Kana walks through the evening corridor with her guitar against her shoulder and the closed notebook in hand. Behind her, the classroom door clicks shut, leaving the staff to finish closing the building.
Near the entrance, Saki waits beneath the fading lights, her long blonde hair falling over her coat. She turns at the familiar instrument case and brightens.
Saki
Kana? Is that your guitar? Did you write something new?
Saki takes one small step closer, then glances toward the entrance doors as an employee lowers the security shutter. The remaining time narrows to a few quiet minutes.
Saki
I would love to hear it, if you have time. I cannot stay much longer, but I can listen now.
The corridor holds the faint smell of floor polish and evening rain. Saki's attention settles on the notebook, patient but plainly hoping Kana will open it.
✓ Quest Accepted
Share the finished song with Saki
“I open the notebook and show it to Saki”
SUCCESS (Fair Agility, rolled +0)
Kana opens the notebook beneath the fading entrance lights and turns it toward Saki. The marked final verse fills the page, with crossed-out phrases still visible around its simpler lines.
Saki
You changed it. The words look less crowded now.
Saki leans over the notebook without touching it, following the rewritten lines from beginning to end while the security shutter descends another few inches.
Saki
This part feels like it has room to breathe. I can almost hear where the melody would pause.
Tsumori Kana
The graphite marks make the revision easy to follow.
Saki
Did you write the new version because the first one sounded too polished?
She looks from the page to Kana, her expression bright but careful. Rain whispers against the entrance glass, and the empty corridor gives the verse a quiet audience.
“Yeah, something along those lines. Too structured and more like poetry...”
SUCCESS (Good Conversation, rolled +1)
Tsumori Kana
Yeah, something along those lines. The first version was too structured, more like poetry than something meant to be sung.
Kana traces the crossed-out phrases with one finger, leaving the simpler lines visible beneath them. The shutter lowers steadily, while rain gathers silver reflections across the entrance glass.
Saki
I understand. The poetry made every line feel finished before the melody could respond.
Saki studies the page again, then taps lightly beside the open spaces between phrases without touching the graphite marks.
Saki
This version sounds more like you are leaving a door open for the person listening.
Saki
She found the honest shape of it.
The employee near the entrance checks the final lock. Saki straightens and steps back from the notebook, giving Kana room to close it.
“They get out of the school and walk together in the rain while Kana sings the verse, clutching the notebook close to her chest so it doesn't get too wet in the rain”
SUCCESS (Superb Music, rolled -1)
The employee raises the shutter, and Kana and Saki step out beneath the awning. Rain threads through the evening air, turning the pavement into blurred reflections.
Kana holds the notebook close against her chest beneath her coat while keeping the guitar secure on her shoulder. Saki opens her umbrella, angling it so they can walk together.
They leave the school entrance behind and follow the wet sidewalk toward the crossing. Kana begins singing the revised verse softly, her voice fitting between the rainfall and passing footsteps.
Saki
It sounds different out here. The rain gives it another kind of space.
Saki listens without interrupting as Kana carries the melody through the simpler lines. The notebook stays tucked firmly against her, its pages sheltered while droplets gather on the umbrella.
Saki
I can hear what you meant now. It does not feel finished in a closed-off way. It feels like someone can answer it.
At the corner, the signal changes and they cross with the evening crowd. Kana finishes the verse beneath the rain, and Saki walks beside her in quiet approval.
“Kana wraps up the verse and smiles at Saki”
SUCCESS (Superb Music, rolled +2)
Kana carries the melody through the verse's final lines, her voice soft beneath the rain. The simpler phrases settle naturally into the guitar's steady chords.
The last note fades as the crossing signal begins its patient chirp. Kana lowers her hand from the strings and smiles at Saki beneath the umbrella.
Saki
There it is. That smile makes me think you finally recognize the song as your own.
Saki returns the smile, her expression brightening as rain slips from the umbrella's edge. Around them, commuters pass in muted colors and reflected light.
Saki
You should sing it for the others exactly like that. Leave those spaces open and let the feeling reach them.
The signal changes, and they continue along the sidewalk together. Kana keeps the notebook close, while the completed verse lingers between them in the rainy evening.
Quest Complete
Share the finished song with Saki
Skill Upgrade: Music Superb→Legendary