Timeline:(added October '08)

With the release of High School Musical 2 and 3, this fic can be considered AU (Alternate Universe, or different from the show's canon, for those who might not know. It takes place roughly three weeks after the events of the first movie and has no relation to the sequel(s). Though I have to say HSM 3 was pretty awesome. I'm trying to go through and polish some of the chapters, if you notice something different.

Mixing Things Up

Chapter One: Mr. Eton

Troy made his way into Ms. Darbus' drama class exactly five seconds before the bell rang. In his rush to get seated, he didn't notice the absence of his teacher. In place of her scarf clad, vivacious self stood a tall man with dark eyes and hair that grayed at his temples.

The man's three-pieced suit suggested he wasn't from New Mexico and when he spoke, his British accent confirmed it.

"Hello class, I am Mr. Eton," he said, looking up from the desk. "Ms. Darbus has come down with a severe case of the flu. I'll be her substitute for the next few weeks."

There were a few less than subtle gasps of shock from the class (this was drama class after all), but the man didn't seem to notice.

"You should know that I am a former Literature professor, but I specialize in the Performing Arts and am fully qualified to instruct you in their performance." He paused for a moment, likely for dramatic effect, but continued on shortly after. "I understand your class is working on a musical of some sort. So, I should tell you that I have little patience for musicals -- all that singing and dancing -- it's a sad excuse for theatre."

The students looked at each other, a mix of resentment and confusion on their faces. Who does this guy think he is?

"In Ms. Darbus' absence you'll be participating in something new -- something worthy of the stage." Without interrupting his lecture, Mr. Eton began passing out thick packets to each of the students in the front row, who in turn passed them back.

Troy stared at his copy, too stunned to speak. It read:

'Much Ado About Nothing,' a play by William Shakespeare.

His head was spinning, trying to let it all sink in. The day wasn't turning out at all like he'd expected.

Sharpay's voice broke the silence, clear and strong. "Mr. Eton, I understand that you want to do things differently from Ms. Darbus, but the musical isn't something we can just put off for two weeks. Not if it's going to be any good."

Slowly the class turned to look at her, grateful for once that she was being demanding.

"It's heartbreaking to hear about Ms. Darbus," Sharpay continued, "but she would be the first to say 'the show must go on.'"

Troy squinted his eyes to look at her more closely, it was pretty cool that she was willing to stick up for the production even though she had lost out on a main role.

Mr. Eton didn't seem to appreciate the outburst though. "Ah, Ms. Evans, I've been warned about you."

Troy could see Ryan, Sharpay's brother, shifting in his seat, a look of irritation growing on his face. He wasn't going to let some teacher pick on his sister – drama professional or not.

Fortunately, Mr. Eton wasn't disrespectful, just impatient. "It's true that when I teach – I do things my own way. I'd be more inclined to force myself to work on your precious Spring musical if it weren't for the fact that your school does a new one every term. It'll hardly devastate anything to wait to resume production until Ms. Darbus' condition has improved."

The man sat on the corner of his desk, his lips curling in a small grin. "Besides, if I worked on your musical it would probably start sounding more like songs from the Bard of Avon and leave you wishing you'd have left well enough alone."

The joke, lame as it was, eased the tension in the room and Gabriella raised her hand timidly.

Mr. Eton had to look at the seating chart for her name. "Yes, Ms. Montez?"

"What if Sharpay took over directing the musical?"

Sharpay's blonde head whipped around to face Gabriella, shock plastered on her face like stage makeup.

Gabriella smiled, the idea making more and more sense to her. "She and Kelsi could collaborate to keep things together until Ms. Darbus is better. Maybe Ryan could choreograph."

Mr. Eton touched the edge of his dark glasses. "If Ms. Evans wants to do so -- she is welcome to try during free period. During class time, however, we will be studying Shakespeare."

He picked up a packet for himself from the desk. "Let's begin with a class reading."

There was a collective moan of pain from the class as they looked at their papers.

"Mr. Danforth, please start us off."

Chad muddled through the first lines of the complicated Early Modern English. Sharpay leaned back, suspicion creeping into her voice, "What was that craziness about?"

Gabriella smiled again, laughing softly. "You said it yourself, Sharpay, 'the show must go on.' You're probably the only one with enough of what it takes to make that happen."

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"That was a noteworthy attempt, Mr. Danforth," Mr. Eton said when Chad had finished the lines on the first page. "However, this is not a novel, but a play. As such – each verse must be read, not with a reading tone, but with separate voices and with feeling." Mr. Eton gestured his arm emphatically as if to drive home the point. "And in keeping with the statutes of plays," he continued, reaching for a hat that had been on his desk, "each of you will be assigned a part."

There was a shuffling of feet as the students glanced around, not thrilled with the news.

Shaking it in a circular motion, Mr. Eton brought the upturned hat closer. It was filled with little slips of folded papers.

"You have the honor of first choice in reward for your reading, Mr. Danforth."

"Great," Chad replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Reaching into the hat, he unfolded his paper and read it aloud, "Don John."

"Ah, the villain," explained Mr. Eton, "An excellent role for you."

Troy snickered at the comment, intending to tease his friend about it, when Mr. Eton placed the hat in front of him. Opening his paper apprehensively, he read, "Benedick?"

"The hero," Mr. Eton answered. "It seems the school's star player is condemned to forever be in the spotlight."

Mr. Eton eyes gleamed suddenly and he smiled conspiratorially, "You'll play opposite Ms. Evans."

Sharpay, who had been mentally calculating all the work she would need to do in order to salvage the musical, jerked her head up. "WHAT?!" It was more of a demand than a question.

"You'll be starring as Beatrice, opposite Mr. Bolton," Mr. Eton answered calmly, although the gleam in his eyes was still present.

"That is unacceptable."

Sharpay was sure that the rumor mill would immediately suggest that her being paired with Troy was all a part of the 'Evil Ice Princess' maniacal plan to snatch the most popular guy on the basketball team. She didn't actually care about what people said behind her back, but it wasn't the kind of drama she was in the mood to deal with. She had too much to do.

Now, though, with everyone staring at her, it was hard to come up with a justifiable excuse for them not to be paired together. If she said what she was thinking out loud it would probably land her in even more trouble. Troy was staring at her too – waiting for an explanation with a look that was a combination of surprise and something else that was hard to discern.

Mr. Eton just arched an eyebrow. "Are you saying you are incapable of performing with Mr. Bolton? A true actor overcomes any personal issues for the sake of the production."

Sharpay's demeanor changed at that. She raised her chin slightly, indignation in her tone. "There is nothing I am incapable of doing."

"Good," Mr. Eton said quickly, grabbing the hat and placing it in front of the next student.

All Sharpay could do was narrow her eyes and say "You're an evil man," under her breath.

The only sign that Mr. Eton heard the comment was the slight increase of his grin.

Authors Note This is my first attempt at fanfiction – ever. I had no idea my first venture into it would be a High School Musical Story, but here it is. :) If there's interest, I'll continue. I'm a Tropay fan, but I also think Gabriella is adorable so my story will probably reflect that. If I'm being honest, I pretty much love all the characters…