Transcendent Melody

 

Shae wound her way through the ever-increasing crowd with the tray held over her head. She had, up to this point, felt self-conscious of her height compared to the women of most other species that made Limsa Lominsa their home but tonight her extra reach proved to be a boon. Ninimira, her diminutive Lalafell co-worker, had all but given up trying to wait on the tables.

 

Shae pushed her way into the kitchen and dumped the tray of empty mugs and plates on the side of the sink, which already teetered with dishes needing washed. Ninimira groaned as she scrubbed at a pan.

 

“More? I don’t care how good this bard is supposed to be, this is insane!”

 

Shae nodded but didn’t respond – she was already moving away. She grabbed the next tray of food and drinks and heading back into the fray.

 

The bard in question was an Elezean male who stood almost as tall as Shae (minus her ears). He wore an amazingly colorful and complex outfit, with straps and belts and…and…things everywhere. It was chaotic yet somehow blended. Shae had loved it at first sight.

 

“Okay, folks, warmup time is over.” The bard posed with is harp held high, fingers poised. “Let’s begin with a standard, just to get in the flow.”

 

The crowd cheered and Shae wished she had worn a cloak to hold down her ears so she could dampen the noise. She was certain she would be deaf by the end of the night.

 

The first harp notes plucked their way out as she served the table and began making her way back again. It was a familiar song even to her – she had heard it hundreds of times in her year in Limsa. Every musician had their own version of it. It was a simple song of the sea, with a catchy chorus that the crowd sang along with. Shae was not impressed. She shook her head as she gathered some empty mugs and returned to the kitchen.

 

“Well?” Ninimira glanced up as she scrubbed at a plate.

 

Shae shrugged. “He’s just another musician, as far as I can tell.”

 

“See? Why is this stupid crowd here, then?”

 

Shae shrugged again as she picked up the next tray. “Maybe they find him handsome?”

 

“Ooh! Is he?”

 

Shae frowned. “I don’t know. He’s an Ele..Elezee…Elesh….”

 

“Elezean?”

 

“Yes, that. They always seem so narrow to me, so I can’t tell which are supposed to be attractive.”

 

Ninimira dropped the plate in the sink and grabbed her belly with both hands and guffawed. “That’s not how attraction works! It’s not what they think is attractive, it’s what you think! Although I suppose your answer says it all – you don’t think he is.”

 

Shae shrugged once more as she reached the door. “I suppose not. I am certainly not attracted to his music.” Then she stepped through the door and her world changed.

 

The sea ditty had ended and he had started something new, something Shae had never heard before. Complex harmonies weaved together with a baleful melody that spoke of death and despair, sorrow and loss. She was caught up in its chords, transported in an instant to a place she could not see but yet felt familiar; a land as exquisitely detailed as in any storybook, but made of sound and passion. She didn’t realize she had stopped moving until someone jostled her arm and the drinks sloshed over the rims.

 

She shook her head, trying to clear it of the fog the song had induced, and continued to the table that awaited the tray. The song continued and it took every bit of her strength to keep from stopping again. By the time she made it back the kitchen, she was sweating and felt as though she had just retreated in defeat from an unseen battle.

 

Ninimira glanced up. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Is he really that awful? I don’t understand how all these people…”

 

“No.” Shae set down the tray and leaned against the wall. She needed to recover before she braved that again. And wait for that song to end.

 

“No? No what?”

 

“No, he’s not awful. He is…amazing.” A thought percolated in her mind and she pursued it, nurtured it until he came clear. “I wonder if he would teach me.”

 

“Oh ho! So you do find him attractive! Shae Shae is in looooove! Ooh, you’re blushing!”

 

“It’s not like that!” Her protests, of course, only amplified the teasing, and soon she was laughing along with Ninimira’s jokes. The Lalafell always made her laugh – being with her was like being with her siblings again, a bittersweet pairing of joy and regret. But this time, her heart was not in it – she joined in for the rote, for Ninimira’s sake, but her mind was far away, reliving the journey the music had inspired, and dreaming of a day when she, too, could take people on such a journey.