"Play Freebird!"

[Olesya]

[OoC: Mathew first, the open.]

The good thing about starting over was that Olesya had the chance to meet other musicians and kick off her rock band career. Back at Long Beach, she and Stu had begun one, but once he went crazy it became too much of a stigma. But now, she felt with the different atmosphere and different people, she could continue with what she loved. Les had joined her band, Stir Fry Friday, about a month into moving to the Avenues. They chanced out on having lost their bassist and had an opening.

Their sound was pretty similar to Les', with a rather upbeat, harder toned rock somewhere between alternative and hard rock. Tonight they were playing at the Lemon Slice, their Tuesday regular. Les' mom didn't really like that she was out late on a Tuesday night, but as long as she kept her grades up, the ex-pillar convinced her that it was alright. Tonight they were playing a few new songs mixed in with a few covers. One of them being "Take Me Away." Sure it was from that movie with Lindsay Lohan or whatever, but it was a good song, and the crowd seemed to love it.

The band consisted of a bright red-haired girl on guitar and lead vocals, Les on bass and backup, a boy with jet black hair the shielded his eyes was on keyboard, and another boy with spikey green-tipped hair wailing out on the drums. Up on stage, they performed well enough together for an amateur band. Les wore her favorite cargo pants and spikey black belt with a black tank top and a couple bracelets leading down to her black fingerless gloves. She also wore the boots she was given way back from the correctional facility. Though normally she would tend to avoid remembering something like that, they were actually pretty comfortable, and went with her style, so she dealt with them.

Finishing up the set, she set her red bass down in its stand on stage, doing a little half-jump off the stage, picking up her water bottle from on top of an amp and took a swig. She ran a hand through her short brown and purple hair, inadvertently slicking it up in places because she was sweating a little. Those stage lights were hot, man.

[Mathew Amtrum]

Mathew had been hanging out drinking a little bit. Not really out to get drunk, but just to unwind. He came alone true, the sign of an alcoholic but he rarely had more then one drink, and he went to bars even less. Today he was just nursing a beer, listening to the music. Enjoying time alone. His eyes had been watching both the girls in the band. The bassest looked familiar, and it took him a little bit to pin her as the ex pillar of 259. He grinned seeing her shoes, the same ones he had given her.

It's a small world after all.

When they finished their set Mathew stood up and approached her, he wasn't going to act like some shy fan, he was more upfront. He had to wonder if she would recognize him at first. He didn't think she had seen him wear anything but his combat gear. His Earth Dragon Coat and pants. Today though he was wearing a silk blue button down shirt and a pair of black slacks. He even had on a nice pair of shoes.

Normally messy hair was now tamed and brushed. Though he couldn't change the scar on his face or his eyes. Those were the same. Regardless if she recognized him he would put his hand on her shoulder to make sure he got her attention, as always violating the personal space of others.

"Nice job tonight Olesya, didn't know you played." He said, his tone still had that hint of sarcasm, but he was being sincere. Despite what she thought, he had nothing against her. It was business, not personal.

[Olesya]

The hand on her shoulder startled the ex-pillar, and she resisted the urge to just turn around and slug whoever it was. She had a general rule to not start fights in bars unless it was absolutely necessary because any discrepancies easily turned into an all-out brawl, and those drunken fests were too messy for her taste. Instead she jumped slightly, freezing slightly as she exercised her self-discipline before turning around to look up at the boy who dared touch her. The voice, those eyes..familiar, but the rest of the appearance threw her off, leaving her slightly baffled.

"Nice job tonight Olesya, didn't know you played."

He knew her name...well then again there were a few here that did, as she had toppled in pillarship right before the earthquake, it was something the transfers moved into the Avenues talking about. Olesya, the used-to-be, the has-been, the once-was. It really didn't bother her as much as people built it up to be. Matrim was a good fighter, and seemed to be doing well in his position. It had been fun while it lasted, and besides, if she was still a pillar, she wouldn't have had time to do what she was doing now.

"..Thanks.."

