Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia

A bolt of lightning illuminated the sky in which was full of tumultuous, dark and ragged clouds. The deep roar of thunder would occasionally follow after with a brisk wind sweeping through the dreary landscape. Because of the heavy downpour occurring outside, people who paid to go watch the exhilarating third and final round had no choice but to be compelled to rush inside the domain of Himaruya Hall to seek shelter.

Although it seemed quite probable, the staffs, however, underestimated the overwhelming numbers.

As a result, some musicians stationed in the lounge room hastened to another area as the capacity of spectators started invading the place. In the long run, there was still an abundance of people still needed to get to dry land though in the end, were instructed to wait outside for the time being until curtain call was announced. Regardless, such disaster didn't seem to hinder the excitement amongst the spectators for tonight was going to be a splendid show bound to be worth watching!

Gripping her hold of the pamphlet that she managed to receive from the row of magazines near the entrance, a young girl quickly skimmed in the row of orchestra band names before finally setting her sights on a particular one. Her grin broadened, secretly satisfied by the picture that just so happened to accompany said band's name. After what appeared to be a long and enduring time to reserve tickets in the course of four months, Chelsea was finally able to attain them. Focusing toward her male companion standing beside her, Chelsea made a confident posture, her long dark hair supported with a rather small bun at the back of her head swinging from side to side.

"See, Martin?" She began, lifting her finger to point at him. "Suppose we didn't leave home sooner; we would be one of those unfortunates waiting outside in the rain!"

The young man called Martin who stood next to her laughed nervously, "You may be right," He replied with a sheepish smile. Ruffling his messy, almond hair—although his curled cowlick twitches upon the contact, his eyes twinkled in delight, "Good thing that you notified me!" He went on, fumbling with his words, "I-I owe you big time!"

Chelsea scoffed. "Of course, you should be!" She cried haughtily, folding her arms as she said so. "What would you do without me?"

"That's…uh, something I wouldn't want to know," Martin mumbled lowly, looking elsewhere.

Spindle, wooden-made staircase, the reddish-orange color scheme bathing throughout the entirety of the concert hall. Musicians, be it famous or not, would frequently come and go and would roam through these floors—and a minor trivia made the young Slovakian's heart soar. Just like his partner, he too was also ecstatic of being here as well.

Who's to say everyone else feels the same way, captivated by the intricate texture of Himaruya hall? Beaming, he said, "Wow, in about a couple minutes, we'll be watching the Lien Kim Nguyen of Star Fest performing!"

Hearing this, Chelsea snorted, "What are you talking about?" She cried. "Sure, Miss Nguyen is phenomenally amazing but she's a rookie! A one-hit wonder! You need to be more logical about this!" She reasoned, "Alfred F. Jones of World gig definitely has the upper hand!"

"But don't you think he's a bit overrated?" Martin argued, "I think it's time for Mister Jones to step out from his throne and let Miss Nguyen take over!"

Gasping, Chelsea planted her hands on her hips. "What are you saying? Mister Jones is obviously going to win! That, I am certain of!"

Martin shook his head in dismay. Thanks to the beauty of orchestra, their rivalry nowadays can get over the top thanks to Chelsea's snooty demeanor. And as much as he adored his dear friend, yeah, she can be quite haughty and would constantly be reminding him about how she's better than him.

"Chelsea, I know that you started playing the trumpet because of him but," Martin started to explicate, forming his hands into fists as he tried to fight back, "I'm not backing down either! Miss Nguyen has also inspired me to play the violin! So, I believe she's gonna win!"

Narrowing her eyes, Chelsea exclaimed immaturely with, "Mister Jones is!"

Martin frowned, "No, Miss Nguyen!"

"Jones!"

"No, he's not!"

Clicking her tongue, the brown haired female proceeded to open her mouth to continue, but—

"Excusez-moi!" A feminine voice chirped suddenly, "Out of the way, please!"

…Alas, someone else had beaten them to it, interrupting their conversation midway.

As if on cue, Chelsea and Martin immediately zipped their mouths and obediently did what they were told, taking a step back to allow the young woman with pigtails to zip past them.

Catching sight of the signature red ribbons, Chelsea gawked. "Wait, is that…"

"Michelle?" Martin mouthed softly to himself, too stunned beyond words.

After what seemed to be a couple of minutes of running around, Michelle suddenly halted.

Thrusting out her left arm over her nostrils, she emitted a light sneeze. "Allergy season already?" She wondered nasally. Brushing it off, Michelle bolted off once more. Huh, strange. She could've sworn that some pedestrians in the background were eyeing at her weirdly.

Then again, who could blame them? Here she was, practically running for her dear life with an object wrapped around her arms that were obviously too big for her to hold onto. Despite that, her tiny feet kept running, at the same time, trying her best to relocate her orchestra band.

"Please don't tell me I'm lost," She mumbled under her breath followed by a couple of curses here and there. Damn it, where the hell did Francis said that they'd be meeting up? Was it the West Wing or the East? Tilting her head to the side, the pigtailed woman smiled upon discovering a familiar silhouette from a distance. Clutching the object tightly, Michelle scurried a bit faster, elevating her other free hand up in the air to initiate a wave, "Hello, need some help here!"

As luck would have it, Matthew, fortunately, heard her. Noticing what she was holding, he smiled meekly as he walked over to her. "Thank you for retrieving my brother's instrument." He said before eventually taking hold of the instrument case from her.

Michelle flashed a smile. "Don't…mention it!" She replied, her words a bit jumbled as she attempted to catch her breath. Once she was able to steady her breathing, she pointed back to the large instrument case and asked, "Anyway, is this what I think it is?"

Matthew nodded. "Yeah." He confirmed. "It's the same birthday present we chipped in for brother."

Michelle giggled. "I still can't believe he volunteered to be our ace for tonight!" She said, "I bet you knew all along, didn't you?"

In response, Matthew shook his head. "Not really," He said before chuckling lightly. "But I am confident that everything will run smoothly. So long as brother is on our side, we'll be fine."

"I couldn't agree more."

Peering over his shoulder, the younger twin anxiously smiled. "F-Francis!" He addressed to the older man.

Planting his hand on Matthew's head, Francis resorted to mess his already disheveled blonde hair. "It's good to see that you two are having fun." He said before asking, "Oh, where's little Peter?"

"Ralph and James are taking care of him while I'm gone." Matthew explicated.

"Hang on!" Michelle cried, gaining the two males and their attention. "What about Arthur?"

Francis brought a hand close to his mouth before gasping aloud, "Why? What about him?" He wondered before sniffing. "What's this now? You're no longer glad to see me, Mon Cher?"

Blushing furiously, Michelle suddenly started waving her arms frantically. "H-how the hell would you suddenly assume that?"

In regards to his previous statement, Francis spread his arms out wide. "Aww, would you look at that? My, you really are growing up~" He cried in a rather teasing manner and without a minute to lose, started to embrace his dear sister in the process.

