The next day…
Eric was waiting in the music foyer as kids walked in during WorldSnap. He did not let them enter the band room, instead directing them to sit on the floor. "So. I've got an idea. Ms. Larson said we were supposed to volunteer tomorrow for the introductions to the pieces, right? I figure, instead of us volunteering individually, we should introduce Aurora together. But Mo would get the attention, though."
"Wait a minute," said Steve Schaefer. "We're playing Aurora at the band concert?"
"Yeah," Gabrielle excitedly told him. "Everyone can do it, right?"
"YEAH!"
"Not so loud!" Simon warned them. "Ms. Larson could find us out. I told her we were playing it outside of school. I was the one that brought it up." He beamed.
"Anyway, it was just a thought. You don't have to do it if you don't want to. Let's play." Eric went into the band room, followed by the forty others.
His message had attracted most, but not all. Mariana still volunteered, along with a few other kids. Kimberly did as well. Eric had told her to at lunch.
But his idea had worked. With maybe thirty kids who would normally volunteer and four songs, Kimberly's odds of winning weren't even fifteen percent. But when only five kids did, the chance zoomed to eighty.
Ms. Larson drew names out of a hat. "Rufus…Aaron…Mariana…and Kimberly. You'll be my readers. See me after class to choose your pieces. Mo, I'm assuming you'd like to introduce Aurora?"
"You said it."
Thirty minutes later, Kimberly dashed down to the podium. "Can I do Persevere?"
"I don't see why not. Anybody else?"
Mariana shrugged. "I want to do Addams Family."
Rufus was jealous. "That's the only one I like!"
Aaron had a quick solution. "But Rufus, flute has a solo part on Everglade Fantasy. You should do that."
"I don't want people knowing I play flute! They'll think I'm a girl!"
"It's your instrument," Kimberly reminded him.
"True enough."
"I'm doing that Eenie Meenie Miney Mo piece, then?" Aaron figured.
"It's Eine Kliene Nachtmusic," Ms. Larson corrected him.
"For the record…I don't care."
"Hey!" Eric cheered when they came out. "All of our group got speaking parts! Are we big winners, or are we big winners?"
"Neither of the above," Dana sarcastically told him. "We're the entire band."