Well, like I promised I got the next chapter out pretty quick, mostly to make up for how long it's taken me for the last one. Sure, this and the last chapter were originally one chapter, therefore it was simple to convert this into its own chapter, but that's not the point!
I gotta say, I'm glad everyone enjoys reading this story so much, even though I always seem to be late with chapter updates. It's a real heartwarming experience, that's for sure. Also, I know everyone wants to see certain characters come up, and I can honestly say that, sooner or later, they will pop in. However, some characters are going to take longer than others, and I just want to ask you all to be patient. Their time will come!
Regarding my idea to give you guys a status update every one or two months just to let you know I'm not dead or something, I think I might go ahead with that. Some of you think it's a good idea, and no one seems to object about it, so why not?
Okay, enough of my blabbering. Get to reading!
Touhou belongs to ZUN. He...uh...has a nice hat?
Chapter 28 – Need for Amplification Part 2: Deaf to the Song
The time I spent with Marisa and Nitori yesterday was a very entertaining experience, if not a bit laid back. During that time, I performed a handful of songs for my two-person audience for their entertainment; some of them being ordinary songs I know from my travels, while the others were the Aura Songs for each girl. While I rested between songs, I spent some time chatting and catching up with the two, mainly with Nitori considering how long it's been. By the time I finally got back home, no thanks to the crazy magician's fetish for extreme flying speeds, it was already fairly late, with the sun disappearing over the mountains bordering Gensokyo. I was so worn out from the exciting day, in fact, as soon as I walked inside my home I just decided to clock out right on my bed.
Which brings me to the present. At the moment, I am just doing my usual routine at Mystia's Grill Stand, consisting of playing my music to help attract customers and convincing them to buy some grilled food, using my ability on the more stubborn villagers if need be. However, I also have the knowledge that we should be expecting a certain kappa at any moment, coming to offer her services. I kept the fact Nitori is coming by from the boss, just to surprise her when she finally does. Particularly, I'm hoping to get a bonus in pay due to Mystia's predicted overjoy at finally having a fully functioning electric guitar. It's a long shot, to be sure, but the possibility is there regardless.
...Of course, that is only going to happen if Nitori actually arrives. True, she didn't actually say when in the morning she would stop by, but it is already approaching noon, and soon after that I'll be let off of work for the day.
I guess this is another plus for not telling Mystia yet... If I told her Nitori was coming, and she didn't actually show up, I'm not sure if she would be more disappointed or pissed off.
"Hey Dash." I am pulled from my mulling from my boss's call, who has been busy grilling the last of her lamprey for potential late customers. "How's your progress with finding those things I need? It's already been a few days, so I hope you made some headway."
Thanks to my distracted state, I was just about to tell her outright what the situation current is, but thankfully I manage to catch myself before I say anything. "Uh... I'm making some progress. I'm just waiting for something to turn up at the moment."
Mystia looks at me oddly, scrutinizing me from over the grill. Finally she just shrugs in acceptance, going back to her work, making me sigh internally in relief. Just when things are calming down again, I hear the familiar sound of footsteps approaching from the direction of the village. I am about to greet the potential customers, getting ready to play another tune to draw them in, when I freeze. The person approaching is certainly not a customer, nor is it Nitori.
When she finishes her approach and is standing right before me, a cheerful expression on her ever recognizable, doll like face, I can't decide if I should be glad or nervous to see her. Regardless, I give her the best greeting I can muster. "Uh... Hey Alice. What brings you here?"
The puppeteer smiles sweetly at me for my words, her familiar doll Shanghai flying over to land on my shoulder like she owns it. "Hello Tadashi. I thought I would stop by and see you at work. I tried to meet with you in the village yesterday, but somehow I couldn't find you."
That's because I was probably meeting with Nitori at the time, deep into a forest full of youkai. Not that I want her knowing that right now. Crap, this is really bad timing...
"Yeah, I was...uh, busy that day." I come up with lamely, though Alice doesn't seem to notice.
"Besides, I haven't had the chance to see you at work yet." She continues as she shifts her attention to Mystia, who has stopped working for now to see what is going on. "Hello Mystia. Has business been well?"
