Arion: …*Lying down on the dirt from last time*
Yoru no Angel: *Pokes him* Neee…Arion-san, it's time for our intro ^^
Arion: *Jumps up and grabs her* GOTCHA YOU LITTLE BRAT!!
Yoru no Angel: …Arion-san, you're so funny sometimes! ^o^ *Easily gets loose*
Arion: *Sulks* That's it. I quit. You write this chapter then. Hmph.
Yoru no Angel: *Shrugs* If you insist ^^
Arion: Yahright. Folks, don't blame me if you hate this chapter :P
Yoru no Angel: Ahem! So anyway, since Arion-san is being such a big baby *Pokes out tongue* I will have to do the disclaimer again…
Arion: *mutters sarcastically* It's about the only thing you actually do well around here…
Yoru no Angel: *Ignores him* See, we don't own Sakura Taisen, sadly…
Arion: *Makes a face* You should have dropped a piano on me or something ^o^
Yoru no Angel: *Whispers* Actually, I have something else planned that is much, much worse…*winks*
Arion: Good God. I'm outta here. Don't worry folks! I'll make whatever mess she makes look good to read!
Yoru no Angel: Wait you! *Snaps fingers and random muses surround Arion*
Arion: Aughhhh!!! *Cries of torture, pain and various S&M-ish sounds fade into the background as he's carried off into the darkness*
Yoru no Angel: Hmhmhm! Minna-san, you didn't see that, 'kay? ^^ Anyway, enjoy the chapter and don't forget to review!
Chapter 3: It's Showtime!
By Yoru no Angel and Arion Wong
It was a Saturday morning.
Days had passed ever since the Hikarigumi sighted their weapons for the first time. Since then the assault team had been busy doing tests and simulations to improve their individual piloting skills. Still, doubts remained in their minds, wondering what would happen in the following weeks. More tests? Combat training? And what about the position as captain…?
But for now, most of the team had assembled in the cafeteria this early morning.
It sort of became a morning ritual for them… for the first few mornings each person was woken up by the calm voice of Mika Sorenson, and soon it became unnecessary for her to do so as they automatically adjusted their clocks to the schedule.
Unlike the first Hikarigumi meeting, most chose to sit together with a few individuals excluding themselves from the mingling. Among the numerous tables, only three were occupied.
As the days wore on, the Hikarigumi got to know each other more and more. Though the fiery personality of Katrina and the seemingly intense boredom of Veraiho did not really help, the free and civil natures of Isaac, Tom and Siti began to gel the team together.
The nearest middle table cluster consisted of the two males Tom and Isaac and the youngest female, Siti all of whom were laughing and joking casually with each other. Over by the far side of the cafeteria, the raven haired Katrina sat with her back facing the rest of her teammates, a scowl written clearly over her face and seated by the table on the opposing side of the room, Veraiho remained silent; staring dreamily at the distance only she could see.
Abigail sauntered jadedly into the cafeteria minutes later. She raised a slender hand to her mouth, stifling a yawn as she poured herself a strong cup of coffee. Just as she lifted the steaming hot mug to her lips, a boyish voice made her groan out loud in despair.
"Hey Abby!" Thomas called out loudly, "Bit late, don't you think?"
Abigail didn't even bother answering. Feeling more awake than she was before, she surveyed the tables for a place to sit. Instantly her eyes spotted the extra space next to the tall Englishman called Isaac but Abigail hesitated; oh why did he have to sit with the imbecile and the goodie-goodie?
"Miss Abigail, would you like to sit with us?" Isaac said kindly, ignoring the gagging noises coming from the younger boy.
"C-Certainly…" She stuttered.
Just as she began to sit, Tom rose to his feet. Abigail cocked a slender red eyebrow at him, "…Mr. McPherson, what in the world do you think you're doing?"
"I was just wondering if you would like me to bow before you sit down…" He said, tapping his chin with his finger, "Or perhaps you would like me to curtsey instead?"
A scowl that rivalled Katrina's crossed Abigail's face as she quickly took seat next to Isaac. Across from her, Siti avoided catching her eyes as if she would explode with laughter the second their eyes met.
"Now Thomas…" Isaac said in an almost reproachful voice.
The fifteen-year-old obediently sat down without a word, though he pouted his lips just a little to get the sympathy of Siti.
