Valerie's pre-show mantra had to be done in a certain order and had to begin early in the day. First, when she woke up that morning, she would tune her violin and practice the set pieces for one hour. While it would be poorly played due to her groggy state, it'd give her a chance to at least have another shot at practicing. Next would be a shower. Luke-warm. Breakfast. One glass of orange juice and a bagel. Then it would be out for a thirty minute run.

The rest of the day, if she had no work to do or classes to attend, it would be practice, practice, practice. It made perfect after all, and she had to do just that. Be perfect. She knew her band mates would be trying their hardest, but it would slip every now and again:

"You guys can [i]not[/i] do less than perfect."

That never went over very well.

Her last part of her ritual was her current one. Taking some distance from the rest of the band and doing some quick meditation. It was weird to have a violinist in a band, not less two of them, and Valerie knew that. To keep up with Russell, she needed as much mental security as possible. Every once in a while she'd let out a hum that sounded similar to some of the notes she'd play at the show.