"But-"
"No means no, dumbass," Priss noted, physically pushing the latest attempt at guitarist out the door. "You didn't make the cut, now get
lost!"
After shutting the door behind her, she sighed, looking back at Nene and Linna who clapped appreciatively. "I didn't mind listening to his song.
It's the fact that I couldn't stand any other time he opened his mouth that killed it. No egotistic
primadonnas in this band."
Linna snickered as Nene grinned slightly. "You'll probably find the next one a bit...interesting."
***
2 Days Ago
"... you want me to what, now?" Leon turned away from his monitor where he'd been trying to decipher the new operating system the computers had
mysteriously sprouted overnight. He had his suspicions about it -- and they were reinforced every time the screen blatted at him, a sound he had yet to hear
from anyone ELSE's workstation -- but the request he'd just heard simply couldn't have been correct.
"I -said-, Leon-pooh, that I want you to come try out for my friend's band!"
"Nene, first of all, don't call me that!" Leon took a deep breath. "Second, what makes you think I'd -want- to be in a band, much less
be capable of it?"
By way of answer, Nene leaned over his shoulder and punched a couple of keys on his terminal. It obligingly brought up an internet site and a video began to
play. Leon twitched and steadfastly refused to look at the screen any further.
After the video had finished -- it was only a short piece -- Nene finally spoke. "I could always just give her this link as your audition," she
pointed out reasonably. "If you're too busy to go see her, that is."
Leon twitched again. "That's blackmail," he said hoarsely. "And that video was supposed to have been deleted -years- ago."
"ACCORDING TO CASE LAW THIS UNIT HAS ON FILE, IT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE BLACKMAIL," MACH II put in firmly, rising from the other side of the cubicle
wall and regarding Leon with a gently-glowing optic. "OFFICER ROMANOVA DOES NOT STAND TO GAIN FINANCIALLY." The robot cocked his head.
"HOWEVER, IT MIGHT CONSTITUTE COERCION," he added, with what Leon could have sworn was a thoughtful tone.
"Oh, c'mon, Leon-pooh," Nene cajoled. "You know you want to. And you owe me one anyway."
Leon stared at her incredulously as his mind raced. He was pretty damn sure the debt was the other way around, but he knew from painful experience that if he
tried to argue it he'd end up twice as hosed, and with a humongous ice-cream bill in the bargain.
He whimpered.
"Good!" Nene said, taking that as the surrender it was. "Here's the address, two o'clock sharp -- and don't be late!" she said
imperiously, wagging a finger under his nose. "Priss hates it when people are late."
***
Nene made sure to have a clear view of Priss as Leon entered the auditorium, and resisted the urge to give herself away with an outright laugh at the way her
jaw actually dropped for a fraction of a second before she managed a straight face before Leon got in a position to see her.
"So..." he noted, looking at her and clearly taking in how smoking hot Nene's friend was with an absent look. "You must be Priss," he
said, and Nene did giggle this time as The Charm was cranked up to 11.
"Yeah, that's me," Priss noted, remarkably without her voice notably showing how flat-footed this'd caught her. "You must be that
McNichol guy that Nene's always talking about," she noted with an amused look, Nene blinking at how quickly Priss'd caught onto a way to explain
her semi-familiarity with Leon.
"I hope you didn't believe all of it," he noted, sending a glance in Nene's direction which was received with palpable innocence.
"Just as much as I'd believe any stories she told about me," she smirked, getting a laugh. "Anyway, idle chit-chat later. Let's see what
you can do."
A few minutes in, it was clear that, whatever else he thought about himself, one Leon McNichol wasn't bad at the
guitar....but neither was he exceptionally good either. Eventually, Priss lifted a hand. "Yeah, I don't think
you're exactly what we're looking for, unfortunately, Leon."
"To be completely honest, I kind of expected that. Of course, there was some other mitigating circumstances that compelled me to try," he noted, Nene
looking innocent again.
"Still, if you really want to be in the band, you can always be our roadie or something," Priss noted with a smirk, getting a laugh from Leon.
"No thanks. I've got a full time job with the PPD. However, I think given what Nene showed me of your music, you can count on me being in the crowd
cheering you on."
Priss managed not to blush too heavily, mostly due to the crushing level of irony in that statement. "Thanks...wait. You're in the PPD?"
"Yeah, Special Investigations division," he nodded.
"Um...you wouldn't have reason for an internship, would you?"
"I'd have to ask HE-AT, but I don't think it'd be a problem. Why?" he asked, a little perplexed.
"Thing is, I need an internship with law enforcement for my degree in criminal justice, and there weren't any open slots at Nene's work,"
Priss said, with a suspicious look over at the redhead which Leon mirrored.
"If you ask me, I certainly think it'll work out," she grinned, getting almost identical resigned looks from both that sent her into giggles.
"Hrm, guess that solves that," Priss noted. "It'll be good to work with you, I guess."
"Same with you, I think," he noted, eyeing her again. "Till then, Miss Asagiri."