"Aw, lighten up Mr. Isaac!" Siti chimed, holding in a giggle, "Tom was only joking, weren't you?"
"Of course!" Tom interjected in a put-on hurt voice.
Isaac chuckled heartily.
Subsequently, the familiar voice belonging to the soft-spoken Mika Sorenson echoed out the Imperiales Konzertsaal's intercom system.
"Would the Hikarigumi please meet Mr. Henry in the concert hall at ten o'clock? Repeat; there is a meeting in the concert hall at ten o'clock with Mr. Henry. Don't forget to bring your instruments."
An odd silence fell over the room.
"Heh…" Tom began. The others, including the likes of Veraiho and Katrina, suddenly glanced over at the younger male in curiosity.
"Maybe now we'll find out why we're in a concert hall in the first place…" He said with a shrug, "I mean, come on, we're this 'special' defence group supposedly Germany's only hope of survival, why on Earth do we have a concert hall as a base?"
The rest of the Hikarigumi blinked.
"Not to mention the question of 'do you play a musical instrument?' Now that was completely uncalled for!" Thomas continued on whining.
Siti looked startled for a moment, "You mean you were asked the same question? I thought Mr. Henry was joking around…y'know, to lighten the mood a little…"
There were murmurs of accord behind her.
"Perhaps we really are like the Hanagumi…" Veraiho uttered softly to herself, "Using spiritual power, the Koubu and now…"
Katrina crossed her arms across her chest, her brown eyes narrowed even more than they were before, "Mr. Henry mentioned something about musical performances when I first spoke with him…" Suddenly, she felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment and she lowered her head, hoping nobody saw, 'It isn't true…it cannot be!'
"He was simply bantering!" She told herself boldly, "There is no way…!"
"What's the matter Katrina?" Thomas said suddenly with a playful air in his voice, "You look a little worried, could it be about this music? You must be able to play something if you were chosen for this team…"
Katrina suddenly rose to her feet. For a simple second, it looked as if she was going to teach the teenager a lesson but she simply stalked out the entrance.
"I will never understand her…" Abigail muttered her nose turned up in disgust.
Isaac momentarily glanced at his watched, "It's nearly ten o'clock now…" He murmured to the people around him. He stood, heading towards the entrance, "Well…there's isn't much to say now except…"
He grinned a little, "It's show time…"
* *The Hikarigumi stared at the rotund, short man. His white hair flew in shocks upwards and sideways, as if he had been electrified recently. A thick white moustache covered his entire upper lip, bushy eyebrows hung over his critical, wizened eyes.
"Ahem, yes," Henry Glory confirmed. The tall vice-commander was not in his uniform; he was dressed in a smartly cut suit. He gestured at the much shorter Italian man.
"This distinguished gentleman is the conductor and director of the famed German Orchestra. When you guys are ready to perform, you'll all be under his direction," Henry explained.
"My name is Quattro Estel Basilini," The old Italian said gruffly.
Henry moved to introduce the Hikarigumi to him, but the eccentric conductor waved him off.
"Don't give me any names! I'll probably forget them. If they have any talent then maybe I'll take the effort to remember," Basilini said. His mannerisms reminded the Hikarigumi of an absent-minded professor, kind-hearted but gruff and tactless.
"Well, if you insist," Henry replied, shrugging nonchalantly.
"I'm just here to inspect the venue. I'm satisfied, my orchestra will be able to perform brilliantly here," Basilini said and nodded in approval.
"I'm glad it meets your high standards," Henry said dryly.
"Hmph. Your Miss Sorenson is most persuasive," Basilini muttered, recalling how the young girl had hounded him endlessly to get him and his orchestra to agree to perform for the Imperiales Konzertsaal.
"When the performance is set, send over the music scores. I promise our orchestra will be more than ready," Basilini said and left suddenly.
"He's too proud," Katrina said with distaste.
Henry smiled. "He has a right to be… his orchestra is one of the best in Europe."
"Er, Henry, what exactly are we performing? Huh?" Tom asked tentatively.
"A sort of experimental theatre, if you will," Henry stated grandly. "The Hikarigumi will be a group of musical players and dancers right in the middle of this stage. You will enact scenes from popular plays and ballets and transform them into music and dances. Mr. Basinili's orchestra will provide the background music, but for specific songs like solos and musical scenes, you will be expected to play as well."
