A Public Guitar Show (Open to 2)

Hachiro sat on a bench playing his guitar out in the open. It was such a nice day to play that he couldn't help, but take advantage of it. He heard this song on the radio, and he liked how the acoustic guitar sounded, so he decided to try his hand at learning it. Maybe he really should consider becoming a musician, he seemed to playing his guitar more lately, and music seemed to be inspiring him to play. All the newer songs that seemed to be coming out with an acoustic version, he was glad that he took the time to learn how to play the guitar in highschool. He watched the people on the street go about their average day in their lives. Wandering to and fro, here and there. San Malarus was as busy as always. This no longer surprised Hachiro, who simply kept playing his guitar. His guitar case was open in front of him, and occasionally people would stop and throw some change in. He would have to remember to take anything he earned to charity.

Well there's a thought. Maybe he should start a little organization that plays for charity purposes. He doesn't earn that much from this gig, but maybe if people knew where it was going then they would be more likely to contribute. Heck, he might start a revolution or at least get a small group together on a day of the week to play together, hang out, and pass the time. It might be fun, granted he would have to find other musically inclined people. However, if he advertised the charity effort then surely they would come.

After breaking his headphones by accidentally stepping on them, Akira brought it too the repair shop. Having nothing to do for the 4 hour wait, Akira wandered the streets of San Malarus once again. The warm sun shone down while a cool breeze blew. It was a really nice day. While walking through the streets, Akira heard the sound of a guitar playing. Moving through the crowds of people, he followed the sound and eventually got in front of the person playing the guitar. It was a nice tune. Akira listened to it for a few seconds before taking out his wallet and put a few dollars into the guitar case. Akira closed his eyes as he listened to the song and began to smile. The man in front of him was pretty good at playing the guitar which made it quite enjoyable.

"You're pretty good at playing the guitar. When did you start learning it?" Akira would ask the man with a huge smile on his face. The man seemed to be around thirty years old and is quite large.

It was just another usual day in San Malarus, and Ray had been wandering streets, simply because there was nothing productive to do at his apartment. He couldn't even practice singing or anything due to pissy neighbors who apparently wanted their silence. Just peachy. There was nothing to do outside on the streets either, but it was at least a budge better than sitting at home doing literally nothing. Maybe something interesting would happen along the way, although Ray didn't really want a repeat of the incident a while ago. Well, he was in a different part of the island at the moment anyway.

He was walking aimlessly in circles until he heard some music being played from nearby. Now that sounded much more entertaining than walking. Making his way over, he eventually came to a man playing a guitar. And a familiar guy standing close. He didn't have those headphones this time, though. 'Well....' This wasn't what he planned...Actually, not like he planned anything in the first place. But, it wasn't like he even knew the guy, really. Making up his mind, he would walk over, just as he heard the teen speak up. ''What he said, you play the tones quite well.'', he would say, nodding a little, before noticing the guitar case. 'Hmm, might as well...' He would throw in a few dollars as well, after searching through his pockets. There weren't many people who were good at this kind of stuff after all.

((Ray due to Anon's announced absence feel free to skip him.))

Hachiro kept playing until a young man came up and deposited money in the guitar case. The guitar player would pause and say, "Thank you, it goes to a good cause." He was about to get ready to continue playing, as it was common practice that people would deposit and move on. No one questioning why he was playing or who he was. Just a simple person playing guitar for money, some would call him scum for not looking for a real job, but he rebuttal was that he had a real job. However, the young man before gave him a really goofy smile and asked when he started learning. "Thanks, and I started learning in high school, and I played in my travels too. It took a little bit, but I got there eventually." Granted, playing the guitar was not the only thing he did in his travel. While he waited to see if the young man would respond, another person walked up. This person also complimented his skill, which he would give that young man a nod in thanks. When more money was placed in the case, he would tell Ray that it went to a good cause as well.