She began, playing it safe. Who was this guy? His tone replayed in her head, and mentally she tuned up the sarcasm, those eyes a couple inches from hers before smirking and colliding in a headbutt...oh.

"Dragon boy." She said, slowly having put two and two together. "Hm, you clean up well." She took another swig from her water bottle, leaning back against the amp her bottle had been sitting on.

[Mathew Amtrum]

"Oh please call me Mathew, Dragon Boy is so formal." He said jokingly. First time he had heard that one, but whatever he was sure it wasn't the strangest nickname that he had. When she complimented him he would flash her a charming smile. Not his normal smirks and grins, but a full on smile. He did enjoy it when people stroked his ego, he wouldn't make any important decisions based on that, but he did enjoy it.

He took another swing from his beer as he moved his hand from her shoulder. Moving beside her leaning against the amp as well. "You look pretty good yourself." He said returning the compliment. And it was true, if you liked the rocker girl look she did look good. Thankfully Mathew was in to most looks as long as the girl looked good.

"You know, never got to talk to you after that fight with Matrim. You held yourself pretty good out there. I was impressed." He said giving her a small nod. A gesture of respect, rare for the Dragon to give to anyone, let alone someone that had technically been an enemy not long ago.

[Olesya]

Mathew? Well truth be told she didn't know his name up until now. All she knew was from what she picked up in the fight between him and her and the other white haired girl, who's name she also hadn't gotten to know. Like with Matrim, it seemed that Les didn't learn the names of her opponents until after the fights were over, hence why she made up nicknames for them half the time.

Her gaze followed him as he moved to lean against the amp as well, taking on the form of talking like friends. It was kind of weird...but Les kept her opinion to herself, pushing back the flashes of memory that floated to the surface. "You look pretty good yourself." An eyebrow quirk merited the response to that. If she didn't know better, she would have thought that was a come on, but then again, it was Dragon bo- no, Mathew, she was talking about. He was the kind that used seductive methodology to his advantage. Teasing the white haired girl to distress her, kissing Les to throw her off guard before following with a strike when her defenses were confused. Yeah, she hadn't forgotten that.

"You were there?"

She asked, she hadn't realized he had been there, and much less one of the people that had provided the impromptu music. She continued nursing her water bottle, rehydrating after the set on stage, she had been dying of thirst. Now was not so bad, but she certainly preferred it over alcohol at the moment. Not that she could drink legally anyway.

"I didn't really notice anyone in the crowd. And once the fight was over..I didn't notice much of anything."

She said with a humorous tone in her voice since the fight had ended in a knock out. Some people thought of that as an embarrassing way to end a fight, but in Les's opinion, when you go all out and both walk away, you weren't fighting hard enough.

[Mathew Amtrum]

"Well it was kind of a big deal. I thought you had it there for a moment, when me and Linda started playing some music. You really used it to your advantage. It was a nice way to think on your feet." He said finishing off the beer. He couldn't drink legally either. But when you were a criminal you didn't take legalities too seriously. He had a variety of fake ID's on hand.

He didn't know it but they had the same view on combat. At least with a serious fight. Retreat was not an option. Loss by knock out was the most respectable way to lose. The only way to lose. You give it your all and have no regrets.

"So what have you been up to now that you are no longer a Pillar? Besides the band obviously. Planning any rebellions against me and the new Pillars?" He asked with a small laugh, he was mostly joking, even if she was in a plot to stop them, there was no way that they could beat Mathew and the Pillars. Let alone the Reapers, as far as Mathew they were indestructible.

[Olesya]

[lololol.]

"Well I can thank a summer of Capoeira for that. -That was you?"

She tried not to sound surprised. She didn't know why she shouldn't be, because she knew literally next-to-nothing about him. So a musician, huh? She wouldn't have pegged him as the musical type. She figured there was more to this cocky, charismatic jerk than she first thought, though it was probably well, well buried. Hm.

"Nothing much besides the band really. I tried out for a few of the teams here. I may not be captain anymore, but I still love sports."