The Hikarigumi stood there stunned.
"You must be joking," Katrina said flatly, refusing to believe him.
"Not this time," Henry beamed, "this whole thing is my idea. Can you feel it, being the pioneers of something new? Ain't it something?"
"That's… what if we don't agree to do it?" Katrina said, fists trembling.
"Y'know, you ain't showing much discipline for a soldier," Henry remarked, irking the fiery German even more. "If you want I can make it an order," Henry said with a smile.
Katrina visibly tried to relax by unclenching her fists. "I just don't understand… why…!" she gritted.
Henry placed his hands on his hips and gave them each a serious look, his glee disappearing.
"This is no fun work, let me get this straight," Henry began. "All your efforts will help you to pilot your machines better. Even this dance and music… they are all designed to help increase your rhythm and your sense of balance, plus your spiritual power."
"Back in Japan," Veraiho interrupted, "the Hanagumi also does musical plays… is this the same?"
"Yours will be much grander!" Henry answered proudly. "You'll have an entire orchestra to back you up! But it will be different, y'see, they sing and dance, but you'll play and dance…"
"Mr. Henry! I'm sorry I'm late!" a male Asian voice interrupted. The man ran breathlessly and before anyone could react, he grabbed one of Henry's huge paws and shook it vigorously.
"…You are?" Henry asked, disengaging his hand and wiping off the sweat in distaste.
"Tezuka Ryo, Master Technician, at your service, hai!" the Japanese man announced and executed a deep bow.
"Oh, Mr. Ryo! I didn't expect you to be here today…" Henry said in surprise.
"This place! This entire hall!" Ryo interrupted with excitement, "It's so wonderful! I'll have such a great time here… don't worry, I'll take care of everything! There's nothing I can't fix!"
"This man is Tezuka Ryo, he will be in charge of the props and the technical stuff here in the hall… lights, curtains, stage control, you name it," Henry introduced the Japanese man. He was wearing thick glasses that hid his eyes, a mop of dishevelled black hair and a youthful face.
"Hai! I'm glad to meet all of you!" Ryo said to the Hikarigumi.
"Y'know, you aren't due here for another week," Henry said.
"I can't help it, I knew I just had to be here!" Ryo exclaimed.
"What?"
He whipped out a pen and a magazine. Henry saw that it was a financial magazine and had a glossy cover.
Ryo stood in front of Abigail and bowed deeply, holding out the magazine for her.
"Abigail-sama! Please, sign this for me!"
The Hikarigumi stared at the magazine in shock, Abigail most of all. It had Abigail's face at a corner, Japanese words proclaiming 'Oil Baroness?!'.
Hesitantly, Abigail took the pen and signed her name on the magazine. Then Ryo took it back and when he saw the signature, tears of joy literally ran down his cheeks, frightening Abigail.
"Thank you, thank you so much! I know you just started, but when I saw your beautiful face I knew you will be a star, even better than Kanzaki Sumire-sama! I'm your biggest fan!" Ryo said and bowed profusely.
Abigail suddenly raised an eyebrow, "Kanzaki-who?"
But Henry interrupted loudly.
"Er, Mr. Ryo, why don't you check the stage lights for now?" Henry suggested, noting Abigail's frightened look.
Ryo nodded with zeal. "Yes, I'd happy to!"
After he had left, Tom snickered. "Your biggest fan, huh?"
"Quiet!" Abigail yelled. "Mr. Henry, I want you to get rid of that man immediately! He gives me the creeps!"
"Oh, I don't know, he seems pretty good," Henry chuckled. "You got a fan already!"
"This seems to be a day of introductions," Isaac noted.
"There should be one more person… your music and dance instructor," Henry agreed.
"So where's this instructor huh?" Thomas said, his fair eyebrow rose a little.
Henry frowned, "That's odd…I could've sworn I told him to meet us here at ten…"
Just as the Hikarigumi searched around the large concert hall for any sign of this mysterious instructor, somebody cleared their throat to catch the group's attention.
"Mr. Henry!"
The new arrival was a young looking man carrying a great load of shopping bags who must've been at least twenty-four years of age. A black burette sat neatly on his smartly combed hair but what surprised everyone the most was his chosen attire consisting of a black form-hugging leotard and ballet shoes.
