A Written Destiny ||A Music Freaks Fantasy AU

Chapter Eight: Music is Magic

"Music?" Star repeated. She looked at her father questioningly.

"I thought everyone knew," said Jake, looking around. He frowned. "You know. The saying how music is like magic, and it brings the world together and stuff."

Still, he got puzzled looks.

"But... Jake, that's just a phrase," said Hailey slowly, smiling through her perplexed look, "it won't help us now."

"Still," Jake persisted, "don't you... feel it? Whenever we play music. It's like everything around us suddenly holds its breath. The trees... flowers, birds, everything! Music's just like magic."

"That's a pretty way of putting it," said Luke thoughtfully.

"But..." Hailey still wasn't convinced. "It's just a phrase..."

"Oh, Hailey, don't dwell on all the technicalities now!" said Milly. "We're in a world full of magic, after all! Anything can happen here!"

Uncertainty wavered in Hailey's face, and Jake's eyes lit up.

"Remember when we were back in high school and the band competition was going on? Those were the days when the magic was brightest in our music."

Hailey's expression softened. Those words seemed to have brought her back to her senses. "Oh... Well, I see what you mean now."

"I don't know..." said Laura doubtfully.

"Oh, come on, Laura. They're amazing with music! Surely you've heard of their talent!" said Star.

"We could show you," Luke volunteered.

"That's a fantastic  idea," said Zander. If you hadn't known him for a while, you wouldn't have detected the sarcasm in his voice. "After all, we totally have our instruments right here in front of us."

"Oh... Right, I forgot about that," Luke chuckled.

Laura clapped her hands, and in a flash of yellow light, a keyboard, guitar, and drum kit appeared before her. A microphone was held in each hand, and she held them out to Hailey and Jake. 

"Show me what you can do," she ordered.

"Trust me, they're amazing," said Star as she and Laura stepped back as the band got into their positions. For a moment, both of them held their breath, waiting for them to break into song.

Slowly, the beats started out, and the music rushed in like an ocean wave. Luke started with a few tap tap taps  from his drums, and then Milly tuned in with her guitar with Zander at the same moment. Words didn't need to be exchanged between them - their minds were now linked with the music.

And then Hailey and Jake opened their mouths to sing, and that's when Star knew she had experienced the real magic.

Her mother's voice - it was like a true angel from the heavens singing, and with her father's voice accompanying it, Star could swoon. They matched the beats perfectly, as the rest of the band closed their eyes in concentration. Zander's hands flew over the keyboard keys so they were just a blur, and Milly was so comfortable with her guitar it was like she had known it forever.

What really surprised Star was when Laura gave a small snap of her fingers, and a violin appeared between her hands. Without hesitation, she began drawing out the bow and her fingers moved smoothly up and down the strings. Though the song wasn't meant for the violin, it now sounded like it was perfect for it. The band never faltered, and no mistakes could be heard.

At the moment, Star felt like she wanted to cry. Her father was right. Music itself was so magical. It didn't matter about playing with skill, but rather playing with your heart. The enthralling melody of the whole song seemed to loop around the whole cave and trap them inside the spell. 

It was all over too soon. When Hailey and Jake lowered their voice into a sustaining note, and Laura dragged out the last beat, it was done. But it didn't feel like it. The tune was still ringing in Star's ears, and she could still feel the graceful harmonies swirling around her, inviting her closer. She didn't want to let go of it.

"That was..." she breathed. "Wow."

"Wow," Luke repeated.

"Guess you were right," Laura said. She didn't seem fazed at all, but if Star wasn't mistaken, she could've sworn she saw a spark of wonder in her bright yellow eyes.

"I didn't know you could play the violin," said Zander.

Laura shrugged. "Not many people do. It's... a skill, I guess you can say."

"No, not a skill," Hailey chided, "it's more than just a skill. It's a passion. I could see it in your eyes when you were playing."

The girl flushed ever so slightly, but hid it as she turned her head.

"... That doesn't matter now. What we need is Star to write."

Just as Laura spoke the word write, the book in Star's hands trembled like a phone vibrating. She frowned, and opened it.

"I think the book's trying to tell me something."
"Don't be stupid, books don't speak," Laura scoffed.

Star ignored her, and pulled out her pen. She drew a short stroke on the crinkly paper. The ink glittered for a second, and then disappeared like it had never been there.

"I knew it. It won't let me write anymore," said Star, looking up. "But... why?"

"I think I know," said Hailey. She cleared her throat.

"When you were trying to summon Esme, you had to play the violin, right?" she looked at Laura, who nodded. "Right. Esme once told me that music was her favourite thing in the world, beside writing. And how did you summon her? By Laura's violin and Star's writing." 

Zander snapped his fingers. "I see now. So if one person plays music while the other writes, the book performs an act of magic, which in that case, was summoning Esme. Esme after all, was the owner of the notebook. That explains the combination of writing and music."

"So... in this case... The act of magic is not letting me write?" asked Star, confused. "Not letting me write my... destiny? But, why? Isn't that the whole point of the book."

"Because, my dear," said Hailey softly, bending down, "your destiny isn't something to write out. It's something to explore yourself, and live yourself. A silly book doesn't get to make your own destiny. It's you that has to make your own decisions and create your own destiny. It's YOUR destiny to pick, not the -"

"Not the book's," Star nodded, as Hailey cupped her chin with her hands. Her mother smiled.

"Exactly."

"So that's what Esme was about to say when we got sucked in the portal..." Star murmured.

"That's the most important thing," said Hailey. "The book doesn't want you to write your own destiny either. It doesn't want your destiny to be a written one. It wants it to be your own."

"B...But the war! The fight! How will we win now?" Laura blundered. "The book was our only chance!"

Hailey looked coldly at Laura. "Haven't you heard the phrase 'Actions speak louder than words'? That's exactly it. We're not going to depend our lives on a silly notebook. We're going to battle on our own, and if we die, then we die trying. I don't know about you, but if I were to live a history of fighting a war, I wouldn't want to be a coward and let a book decide our fate." 

"See, this is why I married her," Jake whispered to Zander, "she's hella smart."

"Don't think I've forgiven you for that yet," Zander muttered back.

Hailey stood up. Star couldn't help but picture a long, flowy cape trailing down her back, and a crown perched on her head. She looked like a true queen.

"Let's stop wasting time and fight."