ISEGRIM+SIENNA; Playing, singing, and conversing!

[minitsu]

Isegrim
Sienna
Backlogged to after this thread.



Shutting his journal and setting it on top of the organ, Isegrim pursed his lips in thought. He didn't know many songs by memory, though he hadn't run out of them yet. Something a bit more cheerful, perhaps. After a brief knuckle cracking, he began to play a piece that sounded a great deal like a waltz, save for a few sour notes. He told himself that rustiness after not playing for months was understandable, though he still cringed whenever he hit the wrong key.

Sienna had to confer with the maids on the whereabouts of the organ--after all this time of living in the Cathedral, she still wasn't sure where everything was. Well, it's not like she did much exploring, but...

Soon the heavy notes of the organ could be heard flowing through the hall, causing the Moon Guardian to pause a few feet behind the blonde man as she closed her eyes and listened, a small smile on her face. She loved music--but had no time to learn any instrument. She wasn't sure if she'd be good at any, even if she tried. And unsure of how to alert him of her presence, she just stood there, enjoying the happy tune.

Isegrim continued to play, and as the tempo quickened, his fingers hardly hit any wrong notes. He smiled when he reached his favorite part of the song, the part he used to practise so often in the hopes of being able to play it perfectly one day. Though it was far from perfect, his grin spread across his lips. It was so easy to forget everything with such a song to play.

His enthusiam caused Sienna's smile to grow, her head tilting to the side to get a better view. His hands were just flying over the keys, so energetic-like, so passionate.

When the tune was finished, she brought her hands together, clapping softly. "That was wonderful, Isegrim."

He turned quickly, his expression now one of slight embarrassment. "I didn't know you were listening, Sienna," Isegrim chuckled as he climbed to his feet. He didn't mind at all, he had invited her, though he was slightly concerned that he hadn't heard her coming. He blamed it on the music. "You flatter me."

"Not at all," she replied, smiling at him. "It was very nice. What song was it?"

"An old Arunafeltzan folk-tune my grandmother taught me," Isegrim answered, a slight blush on his cheeks. It sounded so... unfashionable when he put it that way. Now that he thought about it he didn't know very many contemporary songs at all. A shame. "She's very fond of it."

Sienna wondered why his cheeks were pink, but thought better of asking. "That's beautiful. Songs passed down from generations are the best kind," she said. "My mother would teach me the songs her mother used to sing to her when she was little..."

Apparently he had nothing to embarrassed about. "Oh really?" Isegrim asked, motioning for Sienna to take a seat at the bench. "You should sing a few and perhaps I can play a bit of it by ear on the piano."

She blinked, then looked down at her hands. "Er, not that I'm... I mean, I don't... Not that good, that is..." Sienna said, stumbling over her words.

"It's alright," he assured her, sitting on the edge of the bench himself. "I'm sure you can carry a tune. I've a horrible singing voice. If it would make you feel better, though I can't imagine how me singing would make anyone feel better, I can try to sing along as well."

She had to giggle at that. "I'm sure your voice can't be worse than Sei's," Sienna said lightly, then sat down on the bench's edge. "What songs do you know?"

Isegrim returned the laugh, though his was a bit pained. "He puts me to shame. It really is quite sad. But, if it pleases you..." Drumming his thin fingers lightly on the keys, he thought to himself. "They're all quite old. Moon River, I'll Be Seeing You, They Can't Take That Away From Me. Things like that."

"R-Really?" Sienna wondered if this was such a good idea, then. "I don't really know those songs. Hmm... Oh!" She looked at Isegrim. "What about folk songs? Do you know Dream Angus?"

"I'm afraid I don't. But... you could still sing it," he offered with a pleading smile. It would be a much better experience for the both of them this way.

"Ah, okay..." Wait, she was singing? In front of him? Waaaaaaaaait.

Well.

Isegrim was a nice guy.

He.

"Maybe... Never is a Promise?" She thought that might be a well-known song--well enough, anyway... That he could play to the tune, so her voice wouldn't be the only thing filling the space.

Isegrim nodded, wondering if he could still play the tune by memory. "A good song. Ready when you are."

Ahaha, so she really was going to sing... Taking a deep breathe, she began, hesitant at first but slowly growing bolder.

"You'll never see the courage I know.
Its colors' richness won't appear within your view.
I'll never glow the way that you glow,
Your presence dominates the judgements made on you."

Sienna's eyes closed, the hands in her lap coming up to her chest, her voice going stronger.

"But as the scenery grows, I see in different lights.
The shades and shadows undulate in my perception.
My feelings swell and stretch; I see from greater heights.
I understand what I am still too proud to mention... to you..."

