Chapter V: Alternapalooza II

"Here Daria, have some more."

Daria's vision turned blurry for a second before her bespectacled eyes focused on a hand holding a paper cup outstretched towards her. She took a small step backwards, her own drink almost spilling over her shirt.

"Uhm no thanks, Danny. I don't really drink… And it looks like you've had one too many."

"W-what? That's nonsense!"

Danny quickly gulped down the drink he held out and grinned lazily. Daria raised an eyebrow at his sluggish movements as he swayed a bit, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah… Never been better…"

Before Daria could comment, Jane grabbed her arm and shoved a few glow sticks into her chest before she could utter a word.

"Yo Amiga! I found some more of these glow thingies. Cool, huh."

"And where exactly did you find these?"

"They were all inside those huge boxes over there at the back of the tent where they were supposed to sell 'em. Damn bastards! They wanted to keep all these to themselves!"

Jane raised her pointer finger to the direction where the tents were then coiled her hand into a fist and pounded her left palm.

"O-kay… Jane, I think we should go sit down for a while and look for Trent and the others."

Daria placed a hand on Jane's shoulder trying to placate her. She was obviously starting to feel intoxicated with the beer. Daria had one cup for herself and was still nursing her second one and already her mind went a little foggy. Daria led Jane on a concrete ledge and sat down while Danny went off who knows where.

The sun had settled down to make room for the moon and the stars an hour ago and they'd been at the festival for a solid 3 hours now just wandering about, looking at stalls and listening to some of the bands while Jane took pictures for her photo project. Of course, there was free beer all around which came with the ticket's fee and her artsy friend decided to take advantage of that. That, and the fact that they did not care to ask about their age. Daria sighed, took off her glasses and begun wiping them when she was caught off guard a second time that day. When her eyes re-adjusted, she realized it was a water battle this time and the person holding it out to her was none other than Trent.

"T-trent? What are you doing here?"

Daria cursed her high-pitched tone and Trent raised an eyebrow at her.

"We came here together, remember? And I saw you and Janey sitting out here and thought maybe you guys were thirsty."

Daria noticed how Trent eyed the discarded half-full paper cup beside her and blushed. He obviously thought she was drunk now, and with the new shade of red now invading her face. Jane grabbed the water bottle and gulped down half its contents before giving it to Daria.

"Thanks Trent. Where've you guys been hanging out? Did you get to buy some glow sticks before they ran out?"

A number of glow sticks bent into circles to form bracelets on Jane's arms bounced, as she held her arms out and Trent laughed heartily- which turned into a cough.

"I think I know why the stall ran out. Come on Daria, Janey. The guys and I are having hotdogs at the tank."

Trent turned around and started walking to the direction of the Tank but not before Daria saw a glimpse of the smile on his face. He led them to where Max had moved the tank. They had managed to park it inside by the right side of the stage. The boys were sitting on the grass, the side doors open while they got more hotdogs and buns from a plastic container inside.

"I found 'em."

"Cool. Hey man, can you grab me some ketchup?"

Jesse asked, with his mouth full and a ketchup stain on his vest. Nick snickered at the sight before moving over to give space for the two girls and handed them both hotdog sandwiches.

"Where'd you get all these hotdogs?"

Jane asked, taking a bite while Nick gave them some ketchup and mustard sachets from the container. He shrugged and sat back down.

"Working at Pete's Hotdog Palace has its perks, I guess."

Jesse walked over to where they sat and got down beside Jane and engaged in small talk with her, leaving Daria out. She dusted off some bread crumbs from her shirt and stood up, bumping into Trent's stomach.

"Damnit. I'm sorry."

"That's alright, Daria. I wasn't expecting you to get up."

Trent sat down where Daria had previously sat and the wheels in her head turned. Was he planning on sitting beside me? Without thinking, she repositioned herself beside him. Trent smiled at her before sipping on his grape soda. Daria followed his gaze towards the stage where another band was setting up. Daria fidgeted. Say something. Just say anything.

"Uhm. No alcohol tonight?"

Her voice came out squeaky and she was almost sure Trent didn't hear her over the noise when he took another sip of the soda and regarded her coolly.

"Nah. Maybe later though. My head still hurts from last night."

