Hello! :3

Song here! This is my first story I'm publishing on this site and my first bit of Soul Eater fan fiction. I used to write fan fiction often a long time ago but one day I just sort of stopped though I still read it. Annnnyy-hoo! I just sort of felt like throwing myself into the writing of it again. I'm a little rusty I think haha so be gentle with me. I apologize for any OOC-ness, I tried to stick to what I feel the characters are like as much as possible but keep in mind it is AU! So without further adieu, please enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN SOUL EATER. (Obviously) Nor do I own the song "Is This Sound Okay?" By Coconut Records. (Selected as title to this piece of fan fiction)

One: Death City Kid

"Next!" the shouted word brushed off a despaired looking girl; she pushed her way past the curtain and out of the room clutching a guitar. The room wasn't particularly large, the lounge in a hole in the wall bar. Dim lights, a mostly empty round stage but for a piano with a sheet thrown over it. Tables and chairs were spaced around the stage, normally pushed back so people had room to dance if they felt like it. A table had been dragged up closer to the stage for the moment. The only occupied table in the room.

The person who'd brushed off the despaired girl sighed heavily, leaning back in her seat. She held a clipboard in her hands and twirled the end of one of her blonde pigtails around her finger as her eyes browsed its content. One of the others at the table, another girl with sheets of black hair pulled up in a high ponytail, leaned forward a bit; whispering unnecessarily, "You could have let her down a little easier." Her dark blue, nearly black eyes shone earnestly. "She didn't know we weren't looking for another guitarist." The blonde frowned and put down the clipboard.

"I know Tsubaki," she exhaled. "I'm just impatient, we're getting nowhere." Another girl at the table, also blonde; though clearly a little older than the first, looked up from painting her nails with a bottle of dark purple nail polish. "I don't know, I kind of agree with Maka. You'd think they would read the flyer before showing up," she mumbled before blowing on her nails to help them dry. The pig-tailed girl, Maka, shrugged and plucked at the pile of flyers on the table. A smaller girl who clearly resembled the eldest girl that had spoken was folding the flyers into origami shapes. She fashioned a paper hat and laughed hysterically after placing it on the nail polish girls head. "Here you go Liz!" Liz frowned and removed it gingerly, careful to avoid smudging her fresh nail polish.

"Patti please," she mumbled. The smaller girl snatched the elder ones wrists to examine her nails. She'd painted them a dark, plum color and done a different design on each nail in white.

"Ooo, pretty sis, but Kid's gonna lose it when he see's them," she cackled. Liz shrugged.

"He can deal, I saw it done in a magazine, its neat huh?" The two of them chattered about nails and Maka twitched in her seat, Tsubaki bit her lip nervously; sensing what was coming.

Maka sipped her drink and then put down the glass a little harder than she intended. "Can you two please take this seriously?" she sniped. Liz rolled her eyes and Patti laughed.

"We are taking it seriously, we're just not letting it take over our lives. Chill Maka, we'll find what we're looking for. When we see it, we'll know."

"Maybe we should just forget about finding someone to add to our sound and get someone to bang a tambourine mindlessly to the beat," Maka mused.

"Like a monkey!" Patti clapped.

"Well that would certainly be entertaining," Liz conceded as she showed Tsubaki her nails; she murmured appreciatively.

A door to the side of the stage swung open and a red-haired man popped his head. "Shall I send the next one in Maka darling?" Maka purposely looked away from him to the clipboard, intentionally not looking him in the face as she spoke. "Go ahead Papa." With shining eyes he saluted goofily and disappeared behind the door again.

"It was really sweet of your Dad to let us use his bar for auditions," Tsubaki commented. Maka's mouth set in a frown and her shoulders tensed.

"Yeah sure, real nice." She hadn't wanted to use his bar, she hated feeling like she owed him. During one of his regular stalking sessions he'd overheard her complaining to Liz that they needed somewhere to hold auditions; he'd then proceeded to leap out of nowhere offering his bar. The other girls had all jumped on the idea and Maka hadn't been able to refuse or she would have felt like the biggest bitch. The band came first after all.

Four more audition's came in, each one more forgettable than the last. Grimacing, Maka rubbed her temple's she was distinctly feeling a headache coming on. Patti was absently playing with her paper creations, obviously having already lost any major interest in them. Liz had her head on her arm, hiding her face; Maka knew she was probably sleeping, hiding her face to avoid being disturbed. A chime rang and the table shook as a phone vibrated across it. Liz started awake and Maka avoided commenting on that fact that she'd slept through the last audition. Tsubaki plucked her phone off the table and flipped it open to view her text message. "Its Black Star," she told the three pairs of curious and expectant eyes watching her.