Michelle blinked innocently. What just happened? Though the question still loomed, she placed her right hand behind her sibling and started awkwardly stroking his back. "Did I say something weird?" She mumbled softly to Matthew who, too shared the same puzzling look as she did.

Carefully placing a thumb close to one of the lenses of his glasses, Matthew shrugged. Glancing swiftly toward another direction in order to give the siblings a bit of privacy while carefully gripping onto the large instrument case in tow, he then produced a soft smile when he caught sight of Arthur advancing his way forth to their little group.

"Oh, brother!" Matthew addressed, adjusting the large instrument case in between his arms before including in, "Make sure to thank Michelle!"

Arthur quietly bobbed his head. "That's good to hear."

Realizing that she didn't receive a proper sign of gratitude, Michelle snorted. "Stupid eyebrows…"

Unfortunately, Arthur happened to hear her words. "I heard that." He grumbled, averting his focus somewhere to conceal his crimson cheeks. "And… thank you."

Michelle's ears perked up. "Hmmm, what's that?" She asked with an amusing look, "Speak up!"

Arthur clicked his tongue. God, this woman was getting on his nerves. "I said thank you!" He quickly remarked, clenching his teeth. "Bloody hell, you happy now?"

Michelle lifted her hands defensively, giggling, "Whoa, whoa! Easy there, tiger!"

Witnessing this, Francis and Matthew exchanged grins.

Clearing his throat, Arthur focused back intently toward the large instrument case that his brother was currently in possession of. "May I?"

Matthew meekly nodded, "This is yours anyway," He said, proceeding to present the large item over.

Shortly after Arthur got ahold of his instrument case, Francis nudged his childhood friend against the shoulder. "Doesn't that take you back to the good ol' days?"

All Arthur could do was roll his eyes. "Shut up, Frog." He muttered lowly before crouching his knees down on the floor. Unlocking the draw bolts, he heaved in a deep breath before opening it. A proud smile materialized on his face. Just from the sight of it produced an electric-like sensation within him.

Arthur couldn't quite put a finger on it but whatever it was, it felt oddly familiar: the kind of feeling when you are welcomed home after such a long and exhausting day at work. 'What'd the others think if they see me again with this?' He thought to himself.

"You may not be aware of this, bro, but I'm sure mom and dad had already forgiven you a long time ago."

Aside from the others, a certain individual was in his mind. The words in which his younger brother shouted at him earlier tormented him. And thanks to their argument, it took sometime before gentleman could fully grasp the concept of what Alfred was desperately trying hard to convey. As much as Arthur disliked admitting it but he was right on the money.

He, Arthur Kirkland was stuck in the past—an obvious yet reasonable fact.

The twins, Alfred and Matthew, whom he raised on his own (sometimes with the help of Francis), Arthur did whatever he could to support his family. With that said, he was also very strict on making sure to keep them away from danger, a hidden trauma he seemed to have acquired after their parents died from an airplane crash. An example of this was by prohibiting them from hanging out with the other neighboring children unless they were both strictly under his supervision. That wasn't the worse part there either as he would frequently prepare some home cooked meals (which weren't the best, really and so, Francis would pitch in), pick them up after school and what not. It wasn't until the two had both turned thirteen years old and sparked an interest in music that changed Arthur's life for the better.

Thus, the creation of a family themed World gig was born and so, marked a new beginning for Arthur. Pursing his lips, Arthur sighed deeply. Knowing all that, the struggles and hardships he'd endured to nurture his siblings and—oh, what a crazy ride it sure was, it was awfully difficult to let them go.

But no, Alfred and Matthew were indeed growing up and that there was nothing that he could do to prevent that. Arthur himself had gone through the transformation of an adult before confronting the real world.

If he can survive it, why can't they?

Looking down, Arthur's facial features softened.

Nestled in his arms was his beloved electric guitar—a dear old friend from his past and a presence that he never thought he would see again until now. However, thanks to his siblings, Francis and Michelle—Arthur shook his head—no, not just them but World gig to which he considers his home. Such a thought made him unconsciously smile.

By letting go of his brothers, Arthur would finally be getting a chance to acquire something that he'd wanted to for so long: a second chance at redemption.

"Is that what I think it is, aru?"

Arthur paused for a moment before eventually turning around his head to find Yao Wang approaching him, his expression coated with skepticism. "Is there a problem with that?"

Furrowing his eyebrows, Yao positioned a knuckle of his fist under his chin. "It's been quite a long time since I've seen that…" He trailed off, referring to the guitar. "Why this out of all other instruments that you could've chosen? Don't you think that's against the rules?"

Taking a step forward, Francis spoke, "If you obey the rules, where's the fun in that?"

"Yeah!" Michelle chirped with a quirky smile, "Isn't that why rules were created in the first place?"

Arthur inwardly smirked. "There's more to World gig than what you think." He claimed, siding with them. Pulling out his Conductor Stick from inside the left pocket of his blazer, he handed the item to his rival. "But tonight, World gig won't be playing on their own and neither will Star Fest." Arthur pressed on, "Remember, we are all in this together."

The ponytailed man straightened his lips in a thin line. They were all in this together, huh? Sneaking a glance from the gentleman and to the people behind him, Yao crossed his arms over his chest. 'He really isn't joking, is he?'

After what seemed to be a long and awkward pause, something lightly tapped Arthur on the back, causing the latter to turn. "Hmm? What's the matter, Matthew?"

"Sorry to disturb but we only have about nine minutes left," Matthew informed as he held his electronic device out to show him the time etched on the phone screen. "We should get going and hold a rally."

Arthur nodded. "We'll be there." He replied before switching his focus back at Yao again. "Would you mind if we continue this conversation some other time?"

Finally, Yao began to open his mouth. As he did so, he also started motioning his right arm to voluntarily accept the Conductor stick. "Fine," He answered with a sigh, "I hope you know what you're doing, Kirkland."

Draping the leather strap over his neck, Arthur leisurely stood up. With his dominant right hand holding on the edge of his electric guitar, Arthur then gestured his opposite arm close to the right side of his chest, forming a respectful bow.

"I guarantee you, it'll all be worth it."

On the other side of the spectrum were a wave of diverging oppositions. Tension within the portion of the West Wing—where two particular orchestra bands were designated to wait for the time being was gradually starting to ratchet up a notch.

Stomping his right foot rapidly against the carpet floor, Basch clicked his tongue. "Damn it." He uttered quietly as his eyes trailed off to absorb in his surroundings. To him, everything was as chaotic as he imagined it to be and even the mere sight of it prompted the Swiss to cringe. Is Star Fest working alongside World gig? Planting his hand to massage his temple, Basch groaned.

It was as bad as saying that a fox and bunny, animals in which were deemed as natural enemies are best friends or worse: that oil and water are supposed to be mixed together! Heaving in a breath, the Swiss shook his head. Oh, please let all of this be a dream that he could wake up from...

"…Brother?"

Basch stopped what he was doing and turned. His once tensed shoulders relaxed upon realizing that it was only his beloved sister. "Oh, it's nothing." He advised her, although the tone of his voice implied otherwise.