"It has." Mystia responds simply. "Dash is a big help, like always."
"Good." Alice's smile widens slightly. "He always tells me how much he enjoys working with you, so I'm glad things have been going well."
"He has, has he?" Mystia smirks as she sends a humorous glance my way, making me feel a little embarrassed.
"Hey, I can talk about work if I want, can't I?"
"I didn't say anything." Mystia chirps. Suddenly, her face brightens up like one does when they get an idea, though that isn't always a good thing in her case. "Hey, did you ask her about that errand I gave you? She could probably be a huge help."
A chill runs up my spine at the seemingly innocent question, which only grows colder when Alice looks at me in confusion. "He never mentioned anything about an errand. What's this about Tadashi?"
Crap, crap, CRAP! This situation is heading south real fast! Things can't get much worse than this!
As my brain scrambles to come up with some form of explanation, hopefully one that doesn't get Alice on my case again, I hear a voice call to me from the other direction of the road my best friend came from, making me almost whine in frustration. "Hey~! Sorry I'm late Dash!"
...Things just got worse. I'm so south already I hit the South Pole.
Turning my head mechanically, I see the sight of Nitori herself running toward us energetic, lugging that huge backpack of hers with her. Soon she comes to a stop in front of me, seemingly unaware of the situation she walked in on. "Hey, sorry it took so long. It took me a while to find this place. I should have asked exactly where it was you worked when we set the meeting."
"That's uh...alright." I respond with strain, trying to seem happy at her arrival. "I'm glad you made it, at least."
Next to me, both Alice and Mystia look surprised at the kappa's arrival. Though it is my boss who collects her wits first. "A kappa? Here?"
Alice, on the other hand, shows a little more recognition for the new arrival. "Nitori? What brings you here?"
Nitori recognizes the voice asking the question, and waves to the puppeteer with a smile. "Oh! Hey Alice, haven't seen you in a while. I'm just here on business." She then turns back to me, looking just a bit more professional. "So then, where's this guitar you were talking about?"
Mystia, at this point, manages to piece together what is going on, and looks at me hopefully. "Wait, does she mean mine? Is this what I think it is?"
I chuckle a bit at her expression, relieved to see that I at least managed to surprise her. "Yep. Why don't you pull it out? Nitori here is going to make what you need, but she needs to look at it first."
Shockingly, Mystia seemed to squeal in excitement at the news, and quickly dives into her cart to pull out her instrument. While she is doing that, Nitori taps me on the arm, drawing my attention. "Actually, I think I managed to make what you need already. All I need to know is the plug size and a few minor details, and it should be good to go."
"...Say what now?" I ask in shock, getting a giggle from the kappa.
"Yep. I stayed up late last night working on it, and I believe I made something that fits your specifications. I even tested it, and it seems to work fine." She then blushes a bit as she averts her gaze from me, tilting her hat to cover her face partially. "Actually, one of the reasons why I'm late is because I overslept a bit. I hope that's okay."
"I don't mind that at all. Heck, I'm amazed you already did so much." I praise to try to ease her embarrassment, which seems to work. Once I know she isn't just going to disappear again, like I know she is prone to do, I can't help getting interested myself. "Hey, do you have them with you right now?"
"Yep! Right here." Nitori quickly digs into one of the many pockets on her person, before pulling out a rectangular shaped, gray piece of machinery. "Here, take a look!"
I hold the contraption in the palm of my hand, and I can't help admiring how small it is. It has some switches and knobs along its flat side, obviously to adjust the sound going through it, and when I feel along its edge I feel a circular dip where the plug is supposed to be. Flipping it over, I notice that the other side has two large circles taking up the entire space, with the circles themselves looking oddly like...
"Speakers? Hey Nitori, is this the amp or speakers you just handed me here?" I ask in confusion, earning a knowing smirk from the tech wiz.
"It's both. I thought it was counterproductive having them separate, so I just combined them."
I stare at her in stunned silence at the news, looking at the little box in my hand incredulously. "Seriously!? But it's so small! I would figure something like that would be huge!"
