Troupe Inquiries

[Darastrix]

"I hope," Zack said, getting to his feet, "that this 'good bard-bad bard' routine isn't an attempt at getting sympathy so they'll go easy on you."

Lucius and Soleil stared at Zack in surprise. The thought had crossed Lucius' mind, but Zack had always been the last person to suggest the like. Well, at least where pretty girls were concerned.

"Little older, little wiser," he said by way of explanation.

And a little sick of certain games.

"I'll see you lot later; I'm off to wish the Soahcians at the temple a happy Sinfest." Zack flashed an almost wicked grin and strolled out the door.

Soleil piped up, "Five copper says he visits the Lustful first."

Lucius snorted. "Nobody's daft enough to bet against that."

"Oh my," Lyra murmured, then turned back to the young woman. "You may still audition, of course. A piece of your choosing, then a piece of ours. There is a piano in one of the practice rooms."

[Deleted]

Moon's shoulders slumped somewhat as she watched the man leave. "I am truly sorry. It was an error to have him come with, but I was nervous and wanted someone a little more...mature to accompany me. I chose wrongly."

Taking in a deep breath, she calmed herself down and looked around. "I have a piece with me right now, but...I don't suppose I can audition, right now, can I?"

[Darastrix]

Lucius remained skeptical, though he kept his thoughts to himself. The girl looked a bit flighty. Of course, that could be a problem in and of itself, but no matter. They'd see soon enough.

"You may," Lyra said. "After you've done your piece, Lucius and I will select one for you to sight-sing. Soleil, fetch Linda to the piano room, please."

Soleil nodded and hopped out of her seat, skipping from the common room. "Liiiiiindaaaaaa...."

The Maestra smiled and shook her head. "Linda is our senior council member from Talen'sul, as well as our primary alto. Follow us, please," she added, rising and heading toward the piano room with Lucius.

[Deleted]

Moon sighed softly to herself. She had made a horrible first impression, she could tell. But hopefully, she might be able to change that with her performance. "Of course," she said aloud and followed the Maestra from the main room and into the piano room.

Once in there, she gasped at the sight of the beautiful instrument. "May I...?" Moon asked, tilting her head towards it.

[Darastrix]

"That's why we're in here, isn't it?" Lucius commented wryly, gesturing to the piano as Linda slipped into the room to observe. The Maestro shut the practice room door and leaned against the wall to watch their prospective entertainer.

"Whenever you're ready," Lyra said, settling into a chair beside Linda.

[Deleted]

Moon nodded and went to the piano, sitting down in front of it. Carefully, almost carressingly, she touched the keys and played out a few chords just to hear what sounds it produced. With a smile, she closed her eyes and began to play from memory.

The melody was slow, gentle and lilting. She had writtin the piece for piano and flute but was able to mimic the flute part. After slowly building the intro, she began to sing:

"Run through the cold of the night
As passion burns in your heart
Ready to fight, a knife held close by your side
Like a proud wolf alone in the dark
With eyes that watch the world
And my name like a shadow
On the face of the moon

"Broken mirror, a million shades of light
The old echo fades away
But just you and I
Can find the answer
And then, we can run to the end of the world
We can run to the end of the world"

Moon smiled exuberantly as she flowed from the first chorus into the following interlude. This was where she shone. All her life she'd been shy and withdrawn, but when she started to write music, she had felt like she could finally connect with people.

"Cold fire clenched to my heart
In the blue of night
Torn by this pain, I paint your name in sound
And the girl of the dawn with eyes of blue, and angel wings
The songs of the season are her only crown

"Broken mirror, a million shades of light
The old echo fades away
But just you and I
Can find the answer
And then, we can run to the end of the world
We can run to the end of the world"

As she moved into the next, longer interlude, she frowned slightly. It felt like the piece was still missing something here, but she couldn't determine what. It was something that had been nagging at her, and she promised herself to solve the problem soon.

"We met in the mist of morning
And parted deep in the night
Broken sword and shield, and tears that never fall
But run through the heart
Washed away by the darkest water
The world is peaceful and still"

The young woman's blood stirred as she neared the finale, bringing a slight flush to her cheeks. The thrill of performance was the closest thing she'd ever had to a romance, and part of her felt like shouting for joy every time she played.

She quieted both her voice and the piano for the final chorus, creating a feel of warm intimacy.

