Lotte had been in the city most of the weekend dancing. Living here at the Haven meant that all the money she earned could go to other things than food and rent. Not that she didn't chip in where she could. Her parents had long ago instilled in her the sense that there's no such thing as a free lunch, so she did what she could to carry her own weight. That included her least favorite chore of all: dishes. But even dishes couldn't completely dampen how good she was feeling today. She'd actually made a several hundred bucks this weekend dancing, which meant she'd been able to stop by one of the places that she hadn't in so long. The Frank Music Company. She'd spent hours just browsing through the stacks of sheet music they had. Some of the pieces she found made her smile, fond memories of when she'd learned them for piano recitals or voice recitals or high school choir performances. Some she put back quickly, but some found their way into the hand basket she carried. An old lady was watching her warily since she'd walked into the store, but that was probably to be expected. Her boots and corset with the black leather jacket a far cry from the choir-girl/flute player prep they were probably used to. After an hour of just browsing and smelling the paper and ink, she took the basket to the counter and paid for her selections with the roll of ones she'd made stripping. A small voice in her head wondered what the pigs who'd shoved them down her g-string would think to know what her secret splurge would be. Certainly not something they would probably think of for a girl like her. At least the woman was friendlier after Lotte dropped seventy bucks on music. Accepting the slim envelope style bag from the woman with a smile, she made her way out of the store and headed to the subway to take a train closer to Haven.
Upon arriving back at the mansion she went to the conservatory and opened the bag with reverence, they way a priest might handle a host, setting it on the music stand at the piano and caressing the antique ivory keys a moment before she began slowly playing the notes on the page. It wasn't perfect, it had been a long time since she'd played, and her fingers didn't always want to cooperate with her brain, but after playing through the first movement of the piano concerto, she started over, her eyes going unfocused and dreamy as the sounds caressed her soul.