"What's he want?" Liz pried. Tsubaki smiled a little and flipped her phone closed again, putting it back on the table. "He says not to go anywhere, he has someone he wants us to meet." Maka sighed and sat back, all the names on her clipboard had been crossed off, they'd already seen everyone. "I don't know if I'm up for meeting anyone else today, besides remember the last one Black Star insisted we listen to?" The phone buzzed again and Tsubaki picked it up. Her face split into a wide smile and she passed the open phone to Maka. Maka scanned the text with clenched teeth.

Black* : P.S. Tell Maka to STFU Imm the bandz mnger & I say ur gonna give this guy a chance.

Maka put the phone on the table and slid it towards Tsubaki. Liz intercepted, able to move her fingers more nimbly now that her nail polish had dried. She grinned at Maka after reading it. "Its creepy how well you two predict each others moves." Maka stuck her tongue out at Liz. Patti whined about wanting to see the message too as her older sister handed the phone back to Tsubaki.

"So it's a guy," Tsubaki said, tucking the phone into her pocket. Liz nodded and gave Maka a sideways look.

"Apparently," she said coolly, not wanting to address her issue with this at the moment. It would end with an argument. The others would say she was opposed to adding male talent to the band because of her Daddy issues and Maka would deny and deny, claiming she didn't want to because of 'girl power' or something that sounded even more lame because she couldn't phrase it convincingly enough.

Spirit, Maka's Papa, swooped into the bar; the door he'd just entered through thumping closed loudly behind him. He was carrying a tray with drinks on it. He put it on the table with a grin like a puppy waiting to be praised for doing a trick. "Its on the house," he said cheerfully. The girl's leaned forward and plucked drinks off the tray chorusing thank-you; Maka ignored the drink meant for her studiously, flipping through pages on her clipboard she'd already seen. Tsubaki eventually leaned forward and removed the extra drink from the tray and placed it on the table gently. Spirit picked up the tray dejectedly and wandered over to the bar to take care of some sort of duty to prepare for the evening. Liz yawned and stretched in her seat. "How long did Black Star say he's gonna be?" she asked. "I wanted to go home and shower before tonight." Tsubaki glanced at the clock on her phone.

"Not long, he should be here any minute." Patti was chasing an ice cube around with a straw in her now empty drink, annoyed with the sound of it sliding around in the glass Liz took it from her and placed it out of her reach, Patti pouted for a moment but quickly became occupied with her paper creations again.

Twenty minutes passed and Maka was getting impatient. "Leave it up to Black Star to think we have nothing better to do than wait around for him," she grumbled. Tsubaki sighed and gave her a rueful smile. "He just doesn't think sometimes." Liz sat up in her seat abruptly from being leaned over on the table. "If he's not here in five minutes I swear to god-" The door to the bar burst open and a hurricane of blue hair and mad laughter hurdled through it.

"Ladies, ladies! Never fear, it is I, your great and powerful manager!" Maka covered her face with her hand in annoyance, rubbing her eyes. Black Star stood nearby frozen in what she was sure he imagined was a heroic pose. He stepped out of his pose and then strode towards them. "Way to be on time Black Star," Liz chided. "I'm going to have to rush my shower now." Patti laughed. Maka folded her arms across her chest. "So, where is this guy we 'had to see'?" Black Star grinned and ran a hand through his blue hair, he always insisted it was natural, nobody believed that of course.

"He's coming, hold your horses Maka." She raised a delicate eyebrow unable to remain stoic at his choice of words. He shrugged unapologetic as he slumped into a chair beside Tsubaki. "I swear your girls are gonna love'em, I picked him after all so how could he not be great?" Tsubaki smiled in quiet amusement.

"How did you find him?" she asked interrupting his jabbering.

"I've known him for ages! We met in high school, he left the country though and spent two years travelling. He just got back a month ago, I ran into him in a café playing and he was damn good, just like a remember. Music's always been his thing. Now me, I've always been too much of a star people wouldn't be able to handle it if I performed, its better I attempt to teach others to be as much of a star as me. Not that its possible-" he continued to ramble about himself and Maka zoned out, oh yes, she definitely felt a headache coming on.

