4

The sound of the crowd screaming rose up to meet them in a mighty swell as their platforms lifted them on stage. Warm desert lights danced in the backdrop behind them. The gold glow bleaching out his surroundings made him think of the savannah, rife with cheetahs and a time when people ran alongside them, bare foot and wild.

And though he told himself he wouldn't look back, as the lead guitar solo broke in he almost cracked his neck to catch view of Tea, who glittered surreal and bright in Rebecca's adjusted dress. She had made an odd last minute alteration, though, begging the seamstress to add some sort of sleeves and keep her cleavage covered. The seamstress, who had never been that hard of a stickler, unlike their boss, took it as a fun challenge for her creativity. Thus, Tea wore gossamer, satin sleeves that hugged about the curves of her upper arm and a collar like Egyptian necklace to cover any sign of cleavage.

Joey and Atem had enough self-preservation to not say anything about this. Boys had no place in saying what a girl should want in a dress. Bakura, on the other hand, had no sense.

"What nunnery did you crawl out of? What, you think someone's going to jump on stage and dive down your tits?"

Tea's face had flamed at this, but she faced him with a calm demur.

"It's my body. I get to decide how much of it I show."

And for some reason, watching her rise with the rest of them to the dance of lights and roar of the crowd, Atem couldn't help but notice how much she seemed to glow because of it. The satin sleeves and beads added an air of exotic fantasy that made him swerve back to the microphone with a burst of elated energy. The first note, the first release of any performance he began had always felt to him like the first thrust of sex-surprising and euphoric. Bakura's answering cackle over the microphone echoed those same feelings.

"Let it in!"

A thousand voices roared the words back to him.

A thrilling dance of noise latter ended the first song, and he was left at the stand sweating and breathless, adrenaline spiking his heartbeats and spinning his vision. His last grab for the microphone almost ended with him dropping it, as his hands had gone slippery with sweat.

"Thank you, New York!"

At their answering cry, he beamed. Now came the tricky part-the one Mai had almost been ready to leave to the tabloids and entertainment columns to figure out. At least in this Atem's sense had won out. After all, it really just made things worse if you kicked them under the rug.

"I'm sure some have you have noticed a new addition to the party," he twisted around and gestured towards a blank faced Tea, who seemed to be fighting the urge to hug the guitar in front of her like a shield. Even from this distance he could make out the brilliant blue of her eyes. "Let me introduce you to Tea Gardner, probably the most remarkable and talented musician I've ever met. When we found out Rebecca wouldn't be able to make it, she pretty much magically appeared on our front doorstep and learned all our songs over night, so everyone make sure to give her a warm thanks. She's never done this before, after all."

A warm, encouraging murmur rose from the crowd, flecked with a few whoops and cat calls. Tea gave a cute little smile and waved.

"Now, since we're here to serve you," he twisted back around, hand on a hip to give his famous, knee melting, full-body smirk. He could almost hear Joey and Bakura's eyes rolling like run away marbles in their skulls. "What next?"

Even though their song order was already decided, it was always good showmanship to give the crowd the option. Besides, there was going to be someone screaming the title of the next song anyways.

Sure enough, "Double-Dip" was one of the numbers. As Atem beamed and murmured the title, close and intimately, he swore a row of girls near the front stood up and tore of their shirts-and their lack of bras underneath. He looked away quickly (he didn't need an hard-on poking out on stage), but grinned nonetheless. One hit wonder indeed. Man, if only he could rub Kaiba snob face into those perfectly shaped breasts.

For "Double-Dip," Atem backed up to a platform where a slender, red electric cello waited for him and Joey rolled back so techies could help replace his traditional drum set with a set of monstrous drums, offset by part of a marimba. Bakura just pushed some buttons, sneering at all the mess and work it took for the rest of them to get ready. All those precious calories he'd say.

Tea just looked on, probably doing her best to not look awkward and stiff holding her guitar. She managed to adjust her microphone to more her liking and rolled her shoulders.

Before he even set the bow on the strings, Atem ran the words through his mind like sand between his fingers, recalling the uprush of emotions that had moved him to write these words. Then, when the ocean hushing of the onlookers calmed, he set down the horse hairs and breathed. The first rumbling C went across his belly like that night he nearly crashed into the desk to reach for a pen.

"Gentle now," he breathed into the little mic taped to the side of his face. The crowd hmmmmmed. "Though every morning must break colorless me across the streets, I'll still hold on tight to all the pieces, as though they had always hummed my beats. And if you meant to take away, one hit won't be enough. Double-tap, double-tap, double-tap so they don't get up."

