Brynn entered the bus with a mock sweep of her hand. "Hello!"
The tense atmosphere she could suddenly feel in the bus fried her grand greeting, so she went over to see why everyone seemed to be huddling in one spot.
"You can't be our new manager!" Hanso was shrieking, in his Ready-To-Rant pose. "What happened to Kagrin?"
Brynn hustled her way to the center of the huddle to find a very familiar, world-weary Speckled Xweetok glaring at Hanso. "He retired," she said. "We were friends. He recommended that I take over as manager of one of the most popular bands of all time. How was I supposed to know that they were actually a bunch of ex-convicts? I can't believe I left my books to get away from all the memories. And now, they've come back to haunt me as my NEW JOB!"
"Whaddaya mean haunting YOU? You've come back to haunt ME!" Hanso said, j'accuse style.
"Kagrin described you as the perfect rock group, and told me that you were easy to work with! What a big lie that was. I'd quit right now too, but it looks like you guys need someone to organise you. And I'd be the one for the job. And, being your superior, you have to do as I ask. Now let's stop this and clean up my bus." Xandra looked rather pleased with herself.
"Hey, hey, hey, we're the band, this is OUR bus, we are going to sing OUR songs on OUR tour using OUR instruments. Nothing here is YOURS. I bet even Brynn'd agree. Right?" Hanso looked at Brynn for confirmation, all the earlier fuss forgotten.
Xandra's head swivelled around to look at Brynn. "When did you join the band?" she asked, looking more horrified than she had been earlier.
"Er, today." Brynn shrugged. "After the reviews, Animal and Pick voted me in."
Xandra visibly melted into the chair.
"Don't worry, dear lass," Pickpocket said cheerily. "We can all forget this ruckus by playin' some Pin the Tail on the Bori! Howzat sound? Eh? Eh?"
Receiving no reply, Pickpocket slunk back to another corner of the van. Meanwhile, Brynn, Hanso and Xandra continued to stare down each other.
"Guys, there's no need for all this," Animal tried. "Xandra is our new manager, Brynn is our new member, and we ALL own the bus. We can all eventually learn to work together. Now, just calm down. Deep Breaths. In. Out. In. Ou-"
All three looked daggers at him. Animal just calmly stared back. Their gazes dropped.
"I guess Animal's right," Brynn admitted. "We HAVE to try and work together anyway, seeing as there isn't much choice."
Xandra sighed, then got up and set up a work station at the far end of the bus. She opened her laptop, put some paperwork on the table and ignored everybody else. Hanso just went to the other end of the bus to pout/try to boycott Pickpocket's preparations for Pin the Tail on the Bori.
Brynn sighed. 'So much for working together...' She thought. 'Well, might as well try and repair the damage before it gets worse.'
"Hey Xandra?"
Xandra looked up from her laptop. She looked down almost immediately.
"Can you hear me out for a moment?"
Her ears twitched.
"Okay, let me paraphrase that: can you listen to me for a moment?"
Her ears twitched again. "Moment's over. Get back to your Creative Zone, or something."
Brynn shut her laptop closed. "I'm not going back to the others till you tell me what's wrong."
Xandra tried to open her laptop. Brynn's paw pressed harder on it. "You're going to break this thing at this rate."
"Don't care. I probably have enough royalties to pay for dozens of these as is. Now, will you listen to me for more than a few seconds or will I have to crush this laptop and many others before you do?"
Xandra grimaced. "You wouldn't dare."
Brynn returned the sour mood. "I would."
Crack.
"You're not serious; you'll hurt your paw this way."
"Like I said: don't care."
Crack. Split.
Xandra's face remained stony.
Brynn's remained pretty much the same.
The cover started showing visible signs of damage.
"Alright, that's enough you two!" Animal cried, coming between the two warring women. He turned to Brynn. "Brynn, stop trying to break this laptop; you'll hurt yourself." He turned to Xandra. "Boss, stop being such a jerk and make things up with your band members; it wouldn't be good for your job and the press if word gets out like this."
Xandra huffed. "And what makes you think you can stop me from hating every single one of you?"
Brynn came up to her manager's side. "Yeah, what does?"
Animal grinned. "This." Together in Electric Dreams started playing, but to their horror it seemed to be coming from inside their mind, since the CD player on the bus wasn't on and Pick had kept his radio. Animal leant closer and extended his tentacles, bit by bit, as evil psychedelic purple waves broke across their vision...
Entertainment Weekly: "Flip Side Scuffle leaves 2nd Lead, Manager in Shock! Media baffled by 'How'."
Reports from a source close to the band manager, Xandra, says that she was locked up in her room on the bus for more than 6 hours, not eating drinking OR going to the toilet. Seemingly shell-shocked, she was later heard saying "Oh dear sweet Fyora on buttered toast with jam, what was THAT?" two hours after being what scientists now call Animal Control, or otherwise 'Hurk! Blargh!' named after the reaction of a Hurk! Blargh!-ee immediately after Animal seems to harmlessly stare into a victim's eyes.
