Day 60: Music Room (Fourth Shift)

[norainu]

It wasn't often that Renji felt less like punching people in general as his day wore on. This was a new experience for him. A not unwelcome one, if he was being honest. And the fact that he felt less like punching Fai? Kind of mind-blowing. The sort of thing Zen masters would probably use as a kouan to reach an all-new level of non-punching enlightenment.

So he was back from the dead, almost everyone he'd known was gone, and yet bizarrely his day felt like it was looking up. Kind of. Renji wasn't sure what to make of this. Maybe his grumpy meter was just nearing empty. That was as good an explanation as the next, considering how this place made him feel.

Whatever the reason, he ended up in the music room. And he remembered oh yeah. He'd always kind of hated this damn shift. He grabbed a little book of music and a drum and retreated quickly to the far end of the room. He put the drum down in front of him just so he looked like he was doing something and opened the book. But he had no idea how to read music, and really, he was more interested in the ongoing puzzle of what the hell had happened in the last four weeks.

And brooding. Of course. There was always brooding to be done.

[Okay Tolten, let me lay it out for you. When there's a mommy and a daddy... or sometimes a daddy and a dadddy. Or, hell, sometimes a mommy and a mommy if you buy the right kind of wood cuts (and a third mommy if you go to just the right shop)... but anyway when they love each other very much, or at least a suitably large amount of money changes hands, there are some things that happen...]

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[scarefaux]

Though he still had a lot on his mind, the Scarecrow had to admit he was feeling better after his conversation with Sergeant Carter. Despite that they'd faced a lot of awful things together— in fact, just about every time they'd run into each other, they found something amiss— the man knew how to bring a smile to his face, even if it was one in thin hope. He'd take that over no hope at all.

The Scarecrow's nurse noticed his brightened mood, and decided to help matters by not giving him the option of moping about in the Sun Room for the shift. She led him to the Music Room, leaving him at the entrance and encouraging him to go in. Of all the rooms in the Institute, he'd often thought that particular room was a bit closer to home than the rest. It wasn't that he recognized the instruments, or even knew how to play one himself; however, the sound of songs sometimes emanating from the space made him feel as though he were back in Oz, ready to spring off his pole and onto the Yellow Brick Road with a jaunty tune.

And it seemed as though the glum atmosphere the military had brought with them had been lifted even further as there was indeed someone playing one of the oblong instruments. He recognized neither the device nor the tune, but just the sound of simple music was enough to draw his attention. He headed over, only to see a familiar face.

"How do you do, Sonia?" he greeted. "I wasn't aware you liked music!" Then again, he'd only seen her a few times, and there wasn't much of a chance at either to discuss happier topics. He ought not have been surprised.

[stylebythemile]

Sonia looked up when she heard a familiar voice and smiled when she saw who it was, taking her fingers off the keys so neither of them would be forced to raise their voice. "Like music?" she said playfully. "Obviously you haven't heard of the Sonic Underground."

She didn't actually expect him to know what she was talking about. Even if they'd both come from the same world, there were still a lot of people back home who wouldn't have made the connection between her first name and appearance or heard of their band. Unless he'd lived in one of those sectors of Robotropolis that had wanted posters, but Scarecrow didn't strike Sonia as being a city person.

Not that people really had a choice about where they lived these days.

[scarefaux]

"Why, no!" the Scarecrow replied, eyeing the instrument between them before bringing his eyes back to her, briefly wondering if he should try playing an instrument, or at least learning. He was sure with his brain given to him by the Wizard that he'd actually know what all went into playing one- aside from that, his only experience with them had been seeing the Ozites play them at times in the city.

He continued his thought, setting aside that one for the time being. "What is it?"

[stylebythemile]

"It's the band my brothers and I formed after we met." Sonia put her hands on her hips and smiled again, more than happy to clarify. "I'm on the keyboard--" she gestured to the instrument between them, "--while they play guitar and percussion. Oh, and we all do vocals."

Her smile grew that little bit more. They'd known each other for a little while now, and they hardly knew anything about each other. Like, how did he end up with the name 'Scarecrow'? Had that been his idea or someone else's? She wanted to know more. "Do you play any instruments?"