"Broken mirror, a million shades of light
The old echo fades away
But just you and I
Can find the answer
And then, we can run to the end of the world
We can run to the end of the world"

As the last note faded, she quietly sighed and opened her eyes, feeling the blush on her cheeks and knowing she was probably grinning like an utter fool. But in that moment, nothing could ruin her mood.



((If you'd like to hear the song, it's here. Of course, Moon's version doesn't have the electric guitar, but ... ^.^; ))

[Darastrix]

Linda began jotting down notes almost as soon as Moon began to play; she had sat in on auditions like these many times in the past, though usually the performer was not allowed to select her own piece. She would be glad when they were able to apply the same schedule as the other guilds.

...interlude lacking. Unfamiliarity with the piece or incompleteness? Either way, could suggest an ineptitude at selecting own material. Suggestion to supervise her repertoire if accepted.

Lucius remained leaning against the wall, brow furrowed. Her playing and singing were good, though he intended to make her sing without accompaniment for the next piece. A voice that couldn't stand on its own was not a voice worth hiring.

Lyra, meanwhile, was wondering if those were the kind of lyrics the Narutans went for. They made sense, and yet, they didn't. Well, maybe Moon was a devotee of the Chance-Giver. She looked to Lucius when Moon had finished, her expression questioning.

"Now you sing what we choose," the Maestro said, pushing away from the wall to pull a few books from a nearby shelf. After a brief, quiet conference with the others, he pulled out a few loose sheets. Two went to the other women, one he kept, and the last he held out to Moon. "You won't need the piano for this."

The selected piece was in a key a half-step below the song Moon had played, and had little in the way of written embellishment. It was written for andante tempo, in common time, and with enough half and whole notes for the judges to get a good sense of her tone and vocal ability. A musician could fake her way through runs and quick songs with eigths and sixteenths, but not so much on slow pieces with held notes. And without musical accompaniment, her voice would be very well exposed indeed.

[Deleted]

Moon took the offered paper and studied it closely, mentally taking note of the interesting way in which the piece flowed. Standing up, she quickly then looked over the words. The words were a normal Anarlinan song, focus upon love of all things and acceptance. The words weren't the fun part, however, the melody was. 'You can do this, Moon. Just sing as best as you can. You know how to,' she thought, encouragingly to herself.

Closing her eyes, she planted the melody line firmly in her mind first letting the music of it course through her; slowly, she added the rest of it in, her foot tapping softly to the beat, like a metronome. She then opened her mouth and began to sing, the words flowed smoothly and crystal clear. She started off softly but crescendoing up as she got into the first set of long notes.

Lifting one hand out the side, she put the other lightly on her chest, the melodic words coming with ease. The only time there was a falter in it was when she reached a particular high held note. Her voice trembled for a moment and then cut off; however, she was quick to recover it in a breath and then continued on, finally ending with the same soft voice she started from.

[Darastrix]

"All right," Lucius said after a quick, whispered word with his companions. "We should have an answer for you by nightfall. Feel free to look around the hall or go elsewhere in the meantime."

This would take more discussion among the three of them than usual, given the timing and the lack of performances to observe.

[Deleted]

Moon nodded and left the room, only to go to the main area, choose a seat, sit down and pull out a sheet of parchment to work on while waiting.

[Darastrix]

After several minutes, a slight young man entered the guildhall and stopped short, taking in the nearly empty common room. That was going to take some getting used to; Marc was used to a much busier guild.

"Where is everyone?" he asked, dropping into a seat near Moon.

[Deleted]

Moon blinked and looked up at him. She then smiled sheepishly. "I guess they're debating whether or not to let me into the guild. I tried out just a little while ago and am waiting on their answer."

She stuck a hand out to him. "My name is Moon."

[Darastrix]

"Marc," he responded, shaking her hand. "They'll be a while, probably. Normally there's a very structured audition series, but with this place being so new, they're having to trim that down until we're better established. I had three days of auditions back when I joined the Talen'sul guild."

[Deleted]

"It's kind of harsh, huh?" she asked, setting her hands on the table. "To tell the truth, I have a feeling like I did something wrong. Or maybe," she shifted so that she could prop her feet up on the edge of the chair. "I made too many mistakes."

Moon shrugged, "But, I tried, and that's all I can do. Anyways, what do you do, Marc?"

[Darastrix]

"They're just thorough; the quality of the performers makes a huge part of the guild's reputation. Just about everyone feels like they did badly after an audition," he said with a slight shrug. "And unless you know him well, Lucius is pretty much all-business. As for me, I play the lute. I've been scheduled at one of the local taverns a few days a week."