2025-08-01: The Prison

• Log: The Prison
• Cast: Eikichi Mishina, Jun Kashihara, Shinjiro Aragaki, Tatsuya Suou, Tsubasa Seki, Ichika Kawase, Saika Kikuchi, Maria Sakurai, Masao Inaba, Umie Akabane, Julian Marlowe, So-young Park, Ririka Kawase
• Where: Sumaru Prison
• OOC Date: August 01, 2025
• IC Date: June 18, 2012
• Summary: The time has come. A band will rise from the ashes of Kasu High School and will attempt to blow the roof off the Prison.

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<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

Tonight the Sumaru prison is hopping. Something that hasn't been seen since it actually was a...Prison.

Tonight is Gas Chamber's first show. The start of something that is either going to rock or make the Death Boss look like a complete joke. Which is why most of Kasugayama High School is in attendance! The crowd looks like a whose who of delinquency, some squatting in the corner of the room trying to figure out if the smoking rule counts at the show.

Full disclosure, yes it does.

Even the controversial student council president was in attendance, keeping to himself at the refreshment table. In truth, he really stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the aggressive crowd. He sips his drink nervously, waiting to see Eikichi Mishina fall on his face.

Why were they here? The Death Boss would either put on a good show or this would be a moment of weakness. Something other bosses could use to ridicule the untouchable leader of the school. It was blood in the water and the sharks were swarming, waiting for their chance at a bite.

The crowd is restlessly waiting around the old looking stage in the indoor courtyard. A stage which as a makeshift curtain up to hide the performers while they try to warm up. The noise coming from behind the curtain is...not terrible but someone with musical talent might hear a few things that are off.

After a little time, there the noise stops and a spotlight, originally used to spot escaping prisoners shines down on the stage.

The curtains open and Eikichi stands there in a frilly white shirt and black bondage pants. His make up is crisp. His blue hair almost glows under the heavy light. The rest of the band is not quite as immaculately dressed, mainly wearing t-shirts and jeans. They stare out at the crowd like a deer in headlights. It was clear that Eikichi was the one you were supposed to pay attention to. He stares out at the audience as the guitar part starts, clutching the mic stand as he starts to sing. "Gravity don't mean too much to me, I'm who I've got to be...These pigs are after me, after you. Run away like it was yesterday and we could run away. If we could run away, run away from here..."

The band comes in for a rocky start. They aren't great but you can tell it's music that's a little uncoordinated. Some of the crowd snickers while others are into Eikichi's showman ship as he is really owning the space. Could this Kasu student's dream come true?! Or was this something that was going to haunt the Death Boss in his battles to come?

Eikichi continues as he leans back the mic stand, grabbing hold of the mic in a powerful stance. "I got a bulletproof heart, you got a hollow-point smile-- Me and your runaway scars, Got a photographed dream on the getaway mile. Let's blow a hole in this town!" There are some missed notes from the band as the song continues and does their best to keep up with Eikichi.

Eikichi points a finger gun with his free hand, firing the imaginary weapon toward the crowd. "And do our talking with a laser beam. Gunnin' out of this place in a bullet's embrace. Then we'll do it again."

Eikichi leans into the crowd, singing to them as if in conversation. "How can't they say, "Jenny, could you come back home?"...'Cause everybody knows you don't... ever wanna come back. Let me be the one to save you!"

"Gravity don't mean too much to me, I'm who I've got to be. These pigs are after me, after you! Run away like it was yesterday when we could run away. When we could run away, run away from here---" Eikichi sings the chorus with the rest of the band, who are out of sync but doing their best.

The song continues until it comes to an end. Eikichi stands there, breathing heavily as he takes in the crowd. Some laugh as that was not a polished performance behind Eikichi. Others cheer because the Death Boss was doing something outside the norm. It is a sea of noise that blends together.

 There is a brief pause for some reason, giving people a beat to talk and take in all of that.

<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.

    Jun Kashihara is part of the Kasugayama portion of the crowd. However, he isn't here hoping to see Eikichi fail or make a fool of himself. On the contrary, he thinks it's beautiful that he's working so diligently towards his dream that he's finally putting on a show. He'd heard for the longest time that Gas Chamber was working on finding members, on practicing instruments, and more... To see them finally perform is too exciting to pass up.
    
    ...Mind, as Jun listens to the band warm up, he gets the distinct sense that maybe Eikichi got tired of waiting for everyone to practice enough to get good and decided to just put on a show. No, it's not terrible, but it's certainly not as polished as it could be either.
    
    He smiles ruefully when the curtains go up and only Eikichi is dressed up. He looks quite good, but the rest of his band looks even more woefully unprepared by comparison. Still, he shushes those in the crowd who snicker. He has far more respect for someone who takes a big chance and fails than someone who never tries at all to keep from looking like a fool.
    
    As Eikichi sings and his band tries their best to keep up, Jun nods along to the beat. Regardless of the quality of the performance, there's no mistaking the passion from the lead, and it does seem like his bandmates really are trying.
    
    When the performance is over, Jun claps, smiling broadly at the band. It's not quite a cheer, but it's certainly no jeer.
    
    "It really is marvelous watching them work so hard to make their dreams come true," he says to the air, for anyone to overhear and react to.

<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.

Shinjiro was invited to the concert by his friendly acquaintance, the Death Boss and frontman of Gas Chamber, Eikichi Mishina. He's not come alone, having met up with ANOTHER friendly acquaintance.

As they approach, he whispers to her. "If people start pushing and you need to get out of it, just send a signal." He doesn't know if she's ever been in a pit!

For now, though, he listens to the first song. An American band... he knows them. He's listening *keenly*, like his brain is scanning the music and figuring out what's right and wrong. He can't play, but he's got the ear - so he knows this is better than it could be, and worse than it should be.

He also knows exactly why... Eikichi's the only one with real talent here.

Even so, as the song wraps, Shinjiro's nodding along. If someone jeers near him, he gives them a death glare. That's not cool, dude.

<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.

    There's a... guy here.

    Unlike the sea of blue that forms most of Kasu High's students -- if they decided to show up in uniform, anyway -- this guy's in red. He should've really changed out of his red motorcycle leathers, but he's already showering the salt off off them and cooking them in the dryer and doing all sorts of other crimes to them, so it's kind of fused to his skin at this point.

    They're at the very back, underneath the stairs you have to use to get into the band chamber proper, with the hood up. Why is he here?

    Why indeed. He shouldn't be here. This is... attachment. This is sentimentality. This is a ghost, visiting your live performance and haunting your former prison halls. But still -- no matter how rough and unrefined the music is, there's heart and soul in all this. It takes them all the way back... this place, on that day, when Eikichi called him out by name for a contest to see who'd be coolest. You're still doing that even now, aren't you, Eikichi? All draped in glamour and glitz, no matter what your dad says... the Death Boss is really living it up, giving it his all.

    That's right. He's a part of the living. The dead... shouldn't bother the living.

    But it's the dead that have the most attachment to the living. He hasn't spotted Jun or Shinjiro or the others yet. It's a big crowd here, and he's lost in memory.

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

Tsubasa's looking particularly dark and particularly orange, today, owing to the tanning they were able to book in on Myunghon's strange bounty. They're in a tank top with the bottom half shorn off to expose their belly; the concealer on the right side of their body mostly obscures the scars they're hiding under that tan. (Funny thing? The tan actually makes the scars stand out more, that's why they need more makeup... but there's no going back, now.) Bright blue ruffled board shorts and loud ankle-length sneakers complete the ensemble, and they put one of those sneakers up on a bench as they look up at the makeshift curtains.

    Lance is not here today. The world's goodest dog would probably get scared with all this noise. Tsubasa took her on a nice long walk before they rocked up here.

    "Better sort those clams out before he gets out here," they rumble, thoughtfully, their voice sounding like they'd dragged it through a mile of gravel. (They sound like a smoker, but surely they can't be. Not here!)

    They sling their elbows over their knee, as the curtain comes up, and the show starts playing. "Shit," they curse, hearing those flubbed notes carrying through into the main performance. It's more sympathetic than derisive, though. "C'mon, guys... makin' one guy carry..." They're as focused on the poor, frozen band members behind Eikichi as they are on the Death Boss himself.

    Eikichi pours his heart into it, though, and Tsubasa slams the side of their fist into a set of bars to make it ring out into the crowd. "OI! GOOD SHIT!" They holler into it, for all the mistakes they've noticed, to help tip the mockery into appreciation.

<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.

Obviously, Ichika Kawase was going to be here. The Thorn Boss wouldn't miss it... and besides; she wants to see Eikichi's dream. ...She doesn't care about the smoking rule. She never has. But it's going to be a show, and she has a good feeling about it. But she is a little nervous.

There might be Sevens students here, too. Which means there might be one in particular.

That's why Ichika has a buddy! Well, not the only reason. She could have come with the Spike Boss, but that would've made things look a little too cozy. Besides; she'd rather attend with her own. That means Tsubasa for this one. She's casual for this, in an outfit that can move; skull-emblazed crop top, short green skirt, tights, boots. "...Hm," Ichika says about the hiccups in their performance. "Well, polish isn't that important for us," she says. "Still, uh..."

