A/N: Hello, fellow FanFiction readers! For anyone reading Breaking the Silk Thread, I'm still writing! I'm just taking a little breather with this piece. I've been watching a lot of Glee lately :D and this idea just wedged itself into my head. I had to get it out. Here, the Chipmunks and Chipettes are probably juniors in high school, and I'm sure I'll work some in some fluff here and there using the original pairings; I love them. I pray to God you all know the musical Wicked, if not, google it, go see it, LOVE it. It's amazing. Also, I'm not a big songfic person; actually, I usually don't read "songfics," but I guess I'm going to have to have some songs written down for this to be a successful fic. Anyway, enough rambling. This is the first half, or third, or whatever, of this piece. R&R and enjoy!
"And Jeanette could you—"
"Britney, I um, my hands are a little full right now, so…"
"Jeanette! I just need you to write my name on the sign-ups for the spring musical! Can't you do this one little thing for me, sis?"
Jeanette sighed, looking at her sister as she batted her eyes, begging Jeanette to do "just one more thing" for her. She shifted her heavy backpack on her shoulder as she juggled holding Britney's equally heavy bag on her right arm and a folder full of work.
"So return your books—excuse me, book—to the library, turn your lab report in, proofread your research paper, put this in your locker, get out your gym bag and—"
"Glinda! Sign me up for Glinda!" Britney yelled over her shoulder as she ran down the hall of their high school, centering herself in a group of jocks and cheerleaders nearby.
Jeanette started down the hallway toward Britney's locker, trying to push away the thoughts of being angry at herself for letting Britney walk all over her. Suddenly, the weight of the bag in her hands sent her flying forward. She gasped, throwing a hand out in a desperate attempt to steady herself. To her surprise, two warm hands grabbed her arm and waist, setting her back on her feet like a porcelain doll on a stand.
"Whoa, Jean. Easy there."
At the mention of her nickname, Jeanette smiled as she looked up, seeing her bespectacled counterpart looking her over. He was constantly on the lookout for her bumps and bruises.
"Thanks, Simon. You seem to come along at just the right time."
"It's a full-time job keeping you on your feet, but somebody's got to do it," Simon replied, giving her a smile that could've warmed her in a blinding blizzard.
If only Simon knew that.
She giggled, shifting her heavy bookbag on her back again.
"Jeanette. What are you doing?" His eyes were suddenly scolding now, eyeing Britney's hot pink bookbag in Jeanette's hands, along with the pink folder tucked under her arm. "You're not Britney's slave, you know."
"I know, but she's busy."
"With what? The latest Crashcup gossip?" Simon replied, nodding his head in Britney's direction at the other end of the hallway.
Jeanette sighed, looking at the locker numbers as she continued to walk. When she found Britney's locker, she dropped her own bag off her shoulder, thankful to be rid of its heavy weight. To her surprise, Simon caught it easily with one hand before it hit the ground, tossing it over his shoulder.
"Reading Shakespeare again?" he asked, weighing the bag in his hand. Jeanette chuckled at the fact that Simon could feel the weight difference in her bag of whether she was lugging around her prized copy of Shakespeare's entire works or not. It was her guilty pleasure: leather bound hardback, gilt-edged pages. It contained every work ever written by William Shakespeare, and she carried it like one would carry a child. It had cost her almost all of her savings, but it was worth every penny.
Jeanette pulled Britney's red cheerleading bag out of the locker before shoving her backpack inside. She gathered her belongings, arguing with Simon about who would carry her own backpack. She finally gave in, letting her best friend carry the overstuffed bag. She dropped her head as they walked, trying to hide her blushing cheeks at Simon's incessant attitude.
"So what homework are you doing for her?" Simon asked, sliding the folder out from under Jeanette's arm before she could grab it back.
"You used to do Alvin's homework," she protested, watching Simon flip through the contents of the folder.
"Ah, so you are doing her homework."
"No!" Jeanette fired back, "I'm just turning in her lab report and proofreading her research paper."
"Lab report that she hasn't finished," Simon replied, not taking his eyes off the folder as he handed Jeanette a thick wad of papers. "And, though I would hardly say a paragraph is a research paper, something that she hasn't typed or finished."
Jeanette shook her head, looking at the four sentence paragraph Britney had hurriedly scribbled down on torn notebook paper.