Lily frowned a little. It wasn't every day for her older sibling to be acting so reserved with a troubling face. The last time that she saw him in a state similar to this was when they happened to stumble upon one of the Nordic relatives in the beach. Tilting her head slightly, Lily wondered what could be the cause of his bizarre behavior. Shifting in her position, she decided to take this time to speculate her environment. She then narrowed her eyes in hopes of getting a better inspection of whom it could be.

A few minutes later, she found the answer.

Not too far away from where she was standing was the infamous pianist of World gig—Roderick Edelstein. Could it be possible that her brother might have seen him? "Only one way to find out," She mumbled softly before raising her voice, "Umm… brother?"

"Yes?"

"Roderich is here," She said as she twiddled her fingers. "Would you like to talk to—"

"That won't be necessary." Basch suddenly cried, interrupting her midway.

Hearing this, Lily placed both her hands to close her mouth. Dipping down her chin a bit, she was certain that she did something awful and thanks to that, it might have increased more of her brother's stress than it should have. About a half and a year ago, she found out about her brother's early years as an adolescent.

Long story short, Roderich was a childhood friend of his—or rather used to be, hence the emphasis on the word 'was'. A few months after she and her brother joined Star Fest, unfortunately, it took a dark turn for him when he found out that Roderich had been recruited to World gig, an orchestra band in which happened to be a rival of their own. Because of this, this gave Basch a rational reason to work harder without having to worry much about what might his supposed childhood friend would think of him.

Taking note of his sister's awkward position, Basch smiled bitterly. "Listen, that guy is the least of my worries." He assured as he patted her affectionately on the head. "Just remember to act low and do your best tonight. Got that?"

Lily hesitated before nodding. "Yeah."

Sighing, Basch continued, "At least we don't get to see those Nordic jerks…" Unfortunately, he wasn't able to finish the rest of his sentence, as the people he dreaded on seeing appeared to be approaching their way. Basch clenched his teeth. Great, could this get any worse?

"Huh, so we meet again." Lukas started.

Basch glared. "What are you two doing here?"

"We came here to inform you of an upcoming rally," Emil explained.

Lily furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "A rally?"

Emily nodded in confirmation. "Custom tradition of World gig," He continued before raising his index finger. Wagging his finger from his sibling and to the male Swiss, he said, "And I expect the two of you to be on your best behaviors."

Basch scoffed. "Pssh, of course, I know that and I will," He stated matter-of-factly. He then gestured over to the other Nordic. "I don't know about him, though."

Lukas made a sour look. "Obviously, you don't know about me."

"Does it look like I'm the one to know?" Basch countered, "We're enemies for crying out loud!"

"Brother!" Lily cried, quickly enveloping her arms around her brother's torso, preventing him from taking a step further. "Please, don't fight!"

Seeing this, Lukas stifled a chuckle.

Basch growled. "What's with that face?"

Lukas simply smiled. Draping his arm over his younger brother's shoulder (in which Emil found to be rather unpleasant), his smile widened. "Guess it comes to show who's the better brother here, huh?"

As soon as Lukas said those words, Emil smacked a hand against his forehead. "Oh no…"

Such a noisy scene caused several band members from both sides to question on the matter with one of these people being Lucille. "What's going on over there?" She wondered to herself, curiosity getting the better of her. As she was about to walk over to get a closer look of the commotion, she felt something or rather somebody pushes her roughly against the wall.

"Whoa, did not see you there! Are you hurt?"

Nursing her right arm, Lucille produced a smile and shook her head. "No, I'm quite alright." She said before resorting to address the culprit who turned out to be a familiar short blonde haired man. "Feliks?"

"Yeah?"

Scrunching her nose, Lucille shook her head again. "Never mind." She mumbled under her breath. "Anyway, do you know what's going on?"

"That's the thing, I totally don't know," Feliks admitted, flicking a strand of his lengthy hair away from his face. "Want to check it out together?"

"Wait, but the rally is about to begin in less than three minutes," Lucille stated worriedly.

Fiddling with the leather strap of his own instrument case, Feliks said, "Then we better get going, don't you think?"

Huh, he did have a good point. Eventually, Lucille succumbed to nodding. "Okay, let's try."

When they were ready to head off to move ahead, a redhead stepped in, blocking their path.

"Allistor." Lucille began with a composed voice.

In response, Allistor cocked his head to glance the other way, appearing to be more immersed at the potential fight that was occurring from a distance as opposed to what was right in front of him. "Heh, now this is what I call entertainment!"

"Shouldn't you be with Arthur?" Feliks wondered.

Hearing this, Allistor shook his head in approval. "True. I should be, right?"

Lucille narrowed her eyes. "Then why aren't you?"

"Good eye there, lassie," He said with a smirk. "But don't you think I'm better off staying here? Wouldn't want to cause too much trouble for poor Artie."

A moment of silence emitted between them. After a long pause, Lucille raised her chin a little higher and began walking away. "Let's go, Feliks,"

Feliks bobbed his head. "I'll go ahead!" He said and then ran off.

"Hey, was there something I said?" Allistor cried with the tilt of his head. "Hello?"

Ignoring the redhead's protests, Lucille kept moving forward. And thanks to the help of Feliks, they were able to successfully locate where their other band mates were to be.

Moments after she arrived at the scene of the crime, she groaned when she realized that there were too many people around. She tried to tip-toe, hoping for a chance to get a clear view of said commotion.

After a couple of more attempts, Lucille eventually settled on setting her feet back on the ground. As she turned her head to face Feliks, the man in question was suddenly nowhere in seen! 'He must of went somewhere.' She thought before sighing.

Now, what?

"Can't see, signora?"

Lucille pressed her lips together when she heard a sudden masculine voice from behind her. Even so, curiosity still got the best of her and so, she decided to turn around. What she found nearly dumbstruck her.

"Sebastian!" She cried, her mouth unconsciously opening halfway.

The brown haired young man blinked several times in response, the look on his face almost priceless, the hair curl near the side of his head sagging slightly to and fro. "Huh? Lucille?" He said inaudibly before raising his voice, this time with more excitement. "Lucille!"

Lucille shook her head. "It's good to see you again," She greeted with her arms enfolded over her chest. "How do you fare?"

"Pretty swell, really!" Sebastian responded back, stretching an arm outward to form a peace sign. "I'm actually here to cheer on my brothers' and their performance tonight!" He cried, "It's going be legendary!"

"I'll say," Lucille said in agreement. "It's not every day that you get to witness World gig and Star Fest playing together."

Sebastian gawked. "Wait, what?"

Lucille blinked. "You didn't know?"

Just when Sebastian could speak any further, a loud cluster of clapping erupted. The once rowdy and boisterous noises emitted throughout the halls were immediately replaced with abrupt silence. And slowly but surely, each and everybody directed their attention toward a pair of two notable figures standing a few feet away from the crowd; one with a lock of short, blonde hair and another with a distinguishing ponytail.