"It wasn't hard to make it compact. Besides, I figured it would be easier to use something smaller for something like a guitar." Nitori shrugs. "What was hard was making the sounds coming out of it loud enough, but even that was an easy fix."
"...Incredible." I mumble, staring at the thing in my hand in wonder. "Something like this could sell like crazy in the outside world. You really amazing, Nitori."
"Thanks." She beams with pride at my compliments, which in my opinion is justly earned.
"I got it!" Mystia chirps, breaking me out of my daze. As she says, she is holding her electric guitar in her arms, holding it out to Nitori. "You said you need to look at it, right?"
"Yep. Hey Dash, what should I be looking for here?" Nitori asks, taking the guitar from the night sparrow.
"There should be a hole somewhere along the edge of the base. That's where the plug goes in." I explain, pointing out approximately where it should be.
"Okay, I got it." Nitori nods, looking deeply at the jack as if in a trance. "...I assume I'm not allowed to disassemble this to get a better idea?"
"NO!" Both Mystia and I yell, terrified at the prospect.
"Okay, okay. Just checking." She nods, before going back into her trance.
As Nitori is figuring things out about what size of plug she needs, with Mystia watching over her like a hawk to make sure the kappa doesn't actually disassemble her instrument, I can feel Alice approaching me from behind, her voice laced with suspicion. "Tadashi, what is going on?"
I sigh in defeat at her question, knowing I'm not getting out of this. "Mystia's guitar needed special equipment to work properly, things only found in the outside world. So she had me look for someone who could make them for her, which I asked Nitori to do."
"And how is it you know Nitori?" She asks, now besides me as we look on at the scene before us.
"I met her when I first arrived at Gensokyo, at the party." I explain. "You remember that opening Aura Song I played that evening? It was hers."
"Yes, I remember. How could I forget?" Alice's face softens at the fond memory, before looking at me with her searching eyes. "So how did you ask for her help? I doubt you just ran into her at the village."
"That's true." I nod, preparing myself for her inevitable reaction. "Well, I learned through some research that kappa live at Genbu Ravine, so..."
"So you went there by yourself?" Alice comes just short of yelling at me, making me cringe a bit. "Through the Forest of Magic even?"
"Of course not! I'm not that stupid." I defend myself quickly. "I asked for Marisa's help to fly me there. She helped me find Nitori, I hired her to make what Mystia needs, we chatted for a bit, and then Marisa took me home. That's it."
Alice reels in her ire at my retelling, somewhat satisfied that I wasn't alone, but she still seems upset regardless. "That was still rash of you. You know I hate it when you do things like this. Something could have happened while you were out there. And what about the forest air?"
"Turns out it doesn't really affect me. Probably because of what I am." I inform in a more hushed tone, making sure Nitori can't overhear me.
"I see. Well, it makes sense I suppose." She concedes, but still looking dissatisfied.
"Alice..." I begin to speak, looking directly into her emerald eyes. "I know I promised to you before that I wouldn't be reckless, and I try not to be. But I can't just stay safe in the village either. I mean, how am I going to accomplish my goal to play everyone's Aura Song if I don't meet everyone? It's not like they are all going to come to me; I'm going to have to travel around Gensokyo, despite the dangers. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
The blonde magician ponders my words for a moment, and when she is done thinking she just pouts in frustration, amusingly enough. "Do you really need to? You know I worry about you Tadashi."
I can't help but to chuckle at her reaction, shaking my head slightly. "Sorry, but it's something I'm going to have to do. You would do everything you can to achieve your goal, wouldn't you?"
"That's true." Alice nods, before falling into deep thought again. I just wait patiently for her to tell me what she is thinking of, knowing she will share with me when she is ready. That patience is rewarded soon enough. "Well then, I'm just going to have to come with you, aren't I?"
"Eh? What do you mean?"
She giggles at my obvious confusion, and thankfully she is merciful enough to elaborate for me. "Next time, instead of going out on your own to dangerous places or asking someone else for help, please come to me. I would be happy to come with you."
