Sakuya Sakuma/Stately Four Strings

Forest Concert

Backstage Stories

Part 1Part 2

Sakuya	One more time. I should hold the instrument like this...
	Ah, as I thought, it still sounds a bit scratchy... Hmm, this is hard...
Cat A	Meow~
Sakuya	Huh? When did you guys...
Cat B	Me~ow.
Cat A	Meow, meow...
Sakuya	Ahaha, that tickles.
	Are you guys trying to cheer me on...?
Cat B	Meow~
Sakuya	I see, thanks guys.
Cats	Me~ow.
Sakuya	—And that's what happened!
Citron	Ooh! The cats are cheering you on as well!
Sakuya	It's still hard for me to make a beautiful sound but...I'll definitely try my best!
Citron	Sakuya, you've been practicing really hard, so I'm sure you'll be able to make a beautiful sound! I'll show you how!
	But it's already this late. Let's get to sleep and practice again tomorrow.
Sakuya	You're right.
Citron	Good night. Sweet dreams.
Sakuya	Thank you. Good night, Citron-san.
	...Nn.
	W-what...? Where am I...?
	...I can hear a sound from somewhere around here... I wonder if someone is playing an instrument?
	The sound seems to be coming from the other side...
Animal Quartet	♪ ~ ♪ ~
Sakuya	Eeh?! What are they doing here...?!
	(That's the guys from the Autumn Troupe, right...?)
	(A rabbit, a bear, a tanuki, and a squirrel... The four of them are doing a musical performance...)
	(There's also a wolf and a lion listening to the performance around me...)
	(It's not just guys in animal costumes though, even real animals are also listening to their performance...)
	(They caught me by surprise but...the sound is very beautiful...)
Animal Quartet	♪~...
Sakuya	That was amazing! I was very impressed! That was a wonderful performance!
Bear	...Thanks.
Sakuya	Um... You guys are Banri-kun and the rest of the Autumn Troupe, right?
Rabbit	...I'm a rabbit.
Sakuya	H-huh? So that's not Taichi-kun...?
Tanuki	Y-you're wrong, I'm a tanuki...!
	Um...t-that's right! Why don't you play with us, Sakkun?!
Squirrel	Don't just go calling him with his nickname.
Rabbit	You're goin' way too off topic here!
Wolf	You can play the cello, right? Why don't you go ahead and play it?
Lion	I'll lend you my instrument.
Sakuya	Eeh, but I can't play it that well, you know...?!
Tanuki	It's fine, it's fine! Come sit over here.

Rabbit	Here, hold the instrument.
Lion	Let us hear your sound.
Sakuya	I-I wonder if it's okay... I can only make a scratchy sound when I practice...
Wolf	You can definitely play it. It's okay.
Sakuya	G-got it. ...Here I go...!
	♪~
	...! Whoa, I can actually play...!
Lion	If you think you can't do it, then you won't be able to do it forever. It's important to have confidence in yourself.
Bear	Just keep playing like you did now.
Squirrel	We're gonna join you.
Animal Quartet	♪ ~ ♪ ~
Sakuya	♪ ~ ♪ ~
	(The sound of my cello and everyone else's sound are echoing together in a beautiful symphony.)
	This is so much fun...!
	...!
	Huh? I was just playing cello in the forest...
	...A dream, huh... Did I have that dream because I met those cats yesterday...?
	(But the feeling of my fingers I used to play the cello with is still here...)
	(Wait, maybe I'll be able to play it now...!)
Izumi	Ah, good morning, Sakuya-kun. You're up early, huh?
Sakuya	Good morning! You're up early too, Director.
Izumi	Yeah, I woke up quite early so I thought I'd mop the training room. Are you gonna practice your instrument?
Sakuya	I actually had a dream where I played cello with some animals in the forest. So I thought I might be able to play it now.
	I want to play while the feelings are still there.
Izumi	I see. Haha. Playing music with animals, that's very typical of Sakuya-kun.
Sakuya	All right, I'll play it right away, then...!
	♪~...
	H-huh...?
	It's the same scratchy sound as yesterday... It doesn't sound like it did in my dream...
	Hmm... A dream really is just a dream, after all...
Izumi	But...I think the way you hold the instrument has changed a bit...?
Sakuya	Huh?
	Come to think of it, I saw Squirrel-san's posture while playing the cello in my dream...so maybe I subconsciously mimicked that...
Izumi	Why don't you try it again with your current stance?
Sakuya	Y-yes...!
	♪~...
	...!
Izumi	You did it! That was a beautiful sound, Sakuya-kun!
Sakuya	You're right! This is the same clear sound as in my dream!
	Okay, one more time!
	♪~...
	Huh? It's the same scratchy sound again...
Izumi	But I think you're slowly getting the hang of it.
Sakuya	It's just a matter of practicing again and again! At least that's what I think!
CHOICE 1: The sound of the cello really suits you. [+] Izumi I feel like the gentle sound of the cello really suits you. Sakuya Really? I also think that the sound of the cello is really beautiful. The more I practice playing it, the more I became fond of it! I still can't make a beautiful sound but...I want to practice more and be able to play even the simple songs. I'll do my best to bring that comforting sound that I dreamed of to the director!
CHOICE 2: You really look like a music student. [+] Izumi You really look like a music student when you're practicing like that. Sakuya Really? Izumi Yeah. The Sakuya-kun who is facing the cello so straightforwardly is really cool. Sakuya T-thank you very much...! Practicing a musical instrument is difficult, but just like practicing a play, it gets more fun the more you do it! I'm really looking forward to the performance scene with everyone!
Izumi	It's about time for everyone to wake up. We should wrap it up here.
Sakuya	You're right.
Izumi	By the way, your dream of playing music with animals is quite novel. It's like a scene from a fairy tale.
Sakuya	...To be honest, it was more like guys in animal costumes, rather than real animals.
	Real animals were around to listen to the performance as well... But there was a quartet of guys in animal costumes playing music.
Izumi	Eh, were they possibly a rabbit and a bear...?
Sakuya	Yes. But when I asked if he was Banri-kun, he said that he was a rabbit...
Izumi	Ahaha, is that so? I guess he felt that since he's wearing a costume, he shouldn't say his name so easily?
Sakuya	But they were a very nice quartet!
Izumi	Let's talk about it later with the Autumn Troupe over breakfast.
Sakuya	Ahaha, okay!

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