Voice of the Neopian Pound Circulation: 96,497,777 Issue: 189 | 6th day of Hunting, Y7
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The Power of Song


by shadowcristal

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"I don't understand why you like it," the blue Tonu told her owner.

     "Music is nice," the girl said, but was interrupted by yet another few off-key tones.

     "See?" Kamira stated, folding her arms. "That incredibly awful and ugly screech that our neighboring Mynci makes is music?" She pronounced the syllables in the last word loud and clear.

     "Err..." Alisa rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean. After all those trips we took to the Concert Hall, I thought you'd understand..."

     "You just went there because of the avatars," the Tonu stated sourly. Then she stomped once and declared, "Well, I can't understand why you like music... Stuff like that is garbage." She pointed at the house that took up most of the view from the window. "I mean, I understand people talking and using their voices, but singing like that?" Kamira frowned. "Please... now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll take a little promenade to get that echo out of my ears."

     "Do as you wish," the owner said. She watched as her moody pet stepped outside, sighed and shook her head. Then she went back to the magazine she was reading.

     "Special Street Musician Performance..." she read out loud, and quickly scanned the article. The place of the performance was just around the corner! With a smile, Alisa sunk back into the comfortable couch and took a sip out of her Twisted Roses Mug. Something was telling her that today wasn't going to be a very boring day.

     -

     Kamira hadn't even walked a block when the yellow Mynci that had made the annoying sounds she had just heard popped up.

     "Hi Kamira," the Mynci cheerfully greeted.

     "Hi Mateiya," the Tonu replied dully.

     "So... What do you think of my newest song?" Mateiya asked and quickly started singing her new, horrible-sounding creation.

     "Umm..." Kamira weighed the options. If she told the truth, Mateiya would be very sad. But if she lied, then she would have a hard time forgiving herself. But still... "Great," the Tonu said after a moment of thought. She wasn't completely lying... 'Great' could mean many things.

     "Thanks," the Mynci said. "Well, do you want to listen to another one of my songs?"

     "Err... No thanks. I'm sorry, but I have some errands."

     "I see," Mateiya said, visibly disappointed. "Well, just drop by at my house if you want to hear one of my songs. Maybe someday we can sing together!"

     "See you," the Tonu said plainly, trying to avoid more music talk. "Dream on," she thought as she walked to the next block. As if! If Mateiya wanted a music fanatic, why didn't she ask Alisa?

     Kamira shook her head as she heard another few loud bangs and tones. That energetic Mateiya had probably bumped into a bunch of trash cans, judging from the sound. Ah, the fearful power of the song... The Tonu giggled at the thought as she looked at the sky.

     It was a nice, sunny day with few clouds and a very refreshing breeze. The Tonu inhaled the fresh air, looking at all the nicely decorated NeoHomes.

     A high-pitched tone made Kamira freeze. She saw two Royal Aishas, probably twins, singing some weird opera. Alisa had educated her in music, teaching her the history, the different kinds of music and lots more. The Tonu sighed, trying not to cover her ears as she passed the two pets.

     "Did you hear?" one of the Aishas exclaimed just when Kamira passed them.

     "Yeah! There'll be a special performance... And they said the people from the audience could sing too..."

     "So, why are we here chatting away instead of singing? Let's go back to practice!" the first Aisha said and they started their incredibly high-pitched song again. The Tonu had passed them by then. Not being able to withstand anymore, she broke into a run.

     Houses and gardens flew by in a blur. Finally Kamira got tired and slowed down. By then she was too tired to focus, and bumped into someone by accident.

     "Sorry," the Tonu said as she fell, and felt something soft being squished under her body. Quickly Kamira got up and looked at the thing, no, pet that she had fallen on.

     "I'm so sorry!" Kamira exclaimed as she helped the poor Jubjub up.

     "No problem," the green JubJub said.

     "Are you all right, June?" a red Skeith asked, running down the road.

     "I'm fine, Sara," the JubJub named June replied and bounced twice to show that she was all right. "As for you, buddy, watch you where you're going."

     "Yes..." the Tonu trailed off.

     "Hmm... How about... I know! We'll sing a song to cheer you up!" June exclaimed.

     Kamira couldn't help but to roll her eyes. Oh boy, here was another few singers who wanted to display their talent for her. The Tonu's left ear twitched, remembering the false notes it had heard earlier.

     "Do we really have time to do that?" Sara asked.

     "Oh no... It's fine," Kamira said, "You don't have to sing for me. I'm sure we're all busy and have things to do." Inside, the Tonu was beginning to fear the power of song. A look at the JubJub told her that she probably wouldn't be able to get out of this one.

