One of the things Lily was looking forward to in Wind Ensemble was the Tour. The Tour involved performing at a middle school and five elementary schools. It was a very long day. It was special for Lily, because she had first seen the Wind Ensemble on Tour in 4th grade. That's when she decided to play clarinet. In 6th grade, she saw Roberto playing for the first time. In 8th grade, she had seen Bailey for the first time in many months. She had always looked forward to the Tour. It was ironic, how she jumped from being in the audience to being in the band.
The other thing Lily was looking forward to was missing school. Not that she was a delinquent, but she hadn't missed a day of school all year, and she wasn't going to get sick just for that purpose. Field trips were her only hope of escaping the endless cycle of classes. And a full day out with band kids was going to be really fun.
Lily was one of the first people in the band room at 7. She hadn't even brought anything besides her clarinet. Amanda and Alexa, as the Band Staff librarians, were handling music folders. She was bouncing around as she hung out with the other freshman going on the Tour. Inez (oboe), Matt (baritone), Cody (percussion), and her were the only freshman in the Wind Ensemble, but Lily's good friend John (sax), and not-so-good friend Drew (french horn and trumpet) were touring with the Jazz Band. Lily had left the group, and was talking to Mary when Mr. Locke called the band to attention.
"First off, Mr. Sparrow can't come today. That means one less chaperon," Mr. Locke explained. "Mr. Cole, the choir director, will drive the equipment truck. I will be in one bus. That means the other bus will have no adults. Behave, or else." That really got people excited. "Now, equipment assignments: Amanda and Alexa, you already have the folders. Nate, you're in charge of the truck. Loading, unloading, getting stuff out, it's up to you." Nate nodded from the corner and shot Lily a look. He knew about his assignment ahead of time, and promised Lily she would get to carry something heavy, twice as big as she was. Nate wasn't a bad guy, but he had a tendency to be a little. . . creepy. He used to scare Lily, but now she was used to him.
"Then let's load the buses!" shouted Mr. Locke. Lily had never known that 50 kids could be so loud. She looked at the stampede in the band room. Everyone was wearing their black band t-shirt and jeans. They looked so similar, but Lily knew how different they were. On the bus, she grabbed a seat by Inez, and John was across from them. Amanda was in front of her.
The first stop was the middle school Lily had attended. When she first walked into the gym, she stared at the empty bleachers. Last year, she had been sitting there. Things could really change in just twelve months. "Lily, let's move!" shouted Mr. Locke, and Lily took off like a shot. There were a lot of things to do to get ready for this performance. Lily couldn't carry all the heavy stuff, so she was stuck inside. Her first job was the clarinet chairs, as well as the first and second rows. She knew where all the stands went, and rushed them from the racks to the seats. She almost ran into Alexa when she got the folders.
"I'll take those," Lily said, taking the clarinet and bass clarinet folders from Alexa's arms. "Thanks," Alexa said and smiled. Lily smiled in return. She hadn't spent that much time with Alexa, but she wasn't that bad. Lily hopped back to the clarinet section, and distributed folders to each stand. Kristin and Kelsey had just sat down to put together their clarinets, and Lily joined them. Within minutes, everyone was together, and people were coming into the gym. Jazz kids sat on the sidelines and waited.
Lily recognized many people, but didn't say anything. She did see all of her middle school teachers, from seventh grade language arts to eighth grade math. She was anxious. "Hey, Inez," she said, poking the oboe player. "All of our teachers are here. That's weird." Inez looked at the audience and nodded, grimacing. Lily smiled back, and they laughed, a little.
The first piece was a band piece, but it had four clarinet parts instead of three. Lily played third with Kristin, while Keith and Kelsey played fourth. The second piece was a march. The third was a medley from a Broadway musical, and the last was a collection of TV themes (Lily didn't really watch TV, so she didn't know most of them). The middle school performance went easily. Lily's embouchure was fresh for the day, and it felt like all the concerts she had done in that gym. As soon as they were done playing, the principal asked all the alumni to stand up. At least 3/4 of the band were on their feet. The Jazz Band and Madrigal Choir both performed, and then they were off to the next school.
"Lily!" called Nate. "Take this stand rack!" Lily walked over him and examined the stand rack. She shook her head.
"This thing is huge! I can't move that! Besides, this is the one with the broken wheel. You have to be really strong to make this one go straight," she informed him, even though he already knew. Nate shrugged. "Take it anyway." Lily shot him a piercing glare (she never could manage to give that look to members of her own section), but grabbed the stand rack anyway. "That's the spirit!" he shouted.
But, since it was the rack with the broken wheel, it was hard to move. It took Lily a very long time to maneuver it out the small door and into the truck. "I'm going to kill you," she told Nate. He laughed.