The Hikarigumi gaped.
Ignoring the looks on the Hikarigumi's faces, the man did a short creative bow and lifted his burette off his blonde hair.
"Good day, I am Christophe D'Aubigne of France…" He said politely, "I am very pleased to make your acquaintance…"
(Actually, he had a thick French accent, so what he said sounded more like: "Good zay, I am Kristophe D'Auubignee of Fffrance…. I'm very leased to make your akquaintans…")
Henry cleared his throat, "Well, yes. Thank you Mr. D'Aubigne for that…er…lovely introduction. As you most likely have guessed, this is your instructor who will not only teach you a thing or two about music but about dancing too."
Tom groaned loudly, "You're not serious? Dancing?"
"Certainly! Mister…?" Christophe interjected with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh yes, I nearly forgot…" Henry muttered wryly. Then he said in a louder voice, "This young man here is Thomas McPherson, followed by Isaac Williams. These young ladies are Katrina Efeu Steiner, Siti Nora, Veraiho Dimitrovich and Abigail Sinclair."
The robust man gestured to the respective person.
"Wonderful, wonderful…" The Frenchman said in glee, "Well, come along now; let's make haste! Plenty to do and not a lot of time!"
The Hikarigumi stared at him warily when the Frenchman rubbed his hands repeatedly.
"Firstly, though, let us see if these new uniforms I just bought are a perfect fit!"
"What?! More uniforms…!"
---
Minutes later in the males' changing room…
"You've got to be kidding me!"
Thomas stared down at the uniform Christophe had just given him. It was a form-fitting leotard just like his except dyed a scarlet red. The letters abbreviating 'the Imperial Concert Group' ran down the side of its leg in bold, white coloured writing.
"No, I am not kidding you Mr. McPherson…" Christophe said with a pained sigh. He paused to give Isaac his uniform, "Ah, Mr. Williams, I apologize but the store didn't have anything that would fit you so I had to get this instead…"
He handed the Englishman a pair of blank pants with the same letters running down the side of its leg, a plain white tee shirt and an azure coloured jacket. Isaac smiled in relief and silently thanked his height.
"No, it is quite all right!" Isaac said brightly.
Thomas scowled.
"Now, you two be good boys and change your clothing while I give the lovely ladies their outfits!" A strange look crossed Christophe's face as he left the room in glee, nearly floating on the air around him.
Thomas flopped down onto a wooden chair, a small pout formed on his lips, "It's not fair…" He muttered.
Isaac frowned, looking thoughtful for a moment; "I sincerely hope Miss Veraiho and the others are all right…I didn't like the look Mr. D'Aubigne had on his face when he left…"
"Eh? What's this…?" Tom said, giving the older man a crafty sideways glance, "You're not going all soft on me, are you big guy?"
Isaac chuckled, he sighed and shook his head slowly.
"Oh, so this is about Vera!" Tom said eagerly, "Or maybe even Katrina!"
The younger of the two suddenly made a face, "…It's not about Katty, is it?"
The Englishman chortled to himself again, his long dark brown bangs falling into his emerald green eyes.
"Then…Siti…nah, she's a bit too young for you…it must be…Abby?!" Tom half-shouted in disbelief.
Isaac's shoulders heaved with a great sigh as the teenager ranted on.
---
Luckily for Christophe, most of the females had no objection to wearing a leotard dyed in their respective colours. In fact, all excluding Katrina looked quite happy with their music practice uniforms.
Siti beamed as she took her emerald green leotard from Christophe, "Oh, thank you!" She said cheerfully. She looked at the leotard, slightly flushing. 'This is quite daring… lucky no one from home is ever going to see me in this!' she thought.
Veraiho accepted the white leotard with no words but the faintest of smiles was just visible on her lips.
Abigail smirked, raising a slender eyebrow at her new magenta coloured leotard in her hands. For the first time, she had no objection or snide comment about the Imperiales Konzertsaal's facilities.
"No."
Instantly, all heads swerved to see what dilemma had arisen in this short time passed.
Katrina, wearing her usual scowl, stared at Christophe. Her eyes were darting between the face of the Frenchman and the dark blue leotard in his hands.