Joey's gentle rumble rolled into a thunderous boom as he laid loose the mallets upon his drums big enough to hide a man. Bakura's fingers all but mashed down on the keys, and, just in front of him, Atem caught sight of Tea clenching her eyes tight as her fingers jumped through three chords, strumming madly. She hit every off-beat of Joey's booms, her short, A-line hair bouncing with her shoulders.

She didn't miss once.

When the curtain finally fell, Atem's throat was comfortably sore and the shirt beneath his leather vest stuck to him like a second skin with sweat. Joey whooped and flopped his bare, glistening arms across a set of bongs. Tea all but collapsed to the floor, hanging her head back in relief. Bakura, however, cooly folded out of his tower of keys and sauntered down to the ground floor, where Atem was considering doing much the same as Tea.

"Now for revels," he said, sticking a long thumb nail between his teeth with his pinky stuck in the air like some sort of pipe.

"Lord, please," echoed up Joey's voice.

The cheering of the crowd muffled the sounds of footsteps as techies and stagehands pattered across stage to lay hold of their instruments. They were being paid by the hour, after all.

"Didn't Miss Mai say you have some album signings to do afterwards?" asked Tea.

"We have signings," said Atem, wishing she hadn't said anything. "You're part of this team now too."

"Wait, like-"

"I thought she was just a temp till Rebecca cooled down?" said Joey, perking up in his seat. "No offense to you, Tea."

"No offense taken."

Bakura rolled his eyes and rolled his hip to the side. Despite the sweat and fervor of the performance, his complexion was as pale as ever. "I vote she stays put like concrete. Anyone is better than the Bitch Witch."

"She wasn't that bad," said Atem, though he said it half-heartedly.

"You're just saying that out of guilt."

"Sure. Go ahead and say that."

"I will."

Joey sighed and rolled onto his feet to join them. "Come on, Pharaoh, you can't be too hard on yourself. She's the one who flipped out. We alls know you're drunk."

Atem, who had followed Tea to the ground, flopped onto his back. "Can we not talk about this?"

"Because Tea's here? She's going to know eventually."

Tea threw up a tired arm. "But I know it's not my business, so please, feel free to not tell me. Though I've rarely heard of anyone being proud of what they've done while drunk, if that helps any."

"I can hardly hear you," gruffed Atem. "Get over here."

"How about all you lazy swine get up and tell me where the hell your guitarist is."

The Ice Age came whooshing onstage with the cracking command of that voice. Like puppets yanked by their strings, all three of them straightened and turned towards the source, which was walking-or more like stalking-across the stage, a magnificent canvas and leather trench coat billowing behind him. Despite being not too many years older than them, Seto Kaiba's youth, instead of dulling his intimidation factor, just made it seem all the more likely that he would impale you with his fist, having the strength and vitality to do so. You didn't have to work for him to hear the rumors of his meticulous ruthlessness when it came to employees who failed him, or worse, anyone who dared to double cross him. Bakura and Joey had pointed out on more than one occasion to Kaiba being more like the terrifying godfather of a mob rather than just the CEO of a music and technology corporation.

Although Tea lacked the knowledge of Kaiba's reputation, she stood up quickly enough to not look rude, and Kaiba passed right by her without even a glance in her direction. His eyes were all for the unlikely trio meeting his eye through the sheer strength of their own pride.

"Nevermind the fact that you lot are spending my hard earned time and money to follow your cute little dreams, you thought it smart to not even inform me that you were lacking a crucial player to your performance and, even worse, got someone off the streets to do the job."

Atem finally averted his eyes from the towering figure before him. "Kaiba, sir, we didn't go looking on the streets-"

"But from the streets she came from nonetheless, am I wrong?"

"If you'd listen to her, you'd see where she comes from doesn't matter," started Joey, who had come from a less than proper neighborhood and took offense.

"Oh, I listened to her all right. And watched. It's obvious she hasn't been on a proper stage let alone seen one in her entire life. I hope you're prepared for the laughing stock the reviews will make of you. But that isn't what matters, is it? Because I will be the one having to deal with them."

"Technically that would be our public relations manager," muttered Bakura in his snide, side-note sort of way. Loyal server of the obnoxious, to the end.

