Free Fairy Metal Thunder (Songs of Magic, #1) by JL Bryan Page A

Katie said. “I would
hug him all the time.”
    The fourth string cheered everybody up. He
was glad to be here, with Erin and even his pesky little sister.
The girls smiled a little.
    The fifth string made everyone laugh and
brought fresh, happy energy into the room. The sixth put a huge,
blissful smile on everyone’s face.
    “I like that one best,” Katie said.
    “It’s like each one makes you feel something
different,” Erin said. “Three kinds of sadness, three kinds of
happiness.”
    “And when you play them all together…”
Jason strummed the pick across all six strings.
    Erin closed her eyes as the music passed
through her. “Oh… wow . That’s really beautiful.”
    “Play it some more, Jason!” Katie demanded.
“I want more!”
    “That’s what we like to hear from the
audience,” Erin said. She smiled at Jason.
    “Want to try a whole song?” Jason asked.
    “Sure.” Erin took out her harmonica.
    “You should try this.” Jason handed her the
matchbook-sized set of reed pipes. “You play it like a
harmonica.”
    “Pan pipes,” Erin said. “That’s neat. But
they’re too small to play.” Erin held them to her lips. “I’d just
blow all the pipes at once.” She set it aside and put her harmonica
to her lips. “I’ll stick with old reliable Monica here.”
    “What should we play?” Jason set the small
lute face-up on his lap.
    “I’d really like to hear how ‘Remember’
sounds on that lute,” Erin said. “Think you can handle it?”
    “I think so.” Jason began playing Erin’s song
‘Remember’ on the lute strings. He used the same hand positions and
strings he would have used if he were playing his guitar. The music
came out deep, rich and heartbreaking. The lute grew warm in his
hands.
    Erin followed along with her harmonica for a
few bars, then she sang:
     
    Remember the day when you were young,
    Remember the time when you believed,
    Remember the world where you were loved,
    Remember the years when you felt free…
     
    The guitar squirmed like a live animal in
Jason’s hands. The bent neck straightened out, and the whole lute
swelled larger.
    “Whoa, what’s happening?” Jason asked. “Are
you seeing this?”
    “That’s not possible, is it?” Erin poked at
the lute. “It looks like it’s alive or something.”
    “It’s magic!” Katie said.
    “Let’s keep playing,” Erin said. “I want to
see what happens.”
    They played all the way through ‘Remember,’
while the lute grew and shifted in his hands. The enchanted
instrument brought an incredible power to the song, and all three
of them were in tears by the time Erin sang the last verse:
     
    Remember the promise you never kept,
    Nothing you said was ever true.
    I know you’ve forgotten all about me,
    But I’ll never forget about you.
     
    Jason couldn’t stop crying. It felt like the
song had ripped him open. Katie was blubbering loudly, while Erin
held her hands over her face and shuddered.
    “Hey, it’s okay,” Jason whispered. He patted
Katie’s head with one hand. “Erin? That was really good. You write
amazing songs.”
    Erin kept sobbing into her hands.
    “Are you okay?” Jason asked.
    Erin slowly lowered her hands, revealing a
face that was red and streaked with tears. “I’m sorry. I didn’t
mean to cry.”
    “Everybody is,” Jason said.
    “You know why I was such a spaz about that
necklace?” Erin asked. “That was the last birthday present my dad
gave me. When I was nine. He left like a month later. Now it’s a
five-dollar bill in my birthday card, if he remembers at all. And
he usually doesn’t.”
    “I’m sorry.” Jason took her hand. “Is that
what the song is about? Your parents’ divorce?”
    “It’s stupid.” Erin pulled her hand away from
him and pushed blond and green hair back from her face. “Stupid
song.”
    “It’s not,” Jason said.
    “Can you play something happy now?” Katie
asked.
    Erin laughed and wiped her eyes. “That’s a
good idea,