He was about to resume playing when a thought struck him, if he wanted to a group maybe he should start asking those who contributed. These two might be the first, but the worst they could say was "no". "Call me a bit curious, but do either of you two have any musical talents? Or perhaps you know someone that does? I ask because I was hoping to make a group and play maybe once a week, and give whatever we earn to a local charity. Not everyone is blessed with the wealth we have." He would add, he wasn't trying to guilt them into giving more money. That much was evident given his tone of voice, it was more matter of fact instead of persuasive. He certainly hoped they did, it would help him gather members, or at least have a place to start. Kind of ironic how he usually had a plan in his travels, but now that he has settled down he doesn't have any idea where to start to form a small group. What an odd fate.

((OoC: Oh well. I don't like skipping ppl, but I'd rather not wait >.>))

Ray would nod when the man said the money went to a good cause. He didn't know what exactly that was, but the man didn't look like he would need it himself anyway, so he could believe that statement. Not that he would be particularly bothered even if it was the other way. What did it matter to him? He wasn't that attached to his money in the first place, or he wouldn't have given out anything.

When the man started questioning them, Ray would look at him thoughtfully. 'Charity, hm?' That was a new one. People usually did things for themselves first, rather than expend their energy on someone else, no? Then again, he shouldn't jinx it. He already managed to give away an umbrella and buy a guy fireworks, both in a short period of time, without really getting anything back. What a funny coincidence. Ray didn't consider himself as the overly nice guy on the inside, yet lately it tended to turn out that way. Okay, sort of. The firework matter couldn't really be ticked as nice. Still, the question was, what to answer this man here. He could just lie and be on his way, if only for the slight ridiculousness of this idea. This sort of thing wasn't very fruitful these days. Yet, he was a bit intrigued. It wasn't every day someone went and did something out of the norm. ''You could say I do. Although I can't say I'm used to working in a group. Though your idea sounds interesting, at the very least.'', he would say in the end, shrugging a little, looking at the man calmly with his silver eyes. He wasn't yet sure how interested he was, so he answered a bit vaguely, giving himself some time to decide, after hearing more of what the man had to say about this. It was better to have a solid grounding before jumping in headfirst anyway.

As Akira stood there talking to the man, a familiar face came up. It was the boy he met at the fireworks shop. When the man said the money went to a good cuase, Akira would smile a bit more. He hasn't seen someone do something for a good cause in quite sometime. The many could be lying but there as absolutely no reason too and Akira felt like he wasn't lying. Akira would give more money but before he could do that, the man had asked the two of them a question.

"I don't really have any musical talents but I would be glad to help. There wasn't many things Akira had to do and helping someone for a good cause seems to be good idea. The only problem is that he didn't have any musical talent. Though he did play the piano when he was younger, he was sure that he won't be able to play something with the skills he has now. Akira looked at the boy beside him then looked back at the man.

Hachiro would nod at their responses, it seems the one with musical talent wasn't exactly open with what he did, which naturally begged the question. "ARe you vocal or instrumental. It doesn't really matter which, I'm taking all those who come. I'll figure out what to do once I feel like there is enough interest in the group." He would explain to the two. He had no idea where to take this, but he needed to know if a group of people existed that would be interested in helping him. He could only do so much alone, a guitar player was only one instrument. A band was a variety of different instruments, talents, personalities brought together to form a group of friends. Now what about the other one...well wait they had never properly introduced themselves.

"Before we go any further, we haven't been properly introduced to one another. My name is Hachiro, and you two are?" The older man would ask the other two, once they had introduced themselves, Hachiro would shift on the bench slightly so he would be comfortable with his guitar on his lap. The older man would look toward Akira, and simply ask, "Alright, well if you're not musically talented then what can you do?" It was a simple question, but Hachiro was beginning to feel like he was an employer interviewing prospective employees.

((OoC: I guess we're changing up the order, huh? lol))

Oh, so the man didn't have anything thought up yet. Just getting the word out then? Ray found it a little strange to go about it in that way. Asking random people who walked up wasn't going to get him many people, and if, then definitely not quickly. An interesting strategy, or maybe no strategy at all. ''I can sing.'', he would state simply, with a light shrug. ''So, you're planning to just ask random people you meet?'', he would inquire afterwards, as he was actually curious about that one. Just because he was having trouble finding logic there.

