ear.

“Oh? So what put my filly in such a good mood as to be so magnanimous?” Vinyl asked, pulling her oversized sunglasses down to peer over them at her.

Placing a bookmark to save her space, Octavia put the book on the end table between them and sipped from her cup of coffee. “I just finished with my first tutoring session, if you must know, and it went quite well, I think.”

Vinyl leaned toward the earth pony, grabbing her coffee cup and stole a quick sip before Octavia could take it back and deliver an open-handed smack to the back of her head. Rubbing the new sore spot, the Deejay asked, “Was that today? So you taught some noble's brat how to rub his stick across some strings, huh? They pay any good?”

“Trust in you to make learning to play a real instrument sound both stupid and sexual. Brava,” she replied in a dry tone. Just to spite her, she finished off the coffee in a single draught, then placed the cup on the end table again.

“Aw, don't be like that, baby,” Vinyl said after a quick glance to make sure there was nothing left in the cup. “I only tease because I care. You need to lighten up; take that fiddle stick out of your fantastically plush butt now and then.” A smirk stole across her face, and the unicorn couldn't help her next line. “Why don't you let me pull it out for you? I'll even use my mouth on it like I did the other night.”

Octavia grimaced in disgust at the imagery conjured up by the unicorn. “Ugh. I do not know why I still let you kiss me after that. You must have drugged me or something.”

Resting her head on a cupped hand, Vinyl grinned at her. “As I recall, you didn't do much objecting at the time. You'd even liked it enough to moan so loud, my parents asked me to keep it down the next day.”

The blush that took control over Octavia's face was quite impressive, and extended down past her neck. She turned to check that they weren't overheard, and was even more embarrassed to find that everypony was carefully not looking her way, but every single pony there had an ear pointed in their direction. She sank low into the chair and threw a murderous glare at the unicorn. “This is the second coffee house you've humiliated me into never stepping hoof into ever again. I'll get you for this someday, Vinyl Scratch; mark my words.”

Vinyl's grin only grew in intensity.

(\ /)
( . .)
*(“)(“)

Twilight walked into her studio apartment and collapsed on the sofa, carefully setting her new violin case down next to her. Slumping down in the seat, she sighed before calling out, “Spiiike! I'm hooome!”

The small dragon walked out of the kitchen wiping his claws on the bottom portion of a frilly apron with the words “Fire the Cook” written on it in a flame-like font. “Twi? How did your first lesson go? Does your tutor still have his hearing, or did he poke out his eardrums already?”

“Har-dee-har-har, Spike. I'm dying of laughter over here,” Twilight replied in a deadpan tone with a roll of her eyes. She sniffed the air and perked up a little. “Is that Au Gratin Casserole I smell?”

Spike hooked his thumbs under the straps of the apron and proudly thrust out his chest. “Yup! I think I got the right spice mix this time. Chef Flossy showed me what I was doing wrong.”

Instantly on her hooves, Twilight silently thanked him. Bless that cantankerous old sheep. Asking him to teach Spike to cook was the best move of my life. She sat down at the table to wait for Spike to serve dinner.

“So what was your lesson like?” Spike repeated as he worked in the kitchen once more.

“It was... nice,” she replied, silently noting how that seemed to be the first question both Spike and Celestia asked her. “Miss Melody seems to be a competent teacher, and certainly is possessed of more patience than Mister Foxtrot did, at least.”

Spike quirked an eyebrow as he served their plates, noting her pause. He looked at her face, attentive of the far away look in her eyes. With a shrug, he set their plates down, confident that if something were wrong, she would tell him. All worries were forgotten when she bit into the food he had prepared and moaned in delight. He wouldn't admit it to himself, let alone anyone else, but pleasing Twilight always made him feel like he had just found a copy of X-Mares #1 on sale for two bits.

Author's Note

Sorry about the dullness of this one. I wanted to get the mechanics of playing out of the way, so it shouldn't get too much in the way after this. For those of you interested, the little song Octavia plays is actually called Reiche Abblasen Fanfare, not the CBS Sunday Morning theme.