Kaiba's ice grey eyes swiveled on Bakura with all the piercing ferocity of a tiger, even though the rest of his face stayed completely neutral. Bakura didn't meet those eyes, but Atem saw his feet shift. For a brief second, Atem feared Kaiba might actually hit the pale pianist, but instead he gave a dismissive snort and whirled back around, where Tea stood rooted to the spot some yards away, making no attempt to hide the fact that she really was using the guitar as a shield now.

With march-like steps fit for an Imperial Overlord facing down a failure of an underling, Seto Kaiba closed the distance between them. He didn't speak till they were nearly toe to toe.

"Tea Gardner. You didn't graduate high school, but tested out early with a G.E.D so you could work full time. Your mother has been married multiple times and has had various children with spouses and boyfriends. They currently live at a Sunny Side park in a trailer that would probably house a pack of wild animals better than people, and yet I'm told you have a musical talent only heard of in urban legends." Kaiba folded his arms across his chest. "Well?"

Tea, whose knuckles had gone white on the neck of her guitar, gulped. "Well what...sir?"

"Why are you here?"

"Um, w-well, I had to move out-"

"That's obvious. But why move out here? To New York? You could have found cheaper living in other States, even auditioned to the top universities with your talent and gotten plenty of financial assistance. I find it highly unlikely that if your talent has any worth that you would just happen to stumble upon my idiotic band just in their time of need." His eyes narrowed. "And don't bother trying to bull shit me."

As he spoke, Tea's hands loosened from the neck of the guitar, allowing it to hang before her on the strap. From Atem's angle, he could see her move her hands back to her sides and ball them up, as she had done in facing him since the first moment. A familiar steeliness came to the way she set her shoulders and raised her chin.

"As far as I'm concerned, Mr. Kaiba, I have done your band a favor by staying up all night to learn their songs so that your enterprise doesn't go down the drain. Not that it's any of your business, but since you've been rude enough to dig up my whole life, I never wanted to go into the music industry because I don't want to be a poor music teacher and I don't like the culture of the entertainment world, let alone trust it enough to raise children in it."

When Kaiba's eyebrows shot up, an urge to laugh punched Atem so hard, he had to throw his hands over his mouth to stop it from coming out. Bakura smirked toothily, and Joey snickered.

"My plans were actually to go to a technical school," she continued. "Get a trade that would pay decent wages, but since my step father makes so much I can't qualify for financial aid, so I thought I'd come to New York and use my music to make some money. I had just found a job to get me on my way when I heard your band practically yelling how much they needed a guitarist."

Kaiba was dead faced. "So, you're telling me you're opting out of music entirely...because your end goal is to have children?"

"Yes."

"And you think your kids will become drug addicted whores if they grow up with a mom in the music industry?"

"Well, I didn't say tha-"

"You implied it."

"..."

"So this is just a means to an end for you. You'll play in this band long enough to get the money you need and then you're back to become Bobbette the Builder with surplus to breed a trailer trash horde of your own."

The steel in her eyes died, although she didn't look away from Kaiba's gaze. Atem watched as her hands uncoiled and her proud shoulders slumped.

But Kaiba seemed satisfied. "This makes my job easier, then. I will send you a contract that will be binding for the next year. A year should be long enough and more for me to find a replacement and for you to earn the money you need. Let it be known that I am not above charity. Be grateful that I haven't kicked you off the market with the rest of this wannabe band."

And without so much as a good-bye, Seto stalked past her and off stage, where a pair of stiff, wide-eyed techies had watched the drama unfold with a mixture of awe and pity.

But Tea Gardner didn't move. She stood there like a statue, staring up where Seto's face had once been, the band of her guitar slowly digging into the side of her neck. The eyeshadow and bronzer on her face still glittered in the stage-lights.

"That bastard..." managed Joey.

"Get ready for the waterworks," added Bakura, who didn't look in any inclination to start pulling out hanky's.

Atem, however, feared if he opened his mouth to speak it would turn into a slandering roar that Kaiba would definitely hear, and since they really were lucky that their world tour was still on, even though Kaiba had flown from God knows where to wreck fear on them himself, Atem couldn't risk jeopardizing his band again.

But no one could miss the broken look in her eyes.

Tea, probably hearing them, blinked a few times, then dropped her chin in their direction with a plastic sort of smile.

"I'm okay, guys. We should probably be getting ready for those signings, huh?"

And with a flick of her hair as though she could care less, which convinced no one, she headed off stage in the opposite direction.

Just a quick note here to say thank you to those who have review. ^.^ Next update will be on Monday, as usual.