"My apologies but I have to get going," Lucille apologized to her Italian friend. "It was really nice to see you again, Sebastian!"

Sebastian made a pouty face though quickly changed it with a forced smile. "Not at all." He replied back with a wink. "Say, how about we get some dinner after this?"

Lucille pondered to think it over. Shrugging, she emitted a mischievous look, "We'll just have to wait and see."

Scanning through the massive crowd, Arthur placed his hands behind his back. Adjusting his green apple tie, he then proceeded to raise his voice, "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen! Tonight's the night that we've all been waiting for!"

This earned a roaring wave of shrieks and applauses, all the more encouraging him to continue. "And as I stand here before you all, I bet you'll be expecting a long ass speech from me right about now," Arthur said in a calm yet ridiculing tone. "But, let's cut the crap and get into business."

Twisting his head over, he then gestured to Yao. "As you are aware, tonight is going to be different as we will be collaborating together with Star Fest."

Seizing this opportunity to speak up, Yao took a step forward. "As what Kirkland said, tonight will indeed be different." Raising his Conductor stick into the air, he cried, "With or without our aces, the show must go on!"

"Let's show them what it means to be a team, a family!" Arthur included, pumping his fist into the air, causing another surge of cheering and whistles in every direction.

Shortly after the speech, Yao started to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Arthur asked.

Yao raised a questionable eyebrow. "What does it look like I'm doing, aru?" He said matter-of-factly before directing his other free hand toward the closed doors nearby. "Shouldn't we be going onstage by now?"

"What are you talking about?" Li said, stepping to join on the conversation. "But the rally has not finished."

Tightening his lips, Yao asked, "What do you mean?"

"We would usually have someone like Alfred doing starting the rally," Li explicated, "We use rallies here at World gig to energize our band before performing."

Yao tilted his head in confusion. "Is this a secret ritual you guys do to win first place?"

Francis brought his hands over his mouth to stifle in his chuckle.

Seeing this, Yao glared. "What's so funny now?"

When his laughter ceased, Francis sighed. "No, not really." He said and then gestured to his childhood friend, "You can thank Arthur here. He's the one that started the tradition."

"But why would you do it?" Yao pressed on. "What's the point in all this?"

Francis simply shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe some things are left better to be unsaid or without reason." He clarified to which caused the other Conductor to become surprised.

Turning back to face his band mates once more, Arthur cried, "Does anyone have a song to start us off?"

When nobody seemed to raise their hands to voluntarily participate, Arthur held his breath. "…Anyone?" He repeated, this time, louder.

When silence was still the answer, Yao frowned. Was this how his rival, Arthur Kirkland, operate his orchestra band? If so, how in the world could they possibly—

Suddenly, the sound of stomping and clapping were heard from within the crowd.

However, due to the mass of people roaming the area, there wasn't a clear solution as to who might have started it. Even so and thanks to that, one by one, excluding the Conductors, everyone began to stomp and clap in unity.

"Buddy, you're a boy, you gotta make a big noise." Ralph began, singing the first verse.

Afterward, James took the liberty in backing him up, "Playing in the street gonna be a big man some day!"

"You got mud on your face!" Feliciano followed after with a laugh.

"YOU BIG DISGRACE!" Lovino exclaimed once his brother did his part.

And thanks to Bel's encouragement, both her siblings, Abel and Louis shouted, "Kicking your can all over the place!"

All at once, members of both orchestra bands—Star Fest and World gig—sang with his or her hearts out:

Singing,

We will—we will—rock you!

We will—we will—rock you!

Witnessing this, Yao's mouth parted halfway. Was this really happening? A sudden vibration of strings caught his attention. Turning around, he was met with Arthur playing his electric guitar with his dominant hand which seemed to contribute a lot more enthusiasm amidst the rally.

Buddy, you're an old man poor man—

Pleading with your eyes gonna make—

Peering his eyes over to some of his band mates before he was once again swept with another surprise.

You some peace some day!

You got mud on your face!

Were his eyes deceiving him or was his best friend Ivan singing and dancing just now?

You big disgrace!

Somebody betta put you back into your place!

Unfortunately, he wasn't able to absorb every single detail as he braced himself for the next part of the song.

And once more, the chorus of mixed voices, as well as the stomping and clapping, had amplified, captivating Yao even more.

We will—we will—rock you!

We will—we will—rock you!

For the first time, the band members that made up the two famous orchestra bands—World gig and Star Fest, were having fun with each other. By removing the titles under their namesakes, it was clear that they were all one and the same.

Noticing Yao's lack of participation, Li nudged him on the elbow, causing the latter to glance over. "Hey, why aren't you clapping and stomping?" He asked, "You know, it's not too late to join in."

"…This isn't what an orchestra band should be." Yao mumbled, referring to the boisterous crowd.

"Yeah but, doesn't it sound fun?"

Yao blinked, switching his focus from Li and to the immersive crowd dancing and singing altogether. He then another quick look back at his best friend, unconsciously emitting a soft smile as he saw his best friend dancing alongside together with his sisters who appeared to be having as much fun as he was.

With that in mind, Yao frowned deeply. Taking a deep breath, Yao cried, "One more time!"

And at the very top of his or her lungs, everyone cried in unity, "We will rock you!"

The guitar playing died down, leaving the stomping, the clapping, and the singing to gradually come to an end as well. Motioning his way over to take a glance at his rival, Arthur smiled. "And that's how we do it," He noted rather smugly. "World gig style."

"Heh, I see now why my brother decided to join your band," Yao finally replied after a few minutes of silence. Raising his arm toward the crowd, "Not just him but also some of my other band mates as well, aru."

Arthur smiled, "Funny you should say that."

Yao quirked an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"You are one of us tonight," Arthur explained, looking down to take a look at the Conductor stick that his rival was currently wielding. "No names like World gig, nor Star Fest to divide us apart."

Taking a quick glimpse at the Conductor stick in between his fingers, Yao slowly nodded. "...I believe you are right this time, Kirkland." He muttered before raising his voice, "The show must go on!" He cried as he threw the stick up into the air again.

"And let's show them what we're made of!" Arthur added in, throwing up a fist.

"Man, that was one hell of a rally!" Ralph cried, getting excited, "Ahh, I can't wait till I get there onstage!"

Matthew chuckled. "Doesn't it seem weird without Al?"

James cocked his head to the side. "Yeah but least we pulled it off on our own, eh?" He said, "Besides, weren't you the one who started it in the first place?"

Matthew blushed. "Y-you knew?"

"'Course we did!" Ralph piped in, "Don't you worry, we won't tell."

"Good," Matthew said before sighing. Looking over his shoulder, his eyes widened upon discovering that their crowd was already starting to move. "Well, we should get going."

Both Ralph and James nodded in unison.

Crouching to his knees, Ralph patted his little sister's head. "I'd best be on my way." He explained. "Be on your best behavior, 'kay?"

Wendy folded her arms. "I will." She said as she puffed her cheeks. "Good luck to you, big bro." She mumbled and then turned her head to his other companion. "You too, James."