Making one guy carry? But it's Eikichi. Ichika, too, cheers for him after the song. "WOO!"

Jun claps, and so does Ichika--but she smiles over at Jun. "Yeah," Ichika says. "A dream... that's really special."

<Pose Tracker> Saika Kikuchi has posed.

 
Saika Kikuchi is

* HERE
* Alone
* legally capable of purchasing alcohol (she has a card asserting this)
* somewhat frustrated because there is no alcohol

Which is why there is some woman with punk hair standing in the middle-front of the club with a face pulling an expression like this: :/

She has her right hand on her hip. In her left hand is a bottle. Of juice. Which is ice cold, yes, from a cooler, and which Saika has taken a big sip out of, but which is, in fact, only and simply orange juice.

Saika's face turns to be like this: :%r
This may be the living metric by which the scene will be judged. She unscrews the cap and takes a big swig out of the bottle (of ORANGE JUICE) (disgusting) while turning her eyes forwards towards the stage as Eikichi gets up in front and begins playing. The :/ face gradually relaxes to a neutral expression; her head starts to bob in time with the music.

Preliminary results: 'not demanding train fare refund, trend line positive.'

<Pose Tracker> Maria Sakurai has posed.

    Maria shouldn't be here. Sevens students don't, as a rule, hang out around Kasugayama students (a point that has remained in place even after -- because of -- the merger of the old girl's reform school). The good news is that she's not in uniform (and thus no one has tried to pinch her emblem (or for that matter, anything else, just yet)) so the young ex-athlete and last month's feel-good news story hasn't gotten too much unwanted attention. No one's recognized her face, which suits her just dandy!
    The last thing she wants is an extra dollop of pity on her little escape.

    But, no. She's not supposed to be here. In her former life, she never went to any kind of concert, having been more focused on things like practice or roaming the local shops with friends like a horde of locusts. She'd been a (mostly) good girl.

    But that's why she's here now, joining the throng of delinquents and loving every bit of it of the rush even this brings her. If granny finds out she went here, there'll be hell to pay, but--

    In there here and now, Maria screams like any other groupie and waves her arms over her head like she just doesn't care about anything else in the world. "Louder! LOUDER!!"

<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.

    Masao "Mark" Inaba decided to hit up a local club this evening, just... tonight feels like a good night for that. Watch some local talent, kick back, let the imagination recharge after the latest bit of hassling from the family. Love 'em, of course, he's glad they're still around to love and be loved. Some of the nature of the complaints from them, a bit less so.
 
     ...
 
     Lots of the local students here tonight, huh. A part of him wonders if he's trespassing on school property just being here. From where he's sitting, he casts a glance as a certain person in orange. Huh...
 
     That's not the only face he recognizes, with their friend next to them (Ichika)... and, hey, that guy slinking over there, is he... (Shinjiro)
 
     So, it's time for the show. Well...
 
     Mark watches, all right, as much as he listens. It's an awkward picture, for reasons already well outlined.
 
     "Shit, that confidence and showmanship there," he muses aloud, with a little laugh that almost sounds derisive and mocking in a vacuum.
 
     "That's an artist, all right. Throwin' all of himself into that..."
 
     He breaks out into applause. He knows how kids can get nasty in a time of vulnerability. How they might look out to others for approval, for validation, for some kind of proof that what they're putting all of themselves into is worth it, and you know what?
 
     He can recognize a fellow artist, through all of that mess.

<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.

    Saika is not the only one here that is a legal adult who can purchase alcohol.

    "If I pulled a stunt like this three years ago, my parents would've had a heart attack," Umie mumbles to Shinjiro. If Umie's dyed blond hair and color choices labeled her as somehow on the fringe of being 'alternative', it's here that Shinjiro will discover the lie.

    For one, _Umie has definitely not been in a mosh pit_.

    Right now, Umie is sticking close to Shinjiro, allowing her hood to cover her head, but for far more mundane reasons than revisiting old memories (since she has none to revisit, _unlike Tatsuya_).

    For one, going to some concert put on by a band of Kasugayama High students is definitely something Umie would have never done when she was in high school. The duality of Seven Sisters High, when held up against Kasugayama High, meant that, for someone who was trying to keep her head low and navigate the waters between 'doing just enough' and 'dealing with a tide of resentment and disillusionment while also going to school' meant, well, she never would have met people like Eikichi, much less attend a concert.

    She feels so... awkwardly... adult, like this is a space she Should Not Be In. What if they discover her? _Why is she suffering from imposter's syndrome at a place she was invited to_?
    
    "He's... pretty good. Lots of passion behind his performance." She has nothing to compare it to, but still, Eikichi's clearly putting his heart into it.

    Besides, being the underdog is something that will always earn Umie's appreciation. So, when Eikichi's first performance ends, a pair of hands raises up besides Shinjiro, trying to show appreciation amongst an ocean of taller people. (She's used to it.)

<Pose Tracker> Julian Marlowe has posed.

Julian Marlowe is doing a fine job of standing out wherever he goes, as usual. This time, aside from all the obvious elements of 'being a foreigner', it also includes 'being quite possibly the oldest person here'. He is absolutely not the target audience for this performance, of which he's well aware. But here he is anyway, dressed in a nice suit as usual, despite this not matching the vibe here at all. Not like he matches the vibe at Kasugayama very well to begin with. That's never seemed to bother him, so why would he look at all bothered now?

Of course, there are some who have Opinions about this Old Man being at a concert targeted at high schoolers. Especially considering most of those present know very well who he is, and already had opinions about him to begin with. Such as two second-year girls standing not far away from him, talking amongst themselves loudly enough to be overheard even by Julian himself.

"Ugh, why is there a teacher here? Can't they let us enjoy anything in peace?"

"I know, right? As if it wasn't enough he's always watching us at school. Just waiting for us to slip up so they can throw the book at us, even more than they already do."

The conversation draws the ire of a third female student, who butts in, "Hey! Marlowe-sensei isn't like that! Unlike most teachers, he's actually interested in students' lives, that's why he's here."

The first girl rolls her eyes. "Great, it's miss teacher's pet." The second girl makes a dismissive gesture. "Buzz off, Harayama. If you like the guy so much, why don't you marry him?"

Thrown off, Tomoyo Harayama stammers, "Th-that's wildly inappropriate! Marlowe-sensei would never consider such a thing!"

Julian lets out a deep sigh, struggling to keep pretending that he isn't hearing all this. Mercifully, the concert gets underway in short order, giving everyone something better to pay attention to.

Well. Perhaps not everyone would strictly call that a performance worthy of their attention. But Julian seems to enjoy it fine. He's smiling, at least. And why wouldn't he? Regardless of anything else, Eikichi is clearly in his element, living his dreams. Exactly the sort of thing he encourages in every student who does give him a chance.

He applauds afterwards, of course. Loudly, to try and be of some influence on those nearby. It doesn't matter what they think of him, what matters is that they appreciate what Eikichi is doing here today.

<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.

    One figure in the audience rather stands out, looking like she's just stepped off of a movie set rather than nursing a plastic cup filled with what might be cheap white wine as she stands at a high table in a kind of grungy Sumaru live house. At least So-Young seems to actively enjoy standing out, cutting a striking and rather goth figure - the woman is fully monochrome, wearing a black dress with her long white hair run through with dark vertical stripes, and wraps herself in a supreme aura of self-assurance.

    She's also... you know... an actual adult, and while you can't call her 'old' she does as a result have several years on a lot of the clientele. It's fifty-fifty odds on whether the bar actually had wine to sell her, or if she simply smuggled the drink on her table by herself and no-one has mustered up the courage to ask her about it. She also has a pair of sunglasses perched in her hair, though chances are they're just there to set off the rest of her image.

    (The slightly odd part about her is that she was already looking dazzled before the show even started. The venue on its own seems to hold an incredible appeal for her, and she'd even arrived early to scope it out and snap some shots of the more, uh, obviously converted sections of the old Prison, delightedly gushing to herself about the theming.)

    So-young beams brightly as the song fades away, clapping in what is apparently complete earnest. "It's lovely, isn't it? The best gems are the ones that haven't quite been polished yet," she replies to Jun's open comment as she turns the smile on him instead. It does reach her eyes, but there's a thoughtful look there as well as she glances up to regard the band at large and Eikichi at its front. "So long as you want to play, you should. That's really all there is to it."

    As subtly as she can manage - which is in fact 'not at all' - she slides her crappy little plastic cup in Saika's direction, grinning as she offers it up as a mixer for the very depressing orange juice. It's the perfect crime, because it involves disposing of the evidence _and_ making it someone else's problem if they're caught.

    She's already given Marlowe a happy nod of acknowledgement and mild recognition, but she seems unhurried and unfussed about asking anything about the scene at the Cardboard Dragon a few days ago. Here, there is music to enjoy instead.

<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.

A show! In an ex-prison! That's kind of hardcore, and Ririka is here for it.

