Oh absolutely, and speaking of Tony's plans to do a duet, with some abuse of the playback spell that Claire knows and will teach him, the next time there is a stormy moonlight night at Castle Moulbaix, they will play this as a duet.
Grinning, Sirius waved him off, "I don't mind, I've waited more than ten years for my day in court. A few weeks is nothing..." Rotating his shoulders, he shook his head, "Besides, I've got things to do. One of the things that I am learning is how to operate a computer."
Unlike most of the other times, his cousin's surprise was obvious, "You? Learning how to use a computer? Really?"
With a nod, Sirius chuckled, "Seriously." Ignoring the groan, he continued with a slight smile, "I heard that it would be one of the easiest ways for me to communicate with Harry. And I'm looking forward for when I get free of here and can walk away a free man." Lightly smiling, the animagus' expression brightened, "And Harry feels the same. He sent me some pictures of him and his family, I have them on my desk back in my cell."
Oh absolutely, and speaking of Tony's plans to do a duet, with some abuse of the playback spell that Claire knows and will teach him, the next time there is a stormy moonlight night at Castle Moulbaix, they will play this as a duet.
Opening the curtains a little, Ehren frowned, "Mother, there may well be a problem."
Not paying much attention, Colombe hummed as she listened to the music echoing through the household, counterpoint to the storm outside, "Hmm?" Hearing a throat being cleared, she looked at Ehren, "A problem?"
In reply, Ehren pointed out the window as storm raged, "Ja, a problem."
Eyebrow raised, the du Chasteler walked over with a chuckle, "Oh? And what sort of problem? Is Jackie dancing out there nude and drunk in the rain again..." Having reached the window, she trailed off. Outside, lightning flashed and thunder boomed... and upon the castle grounds was a glow...
The glow from dozens of spirits, some not much more than a skeleton, others with faces in agony as demonic beings chased and played with them. Part of Colombe noted that her Great-Nephew was among those, being used like a puppet on a string by a vicious, horned being. For several seconds she just watched...
And then, slowly, closed the curtains before turning to Ehren with a smile and closed eyes, "Ah, well... let us just ignore that then. And I shall be drinking of my brandy tonight..."
Also, why did I imagine the trial of Sirius Black to have some elements of Phoenix Wright? And why do I imagine that various BGMs will be played on said trial?
What would be even funnier is if Sirius' girlfriend shows up to the trial in disguise, then if Umbitch tries something on the day he's actually in the courtroom, she can reveal herself and make the Toad Woman wet herself.
What would be even funnier is if Sirius' girlfriend shows up to the trial in disguise, then if Umbitch tries something on the day he's actually in the courtroom, she can reveal herself and make the Toad Woman wet herself.
(No one said the course of True Love was without bumps)
Flight of the ButterKlavier
June 13th, 2018
Claire blushed and broke into a happy smile as Tony lowered his bow after a virtuoso solo performance of Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. As she applauded enthusiastically she reflected on how much fun the past two months had become.
She enjoyed duets with Mother on her true body playing four-hand or Tokunotaki on her shakuhachi bamboo flute immensely, and Toku in particular was a fascinating partner who provided a unique synthesis with her subtle woodwind harmonics to Claire's backing range and depth of voice. As well, teaching Ehren, who was progressing most nicely as her pupil, was a joy for her and she was hopeful in a short year or four Ehren would be skilled enough to begin four-hand pieces with her big sister. She already had a selection picked out for her little sister to enjoy on her ivories.
But as enjoyable and satisfying as her family were to play with, they did not stretch and challenge her the way that playing with and for Tony did. The others did not have nearly the ear for nuance, timbre, and tone that her Stradaverius boyfriend did or were the challenge to impress with the quality of a performance.
After all, for her beloved family, they did not breathe, eat, and sleep music the way she and Tony did. Ehren perhaps came closet, but even Ehren's romantic heart was turned to the battlefield and not the concert hall.
