Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Knights. I also don't own a band. I do,
however, own a math text book. What a great thing to own instead of
Thats. *sighs*
***
Rath brushed a couple strands of light hair out of his face, brow
furrowed in concentration, a small bead of sweat running down his
pointed nose.
He was seated at a small desk made out of some sort of cheap wood
substitute, a sheet of paper in front of him and a pencil in his hand.
Glancing up, he snuck a look around the classroom, searching for his
friends.
Hastily written in chalk on the blackboard at the front of the room were
the words, Quiet! Test in process! in their teachers untidy scrawl, and a
student's note at the bottom to a friend in another class.
He spotted Rune sitting near the front of the class in a desk off to the
side, rapidly writing on his own test, then turning the paper over, starting
on the questions on the back.
Rath glanced back down at his test. He had finished six of the fifteen
questions on the front, and hadn't even begun thinking about the other
side yet.
Mentally groaning, he caught sight of his other friend, a boy a few months
older than him by the name of Thats. He smiled, when he saw that he
appeared to be as stumped as he was, then noticed that the other boy
was not actually stuck, simply zoning out and staring at a spot on the
wall.
Sighing, he turned back to his own paper, half wondering if he should do
something to snap his friend out of his trancelike state.
Deciding against it(he normally got out of it before the period was over
anyway), Rath completely immersed himself in his work, not looking up
again until the bell rang, fifteen minutes later.
As the raucous sound filled the room, signaling the end of the
period, the end of the day, and the end of the thirty point exam, Rune
stood, picking up his backpack as well. He had been done with his test for
the past five minutes, but had not turned it in until now. He walked the
eight feet to the teacher's desk, then placed his paper top down on the
already considerably large pile. Shifting under his bag's weight, he waited
for his two friends by the door.
"Oh. Sorry," He said, turning around and apologizing to the teenaged girl
he had bumped into.
"It's ok," She said, waving a hand in front of her face and smiling at him.
She then turned back to her friend, a girl with long blonde hair, flowing
freely around her shoulders.
"You were saying, Tintlett?" He caught her say as they walked off,
chatting.
"You chick watching?"
He jumped a foot in the air, or would have, had he not been wearing a
heavy backpack.
"Thats!" He turned around, glaring at his grinning friend.
"Hey, just wondering," Thats said, raising his hands, palms facing Rune in
a show of peace, then shifted over to the side as Rath joined the two of
them.
"We going?"
Rune nodded, exiting the classroom as Rath began ranting about their
history exam.
They walked around the large white building containing many of their
classes, then across the lawn, and finally down to the school's parking
lot, where they stopped and stood next to a newly repainted picnic
bench, dropping their bags down on top of it.
Rune interrupted the other two's complaints, pulling down his light gray
jacket sleeve and commenting, "The bus arrives in five minutes. Are we
agreed on what we discussed last night?"
He looked at his friends as they nodded, Rath vigorously, and Thats more
reluctantly.
"Thats?" He questioned.
"It just seems like a big waste of time," Thats said, shaking a crick out of
his neck, "I mean, what are the chances? Tons of people will be trying, so
why should we even bother. And then if we do get it," He made a face of
disgust, "Hoo, boy. If we do get it, then what? More work. It's a lot of
work for what? A little bit of fame, maybe a chance to brush shoulders
with the elite. But soon enough it will end, and we'll be back here. It
doesn't seem worth it." He said with the air of someone repeating an
argument for the final time.
"Thats," Rune started, but was cut off by Rath.
"What do you mean, not worth it? It's the dream of every teenager in all
of America! And now we are getting the chance to try, and you say it's
not worth it?" He glared at the other boy.
"It's not my dream," Thats stated stubbornly, crossing his arms and
turning his head to the side, eyes closed.
"What Rath means," Rune interjected helpfully, "Is that even if it isn't
your dream, it is his. And we would really appreciate your help."
He watched as the brown-haired boy stayed stock still, only opening his
eyes to look back at the other two.
Rune saw his resolve waver slightly, and added in, "Besides. If we do
win-which if we start practicing, I'm sure we will-I'm sure we'll get some
other benefits."
"Such as?"
