The Hellhound Duke [Part1/2]

Chapter 2

Lucas

     When I saw Jacobi get moved to first chair, smugly switching seats with Vernon, smirking as everyone except me and the now-second violinist loudly stomped their feet in celebration, I knew I was pretty goddamn fucked.

     The conductor and program director- both stout, white-feathered Aviaries wearing expensive suits, their ridiculously long names having made headlines before I was even conceived- try to calm the full orchestra down to announce the other chair swaps. The conductor clears his throat, resuming his speech after the percussive applause dies down. His thin, shaky voice demands absolute silence to be understood from the gold-lined podium.

     "Karla, you're moved to the first chair of your section, too," he says. The bassoonist, wearing an emerald necklace to compliment her stubby green horns, seems stunned but doesn't object, eagerly switching seats with the player next to her. A few lighthearted boos ring out and Jacobi rolls his eyes, putting down his violin and bow, giving a few small claps for his younger sister. People cheer at the sight.

     God, I hate how happy they are, after all they've put me through the last four years.

     The orchestra quiets down, and the conductor adjusts the thin glasses resting on his long beak. "Mr. Renauti," he looks at me over the clear frame. "We have moved you to the fourth chair of your section. Hammond will take your place."

     The room goes dead quiet as everyone in the concert hall waits to see how I'll react.

     "Yes, sir." I painfully sigh and stand up, picking my scratched violin and stained, cream-colored folder off the pristine floor and swap chairs with Hammond. A few people from the woodwind section cheer his name from the back, although there's less thumping from the rest of the orchestra. He sneers down with his three heads and runs into me as we move around each other, haughtily taking his new position.

     The folder slips from my grip as he knocks into my side, the sheet music landing on the floor in front of the second violinists. I'm lucky I keep hold of my instrument, setting it down to collect the papers, my face hot. If Hellhounds could blush, I'd be as red as the floor.

     "Oh, sorry," I fumble around on my hands and knees, trying to scoop them closer to me. "My bad."

     The second violinists don't bother helping, most of them siding with Jacobi and Hammond. Vernon sets down his stuff and walks over, helping me pick everything up. "Thanks, Vern."

     "It's fine," he assures me, grinning. His long arms cloaked in black concert attire make quick work of collecting the papers. "Just try to be less clumsy, okay?"

     "I'll try, Vern," I nod, feeling everyone stare at us on the floor, stopping him as he reaches for the folder. "You can... go sit back down, now."

     "I can do it for you," he pauses and frowns, wrinkling the thin brown feathers above his full, burnt orange eyes. "It's no trouble."

     "I'll handle it, thank you, Vern," I insist, beckoning for the papers. "You're too kind."

     He blinks and smiles again. "Okay! Let me know if you need any more help," he stands and shuffles back to his seat. Even for an Aviary, he's ridiculously tall. If you caught a glance and nothing more, you'd think he was a birch tree. "Lucas Renauti needs to watch where he's going."

     I do my best to get the sheets in the folder yet they hardly fit; half are upside down or lopsided. 'I'll fix it later,' I think to myself, closing it and grabbing my violin and bow. 'If I even have time.'