She shrugged, chuckling at the thought of taking on the pillars to topple the current pillars. Laughing made her side hurt, where her ribs were still healing. She shook her head, brown and violet strands falling into her face. She brushed them back.

"Nah, you don't have to worry about me. As long you're all fair, nothing pisses me off more than a corrupt hierarchy."

[Mathew Amtrum]

"I am a man of many talents." He said with a grin when she asked rhetorically if it was him that did the beat boxing. Of course she knew it was since he had just say it. So he left it at that.

"Capoeira huh? I know a few people that use that. Not my thing really. Though if you have ever seen me fight you would probably notice that I mix a bit of break dance in to it. So maybe that counts as Capoeira, I don't really know." He said with a small laugh as he took another drink from his beer. It would be the only drink for the night, especially since he has found someone to talk to, someone interesting even. He had never thought he would have a chance to talk to her again, hell he didn't even know she transferred after the quake.

"I was never much good at sports, but I do enjoy music. As cliche as it is I do play the guitar, and I am an alright singer." He said with a shrug. He was cocky true, but he was at least trying to appear to have some modesty, even if he would be down getting on stage right now. The arrogance was strong with him.

"As for a corrupt system. No system is fair. Personally I thought the pillarship that you were a part of was corrupt. After all I will admit that I am violent and strong. I will even admit that I am not the best person. But the fact remains that I get in 1 fight and I am challenged by the pillars. How many students get in to fights everyday and proceed unmolested? I am brutal yes, but that fear keeps people away from me. And in the long run, because of my brutality, I do less harm then those less brutal but fight much more."

He finished off his beer at that. He knew how people saw him, and he didn't blame them for it. He knew he wasn't a good person, but he had his reasons. Personal and moral. He just hated that no one seemed to think about his side of the story.

"Fun fact, in my time at PHS #259 I got in 10 fights. How many did you get in?" He asked raising an eyebrow at her. He was curious how many fights this girl, one that hated corruption had been in. He loved pointing out hypocrisy.

[Olesya]

"Hm."

Olesya replied to his 'many talents,' not entirely convinced. She'd heard that line many times from different guys who would hit on her in school, at the park, at the club, on the street, in the cafe...it was pretty common. He was just trying to be impressive, though why she didn't quite get yet. They hadn't really left the Correctional Facility on good terms, but since he wasn't trying to kick her ass right here in the bar, she was friendly enough to at least humor him.

"Our pillarship wasn't corrupt, it was broken."

She replied, frowning slightly. David and Emily were her friends, and sure it had been strange when David just up and disappeared, but she had done her job to the fullest and then some to pick up the slack, and Emily...Emily had been a good leader, even though she wasn't confident in herself. Olesya pursed her lips slightly, thinking about his question...how many fights had she been in? And what exactly was he trying to prove by it?

"Nine." Olesya replied, "Though I broke up on average that many fights per day when I was pillar. And even now."

Truth be told, Olesya loved fighting, but only fighting for fun. The stupid senseless fights, or bully fights were horrendous, and she put stops to them where she could. There was nothing honorable in picking on someone smaller than you, or just to prove a point. Her fight with Matrim had been a challenge to her title, but he was a good sport about it, he seemed to have done it for the love of the fight. She had one other fight before that where she had felt the same non-serious atmosphere, and that was when she had sparred former School Captain Mitsuki in the cafeteria...that was a while ago.

[Mathew Amtrum]

"You broke up that many fights? All with words? None of them needed you to subdue them? I find that hard to believe." He said shaking his head. Mathew couldn't even go to the bathroom sometimes without seeing someone trying to pick a fight. He doubted that she had better luck.

"Mreh whatever it really doesn't matter. I can't promise you won't see us as corrupt. But I can promise I will do what I can to make the school better then when we came. I intend to try and make a council for students. Something that isn't won through combat but votes. Where students can elect a representative from each grade. There discussion can take place over what needs to be changed in the school. What doesn't work, teacher evaluations. Then I will bring it to the Headmaster and discuss it with him."

