Blood, Sweat, and Hanon - A Ranger's Apprentice fanfiction

Chapter Twenty - Alyss

It's seven in the morning, and the Junior International preliminaries will begin in about an hour.

Alyss is due to meet Ms. DuLacy in about fifteen minutes, and she's running late. Jenny is already long gone, probably warming up somewhere on her ever-present practice pad. Alyss rummages wildly through her closet, throwing clothes behind her. Finally she finds what she's looking for. She dresses quickly, and pulls her long, blonde hair back in its customary French braid. Today, though, is a special occasion, so she adds a simple black velvet bow to the end.

She quickly grabs her music from where she left it on her desk, and leaves her dorm room, locking the door behind her. It feels strange to walk around without her violin case. In the past few months, she's carried it around so much that it almost became a part of her.

Alyss hurries along the sidewalk to the Conservatory, first stopping in at the dining hall to grab a banana. She doesn't think it wise that she eat anything else. She's had nightmares about losing her breakfast in the competition, and her stomach is just tight enough from nerves that she thinks it could happen if she's not careful.

She uses the back entrance of the Conservatory, the one closest to Ms. DuLacy's office. For the past few days, she's kept a low profile, as Halt and Ms. DuLacy have advised her. It's no use inviting something else bad to happen. As it is, Halt and his "eyes," whoever they are, have been watching out for her. She never sees them, but she feels more comfortable walking through the hallways now than she has all semester.

Alyss knocks on Ms. DuLacy's door, and quickly ducks inside when she hears Ms. DuLacy call, "Come in!"

"Good morning, Alyss," her teacher says cheerfully. "You look nice this morning."

"Thanks, Ms. DuLacy," Alyss says. "You do too." As usual, her teacher looks poised and elegant. Today, she's wearing a fitted black velvet dress - the fabric matching the bow in Alyss's hair - and simple black heels. A single strand of pearls rests around her neck, and single matching pearls gleam at her ears.

"Why don't you start warming up," Ms. DuLacy suggests. "I found a different chin rest and I changed it out for you. Hopefully it will work better for you." She hands Alyss her violin, and Alyss tucks it under her chin, trying out the different chin rest. She nods appreciatively.

"That feels much better," she says. She tightens and rosins Ms. DuLacy's bow with quick, practiced motions. 

Then she begins to warm up, Ms. DuLacy supervising closely.

She begins with long, slow scales, gradually increasing speed.

"Watch your shoulders," Ms. DuLacy warns at one point. "You're getting tense."

Once it's pointed out to her, Alyss feels it immediately. She loosens her shoulders, and instantly her bow arm feels freer.

When she's finished warming up, Ms. DuLacy glances at her watch. "I think the piece we're both most worried about is the Paganini," she says. "Go ahead and perform that for me, and then we'll see how much time we have left."

Alyss is a little apprehensive as she raises her bow to the strings. She breathes, and begins to play.

It's absolutely perfect. Maybe Ms. DuLacy's violin gives her technique and extra edge. Maybe she's finally gotten in enough practice. Maybe her adrenaline and nerves have combined in some way that they've never done before.

Alyss breaks into a huge, relieved smile when she's done. Ms. DuLacy simply nods in satisfaction.

"I knew you could do it, dear," she says. Then she glances at her watch again. "I really do have to go. The competition starts in ten minutes. Do you remember what we've planned?"

Alyss nods. "You'll take your violin with you. I'll stay here until Horace comes to get me, and he'll take me to the actual competition."

Ms. DuLacy smiles, and gives her a quick hug. "I'll see you later, but I'll say it now. Good luck!"

Then she's gone, the door shutting firmly behind her.

Alyss doesn't play until 11:05, so she has over three hours to wait. She knows it's going to seem like forever. She pulls out her French homework.

At 10:45, there's a knock on the door. "Alyss?" a voice calls. "It's me, Horace."

Alyss quickly puts her homework away and slings her backpack over her shoulders before opening the door. Will's tall, broad-shouldered roommate stands outside, his hands in his pockets.

"Hi, Horace," she says. She shuts off the light in Ms. DuLacy's office and pulls the door shut, checking to make sure it locks. 

"Hey, Alyss," he says. "You look nice. Are you ready to compete?"

She rolls her eyes. "If it were up to me, I'd never be ready." Then she smiles at Horace. "Thanks for helping me out."

He shrugs. "No problem. It's not like I'm competing, anyway."

His black eye is fading, and his split lip is scabbed over. "How are you doing?" Alyss asks.

"As well as can be expected," he says. They begin to walk down the hallway. "By the way, I heard about what happened to your violin. I'm sorry. Halt said to keep it quiet. I guess people don't know if you're competing or not?"

"That's the idea," Alyss says. "Ms. DuLacy hoped that might make me less of a target. Nothing has happened since then, but I know Halt has had people looking out for me."

"He's very secretive, Halt is," Horace remarks. "It's like an entire secret service he's running. I don't even know who his other 'eyes' are."

"So you're in on it now?" Alyss asks.

Horace nods. "I'm part of it, I guess. I'm grateful that Halt's letting me help. I'm mad at whoever's behind all of this bullying business, and I want to help find them."

"That's good," Alyss says grimly. "Whoever is in charge of it, they have something coming for them. Because Halt will find them eventually."

They reach the competition room. Alyss hands her music copies to the room monitor.

"I can hold on to your backpack for you, if you'd like," Horace offers.

Alyss gives him a grateful smile and hands him her bag. She shrugs and rolls her shoulders, dispelling the last bits of tension. 

Finally the door opens, and the person before her comes out, carrying a cello. The room monitor holds the door for Alyss, before handing her music to the judges.

"String division, entrant number sixty-one," the monitor announces, before leaving and shutting the door.

There's a long table on the opposite side of the room, where the panel of judges sits, clipboards and pens at the ready. Ms. DuLacy catches her eye and smiles. She points to a chair on one side of the room, where her violin sits.

Alyss picks it up and walks to the center of the room. The accompanist gives her an A, and she tunes quickly.

Mr. Chevall, the head cello teacher, is the spokesperson for the judges panel. "Good morning. What would you like to start with?"

Alyss raises her head and says bravely, "The Paganini."

The next five minutes pass in a blur. If she were to be asked later what happened in that audition room, she wouldn't be able to tell.

She somehow makes it back out into the hallway, in a daze, leaving Ms. DuLacy's violin on the chair where it had originally been.

Horace looks at her worriedly. "How did it go?"

Alyss shakes her head quickly, trying to get her mind back. "It went fine...I think," she says.

"All right," Horace says. "I'm supposed to take you back to Ms. DuLacy's office until callback announcements, unless you need to eat or get something from the dorm."

Alyss realizes she's ravenously hungry. "Can we go to the dining hall and get something to eat? I didn't eat breakfast. And it will help kill time until announcements."

Horace nods. "Let's go."