She is not a Kasu student, though, so she might not be immediately recognizable to most of the people here, save for the fact that she does come over to hang out at the girls' dorm occasionally. (... with her sister, Ichika, who happens to be one of the school's bosses.) (Neither is she Sevens.)

She might also be unrecognizable for the fact that she is dressed far different than usual. Her tall (5'10") self is decked out tonight in a dark purple croptop over a fishnet shirt, a cropped denim jacket, black skinny jeans, and boots. Her hair is half-up in a ponytail, with the restleft to frame her face and flow over her shoulders, with dark eye makeup and purple lipstick and nail polish. A studded black leather choker and bracelets complete the look.

But she offers Tsubasa an awkward smile as she sees them. "Hey, Seki-san. Um... thanks, for the other day." She won't get into it here, but it's not too hard to figure out what the thanks are for.

"Heeey, nee-san," she says to Ichika as she turns to her next, getting settled in for the show.

She does pause, though, as she hears those noises coming from behind the curtain. She turns her head a little, subtly turning her ear towards the curtain and closing her eyes for a moment, as if concentrating.

Hmmm... well, maybe it'll all come out in the performance.

She does let out a cheer as they take to the stage, though. "Woo!" She can tell who's got the stage presence, but... mayube the others will loosen up once the show gets going?

She frowns a little as she listens, her fingers trying to tap on her thigh, but those off moments interrupting her flow.

Still, she cheers when the song finishes. That's a brave thing to do, to get on stage.

"Yeah," she says to Jun. "Getting up on stage isn't easy. It's awesome to see them go for it!" She looks to Ichika. "Well, polish helps, but it's not everything..." It does help, though.

<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

After a break where Eikichi leaves the stage, there is a loud "LETS GO!" from the back, setting off the band to a very uncoordinated but quick beat. Eikichi runs onto the stage in a full black long uniform coat. The kind you saw school delinquents in anime. His hair is greased into a blue pompadour, making him look very 80's bancho. He grabs the mic, sliding to a crouch as the band begins to chant.

"BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP"

"BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP"

Eikichi looks to the audience as he begins, rising to his feet as he dances. He does a high kick in the air. "I usually lie, so ask me those kind of questions -teacher-..." The word teacher is hit in English, sounding very intense. Eikichi continues as he dances rhythmically. "We always had a reason for doing it -teacher-...The pain feels like it stabs me!

The band comes in, doing their best to keep up with Eikichi but coming up short. The guitarist misses his cue. The keyboardist drops a few notes. When it gets bad, it gets loud. "one, two, three, four!"

"BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP! BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP BAD DO-WAP BE-BOP DO-WAP"

 Eikichi spins and jumps to the bands chants, doing a split as lands. He stands with his back to the audience, looking over his shoulder as he continues."I can never grow up, so scold me about it -teacher-"

 Eikichi spins around, leaning toward the crowd."I'm unusually sentimental, so laugh at me -teacher-...Shining through like the sun"

The pace quickens again as the band struggles to keep up, Eikichi dancing wildly as he sings. "It sparkles down, the desktop was our stage...Those jewel like days are unending...I tell my fellow students (all right) to shout from their chests..."

The band shouts in unison, "Too fast to live, too young to die!"

 The song continues showing that they practice this one more. It's just that besides Eikichi's showboating, the rest of the band was not as gifted. As the song ends, some other friends of Eikichi push trash cans on stage, setting over a very roudamentary pyrotech nics (fireworks in a trash can). It's loud but it looks kinda cool.

 Eikichi stands on stage grinning as he holds out his arms, waiting for the crowd's reaction to his art. The rest of the band braces for impact, knowing that the few practices they forced on Eikichi weren't enough for a damn show. But they wanted their boss to have his dream, flawed as the execution was.

There are some who enjoy it. One guy in the back, Hiroki Sugimoto, seeths with anger that any of this went over well. Even if one person cheered for the Death Boss was one too many. He leaves, comtemplating on what he can do to take down that bastard Mishina.

<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.

    Jun smiles over at Ichika and Tsubasa next to him. Tsubasa seems really into the performance, and Ichika is of course of an accord with him on the matter of dreams. "It's a fine start for his debut. And the approval is much louder than anything else! I'm happy for him--I've hard about how long he's been working on getting this band together."
    
    He is himself in his school uniform, but he certainly doesn't blame anyone else for not doing the same--especially any Sevens students who definitely aren't here, wink.
    
    A streak of red in all the teal flashes in the corner of Jun's uncovered eye. Startled, he looks back, eye settling on a point at the bottom of the spiral stairs to see... someone he doesn't know. His eyebrows furrow. Someone he doesn't know? No. Someone he definitely does not know.
    
    So why does his chest ache all of a sudden?
    
    He shakes his head a little. The comment of a young woman who's clearly no student helps him drag his thoughts back to the present, as does the cheering of Ichika's younger sister, and he smiles back at So-young and Ririka. "You're both quite right. Technical skill will come with enough practice, but there's no matching the love one pours into one's music and the courage to perform it for all to hear."
    
    And Ririka, being a musical prodigy, would know that better than most.
    
    Oh... Is that Marlowe-sensei in the crowd? Why, it is, Jun thinks with a mild lack of surprise, spotting the foreign teacher. He smiles to him, too. Kasugayama High doesn't have a lot of teachers who actually care, but the ones who do are a cut above.
    
    He turns back around as the performance resumes--and with a costume and hair change from Eikichi. High performance values! And a daring dance; not many could manage a split like that. The band has an easier time keeping up too--maybe they practiced this one more? The trashcan pyrotechnics are a surprise, and Jun even startles at the LOUD noise (loud even for a prison-turned-concert venue!), but he ultimately laughs and claps for Gas Chamber anew.
    
    He does not notice Sugimoto in the back even a little.

<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.

Mark gets a recognized look from Shinjiro, but only for the briefest of moments. As he glances around, he DOES spot Tatsuya. He's got a temporary kitchen now, he can abduct him for his MEAL later.

Umie says her parents would've had a heart attack. "Never took you as a goody-two-shoes," he jokes. "Yeah. His band needs work, though. Maybe a replacement, though I doubt he wants that... they're friends, after all," he says quietly.

As the second song starts, though, he decides to step in. There's a roar of approval as he hears the speed of it, and he can sure roar. But even so, the band is struggling... yeah, they're not gonna cut it. Shinjiro frowns briefly.

Though, in the back, a guy is *angry*. Shinjiro glares at him as he leaves, hoping he takes his bad vibe elsewhere.

"FUCK YEAH, GAS CHAMBER!" Shinjiro shouts out as the song ends, marveling at the trashcan pyrotechnics. If Eikichi's going to give it his all, he can at least hype him up.

<Pose Tracker> Saika Kikuchi has posed.

 
Saika is passed a cup. She looks at So-young for a moment, as if judging her, but she seems to pass the vibe check. Saika opens up her bottle of orange juice and pours what's in that cup into the bottle, wordlessly. She tilts it up and down afterwards, mixing without shaking, even as the group finishes off Track #1...

At which point Saika undoes the cap, drinking half the bottle swiftly, then passing it to So-young! Whatever horrifying jungle juice has resulted, Saika seems to be bearing it... although she does have her lips puckered.

The slug of WHATEVER IT WAS, as well as the music, has got her bobbing her head, not just nodding it, and by the time the fireworks are reached -- the sudden screaming flashing and banging makes her flinch for a moment, in shock, but then to let out an ear-splitting "WHOOOOH!!!!" of enthusiasm afterwards, tapering off to almost a *shriek!*

<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.

    Everyone here is so... alive.

    The way Tsubasa and Maria just wear their admiration on their sleeve. And Ichika and Ririka there... was she one of the other Kasu bosses? Parts of the 'Other Side' are a blur now... no, don't try to sink deep into that well of memories, Suou. Even thinking about it might be dangerous. Even now, you're still picking away at that ripped seam of memory... you're no better than Sudou. Sudou's more honest about it. There's adults here, even. One of them is... hmm, isn't that guy one of Yukino-san's crew? From the SEBEC scandal...

    ... no, Suou. You don't know who Yukino-san is. She never went on an adventure with you, introduced her to her other Persona-User friends who helped you with Napoleon (stupid Napoleon) and his bizarre misadventures... Masao wouldn't know who you are, and that's all the better for it.

    Umie's concealed in a hood, but he notices her too, with Shinjiro.

    But just for a moment -- one fateful moment -- his eye catches Jun's, as he coincidentally turns to look straight at him. (There's nothing straight about this.) Tatsuya breaks eye contact almost immediately, but his heart rate's already risen a good 10, 20. He's here too. Of course he'd be here. He's a Kasu student. Why wouldn't he be? He's living his best life now... Jun...

    Just keep telling yourself: It's not your Jun. It's not your Jun.

    Eikichi leaps into the stage again, all bancho-style, and a pompadour? Heh... Tatsuya can't help but get wrapped in memory. They might've clowned around like that to try to get a Demon on their side, a lifetime ago. Tatsuya was responsible for making noises with his expert mimicry as his SFX crew...

    ...