Which had resulted in the last two months of no-holds-barred musical combat. Not surprising since she was the daughter of a Muramasa and Tony was a Potter - incapable of backing down from a challenge over something that the Potter desired as much as Tony desired her love. Each challenged the other to perform better than they ever had, matching Bach cantata with Mozart rondo, Chopin nocturne with Haydn sonata, Grieg with Gershwin, Beethoven with Brahms, Ravel with Rachmaninoff.
The battle had been fierce and unrelenting with no quarter offered or accepted in the current running points tally and Claire was happily aware that it would probably last for the rest of her long lifetime. She couldn't wait, honestly and she knew deep down that Tony was of identical mind. Playing to impress someone as skilled and discerning as you were was a challenge and hard work - which made her understand Ehren's drive and work ethic a bit better, she idly reflected as she glanced at her little sister the chaperone.
She was even willing to admit - in private - that Tony had a clear advantage on her currently among the Italian composers, while she was ahead in the French school after impressing him with her Chopin chops. The German masters were still a hotly contested warzone week after week, unsurprising since Claire was Austrian by origin, and had expanded her repertoire among the great Germans for Ehren's sake (fortunately, as it turned out, what Tony could do with Beethoven sent her heartstrings fluttering - rrrowrrr). The Russians were currently equally contested among them and Claire had decided after some frantic arrangement the night before it was time to take a page from Hannibal and storm Italy over the Alps rather than continue to lose ground among the Russians.
She might be out-pianoed by his brilliance with Shostakovitch, but this piano was not going down easy without an assault on his rear areas!
With that, she looked over at him and grinned smugly - an expression learned from Mother - while cracking her knuckles as she prepared to play one of the most famous violin solo pieces in the classical corpus.
Showtime.
With that she began to make the soft sounds of icy breezes and falling snow as her fingers begin the rhythm of gradually increasing eighth notes leading into the solo violin's entrance. Tony's eyes widened in surprise and delight as he immediately recognized the piece that his Bösendorfer girlfriend was playing for him.
The Allegro non molto from Vivaldi's Concerto #4 in F minor, Op. 8, RV 297, "Winter" (L'inverno)
-------------------------
Tony applauded happily as Claire finished her arrangement of Vivaldi with a flourish and a triumphant chord and bowed to her as she stood up from her bench and curtsied to him and the softly smiling Ehren.
Well done, Claire, well done.
He knew firsthand exactly how demanding the solo violin in the Allegro was for him to play. Albeit that solo was so enjoyable as he led the other strings and harpsichord through the arpeggios dancing up and down the upper end of his range. But she had played it magnificently as she used her superior range to mimic all the violins and even add some bass 'harpsichord' backing at times when she had a hand free to slide down to the left end of her keyboard.
A definite point to her, and he was already contemplating the possibilities of a duet arrangement of L'invernio with her.
Later.
He wasn't going down easily even with this setback in today's competition to impress her, but he needed something to show that he in turn could be worthy of her love.
But what...?
Aha!
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's The Tale of Tsar Saltan, Act 3!
If she wanted to demonstrate her virtuosity with sixteenths in arpeggios, he would give virtuosity and arpeggios to her good and hard.
With that he placed his violin in readiness and closed his eyes as he began the staccato sounds of a insect in flight with his sautillé bowing up and down in a wild shower of notes.
The Flight of the Bumblebee.
---------------------------
Ehren's lips quirked upward in a well-controlled smile as Tony launched into a piece that she recognized from her research into music that she had undertaken in self-defense and to better connect with Big Sister Claire.
Well, she also admitted to herself, she was enjoying music in and of itself. As her growing iTunes library and music player demonstrated, even if both were not a patch on Claire's appetite for music and composers.
With that she glanced over to Claire, expecting to see her big sister enthralled as usual by the family guest violinist - who was going to be just family once Mother got with the program.
Ehren did not expect to see Claire's reaction to the piece.
Her sister was actually experiencing full body uncontrolled shivers as she bit her lip and whimpered, her fists clenching spasmodically. Her face had a nuclear blush on it and her eyes were locked on Tony with raw passion and desire filling them as he played. It was clear she was on the ragged edge of throwing Tony to the floor to have her way with him.