"Alice, you don't need to do that." I quickly try to deny her offer. "You have you're own things to do, with your magic research and-"
"This isn't up for debate." She retorts, swiftly cutting me off. "Let me worry about my own business, and just let me help you. I would feel a lot better if I am there with you, instead of someone like Marisa. Who knows what kind of trouble she could put you into."
I find myself dumbfounded at her sudden change in opinion, especially considering how much she was against me traveling around earlier. On the other hand, I'm a little touched that she would go so far to make sure I'm safe. In the end though, I'm not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. She is giving her version of approval for me to go around Gensokyo to collect Aura Songs, and that is just fine with me.
However, I can't help myself from teasing her just a little bit. "I don't know Alice, Marisa can at least fly me where I need to go. That kind of help is hard to come by."
I am not going to mention how fast she flies though. Girl's crazy, I swear...
Despite the joking nature in which I said it, Alice seems to take my remark pretty seriously. Just before I am about to tell her it is a joke however, she gives a reply. "Fine, then I'm just going to have to teach you myself."
"...Huh?" I dumbly utter, not sure if I heard her correctly or not.
I am about to ask exactly what she meant, but we are both interrupted by a commotion in front of us.
"Alright, I think I have it." I hear Nitori claim, holding up the improved amplifier in her hand. Noticeably, there is an extra metallic appendage attached to it, who's use is pretty obvious.
"You brought the plugs with you?" I ask in surprise, before another fact comes to mind. "Wait, you mean it's already done? When?"
"Just now. Like I keep saying, I just needed to look at the instrument so I can make some minor details and get the plug size right. Doing the rest was easy, since I have my tools on hand." The kappa explains, before flashing an amused smirk. "I carry this backpack around for more than just looks, you know."
"Right, point taken." I concede. "Well, what are we waiting for? Jack that thing in and let's test it!"
"My thoughts exactly!" Mystia agrees with barely hidden excitement, already reaching for her guitar.
"Alright, just let me set it up." Nitori agrees, inserting the contraption in her hand right into Mystia's guitar. It looks to be a tight fit, which is to be expected since the plug probably wasn't meant for the guitar, but in the end it does its job to keep the device in. Now to see if it works.
Once it's in, the kappa fiddles with it here and there for reasons I suppose only she would know, before handing the guitar over to Mystia. "Alright, you should be good to go. Just play something and see if it works."
There is a moment of silence as the bird youkai prepares herself, and I can't wait to see if it works. As she gears up to strum a note, I brace myself for the full potential of an electric guitar, knowing how loud they can get. When she does strum, I unfortunately hear nothing but the normal twang of the strings, leaving Mystia and myself disappointed. "Well, that didn't work."
"Huh, that's weird." Nitori frowns, walking closer to inspect her invention. "I could have sworn...oh." She flips a switch on it, and a little red light comes on. "My bad, it wasn't even on." The resulting moans from everyone, including myself, makes the kappa blush in embarrassment, making her snap at us. "Hey, it's easy to forget these things. Give me a break!"
I shake my head in amusement at the comedic situation, before something occurs to me when I see the red light on the device. "Hey Nitori, what's powering that thing? Some kind of battery or something?"
The blue haired youkai, in response to my question, looks at me with a knowing look and places a finger up against her lips in a shushing manner. "Sorry, trade secret~!"
"I don't care what's powering it, I just want to test it out!" Mystia cries in impatience, and before anyone can say otherwise, quickly runs her hand down the strings.
The resulting sound that comes from the action, much to everyone's surprise, is blaring. Louder than even I expected, and I knew what was coming. It's like thunder just resounded throughout the forest with a roaring boom, metaphorically throwing us back with the noise. Everyone close by, which is just basically us, quickly covers their ears to prevent ourselves from going deaf, though poor Mystia had her hands full with her guitar and is unable to.
Once we are sure that the sound stopped, and giving ourselves a moment to recover, Alice decides to express her opinion. "What was that just now?"
"That, my friends, is the true sound of an electric guitar." I speak up with a toothy grin, walking closer to Mystia and her instrument. "Though I gotta say that was louder than I expected. How high did you set the volume Nitori?"
