Arpeggio - Chapter 4: Closer to the Heart

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quBCjo2rUZg&feature=related

>Cyrus gives off no feedback from the huge amps

>The mic is placed in the perfect position

>Rainbow is prepped on the drums and Twilight's horn glows. Certain keys on Geddy are surrounded by a purple aura

>You take a deep breath and exhale before beginning the note sequence on Cyrus

>Rainbow hits a note on her xylophone to correspond with your notes and continues on while Twilight plays a low bassline

>You break into chords while laying out the lyrics

 

"And the men who hold high places

must be the ones who start

To mold a new reality

Closer to the heart

Closer to the heart"

>Rainbow begins laying out a beat while Twilight provides a bass guitar tone from Geddy

 

"The blacksmith and the artist

Reflect it in their art

They forge their creativity

Closer to the heart

Yes, Closer to the heart"

 

>Rainbow quickly uses a wing to grab a mallet and bang on the organ bells next to her while Twilight plays synth

>You quickly turn up Cyrus' tone all the way as to provide the loud sound you enjoy and slam out some chords

 

"Philosophers and ploughmen

Each must know his part

To sow a new mentality

Closer to the heart

Yes, Closer to the heart! Yeah!"

 

>Rainbow moves to cut-time while Twilight speeds up the bass

>You quickly strum out a mad solo alongside Dash and Twilight

>Rainbow is pounding out awesome measure transitions and Twilight keeps the bassline fresh

>After some improvisation you strum out the note sequence from the beginning of the song. Twilight and Rainbow soon accompany you

 

"Whoah oh! You can be the captain

And I will draw the chart

Sailing into destiny

Closer to the heart

Closer to the heart

Well, Closer to the heart, yeah!"

 

>You keep on singing the last few words while slamming chords from Cyrus

>Rainbow is letting loose on the drum kit

>Twilight continues on the bassline, improvising note sequences and making the bass ring out

>After the verse finally ends you three slam out a big band finish

>The crowd goes wild

>The cheers don't stop at all

>You put Cyrus on his stand next to you and decide to jump off the stage and surf over the crowd

>You take a running start before diving into the crowd, turning in mid-air as to land on your back

 

>Your face meets the floor as you roll out of bed

"Ow..."

>You stay there for a few seconds before sighing and picking yourself up

>Not the first time you've done that

>You really should learn how to control your dreams

>Or at least learn how to tell when you're dreaming

>That damn crowdsurfing dream gets you every time

"Now's a good a time as any to get the day started, I suppose."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpRaX6VkRKk

>You take about twelve seconds to yawn, scratch and stretch

>You then smack your cheeks a couple times to wake up

"Time to start the day!"

>First thing's first. You get undressed and jump in the shower

>You clean yourself thoroughly, like every morning, and throw on the cold water to rinse off

>After exiting the shower you dry off and throw a robe on before brushing your teeth

>You rinse with some mouthwash and rinse again with water before exiting the bathroom

>You grab some clothes out of the drawer Rufus and Marcello chill next to, checking yourself in the mirror

>You grab a hair-tie and flip your long hair back, tying it into a p0nytail

>Then you throw on a pair of jeans and a blue t-shirt

"Alright...ready and able."

>You walk downstairs and prepare a quick breakfast of bacon substitute, eggs, hashbrowns and toast with a glass of milk

>Alright, maybe not so quick

>The hearty breakfast is soon complete and you sit down at the table to dig in

>Suddenly there's a knocking on your door

>You put down your fork and get up to answer it

>Opening the door you're greeted by a smiling purple p0ny sporting a saddlebag

>"Morning, Anon!"

"Well, you're here pretty early. I was just about to get some food in my gut. Join me?"

>"Oh no thank you. I already had some breakfast."

"Alright then. Come on in."

>You step to the side to let her in and close the door behind you

>You walk to the kitchen and take your seat in front of your plate

>Twilight sits next to you

>"So Anon, I've been studying musical theory and the different chords on a piano."

>You're chewing a mouthful of bacon (substitute) and hashbrowns

>You reply with a nod

>"I've also learned the different scales and play styles. I'm ready to incorporate them when you're ready."

>You swallow your food and follow it up with a long draught from your cup of milk

"Sounds great, Twi. Just lemme finish up here and we can get started."

>She clops her front hooves together in excitement

>You quickly finish up your meal and clean up before going upstairs with Twilight

>Entering your room you let Twilight in before closing the door behind her as to keep the sound within the room

>Twilight levitates her saddlebag off her and onto the bed

>You grab Geddy and scoot him close to the bed

>Twilight sits behind Geddy and places her front hooves on the spot below the keys, preparing to play

"Whenever you're ready. Take your time if need be."