This and that aside, it was apparently time for introductions. Well, that was to be expected. ''The name's Raynar. Nice to meet you.'', he would answer shortly, not having much to add to that. When Hachiro turned to interrogate the other teen, he would look between the two, waiting for the answer, wondering what the response would be. After all, he had met the guy before, but didn't know anything about him yet. Might as well see now, that he had a chance meeting with him again.

As the man explained a few things to Akira and the boy beside him, Akira looked around. The man seemed to not have a plan for this and that he was just asking random strangers who stopped by. It was quite interesting though since you wouldn't know what kind of people you would end up with.

"My name is Akira, nice to meet'cha." Akira would say after the man and the boy introduced themselves. Hachiro and Raynar was their names. As the Hachiro interrogated Akira, Akira would pause for a bit and then look at him. Though he is unsure of what to say, Akira decided bring up the fact he could play the piano a bit. "Well i can play a bit of piano but i haven't played in quite a while now." Akira would say with a slight smile.

"A singer huh? Never had the talent for vocals, never had the time to learn or the tone for it. We could use a singer, and you seem like you got some talent too." Hachiro would reply to the younger man's shrug, and then listen to his question before answering him "Well that wasn't my go to plan, but this is kind of spur of the moment idea. You two happened to come up, so I'd figure I would ask, at least get the word out while I could. Chances are I'll get a poster or something up to sit next to me while I play. I haven't thought it that far out, like I said it was a spur of the moment idea." The older man would say offering his own shrug to the two before him. Granted, a banner wouldn't last in rain, though he could get it laminated. He recalled a store that did those things somewhere around here. He was pretty sure it was close to the post office on 7th street.

After they introduced themselves, he give them both a nod, that wasn't overly friendly, but polite to say the least. "Nice to meet you two, Raynar, and Akira." He would say, before listening to what Akira said. Apparently he was a pianist or was one, and he was going to be quite rusty. "Well that would be a little difficult to work with. What about a keyboard? They're smaller and much easier to transport, and there are more sounds that they can play. Granted, I don't know how to map any of those sounds to specific keys, you're on your own for that. We can grease the gears in a few practices, I'm sure you'll get your talent back after a few songs." He would say pausing for a brief moment before asking one more question, "What kind of music do you two like anyways?"

A spur of the moment idea? That would explain the loose ends at least. ''I see. It makes more sense now. Perhaps I'd try this out.'', Ray would say after giving it a little thought. There wasn't much to lose, and he wasn't particularly busy either. Maybe he would get better on the note of getting along with people as well. since this would require working in a group with a currently undecided amount of people. Cooperating with someone honestly wasn't Ray's strength at all, far from it in truth. But, a try wouldn't hurt, if it involved something he enjoyed doing. It might be easier this way.

During the introductions, he would nod back slightly at both Hachiro and Akira, before listening to the conversation between the two. Piano, huh? That he didn't expect, as Akira initially said he didn't have musical talents. So he had a change of mind? Either way, it was ineresting. The teen did say he hadn't played in a while, and even though Ray did not know how that was done, he was aware that this particular instrument wasn't one of the easiest to learn. Piano required some good handwork, which honestly, Ray could admit he wouldn't be able to pull off, so that was off limits for him. Hachiro was suggesting a keyboard, probably because a piano isn't something one can carry around whenever needed, but that woked a bit differently, didn't it? Well, this might take a while.

Ray was snapped out of his piano induced musing when Hachiro asked another question. Ha. Ray couldn't really say he had an actual preference. ''Well, I don't really pick favorites, so I go with almost anything. I don't like rock too much though. What about you?'', he would answer casually. He didn't think rock was bad, but listening to it often made his ears ring, and trying to sing that type of music was a pain more often than not. That was his personal opinion though.