Ehren's own eyes widened in shock as she put two and two together and realized that Mother was just across the hall in her study while Claire was... was....
Scheiße!
As Tony approached the end of the piece, Ehren leaned close to her sister and hissed "I'll cover for you, run! Now!"
Claire gave a shaky nod and bolted for the door to the music room like a scalded cat.
Tony finished the piece and opened his eyes as the running footsteps faded down the hall. He gave Ehren a baffled "what did I do?!?" look as Claire's bedroom door slammed in the distance. Colombe opened her study door and leaned out to see what the commotion was about.
Ehren plastered her best controlled face on and spoke. "Impressive, Tony, I see that the Flight of the Bumblebee stung Claire with an idea for a new composition and she desires privacy to work on it before she can serenade the household with it."
Ehren's eyes found Tony and gave him a "back my story up or I'll kill you slowly" look as the confused Stradivarius made a sound of agreement.
Colombe looked at the two of them and shrugged. "Ahh, one of those days for her then."
"Ja." Butter wouldn't melt in Ehren's mouth and she exerted iron self control to prevent either laughing or grinning like a lunatic (or Aunt Jackie) as Colombe closed the door.
She then turned to Tony and spoke in a quiet undertone, keeping an eye on Colombe's door to insure that she was not overheard. Behind them the piano that was Claire's true form popped out of sight as her spirit Apparated it back to her room.
"I strongly recommend that you remove that piece from your repertoire temporarily. Until the wedding night. For your own safety. Mother would have... reacted poorly to seeing you putting Claire in that state before she is married. Well, seeing her anytime like that; Mother is... Mother. We dodged a bullet this once, let us not tempt fate again, ja?"
Tony nodded as the light bulb visibly came on. " I... see. When I get around to my planned visit to the British Branch of my family, I will have to tell cousin Tsukiakari this; she will laugh herself sick."
Ehren shook her head. "I advise keeping this story to yourself. It might get back to Mother's ears and then..."
"Ahh.... I'll... head downstairs and see what inspiration strikes me looking at the trophies in... the billiard room perhaps?" Tony spoke slowly with the expression on his face of a man realizing that he is suddenly in a minefield.
"Do that. I'll handle Claire. I'll see you at dinner then." The Dagger gave a fractional smile. "No permanent harm done with your suit, I suspect. You didn't know. Then. Incidentally, well played Tony. I rather enjoyed that final piece, it was... amusing."
With that Ehren marched down the hall to her sister's room and leaned against the door. She cocked an ear, hearing the muffled sounds of frantic piano playing along with a wordless vocal accompaniment.
Ehren's own cheeks pinked slightly at the sounds from within and she kept an eye out for parental figures as she patiently waited for a quarter of an hour. Finally silence fell inside and she gave a ten-count before rapping on the door. "Claire, it's Ehren."
Ehren's lips curled up at the squeak of alarm from inside as her sister responded in a panicked voice. "E-ehren!! Don't come in! Please!!"
"I won't. I just thought that you should know that Mother knows that you ran in here to do some serious composing since the bumblebee," Ehren desperately fought to keep her smirk out of her voice, "bit you with inspiration for some composition. Tony is sorry for not realizing that... ahh... his playing can stir animal passions and won't do that again."
Ehren paused for effect and lowered her voice before continuing, "Before you two get married. My advice is just make sure to have the soundproofing wards up and pay the insurance on the furniture then. Also make sure that your door is locked."
Another squeak of panic and the lock on the door Ehren was leaning against clicked.
Ehren's smirk widened. "I'll leave you alone now. If you need me, I'll be in my room. I hope that the rest of your day is as enjoyable as mine has been recently. Auf Wiedersehn, Claire."
Ehren: "Nein, I am just acting according to the instructions of page 173 paragraph a (3) of my Kleineschwesterbedienungsanleitung (Little Sister Operators Manual) in the section for how to respond to your elder sister caught in a compromising position with her boyfriend."
Who wouldn't want to recover a lost family album, especially when there are individuals in the photos who can't have updated shots in newer photos from family get-togethers?
