One hour later

BGM: --:-- / --:-- Play

Sound Effect: Play

1

Saki

Listen

Alright, it's done...!
2

Saki

Listen

Hehe. Hona's curry really did the trick!
I was able to breeze through that because of the boost of energy it gave me!

Sound Effect: Play

3

Ichika's Voice

Listen

Saki, I'm finished with my melody.
How are things coming on your end?
4

Saki

Listen

Oh, Ichi!
I just finished too!
5

Saki

Listen

Come on in so we can listen to them♪
6

Ichika's Voice

Listen

Okay, sounds good.
In that case...

Sound Effect: Play

7

Saki

Listen

Hehe. I can't wait to hear what we each came up with!
8

Ichika

Listen

I'm a little nervous since I kind of did whatever I wanted with it...
9

Saki

Listen

Don't worry!
I really love the melodies you come up with!
10

Ichika

Listen

It's nice to actually hear someone say that.
11

Saki

Listen

Hehe♪ Alright, I'll go first!
You sit back and relax for now, Ichi!
12

Ichika

Listen

Hehe. I'm looking forward to hearing what you came up with, Saki.
13

Saki

Listen

(I wonder how Ichi's gonna react.)
14

Saki

Listen

(Hehe. I feel really good about this melody since I thought I came up with the perfect thing to go with her chord progression!)
15

Saki

Listen

(It's a little different from what Leo/need has done before, and I was able to work in my message.)
16

Saki

Listen

(Plus, I made sure to really respect the feelings Ichi put into this song.)
17

Saki

Listen

(So, I'm sure she'll love...)
18

Saki

Listen

(H-Huh...?)
19

Saki

Listen

Um, Ichi...? How was it?
20

Ichika

Listen

Oh, um...
It's pretty. I really like it.
21

Ichika

Listen

But...
22

Ichika

Listen

Um, Saki...?
Can I ask why you decided to go with this melody?
23

Saki

Listen

Why? So, uh... Remember how you said you wanted your song to remind people about who matters most to them and stuff?
24

Saki

Listen

So, I wanted people to remember the good times and bad times. The first time you met someone you really care about, or that one time you had a little fight...
25

Saki

Listen

I wanted it to be that kind of melody!
26

Ichika

Listen

I see...
Which explains why it felt a bit sad.
27

Saki

Listen

Wait, was this not what you were looking for...?
28

Ichika

Listen

Oh...
29

Ichika

Listen

No, it wasn't...
It's not quite what I had in mind...
30

Ichika

Listen

I was looking for something a little more positive since it's supposed to be a straightforward expression of my feelings...
31

Saki

Listen

Straightforward...
32

Saki

Listen

Okay, got it...!
Now that I know this wasn't quite what you were looking for, I'll try giving it a quick fix!

BGM: --:-- / --:-- Play

33

Ichika

Listen

Sorry, Saki...
I should've explained what I meant a little better.
34

Saki

Listen

No, that's totally fine.
If anything, it's my fault for misunderstanding how you felt!
35

Saki

Listen

Anyway, uh... Can you show me what you made, Ichi?
36

Ichika

Listen

Okay, I'll play it now.
37

Saki

Listen

Cool!
38

Saki

Listen

*Sigh*
(Swing and a miss...
But I had such a good feeling about it...)
39

Saki

Listen

(I guess I sorta let my own feelings take over. I need to be more careful about that.)
40

Saki

Listen

(But as long as the melody Ichi came up with ends up being good, we can start polishing it...)
41

Saki

Listen

(Wait, something's a bit off...)
42

Saki

Listen

(I'm not sure how to put it into words...)
43

Ichika

Listen

Saki? Uhh...
44

Saki

Listen

Huh...?! S-Sorry.
I had to think about it for a second.
45

Ichika

Listen

Was this also not what you were looking for...?
46

Ichika

Listen

I tried my best to capture what you said earlier about moving forward despite any doubts you may have.
47

Saki

Listen

Yeah, it's just...
48

Saki

Listen

It's too pop compared to what I imagined.
49

Ichika

Listen

Too pop...?
50

Saki

Listen

No, that's not a bad thing!
I like how you want the listener to feel a sense of optimism!
51

Saki

Listen

But this song isn't supposed to be all sunshine and puppy dogs. I wanted it to be about feeling real empathy for someone.
52

Ichika

Listen

Empathy, huh...?
Okay, got it...
53

Ichika

Listen

Sorry I misunderstood what you were going for, Saki.
54

Saki

Listen

No, that's okay.
Let's make our fixes and meet back up for another listen!
55

Ichika

Listen

Okay! I'll be down in the living room.
56

Saki

Listen

Alright, see you in a bit!

Sound Effect: Play

57

Saki

Listen

*Sigh*
58

Saki

Listen

This is so hard...
I was so sure I got it right...
59

Saki

Listen

But I need to come up with a better melody...!
Because this song means a lot to us... To Leo/need...
60

Saki

Listen

So, I gotta take what Ichi wanted and...

