Nobuo Crossroad's Story

Nobuo did not have far to travel when he got off one of the buses, and it was a nice enough day to ride his bicycle. His belongings were all in his backpack, including a vest to wear at night to be seen. The breeze felt nice enough as he rode. It surely kept him cool enough that the heat did not get overwhelming. The entrance to the summer home was easy enough to find, he'd pass by it many times whenever he felt the need for speed. Being able to finally enter made him feel anxious, inside. What if the other contest winners were snobs?

Nobuo felt relieved that the place had a bike rack next to the entrance, which made things easier on him. He chain-locked his bicycle onto the rack before entering the building. The interior was rather nice, yet he felt it was a bit too extravagant. It just did not seem practical to him to spend so much money decorating the interior of any house. It did not take him long to find a room and unpack his belongings, which were not that many, to begin with, just some clothes, books, CDs, and a few other things.

Well, this may be a good time to head to the kitchen. Nobuo picked up his Bible, in case somebody else was cooking, prior to spotting a young woman and young man talking to each other. There seemed to be something cooking in the pot on the stove. Feeling it best not to interrupt the two people's discussion, he sat at the table in the room and began to read the Book of Proverbs, in his Bible.

Gavin couldn't help but smile when the pink haired girl who introduced herself as Juliet asked who he was in such a formal tone. Of course, Gavin wasn't stupid and knew she was just goofing around, but it still made him feel like he was an upper class super rich guy or someone like that.
"The name's Gavin Tikoto! Make sure you don't forget it, because some day it'll be known all around the world!" Gavin cheered, his eyes gleaming at just the thought of it.
Becoming famous was plan A for him and with a bit of luck it would go smoothly, it better, anyway. He hadn't been able to figure out plan B or C yet and he wasn't considering going back to school.

Taking another look at Juliet, Gavin wondered why the JM industries people picked her to be there. She didn't look very professional with her... rather colorful choice of clothing and hair. But then again, maybe it was just Gavin, who was probably over dressed with the full suit outfit.
"I should go find my room now..." He was just about to add a see you later! but as he turned around Gavin saw another boy reading quietly at the table.
There was probably a million things to do in the house, the the guy was reading? Gavin hadn't even spoke to him yet but he was sure that there must be something wrong with him.

"You, book guy!" Gavin said, walking over to him with his suitcase still dragging behind him, "Were you here the whole time? I didn't notice... What's your name?"

Nobuo jerked his head, right eyebrow arched, when he heard the man from before rudely call him a book guy. When asked if he was here the whole, he shook his head. Gee, isn't he a swell guy? He thought sarcastically to himself. He answered the query regarding his name with, "Nobuo, Nobuo Crossroad." The half-American young man shrugged before adding, "I saw you and the pink-haired girl talking to each other, and I figured it best not to interrupt. May I ask what your name is?"

What a way to start of the summer... Nobuo half-expected there to be snobs in the house, there always were celebrities that were arrogant. Hopefully, the girl would be more tolerable and polite. In his mind, it would not be worth staying if there were too many snobs in the house. The reason Nobuo entered the contest was to sing, having fun while he was at it. Fame, glory, and money were nothing to him.

Juliet smiled at Gavin's confidence... She would be honest she herself was not feeling on top of the world or anything. Yes she was happy she had this opportunity but she still felt a tad upset that her sister had entered her into the contest without her knowledge or consent. Juliet blinked and picked over Gavin's shoulder at another young man. She did not recognize him as one of the stars so she guessed he was here for training. Smiling she waved at him awkwardly before tilting her head. "Um pink haired girl is called Juliet... Actually..." She looked both ways awkwardly before shrinking back behind Gavin and returning to the stove where the noodles were beginning to finish. She just hoped there would be enough... Of course she'd cooked the way she cooked for a party of people when they were having a special so there should be enough for 10 people which was good if anyone would wasn't seconds...

"Crossroad..." Gavin mumbled the word, "You've got an odd last name, Nobuo. Anywho, like I told Lettie, I'm Gavin! Someday I'll be famous... I'm planning to be, anyway. And then no one will have to ask me what my name is, 'cause they'll already know!" Gavin said optimistically, switching Juliet's name to 'Lettie', thinking it sounded better.