"Oh."

Daria replied lamely. That went well. There were a few minutes of silence shared between the two before Trent this time, spoke up. His lazy drawl effectively breaking the stillness in the little bubble the two were seemingly in despite the constant motion and noise around them.

"Daria, I'm gonna go look at the guitars they're selling backstage. Will you go with me?"

"Yeah, sure."

The two made their way behind the stage where there were even more tents and people scattered about. The lanterns and small lights had been turned on and cast a soft glow over the crowd. The blinding spotlights by the stage failed to reach this area and the energy seemed diluted, the noise not quite as deafening, although by now Daria was used to the constant buzz. Daria racked her brain for anything to say that would lead to small talk and when she thought of nothing particularly interesting enough to say; she scratched a non-existent itch on her arm to keep from feeling nervous. For a moment, she felt silly for feeling this way but those thoughts dispersed when they stopped in front of a stall.

"What do you think, Daria?'

Daria's head whipped up to the guitar Trent was pointing at. She knew not much of guitars, and wasn't sure what to comment. It was a red and white electric guitar, the two colors swirled together to form a spiral at the center.

"It looks really good."

"That one's a Charvel CX390, circa 1992. I could give this to you at a discounted price."

Trent seemed to think about it for a moment while the stall attendant updated his inventory list.

"That sounds like a good deal, but I'll have to pass. Just an A string for now."

"Alright, man."

The attendant wrapped the string in plastic and handed it over to Trent with a written receipt and his change.

"Hey guys, smile for the camera!"

Daria squinted; the flash was way too bright in contrast to the semi-dark surroundings. Trent blinked his eyes repeatedly, his hand coming to rest on Daria's shoulder to steady himself while little bright lights flashed before his eyes, temporarily blinding him.

"Whoops, sorry. Just changed the battery on this thing."

Jane's Polaroid camera printed out the photo and she grabbed it carefully and blew on it a bit while waiting for the photo to appear. Daria looked something between annoyed and stunned while Trent grinned, his hand now inside the pocket of his jeans.

It was right at that moment that loud music started playing, the different musical instruments creating a harmonious tune. Chillwave music blasted from the speakers and the three walked back to the tank while Jane took photos of the people swaying to the beat. Daria and the band sat through the whole set, Danny was snoozing at one of the trunks at the back.

When the set was over, Jane ran towards them, her jacket slung over her shoulder and her camera on the other. She quickly grabbed her bag behind one of the trunks and inserted new film sheets and wrapped a thick rubber band around her new stack of photos and tucking them safely inside her bag.

"What's the rush, Jane?"

"I heard from one of the guys standing at the sides that Tool will be playing next."

Jane replied, while biting down on a rubber band, trying to stretch it out. Nick sat up straight and Max stood up, excitedly. Daria noted this was the widest she had seen Trent's eyes open. She didn't understand the sudden excitement though, she had never heard of the band before.

"You're fucking kidding! Tool's not even part of the lineup, man!"

Max yelled out. His words were pessimistic but his eyes and body language were that of excitement. Jane shrugged.

"Yeah I know. Apparently, it was supposed to be some kind of surprise."

"Man, who cares if they decided to keep it a secret. I'm going in before the front of the stage gets really cramped. Don't wanna get trampled by the hardcore kids."

"Nick has a point. Let's go."

Trent pointed out, getting to his feet. Max and Nick were already jogging towards the crowd. Trent turned towards Daria.

"You coming, Daria?"

"Uhh…"

"Come on, Amiga. You don't want to miss this."

Jane gestured for the stunned girl to hurry. Daria was completely clueless on what was about to transpire as she glanced over at the stage crew setting up the band's instruments. What kind of a band name is Tool, and what does 'hardcore kids' even mean? She let herself be dragged by her best friend deeper into the crowd. Max and Nick were already up front while they lagged behind. Jesse had stayed behind to stay with his brother. They were halfway to the front when the music started. A minute into the song, the crowd had indeed gathered, having recognized the familiar intro of the song and Daria found herself pushed and pulled against a sea of people. She gripped Jane's hand in sudden panic. She had not expected this.