Struggling a bit to keep up with her, Isegrim's snile returned after he found the tune. She really did have a lovely voice... As he played, he rocked back and forth, intently listening all the while.

The melody flowing from the keys were a lovely addition to her ears, helping her to feel more comfortable. He really was a very good player, Isegrim was. She was in a bit of wonderment, and thus missed when she was supposed to sing again!

Isegrim turned his head and began to play rather slowly when Sienna did not start singing again. Was this the bridge? He couldn't remember. Perhaps he should just make something up... No, there were more words. "I'll never glow..." he suggested, his voice soft and the notes trembling.

Sienna blinked, then panicked momentarily. "I'll never gl--No, um. Er."

Real smooth, that. Damnit.

"Did I get the words wrong?" he asked, an eyebrow raised. Isegrim did hope she wouldn't stop singing.

"I... I messed up," Sienna mumbled, cheeks going red from the embarrassment. "Sorry..."

Smiling, Isegrim nodded and momentarily stopped playing. "Do you want to keep going?"

"Um. Sure." No. Yes? "Okay."

Another deep breath.

"You'll never touch these things that I hold.
The skin of my emotions lies beneath my own.
You'll never feel the heat of this soul.
My fever burns me deeper than I've ever shown... to you...

You'll say, Don't fear your dreams, it's easier than it seems.
You'll say you'd never let me fall from hopes so high,
but never is a promise and you can't afford to lie..."

And she continued, getting back into the rhythm, not missing anymore beats, until it was over.

"That was wonderful! You really shouldn't be so shy about singing," Isegrim said earnestly, as he turned to face her. "You could compete with Sei and Mike next time."

She glanced at him, face going red again. "I-um, no, not that good, I." Sienna decided the organ keys were fascinating enough to examine. "Wouldn't...really want to."

Sighing, he leaned against the sidebar of the organ and nodded once more. "Understandable." His eyes kept moving to her bandaged hand, though he tried not to stare.

But Sienna, man, she was about as perceptive as a rock, you know? So she just tapped lightly at the keys, completely oblivious to the attention her hand was getting.

Almost absently, she asked, "How do you put up with him? Lee, I mean."

"Lee? He's not so bad at all," he said with a grin, turning his attention to the ceiling. "Once you know how to handle him. Certain subjects are... best avoided."

She turned her attention to him. "Certain subjects?" Sienna echoed.

"Ah... Anything that he could take the wrong way. And, of course, anything serious. He tends to get bored rather easily," Isegrim explained with a smile. He was a good friend, despite his occassional outbursts. "Everyone has their flaws, though."

Her eyes flitted down momentarily to her bandaged hand. "That's true," she murmured, thumb rubbing her fingers almost unconsciously. It was a habit in the making. She'd probably need to get a smoothed stone to replace the bandages once her hand healed.

"Do you mind me asking what happened?" Had that been a meaningful change of focus? He was curious but she had gotten rather upset when last he referred to it. "If you'd rather not talk about it, that's fine."

Her movement stopped, her gaze removing itself from her hand. Wow, way to be inconspicuous! "It...was..." Why was this so hard to say? "My, um." Pride, huh? "... Accident."

"Mmm," Isegrim murmured, trying to sound as understanding as possible. He had assumed it was an accident, who wouldn't? "It's alright. Lady Kaethe's garden is looking lovely for this time of year! Usually it looks quite bare." An awkward topic change, but at least he had tried.

Sienna was grateful for the topic change, no matter how awkward. "Yes!" she said with a little more enthusiam than was probably necessary. "Her garden is beautiful. I haven't had the chance to see it in such a long time..."

"She always appreciates the company. You should visit her sometime," he sighed, though the smile stayed in place. It was non of his business after all, but he couldn't keep himself from worrying. Like someone's mother, he thought reproachfully.

"Yeah, that would be nice," she said, smiling. "Do you like flowers?"

His smile grew a bit at that. "How could I not? Miss Kaethe has that affect on people. I now consider myself a rather apt gardener," Isegrim cooed, leaning back on the bench. It was a great deal sturdier than he had expected. "It's like askinf you if- No, I suppose you can't dislike water. Not a very good comparison. Well... I like flowers," he finished simply.

"Really? My mother's a flower arranger, but I never learned exactly how to grow them or anything," Sienna replied, placing her elbows on her thighs, head propped with her hands. "That's a neat skill to have, gardening. You could grow your own food, right?"

She giggled at Isegrim's comment about water. "Do you have a favorite? Flower."

"Ahh... food? Fruits and vegetables seem to take more skill. Or I'm naturally better suited to raising flowers. I tend to stay away from Miss Kaethe's produce." As a child he'd once ruined one of his grandmother's tomato plants and... the lecture had stayed with him.