---
After Tom was given a different uniform to stop his continuous whining and a reluctant Katrina was forced into her uniform, Christophe led the Hikarigumi to the concert stage. It was no different than any theatre stage bar the piano located over by the far right end; deep blue curtains were drawn to the sides and the lights shone down onto the polished wooden floor from above.
Christophe allowed the Hikarigumi exactly five minutes of gaping before he ushered them into the first row of seats.
The Frenchman stood up to have a clearer view of the team.
"All right everyone!" He announced, clapping his hands together enthusiastically, "Firstly, each of you will play an instrument of your choice up on stage. Now don't worry if you aren't that good of a player, it's just to let me see how much you know…"
It didn't give the Hikarigumi much confidence.
"Lights!" Christophe said loudly and snapped his fingers. Far up in the distance, they could hear Ryo's voice saying, "Yes!"
A few seconds later the lights shut down. Then a single spotlight shone at the middle of the stage.
"This will be your moment… your spot! Your centre stage! And each of you will have the chance to be in it!" Christophe gestured grandly.
"So, any volunteers?"
Abigail was the first to stand; she tossed her curly red hair over her shoulder and sauntered up the stairs to the stage. For a few moments she disappeared behind the curtain to choose her instrument.
The American raised a slender eyebrow at the selection of musical equipment; the Imperiales Konzertsaal must've owned at least one of every instrument in the world! There was everything ranging from the tiny piccolo to the enormous tuba to the simplest of instruments like the triangle.
Abigail's green eyes scanned the rows and rows of musical instruments until she sighted the one she actually had any knowledge about. Her eyebrow contracted together as she reached for the silver flute upon its stand but her eyes suddenly caught view of her real speciality, 'Aha!'
Minutes later, she was out upon the stage again, the spotlight casting a heavenly glow around her crimson curls. She grinned smugly at the remainder of her team and held out a colourful baton at arms length. Ribbons of all rainbow shades dangled limply to the floor.
"I would just like to note that I am an excellent gymnast…" Abigail announced. She quickly caught a glance of Siti, determined to unnerve her somehow but the younger girl wasn't paying any attention.
Hiding her scowl, Abigail began her dance.
It was a sort of march entwined with a few gymnastic jumps and twirls. A flurry of colours surrounded the American girl as she spun the baton above her head. She smiled inwardly at the Hikarigumi's impressed expressions but she soon caught Siti's eye.
I can't believe it! She's…she's still smiling! That little…' Abigail thought bitterly, twirling her baton about her hands with no trouble.
Abigail went to throw the baton up a final time, her eyes closed with an air of great confidence and concentration.
Up and up and it began to fall…
A small thump of wood hitting wood was heard.
…But her hand completely missed catching it.
Abigail's mouth hung open helplessly as she stared at the fallen baton sitting on the polished wooden floor. She couldn't believe it; for the first time in her whole life, she had dropped the baton.
Abigail felt tears sting at her eyes but she quickly regained her equanimity and stalked back to her seat through the round of apathetic applause; she folded her arms across her chest and scowled, 'How could I mess up that routine? I was the greatest…but what happened??'
The next person stood up.
It was Veraiho. She stood up and unenergetically approached the Frenchman.
"I am a graduate of the Drubetskaya School of Fine Arts. Do I really need to do this?" Veraiho asked.
Christophe smiled and struck a pose. "But of course! Please, show me your skills!"
"Fine. Then play something from 'Swan Lake'," Veraiho said and went to the stage. The Frenchman nodded and sat down at the piano and began to play a piece.
And then, when the music began, Veraiho transformed. The sleepy, bored look disappeared, replaced by an intense sense of concentration. As the musical piece rolled, she danced.
And if the Hikarigumi knew that she was labelled as 'a flower in the wind' in Russia, they would know it was well deserved.
When the short piece ended, they sat there in their seats, stunned even as Veraiho stood back up from her final position and came down the stage. She dropped herself into her seat, without a trace of breathlessness, her face composed and showing no signs of flushed exertion.
"That was wonderful, wasn't it?" Christophe said, breaking the silence.
"Heck yes!" Tom enthused as the others clapped, their mouths still hanging open. Veraiho appeared calm, and seemingly did not care for the attention at all.
"Alright then, who's next?" Christophe said, glad that Veraiho's performance had inspired the others.
Tom eagerly rose from his spot to head up to the stage. He winked at Veraiho.
