AR fiction in which the scouts form a band. They'll be no Sailor Moon 
or Superheroes in this story, and I mess around quite liberally with 
names and ages, and familial situations just about everything. I don't 
own Sailor Moon so don't sue me for using their likenesses. It would 
be pointless anyway because I'm broke. This is only the beginning, it's 
up to you whether I keep going. Enjoy!
All the Right Notes
16/3/01
A loud, strained, high pitched squeal filled the small auditorium, and it 
was all any one could do not to clap their hands over their ears. Finally, 
the sour note ended as the woman on the stage strangled the last bit of 
life from her guitar.
" Thank you, miss. We'll be making our decision this evening, and 
calling everyone tomorrow. Let's take a break everyone, but be back in 
fifteen minutes", said a burgundy haired woman. Raye Hino was a 
woman who commanded obedience and when she gave orders, 
everybody listened. Raye wearily dropped her clipboard onto the 
overflowing desk and turned to face her friends who were sitting in the 
row behind her. Mina Simpson sat to her left, her blonde hair flowing 
over her shoulders, and her long legs propped up on the seat in front of 
her. Next to her was Lita Makoto, the tall brown haired beauty who was 
cradling her head in her hands as though bored out of her mind. Beside 
Lita was the ever professional and ever immaculate Amy Anderson. 
Amy had short hair, dyed a dazzling blue as though in defiance of her 
more bookish leanings. And last, but not least, to Raye's right, sat 
another blonde woman. Serena Tsukino had amazingly long golden 
hair tied up into buns on top of her head, and deep blue eyes; eyes that 
were closed as she slept, curled up on the hard auditorium chairs.
" Serena, you meatball head! Wake up, this is important", yelled Raye, 
putting her hands on her hips. Serena's eyes snapped open and she 
focused on her fuming friend.
" Sorry, Raye. But those last few candidates were awful", Serena said, 
stifling a yawn.
" I'll second that. Are we sure we need another guitarist? I mean I was 
all for it before but it's been two days and we haven't found a single 
girl who even comes close to being good enough", Lita said, stretching 
in her chair.
" You might be right, this is taking way too long. Who'd have thought 
we'd have so much trouble finding someone as good as Meatball 
head?" Raye teased.
" Ha, ha. Very funny", Serena said sarcastically, but she was smiling 
anyway.
" Maybe I should learn. I mean, then we could continue being the five, 
fab, femme, fatales", Mina said loftily.
" Mina, you don't just pick up a guitar and start playing. Besides, you 
already have a place on stage", Amy explained. 
" Then I guess, we keep looking for another guitarist and if that doesn't 
work, we'll just double the volume on Serena's guitar, that should even 
things out", Lita joked. The five band members of the group currently 
known as Raye of Hope, settled back into their seats and prepared for 
another long period of auditions. 
They were still something of a struggling band, but were doing fairly 
well for themselves and improving every day. However, the kind-of 
music they played was mostly loud, edgy, and passionate, and for that 
they had decided they needed another guitar player to strengthen the 
band. So that was why this group of attractive, female, twenty-year-
olds, were indoors on a hot spring day judging a large group of 
applicants. 
Raye was considered the leader of the group, if there was such a thing. 
She had the passion and the talent to really turn the band into 
something big. Raye had written, at least in part, many of the songs 
they performed, and she was the singer of the group. Her low, almost 
raspy, voice could really belt out a song and she had a very strong stage 
presence. She also played the keyboard when necessary.
Mina was the back-up vocalist: her sweet, high, clear voice, 
complimented Raye's perfectly. She also sang solo for a few trademark 
songs - songs that were a little too slow and soft for Raye's style. Mina 
could play the flute, the saxophone, the harmonica, a triangle, and 
anything else the group needed, which gave the group a great deal of 
variation in sound.
Amy was the main keyboardist. She could play anything from the 
classics to their hit song 'Madness', without breaking a sweat. Amy 
diligently recorded their songs and put them to memory so that nothing 
was ever wasted. On stage though she became a different person, very 
alive and wild.
The drums were the backbone of the music, just as Lita was the 
backbone of the group. She'd been playing all her life and had a certain 
style that was uniquely hers, and very powerful. Sometimes she felt 
inhibited because no matter how much things had changed, female 
drummers still didn't get all the respect they deserved, but on stage all 
that mattered was the beat.
