Gared's having a break, do I just post the art on my own? Should I just not post this round or pull out altogether? Sorry! By the way, this is a great idea! 

@mei, that story is great! 

Sorry for caps, I'm just worried!

*swallows* L... Leafy? C-can I have an extension? Until the 20th, maybe? I could really use a little more time...

Here's the story!

The dress is ridiculously uncomfortable. For something so pretty, Kira would’ve thought that it was at least soft and silky, rather than itchy, like the lace skirt that was currently making her squirm. She sits behind the stage, her hands folded in her lap, her toes tapping a metronome-worthy beat against the hardwood floor. She tries to focus on the sheet music she’s memorized, but the violinist on the stage pulls her away. The piece the girl is playing is called Jupiter, one that’s always mesmerized Kira. 

It seems amazing-- or at least she thinks so-- that someone could trap an entire planet in a whirl of violins and flutes and pounding drums. She’s listened to the entire suite, of course, but the girl-- her name is Ella-- is only playing the third movement. 

Kira takes a deep breath, her nerves spinning out of control, the butterflies in her stomach fluttering their wings wildly, as if they’re trying to escape. The music seems more menacing now, sort of a dramatic tantamount to something greater than herself -- or perhaps, something worse. 

The piece ends on a sudden D, after the crescendo. She's heard it too many times to be surprised. Kira watches Ella take a bow, the seemingly deafening applause drowning out her suddenly panicked, shuddering breaths. Ella flashes her an encouraging smile as she steps on to the stage. 

What they say about being onstage isn’t always true. They tell you that you can’t see anything past the spotlights, but Kira knows otherwise. She stands purposely in between the glaring beams, at a sort of vantage point, where she can look out upon the sea of faces and see. 

She takes a bow, then walks over to the piano, head held high. She's done this before, she reminds herself. She sits down on the bench, poises her hands on the keys, and waits. 

And then the world disappears. 

The stage is no longer the high school auditorium, but instead, an architectural marvel designed specifically for music. She squints through the lights, staring outward at the massive domed ceiling and red velvet seats on all sides of the stage. 

Kira has seen photos of this place too many times. She's in Carnegie Hall, and she's absolutely sure of it. She turns towards the grand piano, take a deep breath, and plays. 

When she finishes, she stands up to take a bow. The applause seems so much louder when she’s onstage, compared to the wings. She stands there for a second, and watches as the world disappears-- yet again. 

As she walks off stage,she makes a promise to herself. 

One day-- one day, I’ll be on that stage. 

Heres mine. The lighting isnt very good, sorry. If you want I can get a better shot later.

Here's our submission! Sorry for getting it in so late, but it's 10:30 here, so it's technically still the 17th. :)

On the first day, there had been no refuge.

She had been lost, alone. She had never before dared venture here; that was the task of others. She was terrified, overwhelmed, ready to curl up into a ball and drown out the sounds, the sights, the everything.

It had been too much - just too much.

She had been so proud. So proud and wise and ready for anything; but it all evaporated, glistening silver water into the murky grey clouds of a storm.

Dan-gati. Leader of wizardkind. She should have been honored; no regular sorceress saw him in the flesh. But, considering the circumstances, Sele was instead conquered by terror. She could barely breathe, let alone defend herself, and thus an otherwise awe-inspiring battle was cut short by her defeat.

They threw her into the very dimension she had tried to unleash on the world, and there she knew true torture. The ones who had named music beautiful had never visited the realm she was imprisoned in. Music was pure, raw, chaotic emotion that rolled and roiled and never stayed still.

It was going to drive her mad.

Sele knew this, and was horrified by it, for was she not the most powerful sorceress in the land? To be made insane by the very thing she had conquered was nothing less than mortifying.

She smiled, running her hands across the strings as she remembered the day she had found her solace.

Sele was in the realm of music, was she not? It was fitting, to say the least, to manipulate the dimension's own magic against it.

And so she summoned a harp.

She lost track of what little time there was, playing it. The realm shifted and twisted around her while she sat blissfully unaware. Sometimes, unconsciously, she would raise her voice in song, and the notes would coil around each other in perfect harmony, creating a barrier from the world.

And there Sele stayed, lost in the realm of music.

Content.

These are great!

Uggg, that came out terribly! Try again! Hopefully this comes out better...

It's 9:30 my time, so technicaly I got it in on time! Ha!