    There's a frown, however, as Tatsuya senses animosity. He glances to his side and sees -- Sugimoto. Tsk...! He's seething with anger and storms off, his palpable anger noticeable. Was he carrying a Crystal Skull? Is he in on some other group's plans on 'This Side' too? Is he still targetting Eikichi Mishina...? What could he possibly do on this side, now that the Masked Circle is no more? The Phantom Thieves of Hearts? Or...

    A miserable, paranoid feeling fills him again. Shoot... there he goes, trying to meddle again. Time to get some fresh air...

    The red-hooded guy starts up the spiral staircase, not long after Sugimoto.

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    "It's cool," Tsubasa shrugs, as Ririka comes over. They glance over the crowd, and remark, lightly: "Lotta aunties in today. Who's the losers gettin' escorted by their moms? ... huh, Mark-san's here, too. Cool." They saw Masao, too! "Shit, though, there's a teacher over there... weirdo." And they sound kind of uncomfortable, dismissing Julian like that, but they might just be cringing at a teacher being here. Their blue eyes... pass right over Maria, who isn't in uniform, and so isn't drawing heat, remarking in their mind only that she's got the right spirit.

    They look over to Jun, though, as he shakes his head. "... you cool?" They ask, apparently paying enough attention to notice him startling like that between all the noise. (No one can blame them for being on high alert, though. ... there's a reason they're sticking to Ichika's side, tonight.)

    But Gas Chamber pours their heart out into another set, and Tsubasa focuses on the band, again. "So this's what they practiced," they comment, though their thoughtful reflection might be lost in all the noise. It's their turn to stiffen up and startle when the fireworks go off in those trashcans, but they don't comment on that in the slightest. Instead, they pound on the bars again, wooping deep in their chest. "FUCK YEAH! KNOCK 'EM DEAD!"

<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.

Ichika laughs about the aunties. And Mark, "Oh, yeah? Cool." She waves over at him. And... Ririka likes music, and wants to get a little more involved in Ichika's life; so goes the logic of Ichika inviting Ririka to the concert! ...She's still a little nervous at first about how she'll react, though. "Hey," Ichika replies to her little sister. And--when she hears it...

"Mm!" Ichika agrees with Ririka about getting on stage. She only catches one of the adults in the crowd, and that's because she's so tall that she can see over everyone to see him also being tall. Julian is here!

"Huh," she says. "...Not bad." Ichika says of Julian, "Nah, he's cool." She's not displeased to see him.

She doesn't notice Tatsuya at all; why should she? "Love. Right. That's a good word for it. ...You can tell he's put his heart into it."

But briefly, looking across the crowd, Ichika happens to spot Maria. It's not that she looks familiar; it's that she happens to look at her at just the right moment, so she grins at her enthusiasm, enjoying the crowd.

She cheers at the pyrotechnics. "YEAH!"

<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.

    It's the calm before the storm, and it sounds like a lot of people are into it. Mark relaxes in that small period of time between the first and second number, when...!
 
     ...When the second number happens with a bold 'LETS GO!'
 
     "Whoooa, holy shit." Mark looks up. That's not half-measures there - even when the rest of the band isn't keeping up any. "...He ain't bad at dancing, either."
 
     The makeshift pyrotechnics go off - the sort of thing that a responsible adult might, and probably should, second-guess as to whether they're truly safe, but you know what? In the moment, it's kinda nostalgic for those kinds of days.
 
     'FUCK YEAH, GAS CHAMBER!' Mark hears that suspicious guy from before call, and there's a whooole lot of noise he can't shout over. So, from one artist to another, he raises a thumb up from where he sits.
 
     ...
 
     Two kids just left. One guy looking all surly, another guy in red, Mark looks over his shoulder. Huh...
 
     ...
 
     Anyway.
 
     He follows through with more applause.

<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.

    "A lot can change in three years," Umie says, simply, to Shinjiro. "And really, not going to concerts makes someone a goody two-shoes? I'm sure I would've sneaked out to see one if I was ever invited."

    Would she, though? Sneaking out during the Dark Hour was a different experience than just 'at night'.

    This song's tempo and upbeat nature is a lot more to Umie's liking in some ways. Or maybe, she's getting a taste for the sort of music Eikichi is playing? Who knows.

    The sudden explosions (thankfully planned) nearly throw Umie off. Her ears are ringing. Shinjiro is shouting.

    "....."

    "Y-yeah, uh!" Was there someone yelling for the music to be louder earlier? Umie'll just say that. "Louder!" She's definitely shouted before, much, much louder than this. It just so happens she was *angry*.

    She's enjoying herself, at least.

    Out of the corner of her eye, as Tatsuya steps up the spiral staircase (thereby allowing Umie to see him above the teal suits of Kasugayama), Umie spots his familiar red outfit, coupled with a resonance that she's still unable to quantify. "... Huh. I guess he would be into this kind of music..." She never asked him, back when she tutored him. There were other things she would have asked, but.

    She enjoyed his impressions. Maybe, he and Eikichi could be the kind of people to get along, if she could introduce them to each other.

    Maybe if she was a better tutor, Tatsuya would have trusted her more, now, she thinks.

     No, no, get your head back into the moment, Umie.

<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.

    So-young abruptly stops all conversation when the band's second song comes on, her attention shifting towards it in the space of an instant. Unlike many of the people present, she doesn't yell along with the pyrotechnics, but she does stand up a little straighter, a little more at alert - and it becomes clear that's just her way of taking in the performance as a whole.

    She's broken into another grin as it reaches a crescendo, laughing to herself from behind a hand at the disparity between the band's front member and, well, the rest of them. At least that laughter is bright and happy, clearly well-meant and impressed. "Oh dear. That might be a little too much courage," she says as if it isn't obvious that she clearly approves.

    She reaches over to intercept the bottle that is slid her way and, in complete contrast to the rest of her image, takes a good long pull from it. Thus, the contract is sealed. "Oh, that's absolutely terrible," she decides happily as she lowers it again and squints at the bottle, comparing it to the days of awful mixer ideas at the university bar. "But it's so fitting. I'll call it a success," she chatters as she slides the bottle back over.

    Her eyebrows slowly raise at Jun's too-earnest answer. Truth be told, So-young is never quite sure what to make of someone she can't mess with, surprise, or dazzle, and this young man's Nice Vibe is so positively off the charts he may as well be her final boss with the way in which he can probably tank all three. "Quite. But, more than that," she looks back at Eikichi, humming thoughtfully to herself. "I do wonder what he's rushing for."

<Pose Tracker> Maria Sakurai has posed.

    Is the music good? Some of the people in the audience seem to disagree! Well, even someone like Maria (who has no taste as it's defined) can tell there are missed notes but... does that matter? The guy leading the band has energy, and that's what counts. Besides, as a girl not far from her notes -- it's hard to get in front of a crowd. It's just like a meet.

    Too fast to live. Too young to die.

    Yeah. That's how she wants it to be.

    "...Huh?" She's paused mid-cheer to glance at a figure who just passed right by her. For a minute, she would have sworn it was Suou-sempai, but... didn't he quit school just before she returned to classes? And what would he be doing in a place like this, anyway? She must just be seeing things. Uncharacteristicly, Maria frowns. She's not the only one who noticed that guy, but--

    --but she didn't come here to think. She came here to feel. Taking a deep breath, she bounces upwards, once, emitting a loud excited scream as she does so. She's never gotten to make noise like this before! This is great!

<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.

Eikichi leaves the stage, and comes back with a costume change. She cheers enthusiastically, pumping her fist into the air before the song even starts.

He, she appreciates showmanship! (And maybe some enthusiasm from the audience will help put the band at ease.)

She visibly winces at all of the missed cues and notes, though. That... still hurts her. But she's trying to be positive. (The fireworks do make her a little concerned, but that's mostly for safety. They do look kinda cool, though.)

And when they finish she cheers. "Hell yeah!"

She grins a little at Jun. "Sometimes it's the love of it that gets you through all that practice, you know?" She might be a musical prodigy but she has definitely put in the work. She follows June's eye of sight. "... everything okay?"

She nods to Tsubasa. It's cool. No need to get into it. "Aunties...?" She glances around. "Huh..." She brightens up as she notices both Saika and So-young, though. "Well those two are pretty legit." (Granted, she only met Saika earlier that day, but still. She definitely knows who So-young is though.) "Would a teacher really come to something like this...?"

She nudges Ichika's side a little. "Man, Mishina-san's getting really into it, huh? I totally wasn't expecting that costume change, but that's hella cool."

<Pose Tracker> Julian Marlowe has posed.

Julian tried not to show too much relief at seeing So-young in passing, who he offers a polite nod in turn. He may appear generally unbothered by other people's opinions, but that doesn't mean he wants to be the center of attention here. Other people in the crowd who are bound to be eyecatching means less eyes on him, and that's a good thing. It would be an even better thing if people's attention could remain fully focused on the stage, but that would be way too much to hope for here. That's hardly what highschoolers are like, especially not where the majority of those present are attending.

