10324/Touch The Sky

Touch The Sky
Date of Scene:	05 December 2019
Location:	Classroom - Xavier's School
Synopsis:	Chris finally hears Shannon's song in its entirety. With encouragement, she finds the courage to try new things, and the will to work her way towards those small goals.
Cast of Characters:	Nightingale, Triage

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Nightingale has posed:
     It's very quiet in the music room, with students and faculty all gone to lunch--except for one. Shannon's leaning against the side of the piano, with her phone out in her hand, and scrolling through till she finds what she needs. She's dressed in her light blue jeans, cream cotton poet's blouse, and old white sneakers. Her hair's a little bit flyaway today, the dry winter air giving her a bit of static frizz. Still, there's that blue braid on the left side of her face, with its silver beads keeping it in check. She smiles a little bit, sure that nobody is hearing her at the moment. She taps the screen of her phone. A light, rhythmic guitar riff starts playing, with a simple bass drum keeping the rhythm. Bit by bit, more percussion is added in, and when the bass line and a light bit of vibraphone accompaniment chimes in, she starts to sing, her voice a bit more confident than usual.

"Maybe my story's not like some
Livin' my life under the gun
But it's mine
And that's just fine

I've seen sorrow, I've seen pain
I'm learning to dance in the rain
Look at me
Now I'm free..."

Her voice picks up in strength and raw, powerful emotion as light cymbals and a slightly more complex vibraphone line is added for accent, with some light strings and synth. Surely, this must be the refrain of the song.

"I'm going to touch the
Don't know how, don't know why
But now I'm gonna fly
And you can't stop me
No, you can't stop me

I'm going to reach the sun
Hold my hand up, touch the stars
The sky is mine
And I'm just fine
I'm going to touch the sky..."

Triage has posed:
While strolling through the foyer, Chris notices light shining through the small window in the door to the music room. He pauses and opens the door. To his surprise, it squeaks as if it needs a spot of oil. He frowns and reaches inside, probably guessing that someone forgot to kill the lights on the way out. He swats the switch semi-automatically with his hand before the music catches his ears. Then he pauses. Tilting his head to one side, he calls, "Sorry!" I didn't think that the room was in use." He starts to close the door. Again, it emits the little squeak.

Nightingale has posed:
     The driving drumbeat and rhythmic guitar continues, with the bass and keyboard parts returning to lift the melody and the lyrics just a little bit higher in the sky. Shannon's closed her eyes by now, but opens them again when she hears Chris, motioning for him to stay, letting him know he's welcome as she continues the song.

"I've taken chances some won't take
Bending 'till my back would break
Crying, please
Oh, God, help me please

Prayers whispered in the night
Answered, now my heart takes flight
Never alone again
No, never alone again..."

     The music swells, Shannon singing the refrain once more with renewed strength. There is no doubt that this song is her soul put into words, her journey to date finding voice as so many have been encouraging her to do....

Triage has posed:
Chris almost steps back into the foyer when he sees Shannon's beckoning. He slips into the room and closes the door. The tiny phone's speaker hardly does justice to the music, but he smiles. "Are you practicing for the concert?" he questions. Nodding to the multi-function panel by the door that controls lights and acoustics for the room, he suggests, "Why don't you patch that into the system?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon shakes her head and shrugs--apparently, she has no clue how to patch that in, not being the tech expert at school by far. She does tap the screen on her phone, though, to pause the music, pushing away from the side of the piano, and making her way over to him. "Haven't got a clue how," she offers, grinning a little sheepishly. "I guess if you do, though, we could patch it in, and I could sing the last little bit for you? There wasn't much left, just an interlude, and then the final repeat of the chorus...."

