AN: Thanks to the... four people who reveiwed. This chapter goes out to you!!
MajikkuNeko-Chan
Duke20104
Draco's Secret Lover
lil-cloudiekins
It's awesome to know that there are other band geeks out there.
Anyway, about that list of characters...
I was a total spaz, and didn't include it in the last chapter. It's supposed to be at the end of the chapter. Here it is now:
Remy - Gambit from X-Men EVO
Ron - If you don't know what Harry Potter is, you live a very sheltered and ignorant life. Prays for your soul
Zechs - Gundam Wing
Setsuna - Sailor Pluto from Sailor Moon
Heero and Wufei - Again, Gundam Wing
Rogue - X-Men EVO
Ginny - Again, Harry Potter
And I think that's it.....
On with the chapter!!
Chapter 2
"Alright you lazy bums!" Zechs roared, groans quickly following his loud announcement. "I've let you slack enough. UP!!"
The band slowly collected back onto the field, instruments in hand. Getting to their own separate positions on the field, each person fell into attention, not moving (except for sweating, but that didn't count as movement), waiting for their next command.
"Alright, lets run through the first few sets that we learned yesterday!" Setsuna called, hands on her hips as she looked over the band. "I don't want you guys playing, for one reason. You guys can't play worth crap."
Chuckles were heard after that announcement, no one truly offended. It usually took the whole first week of band camp just to learn the music. Often, they never played any music on the field until the second week.
"The only reason you have your instruments with you right now," Setsuna continued, "Is because you need to get used to marching correctly, without looking at your feet, trying to figure out where your going!!"
"At a comp, there is no way you're going to get by with looking around the field, trying to figure out where your going and who's coming your way. This is only the third day, guys, and for such a little amount of time, we've done a lot. Now, we need to do more. Lets start at the very beginning. Zechs?"
The blond young man nodded, then they both lifted their arms in unison, and thus began another grueling couple of hours in the hot, unmerciful sun.
"Are they trying to kill us?" Demanded a blond girl huffily, as she and her friends ate lunch up at the high school.
The morning part of band camp had (finally) ended. At least, for that day. Now, it was the customary hour-long lunch break. Most went to the little gas station/mini-mart that was a block or two from their practice field, halfway in-between the field and the school. Then they dragged their butts and their cheap yet filling food back to the school, where the second half of band camp, 'Sectionals', was held in the afternoon.
"I mean, seriously," The blond junior continued, delicately nibbling on her sandwich. "Four hours in 98 degree weather? They're lucky I didn't get heat-stroke or something. My father would have all their behinds, then!"
The three girls around her nodded sympathetically.
"We feel for you, Relena," a red head murmured, placing a empathetic hand on the blonds's shoulder.
"Yeah," A brunette said, her eyes understanding. "I mean, it's got to be torture for someone as delicate as you."
"This does not seem fair to one in friend Relena's condition," Agreed a foreign looking girl with wild, red hair.
"Thank you, Jean, Zora, Kory," Relena sighed, saying each girls name in the order of their sympathy offered.
"Please, friend Relena," Kory said, taking the 'fragile' girl's hand. "I have asked you to honor me in calling me by the name that has be bestowed upon me here."
"Then I shall call you by it, Starfire," Relena smiled weakly.
A few yards away, another group of girls grimaced.
"Oh, please," Muttered Rogue, rolling her eyes. "Delicate my cute, little, white ass. I've seen her go eight hours without a break." She snorted, munching on a chip, then muttered, "Delicate, hah!"
"They don't know any better," Commented a short-hair brunette from the floor, where she was lying on her back, a magazine covering her face. Rolling onto her stomach and grabbing the magazine all in one motion, her clear hazel eyes studied the disgusted teen. "They're only sophomores and an exchange student, after all."
"Still, why can't they seen under all that fake glitter?" Rogue demanded, turning away from the group, unable to witness the stomach-turning pity-fest any longer.
