"Band Ten'hut!"
The entire marching band pulled their feet together and snapped into attention. Their instruments shined brightly underneath the football stadium's lights. The performers had stern, proud looks on their faces.
The drum major stepped up the ladder onto the podium. They glanced over the band before an overwhelming feeling took over them. For the first time that season, the drum major had time to think about what was happening.
It was the band's last performance of the season. They had worked as hard as they could, and were now standing in nationals as winners. Now, their encore performance was taking place. They had a big, shiny gold trophy waiting for them back on the buses.
The drum major made eye-contact with one of their best friends, Seiya Aido. They suddenly remembered back to when the two of them first joined band, and how young and clueless they both were. They never guessed how much work went into being in a marching band, and at times they felt as though they weren't going to make it.
Now one stands as the drum major, and the other as the horn-line captain. How far they'd come from being young freshman made the drum major shed a small tear.
It didn't take long for them to make eye-contact with another of their good friends, Torahiko Kusakabe. The drum major felt a pang of warmth as they looked upon the brass captain. They remembered when Tora first joined the band and everyone hated his guts. He didn't follow rules, he was noisy and bossy, and generally was lazy in his marching and playing. However, as Tora matured, people began to like him more and more. The band came to realize how good-spirited and generally happy he was. Not to mention, he was fantastic at his instrument. He knew how to blow the trumpet at the perfect volume and with such good tonality; one would've never guessed that he's in high school.
Another tear.
The drum major then moved their eyes over to another of their close friends, Noah. It didn't take long for Noah to worm his way into the drum major's heart. It seemed as though that was the case for the band staff as well. He was put on leadership during his second year, and has stayed there since. He's lead the low brass through perfect season after perfect season. Noah's the kind of guy who hits you so hard, you never stop thinking about him. Members of his section are so moved by his leadership that they can't help but constantly practice to keeping getting better and better. The drum major thought about when Noah pushed them to try out for their position. They were so scared and nervous, but Noah believed in them, and that was enough.
A third tear.
Time was running out, and the drum major felt a pain in their heart as they locked eyes with Tsubaki Rindo. The calm woodwind captain never ceased to surprise the drum major. He had the entire band at the snap of his fingers, though he never seemed to over-use the power. Everyone had a sound respect for him, and vice versa. Tsubaki knew how to manipulate people to make themselves better just by their personalities. He was a man that the drum major never realized would become one of their best friends, but he had.
The drum major felt another tear fall as Tsubaki smiled slightly and winked. Four.
It felt as though time had stopped when the drum major's eyes landed on the pit. The collection of percussionists were all standing tall and firm, their instruments ready to go in front of them. Kokoro Hanabusa, Issei Todoroki, and Eva Armstrong were all standing proudly, front and center of the pit section. They had all worked together to lead the pit to an amazing season. They all had their own quirks, but somehow made it work when it came to performing and leading their section. The drum major laughed in their mind when they thought back to the fight Issei and Eva had with Kokoro to cut his hair for the season.
Another tear. Five? The drum major had lost count.
Their eyes fell onto the twins, Satsuki and Mutsuki Kururugi, the color guard captains. They stood with large smiles on their faces, eyes locked with the drum major. They felt a bit intimidated by how proudly they seemed during this run-through. It felt like their smiles were real, like they were proud of the success the band had earlier that day. Mutsuki and Satsuki seemed to glow with the glitter on their face and the beautiful flags in their hands. The drum major let a slight small smirk show on their face thinking back to when the twins learned that one of them could throw the flag and the other could catch it. They spent the entire practice throwing tosses to each other and giggling like small children each time they caught it.
Six. Seven.
Finally, the drum major caught the band director's gaze. He smiled brightly at his prodigy, and gave a small nod. It was time for their last performance. The last performance the band was going to have this season, and the last performance the drum major was going to be in with all of their friends. Eight. Nine. The drum major was sniffling now, realizing their life wouldn't be the same without all of their friends. They'd come this far only because of each other.
Ten.
It took ten seconds for the announcer to start the performance. It took ten tears to break the drum major down into a sobbing mess. Though the tears constantly fell, the drum major stood strong and proud. They couldn't let their friends down. They'd come so far together. They weren't going to blow this last show. All of the drum major's friends locked eyes with them, and the drum major swore they saw everyone with tears in their eyes. This is what they joined band for. This is the feeling every band member hopes to feel in their lives. And now, they all felt it.
"Etoile Vio High School, you make take the field in encore performance!"
The drum major felt another tear slide down their cheek as they brought their hands down one final time. With the respect shared between the members on the field and the drum major on the podium, the show started with the flick of a wrist.