"Yo, Matthew!" Ralph cried, taking his instrument case from the ground and in tow. "James and I'll go on ahead."

Matthew nodded. "I'll meet you there." He said before facing a certain young boy.

"Don't leave me, Matthew!" Peter whined.

Matthew's facial features softened. "I'm going to go play now. Why don't you and Wendy stay with Allistor for a while?" He said gently. "I'll see you once this is all over."

Peter, however, didn't buy it. Hoisting his hand up with his pinky finger raised, he asked, "Pinky promise?"

Seeing this, Matthew smiled warmly. "You bet." He affirmed as he stretched his left hand to properly intertwine the boy's pinky with his own. "Pinky promise."

Once they released their hold, Peter beamed. "Well, what are you waiting for?" He cried as he put his hands on his hips. "Go kick some butt!"

Matthew chuckled. "I will."

Bidding goodbye, Matthew initiated their first few steps. As he did so, he noticed a familiar group waiting near the entrance. "Huh? Brother?" He blurted out, approaching them. "And Francis and Michelle? I thought you all went ahead."

"We did but we thought, waiting for my family is probably the best." Michelle reasoned. "Well? What took you so long?"

"Oh, I had to explain to Peter about our situation." Matthew explicated on his part. "Right now, he should be with Allistor."

All Arthur could do was sigh exasperatedly. "I seriously can't stand that asshole."

"Arthur, language!" Francis cried.

Arthur glared back. "Shut up, Frog!"

Meanwhile, both Michelle and Matthew laugh at their quirks. Suddenly, something vibrated from the left pocket of his blazer, gaining the younger twin's attention. As soon as he took out his phone, Matthew went on to press the middle button in which he was greeted with a text box message at the center of the home screen. Reading it over, his eyes widened.

"Hmm?" Michelle asked. "What's wrong?"

"It's Al," Matthew informed to them, "And he says they're coming."

With what seemed to be quite an eventful thunderstorm, the rain finally subsided, leaving a bundle of puddles across the dampened streets of the neighborhood as evidence of what had occurred.

Suddenly, a jeep emerged from the fog, racing restlessly through the fields of the parking lot. Avoiding other vehicles as much as possible (it didn't help with the fact that they were everywhere), Sadik decided to remove his right foot from one of the pedals, prompting the jeep to skid to a halt. "Why don't you guys go on without me?" He said as he turned around.

"What?" Xiao Mei cried, "But aren't we supposed to all be in this together?"

"Mei, you have to understand," Kiku explained in a soothing tone. "If we stay here any longer, we might miss the final act of both our bands and their performances."

"He's right," Sadik agreed, "Go on then! I'll be fine on my own." He assured before adding in, "Besides, don't you think someone should keep an eye on that unconscious groom of yours? You'll never know what might happen if we all decide to just leave him alone."

Lien smiled before bowing her head politely. "I appreciate what you've done for us, Sadik." She thanked, taking in the role as the voice for their entire group.

Alfred beamed as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, we sure owe you big time!"

"Give us a call and we'll definitely treat you somewhere!" Mathias suggested, "Courtesy of World-gig!"

Crossing his arms, Gilbert grinned. "But if you're into karaoke, you're gonna have to go through me!" He exclaimed, striking a heroic pose. "That's right, nobody messes with me!"

Kiku sighed. "Gilbert, you aren't helping…"

"Hey, why are we still here?" Xiao Mei asked, getting straight to the point. "Come on, people! Our fans await!" As she said that, Alfred, who happened to be sitting next to one of the doors turned the knob upwards and pushed it forward. Once the door had opened, everyone but Sadik began jumping out from the large vehicle.

"See you, Sadik!" Xiao Mei cried, waving her arms up and down. "We'll let you know how it goes!"

In response, Sadik formed a thumbs up.

As they exited out from the vehicle, the group quickly scurried toward the entrance of the Himaruya Hall. Luckily for them, the attendees stationed in the front counter instantly recognized them, ushering the six to go backstage in which their orchestra bands were assumed to be.

"Do you think we could make it?" Mathias wondered as they continued running through the halls of the West Wing as quickly as they could.

"Hopefully, we do," Kiku said, though the anxious expression on his face betrayed his words.

"According to Mattie, all of our instruments are where the backup microphones are backstage," Alfred notified without bothering to look back.

"That's great news!" Xiao Mei commented with a giggle.

Lien bit her lower lip, running without caring of the condition of her wedding dress. "I just hope we have more time."

In a short time, they found a set of doors before them.

"So, who wants to open it?" Gilbert asked.

"I'll do it." Lien said, breaking the silence. Stretching her hand out, she clenched her grip onto the doorknob. Twisting the knob slightly, she resorted to pushing the door a little. And as she did, a blast of music erupted.

"Ahh!" Gilbert cried, pressing his hands onto his ears, "This song is over nine thousand!"

Kiku simply shook his head. "Please don't say things like that," He said, "That's copyright!" Noticing the lack of presence of his other bespectacled best friend, Kiku glanced the other way. "Alfred?"

The man in question ignored him. Tweaking his specs close to the bridge of his nose, he slowly started taking a few steps onward. "It doesn't sound right," Alfred said vaguely.

His friends stopped what they were doing and looked at him as if he produced two heads.

"Wait, what?" Gilbert blurted out.

Kiku creased his eyebrows. "What do you mean by 'it'?"

"Alfred is correct," Lien said, backing him up. "The music sounds extraordinary but it doesn't sound at all like either Star Fest nor World gig."

Xiao Mei pursed her lips. "Wait, that can't be…" She trailed off, "Natalya texted me earlier that Star Fest was rescheduled to be second-to-last orchestra band to play before World gig."

"Whoa, whoa, hold on." Mathias interrupted, "You mean to say that this whole time, you've had contact with Natalya?!" He cried, making a pouty face, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Xiao Mei, on the other hand, laughed. Placing a hand behind the back of her head, she shrugged, "Sorry but it's your loss!" She said with a laugh, "You didn't spare me every single detail about what you did to her during our time at the beach!"

While Mathias and Xiao Mei kept going on with their conversation, meanwhile, the others were attempting to decipher the incongruity behind the source of the music. And then, Kiku spoke up:

"…Would it be possible for both World gig and Star Fest to play as one?"

Alfred's sky blue eyes twinkled with delight. "Whoa never thought about that!" He commented, "Nice going, buddy."

Kiku held up his hands in defense. "Don't congratulate me so easily," He pointed out, already doubting himself. "I could still be wrong."

"Yeah, but out of all our predictions, yours is the closest thing to what might as well be the answer." Gilbert encouraged him.

Lien dipped her chin down. "Should we at least check it out?"

"Yeah, we definitely should." Alfred agreed. Turning back at the doors, he wasted no time in placing one of his arms against the cold surface of the door. Pushing it open, he gasped when another another wave of music passed through them.

The music got so loud, even Mathias and Xiao Mei stopped talking and turned their attention toward the now wide and open doors.

