somethingspecial | 3 [Accidental Voice] Forwarded to the morning.

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3 [Accidental Voice] Forwarded to the morning.

[There's the sound of a piano playing, strong and well played, as if the person playing the piano has played this number over and over. The piano plays for a minute or two until Rachel sings softly to herself.]

I... wanna hold 'em like they do in Texas please...

[And a well practiced pause ~]

Fold 'em, let 'em hit 'em, baby, raise it, baby, stay with me... love the game, intuition, play the cards with spades to start...and after he's been hooked, I'll play the one that's on his... heart...

[And the piano playing ceases as Rachel stops singing, her voice trailing off as her breath hitches. The recording stops shortly after that.]

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[She will follow, carefully, her hands trembling, until they're outside of the casino.]

Is it going to hurt it?

A little. It'll be quick.

-=glances back at her.=-

I won't do it if it's going to cause it pain.

You'll be fine. -=says that a little tersely as his jaw's set in a hard line.=-

Over here. -=it's an out of the way place with bushes.=-

[She will follow, knife in hand, looking close to tears, but her own jawline is set with gritted teeth. Rachel Berry does not give up.]

Fine.

Now what?

[... she hasn't exactly killed a rabbit before.]

-=He sets the rabbit down, right hand over the head so she wouldn't look at the eyes.=-

You have to feel here, between the ribs for the heart. -=He moves his fingers accordingly.=-

[Rachel chews on her lower lip as she touches a finger to the rabbit's chest, trembling but determined. The rabbit's heart is racing -- but maybe that's just how rabbits are, maybe the heart just beats really fast because rabbits move really fast, that's how rodents work, they run and jump and are fuzzy and cute and innocent --

She does it quickly, almost stabbing herself in the hand as she drives the blade in as quickly and cleanly as she can, her eyes welling with tears almost immediately as the rabbit squeaks in pain and falls silent a few seconds later. It doesn't take much longer for Rachel to remove the knife, which is now bloody, and for the girl to promptly burst into tears.

But hey! She did it. That's what counts, right?]

-=In the end, he didn't want to do it. This was a girl who never had to do anything hard in her life, he imagined. And no, making auditions for some stupid singing competition wasn't hard, in his book. Adstringendum didn't have any room for that. And while she might not see it, he was doing his best to help her in his own way.=-

I'm sorry. -=His voice was quiet, and it's hard to tell if he's saying it to the rabbit or the girl. Maybe both.=- You don't have to do that again, okay? -=There was a difference between killing for survival and killing for revenge. This was for survival.=-

Just take it.

[The knife is being held out away from her, as far as possible without throwing the thing. The lesson will sink in later, but for the moment, Rachel wanted nothing to do with the blood on the knife. Or the dead rabbit.]

-=Crying girl and a dead rabbit. He twists his fingers around to take the knife.=-

I'll be back in a minute.

-=He'll just go and finish gutting the thing himself. It'll take less time. And then come back with knife safely hidden away and no blood=-

.... So what were you going to teach me.

[She'll stare at him for a moment, sniffing, before she resolutely dries her eyes with a sleeve. Crying wasn't going to solve anything. She can cry later ~~after she prays for the poor rabbit~~.]

How to -- how to -- play the piano.

-=The rabbit gave its life in order to feed others, Rachel. Don't dwell on it.=-

Piano, huh? -=acts as if nothing's amiss.=- Alright. Piano.

Have you ever played before?

[Focusing on this is easier. So is crossing her arms to not look at her hands.]

A bit. When I was little. -=Before mom died.=-

Have you tried since you got your new arm?

No. -=Hasn't played since mom died.=-

Well! If Artie can dance, you can surely play piano.

[She gestures.]

Come on.

-=Gives her a look, then follows her inside, hands in his pockets.=-

Artie is in a wheelchair.

[In explanation; and she'll sit down, carefully opening the piano to show the keys. Her fingers are still shaking slightly, so she purses her lips to get a grip and forces a smile in Edward's direction.]

So what do you know?

Of course you can dance in a wheelchair. -=a bit of a smirk. The trick is wanting to.=-

-=Right. Piano. He gives a one armed shrug.=- Stuff. Music.

And here I thought you played the piano to magically feed the poor.

[Sigh! And she'll start playing the opening chords to Poker Face. It was what she was singing, after all.]

I meant what kind of songs? How complicated are they?

-=He has no clue what you're playing.=-

They're common for my country. Fairly difficult if you don't know the music.

[And she'll stop.]

Play one for me. I can play by ear.

...

-=He hesitates big time. Because he knows his right hand isn't going to be able to keep up. Then with a stormy look on his face, puts his hands to the keys and plays something like this=-

[She grins a little as soon as she hears the familiar chords. It sounds... slightly slowed and there are some key differences in the composition, but the basic sound is still the same. She says nothing about his right hand not keeping up, instead listening intensely to the music.]

I know a song like this. It was one of the first things I ever learned to play on the piano.

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