Finally, little Serena Tsukino, the as yet sole guitarist and group 
heartbreaker. Having learned classical guitar at a young age from her 
father, she was passionate about her playing and when you combined 
that with her exuberant personality, what you got was a wild child 
frequently described as being at odds with her serene appearance. Her 
father had passed away a year ago, and sometimes when she played you 
could tell that she was thinking of him. Still, Serena could draw you in 
with her playing and then break your heart when you realized she 
played for everyone, not just for you.
A short, black haired girl climbed onto the stage and nervously adjusted 
her guitar's strings. The amplifier whined and then she began to play. 
The girl wasn't bad, but she lacked confidence and there was no 
personality to her playing. Despite their differences, the five girls of 
Raye of Hope were friends because of their love of music and the 
respect they had for each other's abilities. They wouldn't think of 
letting someone join if they didn't play with feeling.
" Thank you, you play very well. Could we have the next applicant", 
Raye said, her voice ringing through the room. Serena could feel her 
eyes closing again, though she tried to stay alert for fear of upsetting 
Raye again. She knew how badly Raye wanted this to happen. Serena 
was a little afraid that they would find someone who could play way 
better then she could and that she'd be relegated to strumming the 
melody, but then she abandoned that idea as being ridiculous. 
Suddenly, Amy gripped Serena's arm, gaining her attention.
" What?" Serena asked.
" Would you take a look at that", Lita said, leaning forward as though a 
few feet would help her get a better look.
" Oh my", said Mina. Serena looked to the stage and, just like her 
friends, she stared in surprise. The guitarist was a man. And not just 
any man; his black hair shone in the lights, and his lean, hard body, and 
strong arms cradled his beat-up electric guitar with unconscious grace. 
He flicked the hair out of his face with a nervous hand, before making a 
few minor adjustments to his guitar.
" Any time you're ready, begin", said Raye, when she found her voice. 
The man nodded and started out slowly. His eyes were partly lidded as 
he strummed the strings of his guitar; producing the most beautiful 
sound they had heard that day. The music was clear and strong, and 
was almost tangible as it weaved through the space. 
" He's really good", Amy whispered in wonder, never taking her eyes 
from his form.
" Yeah", muttered Mina. Lita just kept right on staring in complete 
rapture. The man continued to play, speeding up the tempo as he got 
more into the routine. He held the last note of his piece as though it was 
a caress and it seemed to hang in the air even as the guitar strings 
stilled.
" Thank you, you'll be hearing from us tomorrow", Raye said, slightly 
dazed. She turned to her friends, her eyes alight and her face elated. " 
He was fantastic."
" Yeah, but what about, you know", Mina said.
" Huh? What's there to discuss. He's the best I've ever seen. Except 
you Serena", Lita added hastily.
" But he's a guy!" Mina said. " This is a girl-band, isn't it?"
" We never said that the applicants had to be female. If he doesn't mind 
working with us, I don't think we should discriminate", Amy said.
" I can see what you mean Mina, but I think it might be just the thing 
we're looking for. That bit of something extra", Raye said.
" I agree. He's the right person for the job, guy or not", Lita said.
" So he's at the top of our list? That is, if you agree Serena. You're the 
expert after all. Do you think he'll work out?" Raye asked.
" He made the guitar sing", Serena said, her mind still replaying the 
notes in her head. Her father had always described her playing as a 
dream that sang and now she could understand what he had meant. She 
snapped out of her dreamlike state and stated with certainty, " He's the 
one."
" Darien Shields", Raye mumbled, reading over his audition form. 
Twenty-three years old, with two years of an arts degree at the local 
university, and ten years of guitar experience.
" And drop dead gorgeous" Mina said, reading over Raye's shoulder. " 
Wonder why he didn't put that on his application?"
" Because some people, unlike you, have some sense of modesty", 
Raye teased. She traced a big red star at the top of Darien's name, and 
then put his page at the top of the pile. " Next please", Raye said, 
although the entire band was certain they had found their sixth and final 
member.
At the end of the evening the group of young woman wearily stood and 
gathered up their belongings. They had two more possibilities to their 
list, but neither of them was as good as Darien had been.
" Hey, beautiful. How'd it go?"
" Chad! What are you doing here? I said I didn't mind walking home", 
Raye said happily.
