The Art and Beauty of Music ((Elijah))

[HELENA ALICE LONGBOTTOM]

Helena had taken a break from studying to let herself relax. She had been studying a lot. She wanted a break. She wondered down from the Gryffindor tower to the seventh floor. Her father had told her about the Room of Requirements. She would hide out and practice wandless magic. She had also found a piano that she became quite fond of. She hadn’t event old her mum and dad about her love of music.

She slipped into the room. She maneuverer her way around the room. The random piles of stuff appearing out of nowhere. Thank Merlin she none of them have appeared on top of her. She hoped she hadn’t jinxed herself thinking about it. She found her way farther into the room where the old piano was. She had figured it was from the 1940s, after looking up pianos in the library.

Her slender fingers eased crossed the keys. She sat down on the bench. She started to play a few notes until she figured out what she wanted to play. The song came into her head. A song she heard over the muggle radio. She tapped her foot to the beat. The song played inside of head. Her hands just responded from memory. She had taught herself from just listening to music. She couldn’t read sheet music but she listen to songs and know what to play. She could write music and remember what it sounded like but couldn’t tell you the cord she played.

Right from the start
You were a thief
You stole my heart
And I your willing victim
I let you see the parts of me
That weren't all that pretty
And with every touch you fixed them

She was slowly loosing herself in the music. She let herself go into the music. She pulled her hair out of her messy ponytail. She let her tousled hair fall down. She could feel the music. She smiled softly. She wished she was confident enough to show people what she could do. She was too afraid of what others thought and said. Maybe one day. One day.

Now you've been talking in your sleep, oh, oh
Things you never say to me, oh, oh
Tell me that you've had enough
Of our love, our love

Funny thing she is singing about love when she had never been in love. But that doesn’t matter. What matters is if you love the song and you can relate to it. She loved the song. She felt every single word like it was her own.

Just give me a reason
Just a little bit's enough
Just a second we're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again
It's in the stars
It's been written in the scars on our hearts
We're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again

She didn’t know why this song spoke to her the way it did. She wished she knew. Maybe she could explain her love of music to her father that way. She didn’t know why she loved it so much. She just did. She didn’t know what she was so afraid of. Her father would support her no matter what. Her mum was up in the air. But since when did she care what her mother said.

I'm sorry I don't understand
Where all of this is coming from
I thought that we were fine
(Oh, we had everything)
Your head is running wild again
My dear we still have everythin'
And it's all in your mind
(Yeah, but this is happenin')

She wondered if any of her grandparents had been good with music. She’d like to think maybe her Grandmum Alice, did. She had been told she was like her Grandmum Alice. Some people would insulted being compared to an insane woman but not her. She admired her grandparents. The older she got, the prouder she was of her family’s history. She was starting to learn that it wasn’t that bad being compared to her family. Her family was brilliant so maybe it wasn’t that bad after all.

You've been havin' real bad dreams, oh, oh
You used to lie so close to me, oh, oh
There's nothing more than empty sheets
Between our love, our love
Oh, our love, our love

Dreams of Kasey had been haunting, taunting her. She kept imagining Kasey laid dead on the floor. The fear of losing her best friend was very real to Helena. She knew deep down that she may find Kasey but not before it was too late. It was one of those things you just knew. She kept thinking back of the days when they were carefree jumping on Helena’s bed.

Just give me a reason
Just a little bit's enough
Just a second we're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again
I never stopped
You're still written in the scars on my heart
You're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again

Helena had a reason to fight. She had a reason to be on the light side. She had a reason for learning wandless magic. Kasey was the reason she had to fight for what she believed in. Her family history is the reason she has to be on the light side. She had to learn wandless magic to prove to herself she could do anything she wanted to. Everything had a reason and effect.

Oh, tear ducts and rust
I'll fix it for us
We're collecting dust
But our love's enough
You're holding it in
You're pouring a drink
No nothing is as bad as it seems
We'll come clean

When she sang everything else melted away. She was an average girl. She didn’t have to worry about anyone or anything. If she made a mistake, oh well. Every day she felt like she was losing a piece of her. But when she sang she gained it all back. She didn’t have to pretend to be something she wasn’t.

Just give me a reason
Just a little bit's enough
Just a second we're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again
It's in the stars
It's been written in the scars on our hearts
That we're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again

She was learning who she was and where she belonged. Everything had changed this year and she wouldn’t have it any other way. She had to let go of the old her. The person who cared way too much about others words and thoughts. She wished she could be as carefree as her other Gryffindor friends or as brave and reckless. But that wasn’t her. She couldn’t be something she wasn’t.