"Oh, we'll be missing some school and we will probably get out early on
other days."
He noticed his friend's eye's light up and continued, "Then there's the
traveling, that will be fun; our pictures in the paper; the excuse for why
we didn't turn in our homework, and," He paused for effect, "We can do
all our practicing at my house," He let this sink in.
"My mother loves having people over for dinner."
This did it.
Thats blinked, his eyes lighting up. He grabbed his bag and slung it over
one shoulder as the bus drove up.
"Well, what are we waiting for, then? We should get started if we plan on
making it to auditions next Saturday!"
He picked up Rath's bag as well and tossed it to him, then waited as his
two friends gathered their remaining stuff and made his way over to the
large yellow vehicle, skipped the second step on the bus, and dropped a
dollar fifty into the plastic money box, already half filled with dollar bills,
quarters, and dimes.
The three walked halfway down the bus, then split up to sit in two
different rows, Thats and Rune in one, and Rath on the seat behind them.
"So how did we have it set up?" Thats asked cheerily, all reluctance
towards the idea forgotten, dropping his bag on the floor and kicking it
over to underneath the window.
"I believe it was Rath as lead," The blonde boy said, waiting for his friend
to slide into his place, then sitting down next to him, carefully placing his
navy bag on the floor.
"You were backup, and I had drums," He finished, turning around to make
certain he had it right by checking with Rath.
As the boy nodded his agreement, Rune turned back to Thats.
"I was thinking we could practice after school; every day if necessary this
week, for maybe an hour or two. Then we would have to really throw
ourselves into it this weekend, to make up for all the time we'll be missing
by going to school during the week. I hope you are prepared to squeeze
in some more practice during next week," He said, "I know it's a lot, but
it's the only way we can get enough done to be ready in seventeen
days."
He was relieved to see that both boys nodded, no sign of any previous
disagreements with the tight schedule showing on either of their faces.
"Good, and Rath," He swiveled around to look at the younger boy, "Has
already dropped off the equipment at my house."
Thats looked surprised.
"How'd you do that?"
"Came by last night," Was Rath's reply, "I've got everything stored away
in his basement. Speakers, microphone, some rough drafts," He grinned,
"Even Deus."
Rune ignored Thats' rolling of two green and brown orbs and spoke.
"And I already had my guitar down there, and I'm sure we can find you
something to practice on, Thats."
Thats nodded and reached down to his bag, zipping open the second
smallest pocket and retrieving a sleek metallic CD player and a set of
headphones. He popped them on and pressed the play button.
"So what sort of stuff are we playing?" He asked, his voice slightly louder
than normal due to the high volume of his music.
Rune and Rath looked at each other.
Although this had been their idea, they had been hoping that Thats
would have had an idea for the sort of music, mainly since, well...
Neither one of them knew exactly what they were doing.
"So?" Thats pressed, "What sort of stuff? Pop, metal, rock?" Looking at
their embarrassed faces, he blanched.
"Good crap. Don't tell me we're doing folk."
"Well," Rune said, suddenly very interested in a graffiti scrawl on the seat
in front of him, "Not exactly."
"You see," Rath said, "We don't know what we're doing."
Thats stared at them, then quickly pressed pause and pulled his
headphones off.
"Wait, I thought you said you had the songs written up already?"
"No," Rath looked out the window, watching as suburban houses flew
past, "I said I had the drafts written. Not the songs."
"Actually, what we have, Thats, is a bunch of scribbles on a few sheets of
folder paper," Rune admitted nervously.
Thats stared at Rune.
"You're shitting me."
When no one responded, he ran a hand through his brown hair.
"And we have seventeen days?"
The boy behind him nodded, a lock of light hair falling into his eyes.
"Well, I think..." He trailed off.
Rath looked hopeful.
"Yes?"
"We are majorly screwed."
This said, the junior popped his headphones back on and leaned against
the back of the seat, closing his eyes as the sound of music filled his ears.
Rune stared at the teenager next to him, then, worry written between his
brows, turned to the one behind him.
"I hate to say it, but he's right."
***
There, first chapter finished.
If I get positive feedback on this, I shall write more.
If not, that's ok.