Hundreds of miles away, his father smiled a bit as his shikigami listened in on the conversation. He could have had it move closer, but that would mean that it would likely be able to see his son's girlfriends in the buff. Despite how beautiful they were, that waswould be going too far. No, let them keep their privacy as he watched over them with pride. A soft giggle made him turn to where his wife was, "Oh, I'm so happy that they got together, Husband."
Glad to see that she's warmed to Tony (to some degree). She did apparently threaten him with some quite extraordinary pain at one point, presumably if he were to disappoint Claire... (or was that retconned?)
Glad to see that she's warmed to Tony (to some degree). She did apparently threaten him with some quite extraordinary pain at one point, presumably if he were to disappoint Claire... (or was that retconned?)
Yes she did threaten him* a day or two after arrival and after Claire and the others argued Colombe into cleaning out the spare bedroom. Here's her reasoning:
One part to protect Claire from heartbreak just in case (and to test Tony's backbone), one part because she suspected Mother was listening at the door and saying 'You go boy, and Claire has the Hots For Handel if you need to serenade her' would be counterproductive in the 'Get Precious Piano Roll Big Sister Hitched' master plan that she and Claire are working on. Everyone is trying to keep Colombe from flying off the handle until the knot is tied.
Basically Ehren is supportive of the Tony/Claire relationship and has been supportive since Day One with the goal to keep Mother from exploding long enough for her to accept the reality that she's getting a Potter son-in-law. Pretty much the whole family except Colombe are building the Tony/Claire ship like WWII US Shipbuilding production. Notice how they kept Tony's identity from Colombe until Juuchi spilled the beans that he is her German-Branch cousin?
*After the two heard Colombe 'sneaking' out of earshot (the rapier being not nearly as stealthy as she thinks), Ehren gave Tony a low-voiced explanation of the situation WRT Mother and said that while if he did toy with Claire she would gut him, if his intentions toward Big Sis were honorable, she wants to be Maid of Honor in exchange for her support.
One part to protect Claire from heartbreak just in case (and to test Tony's backbone), one part because she suspected Mother was listening at the door and saying 'You go boy, and Claire has the Hots For Handel if you need to serenade her' would be counterproductive in the 'Get Precious Piano Roll Big Sister Hitched' master plan that she and Claire are working on. Everyone is trying to keep Colombe from flying off the handle until the knot is tied.
Basically Ehren is supportive of the Tony/Claire relationship and has been supportive since Day One with the goal to keep Mother from exploding long enough for her to accept the reality that she's getting a Potter son-in-law. Pretty much the whole family except Colombe are building the Tony/Claire ship like WWII US Shipbuilding rates. Notice how they kept Tony's identity from Colombe until Juuchi spilled the beans that he is her German-Branch cousin?
Fair enough. I can't exactly say that I don't fully support that shipping program. (And this is why you shouldn't trust daggers. They're sneaky )
Incidentally, for some reason I'm imagining a hypothetical daughter of Claire and Tony (faaar down the line) as Mairead Nesbitt, or close enough as to make no difference...
Incidentally, for some reason I'm imagining a hypothetical daughter of Claire and Tony (faaar down the line) as Mairead Nesbitt, or close enough as to make no difference...
She is one of their daughters, yes. Let's just say that Claire and Tony won't exactly have to hit the hiring hall to assemble a string and keyboard octet about 50 years down the road.....
(and the Du Chasteler Chamber Music society is all one big (somewhat-happy) family. The family that plays (classical) together stays together.)
((in case people wonder, my headcanon is that the ensemble is a piano, a harpsichord, a pair of violas, a pair of violins, a pair of cellos, and a double bass with the harpsichord, both cellos, one viola, and the double bass as boys))
So I went ahead and looked at Shadiversity's video on Hogwarts, and it had some interesting commentary on the design and how it was a glorious Fantasy Castle, but not a proper castle in the fact that certain bits of design were either impossible (such as the 'turreted towers' stuck onto other towers) or undermine its ability to defend students. The former he admits can be ascribed to magic, but the latter - I feel - add a sense of historicity to the structure. By that, I mean that Hogwarts looks like it could have had some changes done between the 10th Century when it was built and the modern day. Here's the video (fair warning - I highly suspect that half of Shad's narrations are unscripted, so expect the occasional digression):
The points of poor defenses are as follows:
Poor Crenellations: those toothy things on top of battlements. The crenels we see are to small to duck behind, and are to short for defenders to use for cover - they only come up to about chest height.
