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"Could I trouble you to follow me for a bit?" I asked. Zero glanced up at me from her seat, a vaguely curious expression on her face. "I don't need you to do anything for me, just follow and listen," I assured her.
She sighed and stood up. "If you insist."
I beckoned her out of the Meyhane doors. "It's just a short walk this way."
As we rounded a corner away from the Meyhane, I slowed down until we were walking side-by-side. "So, you were born part voidsent," I began. "I can't imagine—obviously—what it must be like to live as you do. To live as all voidsent do."
Zero remained silent.
"But still—part."
"'Part'?" She questioned, not quite catching my meaning.
"I think you discount the part of yourself that is still a person. Not that I don't blame you, given where you lived, but… Well, you'll see. Hopefully."
As she quietly contemplated my words, we continued on in silence.
"…Ah, here we are," I reported. In this hall, near Kama, I had noticed something peculiar before—a practice that I had seen a few times in various places in Sharlayan, but never elsewhere. A public piano.
Off to the side of the hall, there was a small row of chairs. I gestured towards them and looked at Zero. "Please, sit."
"What is it that I'm looking at?" She asked hesitantly.
"You'll see," I promised with a smile.
I strode over to the piano bench and sat down. I flipped open the cover and rested my fingers gently on the keys.
"Remember—I just want you to listen," I repeated, and looked behind me. Zero was sitting in one of the chairs, legs crossed and looking at me expectantly.
"You have my attention," she assured me.
I closed my eyes and breathed out. A quiet breath in, and I began to play. One hand, and then the other, weaving together a melody of longing and loss.
———
As I let the final chord of the piece reverberate out into the hall, I slowly lifted my fingers from the keys, and then my foot from the pedal. Quietly, I stood up from the bench and walked over to Zero, sitting down beside her. She didn't move.
"You know, you didn't say it, but I think everyone knew what you were really thinking. You don't want us to give you hope." I smiled sadly. "And that's okay, really. You're not ready for it. I understand that. But if it never comes to pass, you may as well be all that remains. Of times lost, of faded memories… Of where you used to be. I think you should cherish that, if you can. Cherish the things, and the memories, that connect you to the world that once was."
I cleared my throat. "Through that song, I hope you can understand, at least a little, how even if I or anyone else in this world might not really understand what you've gone through, we still know. We still know of loss, and despair, and everything that you have endured. That is part of what makes us people, after all. It's something that we all share, no matter what. Across this world and across all of the reflections—even yours."
Zero raised her hand and fiddled with the tip of her hat, partially hiding her face from me in the process.
"If the time comes when you ever feel like talking about that pain, or… Anything, really, I promise you that I'll be there as soon as I can."
Finally, Zero spoke. "…Thank you," she mumbled quietly.
I smiled. "Don't worry about it. And, say, if you want me to play some more…"
"I… Would like that," She responded, and she let her hand fall into her lap.
Her eyes looked just the faintest bit misty. Or maybe that was just my imagination. "Gotcha."