At the other side beyond the doors was another dimension, a place where the six of them truly belonged in—only this time, the red curtains from a distance weren't welcoming them as they should've. In a way, it almost seemed as if the curtains were shunning them, conceiving the incredible orchestra playing all to itself.

Without a moment to lose, Xiao Mei raced forward.

"Wait, Mei! Come back!" Lien cried. When her sister didn't listen to her call, Lien cursed under her breath before following after her.

After a couple of steps, Xiao Mei stopped in front of the curtains. Holding in her breath, she gently touched the rims of the curtains and then carefully pulled it along to the side. But before she could stick her head out, she could hear the ticking footsteps of her older sibling approach her behind. Turning around, she produced a nervous smile. "Oh, sis!"

"Next time you do something like that, please tell me first okay?" Lien huffed, bringing her left hand close to the right side of her chest as she tried to catch her breath.

Moments later, the rest of the gang arrived shortly.

"What was that all about, Mei?" Kiku scolded her.

Xiao Mei groaned. "Okay, okay I'm sorry for wandering off like that and whatever! But I couldn't help but get so curious!" She reasoned, puffing her cheeks. "I mean, didn't any of your ears picked up that weird, wacky sound?"

The Nordic made a confused look. "Weird, wacky sound?"

Xiao Mei nodded happily. "Yeah!" She said, snapping her fingers. "But it's pretty hard to tell what it is."

"Did it sound like an electric guitar?" Gilbert questioned.

Looking up, Xiao Mei beamed. "Actually, yeah!" She replied. Realizing what the albino had said, she frowned. "Wait, how did you know?"

The albino shrugged. Extending an arm out, he then pushed the curtains away to form a crack opening and point a finger directly toward a silhouette playing the said instrument he mentioned. "Why don't you ask that guy?"

Curious, Alfred and the rest decided to pop their heads out from the curtains as well. There were no words to describe the mere sight that they were all currently watching.

"Oh my god…" Mathias mouthed.

"Isn't that…?" Kiku trailed off.

Alfred's sky blue eyes widened like saucers, completely at a loss, "Big bro?!"

And indeed it was him—Arthur Kirkland was actually, no literally engaged in a solo spree. He knew how much his older brother was considered to be sort of a legend within the music business about his stunning transformation; going from being a rock star and into a prominent Conductor known around the world. Alfred creased his eyebrows. Even so, it still doesn't add up. If his sibling was playing the electric guitar, that must mean that he's a temporary ace. "Then who's the Conductor for tonight?" He wondered. Hoping to find the answer of his question, he took a step forward, letting his head to pop out of the red curtains in order to get a much closer look to find out. He motioned his direction of the center of the orchestra band or in this case, of whom this substitute could be. Once he discovered who it was, Alfred blinked.

Huh, now there's something you don't see every day.

"Hey, Kiku?" Alfred asked, addressing his best friend. "You know how you mentioned about our bands performing?"

Kiku tilted his head. "Yeah?"

"Well, you're totally right," Alfred confirmed with a bright smile on his face, "World gig and Star Fest really are collaborating."

For any outsider, such a collaboration amongst orchestra bands were considered to be mundane approaches.

However, for Alfred—this meant a lot of things for him. Since he first joined World gig, he was aware about some of his band members and their disgust against their self-proclaimed rivaling band, Star Fest. And yet, look at them all: playing together symphonically. Sneaking a glance back at his older brother, Alfred snickered. Matthew was right, their elder brother was amazing.

Unfortunately, Alfred wasn't able to get a chance to absorb more of his surroundings as he was suddenly reverted back into reality by someone patting him on the shoulder. Much to his relief, it was only Mathias.

"Here you go, pal!" Mathias exclaimed as he handed one of the two instrument cases that he held in his grasp. When none of his first two clients, Alfred and Lien didn't initiate a move to get back their instruments, Mathias frowned. "What's with the looks on your faces?" He questioned. "Hey, be glad! See, I'm giving you guys your instruments!"

"Oh, my bad!" Alfred thanked his friend before accepting his instrument case. "Thanks, Mathias!"

Bowing her head respectfully, Lien, too also took hers. "Yes, thank you very much."

"Ah, that's more like it!" Mathias said before walking away from them to grab the rest of the other instrument cases.

While the group was getting their things settled, Alfred wasted no time in opening his own instrument case and to which he was happily greeted with his golden trumpet. Taking the trumpet out from its case, Alfred's facial features softened. "It's good to be home."

Although Alfred made sure he was quiet, Lien however heard what he said. "...Did you just say home?"

"Lien!" Alfred blushed. "Y-you heard that?"

Lien paused for a moment before nodding. "Don't be ashamed." She assured as she presented him her violin that she carried with her right arm. "I too feel the same way with my violin."

Hearing this, Alfred burst out laughing.

Lien blinked. "What's wrong?"

"Guess there's one thing we do have in common," Alfred noted, exposing his white teeth, "We're both music nerds."

In response, Lien rolled her eyes. "That's something a dork like you would say."

Alfred just emitted a charming smile, causing his partner's cheeks to reddened. Looking around at the rest of his friends, he cleared his throat. "Alright, I have a plan!"

Settling aside his flute case on the floor, Gilbert frowned. "Is it going to be as awesome as that wedding scheme that I did?"

Alfred grinned. "Trust me, it will." He guaranteed, "That is, if you're all up for it."

"If it's something that's sure to knock their socks off, count me in!" Mathias exclaimed as he delivered the last of the instrument cases to Kiku.

"I'm so excited!" Xiao Mei squealed, "Tell us, tell us!"

Raising one of her eyebrows, Lien asked, "What exactly is the plan?"

The bespectacled young man grinned. "Glad you asked!" He said, "Well, you see…"

Shortly with a few strings played on his electric guitar, Arthur threw his dominant arm into the air, his silver colored plectrum equipped in the amidst of his fist. Catching his breath, he produced a grin upon hearing a tremendous round of applauses, accompanied by whistling and cheering across the entire audience.

Despite being only a temporarily ace that night, Arthur couldn't help but become swayed by the outstanding praises every time. Sure, he would also attain a lot of that during his permanent role as Conductor. However, this feeling that he was having right now was much different. It was raw and powerful, as if his solo was greatly worth his time to contribute. And it did. 'Is this what Alfred feels every time he takes the stage?' He wondered as he closed his eyes. 'That bloody bastard's damn lucky.'

He then proceeded to respectfully bow. Afterwards, he steadily walked back to his seat where his childhood friend awaited him.

"Need some water?" Francis assisted, lending him a water bottle from the music stand.

Arthur shrugged. Regardless, he took it anyway.

As he coiled the water bottle cap, Arthur took a quick glimpse at Yao who was already taking huge gulps of his own water bottle. When their eyes clashed, Arthur gave him a quick nod, allowing the ponytailed man the permission to go on ahead with the last and final act.

