"No way." That was all that Hanso could say when he saw the charts the next day in the Neopian Times.
"Yes, way," Animal was not calm for the first time, still shocked and raving over how good the reviews were for their concert, and how most reviews were directed at Sub-Zero, the song they had sung with Brynn. Eight hours after the concert had finally ended, the band and Brynn were still sitting in the dressing room, talking about their major success with the audience yesterday. Hanso went to sulk in a corner after he had seen the news, and Pick had fallen asleep, as staying up late was no longer an option for an aging Zafara such as himself.
"We got WAY better ratings than we ever had," raved Animal. "I mean, 5 out of 5 stars from nearly every review, especially from the prestigious Mossy Stone and The Final Word with Mr Coconut! Hanso, you're drooping like a Single Grey Flower. Celebrate! We're officially on the top of the charts AND we've achieved a new rating record!"
"No thanks." Hanso went back to wallowing in self-pity – or was it jealousy?
"I can't believe it EITHER!" Brynn exclaimed. "I mean, in one day, I managed to meet you guys, see Hanso again, and become a mini pop sensation!"
Hanso said something at this, but it was rendered inaudible by Pickpocket's snoring.
"Well, I suggest you come touring with us. You'll be a big help to us and our ratings, and help us score more fans! Besides, you're nice as well, not one of those pathetic wannabes you sometimes find on Neopian Idol."
"W-WHAT?" Hanso shouted, making himself clear now. "Brynn, you can't come on tour, right, cause you have a job, right? Right? RIGHT?"
"Stop shouting, Hanso. Deep breaths. In, out. In, out." Animal continued repeating the mantra.
"But, you're busy, right? Occupied, taken. No time. Hmm?" Hanso continued, disregarding Animal's mantra.
"I could always tell my boss. He is a big fan of you guys anyway," said Brynn. "He'll be sure to let me go with you guys, and he'll probably keep paying me too!"
Hanso's jaw dropped. "Huuuh?"
"Come on, Hanso, let her come along. She can just tell her boss and be back by the time we've packed and board the tour bus."
"Hu's boardin' the tour bus?" Pickpocket had woken up.
"Brynn is," Animal answered, and told Pick the story so far. The Zafara lost the bleary, groggy look in his eyes and replaced it with a bright, happy one.
"Ah, goody, methinks it's tyme a lass joined us, eh, Animal?" Pick nudged Brynn. "If y'know whut ah mean."
"Erm, I think so," said Brynn carefully.
"Good! Nawh, ye'd better be runnin' along to tell yer boss, cuz when you get back, it's Pin The Tail on the Bori Time! Other than me, only lasses appreciate that game." Pick went out onstage to start packing, cheering all the way.
Hanso groaned. So now he had to put up with Brynn on their tour bus AND Pickpocket's mad games of Pin The Tail on the Bori? And he thought that he'd left the weird life (and that blasted game) behind. He sighed and went out to help his band members.
Brynn put on her work-assigned Virtupets Head Set and tuned it to receive her boss' frequency. She was sure that he would be absolutely furious, seeing as she had not punched in by the time she had told her boss she would. It was already the start of lunch break, and she hoped that he was in a good mood because of that. Otherwise, she was going to be in for a big scolding.
"BRYNNETH! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? YOU'RE TWO HOURS LATE FOR WORK, AND YOU HAVEN'T EVEN DONE ANY WORK ON YOUR HEAD SET AT ALL!"
"Hello, boss," Brynn said sheepishly. "I can explain ever-"
"AND WHAT'S MORE," her boss cut in. "YOU HAD A CLOSE RELATIONSHIP WITH ROGUE FROM FLIP SIDE AND DID NOT – I REPEAT, DID NOT, TELL ME! You KNEW I was a HUGE fan of Flip Side and KEPT ALL THIS FROM ME! Never mind your undone work, you KNEW Rogue all along and didn't even get me an AUTOGRAPH! Or ANYTHING! AT ALL! Forget the work and punctuality, that doesn't matter now. YOU'RE FIRED FOR HIDING THIS FROM ME!"
"Uh, boss? I was just about to-"
"No more! Goodbye, Brynn."
The line cut off, then the head set flickered and disappeared from around her head like an image disappearing after a TV's been turned off. Brynn sighed and muttered "So much for telling him about the touring."
Brynn dejectedly walked back to the tour bus.
Hanso entered the tour bus, carrying some sub-woofers with the rest of the band. The manager was sitting in a corner, and only his silhouette was visible. Flip Side's band manager was, like Pick, aging. He always wore a belt that had tons of phones strapped to it, all blaring away with the cacophony of many different ringtones all at once. However, today there was merely silence.
Hanso went over to him. "Uh, Kagrin, what happened to your phones?"
However, as Hanso got closer he realized it wasn't Kagrin. This was a different Neopet.
Kagrin didn't answer. He just sat there, chin on knuckle. Hanso edged closer to the weirdly silent Neopet. Pickpocket whipped out a boom box and started playing some dramatic, suspenseful music.
Hanso ignored him and said "Something's wrong," like the epic cliché in nearly every thriller movie. He finally ran the last few steps to Kagrin and shook him.
"Are you o-" Hanso started. Pick stopped the music, then put on an even more dramatic track as Hanso's eyes widened to the size of a Spardel's.
"Xandra?" Hanso exclaimed.