He was quite pleased with himself, figuring that he was getting along well with the two people he had met so far. Both of them seemed nice enough.
"Well, I'll be back later when the food is ready. I'm going to go look for my room and unpack, the suitcase is getting hard to carry around." Gavin muttered, hauling the suitcase yet again as he walked.
I really shouldn't have brought so much stuff...

~ ~ ~

After realizing that the rooms weren't assigned, Gavin chose one and threw his suitcase on the bed and pulled out the clothes.
As he stared at the countless pairs of suits, blazers, and ties, Gavin also realized that he either should have packed a lot less, or hadn't bought such a big suitcase that allowed him to.
At least they all looked nice, though, people would surely be impressed.

Ai sighed. She'd gotten stuck in a car with Nezuko of all people. She'd been hoping to have gotten a ride with someone that she could hold a conversation with, at least, but obviously that wasn't going to happen. Glancing across the back seat at the blue-haired boy that seemed to permanently look like he was brooding about something; at least that's how she'd always seen him. She was about to open her mouth to make a comment, and hopefully strike up a conversation, when the car stopped. She was out in a heartbeat, happy to be out of the silent car.

Impatiently waiting for their driver to retrieve her bag from the back, she tugged at her shirt, not liking how the black fabric was sitting under her jacket. Nodding her thanks to the chauffeur when he brought her suitcase, guitar case, and the bag containing her synthesizer keyboard to her, she was quick to grab them and head inside just at Nezuko was getting out of the car. Grinning up at the huge building, she sighed.

"Reminds me a bit of home, actually. Huge and probably a bit crowded. There will be 12 of us here, after all." opening the door, she was about to step inside when Nezuko 'appeared' beside her.
"Jeez! Way to sneak up on a person!" she grumbled as she stepped inside and took off her shoes.

The first thing she noticed, of course, was the smell of ramen. Shaking her head, she grabbed the name plaque she saw her name on and headed down the hall. She'd been to the vacation home once or twice before, so she more or less knew the floor plan. Stopping in front of one of the very last rooms in the hall, she slid the name plaque into place and headed inside.

After abandoning her rather large suitcase and instrument cases at the foot of the bed, she jogged back into the main room to seek out the people who's names she'd seen adorning the doors she'd passed on the way to her room. Heading into the kitchen, she leaned in the doorway and waved, though she wasn't sure if the two people in the room would notice her or not. Resting her head against the door frame, she figured it would be better to wait for them to take notice of her presence. She really hoped they weren't the overexcited fan-girl types.


Nezuko yawned. He was reclined quite casually in the back of the shiny black luxury car. Staring out the window, he frowned. It wasn't that he minded Ai catching a ride with him, but did the turquoise-haired girl really have to keep fidgeting in her seat? As soon as the car stopped she was out like the vehicle was going to catch fire; what was her problem? Shaking his head, he slowly followed her out and retrieved his suitcase, backpack, and guitar case. Heading up toward the front door of the house, he raised an eyebrow when he accidentally startled Ai. He was about to apologize, but the rather boyish-looking girl had already gone inside.

Following in her actions, he grabbed his name plaque and found himself a room; coincidentally it was the one right next to Ai's. He knew she was pretty quiet, so he didn't mind being next to her. He was more worried about who would be on the other side of him. Gently setting his guitar case on the bed and his backpack and suitcase on the floor, he headed out to meet the people that he and the others would be playing 'teacher' for.

Spotting Ai already poking her head into the kitchen, he stepped inside, grabbing her arm and pulling her in with him. "I'm Nezuko Sejirou and this little chibi," he made a comment voicing the 4" difference between his height and Ai's, "is Ai Hinata. I'm assuming that you are two of the contestants that we will be coaching. Hopefully the others will arrive soon." he bowed slightly and, crossing his arm over Ai's back, forced her to bow as well.

Unpacking wasn't the first choice on Gavins' to do list, he had a million other things he was planning to do during his stay at the vacation home, but he neatly put all his clothes and other belongings away before he did anything else.
Once that was done, Gavin left the room and entered the hallway where he noticed a purple haired lady humming to herself in the hallway. Why were there so many people in the house?? Couldn't everyone else get there later?
It took Gavin a moment to figure out that he knew her face from somewhere, but had no clue what her name was. Was she one of the star trainers or just one of the people like Juliet, Nobuo and himself who had unrealistically high hopes?