Isegrim mirrored Sienna's posture as he thought. "Favorite flower? Freesia, perhaps. Or maybe Snapdragons. I've always quite liked those."

"Ah."

Her head tilted to the side, thoughtful. "Snapdragons are pretty. They're supposed to protect the owner from deceit and curses, right?"

"Oh? I didn't know that," Isegrim replied, looking rather ridiculous with his hunched posture and semi-serious expression. "I think they'll be my favorite, then. And what about you, Sienna? What's your favorite?"

She smiled. "My mom taught me a lot about flowers and their meaning." Then the girl was quite for a bit while she thought about it. Her favorite flower? "Bell flowers?" she wondered aloud. "Those are very pretty... Singing plants, too..."

"Not Flora?" he asked with a grin. "I hear they're... quite friendly." Friendly enough to take a bite out of anyone who gets close enough, at least.

"No!" she exclaimed, looking at him with slightly wider eyes. "They would eat me." He was grinning. That meant he was joking, right?

"They'd eat anyone. Even our dear General," Isegrim continued, his grin growing wider still. What a funny image... "Though perhaps even Flora have standards..."

"That...probably wouldn't be a very good thing," she replied, but her lips quirked upwards all the same.

"Oh, no, terrible, terrible," Isegrim said in mock seriousness. "But... quite funny, if you think about it..." He could just see it now...

She couldn't conceal the laugh that welled up inside of her. "You're so funny, Isegrim!" Sienna commented with a wide smile.

Blushing a bit, Isegrim waved his hand in protest. "It was just a thought," he laughed nervously. "She'd... probably tell it that it was disgracing our great nation by eating her."

"Well, I'm sure she's strong enough to defend herself against a Flora," she responded with a raised brow. "Or that would be the disgrace."

"That is true," Isegrim sighed, his blush fading. My, he certainly wasn't used to being told that and he had hardly seen it coming from Sienna. She seemed so much more comfortable now. It was nice. "Though Floras can be rather vicious. I lost a cat to one, once." Strangely, he felt like laughing again and he had loved that cat...

"Oh, that's terrible," Sienna said, frowning. "I'm sorry."

Biting back a chuckle, Isegrim shook his head. "No, it's quite all right. It wasn't a very... smart cat." What was wrong with him? He pushed down the laughing fit, took a deep breath and turned back to Sienna. All better.

"Still..." Wow, that must have been horrible, to lose a pet in such a, uh, vicious manner.

Isegrim nodded and ghosted his fingers over a few of the piano's keys. "Did you have any pets as a child?" He enjoyed just talking with her about nothing. It was quite refreshing.

"We had a songbird," Sienna said, inspired by Isegrim's finger ghosting to tap on one of the keys near her. Lightly, of course, so that no sound would come forth. "When I was younger, I would always listen to it and eventually I began singing with it, too..." Ah, so nostalgic~

"How wonderful," Isegrim sighed, his fingers patting the keys automatically. "Have you seen Miss Branwen's birds? They're quite beautiful." They were perpetually surrounded by such beautiful things...

"Not really... Would she let me?"

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind," Isegrim said noncommitally. Was he not supposed to have seen them? He wouldn't put it past Lee to have snuck in... "If you asked first, that is."

"Yes..." But that in itself was rather intimidating. Sienna had never socialized much until--well, now, really--and Branwen gave off this air of ... majesticness? She wasn't sure what to call it, but it was enough to make the idea of asking Branwen for anything a bit daunting. Her brows furrowed at the prospect.

"Mmm. Or you could visit the Rahell zoo. I'm sure they've lovely birds there, as well." Wjen had he last been to the zoo? Ages and ages ago, it seemed. "It seems childish, but... When the zoo is as well kept as Rahell's, it's truly a delight."

The zoo! That sounded a lot better. "That's a good idea," she said, nodding. "I've only been there once. It'd be nice to appreciate it this time around."

"I haven't been since I was little and my grandma was never one for lolly-gagging," he chimed, wagging his finger at no one in particular.

"Lolly-gagging?"

"...her words, not mine," he replied weakly.

"What does it mean?" she asked curiously.

"Oh. Waiting around, taking a while, I suppose. It's... something old people say," Isegrim answered as pressed down on a key for no real reason. "Slang. Not a good example, but slang nonetheless."

"Ah." A pause as she copied him, then visibly jolted by the note.

"How did that work out, by the way?" Isegrim asked, looking smewhat wary of the answer. She could have gotten some mixed results...

"How did what work out?" She prodded the key again, then a different one.

