Sun Drenched Days and Starlit Nights -- A Pete/Mikey happyfic challenge.

[turps]

So you want to join? Awesome! First claim a quote from the list below. Tell me the number and I'll strike that quote out. You can claim up to two quotes. The quote is meant as a jumping off point rather than an actual prompt. Take them as inspiration and not something that has to be interpreted in a literal fashion. If all quotes get claimed I'll open them up again for double claiming.

As long as the challenge is live you can come and claim a quote. However, if you've previously claimed those stories must be completed before you ask for more quotes. If you claim a quote and find you really can't work with it contact me. I'll try my best to help.

This is a casual challenge therefore there are only a few rules.

Stories must be at least 1,000 words long.
Stories must have Pete/Mikey as the central pairing. You can include other pairings, but Pete/Mikey have to be front and centre.
Stories must have a happy ending. I know that's subjective but use your head, no stories that end with angsty break ups or Mikey dying. Unless you're writing some kind of angel AU, in which case I say go for it, let them have heavenly sex.

AUs are fine, and you can write about any time period, not just Summer of Like.

If you don't write feel free to join up for graphics or mixes, both are welcome as long as they stick to the Pete/Mikey and happy ending theme.

Deadline for entries is October 31st. If you finish before that, go you! Feel free to post to your personal journal when you are done, just remember to drop a link here so I can add the story to a masterlist that'll be compiled after the 31st.

If you join up and need to drop out that's fine. Do so without guilt.

Mainly, just have fun. Show that while summer does come to an end it doesn't mean that Mikey and Pete's relationship does as well.

Any questions, just ask. An adopt a bunny post will be going up soon for those that want to share ideas and talk about prompts. Post is now up here

Thank you to turloughishere for the beautiful banner.



Quotes, as taken from the book The Music Lesson: A Spiritual Search For growth Through Music by Victor Wooten

(1) I listened to Music in the past but only in a one-sided way. I only listened to what I wanted to hear, not what Music had to say. Claimed by elephants_hell

(2) Music exists inside each one of us. An instrument offers different forms of expression and allows others to hear how musical you are, but you don't have to play a note to be musical. I know that Music is not found in my bass guitar. It cannot be found in any instrument.

(3) Music, like Life, and like you, is one entity expressing itself through its differences.

(4) All Music ever played is still playing. Claimed by ladyfoxxx

(5) I play Music, not instruments.

(6) Your problem is this: You have been trying to tell your story with a bass guitar instead of through it. Claimed by shinetheway

(7) It is understated and under-appreciated, yet it plays the most important role. The bass is the link between harmony and rhythm. it is the foundation of a band. It is what all the other instruments stand upon, but it is rarely recognized as that. Claimed by hurricaneeyes

(8) If Music and English are both languages, then why not apply the process used to get good at one of them to the other?

(9) "Forget about your instrument," he said staring back at me. "Forget about the key. Forget about technique. hear and feel the groove. Then allow yourself to become part of Music." claimed by roxy_palace

(10) Rhythm can be looked at as harmony slowed down. Claimed by draconic_girl

(11) You see, for musicians, bass players especially, groove should be most important, but groove is not found in notes. Claimed by shinetheway

(12) I was getting a glimpse into the vastness of music, which made me wonder why most teachers chose to confine it to twelve notes.

(13) I noticed that when I went from the 'wrong' notes to the 'right' notes over and over again, it made the 'wrong' notes gradually sound 'right.' Claimed by gala_apples

(14) Maybe it is because the 'wrong' notes are leading somewhere. Repeating the 'wrong' notes allows the listener to knw where it's going so that it begins to sound 'right.' Claimed by b_dsaint

(15) Mistakes usually throw us off because the note comes out before we think about it. We can't avoid mistakes, but we can get comfortable with them, especially if we practice making them. claimed by delphinapterus

(16) So you are saying that situations in life which seem to clash may not be 'wrong' at all; they may just be in the wrong octave? claimed by romanticalgirl

(17) Changing the duration allows your ear to hear and respond differently. claimed by romanticalgirl

(18) We do the same with people. All Music, like all people, contains beauty and a soul. For you not to recognize it is not Music's fault. claimed by black_smear

(19) Listening to the bass player caused me to realize that I rarely gave my notes enough air. Claimed by brooklinegirl

(20) Notes are the same. If you listen closely, you can find a whole world living inside each one. Notes are alive, and like you and me, they need to breathe. The song will dictate how much air is needed.

(21) There is no way to move across the landscape without leaving tracks. it matters not whether it is a natural landscape or a musical one. Every time you move, and every time you play a note, a piece of yourself is left behind. Claimed by inlovewithnight

(22) Four notes in a measure versus two notes in a measure lets you know how quickly the notes are moving, even at a glance. Claimed by villiagegreen

(23) Music is a doorway allowing one to peek into a person's spirit. claimed by crowgirl13

(24) "Use both hands equally," he instructed. "Most musicians favor their stronger hand. They may never realize it, but if the problem is not corrected, it will surely hinder their progress." Claimed by kasuchans_v2

(25) To play Music, good technique is a must. You can know all the notes in the world. You can have the best ideas in the world, but you need good technique to get them out.

