So You Think You Can Da....sorry, no. Just Dance Team.

Ayame looked thoughtful as she gauged Ageha's reaction to her choosing Kage. THAT was what worried her. Ageha and Kage never seemed to get along. Kage tried, but Ageha ultimately pushed her away which caused Kage to lash out. It wasn't good for a team to have members at each other's throats. Ayame would have to have a word with Ageha about this. She looked over at the three she'd chosen.

"Alright....cue music!"

The dance wouldn't be as fresh in their minds this time. With the short break, she was sure they'd have lost some of the moves in their head. She watched carefully to see how much they each retained and how they executed the moves as she weighed something in her mind.

Souta was pretty sure that this run through, his fourth run through, was the best one he’d done so far. During the break he’d been running through the steps over and over in his head, making sure he knew them perfectly. He wanted to be vice captain so badly, and he hoped that the fact it didn’t take him very long to perfect the dance and the moves would reflect that.

When the dance finished, the grin spread over his face and he put his hands over his face, leaning forwards then running them back into his hair as he straightened up. He hadn’t missed a step.

He clapped Spencer on the shoulder when he passed, shrugging off his jacket and breathing out with a sigh. Picking up his water bottle he went to clap Kage over the shoulder before hesitating. Last time he’d got near her she’d freaked out and started screaming and Souta was pretty sure it was like something from a horror film when the child gets possessed. He didn’t want it to happen again. Moving around in front of her, he held out his water bottle.

“Good job!”

Ageha's attention immediately shifted to Spencer and Souta. Munro had been decent, but not enough for this position. If anything, her performance had only convinced Ageha that she'd be able to keep up with the rest of the team more easily than she could at the beginning of the year. At least Ageha's job would be a little easier. Maybe Munro had followed her advice, sought outside help.

In any case, she had to decide between Souta and Spencer. They were both good. It felt weird not being able to decide firmly on something. She glanced at Nanami, considering asking her opinion, but Nanami didn't have nearly as much input... unfortunately... Excusing herself with a sigh, Ageha lifted from her seat and crossed over to Ayame.

"Well?" A note of expectation crept into Ageha's voice. "What do you... Who do you want to give this to?" She wanted to believe they were on the same page for once, but she couldn't tell. "I want Souta. Or Spencer. They fit what I'm looking for."

Spencer's heart dropped out and bounced on the floor. And then Ayame stepped on it. And squished it. And then she cackled about it.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Spencer blurted out - suddenly glad a majority of the room didn't speak English. If they did, though, he didn't care that much. How could he be expected to be speaking Japanese at that point? Nah. Nope. Even if they did, he was sure he got some sort of-- no. There was just no reason for this. His fists clenched, unclenched. Was this some sort of stupid joke? Ayame was obsessed with those.

But no - no, it wasn't. This team was a joke. It already had been. He'd just chosen to ignore it, sort of like ignoring a friend who kept shoving you and then laughing about it and saying they were just kidding and to lighten up. He ran his hands across his face. Once. Twice. He didn't need this, not after the whole last year.

Maybe he really was too stupid, too untalented for anything. Don't think like that.

"Fuck this." He couldn't handle this right now. Spencer swallowed hard, avoiding eye contact with anyone - especially fuckin' Ayame and Merida over there - and forced his brain to work in Japanese long enough to mumble something about feeling nauseous and left the room.

Kage stared blankly at Ayame a moment. Had she....heard right? No. It couldn't...then Spencer started cursing. She stared after him as he started walking off. She reached out a hand to try to stop him.

"Spencer..." but thought better of it. He was pissed. She didn't deserve this position, so why had Ayame picked her? She looked up at Souta when he touched her shoulder. She felt fear creeping up but she knew where he was. It was Souta. It was Souta. He looked ready to cry. She opened her mouth to say something, but soon he was leaving, too. Everybody was angry with her. This hadn't been her decision. Ayame had said she was expected to try out. She had never even thought she'd win.

She walked over to Ayame, continuously staring at the floor. The room was silent and Kage felt the eyes of everyone on her. She trembled, knowing Ageha was probably glaring daggers at her, wishing all kind of ill thoughts upon her. "Washio-sensei, I really think that Spencer should have..." she trailed off, knowing it wasn't going to do much good.

"Okamoto-san, if you want to avoid detention, you'd best watch your language. This is NOT your team. You may be captain, but with an attitude like THAT, you're three seconds from losing that position if you continue with that behavior." Her eyes settled on Ageha, this time with a look of pure authority. Ageha knew better than to press her luck and Ayame had gone from the accomodating coach who knew very little of dance to the teacher with a purpose.

"The reason I chose Munro-san is simple. You two have lost site of what it means to BE a team. Okamoto-san, you either alienate Munro-san completely, or you treat her like garbage. I have witnessed several occasions where she's asked you for help and you've either berated her for her accent and her clothing choices, or you've ignored her completely. I've seen ONE occasion where you've actually given her advice, and even then you were condescending and cruel. I would expect this behavior from a first year, Okamoto-san, but not you. Especially when the previous captain made sure to mentor you quite closely."

Her eyes darted to Kage. "And don't think you're off the hook, Munro-san. In return, you've been just as snide in your remarks. On the occasion Okamoto-san offered you advice, you completely blew her off and told her to...and I quote 'stuff it'." She let the information sink in for a moment. She adjusted her glasses carefully on the bridge of her nose. "So. This is your assignment. The two of you will work together as captain and vice-captain. You will learn to work as a team by the time the competition rolls around. Or..." she looked both of them dead in the eyes. "...you will both resign."

She stayed silent long enough to be sure they understood exactly what they were facing.

"Have I made myself clear?"

"Okamoto-senpai, wait!" Kage called after her. She grabbed Ageha's arm before she could leave. Her eyes were determined and if Ageha tried to pull away, Kage would tighten her grip. If it was one thing Kage had over Ageha, it was strength. Years of reigning in horses and working the farm had given her that. "I don't give a shite how angry ye are, I'm not letting ye give up something ye worked so hard fer just cause yer pissed at a teacher. YER the one with the skill here, not me. This team will fall apart without ye."

That was probably the most Kage had said to Ageha since they'd met. Her eyes darted over to Ayame. "Fine, Washio-sensei. We'll learn ter work together...but I have a request. Spencer deserved this position far more than I do. Make him vice-captain. Give me...some other title that puts me below him. I'll work with Ageha and that way the rest of the team doesn't suffer because of me. Is that acceptable?"

Ageha might not like her, but Kage DID care about the captain. They just didn't see eye to eye on anything. She turned her gaze back to Ageha. "I came here specifically to learn from ye," she said, keeping her voice low so only Ageha could hear her, "...but ye never gave me the chance. I'm not about to let ye throw away a lifetime of work over a temper tantrum."