>She seems to ponder what to play for a moment or two before she places her hooves on the keys

>It looks like she's trying to play chords with both hooves, but unfortunately she can only get two keys down seeing as she has hooves

>She continues this fruitless venture for a few moments before she begins frantically hitting keys in an attempt to get something, anything out there

>It almost looks like she's tearing up

>Actually, she -is- tearing up

>You take a seat next to her and wrap an arm around her neck

"Chill out for a sec, dear. What's got your coat all ruffled?"

>She leans her head on your side

>"I'm sorry, Anon...I'm just not as good as I thought I would be. I read all those books on music theory and learned every scale, only to fizzle out when actually -applying- what I learned. I..I guess reading a book can't solve everything."

"Now hold up there, this can't be the Twilight I know. That mare wouldn't give up at the first sign of defeat."

>A familiar image invades your mind as you look to Twilight as she sits behind Geddy

>Her horn glowing and keys being pressed down

>Inspiration...

"Twilight you've found a way around obstacles before, haven't you?"

>"Well yes, by learning everything I could about the subject through books and applying what I learned..."

"Doing so has helped. That much you can't deny, right?"

>She picks her head up and wipes her eyes with a hoof

>"Yes."

"Even landed you in fifth place at the Running of the Leaves a couple years back. You even beat Rainbow Dash and Applejack if I recall correctly."

>"But they were locked in their silly competition."

"Regardless, your smarts still power through in the end. Am I incorrect to say so?"

>"...No"

"Great! Then let's try again."

>"Anon...the only p0ny pianists -were- the only p0ny pianists for a reason, y'know. They could move their hooves so fast they were able to play a piano like it was nothing!"

"Then that just means we're going to have to incorporate something else."

>"What do you mean?"

"Twi, I'm talking about your magic."

>Her eyes widen before a big smile graces her face

>"Why didn't I think of it before!"

"I was wonder the same thing."

>She quickly levitates a book out of her bag and flips through it, stopping on a certain page

>After scanning it quickly she levitates the book back to the bag and places her hooves on the keys

>Her horn glows and certain keys on Geddy are surrounded by the purple aura

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xB-ewGHVTIE

>She presses a few keys down with her magic and hooves to get a feel for the keyboard

>Then it's silent for a few seconds before she begins to improvise

>It's...beautiful to say the least

>She knows how to trill the keys

>Some of the buttons on the keyboard are surrounded by the purple aura as a stringed instrument sound accompanies the piano

>She even learned how to use Geddy's different functions

>How she did so is unknown to you

>Oh well. It doesn't matter. She can -play-

>The tone of her piece seems somber, but she changes keys to bring out a happy tone at certain parts

>She transitions into everything smoothly until playing a final upward scale of notes

>Once she finishes she squees with delight

"Twilight, that was amazing. It looks like there's a new p0ny pianist in the world, huh?"

>She looks up at you and smiles

>"Thanks for believing in me, Anon. I probably would've just given up but you kept me going."

>You nod and open your mouth to ask a question but Twilight cuts you off

>"And yes. I would love to join your band."

"Great!"

>Suddenly there's a knock on your window

>You stand up and turn around to see Rainbow Dash hovering outside, beckoning you to open it

>You walk around the bed, unlock the window and pull it open

>Dash flies in and lands in front of Twilight

>"Hey you guys. Twilight already show you what she can do, Anon?"

"She sure did. -And- she's part of the band now."

>"Alright! This is gonna be great!"

"You know it!"

>Twilight cuts in

>"I feel like we're missing something, though. We need more than just drums a keyboard and guitar, don't we?"

"Well...a bassist would suit us nicely."

>"Where are we gonna find someone to play bass?"

>"I'm not sure...I could check the paper for anything"

"Better yet, let's get an ad in the paper!"

>Rainbow gives you a confused look

>"The paper?"

"Yeah, tons of p0nies read the paper. I'm sure we'll get responses for a bassist in no time!"

>Rainbow seems reserved about the idea

>Twilight speaks up

>"It's the best idea we have right now."

"That's two out of three votes. Dash?"

>"Yeah okay. Let's do it."

>"I'll go check the prices on ads, Anon. "

"Cool. Thanks Twi."

>Twilight's horn glows and she teleports right out of your house

>You look outside the window to see her walking away

>You push Geddy back to his spot next to the wall and flop on your bed, Rainbow joining you shortly after

>"So what now?"

"I guess we wait..."

>"Yep..."

>It's silent for a few minutes

"So what's up?"

>This sparked a conversation that lasted almost the entire day...