"Hello!" Gavin said cheerfully, walking up to the girl with a smile, "I'm Gavin Tikoto!"
How many times would he say that today? Maybe I should just wear a Hi, My Name Is: ... badge or something, he thought, thinking that that would be easier.
He didn't wait for the girl to hold out her hand, Gavin just took it and shook her hand.
At the same moment, Gavin heard Juliet announce from the kitchen that the noodles were ready.
"Aha! Finally!" He said, forgetting to let go of the purple lady's hand as he ran to where the food was at.

~ ~ ~

"That took forever to cook," Gavin noted as he stopped at the kitchen. "Oh! And look who I found," he continued, holding the girls hand in the air.
He noticed two other people standing in the kitchen, and Gavin stared at them blankly.
"...Who are you guys?"

When Nezuko forced her to bow, she was very quick to retaliate by lightly kicking his shin as she straightened back up. When the girl with pink hair spoke up about everyone sneaking up on her, Ai grinned.

"It's lovely to meet you, Juliet. Ah, and you too, Nobuo." she was happy that they hadn't seemed to freak out too much and even happier when Juliet said the noodles were done.
"Sweet!" Ai was just about to take her own bowl when two more people arrived in the room. One she presumed was Gavin and the other she recognized as Nami.
"Nami!" she grinned at the purple-haired girl. "How's your brother? He came too, right?"
It took her a moment before she realized that Gavin hadn't recognized them. "I'm Ai Hinata." she bowed slightly. "I'll be one of the trainers staying here with you."
Picking her chopsticks and bowl of ramen up, she grinned at Juliet. "Thank you for the meal!"

She was trying her best to eat neatly, like Nezuko does, but being an inherently messy eater, she wasn't doing very well. Quickly finishing off her food, she wiped her mouth and quickly cleaned out the bowl in the sink before she leaned against one of the counters.

"So, what instruments do all of you play, or shall I just wait and see?" she tilted her head questioningly, leaving their answers up to them.


Nezuko winced as Ai kicked him in the shin, but thankfully she'd only kicked him lightly, so the pain faded quickly. Observing the other two in the room, he nodded as the girl introduced herself and the boy at the table. Murmuring a 'nice to meet you,' he was more preoccupied with the smell of ramen and his quite empty belly. As soon as the ramen was done he was one of the first in line to get some. Glancing up as Nami and another boy entered the room, he sighed and set down his bowl on the counter beside him.

"How have you been, Nami?" speaking simultaneously with Ai, he sighed. He would be hard to hear over the rambunctious girl's talking.
As soon as Ai finally shut up, he bowed slightly. "Nezuko Sejirou; one of the trainers. It's nice to meet you and to see you again, Nami. I hope your brother is well."

As soon as he was done with that, he returned to his ramen; neatly eating it but still finishing at the same time as Ai. There was definitely a huge difference between not only their personalities, but their actions as well. It was almost like they were mirrors of each other in some ways.

Nanae was meditating in her room. She has been there for a while. Her baggage was already unpacked. You could see tropical instruments, African masks, spears, dream catchers and many more random things.
Nanae didn't notice anything outside of her room, because she was meditating. However, the seducing smell of noodles caressed her nose and brought her back to reality.

Nanae ran out of her room and went to the kitchen. "Noodles? Wow..." She didn't expect that there would be so many people there. "My name is Nanae Tokka and I used to be an okapi in my previous life." She quietly stated while shaking hands with everyone else.

Nobuo blushed a little in embarrassment. "Sorry if I was rude, Juliet." More and more people came into the kitchen, it seemed. As people introduced themselves, he tried to remember everyone's names. This was all happening suddenly, even after Juliet said the ramen was ready. Once he had the opportunity, he fixed up a plate and went back to the spot of the table he was in earlier. "Well, everything certainly is happening rather quickly, isn't it."

He then thought on what Gavin said about being so famous, every person in the world would know his name. If only there was one person in the earth's history who was that famous... Of course, he did not care about fame, he was only there to sing and play guitar. When he tasted the Ramen, it was like a festival in his mouth. "This is very good, Juliet! My compliments to the chef!" An idea struck him, right after he finished eating his ramen. "Say, who's up for some muffins, to sweeten things up? I'm thinking about making either blueberry, cranberry, or chocolate chip."