" I couldn't wait. Do the rest of you need a ride?" asked Chad. Chad 
was Raye's boyfriend and the two of them had been together nearly a 
year. Chad ran a music store downtown and had met Raye one day 
when she'd come in for some supplies. 
" Nah, I brought my car", said Lita, pointing across the deserted car 
park to a beat up, rusty, hatchback.
" Yeah, and she's my ride", Mina said. " So, what happens now? She 
would we meet up tomorrow?"
" I was thinking, that we should call everyone tomorrow to tell them 
they didn't make it but thanks anyway. Then we can ask to meet this 
Darien for a more personal interview. You know, to make sure he 
doesn't get on our nerves or something. If it all seems okay, we'll ask 
him to join. If not, then we'll call these other two girls", Raye said.
" You're getting a guy?" Chad said incredulously.
" Jealous?" Raye said teasingly.
" Should I be?" Chad teased back, taking her in his arms and kissing 
the tip of her nose.
" Ugh! Their doing it again, guys. Run, save yourselves!" Serena said 
in mock desperation as Raye and Chad started making googly eyes at 
each other.
" Right, we'll see you all tomorrow. Ciao!" Mina said perkily, as Lita 
began striding purposely towards her car. Lita waved as she got into her 
car and opened the door for Mina. Mina and Lita shared an apartment 
and were frequently leaving and arriving together. Although Mina was 
constantly stating that she was going to get a new car so she could 
escape Lita's rust-bucket, she never seemed to get enough capital to do 
so. Her job as part-time model only left her so much, especially with all 
the costs incurred by the band. Lita worked part-time at an all night 
bakery to pay for her bills, but, like Mina, any spare bit of money went 
into her drums and her music.
" Later dudes!" Serena said, feeling like acting a little silly after being 
cooped up indoors all day. " We'll be going too, you're still coming 
over tonight, right Amy?"
" Yeah, if that's still okay?"
" Amy, Amy, Amy. I keep telling you there's no need to ask. Besides, 
my mom loves having you over. Sometimes I think she puts up with me 
because I have such great friends", Serena said, laughing. Amy lived at 
home with her mother, but her mother was a prestigious neurosurgeon 
and frequently away on business. Right now, Dr. Anderson was in 
Sweden and would be there for another month at least. Amy and her 
mother didn't get along so well, even when her mother was home. Amy 
said it was because she was a musician, like her father, and because her 
father had left her mother after a messy divorce shortly after Amy's 
birth, Dr. Anderson saw it as a betrayal that her daughter would follow 
in this man's footsteps. However, Amy didn't see herself as following 
her father, rather she just loved to play. This resulted in Amy frequently 
spending the night at Serena's house or hanging around there because 
Serena's house was always warm and inviting, not cool and aloof like 
her own home. Amy and Serena had been best friends for as long as 
they could remember. Serena's mom had been Amy's babysitter while 
Dr. Anderson was at work, since Amy was two years old.
" Okay, see you later", Raye said vaguely, waving half-heartedly in 
their direction as she continued to stare into Chad's eyes.
" Come on Ames, let's leave these two love-birds alone. Speaking of 
love birds, please tell me you don't hang all over Greg like that?" 
Serena said, as she started to walk towards her own car. Actually the 
light grey Honda was the family car, but her mother was pretty free 
with letting Serena use it. Serena dreaded the day when her younger 
brother Sam, now sixteen years old, got around to getting his licence.
" Greg?" Amy said, a smile forming on her face as she thought of her 
long-term boyfriend. Dark brown, curly hair, and deep brown eyes that 
would light up when he saw her. She'd met him in her first year of high 
school, and instantly the two had become friends. The following year, 
they'd started dating, and now well it would be their four-year 
anniversary pretty soon.
" Yeah, you know, Greg? Your one and only?"
" Greg is fine. Still working really hard at University. I can't believe 
I'm dating a want-to-be doctor after all I've gone through."
" You're living the dream! A gorgeous doctor who is madly in love 
with you and wants to marry you."
" What can I say? I lucked out", Amy said smiling. She climbed into 
the passenger seat next to Serena and fastened her seatbelt. Serena 
rubbed her hand roughly against Amy's head. Amy pushed her away, 
laughing. " What are you doing, you maniac!"
