Summary: A oneshot written while sitting around boredly backstage in-between scenes of Camelot. ^-^ I think it’s kinda cute, and was fun to write. It was also kind of a practice of ‘indirect characterization’ as it’s called, or I call it or whatever: showing a character’s personality through their thoughts and actions by themselves and/or with other people instead of just stating "so and so was very shy, but very…". *blink* Er, yeah. *sweatdrop*

Rael hated Sundays.

There was no deeply etched memory of unhappy Sundays in his childhood; they didn’t signify anything, but he hated them nonetheless.

After a whole week of hustle and bustle, stress and works, people usually took Sunday off, opting to languish around in lazy peaceful silence.

It made Rael paranoid as hell. For Rael, who in his profession, silence meant caution and danger, Sundays were a chance to pick at his nerves.

So instead he walked anxiously around the room of the inn, casting wary looks to the wall length windows on the east side. His comrades had cast themselves on various pieces of furniture around the den: Aina was attempting to nap on the couch closest to the window-wall while Rune did various things to annoy her, currently he was rapping her with a pillow. At first she’d been mad and had retaliated with each hit with one of her own, but had eventually lost her zeal. She now simply batted at the pillow in annoyance like one would at a fly.

Maradar sat in one of the corner chairs quietly reading some book not even bothering anymore to tell off Rune, Mir’r sat in another writing letters. Rune tired of annoying an unresponsive Aina, and joined Sid and Fuei at some obscure card game on the coffee table in the middle of the room. Only the quiet murmur of their voices as they debated over the rules, and the padding of Rael’s feet on the carpet could be heard.

Eventually he tired of the restless pacing, and made himself comfortable on the edge of the couch by pushing off Aina’s feet. Even as much as he hated Sundays, he couldn’t get through them without feeling guilt. It was the kind of quilt that your friends always tell you not to worry over, but their words only seem to make it worse. Mainly it was because he felt that by admitting he never felt secure on Sundays, which is what his hatred really came down to, he felt it also said that he did not completely trust his partners, which made him guilty and uncomfortable in itself.

On the floor, Rune complained about beginner’s luck as Fuei giggled.

Maradar turned a page. Aina made herself comfortable again by using Rael as a leg-prop.

At first Maradar and Fuei had attempted to help by going out and keeping busy on Sundays instead of resting. Then they began falling asleep on watches, and the three decided that Sunday rest was too valuable to be passed on.

So they rested, and Rael paced. When Aina and Rune came in, they’d both yelled at him for making them anxious. Then the routine had worn in, and now Rael’s habit was looked upon with only mild annoyance. Mir’r and Sid both only gave it a mild glance, with Mir’r being able to sort his feelings into only a pet peeve, and Sid having grown up in a much more high-tension area.

Rune drummed his fingers as he waited for Fuei to move.

Mir’r "mmm"ed at something in her letter and scribbled something out.

Fuei flicked her cards over her fingers as Sid played his cards.

Rael was reminded of a show that he had seen once some undecided years ago. He couldn’t remember the details: he couldn’t even remember if he’d enjoyed it, or why’d he’d been there; but he remembered that he’d woken up in the middle of a scene in which the people on stage had started playing music with, of all things, kitchen appliances.

Rael found himself humming to the beat. Aina stirred from the head of the couch. Mir’r seemed to have gotten bored with the letter and had begun doodling in the margin.

A higher octave, "Da da daaaaaaaa, da. Da da daaaaaaaa, da."

He was humming under his breath now, the obscure tune he’d heard long ago.

"Da da daaaaaaaa, da."

"Bum ba-bump, da da dump." He jumped at the voice near his elbow. Aina gave him a shy grin, "The song…." She looked at him pointedly. "Ba da daaaaaa, da."

Rune looked at the two on the couch strangely.

"Tap!" Aina encouraged laughing, and started to drum her own fingers in the mimic of the blonde elf.

"Da da daaaaaa, da!"

"Bum, bum ba-bump."

"Da da daaaaa, da!"

Rune was staring at the tow like they’d lost their minds. The other members of the group turned up from their own work to look at the two usually head-butting members doing something besides arguing together.

Rael and Aina looked in delight to Fuei, who had begun to tap out the tune.

"Da da daaaaa, da!"

"Bum, bum ba-bump."

Mir’r tapped her pen.

Maradar’s steady snapping joined Fuei and Mir’r in the percussion.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Came the heavy stamp of Sid’s boot.

"Na na naaaaaaa, na!" Aina and Fuei faltered as their bodies shook with laughter when Rael changed his tune to a high nasally voice.

"Ba na naaaaaa, da!"

Tap ta-tap. Tap ta-tap. Fuei’s tapping became staccato and Aina’s "ba bump"s were too punctuated with laughter.

"Na na naaaaa, DA DA!"

The room erupted with laughter as Rael ended with a final nasally beat. Aina fell back in giggles, Mir’r and Maradar looked on with the affectionate amusement older people have for their juniors, while Sid just laughed outright in the deep-throated, feel-it-in-your-belly laugh.

"I love that song!" Aina cried between breaths. "I know!" came Rael and Fuei’s enthusiastic response.

Rune looked at them all as though they were insane, "You are all crazy." They just laughed harder.

Outside, another Sunday afternoon dragged on.

I love little scenes like these, whether I’m writing them or reading them, about original characters or canons from shows. It’s fun to see the interactions between everyone, and makes characters even more realistic I think.

XD Looking it over, the ‘music score’ is really odd.