"We both know I'm bigger and stronger and could probably crush you. You used to be scared of me. No chance," he said, smiling. He was just relieved to find someone who would carry that particular stand rack. They walked together back onto a bus, where Lily sat by Inez and Nate by Jeff. Lily smirked.
"Hey, Nate," she called back, standing up. "We're going to the elementary schools now, and my sister's going to be at one of these. Keep the creepiness to a minimum." Nate smiled, and knew she was pissed about the stand racks. Jeff cracked up. Another percussionist rolled her eyes.
"An elementary school is probably the worst place to send Nate ever." Almost the whole bus was laughing, but Nate sent Lily a look that clearly said she was pushing many more stand racks in the future. She giggled anyway. Why couldn't she have this much fun with the clarinets?
At the next school, Forester Elementary, Lily put her clarinet on her chair (which she had set up quickly). Nate hunted her down. "Hey, Lily, can you go get the other stand rack?" He was hauling one himself, but she could clearly see it was the one with the good wheel.
"No," she said. "Mr. Locke asked the clarinets to set up the stands." She skipped off to grab a stand from the end of his rack, and put it down in front of Roberto and Mary's section. Then she went back to get two more. "I am helping, you know." She set those two stands down, and went to get more. On her third trip, she gave Nate, who was watching her, a huge smile. He couldn't help himself. He cracked up.
"Lily!" Roberto yelled, walking past. "Let's go!" Lily muttered an acknowledgment, and followed him, bright smile disappearing. She picked up the folders from Alexa, who gave her the folders she needed with a knowing look. She rushed to put them all on the stands, but people were already sitting and waiting. Lily felt bad, even though it wasn't a job assigned to her.
The performance was just as easy as the first. When the choir and jazz band started playing, Kristin and Keith got bored. They played Rock, Paper, Scissors.
"Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!" Kieth shouted. They both drew Rock. "Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!" Kristin pulled Paper, while Keith did Rock again. "Dang it," he muttered. "Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!" Keith was on a losing streak. "Let's change it up," he suggested.
"Let's change the things. How about. . .Volcano, Forest, Stream?" Kristin asked. They developed a set of rules. Stream beat volcano, because water put out fire, but stream was beat by forest, because trees used a lot of water. On the other hand, forest was burned by volcano. After a few rounds, the game expanded to include Avalanche, Cities, Earthquake, Rain, and many other factors. It was hopelessly complicated. The game stopped when the principal of Forester Elementary called attention.
"Now, there are some very special people in the band today. How many of you are Forester alumni?" A large number stood up, encompassing at least half the band. "Would all those come up and say their names?" Kristin and Mary both hesitantly walked forwards with other people, such as Inez, and Suzanne, a flautist, and Cody and Drew, other freshmen.
After the somewhat awkward introductions, they packed up quickly. Lily handed the clarinet folders to Alexa, and Nate appeared behind her. "Ready to help?" Lily jumped a foot.
"Nate! Don't do that! You know I hate it when you sneak up on me. But I guess I could. . ." she said. Nate gave her a triumphant look. "I'll take this one, and you can take the other." She ran to the good stand rack, and wheeled it out the door. "See you at the truck!"
"Listen up!" Mr. Locke shouted. "Next performance is at Native Prairie Elementary. Then we'll have lunch. I expect you'll be out of there fast, but I wanted to tell you anyway." Lily's ears perked. Her sister, Emma Lissa, was a fifth-grader at Native Prairie. In fact, Lily used to go to Native Prairie.
Nate made her carry the stand rack in that time. She didn't complain too much. She scanned the children who were on the playground when they came in, looking for neighbors. She didn't recognize anyone, but she thought she saw her first and second grade teacher. Inside, though, she wasn't so lucky.
"Lily!" greeted a woman. Lily turned around. It was Mrs. Black, the recently appointed assistant principal. She had been a multiage teach when Lily was younger, and had taught Lily second-grade math. "It's fantastic to see you!" Lily went through a polite conversation before taking the stand rack into the gym. Jeff and Nate that lucky. She heard the principal call out, "Jeffery! How are you? And Nathan's here too!" Served him right for making her take the stands again.
Inside, while waiting to play, Lily scanned for her sister. "Who are you looking for?" Keith asked.
"Emma Lissa," Lily told him. "Oh, I see her. Hey! That little delinquent's wearing my shirt!" Keith laughed a little, and Lily glared at him. Her sister often took Lily's clothes, since Lily was gone when she woke up and they were about the same size (thought Lily was quick to point out she was 2 1/2 inches taller).
The performance was the same, but when alumni were asked to stand, there were a lot fewer people. Lily glanced at the others. Jeff and Nate had stepped forward. Matt the baritone and his trombone brother, and another baritone she did not know well (though he lived two houses down). The trumpet prodigy, Corey, and a sophomore trumpet that was the older brother of one of her sister's friends. And Roberto! Lily thought about that. He hadn't been here when she had. He must have been in a boundary change before she started, Lily deduced.