" Just wanted some of that luck of yours to rub-off on me", Serena said, 
grinning. Turning the key, in the ignition the two set-off for Serena's 
home. The light was on in the living room and Mrs. Tsukino sat on the 
sofa reading a book from the library.
" Hey mom, we're home. Anything for dinner?"
" In the fridge, dear, just help yourselves."
Serena headed straight for the kitchen and began pulling items from the 
fridge. Amy got out plates and cutlery and soon the two were eating 
Mrs. Tsukino's wonderful cooking. Mrs. Tsukino entered the kitchen a 
while later. Serena's mother Irene was tall and slender with dark wavy 
hair, and a tired expression. Even though she'd been divorced from 
Serena's father for five years when he had died of cancer, she still felt 
grief over his passing. She was especially sorry for Serena and Sam 
who had always maintained a strong relationship with their father, 
though they chose to remain living with her after the divorce.
" Where's Sam?" Serena asked, helping herself to thirds.
" Out with his friends, supposedly", Irene said slowly, and then she 
smiled slyly. " I think, though, that he's meeting that girl again. I keep 
telling him it's okay to have a girlfriend but I know how you 
adolescents like to keep your secrets."
" I'm twenty mom, not a teenager anymore. Ugh, that's a depressing 
thought", Serena said.
" Don't worry, you're only as old as you act, and currently that puts 
you at about ten", Amy said, trying to keep her face straight.
" Everyone's against me!" Serena cried out and pretended to fall to the 
ground in despair.
" I'd make that eight, Amy" Irene teased. Soon the three of them were 
laughing as Serena continued to put on a production of false 
lamentations and hammy acting.
The next morning, Amy woke up and took a shower. She was here so 
often that she had her own towel and shampoo, as well as anything else 
you might need to get ready in the morning. Serena and her had 
considered getting their own apartment, but Amy only made a few 
dollars as secretary at the hospital and Serena made next to nothing at 
the arcade she worked at part-time. It was just easier to stay at home 
and, besides, Irene would miss having her children around.
Amy wandered back into Serena's room, towel drying her short hair. 
How Serena handled all of her hair she would never know. 
" Hey, Sleeping Beauty. Wake up", Amy said, dumping her damp 
towel on Serena's sleeping face.
" Go away. I was having the most wonderful dream", Serena said, 
grumpily. Despite her protestations, she sat up and started rubbing the 
sleep from her eyes.
" Really? Some black haired, God-like man was playing you like he 
played his guitar?"
" Amy!" Serena said shocked. She also started blushing since Amy 
wasn't that far from the truth. " I don't have a boyfriend remember. I'm 
completely ignorant of what you're implying."
" Yeah sure. Whatever", Amy said, not believing her friend for a 
second. " Better take your shower. I'll call Raye and see where we're 
meeting."
" At least I don't have to work today", Serena mumbled as she headed 
for the bathroom. Standing in front of the mirror after her shower, 
Serena stared at the small face peering back at her. She definitely did 
not look the part of a rock and roll guitarist. With her gold hair and blue 
eyes, and the smattering of freckles across her nose, she was possibly 
adorable, but certainly not wild or sexy. Maybe she should dye her hair 
some unnatural colour like Amy had done. Serena dismissed that idea 
almost immediately and stuck her tongue out at her appearance. She'd 
just have to make sure that what you saw was definitely not what you 
got.
" We're meeting at ten, so you got a half-hour. Can I wear that black 
skirt of yours?" Amy asked through the bathroom door. 
" Sure, I think it's clean." Serena said, coming out of the bathroom 
dressed in loose cargo pants, a snug fitting white v-necked T-shirt, and 
sneakers. 
Amy was wearing a knee length black skirt with a split up the front of 
one leg, a white button up blouse, and black suede ankle boots. " Wow, 
you look nice. Not trying to seduce Darien are you?"
Amy laughed. " Nah, I'll leave that up to you. Greg called when I got 
off the phone with Raye. I'm meeting him afterwards. You really think 
I look okay?"
" Dah-leeng, you look fantastique", Serena said with a bad French 
accent.
The two girls arrived at the Cherry Temple Hill shrine where Raye 
lived right on time. The day was already warm so they sat outside on 
the steps with Raye and waited for the rest of the group. Lita and Mina 
arrived together as usual.