"Your lesson in slang?" he repeated. Was he boring her, Isegrim wondered.

"Oh. It was very helpful." She gave him a smile. "Thank you for taking the time to help me out."

"Not at all." Isegrim half-spun on the bench, climbed to his feet and stretched his arms before putting his hands behind his back. Almost unaware of his change of position, he continued to talk. "What brought that on, might I ask?"

Sienna looked down at the keys, a small pause before answering. "Sei said it wasn't good for me if I didn't understand what people meant," she said, a tinge of frustration in her voice. "It makes me weak."

Frowning a bit, Isegrim settled his hands on his knees and shrugged. "Nonsense. Asking questions never made anyone weak. He shouldn't be so hard on you, even if he means well."

"But he said people could use it against me... Isn't that weakness?" She cocked her head at him questioningly.

"I suppose, though I hardly see how not having a comprehensive knowledge of slang would be a trait that would cause to get taken advantage of," he responded, one eyebrow raised. "You can't get rid of all your weaknesses. Best to just dedicate yourself to the ones that need to be overcome. At least that's always been my way of looking at it." He was glad Sienna had Sei, they seemed to make each other happy.

"Oh," she replied, troubled. Can't get rid of them all. That. Well. That sucked.

"You can't expect to be perfect," Isegrim said brightly, trying to cheer her up. Had the thought upset Sienna that much? With a small pat on the shoulder, he added, "Don't take it to heart."

"I guess so."

And he was right. She was human, afterall. She couldn't be strong at everything--just strong enough to be independent. That was good enough.

With a smile, Sienna said, "Thanks, Isegrim."

"Oh? You're welcome," he chuckled, unsure what she was thanking him for. His advice hadn't been that good. "Anytime."

There was another short bought of silence before she said suddenly, "We should go to the zoo."

His laugh grew at the sudden outburst and Isegrim nodded. 'We should go to the zoo. It's been too long for the both of us. But not tonight."

"Yes."

It must have been later than Sienna thought. With a start, she asked, "I'm not keeping you from anything important, am I?"

"Oh, no, no, no. Just... well, most of the animals would be asleep already." Leaning back, Isegrim rested an elbow against the organ. "Though it would be rather nice, a night zoo walk. No crowds or screaming children."

"It would," she agreed, smiling at his remark about children. "They aren't so bad. Children."

His smile became rather sheepish as Isegrim gave another shrug. "They aren'tso bad, I've just never been very good around them. They're so... unpredictable. Makes me nervous. The mark of an only-child, I suppose."

"Oh?" Only child, huh?

"Mmm. Yes. What about you?" Sienna seemed like the type to have siblings. A younger brother or sister, perhaps.

"I have an older brother." Her expression visibly warmed with that. "He taught me how to use a sword and helped me practice."

Hmm. An older brother. "That must be nice," he sighed, returning her small smile. "He taught you well, from what I've seen."

"He's much more skilled at it than I am..." But her cheeks tinged pink all the same.

"What's being an only child like?"

"Double-edged sword, I'd say. On the one hand, you get all the attention and don't have anyone giving you a hard time. On the other, you get blamed for everything and it's rather lonely," Isegrim explained, closing his eyes in thought. "My grandma and I kept each other entertained, though."

"Oh. What happened to yo--" But Sienna cut herself off, looking down into her lap sheepishly. What happened to your parents? That was probably a rude thing to ask.

"Um." Cover, cover! "That is, um, that must, you two must be very close, then?" Way to go. Sienna groaned inwardly. Nice.

Blinking, Isegrim gave Sienna a small smile. "You can ask. I don't mind. My father left us when I was young and my mother was usually out on campaigns and such." It didn't bother him to speak about such things; what was one, was done. Not talking about it didn't make it go away. "A crusader's work is never done, you know."

"Oh." Well, that wasn't so bad...except for the father part. Uhhh. But his mother! A Crusader, wow! "She must be proud of you, then."

Stifling a yawn, Isegrim nodded. "She is. She knew I wasn't cut out for the military. Or the clergy, for that matter. This was the next best thing for her."

"That's good."

It was pretty late, though! Sienna wondered if Sei would be trying to sleep... I should probably head back. She stood up, stretching on her tippy toes, arms in the air. "Thank you for letting me watch you play," she said, turning to give Isegrim a smile. "It was very nice."

She was smiling so much! It almost felt a little weird.

Isegrim bowed his head, his smile returning. "It was my pleasure, Sienna. And I'll hold you to allowing me to accompany you to the zoo." He straightened his posture and climbed up off the bench. "Goodnight, then."

"Of course," she replied cheerily. "Good night, Isegrim."