He was being honest here. He didn't know if she would believe him, but he really did dream of a better world. His methods were different then most, but that wasn't always bad, at least not in his mind.

"If you are still interested in helping the student body and ensuring that the system is fair. I suggest running for your grade's Representative." He said as he turned to look at her straight on. Seeing if he could read her face and reaction.

[Olesya]

Olesya sighed, Mathew knew as well as her that most fights couldn't be broken up with words. Sure if she walked in before the first punch was thrown, she could usually talk them down, but once they start, the only way to stop them is to get right in between. That was something that wasn't going to change anytime soon.

"Hm."

She replied again as he said that he couldn't promise they wouldn't be seen as corrupt, but her eyes flashed in a mild interest when he said he wanted to set up a kind of council to settle things and make improvements in the school. It actually wasn't a bad idea. Alright now, he had her attention. When he turned to face her full-on, she didn't move, but her gaze stuck to his as he suggested she run for representative of the junior class.

"Well, if you're as good to your word as you claim, I may just consider it."

Canned rock and roll music floated over the crowd, and the black haired keyboard player approached the stage, nudging Olesya with a quick '5 minutes, Les,' before climbing back onstage to check his equipment. Olesya nodded, before turning back to her acquaintance.

[Riley]

OOC: If you don't mind me jumping in...

Tuesday night. Riley walked along the streets, his hands in his pockets, going nowhere in particular. It also helped a bit that he lived by himself, so no one would be worrying about him, but it was also a bit sad in a way. He passed by all kinds of people, people who had finished work, people dressed in casual clothes who were shopping, tourists, heck, even couples. His wandering eventually led him to a club, the Lemon Slice, and since he didn't have much to do, he decided to go in, check out the place, it wouldn't hurt. He had obtained a fake ID a while ago, and the fact that he was wearing a hood over his head helped, as he flashed his ID before entering, and was granted access. He walked into the club, his hands in his pockets, as the sound of loud music and flashing lights greeted him. He wore his normal clothes, a pair of blue jeans, a black Diesel shirt, white Adidas shoes, and a black hoodie.

Canned rock and roll music was playing, as Riley weaved through the crowd, as he made his way through the crowd, he passed by a guy and girl who were talking to each other, Riley's gaze casually slide over the girl's face, and continued to look straight in front of him, until the face suddenly registered in his mind, and he stopped in his tracks, and turned to look over at the girl. He recognized her from the day at the gym, and from the Militia meeting in the library. He saw a guy with jet black hair walk over to her and nudge her, Riley was close enough that he could hear the guy, even over the loud music. "5 minutes, Les." the guy said, as he went back to the stage to check his equipment. Les? I really doubt that's her full first name, maybe a shortened version? Riley shrugged his shoulders, and continued on through the crowd, finally reaching the stage. He could see the members of the band on the stage, well, almost all of them.

The drummer was missing. Based on what Riley had heard so far, he guessed that Olesya (Though he doesn't know her name) was in the band that was about to play. Weaving back through the crowd once more, Riley reached Olesya and the guy she was talking to, and walked up to her, and tapped her on the shoulder. "Excuse me," he said, why, did he always tower a bit over almost every girl he met? "You're part of that band, the one about to play right? I think you guys hit a snag, your drummer bailed." Riley jerked his thumb at the drum set on the stage, which was missing a drummer. "If you need a drummer, I can play, only if you want me to play." Riley offered, shrugging his shoulders casually. "Oh, I'm Riley, Riley Davis, and you are...?"

[Olesya]

"Excuse me."

Feeling a tap on her shoulder, Olesya was temporarily distracted from her conversation with Mathew. Looking over, she noticed it was a boy...he looked familiar, from the Militia meeting. Right.

"You're part of that band, the one about to play right? I think you guys hit a snag, your drummer bailed."

"What, Lucas? You're kidding me.."

Les scowled, shaking her head. It wouldn't be the first time their drummer met up with a girl mid-gig and decided to bail. How the hell were they going to get anywhere without dedicated band members? They would lose their pay for the night for sure.