Heck, I should have asked how on earth those little speakers could produce so much sound. I would almost say it's impossible, but I just witnessed it for myself.
"I set it pretty high cause I wanted to be sure it works." Nitori informs, twisting a finger in her ear to get the wringing out. "I didn't expect to get that kind of reaction though."
"Well rejoice, it works." I say sarcastically, which earns me a quick smack in the arm by the kappa.
"Smart ass. Anyway, I'm going to turn it down so we don't damage our ears next time." She says, already adjusting one of the knobs on the amplifier.
"That's probably for the best." I agree, before noticing Mystia's dazed and dumbfounded expression. "Hey Mystia, what did you think?"
The bird youkai seems to snap out of it at my inquiry, taking a sec to come up with a reply. "It's a bit...different than what I was expecting. Are you sure this is what it sounds like?"
"I'm sure. It was louder than I expected, but that is exactly how an electric guitar sounds like." I flash a grin at her, before looking down at instrument in her hands, which Nitori has finished adjusting. "It's made for the more intense genre of music, like rock, punk, or metal, though it can still be used in other kinds of music as well. It's mainly used for louder, more fast paced songs than you probably hear me play. If I may?" I ask, holding out my arms to hold the instrument, which she lets me. After readjusting my grip on it so it's more comfortable, I start to play a short but fast paced riff from a rock song I know from the outside world on it, unconsciously bobbing my head a little as I do.
As I play, I notice that everyone is looking at me in shock, not expecting the loud instrument to be used in such a way. Mystia, in particular, seems to have gained stars in her eyes as she watches me shred on the guitar, as if she just discovered something amazing in what I am playing. It makes me wonder if she might have a thing for the heavier genre of music, and if I should start teaching her the guitar in those subjects.
Of course, I'm only demonstrating what can be done with the instrument, so I stop playing soon after and hand it back to its owner, who still looks star struck even after I stopped. "Phew... It's been a long time since I played one of those. I prefer my own guitar though, especially when I can use my ability."
Though I am curious how some of the songs would sound like on an electric guitar... Ah well, can't choose where you put your soul in, I suppose.
"Wow." Nitori states, looking between the guitar, her amplifier, and me. "I see what you were getting at when you said it needed an amplifier to work properly. That was..."
"Amazing!" Mystia cheers, startling me from her abruptness. "That was amazing Dash! I had no idea my guitar could be played like that. It's like a completely different instrument!"
I laugh at the overjoyed reaction my employer is showing, glad that she is happy with it. "It certainly leaves an impact, don't it? Why don't you try some of the songs I taught you on it? I'm sure you will be pleasantly surprised."
The night sparrow nods in excitement at my suggestion, rushing off to the side to get some practice in. As she begins playing a simple tune, I eye Nitori walking up besides me, a satisfied look on her face. "Well then, it looks like my invention is working pretty smoothly."
"Yep, it's exactly what I was looking for. You did a good job Nitori." I praise, watching Mystia have her fun with her guitar.
"Of course! My inventions almost always work. I made them after all!" She puffs up with pride, before quickly getting a hold of herself. "Anyway, all that's left is for me to be properly compensated for my work, don't you think?" The kappa asks intently, shooting me a knowing smirk.
Geez, straight to getting herself paid huh? Who would have thought the timid kappa I met on my first day here was such a money grubber?
I look between the kappa before me and the night sparrow cheerfully playing her music a few times, before sighing in defeat. "Fine, I suppose we should get that settled." I reach a hand into my jacket, rummaging around a little before pulling out a handful of monetary notes and then handing them to Nitori. "Here, will this cover it?"
She quickly counts the money in her hand, surprising me at how fast she can count it. Once she determines how much is there, she nods to herself before stuffing them into one of her pockets. "That will do. Thank you for your patronage."
"Yeah, yeah..." I mumble, a little miffed at the slight dip in my funds. "Thanks again."
"Glad to be of help." She smiles in acceptance, before glancing over to the budding guitarist. "Anyway, I better go show her how the amp works, before she messes something up." The kappa starts to walk off toward the night sparrow, before suddenly turning around and calling out to me. "On second thought, you better come too. I would feel better if you at least knew how it worked."