"Can't have you getting all the attention," he said and went to pick out a violin from the instruments.
Tom lifted his violin up to his shoulder and placed it under his neck; he grabbed the bow and held it steadily over the strings. The teenager grinned inwardly, 'There's no way I'm wasting my time with easy scales!' He told himself.
And with that simple thought, he began to play.
Pachibel – Kanon (Violin Solo) (4:59)
The Hikarigumi gawked at the teenage boy upon the vast stage. They just couldn't believe that a person like Thomas could be so skilful with something like a violin. Surely enough, the teenager played the classical music without any glitches or mistakes.
Each and every note was played perfectly; all strokes of the bow were even and steady. The superb playing lasted for another minute.
"So…" Tom said, lowering his violin, "How was that?" He questioned, his tone almost sounding a little cocky.
"S-Superb! Excellent! Magnifique!" Christophe said gleefully, showering the younger boy with applause.
"…Aw, well…" Tom said, bashfully placing his hand behind his head. He opened his mouth to say something but a few fuming glares from the rest of the Hikarigumi quickly silenced him.
"Thank you, Mr. McPherson. Now, who would like to go next?"
Siti climbed up the stage hesitantly. Before anything, she bowed to the Hikarigumi and then once more towards their instructor.
"I doubt you know any music from my country, so I'll just perform a simple dance," Siti said.
In her mind, the music from the traditional Malay instruments played clearly. And like Veraiho, she danced. Unlike the ballet Veraiho had done which had leaping and twirling, Siti's dance was more subdued and conservative.
Her hands moved sinuously, her feet making tiny little steps and she turned and swayed in a full turn. The Hikarigumi watched, mesmerized by the graceful movements of the hands and turning of the body.
Then abruptly, she stopped.
"I'm sorry, it's weird without any music," she said sheepishly.
"It's alright! It was magnifique!" Christophe clapped loudly as the Hikarigumi joined in, causing her to flush. As she sat down red with embarrassment, Veraiho leaned over.
"Teach me that, and I'll teach you mine," Veraiho said.
Still flushed from excitement, Siti could only nod with agreement.
"Mr. Williams, it's your turn if you please," Christophe called out.
Isaac stood up and nodded. He then gave Thomas a grin. "Here's a little something for you, mate."
As Thomas puzzled over that remark, Isaac climbed up the stairs and without delay, headed over to the piano and took a seat. He flexed his knuckles and placed them over the correct keys. He then took a deep breath.
He played the first song that came to mind. Once again the Hikarigumi waited and watched with hushed excitement, none of them daring to make the slightest noise or sound.
George Winston – Variations of Kanon by Pachibel (5:23)
Tom's eyes lit up with recognition and laughed. The song was almost the same as the one he had played, only a little bit more flourish in certain parts to differentiate them.
After the whole song, Isaac stopped and made his way back to his seat. A sea of applause greeted him.
"Wow! Way to go big guy!" Tom said cheerfully, thumping the tall man across the back, "You're almost as good as me!"
Isaac smiled gingerly and sat down without a word.
"And finally, Ms. Katrina?" Christophe announced.
Katrina hesitated.
"Break a leg, Ms. Steiner," Abigail muttered snidely. Privately, she was peeved and embarrassed. She was glad to go first, because even the upstart little miss goody Siti Nora did much better than she had been led to believe. Her only hope now was that the German soldier would do as poorly as she did. From the looks of it, Abigail felt safe… there was no way that woman could play music.
'Could she?' Abigail wondered, having second thoughts.
Katrina's hesitation disappeared with Abigail's remark, her doubts replaced by a cool fire in her eyes. She strode purposefully to the instruments and picked up an acoustic guitar. She gave Abigail a contemptuous look before strumming the guitar. As the music continued, she whistled.
Michiko Naruke – Wild Arms Intro (2:21)
The Hikarigumi couldn't believe their eyes and ears. Is this really the same Katrina Steiner? The one who could strangle Tom on a single call of 'Katty'? The one who polished her sabres and military boots as a hobby?
And when she finished, they applauded.
From a distance Lauranna and Henry watched. The blonde German raised an eyebrow as Christophe informed the Hikarigumi about the rest of their instructions.
"This is turning out to be quite interesting, isn't it Lauranna?" Henry said quietly, "I never knew they had any musical knowledge at all…especially young Thomas, very surprising indeed."