Bridges: There's the wooden bridge behind the school, and the stone bridge that pops into existence in the front, but only appears in Deathly Hollows. These are determined to be risks due to how there are no gatehouses to prevent enemies (like Voldemort) from just waltzing in. The stone bridge, given the continuity error it presents in the film, can be chalked up to it being a magical construct that comes into being as required (Shad mentions this, but doesn't go as far as I did), while the wooden bridge is a clear risk defensively.
Walls: On the one side of the school where there are no natural defenses to take advantage of, there is a long wall... Except for the massive gap with two towers in the middle. Sure, it's a bottleneck for armies, but it's still a massive gap to compensate for.
So what does this have to do with how Hogwarts evolved as I suggested earlier? Simple: With the Statute of Secrecy, there would have been a perceived weaker need to prepare for muggle attacks, and with the ICW there were fewer chances that Dark Lords would have come, the Magical World Governments would have teamed up and stopped them due to the risks to the Statute before they could solidify their rule militarily - either that or they'd focus on just the government and leave the school(s) alone.
Therefore, in theory, the headmaster during the height of the Statute (roughly 19th Century) can easily have made the argument that the defenses were no longer required and thus could be done away with.
Those two towers in the middle of that wall? The remnants of a gatehouse, the gate was simply removed. The crenellations? Demolished and redesigned to allow better views of the Scottish countryside. The Bridges? The wooden bridge was built to permit easier access from the outside. The stone bridge I can see being original, and functions like a large drawbridge - depending on the policies of the Headmaster of the time, it could be fully assembled, or dismantled and hidden in the lake, with magic doing the assembly or dismantling. We can say that Snape - under orders from Voldemort - set up the policy for the bridge to be built. Meanwhile, Dumbledore - having lived through the World Wars - had the bridge dismantled as a means of soothing his nerves about the risks in the larger world.
"I wonder what she could have done if she started with a full range of strings? Of course, it would need a lot of magic for her to swing a piano around during her routines like she does with that fiddle."
Also, why did I imagine the trial of Sirius Black to have some elements of Phoenix Wright? And why do I imagine that various BGMs will be played on said trial?
What would be even funnier is if Sirius' girlfriend shows up to the trial in disguise, then if Umbitch tries something on the day he's actually in the courtroom, she can reveal herself and make the Toad Woman wet herself.
Ehren: "Nein, I am just acting according to the instructions of page 173 paragraph a (3) of my Kleineschwesterbedienungsanleitung (Little Sister Operators Manual) in the section for how to respond to your elder sister caught in a compromising position with her boyfriend."
Who wouldn't want to recover a lost family album, especially when there are individuals in the photos who can't have updated shots in newer photos from family get-togethers?
Glad to see that she's warmed to Tony (to some degree). She did apparently threaten him with some quite extraordinary pain at one point, presumably if he were to disappoint Claire... (or was that retconned?)
Yes she did threaten him* a day or two after arrival and after Claire and the others argued Colombe into cleaning out the spare bedroom. Here's her reasoning:
One part to protect Claire from heartbreak just in case (and to test Tony's backbone), one part because she suspected Mother was listening at the door and saying 'You go boy, and Claire has the Hots For Handel if you need to serenade her' would be counterproductive in the 'Get Precious Piano Roll Big Sister Hitched' master plan that she and Claire are working on. Everyone is trying to keep Colombe from flying off the handle until the knot is tied.
Basically Ehren is supportive of the Tony/Claire relationship and has been supportive since Day One with the goal to keep Mother from exploding long enough for her to accept the reality that she's getting a Potter son-in-law. Pretty much the whole family except Colombe are building the Tony/Claire ship like WWII US Shipbuilding production. Notice how they kept Tony's identity from Colombe until Juuchi spilled the beans that he is her German-Branch cousin?