"Yeah, that's a good idea." I concede, before turning to look at the blonde magician, who has been patiently observing us. "Are you coming too Alice?"
"Naw, I'll just wait for you here. We can head back to the village once you're done, alright?"
"Sounds like a plan. Don't worry, this should only take a moment." With that said, I hurry after the two youkai, who already seem to be deep in discussion about the little piece of machinery.
"That took a little longer than a moment Tadashi." Alice huffs as we walk down the road back to the Human Village, with me beside her and little Shanghai resting on my head. The sun has already drifted across the sky a bit, placing the time well into the afternoon.
"Sorry, it took a little longer for us to teach Mystia how to work the amp." I apologize. "Seriously, she can run a business just fine on her own, yet she can't even read the little labels on the dang thing. What's up with that?"
"Don't blame her. You two must have obviously been confusing the poor thing." She snips back at me. "From what I was hearing, it all sounded pretty technical to me."
"We were trying to teach her how to adjust the damn frequency! What's not to get?" I yell in frustration, which only seems to amuse my companion. "Whatever, at least we're going now."
"Yes well, you owe me." Alice states as if it were fact. "For the wait, and for keeping this whole affair secret in the first place."
"Fine..." I resign myself to whatever the puppeteer has in mind, which in itself usually isn't so bad. Sometimes she just makes me fix her dinner, something I've noticed she came to enjoy, while other times she forces me to help pay for materials she needs for her doll making.
The air quietens as we continue our peaceful walk back, during which I can feel the feet of Shanghai kicking in the air like a child, her heels lightly bouncing against my forehead. While cute at first, it's the reminder that Alice is making her do it that makes it humorous.
"That was nice of you, by the way." I hear her say out of the blue, catching my attention.
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"I'm sure Mystia could have easily paid for Nitori's device herself, yet you paid for it instead." She elaborates, making me remember the scene that happened not too long ago.
"Oh that. Eh, I consider it a present." I shrug. "She's been a good student while I've been teaching her how to play, and she has also been helping me financially for quite a while now by giving me this job. If you ask me, she deserves it."
Though I still lost money over this whole thing anyways, despite Mystia not cutting my pay. How fair is that?
"Ah, I see." The doll maker nods, before throwing a playful smile to me. "So when should I be expecting a present from you?"
"If I told you, it wouldn't be much of a present, would it?" I joke back, getting a laugh between us. When the mirth dies down, I give her my own meaningful look. "While we're at it, thanks for finally supporting me. You know, about me going around Gensokyo and all."
Alice seems to sober up a bit at my words, but she still gives me a bright smile. "You're welcome. Honestly, I knew I was being a bit too...oh, what's the word..."
"Suffocating?" I offer, getting a smack on the head from her doll for my trouble.
"You know what I meant, you numskull." She reprimands me, though the effect is lost due to the humor in her tone. "Anyway, I suppose I'm still used to thinking of you as a human, even though I know you're not. It is still dangerous out there, though. Like that time you accidentally ran into Cirno..."
"Once again, it wasn't as bad as it sounded." I groan at the mention of the ice fairy, but Alice continues.
"Regardless, the point is still there. Because you don't use danmaku, you have no way to defend yourself, and have to rely on others to protect you, like Mystia or Marisa." She explains to me upfront, before shifting to a softer tone. "I'm just saying that I would prefer that I'm the one with you when you move around, so at least I know I can keep you safe. That's all..."
Her heartfelt words hit something inside of me, sending a form of tingle through my body. What that something is, I don't quite know, but because of it I find myself wrapping my arm around her shoulder for a brief side hug. She jumps a little at the contact, but allows it just the same. As I pull away, I can't help but give her a bright smile. "Thanks for telling me that Alice. I'll be sure to call upon you whenever I plan on going somewhere, alright?"
The puppeteer looks slightly dazed at the contact, but pulls herself together soon enough to give me a reply. "Yeah. That would be great."
"Sweet." We share an exchange of bright smiles before continuing our walk, and as we start moving again, I can't help shooting her a curious look. "So what's this I hear about you teaching me how to fly?"