Jane led her to a small empty space enough for them to stand, unaffected by the crowd. Daria sighed, remembering to breathe while Jane took more photos. They stood in the same spot for a few more songs. The band played heavy metal music, the drums carrying out a loud steady beat, the guitar and bass in sync with each other as they went from tender to brutal and melodic to abrasive, accompanied with odd time signatures. The vocalist's strong voice was the punch line of it all, despite the growling and screaming, his voice remained intact and whole when he had to sing.

"Daria, let's go near the stage. I wanna take close up shot of the band." Jane yelled into Daria's ear.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Jane."

Daria yelled back, eyeing some teenagers and a couple of adults jumping and thrashing around in a circle of their own, hitting other people around them in the progress. That didn't seem to stop them though. Another song started, apparently, a famous once since everyone in the crowd started jumping up and down. Sweaty bodies bumped against the short redhead as she tried maneuvering herself through small spaces to avoid getting hit. Wait. Where the hell is Jane!

She looked around her, trying to find the familiar short black hairstyle of her best friend. The music grew steadily towards the first chorus, getting louder and louder. She thought she spotted a short-haired girl holding out a camera and tried to dash towards her direction.

Daria was down on the ground before the pain could register in her brain. She squinted, finding herself face-to-face with someone's dirty sneakers. She shakily stood up and rubbed her head, bumping into a group of dancing teenagers frantically looking for her glasses. Damnit! Damnit! Damnit!

She saw something shiny reflecting one of the stage spotlights and ran towards it. She was a foot away when a huge thigh-high steel toed boot stepped on it. Daria felt her heart sink to her stomach. She stood frozen in place as the second chorus blasted from the stage and people started to jump around more. Daria felt dizzy, her breath short as she tried desperately to look for small openings through her blurry vision. She felt someone elbow her rib and she grimaced. When she found herself near the rioting bunch whose circle was sucking more people in, she tried to go back the way she went but people were pushing towards her. Daria lost her composure and shut her eyes, for a lack of any idea on what to do now.

That's when she felt a hand firmly gripping her shoulder, then her other. The person was shaking her, trying to get her to open her eyes. What's the use, I can't even see properly beyond my outstretched arms.

"Daria! Open your eyes, Daria! Come on, we have to get you out of here. Daria!"

Daria opened her eyes and saw Trent bent over towards her, his face sweaty and aggravated with a spark of concern. She nodded weakly, and Trent bent down on the ground, got between her legs and shakily stood up. Instinctively, Daria grabbed onto Trent's head, careful not to block his vision. He swiftly and expertly moved around the crowd, making a beeline towards the west side. When they finally got out of the crowd and into a more open space, Trent sat down at the grass, setting Daria Trent's lanky appearance, he was quite strong. The two tried to catch their breaths for a moment.

"Thanks, Trent."

"It's no problem, Daria."

"I was just lucky you were there, I don't think I would have made it out there in one piece."

Daria's honesty and soft voice caught Trent off guard and he smiled, finally taking a look at her. She appeared out of breath, her hair messy and her face devoid of her glasses.

"Daria… Your glasses. What happened to them?" Daria frowned and looked down.

"Someone hit me and I fell down. I guess that knocked off my glasses, so I went looking for it but someone accidently stepped on it. So I didn't really see where I was going."

She was back to her monotone voice, rubbing a spot on her ribs. Trent didn't know what to say next, feeling stumped at hearing Daria speak for the first time, in more than a few words at once to him.

"Do you have an extra pair?"

"Yeah. It's back at home."

"Are you ok, Daria?"

"I'm fine, Trent. A couple bruises I guess, and a little thirsty, is all."

Trent nodded and got up to his feet. He motioned for Daria to grab his hand, grinning at her. She stood up with his help and they walked together towards the food stalls. Daria sat down at an unoccupied chair while Trent got drinks for them. He was back 10 minutes later, and placed two bottles of beer on the table and a plate of nachos with cheese dip.

"Sorry took a while, there was a long line for the free beer."

Daria nodded and sipped on her beer, trying to hide the obvious reddening of her cheeks. She cleared her throat self consciously and sipped more of her drink. They were silent for the rest of the set, the music too loud for a conversation. When the last song finally ended, and after an encore, most of the crowd dispersed as a new band started setting up their equipment. Daria noticed a tall, dark-haired girl eye them then sauntered over to their table.