" I've had it Lita. That is the last time I push that car down the hill to 
get it started. I thought I was going to get run over!" Mina argued.
" You always say that and yet you've never gotten a scratch. Besides, 
we could have just walked but no, you wanted to wear that skirt and 
those shoes in which walking is all but impossible." The three girls 
watched this little altercation with amused expressions. Mina was 
dressed to kill and Lita was absolutely right in thinking that Mina 
couldn't walk more then half a block in her outfit. Lita herself was 
wearing jeans and a tank top, and a baseball cap was sitting backwards 
on her thick brown hair.
" Hey guys!" Mina said sunnily, as though she had just realized they 
had an audience. 
" Hey, yourself. Darien said he'd try to be here for ten. Think you can 
hold your breath for that long Mina?" Raye said laughing.
" Why would I have to Oh, you've just forgotten what it's like to be 
single", Mina said blushing, tugging the edge of her skirt down just in 
case. " I don't really look that desperate, do I?"
" Nah, we're just kidding. You look great, as usual", Serena said.
The girls started laughing about the various things they'd done in high 
school in order to attract members of the opposite sex. Serena had 
known Raye almost as long as Amy. The two had met when Serena's 
mother had taken self-defence lessons from Raye's grandfather, a 
martial arts master. Lita had met up with Serena in first year of junior 
high. Lita had been transferred to that school after her parents had been 
killed in a horrible plane crash. She'd come to the area to live with a 
distant relative until she was old enough to move out. In high school, 
Raye had switched schools to be with Serena and that meant Amy, 
Serena, Lita, and Raye had all been together for those pivotal years, and 
it was there that they had met Mina. Mina was kind-of bubbly and an 
airhead, but she was so kind-hearted that she'd become part of the 
group without any trouble. They were very close, despite all their 
differences. Possibly that loyalty stemmed from the fact that they knew 
just about every embarrassing thing each other had ever done.
" She didn't", gasped Mina.
" She did, I swear", Raye said, voice quaking with laughter. " She told 
everyone about this hot new 'boyfriend' she was seeing, trying to get 
this other guy jealous. But somehow, everyone found out that this guy 
was her cousin and the best part, the guy was really a girl!"
" Can it, Raye. That was so embarrassing", Serena said, head in her 
hands. " Besides, Haruka put me up to it. How was I supposed to know 
it would backfire?"
" I don't get it, is this cousin really butch or something?" Mina asked.
" Well, Haruka is sort-of manly, I guess. Or at least she prefers people 
to see her that way. And the fact that she has a gorgeous girlfriend only 
furthers the illusion", Amy said.
" Michiru and Haruka are so in love. Sometimes, I think they've got the 
right idea", Serena said, lying back onto the grass and closing her eyes 
against the bright sunlight.
" Oh, I remember now. Michiru and Haruka; Michiru's that famous 
violinist right?" Mina asked. She had never met Serena's cousin before, 
or the famous girlfriend, but Serena had showed her their photo in a 
magazine once.
" Uh huh. They're in France right now, I think. Haruka accompanies 
her on the piano. She even promised to come play with us some time." 
" I didn't think they would appreciate our style much", Lita said, 
thinking of the time she'd gone to hear Michiru play. Such beautiful 
classical music was a long way from the pulsing beat of their band.
" Totally not true. You should see Michiru with her electric violin when 
she gets going. And face it Haruka looks more hard core then any of us. 
She'd give you a run for your money on the keyboard, Ames", Serena 
said.
" That would be so cool", Mina said.
" Um, hi", said a distinctly male voice. The five women looked up 
surprised. Serena opened her eyes and looked at the dark haired man 
from her position on the ground. Even upside down he was to die for. 
Trying to act nonchalant, she rolled over and sat up, calmly brushing 
grass from her hair.
" Darien, glad you could make it. Sorry to get you here so early, but 
this was the only time we could all get together today", Raye said. She 
shook his hand in a businesslike manner.
" No problem. This is my friend, Andrew", he said, indicating the 
blonde haired green-eyed man standing next to him.
" I'm his groupie", Andrew said, laughing easily.
" He means 'goofy'", Darien said coolly, with only the hint of a smile. 
" Actually, he's a fan of yours and when he found out where I was 
going, he insisted upon coming. I tried to lose him, honest I did".