Meanwhile, back at the Lamprey Grill Stand, Mystia Lorelei is only just starting to pack everything into the stand to move it back home. She is still very excited about the upgrade to her instrument, and would very much like to continue practicing the songs Dash has taught her, but by the time he and Nitori finished explaining how to use the new addition to her guitar, which has been a very confusing experience, it was already way past her bedtime, considering she is nocturnal and prefers sleeping through the day. It's rare for her to be awake during the afternoon, and she doesn't not want to make a habit of it. She's already been pushing it by working with her employee in the mornings like she has!
As the night sparrow finishes storing away the seating for customers, she takes a glance at her red guitar sitting on top of the counter top next to her grill. It still absolutely amazes her how such a little device attached to it can change its sound so much, and in such an incredible way. Mystia recalls how the male guitarist demonstrated exactly what it could do, and while it isn't like his Aura Songs, the Prismriver's otherworldly performances, or even her own singing, it is still unique in it's own, invigorating way. To think that Dash is teaching her how to do the very same thing...
Taking another look at the stringed instrument, the bird youkai whines in frustration. "Oh screw it. Once more shouldn't hurt any."
Giving into temptation one last time, she picks up the guitar and, remembering to turn the volume on the improved amplifier down and make sure the thing is on, begins playing an energetic, fast paced melody. It's one of the more recent songs Dash has been trying to teach her, one that her instructor claims he based off of the Aura Song he played for Rumia, just without all the extra things his ability adds into it. She could hear the similarities at first, like how the notes are alike and such, but it always felt off to her when she used to practice it. All he used to tell her when she said so was that 'Once she could get the proper equipment for her guitar, it will all fall into place.'
Now, Mystia can wholeheartedly agree with that statement. The loud and energetic sounds from her electric guitar fits perfectly with the notes that Dash has taught her, and while it still doesn't sound like her fellow youkai's Aura Song, it's still amazing in its own right. She still struggles with the quick notes sometimes, the song actually being quite difficult, but as she continues to practice Mystia can't help but think that the male guitarist is a musical genius, even without his ability.
While the budding guitarist is focusing on the difficult notes of the song, she is unaware that she has drawn the attention of a single spectator, the blasting sounds of her music hard to miss even with the reduced volume. However, when Mystia finishes the song and gives her fingers a rest, she is startled by the energetic applauding of her tiny audience. "That was great~!"
Turning to the chipper voice, she is surprised to see a teal haired girl with dog like ears clapping her hands like an excited child, holding what looks like a bamboo broom of all things under her arm. "Hey! What are you doing here?" Mystia demands loudly.
"What are you doing here~?" Is the unexpected reply to her own question, before the girl reacts in a confusingly polite manner. "Sorry, that was really rude of me. Um... I was just passing by on my way to the mountain when I heard your music. I got curious, so..."
Mystia calms down a bit at the girls timid manner. She doesn't look threatening, and when she considers her visitor's ears it is obvious she isn't human, giving Mystia more reason to relax. "No, it's fine. I guess I was playing a little loud." After that the grill owner looks the girl over curiously, certain that she never seen her before. Though that may be because she never stays up this late in the first place. "So, who are you?"
The girl grins brightly at her for the innocent question, holding her broom from herself at an angle from her feet. "My name's Kyouko! Nice to meet you!"
Bam! There we have it! C'mon, tell me you guys saw that coming. I know some of you did. That's going to be a fun chapter to write, that's for sure! Drop a review people!
So yeah... At the end of the day, I finally decided that I'm going to have Dash learn how to fly. Honestly, I was originally going to have him just walk everywhere for most of the story before I even touched onto that subject. But a couple things have come up in the regards to plot, and I found it a necessity for him in a world where everyone else flies. Him being a youkai helped my decision too. However, I'm not going to make it easy for him! Heaven forbid if I ever did that to our favorite guitarist. Nothing can ever be easy for him. XD
Anyways, I guess I better get to writing the next chapter. Not going to lie, I expect this one to take a while. Don't forget, I am never, ever, going to just stop writing this! This story will finish dammit!