Afterward, she said a brief hello to her sister before taking the stand rack from Nate. She was walking out with Jeff through the cafeteria when a small child came out of nowhere. "Lily! Hi, Lily!" It was Julia, a second-grader, and sister of Emma Lissa's best friend. Lily baby-sat for them sometimes.
"Hey, Jules," she said. "Good to see you!" Julia hugged her, then ran off back to her lunch table. "Cute kid," Jeff said. "She's adorable." Lily nodded, and they rushed. It was getting late, and they were hungry!
On the bus, Mr. Locke laid out the ground rules for lunch. "We're parking in the lot by the grocery store. There's lots of restaurants. You can go to Taco Bell, White Castle, Tommy's, and since I know you all like it, Steak and Shake." Murmurs rose in the bus. Lily knew Steak and Shake was the place to go after band events. You had to be really well liked to be asked though. Once, Bailey was invited and she had brought Mary with her. Roberto, Keith, and Kelsey seemed to go all the time. "There will be no crossing streets. Do so, and there will be major consequences. You get fifty minutes, which is more than enough for lunch. You only get forty-five at school, and that's only for those of you who have a lunch period. Let's go!"
"Where do you want to go?" Lily asked Inez. They'd probably go with John, since the three of them had spent most of their time together. Inez shrugged.
"Steak and Shake sounds fine. I don't really like Taco Bell," Inez said. Lily shook her head. She didn't either.
She suddenly remembered an important thing she was doing. Mr. Locke had told her mom recently that she had a "deer in headlights" look. Lily didn't think she did. Kelsey was the first she asked, and she said she didn't. Keith and Mary agreed with Lily. Bailey said she did sometimes, so she counted it as half. She didn't plan on asking Roberto. He'd probably tell Mr. Locke. That only left Amanda and Kristin. Amanda was sitting in front of her so she leaned over the seat.
"Hey, 'Manda?" she asked, in her habit of occasionally dropping syllables from words. "Can I ask you a question? I'm doing a survey . And Alicia, too," she added. Bass clarinets were clarinets, too, kind of.
"Sure," Alicia said. "Go ahead." Lily clutched the seat back to steady herself as the bus lurched into motion.
"Mr. Locke said I had a deer in headlights look. Is it true? Because Kelsey an' Keith' an' Mary don't think so, but Bailey says I sometimes do. What do you think?"
"Definitely. All the time," said Amanda.
"No, absolutely not!" said Alicia. Lily tallied. Now it was 4 1/2 to 1 1/2.
"Thank you," Lily said. She dropped down to talk to Inez and John again.
In the parking lot, Lily, Inez, and John got off the bus and went to Steak and Shake. To their surprise, there were few people. Them, a group of low brass players, some sophomore woodwinds, and a quartet of choir kids were the only high schoolers in the restaurant. Everyone else was at least 25. They got weird looks, but no one asked questions, so Lily assumed they saw the bus. Besides, didn't juniors and seniors come here on lunch release? They enjoyed a somewhat fulfilling meal of steakburgers, fries, and of course, shakes. Lily was finishing her fries while Inez and John waited, clearly impatient.
"Sorry," she apologized. "I'm a really slow eater." They laughed, but Lily ate as fast as she could, even though they still had twenty minutes. They saw a group in front of the grocery store with ice cream, so they joined the conversation. Kelsey was there, but she pretty much ignored Lily, other than greeting them. Roberto walked by with some other musicians who were in both band and choir, but he completely ignored both Lily and Kelsey. That made her feel better (though she wasn't sure why).
Back on the bus, they talked for about five minutes before everyone was ready to leave. Nate told Lily about the smoothie he had gotten. John tried to text people and see whose phones were on at school. Inez had her sister's phone, and was watching her movies. Amanda complained to Alicia. Jeff and Keith yelled at Lily from the rear of the bus, and Lily yelled back. It was loud, and everyone was doing their own thing. So many things this day reminded Lily of why she liked band so much.
The next school was an elementary school called Boulder Ridge. Lily knew this performance would be a little different. While only 4th graders, who would be selecting instruments that year, and 5th graders, some of whom had already started band, were present at the other elementary schools, Boulder Ridge was sending all levels down to watch the bands. Lily found this out from the Sunday School teacher she worked with in the 4 year-old class. Her daughters had heard Lily was in the South band, and were excited they would see someone they knew.
Also, Lily's mom was a speech pathologist at Boulder Ridge in the Early Education Center. She knew her mom's class probably wouldn't be there, but either way, it was awkward.