The door leading into the lounge portion of bar from the street swung open, a gust of wind from the street ruffling the papers on the table. The girl's blinked, eyes adjusting from the blast of natural light that had come and gone so quickly when the door opened. The door swung shut and a boy stood in the room now. Hands stuffed in his pockets his gaze swept over them lazily. Shock white hair fell stylishly untidy. He looked bored but Maka thought it was an intentional boredom, an 'I'm too cool for this but because I'm so cool I'm here anyway' kind of look. Black Star stood up and went over to the newcomer, slapping him on the back. "This is him!" he crowed, "My man, Soul 'Eater' Evans!" Maka's eyebrows shot up at his name but she didn't comment. The other's were introducing themselves, he just nodded at them in response, that annoying 'I'm too impressive to say hello like I normal person so I'll just nod' at you kind of nod. She grit her teeth and muttered her name in introduction, she already didn't like him.

"What do you play?" Tsubaki asked kindly. Soul glanced at her.

"Guitar, ukulele, bass, drums a bit. Though when it comes down to, the piano has my heart." Patti clapped in delight and Liz grinned.

"Piano! That's something we haven't heard, well get on it!" She gestured to the stage.

Soul walked up to the stage and tugged the sheet off of the piano in a swift movement. It pooled at his feet and he stepped over it to take a seat at the bench. The piano wasn't anything fancy, small enough that it didn't take up the whole stage. It rarely got used and was left around mostly for show. He opened the cover and ran a hand along the keys once before starting, no sheet music, just from memory. The first few notes rang out clearly in the bar and a hush came over his audience. Maka didn't recognize the piece though she felt oddly tuned to it like she had known it once only to forget it. As much as she wanted to hate it she couldn't, her eyes slipped closed and she let the melody wash over her. She had expected something pretentious or flashy but this was just…not. It was raw and beautiful, emotional…completely unexpected.

Throat dry she realized the music stopped and she opened her eyes again. The girls were clapping wildly and Black Star was yelling about how Soul was his friend and how he was the greatest for bringing him there. She swallowed the lump in her throat and brought herself to clap too. She began to feel sick, how could she say no to him, the others would never hear of it. She could already imagine how they would sound with him as a part of their musical collaboration. He closed the case quietly and stood, turning to face them. Everyone was standing and babbling about how he was in and they all agreed he was fantastic. She wasn't really paying attention to what they were saying but she understood the gist of it. Suddenly she realized they were all staring at her; Liz looked expectant, Patti eager, Tsubaki looked nervous and Black Star had nothing but a challenge in his eyes. She realized they had asked her what she thought of the performance, if she agreed to him joining them. Her lips parted, mouth hanging open for a moment as she struggled to form the words. "Yes," she said, sounding more dejected that excited. They burst into cheers all chattering about how thrilled they were.

"Hold it," a rough voice interrupted. Maka snapped out of her daze and her eyes darted to look at the male who would be infiltrating her all female band soon. His brow was furrowed, lips turned down in a frown. "I never said I would be joining you…" In that moment they all had similar looks of confusion. Maka felt like she'd been sentenced to death only to get a last minute reprieve.

"But we thought…" Tsubaki trailed off hesitantly. He shook his head, white hair falling in his eyes, he pushed it out of the way impatiently. "I'm sorry, you thought wrong. I haven't even heard you all play. I'm not signing up for a band I haven't even heard. I agreed to come here because Black Star said you were good, nothings official until I hear you all in action too." Black star nodded vigorously.

"Sounds fair, sounds about right." Liz grinned and shuffled through the assorted flyers on the table, plucking one from the pile she handed it to him. He looked down at it curiously.

"We have a gig later tonight, come watch." He flashed a smile and nodded.

"Done."

The gig was in the same place they'd held the auditions. They often played at Spirits bar, he hired them whenever they were available mostly to force Maka into being around him more often. He was an avid supporter and the nights they played he made his staff wear band shirts. Despite its dive qualities the bar was fairly popular with a lot of traffic, a combination of plenty of regulars and bar hoppers who came through for the live music. There were two floors, the lower floor where the bands played and the top floor where those who weren't keen on the live music could eat and drink.