While he makes a point of not reacting to any negative attention he receives, he does respond to the occasional smile he catches. Such as one from Jun, to which he reacts with a hat tip, sans actual hat. It's not as widespread as he would like, but it's nice that some students appear to appreciate him. His attention doesn't linger in that direction long - he saw Ichika there, which means Tsubasa is likely nearby as well. For their sake, he pretends not to have noticed them, judging that they might prefer it that way. This is neither the time nor the place to discuss misunderstandings, by his reckoning.

Soon enough, his attention is drawn back to the show, he eyes widening a bit as things take a turn. The start may have been a big rough, but suddenly the energy has increased manifold - Eikichi once again at the forefront, carrying that energy with a new look, showy dance maneuvers, and... an interesting choice of song. It's not that he feels targetted by it per se, but it does make him feel a little more exposed. Of course this kind of song is going to make more people look at the teacher in the room. All the more reason to keep his attention fully focused on stage.

And what's not to like? This sort of thing isn't his vibe at all, but it absolutely is Eikichi's, he's positively shining out there. To a guidance counselor, who's made it his mission to help as many people succeed in life as possible, the most beautiful thing to behold is people who seem to be doing well for themselves, whether or not he had anything to do with it. In a perfect world, people like him wouldn't be necessary at all.

Naturally, he applauds once again, following the end of the song. He can't even conceive of anyone who would begrudge another enjoying themselves so much. He may yet be a little naive, failing to notice Sugimoto's reaction.

<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

After the show wraps up, Eikichi jumps off the stage, doing one of those hero landings that are all the rage. He stands and shoots his band a thumbs up, who sheepishly wave back. They knew they needed work and possibly to find better replacements to see the Boss' dream actually progressed. Ken would be on the look out for people who had the look and could keep up with the Boss.

The blue haired punk is still in his pompadour'd bancho attire, looking around before he throws up his arms. "Hey hey, you beautiful people! What did you think?" He places a hand under his chin and listens to all the noises of the crowd for a moment, taking it all in. He can hear some of the laughter but he is too much in a performance high to really register it. All he can hear are some cheers. He makes his way over to the refreshment stand for some OJ. Perfect to refresh himself and stay healthy.

On his way, he spots Jun, stopping in his tracks as his headaches every so slightly. Why was this nostaglic? He shakes out the bad vibes and chalks it up post performance anxiety. That's a thing right?

Nows the time to come meet Eikichi....Or the rest of Gas Chamber who are currently discussing the need to get better people in this band to support the boss.

<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.

    Their eyes meet for only a second, but that's enough. Jun sucks in a little breath, momentary shock on his pretty face. He only caught a glimpse of that handsome face under the hood, but... No, no, what is he thinking? That's literally a stranger across the room! He's already looking away...
    
    Tsubasa asks him if he's good; Ririka asks if everything's okay. "Huh? Oh--I'm sorry, I'm fine," he tells them both, brushing fingers through his dark hair. "I just... thought I saw someone I knew."
    
    He does glance back again that way. But by that point, the stranger in red is already ascending the spiral stairs, on his way out.
    
    "Oh--yes," he utters, turning back towards Ichika. Right, he's got people he's enjoying the concert with. It's rude to get distracted. He smiles back at So-young, and if she was razzing him earlier, he absolutely did not notice. It's simply too boisterous in here for him to cotton on to something relatively subtle. "Isn't that just the nature of youth? They're always trying to hurry up and realize their dreams as soon as they can."
    
    (jun you are barely a year older than him)
    
    Because of all that, he doesn't catch the way Eikichi looks at him after leaping down from the stage and entering the crowd. Jun might have noticed that look and realized... something odd. As it stands, well... surely it's nothing strange if Eikichi feels familiar when he's the most well-known boy in school? And never mind that it feels like he might have shown up in some of his recent nightmares...
    
    It's not like he can remember them anyway.
    
    He doesn't move in to try to meet Eikichi, though. He's sure he'd rather have one of his cute girl fans come up to adore him first--especially the ones who don't already attend Kasugayama High. He at least cheers when Eikichi asks for feedback, raising his hands to show off how he's clapping again.
    
    Right. This is a concert, and it should be a good vibe, like Marlowe-sensei with his tipped lack-of-hat. It's better not to focus on any unsettled feelings of deja vu.

<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.

"I don't know about that, but you just have this energy now. You were cool, now you're..." Shinjiro, clearly still joking, raises his hands as the concert ends. "Normal."

Though, the fact he said 'you were cool' means he definitely thinks she's cool.

"...besides, I only had the one friend to go to concerts with, and he was too busy most of the time, so." Shinjiro isn't dwelling on it, per se, it's just a fact of life even if it's a sad one. "Didn't stop me."

As Umie speaks, though, Shinjiro nods. "You saw him too, didn't you? He should have hung out." He is owed one (1) katsudon.

And then, once the crowd stops, he goes to move forward. Hopefully Umie follows and doesn't get lost.

"Good show," he immediately tells Eikichi if he can get close enough, to give support from people he invited, before moving to feel out the area. He's tall enough to see over everyone, so he's looking for people who seem interesting to talk to about the music.

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    "Aight," they nod, to Jun, when he says he just saw someone. They take that on the face of it pretty easily -- there are a lot of people here to see. Like that guy who made his exit back there...

    Eikichi asks what the crowd thought, after the performance, and Tsubasa whoops and bangs on those bars again.

    They'll take a moment with Ichika, though, to go visit the other members of the band. "Hey," they rumble, to the people standing behind Eikichi. "Don't sweat it. Yeah, you copped some choushippazure," some discordant notes, they mean, "but it was your first gig in front of a crowd. Right? Like, just... grab some beers or somethin' to relax before you get out there. You're arright, just chokin' under pressure." That's underage drinking, Tsubasa! That's still a crime!!

    But they're pretty occupied with the wellbeing of the parts of a band who aren't the frontrunner, for some reason.

<Pose Tracker> Saika Kikuchi has posed.

 
"It tastes like rat piss," Saika agrees with So-Young, but in a happy tone of voice. After this, she turns her head for a moment -- is someone looking for her, calling her name? (Saika can't quite make out Ririka. Maybe it's more of a vibe thing. Or it's Whatever The Hell That Was.)

At the end of the set, Eikichi leaps off the stage - Saika throws both hands in the air - and he makes the landing! No crowd-surfing failure, just a dynamic conclusion. She is swift to step forwards and slap him on the back, "WHOO!" on her lips afterwards, and as she throws an arm over his shoulders even as he gets up. Which may require some maneuvering on his part.

"That was pretty ****ing good for someone in a club for high schoolers!! Maybe this place doesn't suck **** after all!! You got an album or something?!" After this, at least, she disengages - possibly needing to get shoved away.

(What were those cusses? They were pretty dire cusses. Just, dropped into conversation. Too hot for the school-age crew.) After disengagement, she moves back in the direction of So-young and Myunghon -- "You guys come here a lot?!" she half-shouts to them. (Is she just being loud for fun or is it the ambient noise?)

<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.

    Mark doesn't get up to crowd around Eikichi as he addresses the crowd. He's internally imagining some kind of art piece he might do of the whole thing, next free day he's got to sketch something up and then get to putting paint to canvas somewhere.
 
     Better a night than it had any right to be, all told, for just killing time and getting his mind off of some stuff.
 
     "He knows what he wants in life, that's for sure," he muses aloud, as he casts a glance over to Eikichi's back-up. They didn't seem as into it, so he's got to wonder... what are their dreams, then?

<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.

Ichika didn't notice Jun's quiet in the moment; it's hard to notice too many things. But she realizes what she missed a moment later--after he says he's fine. "Yeah, he goes all-out on style," Ichika agrees with Ririka. Eikichi of course jumps off stage. Ichika grins at that, but when Tsubasa takes a moment, Ichika goes with them. She's still a little nervous, now that there's some open space.

"You did good guys," Ichika says. She's seen them practice. "Looks like it did take more than just style, huh?" A grin. "But seriously, relax. Takea load off."

She can go see Eikichi too, in a minute--but she was cheering when he was asking questions.

<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

"Thanks, Aragaki! Glad you came!" Eikichi says back to Shinjiro as he gets his OJ, sipping it lightly as he leans on the bar for the moment. "Good crowd tonight."

 He turns his head when he hears Saika cussing, eyes widening before a grin hits his face. This woman was kinda crude but was a fan so hell yeah. "Thank you! We need to work on album still but that might be whats next." There are a million things before an album, Eikichi. What are you doing?

Ken, the guitarist, looks over at Tsubasa. "Thanks. This is the boss' thing so we are just trying to make his dreams a reality. Still--I wish he would've practiced more." He grumbles to himself as he puts away his guitar, looking over to Eikichi smoozing with others at the refreshment bar. A smile crosses his face. He's really doing it. Good for the boss. The rest of the band begin to pack up, letting their boss have his moment. This was for him after all.

<Pose Tracker> Julian Marlowe has posed.

Following the show's conclusion, Julian finds himself a bit conflicted. Certainly, it would appropriate to go congratulate Eikichi on a job well done, following his big debut. On the other hand, he should keep his role in mind. To go and actively mingle with the students in a setting like this would be...

