Finally! New story! :D Hope you all enjoy, this IS going to go through most of the Beatle timeline and a bit further :) So far here's the prologue, starting in Hamburg, Germany, 1962. Enjoy!
Prologue
April, 1962
"Alright, your round" Hattie said.
"No thanks, besides I'm underage," Anna told her.
"Ha! That hasn't stopped you from drinking before!" she smirked and stood up. "I'm going to check on the band backstage."
"Later," Anna told her.
"What's biting you kid?" Tom, the bartender, and Anna's uncle, asked. He and Hattie own the pub along with Ramona, Hattie's sister and Tom's girlfriend, who waits the tables. Despite Tom being Anna's uncle, he was only a few years older, him being born long after her parents, so she just called him Tom. Her parents shipped her to Europe in hopes she'd get into a nice boarding school with nice kids British and no partying. Wrong. As of now she was living with her Uncle in probably the dirtiest hell-hole in Hamburg, Germany.
"I'm knackered," she said playing with a coaster. "How's business?"
"It could be better," he said while cleaning a glass.
"Could be better?" she gave him a quizzical look.
"Alright it's in the crapper," he said putting the glass down. "I have to tell you Anna, these bands play the same songs, over and over. Hopefully the band coming next month will bring back business."
"New band? Are they any good?" she asked excitedly.
"Well, I hope so," he said half-heartedly, "They're from Liverpool-"
"Is it Rory Storm and the Hurricanes?!" she nearly jumped out of her seat. In all fairness she had a thing for the king of Liverpool.
"Don't be daft, there's no way they'd want to play here," he started to fix himself a drink.
"Fine, then who is this hot-shot band from Liverpool?"
"Don't laugh, but they call themselves 'The Beatles'" he said.
"Beetles? As in the bug?" she raised an eyebrow.
"No, they spell it B-E-A, instead of B-E-E," he explained.
"Well, let's hope they bring us luck," she smiled. "Beetles are good luck right?"
"No, those are crickets," he corrected.
"Sod it," she waved her hand. The jazz band onstage started to play. Same songs, same crowd. There was no energy in the pub.
"Hey Tom," she suddenly smirked. He looked up at her from mixing himself a drink. "Where's the ring?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," he grinned. "Wait here," he then began to search under the bar for the ring.
"Hey Tommy," she called to him.
"Yes? I'm a bit caught up now, mind you!" he called up from under the bar.
"Are the Beatles cute?" she grinned.
"Adorable. Found it!" he shouted. As he started to stand up he hit his head on the bar.
"Here," he handed her the velvet box while rubbing his head.
"Alright Tommy?" she asked. Ignoring his grunted response, she looked at the ring.
"A real beauty eh?" he smiled.
"That's a hell of a rock Tommy," Anna smiled. "Ramona's gonna love it!"
"She'd better, because I won't be able to make back the money for the bar after buying that thing," he mumbled.
"Tom you used the pub money?!" She looked alarmed. "No wonder you don't have any money!"
"Shhh! Hattie doesn't know,"
"Hattie's going to flip her wig when she finds out," she said.
"Not if you don't tell her," he warned.
"And why is Hattie going to flip her wig?" Hattie asked as she walked to us.
Tom started. "Because-"
"He's going to propose to Ramona!" Anna jumped in.
"I was going to say that," he glared at her as she smiled innocently. "Besides shouldn't you be getting home ankle biter?"
"Bugger Tom, I'm already seventeen!" Anna complained
"Yeah you've only been seventeen for four months," he stated.
"Four and a half!" she retorted
"Whatever," he looked up at the stage. "This band is completely bullocks."
"New band," Anna reminded him.
"Right, listen Hattie why don't you and Ramona get going, I'll close the pub and get Percy home," Tom smirked at Anna. She hated it when he used her first name.
"I'm eighteen! And don't call me that" she shouted at him.
