Washington Blues
Chapter Two
Pre-Camp
Opening the one of the doors to the band room, I cannot help but sigh after a deep breath. The smell of the detergent they use to clean the uniforms fills the air, and it's very comforting. All sorts of memories flood back with the simple smell. Soon, sunscreen and sweaty band kids will join that scent.
To any sensible person, that would surly sound disgusting–it usually is. Though, only two words come to mind when this scent is mentioned: band camp.
However, right now it is only pre-camp. For the first week, we will only work on marching fundamentals and music. Some bands only require this for freshmen, but our directors also use this as basic review and as a way of getting to know our sections.
The large room is completely quiet. It's customary for the field commanders to arrive early. Our field commander last year, Elizabeth Redding, would always say, "Drum majors: first to arrive, last to leave."
"We've asked Kanaya to come in early today so we can talk to her," Mr. N tells me when I enter the director's office. Both of our directors don't actually go by their proper surname. They agree that their last names are mouthfuls, and in a time of urgency it's best to have an easy name. It becomes easy to forget their proper names when talking to an outside teacher. I always have to remind myself to say, Mr. Nathanson and Mrs. Hatifield as opposed to Mr. N and Mrs. H.
As I walk out of the director's office to go set my things in the woodwind storage area, I see somebody enter the band room. The messy black hair is a dead giveaway to Gamzee. "Hey, my sister! What's goin' on?" He asks as we both go to put away out things.
He places his saxophone case on the black shelf on the far side of the room. "Not much. Why are you here so early?" I ask, although, knowing Gamzee, the answer is obvious.
He shrugs. "Dad's gone off on another business trip. I didn't like bein' all lonely at my house, so I figured somebody'd be here." Exactly as I thought.
Gamzee's father is notorious for just leaving him without any warning. Gamzee is a senior, but the directors claim that they only see his father during registration, which makes only four times now. I've never seen him, but I feel bad for Gamzee. He comes across as goofy and acts as though it doesn't bother him, but I am more than willing to bet that deep down it hurts.
I keep Gamzee company until a few others arrive. As soon as Karkat gets here, I no longer worry about him. One of the ongoing jokes in the band is Karkat is Gamzee's heterosexual life partner. Karkat isn't particularly fond of the joke, but he has never denied it.
The two are inseparable. I am envious of this. I do wish I had somebody who would like to be around me often. Maybe I shouldn't dwell on that thought too much…
Watching everyone come into the band room passes time. I talk to those who approach me, and answer as many questions that are brought to me. It's funny how everyone seems to assume that the field commander has the answer to everything. I won't get angry though. There was a time when I thought that too.
I glance at the clock to check the time. We still have forty minutes until pre-camp officially starts. I wonder where Kanaya is?
My violet eyes begin to wonder the growing sea of band kids, however, my attention immediately falls on the girl who has just walked into the room. Currently she is talking to Nepeta.
Nepeta is already a pretty short girl, but the height of the girl completely dwarfs her. It isn't in my personality to be so transfixed on someone like this, but I cannot remove my gaze from her. Her skin is very pale, but it makes for a lovely contrast with her short black hair. The green shirt she is wearing also makes for a nice contrast.
Even the way she carries herself is full of finesse.
I make is look as if my attention was elsewhere when she walks by.
Interesting. I don't seem to be myself today. This must be due to the fact that I had little sleep last night. Having Aradia over for the weekend certainly didn't allow a proper sleeping schedule.
Wait a moment…could she have been Kanaya?
Turning around, I start to make my way towards the director's office. Mrs. H had just started to walk out of the office when she spotted me. "I was just coming to get you!" She says in a cheerful voice. I think she is pretty excited about having a field commander who knows how to deal with a lot of students. I can't blame her. As intimidating as the prospect may be, it will be nice having someone to fall back on in case I were to need it.
Kanaya stands in front of the blue-green couch that sits between the director's desks. Mr. N is already seated at his chair, giving us his attention. Mrs. H closes the door. "Now," she says sitting down at her desk. "Kanaya, this is Rose Lalonde. She is our field commander," she introduces.
The taller girl glances at me, giving me a respectful nod. I note that she has very beautiful jade eyes.