Triage has posed:
"I think that you should, and take it from the top, as they say," Chris answers, turning to the control. He taps the glass. The default display springs to life. "It's simple, passive Bluetooth. The professor knew that students need to rehearse music with their own recordings. I'm surprised that they didn't tell you about that." He taps and holds a graphic Bluetooth icon and then nods. "Now, set your phone to pairing mode. When you're done, simply tell it to forget the device. It's just ike speakers."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon smiles a bit shyly, and nods, pairing her phone to the speakers in the room. When that's done, she scrolls through the player on her phone, and taps the glass again. This time, the music fills the whole room, and she blinks with surprise, having to adjust the way she's singing to match. For a moment, it almost drowns out her voice, and she really has to put a lot of power behind her words. Somehow, though, they ring all the more true for it.

Triage has posed:
Chris leans agains the wall and watches while Shannon queues the music. He taps fingertips lightly on the wall in time to the beat while he listens. When the song concludes, he steps toward Shannon. "Is that what your part for the concert?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods, and grins a little bit sheepishly, a dusting of rose appearing on her face. Her wings furl slowly around in front of her, and she ducks her head, tapping her phone to disengage it from the room's Bluetooth speakers. "It's crap, but at least it's mine."

Triage has posed:
Chris shakes his head. "I wouldn't say that," he objects. "I've heard heard some of Andrea's tunes. She might have bells and whistles from the studio, but yours has the heart." He and shrugs. "But I might be slightly partial to the songwriter." He smiles. "How do you feel about performing?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon shrugs a little. "Nervous. But if I don't now, then when? If I can't get up in front of a few friends and family to sing my own stuff, how can I even hope to have the guts to take on other challenges?" She runs her fingers through her hair--big mistake. The static electricity from the dry winter air just makes it poof out as if she stuck her finger in a light socket. "If I can't take on something small like this, how can I even hope to have Sam trust me with helping the team more?"

Triage has posed:
Chris nods. "I'd expect some jitters. Even our resident pop-stars probably get those." He tilts his head and guesses, "I wonder if they secretly bottle those feelings inside. I often wonder how much of that confidence is true and how much is bravado that they've learned to show as part of the game." He shrugs. "If that's the price for international fame, I'm glad to be far from that limelight." When Shannon combs her fingers through her hair, he teases, "Is crazy hair a new manifestation for you?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon rolls her eyes and grumbles at first, but the rumbling of irritation quickly gives way to the softer, lighter sounds of mirth. Her eyebrows quirk up slightly and she grins, unable to suppress a chuckle no matter how hard she tries. "God, I hope not! Could you imagine going through life with static hair all the time?" Her eyes dance with laughter, and her wings relax behind her.

Triage has posed:
"Well, it could be a mark of distinction, like the blue streak," Chris remarks, grinning and nodding to Shannon's unnaturally colored and beaded lock of hair. "Then, you'd need to be a pop-star to afford the hair-care products."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon grimaces at that thought. "I'm not sure what'd be worse--the hair, or my life not being my own." She shakes her head, shivering a little bit. "As much as I might envy Andrea for having more talent in one fingernail than I have in my whole body, I'm glad my life is still my own. She has to live her life for her fans." She smiles just a little bit, though, one corner of her mouth quirking upwards. "Still... I guess everyone wants their moments in the sun sometimes."

Triage has posed:
Chris nods. "I suppose so," he agrees. "I remember when I wanted to compete in the X-games a couple of years ago. It was a great challenge. I wanted that moment in the sun. I'm sure that fame is great for some people, but you can make a difference without being in the spotlight. Think about the people around here who make a difference in our lives even though we might not know them. Everyone cheers for the sports teams, but who cheers for the people who clean up the stadium after the big game?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods slowly. "Or better yet, who actually rolls up their sleeves and pitches in to help with the dirty work?" She lofts her eyebrows again, smiling as she tried to picture Chris in a sporting event. "X-games, huh? What was your thing for that?" This was intriguing!