"You ain't even 17 and a half kid! We might as well deport ya for being underage! And I call you as I like Persephone!" Tom joked, using her full first name.
"Old man," she mumbled.
"I'm twenty-four, and it kicks seventeen's ass, jailbait," he smirked and pushed his index finger against her forehead.
"Bug off you two, I swear if I have to listen to another bleedin' argument I'll box your ears!" she scolded them. Tom snickered. "You too Thomas!" she pointed at him.
"John the motor's running!" Paul knocked furiously on the bathroom door. "I'm only giving you five more minutes!"
Suddenly the door burst open, first John walked out, then a disheveled girl straightening out her skirt. She looked at Paul, and then ran out of the joint.
"I only needed one," John smirked.
"Just get in the van!" Paul pushed him to the door. "Crazy bastard," he muttered.
The boys finally reached their destination. They arrived at the airport in Germany at noon.
"We're supposed to meet Astrid and Stuart here," Paul said reading the letter Astrid wrote to them.
"Well let's have a gander," John said looking to the bar.
"Stay put Lennon, look there's Astrid now!" Pete pointed.
Astrid Kircherr was girlfriend of Stuart Sutcliffe, a former band member. He decided to quit touring with the group and pursue a career in art while living with Astrid. He suffered many painful headaches, due to severe damage done to his brain after being pounded in the head remorselessly after a gig. After the boys left Stuart to go back to Liverpool, Stuart later died from a brain hemorrhage.
Astrid walked to the boys alone, almost crying. She didn't know what to tell them. She knew it would hit them hard, especially John. How could she tell them, how could she tell John that while he was away, one of his closest friends died. She mustered up as much courage as she could, and strode to the boys, near tears.
"Something's up, where's Stuart?" Paul asked.
"Cheeky devil, the bloke must be hiding," John smirked.
"Hello boys," Astrid greeted them. She looked at the ground. She couldn't meet John's eyes.
"Ay, where's Stuart?" George asked.
"Well…after you left, Stuart suffered severe headaches…he was so stubborn, he didn't want to go to the doctor's office, I'm sorry John," she covered her mouth as tears flowed from her blue eyes.
"Astrid, what are you saying?" John asked.
"Stuart died John, I'm sorry," she sobbed.
"There there," George wrapped an arm around Astrid.
"John, are you alright?" Paul tapped his shoulder.
"Sod off Paul!" John stormed out of the airport leaving his luggage behind.
John had been drinking heavily. After Paul and the rest of the band had talked with Bruno Koschmider, owner of the Bambi Kino cinema and Indra and Kaiserkeller clubs, they sought out to find John. It wasn't that hard, they checked outside the Bambi Kino. He lay on the street face first in a puddle, bottle in one hand, cigarette in another.
Paul and George picked him up and dragged him to the back of the theatre to a room behind the screen. It wasn't much. The room was grotesque and small; something that looked like mold grew in a corner. The wood floors creaked so with every step that they thought they would fall right through. They lay John on a pile of paper on the wooden floor. There were no beds, no furnace to keep them warm, and the only light they had flickered from the screen.
"We best leave him, the poor bloke's drunk his limit," Paul whispered. With that the rest of the boys lay on the floor using their jackets for blankets and stray papers or each other for pillows.
They tried to rest as best as they could, they would need a lot of sleep for the rollercoaster they were about to enter tomorrow at the Indra.
"Alright, moment of truth," Tom said as he looked at the résumé for the band.
"They should have at least included a picture of the boys, so I could see what I'm dealing with," Hattie said looking at every detail written down.
"Last I heard, they were playing at the Indra," Ramona said.
"We've been beaten out by Koschmider?!" Tom exclaimed. "Great, now we'll never get them over here. Pack all your belongings girls, I might as well sell the joint," Tom moped.
"No! I promise Tommy I can help find a way to get this place ship-shape in no time!" Anna told him.
"Yeah Tommy! Don't be scared, we can help!" Ramona kissed his cheek.