Soul sat at a table near the front, he fiddled with the label of his beer, peeling the edges. His eyes wandered the bar as he waited. A waitress with bright purple hair caught his eye from across the bar. She winked at him and he tried to look unsurprised when she started towards him from across the room. She reached the table and slipped into the chair closest to him. He furrowed his brow and she grinned at him and folded her arms across an ample chest. The t-shirt she was wearing was about two sizes too small. Her breasts pushing against the fabric in a desperate attempt to be freed. It was a black band t, the name was written in bold white letters 'Death City Kid". She mistook him reading her shirt for ogling and she leaned in closer, batting her golden eyes at him. "What's your name cutie?" she chirped. He blinked feeling very unsure of himself.

"Err, its Soul." She appeared completely thrilled by this and threw her arms around his neck, pushing her chest against him. He could feel the flush creep up his face and he tried to push her off but she squealed excitedly in his ear. "You're the one that's going to be joining the band! How exciting! I'm Blair!" she pulled back. "I've been thinking those girls needed some eye candy to apply to their female fans for awhile now!" she practically purred. "Nyah, you're in for a treat. DCK is great!" He nodded absently as she stood again, he then had time to notice she was wearing a ridiculously short skirt, her long legs and hips at eye level. She tugged the skirt down a bit and winked at him again, ruffling his hair before prancing away to tend to her tables. The back of her shirt was adorned with a cartoon skull; the letters 'DWMA' printed beneath it, the letters curling along the bottom of the drawing. He wondered absently what it stood for.

"Soul! Blair giving you trouble?" Black Star laughed. Black Star slid into the seat across from him, he'd brought someone with him. Another guy who looked about the same age as them took a seat too. He had pitch black hair, three white horizontal streaks on the right side of his head. He was dressed smartly in a black suit. He glanced over, amber eyes flashing. Black Star gestured to him.

"Soul, this is Kid, he's Liz's boyfriend." Kid nodded to greeting.

"Charmed."

"His Dad's a big shot producer. He owns Death Scythe Records." Soul raised his eyebrows.

"What are these guys doing playing in this hole if one of their boyfriends have got connections." Kid shrugged.

"I offered to hook them up but the girls want to make it on their own. They don't like getting hand outs and don't want anyone to be able to claim they made it on anything but their talent." Soul mentally catalogued his being impressed by this, he would examine it at a later time. Black Star sighed. "And his Dad didn't really like them enough." Kid sighed too.

"Its ridiculous but true. I gave him a tape and he said they were just not what he was looking for."

"Which is completely stupid," Black Star practically shouted, "I mean come on, I'm their manager so they must good, I don't just manage anybody."

Soul glanced at the stage, the girls had emerged at some point while they'd been talking. They were setting up their instruments and going through a sound check.

"Check, check, check," a voice rang out through the mic, the sound of a finger tapping on it followed. Maka stood in the dim light of the stage with a guitar slung over her shoulder, hanging by a strap. She adjusted the mic to a comfortable height as Soul took a moment to observe her as he hadn't been able to earlier. She had changed from earlier. Her hair still in pigtails this time the ends were curled though. She was dressed in a black form fitting blazer, the sleeves rolled up and the front open revealing a shirt striped a-symmetrically in thin black and white stripes. Her lower half was dressed in a pair of cut-offs and a beat up looking pair of black high tops. She looked up suddenly, her eyes meeting his; annoyed at himself for being caught staring he tried to look away like it was nothing. She looked furious and turned away abruptly to sound check her guitar. Startled, he glanced over the other girls, they'd all changed from earlier too.

Liz, clutching her guitar wore grey and black leopard print leggings with airy looking metallic top, black ankle high-heeled boots on her feet. She wore a beaded band around her head with a feathered end, her hair loose with a shaggy look about it. Patti who was fiddling with her drum set had changed into black and white vertical striped halter, a pair of black skinny jeans and green sneaker flats; she'd placed a small black fedora further back on her head, her short hair left natural. Tsubaki was tuning her bass, her hair was up in its signature high ponytail, she'd picked a black velvet dress that grazed her thighs, it had a sweetheart cut at the bust and then continued up to her neck in black mesh, knee high black heeled boots completing her ensemble. The black bass drum had the same white cartoon skull on it as the back of Blair's shirt.

The grating sound of nails scraping across the table drew his attention away from the girls on stage. Kid dragged his hand back from the table a look of horror on his face. Soul gave him an alarmed look. "Uh what's wrong Dude?" Kid gave him a sideways look.