Before the gentleman could bring the now open water bottle close to his lips, his ears picked up a strangely soft yet delicate sound not too far away. At first, he thought that it was his imagination until the sound started to grow louder. "Do you hear that?" Arthur mouthed over to Francis. "They sound like tubular bells."

Francis nodded firmly. "Maybe Yao might know."

Once again, the light, bell-like noises erupted again though this time was accompanied by a sweet and high-pitched one.

Using these sudden noises as an advantage, Yao raised his Conductor stick high, motioning for the other wind instruments to start them off along with the percussions.

And slowly but surely, a pleasant ring from the piano echoed shortly and then—

An incredible boom roared from behind the red curtains, causing thousands of heads to turn to the sight of the commotion and watched as two figures emerged from their hiding.

Witnessing this, Arthur's mouth partly opened. He quickly took a look back toward Yao and then back to the rest of the other band. It was no surprise that each and everyone wore the same astonishing look.

No doubt about it, it was their aces—World gig and Star Fest—Alfred F. Jones and Lien Kim Nguyen standing proudly and striding side by side together into the center of the stage, playing their instruments as vigorously and formidably than ever before.

Moments after, a few more figures materialized from the shadows: Kiku and Gilbert playing on the far right side and with Mathias and Xiao Mei on the opposite, their presences now acknowledged before the world.

Such an incredible spectacle was enough to even successfully ridicule the audience, letting them to believe that everything was rehearsed and prepared for this particular event.

Looking back at his rival, Yao motioned for him to stand to introduce their aces.

Arthur nodded, stretching his arm out toward their new additions of their group. "Ladies and gentleman," He began.

"The moment you've all been waiting for," Yao came in.

Heaving in deep breaths, the two Conductors declared with all their might:

"We present you: Alfred F. Jones and Lien Kim Nguyen!"

'So far, so good.' Alfred thought, his sky blue eyes concentrated intensely toward his audience. Sneaking a peek at the woman beside him, he inwardly smiled.

Never in his whole life did he ever picture himself playing a solo together with the one and only Lien Kim Nguyen or with the title that she was best known for: the beauty and the beast of Star Fest.

Yet, this was happening.

His dream was magically turning into one of reality.

And it was exhilarating.

In addition to that, the fact of how she wore a wedding dress (now slightly more worn the last time he remembered) right now made him reflect of a particular evening on the very first time when he watched her perform (which also happened to also be the same day when he first informally and formally met her). Such a reminder gave him goose bumps.

Smiling against the mouthpiece of his trumpet, Alfred decided to raise the stakes. Raising his golden trumpet, he swayed his body a little to the beat of the music.

From the sight of this, the audience's cheers amplified.

Catching her rival playing and dancing at the same time, Lien furrowed her eyebrows. Despite harboring some feelings toward the trumpeter, she wasn't ready to let him steal her thunder—no, not when she was this close to seizing the glory!

'Oh no, you don't!' She thought, wanting to kick it up a notch.

Let him take the throne for all she cared—Lien was determined to conquer the hearts of all ages within the room.

With newfound encouragement and strength, the violinist played a few more of her demonic strings on her violin, earning her the divided attention of the majority of the audience.

With such rigorous talent presented before them, it was difficult to consider which side the audience should be rooting for.

Should they be supporting Alfred, the five-year champion?

Or Lien, the all-time rookie?

Whichever's the case, such a performance had most definitely exceeded their expectations.

As the two prepared for their grand finale, Alfred looked over to Lien who, much to his excitement, was also staring back at him.

Without hesitation, he playfully winked at her.

Lien, however simply brushed it off by shutting her eyes to focus more of her playing. Even so, a tiny fracture of a smile appeared on her face.

Based on both of their performances, it was inevitably clear that the two aces were in a league of their own. Regardless, they were so beautifully synchronized with one another.

A match made in heaven as one might say.

And thanks to their unified band supporting them, the endless cheering from their fans and spectators never ceased to end and instead grew even more louder and louder by the second.

'One…two!' Alfred counted down and taking a deep breath, blew into his trumpet as hard as he could.

As for Lien, she continued grinding her drawstring with the strings of her violin, resulting in a lengthy yet echoing vibration.

And once the two finished their solos, the music coming from behind them have died as well.

An eruption of applauses rang vibrantly and soon enough, the majority—if not, all of the people of the audience stood up, giving them yet another wave of praises and cheers.

Alfred held his breath and smiled.

"As I thought, I am no match for you."

Turning to glance at Lien, Alfred rose a questionable eyebrow, "What are you talking about?" He wondered, "Man, I gotta hand it to you, Lien! You nearly blew me out of the water!"

Lien frowned. "Says the one who just did to me."

Alfred pouted. "Now, now, don't say that." Pulling her close to him, he started rubbing her back affectionately. Smoothing some of the hair strands away, he leaned closer to peck her on her temple.

Such a daring action not only caught Lien off guard but their band, the audience—hell, the whole, entire concert hall had their eyes directed at the pair, stunned beyond words.

"Alfred, everyone's watching," Lien mumbled as she tried to avoid the prying eyes by burying her head more into his chest.

Watching this, Alfred laughed harder. "I love you, Lien."

Hoisting her head up to properly face him, she made sure to be careful with the tone of her voice as she softly mumbled the words, "I know."

Bending down his knees, he then wrapped his arms around her waist, careful not to exert pressure.

Lien's shoulders tensed for a second before eventually relaxing from his touch.

Alfred's smiled, his heart beating faster than ever.

Could this moment get any better?

Out of nowhere, he felt something push him from behind, causing the poor young man to physically get closer toward the woman in a wedding dress. Peering over his shoulder, he was astonished to see Francis waving both his hands forward, as if urging him to do something.

Alfred cocked an eyebrow. Much to his surprise, a masculine voice spoke up, one who he was certain belonged to his older brother.

"Don't just stand there, you bloody idiot! Kiss her!"

Turning back to the beautiful young woman in front of him, Alfred brought a hand behind the back of his head and laughed, "Well, uh...here we are."

Hearing his words, Lien simply rolled her eyes. Touching the rims of his specs, she giggled. "You're such a dummy," She said with a smile. Tugging his cornflower tie gently with one of her hands, she then pulled him down to her eye level and—

Alfred's eyes widened.

She was kissing him.

Too shocked to realize what was happening, Alfred slowly closed his eyes, melting into her kiss. His speculation was correct: Lien really was an incredible kisser.

Bringing her close to him, Alfred did what he had always wanted to.

What did he do?

He kissed her back.

Author's Note:

Thank you everyone for waiting! I present to you: tada, the nineteenth installment of this fanfiction!

(Sorry for the long wait! I was stuck in family vacation for ten days!)

Before we start, I would like to once again express my deepest gratitude to my reviews! Thank you all so very much! And if anyone is wondering, the next chapter is the last one and then there'll be an epilogue which will finally put the fanfiction into a close.

New appearances in this chapter includes the following: Chelsea (Czech Republic), Martin (Slovakia), Feliks (Poland) and Sebastian (Seborga).