(26) ...that is exactly what happens to most of us when we try to play Music. We allow ourselves to be trapped in the jails of our own minds. Claimed by krisipanics

(27) Music is flowing through me, but this flow is broken sometimes when I make a mistake. My mistakes are often caused by frustration, and making mistakes often causes me to become frustrated. Many times, poor technique is at the root of the problem. Poor technique robs me of free expression.

(28) The more we feel music, the faster the technique falls into place.

(29) In other words, before you start practising anything, convince yourself you can already do it.

(30) We know that good techniques are a must, but most of us don't have good techniques for learning them. Claimed by pikasafire

(31) Walk into any real blues bar and you instantly feel their emotion, This is what comes across through their Music first.

(32) Now listen to what I am about to tell you: Musicians do not have to be believed in. We do not have to be trusted. Our Music speaks for itself without the listener having to know anything about us. Music touches people's emotions in a way that nothing else can. Claimed by ivesia19

(33) When we attend a Music concert, we do not go in order to compete. When we put out a recording, we are not trying to win.

(34) I look at my emotions the same way that I look at musical mistakes. Trying to get rid of them or control them can seem an impossible task. Learn to recognize and understand what they have to tell you. Only then can you effectively work with and use your emotions. Claimed by turps33

(35) If you have to think about 'em all the time, it will show up in your playing. And if you continue to play only your bass and your licks, when will you ever get to play Music?

(36) Music is alive, and if you treat her that way, she will speak to you. You will feel her pulse. That is her heartbeat. If you pay attention correctly it won't matter if you're in another room or in another state, you'll still be able to feel it.

(37) "The same is true when playing Music," he continued. "have you ever realized that on some days you seem to have it, and other days, under the same circumstances, playing the same songs, you can't seem to find it?"


(38) Any thing and everything you have ever decided to do, you have succeeded, or will succeed, at doing. It may take you a day, a year, or twelve lifetimes, but if you hold your mind affixed on the idea, it will come forth. Claimed by gala_apples

(39) I should listen to all that you or anyone else has to say. Then I make up my own mind. I choose what I want to believe. And if I'm having trouble figuring out what the truth is, what my truth is, I ask questions, listen, and let experience talk to me.

(40) The more I tried to hold onto it, the faster it would run away. The more I released it, the more it stuck around. Claimed by dancinbutterfly

(41) Allow your whole body to pick up the vibrations, using your whole body as an eardrum. Claimed by listedheart

(42) An important thing to remember is that vibrations never stop vibrating. Think about that. Vibrations may change, but they never stop. That means that we should pay attention to the vibrations we're putting out there. Claimed by wasoncedelight

(43) All experiences as well as all Music are ordinary. it is up to you to add the 'extra' quality that makes something 'extraordinary.' But like most humans, you risk missing much of the present experience by putting part of yourself in future or past experiences. I highly recommend you spend this moment in the 'now' so that you and the experience can share with each other all that you have to offer. -- claimed by sperrywink

(44) Only through the power of listening can you truly know anything. Claimed by cynthia_arrow

(45) I was able to use it to remind myself how to listen and fit in with other musicians. My new-found listening skill was one most other musicians neglected. It wasn't that they couldn't listen as well as I could; they just didn't. I noticed that most musicians seemed to reserve their ears for themselves rather than open up their ears to the rest of the band.

(46) It made me understand the effect some pop stars have on their fans. Do the fans just want to touch them, or do they unconsciously want to connect with their vibrations. Claimed by casey_sms

(47) You have spent years learning how to play the bass, so long that you have forgotten that it is Music you should be playing. The bass is just a tool to help you express yourself through me.

(48) "Remember," she said, "play me all you want, but you must know this: it is only when you allow me to play you that you will know me completely because then we will be one and the same.

(49) It was made clear to me that Music is related to everything, especially nature and language, but in order to speak it naturally, I had to first make myself a part of it.

(50) "It is easy to learn to play your instrument, but playing it well is not enough. It is time for for you to enter the world of a true musician. It is time for you to become an ally of Music and share her blessings. You are now the keeper of the flame. Please keep that flame alive and do not, I say, do not allow Music to die.



Stories so far:
Just A Boy Who's Had Too Many Chances by sperrywink
Roll Away Your Stone by ivesia19
Survial Techniques by romanticalgirl
Bridges Burning Bright by romanticalgirl
The Light of a Fading Star by krisipanics
Real Love by black_smear
Try, Try Again by gala_apples
Then, Now and Forever by turps33