His Mark [Tom Riddle's son] DISCONTINUED

Music and discoveries

His Mark
[Knowledge is Power]

16th September 2016
Friday

Cordelia

As usual, the room was buzzing with activity, stands being flown around with sheets of music and various instruments being summoned.

"If I were you, I would stick to the walls in the first five or ten minutes. I almost got flattened by a cello once." I advised as I lead Aileen to the wall.
"Right...stick to the walls..." I heard him mutter to himself as a chair almost made contact with his face.
"So, who organises this whole thing? I don't see any teachers around..." He asked me after a while of watching various instruments seemingly appearing out of thin air.

"Since Flitwick left, it became mostly a student organised thing...occasionally a teacher comes to supervise us, but Li Yao is the boss here. He's very...effective." I said selectively.

We head over to the grand piano,where a tall,Chinese Ravenclaw was scribbling on a sheet of music and murmuring to himself, occasionally hitting a chord or a key. I waited to be acknowledged before making a move.

After a few minutes of awkward waiting, Li Yao finished his pencilling and turned towards us, pushing his spectacles firmly in his nose.

"May I help you, Cornelia?" He asked in a polite tone.I sighed in resignation as he called me by the wrong name again.

"I've brought you a candidate for the piano. Aileen, this Li Yao, he prefers to be called Li. Li,this is Aileen. He came to audition."
"A pleasure to meet you Alien," Li offered his hand with a completely straight face. I quickly averted my eyes to the floor, concealing my twitching face.

Li was notorious for messing up other people's names,but this has got to be the worst (or the best) muck up for a name ever.

"The pleasure is all mine," Answered Aileen, his expression almost as blank as always if it weren't for the little twitch of his lips as Li called him Alien.
"Please just call me Ai..." He trailed off as he shook Li's hand in greeting.
"Maybe he won't mess that up..." Aileen muttered just loud enough for me to hear.
"Right, go on Bai and play something for me" Li gracefully pushed himself off the piano and waited expectantly for him.

Is he serious? How can you mix up Ai and Bai? Sure they rhyme, but really?

Aileen made his way over to the piano stool, a resigned look on his face as he sat down,
"I'll be playing Clint Mansell's Lux Aeterna in E minor..." He trailed off and let his long fingers hover over the keyboard.
He gently pressed two keys, then three more, then both of his hands were gliding across the length of the keyboard, his eyes half closed and it seemed that every single drop of emotion that he possessed was being placed into that single performance.
The music came from everywhere and filled every space in the Great Hall.

It was all too soon that the Great Hall became quiet again, as Aileen lifted his hands from the keys and looked down with an expression that indicated that he might flee the hall at any minute.

"Oh look there's a hippogriff," I said in a faux awe voice after my swift recovery and pointed out to the window in a pathetic attempt to divert everyone's attention. When no one listened , I added with as much steel as I could muster
"It's a hippogriff people, there's nothing to see here."

Under my unnaturally steely gaze,the other orchestra members slowly drifted their gaze from Aileen and eventually the noise level drifted back to the initial loud hustle and bustle.

Li turned to me, an impressed look on his face.

"A good find, Cornelia. Bai, are you happy filling in as the pianist?"
"Sure... As long as you don't call me Alien again, or Bai- I'm in."
"My apologies Kai. Now, since our conductor left, I have to fill his spot, which leaves you to play while I conduct. Accio!" With an abrupt jerk of his wand, a flurry of parchment flew into his hand.