[SpringsSong]

(This RP occurs in the past, as well as occurring in a setting similar to Idalani, which is why I’m using the location.  This is a speed RP, so don’t expect it to be stellar.  Also, things may get a little mature, but I don't know how yet, so that's why I put up the M:E tag.)



It was, once again, the first day of school.  The young girl with odd purple hair walked into the school set in the forest.  Across her shoulder was an odd type of messenger bag.  By her side, she held a small, hard case and a folder full of music.  Through the door behind her came a man with red and black hair.

“Aila, wait up!” he called.

[SpringsSong]

“Ekal!” Aila cried, stopping in her tracks to look back at the man.  “I didn’t realize that you’d still be coming to this school!”

“Of course I’m still coming to this school, Aila; someone has to teach you how to play oboe correctly, right?” he asked, laughing.  “Is that all the music I gave you?”

“All of it, and more,” Aila said as she smiled.

[SpringsSong]

“You were busy over the summer break when we weren’t hanging out, weren’t you?” Ekal asked, laughing nervously as he rubbed the back of his neck.  “I suppose you don’t want to waste any time getting back to practicing, right?”

“You’d be right there, Ekal,” Aila said as she laughed.  “We have concerts to prepare for, in addition to Wind Ensemble being only an audition away.  You know I’d love to be in Wind Ensemble,” she said.

[SpringsSong]

“You’re planning to audition to Wind Ensemble, too?” Ekal asked, his eyes becoming unusually bright as he said this.  After a moment, his eyes became dark as he said, “But wouldn’t that leave the Concert Band without any oboists whatsoever?”

“It might, if we both make it through the auditions,” Aila said, smiling as she headed towards the band hallway.  “But, if worst comes to worst, then we just have to play both ensembles, right?” she asked as she walked past the band room to the orchestra room.

“You’re playing in orchestra, too?” Ekal asked.

[SpringsSong]

“Well, I was practically begged to by the orchestra director, silly,” Aila said, turning around and giving Ekal a light kiss on the cheek.  “After we played graduation last year, he begged me to play in the orchestra next year, so, I… I took it on as a minor, with full intent to double-major when I reach my junior year.”

Ekal smiled as he grabbed Aila around the waist and kissed her lips gently.  “Well, he may not have begged me to play, but you’ve got to have at least two oboists in the orchestra, right?”

“Three is the best number, if you ask me—as long as one of the three has an English horn,” Aila said, smiling as she patted her messenger bag.

[SpringsSong]

“You did not get an English horn!” Ekal exclaimed in shock, laughing.  “Aila, that’s incredible!  I… I mean, those things are incredibly expensive… how did you come across the funds for one?”

“I spent the summer performing for tips,” Aila said, walking into the orchestra room and picking up a chair from one of the stacks.  The sound of the chair clattering as she pulled it down caused the orchestra director to look up from the score that he was studying.

[SpringsSong]

“Aila, how are ya?” the director asked, folding his hands over the score he was studying.  Aila laughed as she pulled her chair over towards the desk, placing it about where the oboe section would be positioned.

“Well, Mr. Fy’cral, it’s the start of a new school year, I have an English horn, and I get to play in the orchestra—I’d say I’m pretty good.  And you?” she asked in turn, and the director laughed as he picked up the score and placed it on the stand in front of his podium.

“Well, considering it looks like we’ll have one more oboist than I originally thought, I’m pretty good myself,” he said, holding out two stacks of paper towards the oboists.

[SpringsSong]

“And what is this we’ll be starting off with this year?” Aila asked.  “Are we continuing the tradition of the symphonies again this year?”

“You bet we are,” Mr. Fy’cral said.  “Now, Aila, I actually want you on the first part and Ekal there on second.  But understand, if your section senior says that he wants first part on something—”

“Come to an agreement that is mutual?” Aila asked, and Mr. Fy’cral nodded.

[SpringsSong]

“You can count on us for that, Mr. Fy’cral,” Aila said.  “Now, what were the rumors I heard about performing 1812 Overture later in the year…?” she asked, and the orchestra director laughed.

“She told you that we pull that out every few years, didn’t she?” he asked, and when Aila nodded, he laughed.  “Well, it won’t be passed out until around winter break, but your section senior will be playing English horn on that, and I want you on first.  Understood?” he asked.

[SpringsSong]

“Y-you want me on first for that?” Aila asked, as though she were completely dumbfounded.  “I… I will definitely do the best that I can for that, Mr. Fy’cral; I can promise you that!” she said.

“And she means what she says, Mr. Fy’cral,” Ekal said.  “You should see the repertoire she brought in with her after just a summer of practicing the instrument.”

“Well, that’s always a plus!” the director said, holding out another stack of papers towards the oboists.

[SpringsSong]

“Here, this is the other piece we’re going to be playing at the fall concert in November,” Mr. Fy’cral said.  “There’s no first or second, so I’ll let you all know if you need to cut the number of people playing at a certain section, all right?” he asked as Aila took the two stacks of paper from him.  It only took her a couple of moments to examine the piece, and when she noticed the title, she squealed.

“No way!” she cried.  “We get to play excerpts from The Phantom of the Opera?!”

“Let me see one of those, please,” Ekal asked, and Aila handed him a copy of the piece.

[SpringsSong]

“This is going to be an awesome concert, especially if there’s going to be electric bass on it, like in the actual opera,” Ekal said.

“Oh, we’ll have an electric bass,” Mr. Fy’cral said, “and we’ll also have a harp playing, too—one of our violists also plays harp.”

“That’s fantastic!” Aila exclaimed as more students began to file into the orchestra room.  “But, I suppose we ought to get ready for rehearsal right now instead of talking about how awesome this year’s concerts will be.”

“Yeah, I suppose so—got a tuner, Aila?” Ekal asked, and Aila nodded as she sat down, pulling out the little silver box and smiling.

[SpringsSong]

“No fair, you got a super tuner?” Ekal asked as he sat down beside Aila, pulling out his oboe as he did so.  “That’s even better than the little crap-tuner you had when Han’am made us all bring tuners to school last year, remember?” he asked, and Aila laughed as she nodded.

“Of course I remember that piece of shit,” Aila said.  “It wouldn’t recognize notes half of the time!  Reinie told me to go out and buy one of these, and if I couldn’t, that she would give me one herself.”

[SpringsSong]

“Reinie—sheesh, she definitely thought of you as the favorite, didn’t she?” Ekal asked, and Aila shook her head as she laughed.

“No, you were her first student, remember?  But you left her tutelage to learn under someone from the symphony when you moved to Inailia,” Aila said.  “I was her only other student before she left for college, and she was stuck with me for half of the summer.”

“Only half of the summer?” Ekal asked.

[SpringsSong]

“My parents made me continue flute lessons over the summer,” Aila said as she placed her reed in a container of water.  “So, one week, I’d have flute lessons; the next, oboe lessons.  Both Reinie and I tried to convince my parents that I needed to focus on one only, but they wouldn’t take that.”

“I see,” Ekal said as he took his reed from the water container and played a quick scale on it.  “At least now, they’ve let you go to strictly oboe, right?”