"Thanks dear," he smiled and turned to Anna. "Okay kid, so how are you going to get them to play here?"
"Just leave it to me," she smiled. Actually she had no plan. She was talking straight out of her arse. First off, they could barely afford one waitress, let alone a whole band! Plus who knew if they were really any good? These guys could be horrible for all they knew!
That night Hattie and Anna went to the Indra to check out The Beatles. They entered the Indra. There were sailors, swingers, prostitutes, transvestites, you name it. If it was drunk and had money, it was there.
"I hate these clubs, they're dirty and just grotty," Hattie complained.
"Let's sit somewhere before the band comes out," Anna said scoping out some empty tables near the front.
"Let's sit front row!" she pulled Hattie foreword to the front.
It was eight when they got there. They waited about half an hour before the band walked out. Those boys were something else. They were wild, and new and fab! They had a raw energy that infected everyone in the bar. Even Hattie, who wasn't one to dance or sing or have fun, was dancing.
The girls stayed awhile after when the pub cleared out, the band was getting drinks at the bar, Hattie and Anna sat at their table.
"That was too gear!" Anna exclaimed.
"I have to admit, they were pretty far out, they even made me cut a rug," Hattie said dazed.
"Finally, some English birds!" A man exclaimed. We both turned. The band was walking to us.
"Not all English," Hattie said. "She's American," she jabbed a thumb in Anna's direction.
"How exotic," the thinner member stated.
"What's exotic about being American?" Anna laughed.
"Well you have a tan, where you from luv?" the boy with the baby face asked.
"Arizona," she told him.
"That's way up north isn't it?" the cheeky one asked.
"No, it's actually close to the Mexican border," Anna told him flatly. He furrowed his brows as if confused.
"Don't mind him, he flunked out of school," baby-face said.
"Yeah, so did you, so I wouldn't be talking wanker," cheeky retorted.
"I'm George," the thin one introduced himself while the other two fought. "That's Pete," he pointed to the boy in sunglasses who nodded towards the girls. "Those two daft gits are John and Paul. John's the one with a crooked nose; Paulie's the one with long eyelashes."
"What'd you say Harrison?" John turned his head so fast Anna thought his neck would break.
"Nothing John dearest," George smiled a big toothy grin, showing of his pointed canines.
"So," John said sitting down and draping both arms around Hattie and Anna. "What brings you two to the naughtiest city in the world," he smirked.
"Business boys," Hattie said brushing Johns arm away from her. "We'd like you to make an appearance at our club."
"Sorry Lass, you'll have to talk to our keeper-err-employer for that," George apologized.
From then on both girls came back to visit, Hattie to try and convince Bruno Koschmider to let the boys have a show at the pub, Anna for the music.
There was always an electric feeling in the air when she saw them all perform. A few times they switched Pete out for a drummer named Ringo Starr. At those gigs there was almost magic in the air. Like some puzzle piece that was missing within the group had been found.
Anna grew close to the band and started to refer to them as "her boys", they called her "their girl" or "number one fan."
But all this would have to end soon. It started when the boys left the Kaiserkeller, one on Bruno's bars, for the Top Ten Club. Bruno threatened them with deporting George for being underage if they left him. The boys didn't listen. So one night, playing at the Top Ten Club, police barged in and whisked George off the stage. The band was to be deported immediately because of their younger member, and the fact that they had no work permits.
Anna was devastated. She wasn't the only one. Just a few months after the boys left, Tom closed the pub. He and Anna had moved in with Hattie and Ramona as they all struggled to make do. Finally, one day, tom made what was probably the best decision he ever could for Anna. He'd bought a ticket to Liverpool and told her to find a job, since there was so much business to be offered.
Little did Anna know she'd be landing the job of a lifetime.
So, I kind of suck at beginnings but I hope you all enjoyed! The next chapters will be better than this one. REVIEW PLEASE! :D