"Whatever." Lauranna said curtly. She turned on heel to depart, "…It doesn't matter how well they can play those ridiculous musical instruments or dance, in the end only the battlefield matters."
Her footsteps echoed throughout the hall until eventually they vanished.
Henry took another glance over to the Hikarigumi, who were now going over a few new dance routines, and his large shoulders heaved with a sigh.
---
Over the next few weeks, the schedule wore on. Daytimes, they were under the strict supervision of the Frenchman, Christophe D'Aubigne, who gave them a gruelling schedule of dancing lessons and musical practice.
Nighttimes, they trained in the simulations and slowly get a feel of their Koubus and Eisenkleids. Egged on by Robert Feulgen the Chief Engineer and Lena Sorenson the logistics officer, they pushed themselves to do the simulations over and over again.
And with time divided between those two important facets of the Imperial Concert Group, the Hikarigumi became extremely exhausted.
Even the 5-and-a-half-day schedule took a lot of persuading from Henry to convince Lauranna who was determined to continue the schedule.
"They will break, and then they will be too tired when the real fighting comes," Henry said.
Lauranna had curled her lips in distaste but acknowledge the wisdom in his words.
Sundays were the only free days the Hikarigumi actually have; Saturday mornings they still have the musical training.
And on such a Sunday afternoon, the Hikarigumi gathered in the cafeteria for lunch. Even so, they did it without much enthusiasm.
Veraiho had slept in for the entire day, her sleepy appearance still very real as she sat down with a bowl of hot soup in front of her.
Sitting beside her, Katrina jabbed her food without much interest, still mulling about her own musical training. She didn't mind the tough regimen, but she still didn't like her current life. She's a soldier, not an entertainer!
Across the table, Siti chatted with Thomas and Isaac, trying to cheer them up. Nearby, Abigail listened with increasing irritation.
Finally, she shot up to her feet.
"I've had enough!" she screeched. The others stared at her.
"Training and training! I'm sick of it!" she revealed.
"Hold on, you're being too hasty…" Isaac began.
"I'm too tired to care!" Abigail said.
"Actually, so am I," Katrina spoke up suddenly. "I didn't expect this… I thought I was going to fight."
"Same here," Veraiho drawled in agreement.
Tom stood up. "I don't believe this, don't you guys like this? I know it's tiring, but believe me, you wouldn't want to fight those demons!"
"Yes, they are horrible… You can't imagine the horror…" Siti mumbled with disquiet.
"Maybe I want to," Katrina interrupted. She jabbed a thumb at herself. "I will die proudly for the Fatherland if I have to."
Isaac frowned at her. "I have a feeling that you actually want an attack to happen."
Before Katrina could roar with anger, an unfamiliar sound blared.
It was a siren.
"Hikarigumi, scramble! Scramble! Scramble!" Mika Sorenson's voice called in alarm.
"Well, something -is- happening now…" Isaac whispered in shock.
--End Chapter 3: It's Showtime!--
Endnotes:
[1] Christophe D'Aubigne created by Yoru no Angel
[2] Quattro Estel Basilini and Tezuka Ryo created by Arion Wong
[3] Pachibel's Kanon should be familiar to NGE fans, it's the music played by Shinji. Tom played a solo version of this famous classical music.
[4] George Winston's Variation of Kanon is basically the same song but modified in piano. Available as Track 9 in his 'December' album.
---Anti Demon Division Character Profile---
Name: Christophe D'Aubigne
Age: 24
Nationality: French
Rank: Music/Dance Instructor
Previous Occupation: Dancer
Height: 170cm
Weight: 54kg
Preferred Weapon: Enthusiastic Hugs and Kisses (tm)
Name: Quattro Estel Basilini
Age: 56
Nationality: Italian
Rank: Music Director / Orchestral Conductor
Previous Occupation: Musician
Height: 165cm
Weight: 76kg
Preferred Weapon: Conductor's wand
Name: Tezuka Ryo
Age: 23
Nationality: Japanese
Rank: Master Technician
Previous Occupation: Baker
Height: 175cm
Weight: 73kg
Preferred Weapon: Sweaty handshake
---
Arion: …Thou shalt not anger the Angel of the Night…*Whimpers in pain*