Just give me a reason
Just a little bit's enough
Just a second we're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again
It's in the stars
It's been written in the scars on our hearts
That we're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again

It’s all about learning to change and adapt. Change wasn’t an easy thing for Helena. But change is part of growing up. Helena was forced to change. She was forced to adapt to the real world, not her idealist dream world. She loved her parents but they kept her in a tiny bubble from the real world. It made it even harder to adapt. But it wasn’t as hard when she stopped trying to be someone else.

Oh, we can learn to love again
Oh, we can learn to love again
Oh, oh, that we're not broken just bent
And we can learn to love again

As the vocals ended she started to play the piano solo. Music in any form was beautiful. The wizarding community hadn’t gotten to admire it’s beauty. She wanted to change that. She wanted to share her love for the art. She wanted to show people that wizard and muggle culture could mix.



ELIJAH LEONARDO REYES

[ELIJAH LEONARDO REYES]

Eliah's day had gone very well- all his classes were a breeze, even elemental magic, thanks to Professor Rossi's help. He had a pep in his step and he was feeling unusually calm...until he found that damned note laying on his bed accompanied by a pair of spiders. Oh how he hated those eight legged things! Those alone were enough to ruin his mood...but the note... Even the thought brought chills down his spine and made his feet feel like they were filled with lead. Soon enough, the brunette found himself sweating and gasping for breath. His shaky hands steadied himself by holding onto his bed post and he quickly loosened his yellow striped tie and unbuttoned some of the buttons on his collar. He had to go before he completely lost it in here. But first, he took care of those dreadful spiders.

He needed somewhere soothing and calm and away from the crowded halls of Hogwarts. He needed peace and reassurance. More importantly- he needed to breath! He made a choking sound as he sprinted out of the common room and up the stairs. He needed the Room of Requirement because he honestly felt like he was going to die, and at least he could die in solitude there.

By the time he made it to the room, he was stumbling and he felt weak. This panic attack was a bad one, which was actually understandable in his mind. He felt like he had zero security now. Someone was after him and they knew his deepest, darkest secret and was holding it against him like a cold knife to his back. He opened the door and shut it quickly, but was sure to try to silence himself before amongst the piles of random items in the room, he heard a beautiful voice and wonderful piano. Instantly, he felt his breaths start to come at a steadier rate, and he felt a bit more in control. Slowly, Elijah creeped around the piles as quietly as possible, trying to find the source of the music.

His brown eyes finally spotted the source and it was from the one of the most unexpected people- Helena Longbottom. They were once good friends but he had been avoiding her ever since she started pressuring Elijah to confide in her in why he was the way he was. He refused and felt like his secret was safer by going to all ends to avoid her, as guilty as he felt about it. It truly was nothing personal. It was more out of fear and insecurity than anything. But it was too late to turn around and leave now- he was in the open and Helena was sure to notice him. He held his hand up and waved to her with a sheepish, awkward grin.

[HELENA ALICE LONGBOTTOM]

Helena was about to start a new song when she saw someone she hadn’t spoken to in years, Elijah. She often thought of him. She felt quite guilty about everything that happened. She used to be so high-strung when she was younger. She had pretty much lost a good friend because she pushed too hard. She felt quite sorry about it. She tried to apologize but could never get close enough. This could be her only chance. She had to do it very carefully. She hoped she wouldn’t make a mistake again. She meant only good. But every good thing she tried to do for people usually ended up hurting people more than helping.

“Hey, Elijah, long time no see,” Helena said. She smiled at Elijah. She was trying not to scare him off. She wanted to a chance to make things right. She just knew for a few years that something was different about Elijah. She wanted to help him. She wanted to help but she knew she had to take it slow. Lesson learned. It took a lot of maturity for Helena to understand and respect people’s wishes to be left alone. She just couldn’t help the fact she cared.

[ELIJAH LEONARDO REYES]

Looking back, Elijah always felt guilty about how he had treated Helena. He had pushed her away, avoided her and pretty much ruined their friendship because he was too scared of her finding out what had happened to him. He was still scared that she would find out, and that her perspective of him would change. He was scared of being pitied. "How have you been?" he asked her, his sheepish tone turning more genuine and concerned as he asked the question. She had always been an irreplaceable character in his life because she was never afraid to show how much she cared and how much she wanted to know how others were doing.

Elijah slowly approached Helena and smiled sweetly at her, looking at the bench she was sitting on. "Mind if I have a seat?" he asked nervously, hiding his shaking hands behind his back. He missed his friend and wanted to catch up, but he was scared that if she saw his hands, she'd automatically go back to prying for information. And this time, he definitely couldn't tell her about the creepy spider mail."Never know you played an instrument, let alone played and sang so well." he nodded, looking from her to the piano keys. He had never gotten the change to learn an instrument. In fact, he had never even touched an instrument before.