On hearing that this was a spur of the moment idea, Akira nodded. It was quite interesting how, Hachiro thought of all this just now. Akira had a lot of time so, he would stay and work with Hachiro and Ray. Although it would be quite hard getting back into playing an instrument, Akira still wanted to try this out and see how everything would go. When Hachiro suggested playing a keyboard instead, Akira nodded. A keyboard seemed to be pretty much the same as a piano to Akira. But he still doesn't really have much musical talents.

When Hachiro asked another question, Akira looked back at him and waited till Ray is done talking. Just like Ray, Akira also didn't really have much of a preference. Akira listens to any kind of music as long as it sounds good to him. "I don't really prefer any kind of music, there all good. Although I do mostly listen to Classical, Jazz and Hip hop." Akira replied.

Hachiro nodded somewhat happily, "That's good to hear, but don't feel pressured into it! Feel free to deny it I'm sure other people will show up." The guitar player would say, he was fairly sure he could find other people to participate in the group. He was hoping for a diverse group this way they could cover verse songs and titles by groups. This was a little odd for him, he was almost giddy about it. Maybe because it would help overcome the hardships people face. This was unnatural for him, well he'd better get a grip over himself. The two would then answer his question about what sort of music they liked. The singer was flexible nothing really bothered him, except rock. Akira liked classical, jazz, and hip hop.

"Well I myself like rock, particularly alternative, but I like anything that I can play the guitar to. Which is fairly simple since a majority of songs have been transcribed to guitar." He would play a chord as if to demonstrate his point, but it really didn't. Oh well, that didn't matter much to him. Though an idea struck him, these two were younger, they knew when their peers were out and about. More people strolling the streets meant more donations, and that meant the group would be able to help more people. "Tell me, when do you two think your peers come out? I'm trying to plan the performances when everyone has flexibility like the weekend or something. What do you two think about that?

Ray would nod back slightly when Hachiro said they didn’t have to join just because he was asking them to. Obviously, he wouldn’t have said yes if he wasn’t at least mildly interested. ‘‘It’s fine. Besides you never know, it might end up actually being successfull. And it isn’t like you pay for a try.‘‘ After all, he could always back out if he didn’t feel comfortable after giving it a go. He was aware that he worked better as a solo, but sometimes a group cooperation took you further, even if he hated to admit it. He didn’t have good past experiences with people, however it would be lame if he stood back just because of that.

‘‘True, guitars have quite the variability these days, being one of the most popular instruments.‘‘, he would comment casually, when Hachiro explained that he liked whatever he could play on his guitar which was practically almost anything, just as he explained. Besides, it was usually easier to translate a song into guitar than any other instrument. Piano was a rather good possibility too. Other instruments had it harder. Not that Ray ever tried any, but he knew a little about it, just because it had a sort of relevance to what he practiced. When Hachiro inquired about the time performances should be sheduled, he would blank out a little. For him, this would just be a far off guess, if he were to answer, as he didn’t truly hang out with peers if he didn’t have to. And he wasn’t going to base it off himself only. ‘‘Well....a weekend would probably work the best. Most younger people have school during the week, so it may interfere.‘‘, he would say vaguely, using only the known facts. He couldn’t say much more about this without making stuff up, and while lying was okay with him, he didn’t feel like it at the moment. Only because the conversation involved music and the like. The only good reason to at least attempt to be honest.

When Hachiro told Ray and Akira that they didn't have to help just because he asked them too, Akira smiled. "I don't really mind helping out, I don't have anything else to do and since it's for a good cause, I feel like I should help."

As Hachiro talked about the guitar, Akira would nod. The guitar is a popular instrument, it is generally used in all kinds of music. It is also a pretty nice instrument. Akira didn'thave much to say so he listened to Ray and Hachiro's conversation. When Hachiro asked about what time should the performances, Akira nodded to the suggestions. "I agree, the performances should be on the weekends since most people are off school and work." Akira would reply.