The Day is Withering [Closed]

[faithfulflame]

Who:Rei and Mai
What: An impromptu concert
When: Early April
Where: The Belfrey, a Goth Club
Warnings: Probably PG-13, for language at worst




Rei didn't normally get invited to these sorts of clubs to perform but tonight was different. The new manager, Myra, had practically insisted that she accept the offer to perform and made doubly sure that she was dressed for the occasion in an outfit that didn't suit her one bit. The performer hated that woman, with a fiery passion, but for the moment she was stuck and even though her programming was coming undone arguing would have had zero effect. Once the woman was set, she was set...and so here Rei was, backstage for a mystery duet. She hadn't been told who her fellow performer was, just that she would be doing a violin duet with someone and she was fully expecting someone with no talent just thrown on stage to make her look bad. That seemed like the sort of thing Myra would agree to, after all.

So, imagine her surprise when she stepped out of the prep-room and found herself looking at Mai, of all people. Someone from the rival label, rival band, who played the same instrument...and who she genuinely liked.

"Hello, Mai." This might not be so bad after all. "Are you here to perform as well?"

Comments

[faithfulflame]

"No kidding. That was a shock and I don't appreciate it one bit."

Rei gets it, totally. It's easy to vent with Mai. She's Rei's kind of person, and has been for a long time. Not that there's a whole lot of time to chat. They have to perform, and Rei's part comes on first. Passing the stagehands the directions for lighting on her way out, she pauses at the entrance, smiling gently.

"Break a leg, and let's grab a drink after, huh?"

With that, Rei slips the blue light cover she'd had made over her bowstring and steps out onto the stage. She offers a wave to the group, and begins to play, the sole sources of light in the room her bow and various stage lights slowly coming online.

[maipokerface]

"Sure."

Mai has a bit of time to contemplate before her own entrance comes. She's out on stage well in advance, settled in the shadows as her mind picks at the melody Rei is coaxing from her own instrument.

The stage, the crowd... it's all becoming a more and more unfamiliar place. She's not shy, embarrassed or tentative about being out here but she can vividly remember that in the beginning she had felt perfectly at home and her violin had been second nature.

The lights on her side begin to rise in a deep red tone as she tucks her instrument under her cheek and begins plucking at the strings on cue.

[faithfulflame]

Mai's not the only one. Rei used to enjoy performing, to feel the crowd's energy...now it's more a chore that she's less sure of. She's still excellent, and absolutely talented but her music has less of herself in it. It's like a spark was dying, but was being propped up all the same.

She steps aside so Mai can join her, tapping her bow against the strings in time with the other girl's rhythm, providing a bit of a backbeat. she even makes a show of scowling, acting like it's a real rivalry between two bands and two warring factions. The crowd seems to eat it up, watching the pair of performers in rapt fascination.

And once Mai's first part is done, Rei steps up, vigorously playing the more energetic second set of Jeedai music. Her wrist slides up and down, powerful and long notes belting out of the instrument while she dips and turns on stage, never getting too close to her "enemy."

[maipokerface]

There's not much acting to be done on Mai's part. She's the queen of apathetic expression and blank faces. A slight frown and she's wearing the expression most of those rabid Crown of Thorns' fans know well. She keeps her head bent some, letting the shade of her hood provide shadow and thus perhaps leave her somewhat more menacing.

Now it's Mai's turn to provide the backbeat in long strokes of her bow. It's a bit like dueling through music and she's keen on keeping her sound as heavy, powerful and seductive as she can.

[faithfulflame]

Mai's beat spurred Rei on, and she kept up the whirling, energetic performance for another few bars before the tune shifts and she nods to Mai.

Stepping clear, she gets ready for Mai's second portion, and the inevitable duet where she cuts in halfway through. Her fingers dance, the audience treated to a genuine smile as she gets ready, coming out of the wilder tune and lapsing into a more peaceful one to harmonize with Mai's second bit.