"Don't you see it!" he hissed. Soul glanced in the direction Kid was looking, he was staring up at the stage with his same horrified expression but Soul couldn't see what was wrong. Black Star sighed exasperatedly as Kid continued. "Their symmetry…its all wrong…what on earth was Maka thinking when she picked that shirt! And Liz, how could my darling Liz do this to me, only one side of her headband has a feather…wrong all wrong!" he covered his face and peeked through his fingers as if he were watching something particularly terrifying but couldn't look away. "And Tsubaki, her ponytail is off, its not in the center of her head! Patti dear Patti… what she's wearing almost makes up for it…" he clenched his fists. "If she wasn't wearing only one bracelet on her left side!" Soul gave him a look as if he had lost his mind. "Wh-what?" he managed, unsure what to say. As Kid trembled his head in his hands Black Star slapped him on the back as he stood.

"He'll be fine, he's got a little problem with symmetry. Buck up man, just pay attention to their music try not to think about their clothes." Kid moaned and put his head on the table. Black Star grinned at Soul. "Anyways, I've gotta go speak with Spirit and discuss our pay for this evening." Soul nodded and Black Star weaved his way through the crowd towards the red-haired bar owner.

The already dim lights in the bar dimmed further a few minutes after Black Star had excused himself. For a moment the bar was black, everyone in the room fell silent, only the muted sounds of people on the upper floor could be heard. A bass line started in the dark, constant, almost eerie. The stage lit up in a burst of light, the girls coming into view, Tsubaki still plucked away on that deep bass line. Maka flashed a confident smile to the crowd, leaning into the mic and breaking out in the first clear note, her voice mingling with Tsubaki's bass. An abrupt change in Maka's tone, her voice growing harsh and raw for a moment, signalled the others; the drums and guitar leapt in. The crowd's excited tension broke like a wave and a crowd began to grow closer to the stage.

The song was heavier than Soul expected from them, but Maka's clear, higher voice entwined with the heavy music beautifully. When Tsubaki added her back up vocal's to Maka's it was like magic. Soul could not deny he was impressed. They broke into an instrumental, Maka rocking back on her heels in time to the music as she played furiously with the others; the emotion, the passion pouring off her was tangible, he could almost taste it.

He struggled to take his eyes off her and observe the rest of the band. They had good chemistry, each taking on their own stage persona. Patti was throwing off wild energy, her arms moving like fluid as she played. Liz cool and confident, giving off a air of surety. Tsubaki more subdued and concentrated, a determined expression. His gaze was drawn back to Maka, so involved in the music, the tension he'd felt in her before slipping away as she lost herself in the notes, her expression unguarded. The lyric's were darker than he expected. The whole performance blowing his presumptions to pieces. The crowd swayed to the beat methodically and Soul felt his own leg tapping along too.

They followed up with a few more upbeat tunes and then slipped in a slower song, a cover, then proceeded to bang out a few more upbeat tunes of their own. The crowd screamed for more and the girl's happily complied with an encore, a heart wrenching tune Maka shortly introduced titled as 'Burning'. The song came to a close as Maka murmured the last lyric softly, the music dying out. The lights went dark on stage and the rest of the bar lit up dimly again, the girls no longer on stage.

Kid stood up, having calmed down as the band was playing. When he focused on the music he was able to disregard his issues with their wardrobe for a little while. He glanced down at Soul. "I'm going to go congratulate them on a great show, did you want to come too?" Black Star hadn't returned and Soul wondered absently where he'd been for the performance.

"In a bit, I'm going to finish my drink and head to the washroom," he said, Blair had been consistently bringing him drinks throughout the show, he had a full beer still. Kid shrugged and disappeared into the slowly thinning crowd. Soul observed the crowd for a little bit while he polished off his drink. People were slowly making their way out, lines of people coming down from upstairs to head out too.

He rose and began weaving his way towards the bathrooms. The traffic was moving against him though, frowning he was pushed up against a door beside the stage for a moment. Not wanting to continue battling against the crowd he figured he'd duck through the door and see if he could go around and avoid them.

Inside the door was an empty, poorly lit hallway; one of the lights flickered distractingly. It appeared to lead down to another doorway, the hall turning at the end. He walked a little, really needing to visit the restroom now. As he reached the end of the hallway he paused, voices reaching him from around the corner. He peered around the corner only to spot Maka, though she wasn't alone.