*After the two heard Colombe 'sneaking' out of earshot (the rapier being not nearly as stealthy as she thinks), Ehren gave Tony a low-voiced explanation of the situation WRT Mother and said that while if he did toy with Claire she would gut him, if his intentions toward Big Sis were honorable, she wants to be Maid of Honor in exchange for her support.
Incidentally, for some reason I'm imagining a hypothetical daughter of Claire and Tony (faaar down the line) as Mairead Nesbitt, or close enough as to make no difference...
She is one of their daughters, yes. Let's just say that Claire and Tony won't exactly have to hit the hiring hall to assemble a string and keyboard octet about 50 years down the road.....
(and the Du Chasteler Chamber Music society is all one big (somewhat-happy) family. The family that plays (classical) together stays together.)
((in case people wonder, my headcanon is that the ensemble is a piano, a harpsichord, a pair of violas, a pair of violins, a pair of cellos, and a double bass with the harpsichord, both cellos, one viola, and the double bass as boys))
So I went ahead and looked at Shadiversity's video on Hogwarts, and it had some interesting commentary on the design and how it was a glorious Fantasy Castle, but not a proper castle in the fact that certain bits of design were either impossible (such as the 'turreted towers' stuck onto other towers) or undermine its ability to defend students. The former he admits can be ascribed to magic, but the latter - I feel - add a sense of historicity to the structure. By that, I mean that Hogwarts looks like it could have had some changes done between the 10th Century when it was built and the modern day. Here's the video (fair warning - I highly suspect that half of Shad's narrations are unscripted, so expect the occasional digression):
The points of poor defenses are as follows:
Poor Crenellations: those toothy things on top of battlements. The crenels we see are to small to duck behind, and are to short for defenders to use for cover - they only come up to about chest height.
Bridges: There's the wooden bridge behind the school, and the stone bridge that pops into existence in the front, but only appears in Deathly Hollows. These are determined to be risks due to how there are no gatehouses to prevent enemies (like Voldemort) from just waltzing in. The stone bridge, given the continuity error it presents in the film, can be chalked up to it being a magical construct that comes into being as required (Shad mentions this, but doesn't go as far as I did), while the wooden bridge is a clear risk defensively.
Walls: On the one side of the school where there are no natural defenses to take advantage of, there is a long wall... Except for the massive gap with two towers in the middle. Sure, it's a bottleneck for armies, but it's still a massive gap to compensate for.
So what does this have to do with how Hogwarts evolved as I suggested earlier? Simple: With the Statute of Secrecy, there would have been a perceived weaker need to prepare for muggle attacks, and with the ICW there were fewer chances that Dark Lords would have come, the Magical World Governments would have teamed up and stopped them due to the risks to the Statute before they could solidify their rule militarily - either that or they'd focus on just the government and leave the school(s) alone.
Therefore, in theory, the headmaster during the height of the Statute (roughly 19th Century) can easily have made the argument that the defenses were no longer required and thus could be done away with.
Those two towers in the middle of that wall? The remnants of a gatehouse, the gate was simply removed. The crenellations? Demolished and redesigned to allow better views of the Scottish countryside. The Bridges? The wooden bridge was built to permit easier access from the outside. The stone bridge I can see being original, and functions like a large drawbridge - depending on the policies of the Headmaster of the time, it could be fully assembled, or dismantled and hidden in the lake, with magic doing the assembly or dismantling. We can say that Snape - under orders from Voldemort - set up the policy for the bridge to be built. Meanwhile, Dumbledore - having lived through the World Wars - had the bridge dismantled as a means of soothing his nerves about the risks in the larger world.
Oddly, one of the features of an early Castle would be to use some part of the surroundings for security. Hogwarts stands right there on a small mountain top and needing to be reached via bridge. It becomes odder though, and likely it once did have large walls, because we have ruins elsewhere on the grounds and the Owlery, well...
"I wonder what she could have done if she started with a full range of strings? Of course, it would need a lot of magic for her to swing a piano around during her routines like she does with that fiddle."