     "I'm sure you'll like it..." The JubJub smiled and poked her friend. "Well... Ready?"

     The Tonu shook her head, but said yes. It didn't matter if she didn't want to hear, she'd have to listen anyway. But more importantly, Kamira was shaking her head at all those hopeless fans of music, of song, of things that were so easily done wrong...

     "Here's a song to you, to cheer you up, from the singing duo!" June said in a light tone. "June!"

     "Sara!" the Skeith said, and together the two pets struck a pose. The whole thing seemed completely ridiculous to Kamira, who was trying very hard not to laugh at the strange pose.

     With a powerful jump, the Jubjub landed on her friend's back. They both took a deep breath and started singing. Colorful notes danced in the air as the two friends sung, one high and one low. At one point their notes touched, and it felt like watching a firework explode.

     The Tonu had certainly not expected this. In fact, as soon as the duo had opened their mouths, she had covered her ears the best she could. When she saw how cheerful they were and heard the small voices echo in her not completely covered ears, she let go.

     Once Kamira let go, she could feel the music. The whole thing was not just a song, not just music, but... an experience. The notes were skipping cheerfully sometimes, and once or twice they turned melancholic. But it wasn't just a song... The Tonu could sense the hard work behind it, the things that the duo must've seen and much more.

     She closed her eyes and started to imagine. One light, happy part took her took a windy summer's day when she had just caught her hat, which had blown away. Another dark part reminded Kamira of the day when she and Alisa visited the pound... The notes drew out memories that the Tonu thought she had forgotten.

     All of a sudden, even though the notes had prepared her for it, the song stopped.

     "See?" she heard June say. "We cheered you up!" Kamira opened her eyes and looked at the friends, who were striking that weird pose again.

     She let a smile enter her face and said gratefully, "Thank you."

     "Well, that was worth it all," the Skeith said.

     "Why don't you sing again?" the Jubjub asked.

     "S-sing?" the Tonu uttered, shocked.

     "Yes!" June exclaimed. "And you looked as if you were truly enjoying it..."

     "W-was I r-really singing?" Kamira asked, still surprised.

     "Yes," the Skeith said.

     "So... Sing again!" the JubJub demanded.

     "You'll have to excuse her," Sara whispered. "Sometimes she just gets a little bit too hyper for her own good."

     The Tonu shook her head. There was no way she could've sung that song! It was the first time she had heard it! On top of that, she couldn't even sing... Kamira shook her head again. "It's probably just you," she said. "I can't sing."

     "Of course you can! Come on!" June smiled.

     Taking a deep breath, the Tonu started to sing. She didn't even really know why she did it, only that she was submitting to the power of the song. That power... just like writing, telling... telling stories... That power... Kamira took a few weak notes and grew stronger. Even though the tones weren't even and the timing not perfect, it was a song...

     "Singing is too contagious," the Tonu muttered quickly, stopping to sing. For one moment, she had not been able to withstand the power of the song... That embarrassing action replayed in her mind, and she cringed at her false voice.

     "Don't worry," the JubJub said, sensing what Kamira was thinking. "You'll get better."

     "With practice," the Skeith added.

     "Again, thank you," Kamira said, feeling less grateful than before. Still, she just had to.... "For that performance."

     "It's okay! We were going to do a street performance anyway!" June grinned. "But not just us... Everyone should be singing!"

     "If we don't hurry, we'll be late," the Skeith commented, pointing to a clock.

     "Well, why don't you tag along with us? Everyone's gonna sing!" the Jubjub said, grabbing the Tonu. "You don't mind, do you?" Sara shook her head.

     "Three's a crowd," Kamira said, still thinking about how embarrassingly she had opened her mouth and let those off-key notes out.

     "The bigger the crowd, the better. After all, we're proper artists!" June exclaimed. "Betcha didn't know that, right?" Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed Kamira and together the two friends walked off with their newfound buddy.

     Looking back at the place where they had met, the Tonu shook her head. The power of song... she didn't really understand it, but she could feel kind of a belonging, a expression... All those fleeting things. With a jerk, Kamira realized that she wanted to learn. She wanted to know!

     The power of songs... It was a strong force, sweeping everything; bringing pets together, and making people smile... The Tonu made a mental note to ask her owner for lessons. She could just imagine the look on Alisa's face. Maybe music wasn't that bad, being able to make some people happy. (Even though it sometimes comes in off-key packages.)

The End

 
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