As they explain the situation to her, I study her body language. She doesn't give off much; just a change in stance, and a few nods. It's hard to tell what she is thinking. She isn't giving any negative signs. Hopefully she is considering accepting.
"We would love it if you would consider becoming the assistant field commander for our band, but you can give us your answer whenever," Mr. N concludes.
I look at Kanaya. Her jade eyes make contact with mine for a mere second before she refocuses on the directors. "This does come as a surprise to me, albeit a nice one. I will not delay my response, because I already gladly accept the position," she says, enunciating each word with the utmost clarity.
A silent sigh passes my lips. I'm pleased she made this decision, and it seems the directors think the same as well. "I look forward to working with you," I tell her.
"Same to you," she replies.
"Wonderful!" Mrs. H then looks at the clock. "Well, we're about to start gathering everyone in the circle, so until then you two are free to do as you please."
We both nod, then head out of the office. Kanaya walks away without a word, but I pay no heed to it, instead walking over to John and Aradia. "So, how many drum majors do we have?" John asks me.
"Two," I simply answer. Judging by the enthusiastic response he gives me, he is far more excited about this than I am.
It isn't long until the directors call for everyone to gather in a circle. The sheer size of the band is quite astounding. It looks very fitting for our size room. Normally, it looks rather odd seeing only twenty-five people in such a large room. Over sixty people seem to fill out the room very nicely.
Mrs. H steps forward, smiling brightly. "Welcome everyone! Both of us are excited that you all could make it. I'm Mrs. Hatifield, but you are all welcome to just call me Mrs. H," she introduces.
"And I'm Mr. Nathanson, but feel free to call me Mr. N. It's much less of a mouthful," Mr. N adds.
"So, right now we're just going to do introductions. Just tell us your name, your grade, and what instrument you play," Mrs. H instructs. She then looks towards the blonde wearing aviator shades. "Okay, Shades, why don't you start us off?" She invites.
He nods, and I notice something about his smirk. It's a smirk that says, "I have a witty comment". Every year, without fail, someone always makes a joke like they're sitting in a rehab circle. I wonder if he's going to continue this tradition?
"Hi. I'm Dave Strider, and I'm an alcoholic." At this, a good majority of the band begins to laugh, myself included. I already have this feeling that this is going to be one interesting year. "But, back to being serious. I'm Dave, I'm a junior, and I play snare," he says once the laughter has died down.
I honestly think that this opening humor is always necessary. I'm sure the freshmen and newcomers are nervous, and what better than to alleviate some of that with some comedic relief?
Dave then looks to his right, nodding at Aradia. "I'm Aradia. I'm a senior and I'm the center snare!" She introduces with a smile.
As everyone else begins to introduce themselves, I notice that Kanaya seems to be paying extra attention. Just the way her jade eyes stare intently as names are spoken makes me smile. Though, because I spend more time watching her, I neglect to notice that it is my turn to introduce myself.
"Rose!" Kanaya says in a quick whisper.
I flinch, but force myself to quickly regain my posture. "I'm Rose. I am a junior, I am the field commander, and I will also play flute for marching season," I quickly say, and then look over to Kanaya.
She smiles. "Hello. I am Kanaya. I am a junior, I play flute, and I will also be the assistant field commander for this season." When she mentions the field commander part, I notice a majority of the circle giving her an odd look. This was only to be expected. They'll get used to it soon enough.
From there, percussion and guard are sent off to do their own thing while the rest of us stay in the band room for marching technique. This is basically how it will be for the first week: marching and instrumental technique. Nothing else. By the end of this week everyone will be so sick of hearing the phrase "one-e-and-a". It is all worth it though.
The end of the day arrives, and Kanaya and I stay behind to make sure everyone gets a ride home. I don't mind it now, but I know this will be a little painstaking when it comes time for competitions. Oh well. Leadership will always come at a price, and this is hardly a one to pay.
Once given the okay to leave, we grab our things and take out leave. Standing on the stairs, Kanaya stops. It seems as though she has something to say, so I wait for her. "It's odd," she begins, resting her hand on the green railing. "Being in a band this small is certainly odd for me. Back at Ellensburg we were close to one hundred and fifty people."