" Well, fortunately he tracked you down", Mina said, eyes going wide. 
Apparently, Darien was completely forgotten as she calmly approached 
Andrew and shook his hand. " You must have been a boy scout".
" Always prepared, that's for sure. For instance, I have a piece of paper 
and a pen in my pocket that would be perfect for your autograph", 
Andrew said, eyes twinkling. Mina giggled and scribbled her name 
down, along with her phone number. Serena rolled her eyes in disbelief 
at the corny lines between Andrew and Mina. She glanced at Darien 
and noticed he too was shaking his head in disbelief. He caught her eye 
and they both smiled at the antics of their friends.
" We were totally impressed with your music yesterday", Lita said.
" Thanks, I was kind-of nervous. There were three other guys there 
who were going to try out but they chickened out when they all the 
girls. That's not a problem, is it? That I'm the only guy?"
" Not for us, is it for you?" Raye asked. Darien considered before 
answering.
" Nope, not really. I just want to play. I've actually never heard of your 
group, but Andrew said you were good and that I should go for it."
" He's never heard of us, Raye. We have got to get some better 
publicity", Amy exclaimed. " Well, maybe we should introduce 
ourselves then. I'm Amy Anderson and I play the keyboard."
" Oh, right, we should have done this first", Raye said, slapping her 
forehead. " I'm Raye. Raye Hino. I sing".
" And writes, and nags, and bosses us around, and" Lita started. She 
was cut short when Raye kicked her lightly in the shins. Unfazed, Lita 
continued, " See what I mean? I'm Lita Makoto. I'm the drummer". 
The way she said drummer made it sound like she was daring him to 
contradict her. Fortunately, Darien didn't do anything but nod.
" I'm Mina", Mina said, tearing her gaze from Andrew long enough to 
shake Darien's hand. " Mina Simpson. S-I-M-P-S-O-N", she 
enunciated clearly for Andrew's benefit.
" What instrument do you play?" Darien asked innocently. Mina's eyes 
took on a dangerous gleam and Raye stepped in before Mina went way 
too overboard.
" She plays the flute and the saxophone, and backs up my vocals".
" And I'm Serena Tsukino", Serena said, standing up and brushing off 
her clothes. " I'm a guitarist".
" You play the guitar?" Darien said sceptically. If there was one thing 
Serena wouldn't stand for, it was someone questioning her musical 
ability.
" What's the matter? Don't think girls can play the guitar?" Serena said 
angrily, crossing her arms over her chest.
" That's not what I"
" Don't think I could possibly play as well as you? Think you'll just 
take over now?" Serena said approaching Darien. It annoyed her 
greatly that he was so much taller then her, since it was hard to 
intimidate someone when you had to look up to meet their eyes. 
Amazing midnight blue eyes, which looked like the sea at night after a 
storm
" If you'd let me explain instead of jumping down my throat like a 
hysterical lunatic, you'd know I was merely wondering what you 
needed me for if you already had a guitarist", Darien said icily, staring 
back into the blonde woman's face with dark intensity. Serena willed 
herself to face that penetrating gaze. Gradually, the immaturity of a 
staring contest worked its way into Serena's brain and she smiled.
" Oh, well that's okay then", she said. Darien blinked in surprise; 
realizing there was need for him to be so stubborn he broke off his 
penetrating look. He was almost sad to do so - she was quite beautiful 
to look at. " We wanted two guitar players, I play too soft, and that's 
why you're here".
" Apology accepted then", Darien said. Apology? She most certainly 
had not apologized.
" Apology accepted? Well, thanks sooo much", Serena said 
sarcastically. How arrogant he was to assume that she felt remotely 
sorry for daring to contradict him! She was about to begin yelling again 
when Lita grabbed her and pulled her back.
" Excuse us for a moment", Lita said, easily hauling Serena away. Lita, 
Raye, Serena, and Amy formed a group out of Darien's earshot. Then 
Lita sighed and went to drag Mina back to the group as well.
" Wow, is Andrew hot or what?" Mina said.
" Oh, you like him? We hadn't noticed", Raye said sarcastically. " But 
seriously, do we think this is going to work with Darien?"
" He's a jerk", Serena said petulantly.
" Serena, we are not going to base this decision on your petty jealousy", 
Amy said.