Inside, they set up quickly, everyone revitalized after a good lunch break. The 5th grade band was still rehearsing when they got in, so most people put down their instruments and watched, out of respect. Lily joined them. When the band finished their practice, everyone applauded loudly. Most of the younger band geeks seemed scared, but others' faces broke out in wide smiles when the high schoolers cheered. Lily couldn't believe she had been one of them once. A couple of seniors from the smaller sections approached the students. She saw a baritone going up to meet a small boy, and an oboe reassuring a girl. But the communal moment was cut short when the band students went back to class to go to the assembly, and the high school students set up.
"Clarinets!" Mr. Locke yelled. "Move those stands over for jazz!" he ordered, pointing to some of the elementary school's stands in the back corner of the room. Lily and Keith, the only clarinets who were present, shrugged and got to work. Lily had gotten to the stands when she literally ran into someone.
"Hi, Mom!" she said, taking the stand, and walking it to the jazz setup. Keith gave them a strange look, but chose not to comment. Lily didn't either. Her mom, she found out later, was on her lunch break, and had stopped in to help the music teacher set up. She left before the performance.
While waiting for the students to come in, Lily surveyed Kristin. "Do you think I have a deer in headlights look?"
"No," Kristin snorted. "You're normal." Lily thought that was a good thing. She felt someone staring at her, so she turned. An especially short 1st grader was watching her intently, like she recognized her. Ashley! Lily did know her. She had been a teen aide at day camp that summer, and Ashley was in her unit. She gave a small wave, and Ashley broke into a wide grin, giving Lily a huge wave back. Lily turned back to see Keith craning his neck. "Who are you looking for?" she asked.
"My brother. I know he's here somewhere, and he's in 4th grade. I'm looking, looking, there!" he said, triumphantly. "Found him. He's in the back row!"
"So was my sister," Lily sympathized. "Makes them hard to spot."
The performance was like any other, but they had started a little late, and needed to get moving right away. While the jazz band was still playing, the concert band was loading up. They used a different system for stands to be quieter. They took the stands and racks outside, and loaded them there. They had the stands and one of the racks. "Lily?" asked Nate. She glared, but it was empty, so it didn't matter. Back in the gym, she scanned for the rack, not finding it quickly. Then she spotted it, on the other side of the gym with the jazz band. Crap. How was she supposed to get it now?
She ran to the other side of the gym, moving quickly. At the rack, Mr. Locke told her to wait until the song was over to take it out. She nodded, and rested her arms on the rack. This day was actually pretty tiring. Then it got awkward. Mr. Locke held onto the rack as well, one arm on either side of Lily. He and the stand rack surrounded her. She decided to keep her mouth shut. Her gaze traveled to where Keith and Roberto were sitting and talking. Keith shot her a sympathetic grimace. Once the song was over, Mr. Locke went to talk to the students, and Lily left as soon as she could.
"I'm never doing this again," she told Nate, extremely seriously, throwing the rack at him. Everyone who had been in the gym laughed, and Jeff filled Nate in on what had happened. "Sorry about that," Nate said. "He can be awkward like that." Other students shared their stories of similar occurrences, and Lily felt slightly better. She rushed back into the gym to get her clarinet, and was met head-on, almost knocking her over.
"Hi," the little body who was clutching her tightly said. The girl tilted her head back at Lily, and she smiled, crouching down to hug her back. "Ashley!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around the little girl. Lily held her hand as they left the gym, and Lily promised to be back at camp that summer. She glanced at her watch as she headed out the door. Mr. Locke wasn't joking. They were short on time.
East Elementary was the last school. It was also the smallest. Bailey, who had once gone to school there, called it a "ghetto school". Lily had never been inside, but she agreed it looked more run-down. When set up, Mr. Locke gave them a run-down. "We're cutting the march!" A really, really loud cheer rang through the small, and very echo-y gym. No one liked marches. "And," he continued, "the Broadway piece." This one received more protest, especially from the horn player who had a pretty good solo. "Jazz won't play at all." That got the largest argument.
They played quickly, which was good. It was hot, and Lily's embouchure was starting to sag. She wouldn't be able to play much longer. She was thrilled when they finished, and she put away her clarinet for the last time. When the choir was done, there was a stampede for the bus (even though they had to clean up first). It went quickly. Lily grabbed some chairs to put away, and relieved herself of stand rack duty.
Back at North, Lily proved her dedication by staying until everything was put away. But after she walked home, she collapsed on her bed in exhaustion. Band could be tough, but she was starting to think she didn't regret it, not one bit.
AN: I promised a reader that this chapter would be up yesterday, but I thought it was half done at the time. I was wrong, and this was a difficult chapter to write. I feel like I introduced a lot of unnecessary characters. Most new people in this chapter will never be important again. On the other hand, it's the longest chapter I've ever written. So, review please? Then I'll update faster (hopefully). Two days till Band Camp for me!