Triage has posed:
Chris's eyes shift to gaze into the middle distance for a moment. "I did stunts on bikes, snowboards, roller-skates, but mainly skateboards," he answers. "I don't think that you were here then," he concludes. "Either the girls forgot about me or you missed it." He grins. "That's just as well, and I probably should be glad for it." He shrugs.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon shakes her head. "No, I only got here two days before my birthday, end of July," she replies. "So you're right, I probably missed it." Her smile widens and she chuckles softly, as another thought occurs to her. "The one and only time I tried out a skateboard, I faceplanted right into the pavement. Never tried it again..."

Triage has posed:
Chris tilts his head curiously. "You should give it a chance. I'm not a regular at the skate park but it's still fun when the weather allows." He grins and adds playfully, "Who knows? You could become a real roller girl, like the one in the song."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon chuckles and smiles lightly, peering over at Chris. "Maybe you could show me where I was going wrong? It was a while ago, though. Couldn't have been more than eight or nine." She tilts her head, thinking as she looks over at him for a moment. Finally, she has to shake her head with a rueful smile. "Okay. I sound like a total ignoramus here, but what song are you talking about?"

Triage has posed:
Chris grins and nods at the request. "We'll need to wait for spring and decent weather, but I can help you with that," he agrees. "If you want to try a snowboard, there are some decent hills around here for that. It's also a bit easier because snow can provide a softer landing." He pulls his phone and earbuds from a pocket. "There's no need for embarrassment," he assures. "As I told you, I grew up with /old/ stuff playing in the house." With a few taps, he finds the song and hands the phone and buds to Shannon.

Nightingale has posed:
     "Snowboarding? Never thought of trying that. Could be fun... and a great way to combat cabin fever." Shannon grins and nods at the thought, definitely liking the sound of it more and more. "Sounds good, we could give it a shot soon, if you like." Really, what could it hurt to try something new like that? Just like the song which Chris was queueing up for her now--she pops the earbuds in her ears, taps the phone and listens to it. Her grin grows wider, and her head starts bobbing in time with the driving drumbeat, and even her wings start flapping in time with the song.

Triage has posed:
"I think that you'd like it," Chris encourages, "especially if we fond a place where you don't need to worry about someone seeing your wings," Chris encourages. "You could hit a bank and launch into the air for some gliding," He grins and watches Shannon's reaction to the song. "See? You can't go wrong with the classics!" Chris extols, although she might not hear him over the song's kaleidoscope of sounds.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon grins wide at the thought, her eyes twinkling the more she thinks about it. "Oh now /that/ would be fun! Okay, you've sold me on snowboarding! When do you think we'll get to try it?" Her voice is perhaps a little louder than usual, but with the song pounding in her eardrums, who could really blame her?

Triage has posed:
"Before we take to the hills, you'll need to learn a few basics," Chris answers. "We'll start on that slope of ground between the back yard and the lake. It has a decent incline. I'll get a board for you. You'll probably want something warmer than jeans, and waterproof. You'll want proper gloves or mittens, snow boots, and other cold-weather gear if you don't have it." He pauses to consider, "We'll probably need a trip to the mall for all of that, but I think that I owe you a trip after the last time."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon winces as she hears the list of things she'll need, and purses her lips. "This trip could take a while, then. I might have to actually start playing at the club for some tips for all that." Not once does she consider other than earning her way, as daunting a prospect as it might be. "Okay, so. Gloves, some waterproof snow gear, boots, a board... that about cover it?"

Triage has posed:
"That should do it," Chris answers with a nod. "You should have all of that already for the winter, except for the snowboard," he comments. "You've been here long enough to know how the seasons go in this part of the country."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon raises her eyebrows. "I was born and raised in Connecticut. Just never quite had a winter like the one we've had so far." She shrugs, and smiles a bit. "The work will be worth it. I'll have to track Sam down and see if anything's open at the club so I can start working my way towards getting those things."

Triage has posed:
"If he can't offer anything, you should apply at some of the shops in Salem," Chris suggests. "They're close enough for you to work on some evenings after school and on weekends." Then he nods confidently. "We'll find something. Where there's a will there's a way."