Sound Effect: Play

Several dozen minutes later

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61

Ichika

Listen

No, this still doesn't feel quite right...
62

Ichika

Listen

The melody sounds a lot more cheerful now, and I like how the tempo really picks up during the bridge, but...
63

Saki

Listen

Okay...
64

Saki

Listen

So, can you tell me what specifically doesn't feel right?
65

Ichika

Listen

Umm...
66

Ichika

Listen

I guess how it still feels kind of sad. I can't seem to get that out of my head...
67

Saki

Listen

Wait, really?
I thought I really tried to shy away from that...
68

Ichika

Listen

I know...
But the first verse and chorus still feel that way to me.
69

Saki

Listen

I'm really sorry, Ichi...
But can you try going more minor with it?
70

Saki

Listen

I like how quick the tempo is, but this song's not supposed to be all that cheerful...
71

Ichika

Listen

...
72

Ichika

Listen

But won't that take away from your theme of trying to move forward?
73

Saki

Listen

N-No, I don't think so!
74

Saki

Listen

Also, a happy sound doesn't really go with my chord progression, so can you try holding back on that a bit more...?
75

Ichika

Listen

...
Okay, let me give it another try.
Several dozen minutes later

BGM: --:-- / --:-- Play

76

Saki & Ichika

Listen

...
77

Saki

Listen

Sorry, it's just...
78

Ichika

Listen

I'm doing my best not to make it sound so cheerful, like you said...
79

Ichika

Listen

But I guess I'm just not getting it...
80

Saki

Listen

Yeah...
81

Ichika

Listen

...
82

Ichika

Listen

Sorry, I'm trying to understand what you want this song to be about, but I'm sort of not sure what I'm doing wrong anymore...
83

Ichika

Listen

It doesn't sound all that pop to me...
84

Saki

Listen

Ichi...
85

Ichika

Listen

It's just, I believe this is the best way to get your message across, you know...?
86

Saki

Listen

I get what you mean...
And this melody's a great expression of who you are, Ichi.
87

Saki

Listen

But I still want it to really be about empathy and understanding, you know...?
88

Saki

Listen

The way it is now, it feels like someone's pushing me towards the finish line... And that doesn't really go with my chord progression.
89

Ichika

Listen

...
90

Saki

Listen

(I don't understand...)
91

Saki

Listen

(No matter how many times we try, we can't seem to get on the same page...)
92

Saki

Listen

(I thought Ichi and I would immediately be able to figure out what each of us was thinking...)
93

Ichika

Listen

Empathy...
94

Ichika

Listen

That's what you want this song to be about, Saki?
95

Saki

Listen

...!
96

Saki

Listen

Yeah, it is.
So if you can make your melody reflect that!
97

Ichika

Listen

If that's true, then I need to say something.
98

Saki

Listen

What...?
99

Ichika

Listen

The first verse and chorus use too many minors, which makes the song feel really dark and gloomy.
100

Ichika

Listen

There's no warmth. There's no source for your empathy...
101

Saki

Listen

B-But...!
If you make it too warm, then it's gonna be really superficial!
102

Ichika

Listen

Superficial...?
103

Saki

Listen

*Nod*
I know it's easier to express feelings of fun and joy by using happy and cheerful sounds.
104

Saki

Listen

But I don't think you can really show empathy by doing just that.
105

Saki

Listen

Take us for example. We went through some rough stuff before understanding how we all felt. Only then were we able to feel that warmth. I mean, remember how happy we all were?
106

Ichika

Listen

Yeah, I do...
107

Saki

Listen

(Am I not explaining things right...?)
108

Saki

Listen

(I mean, Ichi knows that pain. She's suffered like we all did.)
109

Saki

Listen

(So why...?)
110

Saki

Listen

Alright, for example... What if we went with this kind of sound instead?
111

Saki

Listen

It's not a big change from what you have now, but just a little darker...
112

Ichika

Listen

I'm sorry, Saki.
113

Ichika

Listen

But given the overarching theme, this just isn't going to work.
114

Saki

Listen

Wait, are you saying...?
115

Saki

Listen

A melody I came up with isn't going to work?
116

Ichika

Listen

...!
117

Ichika

Listen

No, that's not what I'm saying...!
118

Ichika

Listen

It's just... Even if we do go with your idea, I don't think it's going to turn out well.
119

Saki

Listen

...!
120

Saki

Listen

...
121

Saki

Listen

...
Then I guess we should just scrap everything and start over from scratch.
122

Ichika

Listen

What...?
123

Saki

Listen

Oh...
124

Saki

Listen

Sorry, I didn't mean to say that...
125

Saki

Listen

It's just... Nothing's really felt right to me either, you know?
126

Saki

Listen

I tried and tried to make mine sound the way you want, Ichi...
127

Saki

Listen

But it never feels like it's getting better.
128

Ichika

Listen

...
129

Ichika

Listen

This is a lot harder than I realized it would be...
130

Saki

Listen

Yeah...
131

Ichika

Listen

Sorry, I'm going to go buy something to drink.
132

Saki

Listen

Oh...
133

Saki

Listen

Okay...

Sound Effect: Play

Sound Effect: Play

134

Saki

Listen

...
135

Saki

Listen

(Why is nothing going right...?)
136

Saki

Listen

(I was so sure that Ichi and I would be able to write an amazing song together...)
137

Saki

Listen

But if this keeps up, we might not even be able to finish it, let alone reach the next level...
138

Saki

Listen

(What do we do...?)
139

Saki

Listen

(Should we go apologize to Mr. Shindo and the others, and ask if I can write a song like I always do...?)
140

Saki

Listen

(But I don't know if I can write a next-level Leo/need song all on my own...)
141

Saki

Listen

(Also...)
142

Saki

Listen

I don't want things to end this way...
143

???

Listen

<Saki!>
144

Saki

Listen

Huh...?
Next Chapter: Guiding Hands