(But that doesn't mean I'm no longer going to accept any more reviews! Feel free to go ahead and ask me more questions! If not, feel free to start giving me suggestions for some ameviet prompts-you see, I will be starting my college in less than a day from now which means there's going to be a lot of tests and studying.)

Anywho, let's go to the summary!

Tada, the introduction of Chelsea and Martin (Czech Republic and Slovakia- I tried to find human names for them everywhere on the internet and so I decided to look up the most common names for the respective countries and so, this is the result of it, I'm sorry!), Arthur's instrument is finally revealed, it's an electric guitar! (look up metal band with orchestra-yes, this is actually real), the Star Fest and World gig's collaboration (and to make things awesome, We will rock you as the main rally song for tonight's gig and then finally the grand entrance of Alfred and Lien (along with a cute moment in the end)!

Now that the entire third and final round is over, the question mainly looms: who won? World gig? Star Fest? Find out more in the next chapter!

I would also like a moment to say thank you so much to my fans, reviewers and readers! You guys are so awesome! Thank you so much for supporting me and for patiently waiting for my updates!

Once again, I'm open for more character requests (and reappearances!)

And as usual, your opinions are greatly appreciated!

Oh and before I forget, check out the song: Mirrors Meaning of Birth (Tales of Orchestra)-this is the exact same music that I used for the final round!

P.S. I will do my best to update my profile later! For now, college awaits!

Side Note(s):

**By the way, if you are looking for the answers of the other questions that were submitted, they are posted in chapter 18!**

(Thank you The Dusk Terror for your comment!)

OKAY! The feels were too real and tears were within this chapter. I was screwed over! I absolutely love it though and Mathias as the priest XD. I died. At first I thought t was Al, but then it was obvious and then I smacked myself in the head. But I can definitely say, I've been awaiting this chapter for awhile and I absolutely adore this fanfiction! I hope you make more for AmeViet too!

Awww, I'm really glad that my fan fiction is making you emotional! (^_^) If a reader feels something regarding a story that they read, that means that they did a great job in storytelling! So, thank you so much for telling me this! Yeah, about Mathias's part of the whole scheme: it was actually supposed to be Alfred playing the priest but then for some reason, I wanted to make a more dramatic entrance for Alfred. It took some time but I finally chose to make Mathias as a priest (the outcome is very satisfying!). I'm really glad that you decided to keep reviewing my fan fiction! You are one of the reviewers out there who I'm always looking forward to hearing from the most! And yes, I'll do my best for the Ameviet community! Spread the love~

(Thank you uuuuuu for your comment!)

hmmm.. you know that very famous and popular musicians make a huge amount of money. If either one of the sides or both win the final round, the prize is likely to be a huge cash prize along with the trophy and the huge cash prize can be used to payback the debt Lien and Mei's father caused.

Bingo, you are definitely right on the money my friend! Wow, and what sharp eyes you have!

(Thank you Efeu for your comment!)

I loved this chapter! I am so honoured that you gave me a shoutout. Thank you for this amazing story.

No problem, sweetie! You definitely deserved that shoutout, especially when with that heartwarming message you sent to me!

(Thank you shoujochan for your comment!)

This update is so wonderful I almost teared up while reading and a romance song is playing in the background. I never expected a unification between star fest and world gig! It makes everything so awesome, much more awesome than Gilbert! *inserts gilbert's 'I'm more awesome' line* I'm looking forward for more chapters!

Awww, and yes, a romance song on cue in the background! Yeah, the unification between World gig and Star Fest was quite a challenge. Let me know if the chapter above have met or lowered your expectations!

(Thank you madison camelia for your comment!)

MY FANGIRLING CAN'T STOP SCREAMING AT THE SWEETNESS OF THIS CHAPTER. The part when Gil and Kiku pretended to be photographers are so funny too.

Really? Haha, I don't normally reread my work until a few days later after it's been published but I had an urge to look this up anyway and I was really satisfied by the outcome. Funny how I would often find myself fangirling at my own work and then realize, 'wait, I wrote this?' Anyway, I'm really delighted that you are loving the fanfiction!

(Thank you girlytomboy for your comment!)

I want the FACE family to reunite, because since the F is just a friend to the ACE family without any relations, the only one for F to join the ACE family is one of the siblings marry a relative of F, which is Michelle. I also want the FACE family to unite with Lien and Xiao Mei along with Kiku and Yao as one family in the epilogue.

Michelle and Francis are already part of Alfred/Matthew/Arthur's family but when it comes to romance, well...no spoilers (^_^) but that is a great image to think about! If you are thinking hard of it, wait for the epilogue~

(Thank you CastilleRaw for your comment!)

I love Ameviet, thanks for writing this! So much love!

Yay, I'm really glad that you are enjoying the ride! Yes, I will make sure to do my best to keep spreading the love for ameviet! Thank you so much for your support!

(Thank you kayochin for your comment!)

lmao at mathias at the church tho and especially cracked up at his comment when he was commenting that yeung was marrying more than one and he was a slick dog lmao. Yay lien is freed from yeung's clutches :D
aaaa that confession scene in the rain was so cute! c:
:00 world gig and starfest joining together as one? let's see how that happens ((could this even happen in real life tho?) great work and sorry for the late review orz was stuck without Internet for 4-5 days

Hahaha, I'm glad that you are enjoying the ride! Yeah, the confession scene took alot of heavy toll of thinking on me. But in the end, it was definitely worth the wait! Actually, collaborations with other orchestra bands are in fact accurate though they rarely occur and when they do collaborate, it brings in a lot of attention! Hey, don't overwork yourself if you are stuck without internet for a few days! I'm just glad that you are doing fine. The fact that you were bold enough to review my fan fiction made me smile. Thank you for everything (and for always supporting me since the very beginning!) (^_^)

(Thank you curepegasus16 for your comment!)

I think the sisters should report the police from their country about smuggling drugs, because Dae is like the #1 uncaptured criminal on smuggling drugs and he should be arrested for this, not the late father, not the sisters nor the mother.

Whoa, nice catch there! Unfortunately, I can't tell you more about this but again, great job!

(Thank you eyhfruhgryw for your comment!)

I get the feeling that Lien's father's personality is the splitting image of Alfred's and i think Alfred's personality is the reason why Lien falls for him.

Really? For me, I always viewed Lien's father's personality to be a bit more reserved but I can picture him goofing off like Alfred whenever he plays around with his daughters and/or alone with his wife. Yeah, he was definitely a loving husband. However, you are pretty much spot on about Alfred's personality-I mean, if you think about it, his character blends well with Lien's. And thanks to that, Lien is able to smile and laugh more, something that she's never done in a very long while.

(Thank you Idkmyname for your comment!)

Who is/are Lien's role model?

Her parents and Yao. And more recently, Alfred.

(Thank you Guest for your comment!)

Since the setting is primarily in America, which city or state in America does this place take or based out of?

Well, most of the elements are deprived from New York but in terms of place, it's probably somewhere going to be in California (where the Disney Hall in which Himaruya Hall is based out of and is located from).