Dust Devils - A Girls Und Panzer Story

Chapter 21

March 18th, 2013

In a move that is uncharacteristic of her, Ashley had awoken early. She had been awake for an hour now and she was still in her sleepwear, a tank top and shorts. She hadn't woken early to get ready for school. Oh no. She wanted to practice, one more time, before school started. From the corner of her room, she got it out of its case her guitar. She had the instrument for years and at one point was very proficient with it. But, since that time she got in trouble during her middle school talent show, her desire to perform was killed. Yet, thanks to Heather's persistence, she is about to perform again, for an audience of one. So, for the past few days, she had been refamiliarizing herself with her guitar. Even after seemingly forever since she last played it, it only took playing a few chords to get back into the groove. Ashley's guitar was an acoustic one, and also a modern one. It had the capability to be plugged into an amplifier, which she had done. However, as it was the early morning, she plugged in headphones as well so that only she would hear the sounds. With everything set up, she sat on her bed and began to play. She had a song in mind, one that she played loads of times before. It wasn't long before muscle memory kicked in.

The notes that were being played were solemn. They weren't upbeat. The song wasn't one that people danced too, rather, it was one they just listened too. Just under her breath, Ashley was singing. If anyone else was in the room, they would just barely hear it, and if they could, they would have to listen real closely to make out the words. The lyrics matched the tone of the notes being played. This song she was playing impacted her much more than any of the countless times she has played it before. Why? She didn't know. Could it be that she was performing for Heather, and only Heather, later today? Possibly. She practiced the song, playing it in its entirety, several more times. As her room became brighter as a result of the rising sun, she had become satisfied with her progress. Ashley stowed away her guitar and now got ready for school. She had this anxious feeling, a type of anxiousness she only felt before she was about to perform. It was a feeling that she dearly missed.

The sun had risen fully and Buchanan was wide awake. Her morning wasn't great. The proposed rule change regarding instructors was gnawing at her. If this was approved by the rules committee, it would mean that she could no longer be an instructor, something that she loved to do. This was retaliation, she was convinced of that. Buchanan won't take this lying down, it will be fought. She looked for a pen and paper and got to organizing her thoughts and formed the beginnings of an argument against the proposal. Ultimately, though, it wouldn't be her who would officially air the objection. It would be Valarie, and currently, her position on the team was tenuous. If Valarie fails to bring up her grades in time, she would have to miss the convention which meant that the team couldn't object to the proposal. Worse, she may even miss out on the upcoming match which would surely mess with her mentally. Buchanan rubbed her temple, head aching over the predicaments facing them. As of now, her focus must be on Valarie. Her dreams can't be allowed to die as her's was. But how? She wasn't a chemistry tutor by any stretch of the imagination. Her fingers tapped methodically against the table as she pondered, eyes closed as she did. She sat there for a few minutes contemplating for a few minutes when her eyes opened. She now knew what to do. Buchanan glanced at the time.

11:35 AM

It was almost time to join Valarie for lunch.

Just before the lunch break, Heather received a text from Ashley to meet her at the school's music room. Reading the message caused her to smile and generated some excitement. When class ended and lunch began, she made her way straight to the music room at the far end of the school. As she walked, the density of students diminished as they all went to lunch. It got quieter and the sound was soon reduced to a gentle ambiance. She arrived at the music room and saw Ashley, tuning one of the guitars.