There was a guy with her, blonde hair styled in spikes, his back was facing Soul so he couldn't see much else. He had her pressed up against the wall and Maka looked nervous, chewing her lip. Soul was unsure what to do. Eavesdropping was definitely not cool and they seemed to be having a pretty private conversation. Something in her expression made him angry though, this guy was clearly upsetting her. Unable to help himself, despite his earlier need to relieve himself and not wanting to give himself away he remained where he was. Maka's voice filled his ears.

"No Chris…I told you already, just no…" The blonde leaned in closer.

"Come on Maka baby, how many times do I have to tell you I'm sorry. It'll never happen again." She shook her head. "I'm tired of you apologizing, how many times has it been now. I don't believe it anymore."

"But you were so hot tonight," he practically growled, leaning in further. "I just can't resist you when I see you play. Its just so sexy." He pushed his head into the crook of her neck, Soul assumed to press his lips against it. Maka, whose hands had been at her side until now, placed her palms against his chest and shoved. "I said no!" she told him firmly. Chris stood back for a moment, Soul wished he could see his face. Abruptly he pushed himself against her again, his hand grabbing her chin and forcing her took at him. "Listen you little bitch, you are mine. That means when I want some, you give it to me." Her eyes burned as she glared at him. Soul trembled, about to step in, no longer able to watch this bastard act like such an ass. Then to Soul's complete shock; Maka spat in his face. Howling with rage Chris shoved her roughly against the wall a resounding crack echoing in the hall as her head struck the wall. Chris raised his fist, clearly about to strike her but as he swung back he found his arm couldn't swing forward again to strike.

Soul had leapt out of hiding, catching Chris' wrist. The blonde gave him a look of disbelief over his shoulder. Quick as a flash Soul twisted Chris around and threw him against the opposite wall. Maka stood with wide eyes, her mouth hanging open a little. If looks could kill, Chris' most certainly would have resulted in a bloody murder. "Who the fuck are you?" Chris swore, his face twisted with fury. Soul sneered at him. "None of you're god damned business, all you need to know is you don't hit girls, get the fuck out!" He pointed to the door.

"Why should I?" Chris snapped. "This is none of your concern." He tried to move past Soul to Maka again; who still hadn't moved from where she stood watching the scene play out in silence. Soul threw his arm out and Chris' nostril's flared at being blocked again. "Get out." Soul said, his tone deadly. "Get out before I kick the shit out of you." Chris practically snarled and began backing away.

"Who the hell is this guy Maka?" he shouted to her as he headed towards the door. "Your new boyfriend? Don't be an idiot Maka, you're mine! We were made for each other! Watch your back bastard!" Soul took a step forward, his posture threatening; Chris scrambled out the door, slamming it behind him.

Relaxing, Soul turned to face Maka. Her head was down and he couldn't see her expression. The poor lighting hiding her face in shadow. He took a hesitant step towards her. "Are you all right?" he asked. Her head snapped up and he realized her eyes were a piercing green. He hadn't stood close enough to her to notice until now. Her eyes were narrowed like she was angry with him and he couldn't help but give her a confused look. He'd just saved her right? A heroic rescue, why would she be angry. Crack. He raised a hand to his stinging cheek in disbelief. She had hit him. "What the hell I-"

"You had no right getting involved!" she snapped. He felt himself flush with anger.

"What are you talking about!" his voice rising with his temper. "I just saved you!" Her jaw clenched.

"I didn't ask to be saved. I can take care of myself." She shoved past him.

"Are you serious?" confusion mingling with more disbelief colouring his tone. "He was gonna hit you." She froze with her back to him, hand on the door. That ever-present tension in her shoulders. The silence in the hall only interrupted by the buzzing sound of the flickering light. Her posture changed, melted into a weak sort of slump.

"You're right," she whispered. Her voice so soft that he barely caught what she said. "I'm sorry I hit you, it was wrong. The band is backstage. Please don't make judgement on them based on my behaviour, sometimes I-" she paused as though what she was saying was difficult for her, he noticed her hand tighten on the door knob. "I hold them back. You're really good and we'd love to have you." She turned the handle, the door opening a bit, laughter and muted voices slipping through the crack. "Please," she whispered. "Please don't tell the others that Chris was here." She didn't wait for his answers only set her shoulders in a more confident posture, she opened the door fully and stepped in, the chorus of voices greeting her were cut off as it swung shut.

Soul stood alone for a moment, blinking. Unable to wrap his head around what had just happened he ran a hand through his hair. A bizarre exchange and despite it all he couldn't erase the image of her performing from his mind.