After he left, Priss looked at Nene with a slight death glare. "You did that on purpose."
"Well, of course!"
***
"So, tell me about yourself," Priss asked the somewhat shy looking young blonde that'd come in with her own guitar, a red jacket on over a
keyhole top and some of the most striking red eyes that Priss'd ever seen. She wondered if they were natural like her own. Hardly unusual in this city.
"Well, I play for the fun of it, really, though I'd need a little pre-notice about practices to schedule it around my classes and study time,"
she said.
"You're taking a lot of late classes?" Nene asked.
"A lot of classes period, really, for what I'm trying to get done," she admitted.
"What's your major?" Linna asked as the blonde smiled somewhat shyly.
"Triple majoring in medicine, engineering, and physics with an emphasis on particle physics."
She colored slightly at the expressions of the other three women. "...I've been told I'm something of an overachiever," she noted quietly,
which started Nene laughing.
"Just a touch," Priss managed, before grinning. "Still, smart as you are, we still have to hear you play."
She nodded, plugging in her guitar before she began playing a tune that
caused Nene to blink slightly as the others just listened.
When it was over, Priss looked at her with slightly wider eyes. "Um....wow. Yeah, I think you got the spot," she noted, getting nods from the other
two. "And I didn't catch your name at the beginning."
"Ann Ritona," she said, nodding slightly. "Though, um...if you could keep that out of the advertisements? I don't really want to be a rock
star when I'm off stage and all..."
"I dunno. You're gonna be up in front of a lot of people," Priss noted, before Linna laughed. "What?"
"Simple, Priss. We'll do what you did back in Tokyo," she noted. "Give her a wig or a dye job or something and a stage name. If the
former's very noticeable, no one will realize who she really is."
Ann looked up, blinking. "That...that could work."
"Right, first practice is Thursday at 7:00 then," Priss nodded. "Can you make it?"
"I think so," she nodded, after a moment's thought. "I look forward to it."
"So do I," Priss grinned, clapping her on the shoulder.
***
The crowd was rather large, thanks to the promo clips that Nene'd been seeding into campus and local areas through her own means over the last week.
Certainly bigger than a band's first real gig could expect, but Priss was confident as she began rolling up the introductions.
"Hello, Steel Canyon! Welcome to our first performance, but before we get rocking, let me take a little time to introduce you to the band." Looking
over, she aimed the mike at a purple haired young woman holding an electric guitar with an air of practiced ease and a fairly neutral expression. "On lead
guitar and backup vocals, the mysterious mauve minstrel, Anew Returner!"
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."
"No means no, dumbass," Priss noted, physically pushing the latest attempt at guitarist out the door. "You didn't make the cut, now get
lost!"
After shutting the door behind her, she sighed, looking back at Nene and Linna who clapped appreciatively. "I didn't mind listening to his song.
It's the fact that I couldn't stand any other time he opened his mouth that killed it. No egotistic
primadonnas in this band."
Linna snickered as Nene grinned slightly. "You'll probably find the next one a bit...interesting."
***
2 Days Ago
"... you want me to what, now?" Leon turned away from his monitor where he'd been trying to decipher the new operating system the computers had
mysteriously sprouted overnight. He had his suspicions about it -- and they were reinforced every time the screen blatted at him, a sound he had yet to hear
from anyone ELSE's workstation -- but the request he'd just heard simply couldn't have been correct.
"I -said-, Leon-pooh, that I want you to come try out for my friend's band!"
"Nene, first of all, don't call me that!" Leon took a deep breath. "Second, what makes you think I'd -want- to be in a band, much less
be capable of it?"
By way of answer, Nene leaned over his shoulder and punched a couple of keys on his terminal. It obligingly brought up an internet site and a video began to
play. Leon twitched and steadfastly refused to look at the screen any further.
After the video had finished -- it was only a short piece -- Nene finally spoke. "I could always just give her this link as your audition," she
pointed out reasonably. "If you're too busy to go see her, that is."
Leon twitched again. "That's blackmail," he said hoarsely. "And that video was supposed to have been deleted -years- ago."
"ACCORDING TO CASE LAW THIS UNIT HAS ON FILE, IT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE BLACKMAIL," MACH II put in firmly, rising from the other side of the cubicle
wall and regarding Leon with a gently-glowing optic. "OFFICER ROMANOVA DOES NOT STAND TO GAIN FINANCIALLY." The robot cocked his head.
"HOWEVER, IT MIGHT CONSTITUTE COERCION," he added, with what Leon could have sworn was a thoughtful tone.
"Oh, c'mon, Leon-pooh," Nene cajoled. "You know you want to. And you owe me one anyway."
Leon stared at her incredulously as his mind raced. He was pretty damn sure the debt was the other way around, but he knew from painful experience that if he
tried to argue it he'd end up twice as hosed, and with a humongous ice-cream bill in the bargain.
He whimpered.
"Good!" Nene said, taking that as the surrender it was. "Here's the address, two o'clock sharp -- and don't be late!" she said
imperiously, wagging a finger under his nose. "Priss hates it when people are late."