"Because they're all stupid air-heads that fall for the first lame story that comes to their sympathetic ears," A quiet, but scathing voice said, and the two turned to look at a dark girl, with pale skin. Scooting over, the girl stole one of Rogue's chips, and continued, "What do you really expect from a bunch of wood-winds?"
"Have to agree with you there, Rae," Rogue grimaced, as the brunette on the floor nodded. The dark girl scowled.
"My name is Raven," she snapped, trying to drive her point home for the ump-tenth time. "Ra-ven. It's not that hard to remember."
"Yeah, but you are only a sophomore," the brunette said, snatching her bottle of pop from near the aggravated girl's leg. "Therefore, if an upper-classmen wishes to shorten your name into a nickname, they can. Just be glad we got to you before Mystique did. She LOVES to give humiliating nicknames to the underclassmen, ever since she got named 'Blue Baby' way back in her frosh year."
Raven just rolled her eyes at the brunette, then glared at Rogue as she ruffled the dark sophomore's hair.
"Admit it," Rogue demanded, smirking. "You've gotten used to it."
"Whatever. Rhea, get her off my head," Raven demanded. The brunette on the floor chuckled.
"Alright, children, play nice," she drawled, sitting up and stretching. She rolled her head around, getting all the kinks out before adding. "Captain says."
"Aw, is little Raven getting picked on?" a mischievous voice asked, and the irritated sophomore in question glared at the pink-pigtailed girl that was standing nearby.
"Shut up, Jinx," Raven snarled at her sister, who was silently laughing at her.
"Now, now, is that anyway to talk to your twin?" Jinx teased, holding out a hand so Raven could get up. Grabbing the hand without answering, Raven let herself be pulled up. Jinx turned to Rhea, who had started to stretch her legs.
"We starting already?" She asked, curious. They did, technically, still have fifteen minutes left of their lunch.
"Nah," Rhea answered absently, concentrating on making her muscles respond they way she wanted them to. "I'm just getting a head start. Besides, I have a sinking premonition that we're gonna be running today."
There were groans from the four. Rogue got up slowly, then reached above her, stretching. "Anyone bring music?" she asked. She smirked as both Raven and Jinx made dives for their bags. Though the two were twins, their tastes in everything were totally different. Including music.
"I have music AND the player," Rhea said, already plugging in the portable boom-box that she'd brought from home. There were defeated sighs from the two sophomores as they got up, and meandered closer so they could hear the music. Just before Rhea hit the play button, someone yelled, "What, not gonna wait for me?"
"Well, if you would actually eat lunch with the rest of us," Rhea said, spinning around as she talked, glaring at her bouncing co-captain. "Then you would actually, gasp, shock, know when we were going to stretch!"
Duo beamed at his best friend and co-captain, then slung his arm around her shoulders. "Now, now," he said placatingly. "There's no need to be surly. Just because I go to stare at the cute drummers, doesn't mean you can't! Next time, come with me!!"
"You know very well that I can't," Rhea said frostily, shrugging from under Duo's arm. Duo winced, knowing he'd done it again. Duo Maxwell, flexible beyond compare. Watch him stick not one, but both feet in his mouth!!
A few weeks before, Rhea's boyfriend for almost a year, left her for another girl. The fact that he was still in band and a drummer didn't help her to get over it any faster. The fact he the girl he left her for was in her guard....
Well, that made it ten times worse.
And he, being Mister Smooth, had just brought it up.
"Sorry, Rhea," Duo said softly, giving the stiff girl a hug. "You know how flexible I get."
Rhea left out a small laugh, then sighed. "It's cool, Du-chan," she said, turning around and tugging his braid. "You know, you're probably the only one in the entire band that can do that, and walk away with your balls still intact."
"Yeah, I'm just glad our mother sent us to the same pre-school," he joked, his smile back in place now that his friend was once again stepping away from the edge of her depression. "Otherwise, I'd of become an eunuch a loooong time ago!!"
Rhea laughed, then said, "So, are we going to stretch or are we gonna stand hee and mess around?"
The girls, who'd been watching the whole exchange, all gave a mental sigh of relief and thanks, then Jinx smiled. "Stretch, or course!" She said, then hit the play button on the stereo.
