Title: Starshine
Author: Spider
Pairing, Character(s): Brittany, Will, Kurt, Rachel, Ensemble
Rating: G
Warnings: Confrontation?
Spoilers: Season 1
Disclaimer: I'd say this belonged to Fox and not me, except she claims it's not hers either...
Summary: Brittany doesn't like it when her friends are irritated about being in the background.
Word Count: 1578
Notes: Once again, the illustration (http:/ /i2. photobucket. com/ albums/ y6/ FantismalSpider/ Illustrations/ StarshineBrittany byFox. jpg) is provided by the awe-inspiring Fox/Fearful Little Thing . May we all bow down before her...
This fic was written for a prompt on the glee angst meme (http:/ /community. livejournal. com/ glee_angst_meme/ ? thread=2955513#t2955513)
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STARSHINE
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"So, there you have it. What do you guys think?"
"Mr. Schue!" Rachel's hand flew in the air after the latest rehearsal, and she beamed at the teacher. "I loved it!"
"Of course you did," Kurt muttered under his breath as he shifted his weight onto one leg, crossing his arms. "You're front and center. Again."
Brittany cocked her head to the side, ponytail falling over her shoulder as she studied her fellow Cheerio. "Don't you like being back here with me?"
Santana spoke up, rescuing Kurt before he could say anything that risked upsetting the blonde. "It's not that we don't like being with you, B. We just don't like being in the back. Coach Sylvester always puts us in the front, remember?"
"Because we're hot." Brittany nodded, her ponytail bouncing. "But we're not hot here?"
"Oh, we're still hot," Santana assured Brittany.
"Mr. Schue just prefers Rachel and Finn's voices," Kurt said, shaking his head a little.
Brittany looked at Santana's scowl and Kurt's crossed arms, and she raised her hand. "Mr. Schue?"
"Uh... yes, Brittany?" Mr. Schue looked surprised to see her raising her hand.
Brittany pointed toward the front, where Rachel was standing. "I want to do my dance there."
"Well... that's where Rachel has to be for this song..."
Brittany frowned. "Why?"
"Because I'm singing the lead vocals," Rachel said, turning toward Brittany. "It wouldn't make any sort of artistic sense for me to be singing from the back."
"Santana can sing the words," Brittany said, pointing to her friend. "And, and Kurt can sing Finn's part! And then we can all be in the front!"
"Brit!" Kurt was hissing at her, but Santana was grinning. Brittany grinned back and reached over to link her pinky through Santana's.
"I'm... sure they can sing those parts just fine, Brittany," Mr. Schue said. "But Rachel and Finn have this song-"
"But that isn't fair," Brittany said. "Aren't we supposed to share?"
"We do share," Mr. Schue said. "You all get solos."
"But Rachel and Finn sang the last song. And the song before that. And every song I can remember, except that one Santana sang with Mercedes. And the one I wore a lobster for." Brittany was frowning now.
"Brit has a point," Kurt said after a moment, glancing at the blonde cheerleader. "Mr. Schue, the balance of soloists is highly biased in Rachel and Finn's favor. And that isn't fair."
"We can't help it if we have the best voices," Rachel said.
"But you're not the best dancers." Santana had her head tilted to the side, forgoing linked pinkies to cross her arms over her chest. "Mike and Brit are. But any of us," she gestured to Kurt, Brittany, and herself, "can dance circles around either of you. So could Matt, or Mercedes, or Tina, or Puck, for that matter. Hell, the only one who's probably a worse dancer is Artie, and that's because he's in a wheelchair all the time."
"Gee, thanks," Artie muttered, but Santana just shrugged it off.
"Glee Club is about singing first," Rachel argued, putting her hands on her hips. "So it makes sense that the best singers get highlighted."
"By its very definition, Glee is about opening yourself up to joy." Brittany looked mournfully at Mr. Schue, who stared back at her in surprise. "I don't feel joy."
"Where did you get that!"
Brittany pointed toward the plaque by the door. "It's written there. I read it every time I leave. It doesn't say anything about the best singers always getting to dance in the front."
"This is our song," Rachel declared. "Our solos! You can't just take them from us!"
"That's right," Kurt said, turning on Rachel with an exasperated noise. "Your song. Your solos. But it's not ours. We're not even glorified back up dancers here, just 'chorus.'" He quirked his fingers in air quotes.