...He would like that, if he were completely honest. But it's complicated. He can't entirely disagree with those who feel that teachers should stay out of students' personal lives. Granted, it's part of his job, but he's not on the job now, is he?

He's never not on the job, in his mind. But that still doesn't mean he should intrude overmuch.

A compromise, then. Rather than approach, he keeps a respectable distance, keeping his comments to Eikichi to a simple, "<Good show, Mister Mishina.>" He's the only one who would say that in English, it should draw attention for that alone. He'll offer a smile and a bow when regarded, but barring unforeseen circumstances, he plans to take his leave in short order, following that.

<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.

    So-young's smile is not even strained a little as she looks towards Jun addressing her. Oh, this kid is absolutely going to grow up to be a teacher, isn't he? There's something slightly depressing about that as far as So-young is concerned, though she is rather biased. "There is realizing your dreams, and there is hurtling towards them. A band only tends to work if everyone is on the same page - regardless of which page it is," she muses as she taps at her chin, looking back towards the group with another thoughtful pause as Eikichi jumps down from the stage.

    "I'm new to Sumaru, in fact!" she calls back to Saika, easily lifting her voice louder and glossing right over those swearwords without blinking. "But I think I'll be in and out of here a lot! What a venue!" she cheers immediately. "I wouldn't have ever expected to find a place like this. You could put on some real shows here, properly put that echo to good use. We need three separate drum kits and some very large speakers as soon as possible!"

    Lifting up from her seat, she makes her way towards the stage - though much like Tsubasa, she doesn't make for Eikichi himself but for the rest of the band. "No, no, no!" she chimes as she claps her hands in time with each 'no' to gather their attention. "You just did the most terrifying thing of all, and everyone out there cheered for you, so I'll have none of this faint modesty. Even the triangle player at the back of an orchestra has their pride," she adds with another dazzling smile.

    That smile burns ever so bright as she rotates her head in Tsubasa's direction almost horror-movie style, and for a moment there's a predatory gleam in her eye. "The Auntie part will definitely be remembered - how the hell did she even catch that over the music? But nothing seems to truly get this woman down, and she still looks delighted to be surrounded by life and noise.

<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.

Eikichi asks them what they think. "You're killing it!" Ririka shouts, pumping her fist in the air.

Jun says he's fine, though, and Ririka looks at him for a moment... before slowly nodding. "Okay..." She's not sure what else to say to that. So she turns her attention back to the rest of the people gathered.

But Ririka notices when Tsubasa goes to talk to the rest of the band, grinning a bit. "Yeah he doesm" she says to Ichika. "I might have to take some notes. Be right back." She gets up to follow Tsubasa. She's smiling as she listens to Tsubasa's advice--though the mention of beer makes her frown.

"Yeah!" she agrees enthusiastically. "Getting up on stage takes a lot of guts, right? I can tell you all really wanted to support Mishina-san, but I'm looking forward to seeing you guys again, too! Keep up the good work!"

She knows they were struggling. She's not going to bother pointing out something they already know, though.

<Pose Tracker> Maria Sakurai has posed.

    All good things must come to an end. Eventually, the music stops: the concert's over. And there's the leader of the band, triumphant as he leaps from the stage. Maria shrieks in delight-- oh, now she wants to do that, too!

    The mood of the crowd is infectious: she joins the throng that swells towards the stage. Love it or hate it, there's no denying the mood of the moment, and Maria's all about that mood.

    She overhears something that calls to her, and raises her voice: she's on the taller side of normal, but she's still going to have to stand up on her tippy-toes and shout to be heard over the noise. "An album? Really? I'd buy one!" she cheers, waving a bracelet-bedecked wrist furiously above the fray. The bangles do what they're meant to: they rattle noisily. Did she really like the music that much...? And-- there isn't even an album yet! He doesn't have a producer yet! But Maria's never let facts get in her way... too much.

<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.

    
    Umie's lips split in a sharp, curled open mouthed grin at Shinjiro. "Ah, but you *did* think I was cool. First impressions are worth more."

    "I mean, he wasn't always like this, you know," Umie lets slip on the topic of Tatsuya, feeling loosened and rattled by the earlier concert. "I mean, he was *similar*, but not..." It's a topic for another time. They're here for Eikichi, who is now coming down off the stage.

    And, when Shinjiro makes it to Eikichi, there's a certain short presence that's somehow gotten lost. Is this one of her stealth maneuvers, like she showed in Tartarus?

    No, Shinjiro's just freaking tall compared to Umie, and she's somewhere stuck between Point A and Point B.

    She is, alas, normal powered now, and Kasugayama High's students are vertically gifted, more or less. Or, at least, it seems that way to Umie, being in an unfamiliar situation, while being separated from someone she was using as a crutch to prop up her flagging senpai self esteem.

    The crowd may as well be an ocean, and while Umie can swim, she knows better than to fight a current, or follow along a tide that may lead her in circles forever. So, she strafes through the teal uniform jungle, hoodie falling down as she is accidentally nudged straight into Jun, barely stopping herself. "...! Excuse me."

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    "Figure out what you're gettin' out of it," Tsubasa encourages Ken, though as gruff as they are, it might be hard to pick the encouragement out of their tone. "Cool if that reason's how you wanna support him, but if you decide on that, you'll have a reason to push which ain't just goin' along with it." If Ririka's listening in, she might recognise that focus on motivation as similar to the advice they gave her; apparently, that's just kind of their thing. "Could tell you did way better with that second set, yeah -- guessin' you pinned him down for that one way more? He's got the style, but the Boss is right, there's more'n that goin' into a show." They crack their neck, back and forth, looking over to Eikichi and hatching a plan to bring that to him. They're a third year, so they have some capacity to approach the Death Boss, even if they're not one themself.

    (They're bringing Ichika with them, for some reason. Don't worry about it.)

    They look over to So-young, hand still at the back of their neck. "What? You got a problem, auntie?" They lob over to her, scowling. What they say next is more about than to her, though. "Damn adults, the vibe's so weird..." They'll start ambling over to Eikichi and the refreshment stand, anyway.

    But on the way over, Tsubasa looks up, when they hear asterisks in the air. "What the fuck?" They ask, looking to Ichika with a twisted up expression. "Is that, like, English?" Ichika is about as likely to recognise the foreign language as Tsubasa is, since, as Julian would know, their English is terrible.

    "Yo, Death Boss," Tsubasa calls out, once they get to Eikichi. "Nice work. Though, uh, hey..." They step in a bit closer, lowering their voice so that not everyone and their dog can hear them offering advice to the Boss of Kasugayama. "... your second set was stronger'n the first one. Go easier on your boys and do more of whatever you were doin' there, woulja? Poor guys look like they're next up to die."

<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

Eikichi hears English and snaps toward it's source. "Thanks Sensei! Glad you came!" He will probably go bother the teacher later as roles and expectations weren't really his thing. Plus who the hell cares? This is Kasu.

"An Album seems like a popular choice so I guess that is our next milestone. I'll need to write some tracks." Eikichi is excited by the idea, beeming to himself.

The band looks over to Ririka and then at each other. "Yeah. This is for the Boss....I barely know what I'm doing." Shogo admits from the keyboard he's currently packing up. "So uh, thanks." He awkwardly looks over when he hears through the grapevine about an album. Oh god, was the boss going to make them record this so his parents could hear? Oh no...

Ken coughs nervously. "Thanks, we'll keep working on it."

They see So-young come and pump them up. Ken blushes nervously, looking around. He isn't used to being the one in the spotlight. Quick what did Eikichi say. "One...two?..." Ken does a weird hip move that Eikichi drilled into them rather than drilling their actual music.

<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.

    That's the dream, So-young!
    
    "You do have a point," Jun tells her--because it's achingly clear that the current members of Gas Chamber are not on the same page. "But they're all close friends." At least, they're all members of the Death Boss's gang. "I'm sure they'll find a conclusion that's right for them."
    
    ...even if it means drifting apart. Sometimes people need to pursue their own dreams, not just support someone else's.
    
    He doesn't stop So-young from leaving for the stage--or Ichika or Tsubasa, for that matter. Ririka still seems concerned, but he gives her a hopefully reassuring smile. They don't know each other that well, but he admires her own music, and he doesn't want to make her fret over him.
    
    As people move away from him, though, and the music is over... the crowd starts to press in on Jun. He's not a fan of big crowds, and while it was all right while the music was playing, it's getting to be a bit too much... Jun makes up his mind and picks his way through the crowds for the spiral stairs.
    
    That's just when Umie bumps into him, jostled by the crowd. "Oh! Excuse me," he echoes back at her. He pauses, then smiles, a chuckle on his breath. "Heading out for some fresh air? Me, too."
    
    He'll keep heading out for that too, whether Umie confirms or not.

<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.

As Shinjiro LOSES UMIE, he frowns. She'll be fine, right? She's *a formerly cool adult*, she'll live... probably.

So, instead, he steps over to Saika and So-Young, as well as the band. "How'd you like the show?" He asks the adults, squinting.