I need to be working on my next chapter for a Gundam Wing fic anyway.
however, own a math text book. What a great thing to own instead of
Thats. *sighs*
***
Rath brushed a couple strands of light hair out of his face, brow
furrowed in concentration, a small bead of sweat running down his
pointed nose.
He was seated at a small desk made out of some sort of cheap wood
substitute, a sheet of paper in front of him and a pencil in his hand.
Glancing up, he snuck a look around the classroom, searching for his
friends.
Hastily written in chalk on the blackboard at the front of the room were
the words, Quiet! Test in process! in their teachers untidy scrawl, and a
student's note at the bottom to a friend in another class.
He spotted Rune sitting near the front of the class in a desk off to the
side, rapidly writing on his own test, then turning the paper over, starting
on the questions on the back.
Rath glanced back down at his test. He had finished six of the fifteen
questions on the front, and hadn't even begun thinking about the other
side yet.
Mentally groaning, he caught sight of his other friend, a boy a few months
older than him by the name of Thats. He smiled, when he saw that he
appeared to be as stumped as he was, then noticed that the other boy
was not actually stuck, simply zoning out and staring at a spot on the
wall.
Sighing, he turned back to his own paper, half wondering if he should do
something to snap his friend out of his trancelike state.
Deciding against it(he normally got out of it before the period was over
anyway), Rath completely immersed himself in his work, not looking up
again until the bell rang, fifteen minutes later.
As the raucous sound filled the room, signaling the end of the
period, the end of the day, and the end of the thirty point exam, Rune
stood, picking up his backpack as well. He had been done with his test for
the past five minutes, but had not turned it in until now. He walked the
eight feet to the teacher's desk, then placed his paper top down on the
already considerably large pile. Shifting under his bag's weight, he waited
for his two friends by the door.
"Oh. Sorry," He said, turning around and apologizing to the teenaged girl
he had bumped into.
"It's ok," She said, waving a hand in front of her face and smiling at him.
She then turned back to her friend, a girl with long blonde hair, flowing
freely around her shoulders.
"You were saying, Tintlett?" He caught her say as they walked off,
chatting.
"You chick watching?"
He jumped a foot in the air, or would have, had he not been wearing a
heavy backpack.
"Thats!" He turned around, glaring at his grinning friend.
"Hey, just wondering," Thats said, raising his hands, palms facing Rune in
a show of peace, then shifted over to the side as Rath joined the two of
them.
"We going?"
Rune nodded, exiting the classroom as Rath began ranting about their
history exam.
They walked around the large white building containing many of their
classes, then across the lawn, and finally down to the school's parking
lot, where they stopped and stood next to a newly repainted picnic
bench, dropping their bags down on top of it.
Rune interrupted the other two's complaints, pulling down his light gray
jacket sleeve and commenting, "The bus arrives in five minutes. Are we
agreed on what we discussed last night?"
He looked at his friends as they nodded, Rath vigorously, and Thats more
reluctantly.
"Thats?" He questioned.
"It just seems like a big waste of time," Thats said, shaking a crick out of
his neck, "I mean, what are the chances? Tons of people will be trying, so
why should we even bother. And then if we do get it," He made a face of
disgust, "Hoo, boy. If we do get it, then what? More work. It's a lot of
work for what? A little bit of fame, maybe a chance to brush shoulders
with the elite. But soon enough it will end, and we'll be back here. It
doesn't seem worth it." He said with the air of someone repeating an
argument for the final time.
"Thats," Rune started, but was cut off by Rath.
"What do you mean, not worth it? It's the dream of every teenager in all
of America! And now we are getting the chance to try, and you say it's
not worth it?" He glared at the other boy.
"It's not my dream," Thats stated stubbornly, crossing his arms and
turning his head to the side, eyes closed.
"What Rath means," Rune interjected helpfully, "Is that even if it isn't
your dream, it is his. And we would really appreciate your help."
He watched as the brown-haired boy stayed stock still, only opening his
eyes to look back at the other two.
Rune saw his resolve waver slightly, and added in, "Besides. If we do
win-which if we start practicing, I'm sure we will-I'm sure we'll get some
other benefits."
"Such as?"
"Oh, we'll be missing some school and we will probably get out early on
other days."
