Raise Your Voice

Intro - "A Starting Pitch"

Author's Notes:

Inner thoughts/monologue in italics

Song lyrics in bold

Chapter Warnings: none

original post - https://thisismynerdyself.tumblr.com/post/638773563561754624/raise-your-voice-intro-a-starting-pitch

***

There's something outrageously mind-blowing about the acoustics of a large empty room. You can whisper, speak normally, shout, sing, hum, tap your foot, or clap your hands, and whatever you do is amplified beyond your own capabilities.

Walking out onto the stage, the young girl held herself with the utmost confidence as she embraced the microphone with her hands, taking in the feeling that the next few minutes would bring. As the crowd quieted down, a quiet tune began playing from behind her. She tucked her deep auburn hair behind her ears, partially out of habit and partially due to her lessons to always leave her face unobstructed during a performance.

Deep breath in. She opened her mouth to begin...

"Y/N Y/L/N!" Professor Flitwick called out, shattering the memory that you had been reliving in your mind, waiting for your turn to take center stage once again. Flitwick's voice was booming throughout the room, his eyes glued to the parchment in front of him. He was short in stature but his presence commanded respect and authority. As a Ravenclaw, this should not have been as terrifying as it was, but you were positively shaken.

You stood and walked forward. Turning to face the prestigious professor, you cleared your throat and took a deep breath to calm your beating heart. You can do this. You've done this before. Not here, but how different could it really be? You chanted to yourself.

"When you're ready," Flitwick finally lifted his eyes to peer at the student in front of him. "Shhhh," he quieted the chattering group of students seated behind him.

Just do what you were born to do. Deep breath. In. Out. In.

"I gotta take a little time // A little time to think things over," your eyes were squeezed shut, afraid to look out and see the reactions. This was nerve-wracking. Breathe in.

"I better read between the lines // In case I need it when I'm older," you kept your eyes closed. Maybe you could stay like this for the whole song, who needs to sing with their eyes open anyway?

"Now this mountain I must climb // Feels like a world upon my shoulders // Through the clouds I see love shine // It keeps me warm as life grows colder," remain calm, you've rehearsed this for weeks. Nothing can stop you now.

You opened your eyes, beginning the next line. "In my life, there's been heartache and pain // I don't know if I can face it again," you glanced out across the audience of fellow students, eyes and ears glued to you as you stood on the steps of the Great Hall. Your voice echoed throughout the vast empty space, one simple girl managing to fill the room with a beautiful melody.

Seeing the way the students, and even your professor, were captivated by your performance, your voice grew stronger, you stood a little taller, and you gained a renewed confidence to continue on, "Can't stop now, I've traveled so far // To change this lonely life."

This was it. The build-up. Show them what you can do.

"I wanna know what love is // I want you to show me."

Setting your eyes on the back wall, you let your voice soar to the heights, the only boundary was the limit you put on yourself. You hardly took notice anymore of the way the students gawked at you, the way your professor looked as though he had tears in his eyes.

"I wanna feel what love is // I know you can show me."

As you released your breath from the last word of the chorus, you heard a light cough and chanced a glance at the ground to catch Professor Flitwick raising his hand into the air to call you to stop. You immediately grew quiet, afraid to hear what the man had to say. You thought it was going so well. You did your best.

"Miss Y/L/N, that was... simply delightful. You are quite trained it seems and you have a voice that speaks for its own. Breathtaking. And it would be an honor to have you join our choir here. Thank you."

You did it.

Transferring to Hogwarts seemed terrifying at first. An unfamiliar school with unfamiliar students. The choir was the first thing you reached for to feel some semblance of comfort. It isn't often that someone transfers so late in their academic career. A fifth year transfer was practically unheard of, yet here you were.

Your old school was holding you back from your true potential. They believed that the arts were inferior to other areas of study. But the arts were where you felt most at home, most in your element. So you studied vocal performance in secret and pursued acceptance at a school that would welcome you and your passions.

When your acceptance letter was delivered over the summer, you wasted no time in tracking down the transfer documents and preparing for a new life in a new school. Terrifying, yes, but worth every fear and worry in the end.

***