[maipokerface]

It's a long dance of harmony from there and Mai from beneath the shade of her hood can smile a bit as well. These moments were honestly what she liked best about playing and why she hadn't gone solo to begin with, other than Pride's insistence on her needing to begin with a band. She could play fine on her own but the connections made through music had always been one of her favorite parts.

The duet becomes more aggressive at this point, the slow wind of the Zith portion giving rise to a lower and more aggressive tune. It's a languorous sort of back and forth, Mai leaning and weaving about her side of the stage.

[faithfulflame]

And once Mai's portion of the solos comes to a crescendo, Rei jumps in with more frenetic harmonization. She hops onto the stage, close to Mai now, swishing her bow in a saber-like swath before beginning to play. This isn't the gentle portion of the song, but rather the final 'duel of destiny' between the dark and the light.

Her dress swirls, long hair swishing along behind her while she dances and plays, weaving in a circuit around Mai, eyes locked on her partner.

The crowd goes wild, cheers and arms waving in time with the performance, and that seems to seep into Rei's very being, fueling her performance to new heights.

[maipokerface]

Mai enjoys the playing more than the cheering but she can't say their reaction is bad either. She pours herself into making this a tense and frenetic 'fight' then, keeping Rei's gaze with a challenging one of her own as the pair turn in circles round one another.

This is what performing with others is all about.

[faithfulflame]

Rei keeps up the dance, the song, and all of it until it finally breaks, and she finishes with a harsh flourish and a close step into Mai's personal space and a bump of arms.

The crowd goes nuts, cheering as the Virgo musician takes a bow...her final bow as a performer, it seems.

[maipokerface]

It's a rousing end at least. Mai is actually all smiles for once, glad to see the piece so well accepted. As the pair leave the stage she's almost a little breathless honestly.

"That was great. I feel ten times better now than I did earlier."

[faithfulflame]

Rei laughs breathlessly and follows after, bumping shoulders with the obviously charged up Mai. That was a great show, and her energy levels are through the roof. She'd totally expected it to be a hostile crowd, and it'd been the opposite.

"Same!" Rei says excitedly as they reach the changing rooms. "I love playing with people with talent, and the crowd just ate it all up. Did you see those girls in the front row?"

Since Rei has become something of an LGBT icon after the Fairy Trial and the tabloids about it, she's certainly been noticing more girls paying more attention to her than before, and getting way more into her shows.

[maipokerface]

"They were pretty into it. I mean most everyone was but you've gotten to be really popular, huh."

Mai pulls down her hood with one hand as she grasps her violin and bow in the other, blowing out a breath

[faithfulflame]

"Well...maybe." She smiles a little shyly, looking into Mai's eyes, amusement evident.

"Though, it's more your crowd than mine. And it's not like you're any less popular."

Rei starts peeling off her dress, going over towards her bag and meaning to change.

"I bet there'll be an article about us tomorrow morning."

[maipokerface]

"Well hopefully it's a good one. You never know though, they might decide you're part of my werewolf Cthulhu cult coven or whatever it is."

She's still not quite gotten over that.

[faithfulflame]

"True enough. And I suppose it could be worse, Mai. You could be some poor girl I've ensnared with my succubus powers."

Changing quickly, she lets out a quiet sigh and adjusts her hair, letting it tumble free.

"Still up for a drink? I know a great place not far off where they do private rooms. We won't be disturbed for as long as we like."

[maipokerface]

"Sure, why not. It's not like I want to go back to HQ that quickly."

The longer she was away from it anymore, the better. Sure it meant contact with the rest of her band lessened by at this point she couldn't find it in herself to mourn that too much.

[faithfulflame]

"Me either," Rei laughed, picking up her clothing bag, violin case and the little handbag she kept on her.

"I'm pretty sure we can keep ourselves occupied, and I doubt anyone will miss us too much for a night. C'mon, I've got my car."