...he glances to the drink. He sighs. "Shit bar, right?" Shinjiro you're seventeen and do not drink because it would kill you faster!!!

But, Shinjiro overheard them, which is why he approached. Maybe... "If you're new to Sumaru, there's a place in Aoba, called Parabellum. Rumor is they sell firearms or something, I've just heard the drinks are pretty good."

Why's he doing this? Because after a punk show, if you can drink, *you should drink*.

<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.

Tsubasa's advice sounds good to Ichika. she nods along. And, the asterisk... "Shit if I know," Ichika says of that. She doesn't know about the other adults who are here--she's just not going to think about it. Instead, she goes with Tsubasa. And Death Boss reached... "Yeah, me too," Ichika chimes in after Maria. "But you knew that. I got in on the ground floor, heh."

Tsubasa has real advise; Ichika grins. "Go with it," she agrees. "You'll get more momentum as you go!"

<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

Eikichi looks over at Tsubasa as she approaches and nods. "Oh they can handle it. Those guys are my boys. They are part of why I'm the boss. They can handle anything." Eikichi looks over to the boys on stage and Shogo looks shell shocked and Takeshi looks dead tired. "See! Strong boys!" He thought highly of his gang, even if they seemed to be out of their element. He perks up seeing Ichika. "Hey! Kawase! You came! Thank you!" He grins widely as he finishes his OJ and gets another to treat himself. After all too much sugar led to....bad thoughts Eikichi. No Bad thoughts tonight.

<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.

    "... Oh, ah." Hearing her compulsively polite words echoed back at her, Umie looks up to Jun, paused in midthought, before straightening. This is a completely different sort of student than what Umie would imagine for a place like Kasugayama. "Actually..."

    She doesn't need to meet Eikichi. He's plenty swamped as it is, and she can text him a message later, along with Shinjiro.

    "... Yeah, that sounds like a pretty good idea right now," she responds, making up her mind, then. Maybe she could snag Tatsuya. (Or maybe, Umie thinks, she could be a *cool adult* and let the young man enjoy his evening.)

    She'll use Jun as a beacon to get to the spiral stairway, following quietly up with him into the beckoning June night air.

<Pose Tracker> Saika Kikuchi has posed.

 
"You should put somethin' out! You sound pretty good!" Saika tells Eikichi before she breaks off. After this, she folds her hands behind her head, which also sticks her elbows out, which means she's less likely to get BUMPED into. Though it seems that this place is not *quite* subway-rush-hour packed, and her attention turns up towards the approaching Shinjiro.

"It was okay!" she tells Shinjiro. wow, damning with faint praise

"Like I got the feeling like when I see some new guy completely blasting the fuck out of a tournament," Saika continues, after a moment, looking at the ceiling. "It might be nothin'... OR we're going to get to brag about being on the ground for when, what're they called? Ass Chamber?" But then:

"Drinks AND guns? Where is it??" Saika asks Shinjiro with obvious, violent enthusiasm. Back to So-young: "We gotta make this guy show us!! Even if he's tryin' to trick us into a host bar!!"

<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.

She nods in agreement with So-young. "That's right." And she's also nodding along to Tsubasa. She recognizes that advice. "Yeah, if you guys want to do more practice, ask him. He should want you guys to succeed just as much as you guys want him to succeed." She grins. Shogo says he doesn't know what he's doing. "Welcome! But seriously, no joke, I bet you guys can keep getting better if you ask for that practice, okay?"

She winces a little at the mention of an album, looking back to the crowd... and then back to the backup band members. She lowers her voice. "Insist on more practice before you worry about original songs. You'll feel a lot better about it once you're ready for it. Good luck!"

"H-hey, Seki-san," she says quietly. "That's So-young Park. I've worked with her before, she's cool." Cool does not preclude weird, however. She lets Ichika and Tsubasa go over to Eikichi, and turns to So-young, smiling. "I didn't expect to see you here!" She says that like they've met before. (Which they have.)

<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.

    The night air outside is nice and cool... Well, compared to the air inside, anyway. It's still June. Jun leans on the wall outside the door and sighs a bit, relaxing in the (also relative) quiet.
    
    He doesn't shoo Umie away. If she's also out here for some fresh air, he's sure she'll keep to herself.
    
    Of course, it's hard to get a good read on a complete stranger... He brushes back his bangs a bit before checking his phone. Both his parents are working late tonight, so maybe he'll pick up something from the Izakaya Shiraishi before heading home...

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    "Pfft," Tsubasa blows air through their lips, when Ririka says So-young is cool. "Sure." They still sound pretty sceptical, but... well, So-young hasn't proved to them she's worth respecting.

    "Weird," Tsubasa concludes to Ichika, as well, on the topic of asterisk swears.

    "Yeah, they're tough," Tsubasa sighs, as they -- not she, notably, they've been 'Tsubasa' and dressing in (desecrating) the boy's uniform since coming to Kasugayama -- rub the back of their neck. "But I really reckon you oughta practice more with them if you want 'em to be the best they can be. Uh, that's how it was when I was runnin' with a band, yeah? We needed the guy up front with us, or we couldn't see the way through." They're a touch uncomfortable with admitting their own skin in the game, but it's only respectful to tell Eikichi why they're suggesting what they are.

<Pose Tracker> Tatsuya Suou has posed.

    Tatsuya's not there anymore. Well, of course -- he was prowling some angry kid convinced he was going to do something wrong, before realising the only thing he's got on him is that he did a crime in another timeline, which might or might not be worse than, like, Minority Report or something. He's becoming a psycho-pass cop. That sucks! Besides, Sugimoto's not gonna do anything out in the open like that, and maybe not tonight... tsk... the only thing he can do is check on the rumours again--

    And that's why he's at Kameya Alley, staring at a random travel agency office and slapping his head.

    Right, the Kuzunoha Detective Agency isn't HERE in this timeline, moron, you knew that.

<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

Eikichi grins at Saika. "Then that's what we'll do! Put out an album to end all other albums" He pumps his hand in the air, hearing a distant grumble from the stage, who heard Eikichi's proclamation.

The band look at Ririka like she can help them. Ken grumbles out a "Thank you. We'll get the boss on that..I hope."

 Eikichi turns back to Tsubasa, contemplating their words as he sips his OJ. "Yeah I guess, when you put it that way we could work on it. I mean Gas Chamber is going places and my boys and I are going ride this all the way to the top!"

<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.

    So-young doesn't even seem disappointed by Tsubasa's rebuke, breaking out into a sudden laugh in reponse. "No, no problem. What, you think I can't know a thing or two about rock, or being the backup?" she shoots back without any heat in her voice. She does look slightly chagrined as Tsubasa huffs off - not out of fear that she might have annoyed them, but that she's driven Tsubasa away from what was giving eminently sensible advice.

    As such, she's fairly quick to give the rest of the band another smile, and then return to the table to find that kid with the beanie waiting for her. Oh, she's glad he didn't get mugged in an alley yet, or arrested. That would actually put a damper on the day. "Very good!" she chimes. "Perhaps not the playing, but the intent behind it certainly made a good show. And the bar is fantastic," she adds with open surprise at his dismissal - but then, she's not exactly thinking of the drink selection. "A converted prison is _perfect_. Whoever had that idea deserves a round of applause."

    Her smile tugs a little wider, laughter dancing in her eyes. "Do you always recommend bars that might sell firearms to new people you meet?" she wonders aloud, as her brain automatically starts comparing that rumor to the Cardboard Dragon. A sleepy card game shop that gets a mafia visit. A bar that may or may not sell firearms. Her curiosity fully piqued, she hums brightly towards Saika. "You can trust him, I'm sure. He's a friend of the family, I believe."

    She does not elaborate on this to Shinjiro, at all.

    "What else could I do but be here? It's a debut show!" So-young immediately changes tack towards Ririka, offering her an actress' smile and suddenly all poise. She... might think that Ririka has just seen her in a gossip magazine, though her smile falters a little before some degree of recognition filters through her expression, especially given the way she leaves out key details as she continues: "Oh, if you mean 'not in Tokyo', I had business out this way! If I'm lucky, maybe we'll get to light Aoba Park up with some performances."

<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.

Shinjiro pauses as Ririka is next to them, but he continues to just sigh. Saika wants him to show them the bar. He considers... but first So-Young has a question!

"Only those who pass the vibe check." Smooth, Shinjiro.

A glance to Ririka. It's a glance that says 'if you tell people I might be going to a bar with two older ladies, I will kill you'. He will not actually kill her, nor are his motives bad.

But, So-Young said something else, about friend of the family. "...you were at their place, weren't you? You're the..." Recollection dawning. What was So-Young doing there...

"...store band???"

<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.

    Umie didn't know how hot Sumaru Prison was until she got outside; she continues on past Jun, walking until she finds a bench to sit down on as she takes out her phone.

    First: a congrats to Eikichi, though he'll likely not see it until later, given how loud to was.
    Second: a message to Shinjiro, letting him know she stepped outside for some fresh air.
    Third: she pauses over Tatsuya's phone number, then decides against it.

