Bandmates

'Get your hands off my guitar, Lee,' said Astron warningly, frowning as he caught Crowley messing with his prized instrument for the third time. Leaning down, he firmly tugged it out of the younger boy's grip.

Crowley, for his part, just smirked and lay back more comfortably on top of the amp. It seemed to be his favourite spot at the moment. 'Why?' he said. 'Does it bother you?'

Astron's frown didn't lessen as he settled down and began strumming his guitar, very slowly, going through the melodies of their newest song in his head. It was called 'Unforgiveable' and he thought it might be one of the band's best tracks to date. Stal, their frontman, didn't agree - but then Stal was the world's biggest perfectionist.

'Well, yeah, of course it does,' he replied, 'if you break it by accident or something.'

Crowley shook his head. 'Astron, Astron... C'mon, have some faith in me.' In a quick movement, he swung himself down from the amp. 'Here, I'll give you some drums so you can actually, y'know, practise. Stal's gonna murder us if we waste our time waiting for him and doing nothing.'

The skinny blue-haired boy leapt up behind the drum set, which was normally played by Rick. However, Rick was often absent from rehearsals, claiming he was too busy to devote more time to the band, and today was not an exception from the norm. Picking up the two sticks, he started drumming out a simple beat. Recognising it, Astron immediately joined in with the beginnings of a searing guitar riff.

Crowley wasn't an expert drummer, but he was the one who always played when Rick wasn't around. Having to stand in so many times had given him a good understanding of how to play most of Snare's songs. It was something Astron found himself grateful for, since it allowed him to keep practising even when Rick was too busy to show up.

They kept at it for maybe fifteen minutes, finishing the new song and then doing a few others just for good measure. Finally, Astron set his guitar down in his lap and looked back at Crowley.

'OK, that's enough for now. Let's wait for the others to get here, then we can rehearse for real.'

Crowley nodded, laying down his sticks and slumping forward to drape himself lazily over the drum set. The drums dwarfed him, making him look even smaller than usual. Surprisingly quiet, he watched Astron reach for a glass of lemonade standing on a nearby chair and drink half of it in one go. It wasn't long before the older boy noticed the scrutinity.

'Something up, Lee?' he asked, keeping his tone casual. He was pretty used to Crowley's strange moods, switching from high energy to total silence in the space of a few minutes, and he was definitely used being watched. He stood on stage in front of half the school's student population for a hobby.

'Nah, just thinking...' Crowley replied, shrugging and then letting out a huge yawn. Astron eyed him suspiciously.

'I don't like it when you say that. It usually means you're up to something.'

Instantly, the younger boy sat bolt upright, putting a hand to his heart and gaping dramatically. 'Astron, buddy! How could you ever think that of me?' Then he slowly dropped his hand and his expression changed to a sinister grin, yellow eyes narrowed to slits. In a quick, birdlike motion, he left the drum set and sprung over to Astron's side, throwing a careless arm around the guitarist's shoulders before he had time to do more than flinch in surprise.

'Of course, I MIGHT be up to something... you'll never know.'

He hissed the words out in a menacing growl, his mouth inches from Astron's ear. Then, just as suddenly, he let go and skipped away to sit down in his usual spot. 'But don't worry, it's got nothing to do with you,' he added in his normal voice. 'You're my buddy, and I don't mess with my buddies like that.'

Astron stared at him in disbelief, then turned away with a sigh, running a hand through his spiky hair. Buddies or not, there was one thing about Crowley that he knew he'd never get used to - the boy's ability to turn threatening between one heartbeat and the next.

'Well, it's nice to know you're just going to go bully some poor little kid after this rehearsal,' he muttered, picking up his guitar again and starting to play with the strings. Crowley, looking for all the world like nothing weird had happened, smiled as he flopped down on his back on the amp, putting his hands behind his head.

'If I'm not hurting you, then you shouldn't be worried about it, 'Stron.'

'That doesn't mean I think you bullying people is OK.'

'I don't see you trying to stop me.'

Astron frowned. 'I'm your bandmate, not your mum. I'm not going to run around after you making sure you don't attack anyone or get expelled. That's not what I'm here for,'

Crowley snorted. 'As if I'd ever let you do that.'

With a tired smile, Astron strummed the guitar. The powerful sound reverberated through the almost empty room. 'Anyway, can we not talk about the weird stuff you do, and instead get some more practice in? The others are running late tonight. We might as well do something useful.'