***
Nene made sure to have a clear view of Priss as Leon entered the auditorium, and resisted the urge to give herself away with an outright laugh at the way her
jaw actually dropped for a fraction of a second before she managed a straight face before Leon got in a position to see her.
"So..." he noted, looking at her and clearly taking in how smoking hot Nene's friend was with an absent look. "You must be Priss," he
said, and Nene did giggle this time as The Charm was cranked up to 11.
"Yeah, that's me," Priss noted, remarkably without her voice notably showing how flat-footed this'd caught her. "You must be that
McNichol guy that Nene's always talking about," she noted with an amused look, Nene blinking at how quickly Priss'd caught onto a way to explain
her semi-familiarity with Leon.
"I hope you didn't believe all of it," he noted, sending a glance in Nene's direction which was received with palpable innocence.
"Just as much as I'd believe any stories she told about me," she smirked, getting a laugh. "Anyway, idle chit-chat later. Let's see what
you can do."
A few minutes in, it was clear that, whatever else he thought about himself, one Leon McNichol wasn't bad at the
guitar....but neither was he exceptionally good either. Eventually, Priss lifted a hand. "Yeah, I don't think
you're exactly what we're looking for, unfortunately, Leon."
"To be completely honest, I kind of expected that. Of course, there was some other mitigating circumstances that compelled me to try," he noted, Nene
looking innocent again.
"Still, if you really want to be in the band, you can always be our roadie or something," Priss noted with a smirk, getting a laugh from Leon.
"No thanks. I've got a full time job with the PPD. However, I think given what Nene showed me of your music, you can count on me being in the crowd
cheering you on."
Priss managed not to blush too heavily, mostly due to the crushing level of irony in that statement. "Thanks...wait. You're in the PPD?"
"Yeah, Special Investigations division," he nodded.
"Um...you wouldn't have reason for an internship, would you?"
"I'd have to ask HE-AT, but I don't think it'd be a problem. Why?" he asked, a little perplexed.
"Thing is, I need an internship with law enforcement for my degree in criminal justice, and there weren't any open slots at Nene's work,"
Priss said, with a suspicious look over at the redhead which Leon mirrored.
"If you ask me, I certainly think it'll work out," she grinned, getting almost identical resigned looks from both that sent her into giggles.
"Hrm, guess that solves that," Priss noted. "It'll be good to work with you, I guess."
"Same with you, I think," he noted, eyeing her again. "Till then, Miss Asagiri."
After he left, Priss looked at Nene with a slight death glare. "You did that on purpose."
"Well, of course!"
***
"So, tell me about yourself," Priss asked the somewhat shy looking young blonde that'd come in with her own guitar, a red jacket on over a
keyhole top and some of the most striking red eyes that Priss'd ever seen. She wondered if they were natural like her own. Hardly unusual in this city.
"Well, I play for the fun of it, really, though I'd need a little pre-notice about practices to schedule it around my classes and study time,"
she said.
"You're taking a lot of late classes?" Nene asked.
"A lot of classes period, really, for what I'm trying to get done," she admitted.
"What's your major?" Linna asked as the blonde smiled somewhat shyly.
"Triple majoring in medicine, engineering, and physics with an emphasis on particle physics."
She colored slightly at the expressions of the other three women. "...I've been told I'm something of an overachiever," she noted quietly,
which started Nene laughing.
"Just a touch," Priss managed, before grinning. "Still, smart as you are, we still have to hear you play."
She nodded, plugging in her guitar before she began playing a tune that
caused Nene to blink slightly as the others just listened.
When it was over, Priss looked at her with slightly wider eyes. "Um....wow. Yeah, I think you got the spot," she noted, getting nods from the other
two. "And I didn't catch your name at the beginning."
"Ann Ritona," she said, nodding slightly. "Though, um...if you could keep that out of the advertisements? I don't really want to be a rock
star when I'm off stage and all..."
"I dunno. You're gonna be up in front of a lot of people," Priss noted, before Linna laughed. "What?"
"Simple, Priss. We'll do what you did back in Tokyo," she noted. "Give her a wig or a dye job or something and a stage name. If the
former's very noticeable, no one will realize who she really is."
Ann looked up, blinking. "That...that could work."
"Right, first practice is Thursday at 7:00 then," Priss nodded. "Can you make it?"
"I think so," she nodded, after a moment's thought. "I look forward to it."
"So do I," Priss grinned, clapping her on the shoulder.
***
The crowd was rather large, thanks to the promo clips that Nene'd been seeding into campus and local areas through her own means over the last week.
Certainly bigger than a band's first real gig could expect, but Priss was confident as she began rolling up the introductions.
"Hello, Steel Canyon! Welcome to our first performance, but before we get rocking, let me take a little time to introduce you to the band." Looking
over, she aimed the mike at a purple haired young woman holding an electric guitar with an air of practiced ease and a fairly neutral expression. "On lead
guitar and backup vocals, the mysterious mauve minstrel, Anew Returner!"
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."