"If you need a drummer, I can play, only if you want me to play. Oh, I'm Riley, Riley Davis, and you are...?"

Too unreal, he'd play for them? Without an audition or anything, they were taking a real risk here, but since they had no other choice, the worst that could happen would be that they'd lose their night's pay and possibly the gig altogether. Again, not the first time it's happened.

"Olesya van deBogart. Go talk to the girl in the red hair, Lor, she'll brief you on out playlist. Let her know what you can do and we can compromise. I'll be right there."

She turned back to Mathew, a sort of half-grin-nervous-look on her face, mixed in with a hint of annoyance.

"You planning on sticking around?"

She asked, wondering if he was willing to continue their conversation. It wouldn't be any skin off her nose if he decided to go pick up some half-drunk chick and peace out, but she wasn't the kind of person to just cut off a conversation in the middle.

[Riley]

"What, Lucas? You're kidding me.." Riley blinked once as he saw the girl scowl as she shook her head, clearly she was less than thrilled the drummer had gone AWOL, hell, who wouldn't be happy to hear that? Riley then offered to play drums for them, which was probably a bit out of the blue, after all, not many knew he had been part of a band back at Point Hope High, only a few, mainly the members of the band, Aternity Awren, Dani Vega, and Reira DeMorvick, his best friend. It was probably a risk, letting some unknown guy play drums when you knew next to nothing about him, and Riley knew this, but he had enough experience playing that no matter what song they played, he would play the best he could. And no, he didn't just play Rockband drums, he played actually drums, but hey, Rockband drums are good too.

"Olesya van deBogart. Go talk to the girl in the red hair, she'll brief you on our playlist. Let her know what you can do and we can compromise. I'll be right there."

"Right," Riley replied, as he turned around and headed back towards the stage, once he reached the stage, he caught the attention of the girl with red hair. "Yeah?" she asked, bending down so she could hear what Riley had to say. "I was told by Olesya to talk to you, to get a briefing on your playlist. I'm the replacement drummer, since yours bailed." Riley explained, as he saw the ticked off look form on the girl's face. "Damn it, Lucas bailed on us again? That idiot, he probably met up with some girl mid-gig and left. Well, since Olesya told you to talk to me, I guess you're our drummer now." "Cool," Riley replied, as he climbed up onto the stage easily, "I'm Riley." "Nice to meet you Riley, I'm Lor. How good are your drumming abilities?" "I played drums in a band back at my old high school, but before I played in the band, I used to practice drumming when I was young everyday, so I'm not exactly professional, but I'm a whole damn lot better than an amateur." Riley walked with Lor, as they reached the drum set located in the back. "Sounds good to me, all the equipment for the drums is set up, we're just going through our sound check."

Riley sat down behind the drum set, and picked up the drum sticks, twirling one in his fingers, as he tested the equipment, Lor began to walk away, but then stopped, and walked back to Riley. "Oh right, our playlist. The songs we're going to be playing are Cross My Heart by Marianas Trench, That's What You Get by Paramore, Vindicated by Dashboard Confessional, and I think that's it... Oh wait, one more, Everlong by the Foo Fighters." "Got it." Riley replied, as he began to test out the drums, making sure everything was to his liking, before they were about to start playing soon.

[Mathew Amtrum]

"Trust me, If there is one thing I do keep, it is my word." He said with a grin.

When she was approached about the band, being informed that they were going on in only minutes, and that their drummer bailed he stayed silent. He was arrogant and self absorbed, but he wasn't stupid. He knew that this would take her attention over him, so rather then appear shallow and needy he stayed silent letting her deal with the situation.

"Yeah I will stick around, no worries." He said giving her a small nod. He wasn't planning on going anywhere, at least not yet. The night was still young by his standards and he had found interesting company, well at least potentially useful company. Especially if she decided to run for office. She was a former Pillar, he knew she would be dedicated if she got elected, and that's what he wanted. Dedication to make the school, no the world a better place.