Juliet Ciel:

Juliet was delighted when everyone liked her ramen even more so that everyone was getting along so far. "Glad you all like the Ramen it was my mum's recipe... Though some of it was kinda lost with her but I still managed ti fill in the blanks." Juliet continued to eat and listened as everyone introduced themselves. When Ai asked what instruments they played Juliet smiled "I can play the guitar both acoustic and electric and I'm pretty good on a piano." So many people here already... She really did hope she'd made enough Ramen. When a girl Nanae came in talking about noodles Juliet smiled and handed her some. "Here you are there home made so even better!"

~ . ~

Nami Satou:

Nami had been in her own little world when a man name Gavin ran up to her and then in her opinion dragged her toward the kitchen. Nami was frozen in horror surrounded by strangers and a few people she did know but still... So many people. And of course they had to ask questions... One about her but the main question was more about her brother. "I-I, y-yes Kageru's here and f-fine just un-packing and... All." She stared at the ground trying to hide herself as best she could in her long purple hair. Had she not be concentrating so hard on her feet she would probably would have fled the area screaming about how there were scary strangers everywhere. Realizing she'd ignored Nezuko she lifted her head. "Oh and I'm f-fine Nezuko... A little umm startled with all this but fine..." Nami did like trying new things to become braver and being quite literally trapped with a stranger still holding on to her and new people everywhere certainly was new. Nami lifted her head. "It's nice to meet you all... If you didn't catch it my name is Nami Satou... Il also be training you..."

~ . ~

Kageru Satou:

Kageru finally finished un-packing half of his stuff when the smell of food caught his nose. He exited into the hallway only to see his little sister missing. "Nami..." He knew she would dare not introduce herself without him but then why was she not waiting for him and not in her room? Kageru immediately tracked his sister to the kitchen where she was staring at the floor doing her best to become invisible... But what was worse was a stranger was holding onto her. Kageru's eye narrowed in anger as he walked up behind Nami and pulled her away from the stranger happy when her small pale hands slipped out of the mans. "Hey there everyone you didn't honestly think you could get the party started without me could you?" He grinned and messed up Nami's hair. "Nezuko and Ai here man this is going to be more fun then we thought sis!" Once again he reached up and messed around with Nami's light purple hair causing her to nod awkwardly.

As a few more people entered the kitchen, Gavin helped himself to a bowl of the ramen noodles and began eating, trying to remember everyone's names as he did so.

Juliet, Nobuo, Nami, Kageru, Ai, Nezuko, Nanae... He paused from eating and focused on trying to put faces to the names, they were all going to be his fans someday so he decided that he might as well know who they were.
Not quite succeeding and only managed for the pink haired Juliet, bookworm Nobuo, and Ai, who Gavin had originally thought was a guy before she had spoken.
As yet another person entered the kitchen, Gavin just let out a sigh and continued with eating.
Surprisingly, for someone who looked as if she should be on the crazy side, Juliet was a pretty good cook and Gavin reminded himself that he'd have to ask her to teach him.

When his bowl of ramen noodles was finished, Gavin washed the dish and turned to address the group of busily chatting people.
"So! What's the plan for the rest of the day?" He asked eagerly, hoping that the answer would be something fun and interesting rather than just sitting around, unpacking, and getting settled in the house.

Juliet Ciel:

Juliet blinked when a rather silent man walked in and sat down. Awkwardly she handed him some food before deciding to address Gavin's question. "I know! We play video games! I mean everyone like's video games right? I don't see why they would not." She grinned proudly. "That and... I don't know what on earth else we could do... Maybe watch a scary movie? Divide ourselves into activity groups... See if there's a pool or hot tub and began the most epic water fight of the nigh ever! Or Orrrr NIGHT HIDE AND GO SEEK!" Juliet named off a few other ideas before deciding she could not think of any others and gave up deciding to let the others think of something.

~ . ~

Kageru Satou:

Kageru arched an eye brow at the pink haired one they called Juliet. She seemed to have several ideas a few of which appealed to him. "If we play night hide and go seek... I call not it!" The black haired singer smirked not caring if he seemed immature... If he was always serious brother mode then he'd never have any-fun. Kageru looked over at Nami to see her reaction but she seemed to be thinking so instead Kageru directed his attention else where.

~ . ~

Nami Satou:

Nami was not sure she liked some of the ideas Juliet suggested but she decided to make no comment. When her brother mentioned not being it Nami smiled a little slowly relaxing to her strange new surroundings.