" Of course not. We're going to base this on looks, and you're all 
smitten", Serena said.
" Oh knock it off Serena, and be fair. Do you honestly not think you 
can work with him?"
" He's a jerk", she said again. The rest of the group sighed. Serena 
could be very, very, stubborn. " But he's a talented jerk. And I think 
he's the right person for the job", Serena admitted with a sigh.
" Very mature, Serena. Now let's ask him before he changes his mind. 
And not another word out of you until we get this settled", Raye said, 
taking charge yet again. " Okay, Darien, if you're still up to the 
challenge, we'd like you to work with us. Whatever money we make 
after we've paid expenses, we split six ways. You have three weeks to 
practice our songs and learn them before our next gig."
" I'm in", Darien said simply. " Though I would like to ask something."
" Yeah, I'll bet you would, you selfish" Serena muttered. Lita 
frowned at her and Serena stopped mumbling and smiled innocently.
" Can I hear you guys play?"
The group jumped into action. One of the rooms in the temple had been 
reconverted into a practice room, and their instruments were there too. 
They spent a few moments adjusting their equipment, but they were 
ready pretty soon after the request was made. Darien and Andrew sat 
on the temple floor, right in front of the band. Serena double-checked 
that her guitar was primed since she wanted Darien's first impression of 
her playing to be as perfect as possible. She couldn't bear it if she gave 
him reason to tease her.
" We'll play 'Madness', don't you think girls?" They nodded. This 
song was sort-of their signature song. It was loud, insightful, fun, and 
showed off all their individual skills well.
Lita hit her drumsticks together and called out, " One, two, one, two, 
three, four". She hit the drums and settled into the beat with ease. 
Serena began to play her part and thanked her lucky stars for having hit 
every note dead on. She grinned up at Lita, who shared her smile. Since 
both the drums and the guitar were more readily associated with male 
players, Serena and Lita felt a certain kinship towards each other when 
they were on stage and playing. Amy's subtle keyboarding skill held 
the melody as Raye approached the mike. Mina crooned in the 
background and tapped a cymbal in time with Lita. A resounding 
meeting of guitar key and drum beat signalled Raye's key to open, and 
she did, pouring emotion into the words, and basically having a good 
time being the centre of attention. She sang the words clearly but 
rapidly, and as the song progressed, it was easy to tell why the band 
was willing to suffer a lot to continue playing together. They loved 
what they did. It almost didn't matter if you didn't understand the 
words to the song, because you could 'feel' what they wanted to say.
" You were right", Darien whispered to his friend. " They are good. 
Really good", he said, and then turned back to watch the group. He 
liked the lyrics; he liked Raye's voice, and Mina's echo. He was 
impressed with Lita's drive and he appreciated Amy's talent. He was 
swept away by the pounding rhythm and the intensity of the song. But 
all of that paled in comparison when he considered his counterpart, 
Serena. The guitar was like an extension of her; she need not have 
worried about competition from him. Technically speaking, he might 
play better, but there was more to music then just the notes and Serena 
had that certain something extra. The song came to an end and Darien 
and Andrew broke into applause. Or at least Andrew did; Darien just 
nodded.
" That was great! Consider me your new number one fan", Andrew 
said.
" Too late, that's my position", Chad said, coming into the room. " 
Went up to the front door, when I heard you playing I came down 
here."
" Glad you did", Raye said, giving him a quick peck on the lips. " Chad 
this is our new guitarist, Darien Shields, Darien this is my boyfriend 
Chad Carter." The two men shook hands as the introductions were 
made.
" I think I know you. Don't you work at 'Take Note', that music store 
downtown?" Darien asked.
" Yeah, that's me. I thought you looked familiar. So you guys about 
finished here?"
" I guess so. What kind-of schedule do you have Darien? The sooner 
you get the songs down, the sooner we can start making appearances", 
Raye said, wondering how this was going to work. Every member of 
the group suddenly started looking at anything other then Raye or 
Darien. They might love to play, but spending their free time teaching 
the new guy was not their idea of fun.
" I'll do it Raye", Serena said, when she saw that their reluctance was 
making Darien uncomfortable. It wasn't like her to be so abrasive to 
people, and she knew most of it was because she was worried about 
being replaced in the group, and not because Darien was a bad guy. She 
made the snap decision to be nicer to their new member. " Who better 
to show him the guitar parts then me? I'll give him a crash course and 
then we can all meet up and practice together, say, sometime next 
week?"