The drummers sat in the band room, claiming the space as their own. In fact, every section had 'their' space. The drums had the band room while the wood winds and guard had the hall. The trumpets ate in the orchestra room, and the rest of the brass either ate in hall or the choir room.
The drums sat in their usual spots. Heero and Wufei, main snares and therefore section leaders, sat in the front of the room, discussing only God-knew what. The four quads sat in the middle of the room, with rest of the snares to their right, while the bass drums were to their left.
Speaking of quads...
"Seventeen.... Eighteen... Nineteen.... Twenty!!" Gasped Ron, then flopping on the ground. Remy, being a year older and having more experience, had already finished his pushups. Ron got up and staggered over to the other three quads, then flopped back down.
"Not bad for a sophomore," a large, black drummer said, grinning as he clapped Ron on the back.
"Thanks, Cy!" Ron gasped. Cyborg, as he was called, was a junior. His real name was Victor, but they called him Cyborg because... Well, Ron wasn't quite sure why, but it was some kind of inside story that had to do with a movie...
"Don't worry about it, Ron," said the last quad. Cronus, by name, wasn't the best looking of the group (That went to Remy). Large, a bit husky, with brown, almost black hair and blue-gray-ish eyes, he looked pretty average. He even acted average, easy going, always joking. Average, until you put a quad on him and handed him a pair of "cookies". Then he became God. With an attitude. "Yuy and Chang may be tight-wads, but they know what they're doing."
"Yeah, well, again, thanks Remy," Ron said sarcastically, rolling his eyes at the Cajan. When he didn't get a response, Ron looked over at Remy, only to see him staring off into space, frowning.
"Oy!" Ron called, trying to get his friend's attention. Remy, blinked, then shook his head, and looked at Ron. "You still thinking about that guard chick?"
"Oui..." Remy murmured, then went back to his thoughts.
"Guard chick?" Cyborg asked, curious. "That don't sound good. We've already got one quad addicted to 'em, we don't need two!!" Cyborg laughed as Cronus started throwing random crap at him, in which Cyborg had to retaliate.
After objects stopped flying, Cyborg continued, "Seriously, though, what guard chick?"
"Her name," Remy interrupted before Ron could start. "Is Rogue. And she's bein' a bit stubborn toward Remy, that's all."
"Whatever you say," Cyborg agreed, putting his hands in surrender and chuckling. "Just remember what Cronus has gotten himself into, and maybe you'll think twice about this guard girl."
"What do you mean, 'gotten himself into'?" Cronus demanded, chucking an crumpled up, empty paper bag at Cyborg, who caught it and tossed it back.
"Dude," Cyborg said, his face serious. "You dumped a wonderful chick for a floozy who's gonna dump ya." Cyborg ducked a bottle, then retracted his statement. "Or maybe not. But seriously, man, how long are you and Mystique gonna last?"
Cronus stopped chucking random objects at the black drummer, and didn't answer.
"Guard chicks can be more trouble than their worth," Cyborg said to Ron, giving him a knowing look. "Any band chick is. But if you find a good one, you should hold on to 'em. Cause you never know when another one is going to come along."
TBC....
Alright, character list!!
Relena - Gundam Wing
Jean - X-men EVO
Zora - Oh, come on!! If you need me to tell you, then your a spaz. (Just in case, Digimon)
Starfire - Teen Titans
Raven - Also TT
Rhea - Okay, this might take some explaining... Rhea was the mother of the main/head greek gods. She gave birth to many children, including Zeus, Poisiden(sp?), and Hades. She was considered the goddess of fertility.
Jinx - TT again, although in the series, Jinx is technically a bad guy....
Duo - Already told ya!
Heero Wufei - At the risk of repeating myself, already told ya!
Ron Remy - you already know this....
Cyborg - Teen Titans
Cronus - Okay, another long explination. Cronus was the father of the greek gods. Yes, with Rhea.... Well, now you know who the girlfriend was...
And I think thats it... Read and Reveiw!!!!!