Ai smiled as she shook hands with Nanae. "Nice to meet you, Nanae. I'm Ai Hinata."
She was slightly surprised when Nobuo spoke up; he seemed like a bit of a quiet type to her. "I'm voting chocolate chip here, and I'm sure the little rat here," she reached up to pat Nezuko's head, "would like the same."
When yet another person walked in, sat down, and started reading, she stepped over to him and poked her head over his shoulder. "You know, I like reading, but is some of that even in Japanese? I swear that's not English either!"


Throughout the introductions and such, he stayed quiet, but once they started trying to decide what to do, he found himself speaking up. "Ah, actually, I'd really like to hear all of you play something? I'd like to get an idea of the skills that brought you all here. In turn, I'm sure the other Trainers wouldn't protest to playing a tune in return." he leaned against the counter. "That's assuming that you came here to train and not just play around all day."

Nobuo was about to bring out the ingredients when he heard Nezuko ask to hear everyone play something. "Right. Are there any guitars anywhere? I kind of couldn't fit my own into my backpack."

He now felt a little embarrassed, now that he mentioned not having any instruments with him. That was one of the downsides of cycling, he could not carry everything. Hopefully, there were spare. What a way to start things off.

((Sorry for the short post.))

Nami Satou

Nami listened quietly but finally spoke this made Kageru proud he wanted her to be bold. "There are instruments all over the place..." She quietly gestured for everyone to follow her as she turned and left the fiscinity of the kitchen. She turned on the lights and headed down the hall until she found the huge music room. She blinked and looked at her brother who grinned. The siblings stepped inside and looked around. The instruments were barely used, and had dust on them. Nami watched as Kageru wandered around seeing the tuning, while the pink haired girl walked in and walked over to the piano and sat down smiling.

Nobuo followed Nami to the music room, where he saw all sort of things they would be using. He was actually impressed, since there was a wide variety. tugging Juliet's sleeve, he pointed towards a pair of guitars. "There are some guitars over there that we can use." Walking on over, Nobuo picked up one of the two guitars, then motioned for Juliet to sit next to him. She really is a sweet girl.

Nami Satou

Nami blinked and thought for a moment. "I know a few..." She tentatively touched the keyboard and played a little tune. It was on the spot but it sounded nice anyway. "Though I prefer to improvise." She smiled a little and looked up at Gavin. He certainly was a down to earth bold guy... She supposed that she admired him a little for that. It certainly took guts something she herself was a little lacking it...

~ . ~

Juliet Ciel

Juliet blinked and followed Nobuo before sitting down and grabbing a guitar. She ran her fingers gently over the chords and cringed when she heard the awkward noises that emanated from the instrument. "They need a little tuning but they are in great shape." Juliet adjusted a few things until she was satisfied with the sound. Then she played a gentle tune so as to be sure. She grinned at Nobuo. "I taught myself to tune guitars... I love getting the right sound." She swayed her feet back and forth and played again.

~ . ~

Kageru Satou

Kageru was watching everything from the side lines. Things seemed to be going well and while Kageru did get annoyed seeing a boy next to his sister he let it slide and decided to watch. Nami needed to get bolder anyway maybe letting her hang around someone who had boundless self confidence would be a good thing... But he'd still keep a close eye.

"Really?" Nobuo smiled a little as he listened to her. "I kind of learned about the guitar on my own, too. Of course, it was my dad who taught me how to tune one up." Once she finished her song, he tuned up and played something a little more upbeat. It was more like a country song, something to be heard in the United States' southern region. Either way, it was something to pass the time. When he finished, he gave a small grin and said to Juliet. "Half of my family is American, so I know plenty of stars from that country, including one of my favorites, Garth Brooks. I can speak and sing fluently in English, too, so I have no trouble with the songs."

Juliet Satou

Juliet smiled. "That's so cool~" She marveled at Nobuo. "My own family is well... Mostly gone so I havent had any chances at that kind of thing... But believe or not spending your days making ramen helps build up guitar skills." She grinned. After a few seconds of silence Juliet managed to play the tune Nobuo played. She smirked and looked at him daringly. "Mainly in the ways of memorization and concentration... Cause water boils over and people hate repeating orders." She gave a silly crooked smile and played the tune again as if asking Nobuo to join her.