"Hey Trent!"

She stood in front of the table and flipped back her long hair, smirking. Trent merely raised a brow and nodded.

"Hey Monique."

There was a few seconds of awkward silence, as the two stared at each other. Daria looked from Monique to Trent and back trying to guess what had transpired between them. How they knew each other, what their status was now or more fittingly, what they used to be. Trent broke the impromptu staring contest first then cleared his throat. Monique's gaze wandered over to the seated redhead.

"This, your girlfriend?"

The way she spat the word girlfriend made Daria feel like she was imposing herself into their situation- whatever their situation was. Trent cleared his throat again.

"No. This is my friend, Daria. Daria, this is Monique. I used to be in a band with her."

Daria was about to gesture for a hand shake when she noted the sour look on the girl's face at Trent's description of her. She withdrew her hand and looked at Trent questioningly and was interrupted by Nick and Max suddenly turning up. Instantly, Monique drew back and a smile graced itself on her lips.

"Oh hey there, Max. Nicholas."

Max took one look at her, nodded, and then looked away snorting as he sat beside Trent. Nick on the other hand simply raised a brow before walking past her and sat in between the pair. Obviously unwelcome, Monique walked away, her cool façade did not fade.

"You alright, man?" Max asked, taking a swig from Trent's forgotten bottle of beer.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

Max eyed Nick knowingly and the two stood up.

"We're going to go get some grub, be right back. Daria, want anything?"

Daria shook her head no at Nick and the two were on their way. It was awkward, and it was obvious to Daria now that if Monique and Trent had enough history to cause such a reaction from the guys, they had probably gone through a lot… probably as a couple.

As the next band played their song on stage, the two remained silent. Daria, not knowing how to respond or what to say. Trent, looking towards the stage, drinking his beer, distracted. It was when he took another swig and realized the bottle was now empty did he turn around to face Daria, placing the bottle gently on the table.

"Hey Daria, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah sure, Trent."

He popped a nacho into his mouth, chewing quickly then glanced at the stage once more before clearing his throat and looking Daria in the eyes. Daria stared back, despite not being able to see very clearly.

"Do you think Mystik will ever be as successful as those bands out there? It's just… Sometimes I think.. and… I don't know. Never mind."

Trent looked down and ran his hand through his thick hair and sighed.

"What do you mean, exactly?"

Daria's monotone voice rang in his head and he suddenly looked up at her, his eyes holding a spark Daria had never noticed before.

"I mean, like… I've got no money, no job, I'll probably never even get in a decent college and I still can't play an open D tuning."

It was silent for a while, Daria held Trent's gaze as long as she could before sipping on her beer, just to do something.

"Uhm, you know Trent, it takes a lot of guts to go after a dream, especially when you know that failure can mean spending the rest of your life after high school just hanging complacently in the background."

"I guess."

"And if it doesn't work out, at least you're doing what you've always wanted to do, right? And you've got time on your side, Trent. You've got more than enough time to chase your dreams and improve yourself… and the band. I mean, a lot of people never even get that far."

Trent sat speechless for a moment, as Daria's words sunk in. He sat very still, processing what the girl in front of him who was 2 years younger, had to say. Daria in turn, could not sit still and proceeded to munch on the nachos and finish her drink. Finally, Trent spoke.

"You know, Daria. It's hard to believe you're younger than me. You're pretty cool."

Trent said in his normal lazy drawl, smiling at her. Daria blushed but managed to reply in her usual monotone, before a rare Mona Lisa smile graced her features.

"Thanks."

The sound of a camera taking a picture alerted them from their small moment and both looked up in time to be blinded by a bright flash.

"Whoops. My hand slipped."

A/N: And that's the end of the Alternapalooza chapters! To anyone that's wondering, Tool is an American metal/ progressive rock band. They've been known to be somewhat reclusive and thought they would fit in with the scenes. Also, Battle-Axe, which is the title of this fanfic is a Deftones song from their self-titled album from the year 2003. Obviously, the last few conversations were taken from the original episode, which I changed a bit to fit my story.

Thanks for reading~! Criticism/ reviews are welcome.