    (God, how did she get so many phone numbers? Her list has exploded in the past month.)

    Something inside her pokes her curiosity when she looks towards Jun, but, as he checks his phone, common courtesy wins this bout.

     She imagines a cute little frown, somewhere, in the back of her mind. No, Mai-chan. She's not a little child anymore.

<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.

"Really!" Ririka insists to Tsubasa. But she knows So-young can be unconventional. That's why she liked working with her so much.

But for the rest of Gas Chamber's band members... Sadly, Ririka can only do so much. She's trying to walk a fine line between 'offering encouragement' and 'offering unsolicited advice.' She thinks it'll be better long-term if the band can ask for what they want themselves. "Welcome!" she says to Ken. "Good luck, I'll be rooting for you!"

She smiles more widely to So-young, though. "Oh, I know you're in the area. You've been doing that great series with the Tokyo Philharmonic. I've tried to get to all the performances I can." She lights up. "Oh, I was by that way a few days ago, that's a beautiful area! I was just surprised because I wasn't sure how widely word about this concert had gotten out. I only heard about it from my sister."

She looks to Shinjiro. "Aragaki-san, right?" She didn't really get a chance to thank him for the helping at Sumaru TV the other day, and this might not be the time for it. She blinks at that look, making a puzzled face. She's only coming in partway through this conversation.

"Bands have stores...?"

<Pose Tracker> Saika Kikuchi has posed.

 
Saika gives Ririka a big grin and a twirling half-salute of a wave as she gets nearer to the area, but then her attention turns to So-young. "Oh, a friend of the family huh, right?" After this, her lips purse for a moment. "So why would you build a prison in a place like this, anyway? There's like... people around. Did Sumaru just get even fatter cuz of the bubble economy or whatever the hell?"

This question of urban development and its discontents tapers off towards Shinjiro. She scratches her cheek; the motion makes her slightly relaxed jaw shift, her mouth hanging open at the exact moment when Ririka might be looking at them to judge. Imagine it, frozen in a moment: Shinjiro Aragaki talking to some punk woman with her mouth hanging open.

"Store band?" Saika then says, with bafflement, before looking back to Ririka. "Oh yeeeaaah wait what the fuck?" Saika then looks at So-young again, baffled, before asking Shinjiro, "Are all of these girls musicians??" (To Ririka, she says, "I figure like, playin' live music for the stunt shows on weekends. Or something.")

"You guys got some friggin dramatic arcs in your conversations," Saika observes after this, rubbing her chin with one hand, the other on her hip.

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    So-young insists she knows a thing or two about being the backup, and Tsubasa rolls their eyes. Ugh! Teenagers!

    They at least manage to figure out a way to bring Eikichi around, eventually. "Cool," they nod, to him. "Lookin' forward to the next one, Death Boss. You'll kill it." Get it? Killing? Death? ... okay, that probably wasn't on purpose, it just so happens that a bunch of youth slang about something being good and exciting is centred around violence.

    They grab an orange juice of their own from the bar -- and one for Ichika, too. "Here, Boss," they say, obligingly. She gets top billing, too!

    ... even if it would be way cooler if this was beer.

<Pose Tracker> Jun Kashihara has posed.

    Jun finishes up checking his phone and shuts it; he catches Umie looking his way and gives her a smile. Even more of a contrast with a certain child's gloomy frown... This is a new day, after all. A new day in a new life.
    
    But he doesn't think anything more of it, and soon heads on his way. By the time he makes it to Kameya Alley to dinner, no doubt Tatsuya will already be gone, too.

<Pose Tracker> Eikichi Mishina has posed.

Eikichi nods to Tsubasa. "Then it shall be done!" He waves to them and finishes his orange juice and starts to head back to the band, who are waiting around the stage. Tonight was a success but the future was still coming up. "You fellas want to get something to eat? I know a place with a great salad." The others laugh and slap their leader on the back as they start to get their gear out of here.

<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.

    "The store band!" So-young chimes, as if delighted by the job title Shinjiro just gave her. "Though it's not like that was planned or anything. I just happened to have my violin with me when I was visiting, and there was a stage ready and waiting for me and an vampire event going on. What else is a self-respecting musician to do but provide some ambiance?"

    'Visiting' is a slightly odd word to use for 'going to a shop', and maybe that helps connect the dots together around her talk of 'family'... but it's hard to believe that So-young might have deliberately chosen that wording to be subtle about it, given the lack of guile in her expression. She might just be a dumbass.

    With a puff of air, the conductor plants her hands on her hips and beams towards Ririka. "Why, don't underestimate my ability to look out for posters. If you want to find the good music, it's important to poke your head down side alleys and check which ones have been freshly put up." ... maybe she just showed up at the Cardboard Dragon because she has no danger sense. It would certainly explain a lot.

    Saika gets a bright wink. "So-young Park," she bows her head. "Guest conductor with the Tokyo Philharmonic, but very much off-duty today."

<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.

"Probably, it's a concert," Shinjiro replies to Saika, before turning to So-Young. ...does Myunghon have *family*? It'd explain a lot, like how much of a dumbass he thinks this lady is- wait, no, that's rude, she seems really cool anyways, just like Myunghon.

"Anyways, if you want to go to Parabellum, I can show you the way. I'll have to text the person I came with to meet us there if she wants, she's cool." He will not reveal he's seventeen. He's not gonna *drink* but he wouldn't even if he was twenty.

<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.

Ririka offers a smile to Saika. "Kikuchi-san, right? I didn't expect to see you again so soon." Twice in one day! And in two different cities. What a weird coincidence.

Well, there's a lot of people here, and she's trying to talk to So-young, so... she's not going to judge Shnjiro and Saika.

'Are all of these girls musicians?' Is she counted in 'these girls'? She doesn't know, but she does helpfully say, "Well, I'm a musician, if you're counting me."

("Ohhh, that'd make sense. A store must have a lot of events to keep a band like that...")

Oh, she just happened to be visiting (a store? She ignores the word choice) with her violin. "Oh, cool! I never thought about just doing a performance in a random place like that... Vampire Bakers sound cool, though. Wasn't that that expansion of that one card game? What was it called..."

She holds up her hands in playful surrender. "Oh, I should've known you'd be able to find something like this, Park-san. That's so like you!"

She looks to Shinjiro next. "Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for your help the other day, Aragaki-san." She gives a small, quick bow with the thanks. She pauses, consider. Didn't she hear... well, maybe she'll figure out if that should be -senpai later. "And if you wouldn't mind, could you thank your friend for me too?"

<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.

  "Music is anywhere you want it to be," So-young replies to Ririka. She's not trying to sound sagely here or anything - she says it so matter-of-factly, even shrugging a little. "There's no need to get hung up over acoustics or audience. Though I suppose it is a bit harder when you need a piano to play on."

"Oh, there was something about a game, yes. I think? It sounded popular." ... yeah, definitely not there for the merch, then. Obsessive opsec may not be So-young's strong point.

But she leaves that topic alone as she eyes Shinjiro, then looks to Saika for confirmation, and then claps her hands together. "Well then, lead on! I've still got plenty of Sumaru to cover for interesting spots."

<Pose Tracker> Saika Kikuchi has posed.

 
"Yeah! I heard this was a debut or something, so I came over," Saika tells Ririka. "I'm basically the tastemaker for Shimokita, y'know. OK, no but BUT, if they were worth shit, I could PROBABLY suggest a club or something." DID GAS CHAMBER NOT SUCK SHIT?

apparently since she isn't vomiting on their drum kit

After this, her attention turns back to Shinjiro. "Cool, do it. What's her name?" BUT THEN:

Saika blinks once at So-young's revelation. She is quiet for several long seconds.

After So-young says 'lead on, macduff' Saika blurts, "You're the fucking CONDUCTOR???"

("Are there like degrees in that?" Saika asks, on the way out.)

<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.

 
"Kawase, right? No problem, I'll tell them," Shinjiro tells Ririka. "Take care of yourself, that seemed rough as shit."

And then, he turns back to the two cool adult women. "Akabane," Shinjiro says to Saika. They'll recognize each other if they meet, which will be weird. He flips open his phone, texting Umie.

<going to bar with two cool women, you wanna look at guns? parabellum.>

And then, pocketing his phone, Shinjiro goes to LEAD THE WAY.

This will certainly not come back to haunt him...

<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.

 
So-young says music is anywhere you find it. "Oh, I agree!" She kind of hears music in... a lot of places, really. But a piano... "Welll, I /do/ play acoustic guitar... that might be more portable." She's considering carrying it around more now.

Ahh, but the skateboard... too unbalanced. That's too bad.

Tastemaker... Ririka looks impressed, at least until Saika backpedals a little. "/STill/, I'm sure someone as cool as you could do it, if you wanted!"

"Thank you very much," Ririka says to Shinjiro. "And I will. Yeah, that was... certainly something. You take care, too."

She watches Shinjiro leave with /two cool women/.

... She's /definitely/ jealous, just a bit.

With a wistful sigh she turns and makes her way back to her sister, to keep hanging out with her and Tsubasa.