"And how is that different from you on Cheerios? You get all the solos there! And now you're demanding them all here?"
"I'm demanding one twelfth of them here!" Kurt snapped back. "Because there are twelve of us, Rachel, not two and change! And on the Cheerios, I'm the only vocalist. Not the 'best of twelve.' So, yes, I get the most solos there... but not all of them! Brit and Santana are actually leading a Britney Spears song for the next rally. Kirsten asked for a chance to try, so she's working on something she hasn't shared with us. And Becky will be joining me for what promises to be a jaw-dropping rendition of All Star."
"Exactly," Santana said, putting one hand on her hip. "We ask for solos, and we get them. Because Coach Sylvester trusts us not to embarrass her. Because she knows we'll work our asses off to be amazing. Because we can. And she believes in that."
"Don't you believe that too, Mr. Schue?" Brittany asked. "Believe that we can be amazing?"
"Of course I do!" Mr. Schue protested.
"Then why don't you ever let us try?" It was Quinn who stepped forward now, her arms loosely folded. "I haven't had a solo in here since you gave me the lead for Don't Stop Believin', which you then took away because of fears that the choreography would mess with the baby, or my funk number, which I had to fight for. And yet you loved my song, and my voice, when I auditioned with Brit and Santana." She rubbed her flat belly, frowning at Mr. Schu. "No more baby bump. But still, no solos."
"It's not even that we want solos," Santana said, giving a little toss of her ponytail. "Personally, I don't mind just being here to look hot. But we do want our chances in the spotlight too. I'm always in a back corner. Same with Matt and Mike and Brittany. Rachel and Finn always get to be in the front. And Puck can move up sometimes, and Mercedes can sometimes, but the rest of us? We're only in the front if we're all in a line."
"Coach Sylvester keeps us rotating," Brittany said. "So we all do everything."
"We're not asking you to shove Rachel and Finn in the back and ignore them," Kurt said, resting his right elbow in his left hand. "We're just asking that you stop shoving us in the back."
"I..." Mr. Schue looked from one kid to the next. Rachel looked horribly offended, but everyone else, even Finn, were nodding their agreement with the Cheerios' outburst.
"You always have me sing," Finn said quietly. "And sometimes... sometimes I know Puck'd do it better. Or Artie. Or Kurt would actually be better at this one, because he's smoother at these high notes than all the rest of us. And then... if I'm just singing the chorus bits, maybe I can work on actually learning the dance and I won't step on Tina's toes this time."
"I will not sing a duet with Kurt!" Rachel protested. "He hates me! He'll mess this up on purpose!"
"I don't know," Kurt snapped, "if I should cry at your egocentric worldview or laugh at the thought that my dislike of you would ever be strong enough to humiliate myself in public."
"Guys! Guys!" Will stepped between Kurt and Rachel, holding up his hands to keep them from leaping at each others' throats. "I had no idea you were this upset about the song choices. And I'm sorry. But let's just... we've already been working on this with Rachel and Finn singing the solos, so let's just leave this song alone, but I promise, I'll give you all a fair chance from now on."
"This isn't the first time we've told you," Mercedes pointed out.
"Nor is it the first time you've promised us a fair chance," Tina added quietly.
"Quite frankly, Mr. Schue," Artie finished, "we don't believe you."
Brittany stepped forward, putting her hand on Mr. Schue's arm and giving his kicked-puppy expression a little smile. "It's okay, Mr. Schue. If you forget to do things all the time, you should write them down and then tape them to your door. That way, every time you leave the room, you can read it and remember."
"That's not a bad idea," Quinn mused. "Write it down, Mr. Schue. 'I promise to give everyone in Glee a chance to shine.' And then tape it to your desk, so every time you sit down, you remember that you have more singers than Rachel and Finn."
"Underline 'everyone,'" Kurt suggested. "Highlight it. Circle it. Put little gold stars around it. Ev-ery-one."
"I'm sorry, guys," Mr. Schue said. "I'm really, really sorry. I didn't mean to insult any of you..."
"We know," Kurt said. "You're like Finn that way. You just don't realize sometimes." He shook his head a little. "We're going to hold you to your word, Mr. Schue."
"I'll keep it this time," Mr. Schue said. "I promise."