Maka sat at the bar, her guitar case leaned up against her stool. She had wanted to flee the bar and go home immediately but they'd had to pack up their equipment. Not to mention there was the matter of settling whether or not Soul would be in the band. Blair leaned across the bar and put a drink in front of her. A Strongbow, her drink of choice. Blair smiled sympathetically and patted her hand. Maka wondered if she really look pathetic enough to warrant the gesture. She attempted to arrange her face into a more pleasant expression until; "You feel sick or something?" Liz asked as she set herself on the stool next to her. Maka immediately abandoned her attempt. She took a drink from her Strongbow, knowing she shouldn't, she had school in the morning and with how late it was she knew she would feel like crap tomorrow as it was. "I'm fine," she claimed untruthfully.

Her encounter with Chris had drained her. She had not expected him to show up but wasn't really surprised that he did. She didn't want the others to know, they would freak that he was still coming around. She'd convinced them he had stopped showing up where she was all the time awhile ago and didn't want to revisit them worrying for her. Giving pitying looks as they doled out advice. The worst part of the evening had been Soul stepping in. Her heart wrenched inside her. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate it, sure it had been sweet of him but he didn't even know her. He didn't know what he was getting involved in, didn't know what Chris was capable of.

She shivered and the hairs on her neck stood up. He was watching her again. Her eyes darted to the side, he was leaned up against the wall so casually it was as if he were a part of it. Hands stuffed in his pockets he turned away. Black Star was helping Tsubaki wrap up a particularly long cable and Patti was just finishing up packing up her drum set. Kid slipped in by Liz, wrapping his arms around her waist as Soul unhitched himself the wall.

Tsubaki handed Black Star her end of the cable as they finished wrapping it up. "Well?" Black Star asked, eyes on Soul. His gaze swept over them and Maka was sure he lingered on her for a moment longer than the others. "You're good," he nodded. "I'm in." They all erupted into excited chatter, Patti jumping up and down. Maka took a swig of her drink again. Patti stopped jumping suddenly.

"But wait," she said and they looked at her. "None of our songs have a part for piano," she pointed out.

"Maka can write it in, she wrote them originally after all." Tsubaki smiled at Maka who furrowed her brow.

"I don't know…"

"I'll help." Her eyes flicked to Soul who shrugged. "I've written stuff before and besides you were looking for new eyes right? If we can't work it into the existing we can write new stuff." Maka frowned. "I don't know…" she mumbled again like a broken record. Patti laughed and Liz shoved Maka playfully.

"Don't be silly, you can write and compose or whatever together." Maka didn't miss the 'Or whatever' Liz had thrown in or the sly smile that had flashed in her direction for a moment. "That way our sound won't do a complete 360, it'll still have Maka's flavor just with a dash of Soul." Patti cracked up and Liz couldn't help but smile. "Pun not intended. You have plenty of soul on your own Maka." Sighing heavily Maka rubbed her eyes and yawned. "All right, whatever," she said, too tired to argue. "Honestly though I really gotta skip outta here, its late." Tsubaki smiled.

"Don't worry about your stuff, we know you've got school, we'll take care of it. I'll call you tomorrow?" Maka smiled appreciatively and nodded, finishing off her drink she slipped off of her stool and left.

The door beside the bar that lead to the kitchen burst open. Spirit came prancing in with a silly grin on his face and a strawberry milkshake in hand. "Makaaaaaaa!" he called in a sing-songy voice. He froze when he didn't see her. The others were all staring at him in silence. "Where'd Maka go?" Tsubaki gave him a pitying smile.

"She's gone home…" His grin melted off his face and his lip trembled. He sunk to a crouch, his head down, the milkshake clutched in his hands.

"But I made her favourite. Oh my little Maka…how could you leave without telling me…" Blair moved out from behind the bar and crouched beside him. "Oh Boss?" she asked. He looked up at her with a watery, pathetic sort of look. "Can I have the milkshake?"

XD Sooo that's the end of this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it and my lame attempts at some comedy. As you hopefully guess Chris is not a character of Soul Eater I made him up for this story since none of the regular characters fit for the situation. Nor did I really want to twist one up so much to fit the mold I was going for. I apologize if the formatting feels is awkward, I'm trying to get used to the publishing tool and document manager-ness :D

More to come!

Reviews are love! :3

SONG OUT!