He noticed his friend's eye's light up and continued, "Then there's the
traveling, that will be fun; our pictures in the paper; the excuse for why
we didn't turn in our homework, and," He paused for effect, "We can do
all our practicing at my house," He let this sink in.
"My mother loves having people over for dinner."
This did it.
Thats blinked, his eyes lighting up. He grabbed his bag and slung it over
one shoulder as the bus drove up.
"Well, what are we waiting for, then? We should get started if we plan on
making it to auditions next Saturday!"
He picked up Rath's bag as well and tossed it to him, then waited as his
two friends gathered their remaining stuff and made his way over to the
large yellow vehicle, skipped the second step on the bus, and dropped a
dollar fifty into the plastic money box, already half filled with dollar bills,
quarters, and dimes.
The three walked halfway down the bus, then split up to sit in two
different rows, Thats and Rune in one, and Rath on the seat behind them.
"So how did we have it set up?" Thats asked cheerily, all reluctance
towards the idea forgotten, dropping his bag on the floor and kicking it
over to underneath the window.
"I believe it was Rath as lead," The blonde boy said, waiting for his friend
to slide into his place, then sitting down next to him, carefully placing his
navy bag on the floor.
"You were backup, and I had drums," He finished, turning around to make
certain he had it right by checking with Rath.
As the boy nodded his agreement, Rune turned back to Thats.
"I was thinking we could practice after school; every day if necessary this
week, for maybe an hour or two. Then we would have to really throw
ourselves into it this weekend, to make up for all the time we'll be missing
by going to school during the week. I hope you are prepared to squeeze
in some more practice during next week," He said, "I know it's a lot, but
it's the only way we can get enough done to be ready in seventeen
days."
He was relieved to see that both boys nodded, no sign of any previous
disagreements with the tight schedule showing on either of their faces.
"Good, and Rath," He swiveled around to look at the younger boy, "Has
already dropped off the equipment at my house."
Thats looked surprised.
"How'd you do that?"
"Came by last night," Was Rath's reply, "I've got everything stored away
in his basement. Speakers, microphone, some rough drafts," He grinned,
"Even Deus."
Rune ignored Thats' rolling of two green and brown orbs and spoke.
"And I already had my guitar down there, and I'm sure we can find you
something to practice on, Thats."
Thats nodded and reached down to his bag, zipping open the second
smallest pocket and retrieving a sleek metallic CD player and a set of
headphones. He popped them on and pressed the play button.
"So what sort of stuff are we playing?" He asked, his voice slightly louder
than normal due to the high volume of his music.
Rune and Rath looked at each other.
Although this had been their idea, they had been hoping that Thats
would have had an idea for the sort of music, mainly since, well...
Neither one of them knew exactly what they were doing.
"So?" Thats pressed, "What sort of stuff? Pop, metal, rock?" Looking at
their embarrassed faces, he blanched.
"Good crap. Don't tell me we're doing folk."
"Well," Rune said, suddenly very interested in a graffiti scrawl on the seat
in front of him, "Not exactly."
"You see," Rath said, "We don't know what we're doing."
Thats stared at them, then quickly pressed pause and pulled his
headphones off.
"Wait, I thought you said you had the songs written up already?"
"No," Rath looked out the window, watching as suburban houses flew
past, "I said I had the drafts written. Not the songs."
"Actually, what we have, Thats, is a bunch of scribbles on a few sheets of
folder paper," Rune admitted nervously.
Thats stared at Rune.
"You're shitting me."
When no one responded, he ran a hand through his brown hair.
"And we have seventeen days?"
The boy behind him nodded, a lock of light hair falling into his eyes.
"Well, I think..." He trailed off.
Rath looked hopeful.
"Yes?"
"We are majorly screwed."
This said, the junior popped his headphones back on and leaned against
the back of the seat, closing his eyes as the sound of music filled his ears.
Rune stared at the teenager next to him, then, worry written between his
brows, turned to the one behind him.
"I hate to say it, but he's right."
***
There, first chapter finished.
If I get positive feedback on this, I shall write more.
If not, that's ok.
I need to be working on my next chapter for a Gundam Wing fic anyway.