I turn to face her. A sudden gust of wind blows her hair around. Though her hair looks fine, she is quick to fix it. I find this behavior to be cute, almost. "I can imagine it is odd being in a band less than seventy. I don't think I could handle being in a band larger than this though."
She stifles a laugh. "Yes, well, it was a challenge. I never actually knew everyone's name. I just knew their face and their section. It's why I will be trying my hardest to learn everyone's name this time. I wouldn't want your directors thinking ill of me." Not knowing everyone's name? That just sounds terrible to me. There is no way I would be able to handle that.
"I doubt they would ever think badly of you. I've been curious though. What exactly did you have to do to become field commander? It seems like a position that was taken very seriously," I asked.
She nods. "We always had three field commanders. The center podium would be the head field commander and would also be a senior. The two assistants would rotate between conducting backfield and off to the side, and would have to be a junior and a sophomore. Needless to say, you had to be very dedicated to the position, because you basically weren't allowed to quit." I feel as though, judging by her tone, there is an underlying story here. I won't press for it, but it only heightens my curiosity.
I nod for her to continue.
"The current head field commander, Vriska Serket, worked with me for months my freshmen year. She was determined to make me an assistant," she says, the girl's name spoken with an air of fondness. Upon me asking if she was a good friend, the black-haired girl smiles before lowering her gaze to the ground. "Let's just say that my opinion on her is very mixed."
It is probably best to leave it at that. I don't want to leave her on this kind of note though. It wouldn't feel right. "Did you enjoy your first day?" I ask her.
Looking back up at me, the afternoon sun shines on her face. As if I needed to be reminded that she is very pretty. "I believe that it is too soon to be giving a definite answer, but," she pauses to brush some hair behind her ear, "I do believe I am going to like it here."
I nod, liking the answer she has provided. I put my pink bag over my shoulder, and step down the stairs. "That's good to hear. I do hope you come to love our little band," I say, putting a little emphasis on "our". Hopefully she will start using that term as well. "Oh, and you and I are going to have to hangout at some point. I would hate for us to be dysfunctional field commanders," I quickly add.
I watch as she studies me. She's probably watching my body language, looking for any underlying motives. "Agreed," she tentatively replies.
I feel there is nothing more to say at this point. We say goodbye, and head in opposite directions. Kanaya is certainly interesting. Between her and Aradia, there are just far too many pretty girls in band. This cannot be good for my own self-esteem.
Throughout the week, Kanaya and I grow closer. We talk on a fairly regular basis, and we have made a habit of talking before parting ways at the end of the day. She is certainly an interesting individual. I will admit to being jealous that no matter what she wears she looks amazing. Her eye for fashion is quite admirable. It's odd that we now talk more than Aradia and I do.
Kanaya also seems to love sarcasm. She's yet to one-up me on that subject, but she is one to give out a good comeback or two.
Pre-camp is over, but I can already tell this going to be one amazing year.
Grr...I'm not happy with this chapter. Not one little bit. It feels so sloppy, and not in Rose's narrative. I'm just...I dunno. After what seemed like a decent start on chapter one, this feels like such a letdown.
A lot of things are under-described. However, part of that is because this is first person. Rose is nervous, and a little transfixed by Kanaya. Some things were skipped over intentionally because of the nervous factor. Rose stopped paying attention to the introductions, so now she's going to have some trouble later on with remembering names among other things. We have to learn with Rose.
i feel like that just seems like a crummy excuse OTL
In response to a review I received:
shequiusthebandgeek ~ I already had Gamzee's instrument decided, but I will use your suggestion for Equius! I'm glad you suggested baritone, because I didn't have an instrument for him.
I am still deciding on mentioning the Alpha kids. I want to, but at the same time, I am very torn.
Also, I keep meaning to look up that marching band, but life likes to get in the way I'll do that soon, I promise!
Dreamplay06 ~ Thank you so much for the review! I meant a lot, and I smiled like an idiot! I'm glad you liked it so much~
I cannot think of much else to say. Thanks to all favorites, kudos, comments, and reviews! It is all much appreciated~
Until later,
Victoria