aria de l'eporidae (open)

Outside the window, in that vivid blue canvas, listlessly drifted floating rabbits made of water vapor. Sunlight streamed in, illuminating the mainly empty room. Though the room usually had more things in it, its current occupant preferred to have things her way. They were now sorted out, with what else was inside it in a neat stack by the far corner. The door was slightly ajar, at exactly 45 degrees from the doorframe - just the way the person inside liked it. In the center of the room was a piano, and the lone occupant, Max.

She sat on the chair, back straight as her fingers deftly moved and danced their way through the keys in a graceful flurry, then slowing down, becoming a calmer piece. Her eyes were shut, and in her mind she began to build a story.

A sea, shining and shimmering splendidly formed inside her head. It was a flat plane of blue, slowly morphing into a realistic ocean peaceful and reflective. Then a boat skimmed its surface. The music she played to the scene was slow and relaxed. It grew louder then as in her mind a tempest brewed on the ocean's surface. Thunderous booms translated into furious, intense chords and a jittery melody.

Back in the real world Max began swaying fiercely in beat to the music she played, head and hair swinging wildly. And yet she didn't miss a beat as the song kicked into a crescendo. The sailors were trying to survive now, lightning striking everywhere and the waves crashing loudly. It was so vivid that she could swear she saw the storm brew outside the window.

Then the skies began to clear and the song began to mellow. As did she, playing some more until the song reached its conclusion. With the last note, she smiled again, staring off into the wall, immersed in thought.

@"Mazermax"

Out of the corner of her still entranced eyes, Max saw someone push the door further from her preferred angle. It seemed to be a massive person of some sort, or maybe some gargantuan construct of some sort. Whatever it may have been was irrelevant. What it was... well, still mainly irrelevant, though "person" seemed to be a good guess.

She put her fingers back to the keys, looking out the window as a soft progression of chords began, slowing down and turning haphazard. Her piece was a gentle, airy and calm one. It was as if she played along to the breeze outside. The slightest smile of satisfaction formed on her lips.

She began to talk, her attention still divided between the clouds and the music, the identity of the other person an irrelevant background thought. "Do you ever think that if you did something so well you could change things? If the notes... the melody is good, then maybe the universe would start dancing to it, start singing... sing about things we didn't know. Maybe one day the clouds will tell me their secrets."

The piece she played slowed even further, now made only of long-sustained chords and thoughts of clouds. "I keep hearing they look like sheep. But they're not. They're rabbits, just leaping around on the sky."

@"Mazermax"

"I never thought of them that way... but it makes sense, I think. Where else would all the disease go? They come up to the sky and they hide in the clouds and when you get rained on you get sick." Still speaking and playing softly, Max nodded approvingly. For the first time in a while, Max turned her empty gaze away from the window.

To the keys she turned her attention, playing a different piece again. Now it was a frantic song that to her called to mind an image of a bird flying and weaving through a forest canopy. Not missing a beat, she said again, "I like your way of thinking. I think you're a nice guy. Am I going to be wrong?"

@"Mazermax"

"It's not," she replied, a trace of a smile on her lips even as her head was bent down, staring at the ivory keys. The music was starting to feel repetitive to her, as she'd been around playing for almost three hours straight at this point. With a flourish of her fingers and a final crescendo, she cut off the sounds. Then she turned her eyes to look at this massive newcomer. "I can't decide anything for other people or other things. If I decide you're not nice, you'll still be nice and I'd be in denial. Like how people say that the clouds aren't rabbits... clouds are, even if those people decide otherwise."

A yawn escaped her mouth, feeling a bit of exhaustion. To wake herself up, she stretched both hands above her head, arching her back and pushing her chest out. It helped, though only a bit. It wasn't nearly enough and so she stood up, carefully pushing away the chair.

As Max straightened up her skirt, there was a sense of delicacy about her, fingers lightly fixing creases. Upon finding her skirt's messiness to be just the right amount, she walked up to the visitor, her face barely up to his chest. Expectant eyes and a warm smile greeted him and she said, "I don't think I'm wrong. I've never met anyone who would stumble over saying thanks and turn out terrible. I've also never seen anyone so tall this close. What do your eyes see from so high up, closer to the sky than me?"

@"Mazermax" my avatar is max now

"Then I'll be wrong. But I'm not," Max smiled simply. This person fascinated her, with his well-timed and well-worded questions, and that slight sense of unease. She put her hands behind her back and leaned in closer, tiptoeing and getting her face closer to his, eyeing every inch.

Max pulled back, letting her heels touch the ground again. She spun around on one foot, hands at her back, long hair flowing in the space. Whilst spinning, she moved to the window, each rotation bringing her a step closer.

At the wall she stopped spinning around, leaning her back against the wall. "I always wanted to try seeing the world differently, with someone else's eyes. I see too much. and even if that's already hard I want to see from more angles. Maybe I could find a secret other people couldn't see."