Butterflies

Chapter 1

Brushing down her black silk dress, Violet Henry placed her fingers on the keys of the piano. It showed she was a master, the way her slender fingers curved to play the music; not one falter in the tempo, or a slip in pitch. The music played out softly but perfectly, the soft mellows of "Studio 6" by Matt Maltese echoing into the candle lit room. People came in and filled the tables around the stage, gazing up at her figure as she began the first verse. It wasn't a particularly happy or upbeat song, but the soft rhythm was much needed for the mood. And the crowd always enjoyed a calm song.

Her tunes would send you into a state of euphoria, the notes seeping into your skin like the warmth of a hot bath. She smiled and let the music flow through her and eventually to those who listened. There was a trance with the sound, one only she was able to achieve.

If someone else was in her place they wouldn't be able to play even half as well as her, unable to hold all ears of the room. People would talk over the sounds, as if to subject it to just the background tunes of their lives. However, with her everyone listened. The men at the bar would spin round in their seats as they heard their favourite 80s song reimagined into a blissful ballad. Couples eating dinner would merely whisper what they had to say, distracted by her.

Her soulful music was enough to change your emotions. A person could come in in a slump, clutching their drink trying to forget their day and through her music they went be sent into contentment. They wouldn't even know what changed their mood so quickly, they would just think the song helped them. Not the person playing it.

The room was dressed in gold, banisters and pillars reaching up to the arched ceiling, a glass dome revealing the sky above. As more and more people entered the room, more candles flickered alight, like stars appearing in the sky. The stage itself was in the middle of the room, the grand white piano at the front while other instruments held back behind it. There she played almost every night, blessing the night visitors with her ability to play any song like she'd been practicing her whole life. A supe was hardly a prodigy, destined from birth to be a musician. She was a lot more than a prodigy.

Adjacent from where she was performing, a man sat alone and watched her. His hazel eyes squinted as he took a long sip of his drink, not recognizing the song she was playing. He sported short black hair and a heavy beard, and wore a dark trench coat. The leather clung on his arms as he placed his drink back on the table, eyes still on her. He couldn't let her out of his sight after all.

He was there on business.

As the song she played came to an end, the groups of people applauded her. Slowly, she slipped off her stool and took a bow, her long brown hair falling down her shoulders. She descended down the steps, and the man shot up from his seat, chucking down a tip onto the table and following after her quickly.

Her hair swept behind her like there was a current of wind in the room, accentuating her body as she brushed past the groups around her. Even when she was off stage, all eyes were still on her. She mumbled words under her breath, catching the eyes of more people, a small smile appearing on her lips. Her spotlight wasn't out just yet, she wanted to lie in it for as long as possible.

When the man caught up to her she was writing something on a piece of paper for a stranger with a wide grin on his face, presumably a fan. The man stood behind her coughed and motioned for the other man to get lost, and the and timidly widening his eyes before scurrying away. Violet scoffed and turned around, placing her hands on her hips.

"Do you know, I think it's rather rude to hurry that poor sod away so fast. You could have waited your turn if you wanted to say hello," She said, looking up suddenly at their proximity, the man being much taller than she was.