" That okay with you?" Raye asked Darien.
" Sounds fine", Darien said with a shrug. He wasn't accustomed to 
relying on other people and it was making him uncharacteristically 
nervous. The sooner he got into the group's routine, the sooner he 
could stop feeling like a burden.
" Great, you can work out the details between yourselves then. Feel 
free to stay here if you want. Chad and I have plans."
" I've got to work", Mina complained, looking at her watch. " I'll have 
to go home and change too. I know I whined all the way here Lita 
about your car, but can I get a lift home?"
" Yep, but if the car doesn't start, can you guess who's pushing?" Mina 
shot Lita a dirty look before beaming a mega-watt smile at Andrew and 
exiting the room. Lita grabbed her stuff and hustled after her. " I'll call 
you later Serena", she yelled through the door as she left.
" Where you meeting Greg, Amy? Do you need a ride too?" Serena 
asked.
" That's okay, it's not far away. I think I'll stay over at my house 
tonight too, so don't wait up. I'll call you tomorrow morning."
" Sure thing. Say hi to Greg for me", Serena said.
" Will do. It was nice meeting you Darien. I'm sure you'll fit in just 
fine", Amy said politely, before leaving. Before Serena knew it she was 
alone with Darien and Andrew. An awkward pause started to grow in 
the silence of the practice room.
" So, are you busy right now?" Serena asked slowly. It was silly, she 
knew, but there was something about Darien's presence that put her on 
edge  made her want to blush and stammer.
" No. I work at 'Much More Music' at the Southside mall, do you 
know where I mean?"
" Yeah, I think I've been there a few times."
" Anyway, I work shifts and I get today and tomorrow off. So if you're 
not doing anything, do you feel like practicing now?"
" Sure. Did you bring your guitar?" Serena asked, getting excited 
thanks to Darien's enthusiasm. Music; so long as they kept on this 
common ground she could relax.
" Damn, no. I didn't think I would need it. Andrew, do you think you 
could give me a ride home?" Darien asked. Andrew wasn't listening. 
He was still staring off in the direction Mina had gone. Darien began 
snapping his fingers in front of Andrew's face until Andrew came back 
from dreamland. Andrew looked at his watch, and blanched. " Damn, I 
was supposed to be at work half an hour ago. Catch you later", he said, 
sprinting out of the room.
" What a moron", Darien said softly. " He's my best friend but he's still 
a moron." Serena smiled, thinking that if that were true, then Mina and 
Andrew were a perfect match.
" Come on. I'll give you a ride and I also volunteer to answer any 
questions you might have about our band. We'll have to walk to my 
house first to pick up the car, but it's right near here."
" Okay", Darien said agreeably. Serena locked up the temple room and 
indicated the direction they were headed. The sun beat down on them 
as they walked and Serena breathed deeply and gave a little sigh of 
contentment. " So the name 'Raye of Hope'. How did that come 
about?"
" Well, 'Raye' because Raye was the one who started this whole thing, 
and 'of Hope', I guess because it went well with Raye. Actually, we 
want to change the name but we haven't gotten around to it yet. Raye 
doesn't think she should be billed as a headliner anymore since we all 
work about equal. Can I ask you something?"
" Sure", Darien said.
" You really don't mind working with a bunch of girls?"
" You're all musicians, and good ones at that. I think that's really what 
matters", Darien said.
" Very liberated of you", Serena said with a smile, her opinion of 
Darien going up another notch. Her cheerful expression triggered 
something in Darien's aloof exterior and he found himself smiling back 
at her. Serena bit back her gasp of surprise at the transformation that 
came over his face: from stunning to breathtaking.
" Okay, here's a tough question. What do you think is going to happen 
with this band? Honestly", Darien asked.
" Truthfully, I don't know. I suppose anything is possible", she said. " 
Anything is always possible", she repeated, almost to herself. Serena 
wondered if she was still talking about the band.
Okay, how awful was that? Please tell me if I should continue this or 
not. And I need help with a band name. So far I've come up with 'Rose 
Rhythms', 'The Singing Senshi', and 'Sailor Tune'. I'm kidding!!! I 
would never call them something so stupid, but that's why I need help. 
Please?