She kept her head down as she stopped at her own locker, taking the bag and the folder from Simon. She was ashamed he always caught her covering for her older sister, though he knew where she was coming from; he let Alvin drag on his coattails all through elementary and middle school. If only she had the gumption to cut Britney off as Simon had done to Alvin.
"What else do you have to do?" Simon asked quietly after a moment of silence, squatting down to her level on the floor as she opened her locker. Jeanette looked up at him with a small smile.
"Return this book," she answered, pulling out a small paperback and placing it in Simon's hands. "And sign her up for the spring musical."
"The bulletin board's right there," Simon replied, pointing across the hall before pulling Jeanette to her feet. "C'mon."
As the two chipmunks approached the bright green bulletin board, Jeanette sighed as she searched for a pen. Simon eyed her suspiciously.
"Wicked? And you're not signing up?"
"I told Mrs. Wilson I would help with props and costumes again. There's going to be a lot of rigging that needs to be taken care of," she replied as she signed Britney's name under the column for Glinda.
"Jeanette," Simon repeated, grabbing her shoulders as he turned her to face him. "You love Wicked. It's your favorite musical. You are the school's best singer. Sign up!" Simon urged, stabbing at the board with the end of the pen.
"Actually, Britney is the school's best singer," Jeanette corrected him as she recapped the pen.
"Bullshit."
Jeanette's head snapped up, shocked. Simon rarely cursed.
He grabbed the pen from her hands, snatching the cap from the top. "You are the best singer at this school, I don't care what Britney says. That and the fact that Britney just wants the lead, yet she's too stupid to realize that Elphaba has the lead role, correct?"
Jeanette had to take a moment to catch her breath. Not only was Simon complimenting her, he had read Wicked and was pushing her to do the very thing she'd been dreaming about since she first fell in love with the play. She loved its parallel with a classic tale, its role reversal and twisted background retelling of The Wizard of Oz.
"Now either you write your name here, or I will," Simon challenged her, a controversial gleam in his eye. Her cheeks flamed as she puffed out her chest, lightly taking the pen from his grasp. She signed her name under Elphaba's column, gulping as she saw it in black and white.
"You won't regret it," Simon promised her with a wink.
Jeanette fiddled with the edge of her skirt as she sat through Mrs. Wilson's introduction to the students about the musical. Along with the other students in the auditorium, Britney sat a few rows up, surrounded by her popular friends. She was already chirping about whether her dresses should be mainly pink or mainly yellow for the production. Jeanette felt short of breath, and wondered vaguely if she would have a panic attack by the time everything was all said and done. Beside her, Theodore and Eleanor were chatting lightly about the parts they had signed up for.
Jeanette looked around for Simon, both wishing he was here to raise her morale, yet at the same time hoping he was absent so she wouldn't make a fool out of herself in front of him.
But there he was, peeking from behind the curtain. He was pinning up a diagram of the stage plan and the organization of the props. There he was, effortlessly knowing exactly what do to in every situation. Jeanette sighed, smiling at Simon's take-charge attitude and the fact that she could call him her best friend.
"STUDENTS!"
Mrs. Wilson's sharp voice snapped Jeanette out of her daze and set her teetering on the edge of insanity again.
"I will begin passing out scripts for tryouts for our principle roles. When I call your name, please come to the front to collect your materials. Glinda! Skylar Scott, Taylor Owens, Jessica Johnson, Tiffany Pike, and Britney Miller."
Jeanette watched as four blonde girls tossed their way to the front of the auditorium, taking their small black pamphlets. Following after, her auburn sister made her entrance even in collecting her script as she waited for the rest of the girls to clear out before she glided down the aisle.
"Nessarose! Lisa Palmer, Whitney Tilghman, and Eleanor Miller."
She smiled as her blonde sister walked up confidently to collect her script. She would fit the part of Nessa perfectly; gentle and kind, yet with a fiery inner core that could lash out on rare occasion. Her athletic background would give her an advantage when moving intricately across the stage in a wheelchair for the majority of the production.
"Boq! William Sheckler, Theodore Seville, Douglas Mifflin, and Tyler Stone."
She figured Theodore would choose a role that would put him as close to Eleanor as possible, even if it wouldn't last throughout the play. Mrs. Wilson continued to call out the rest of the principle parts, including The Wizard, Madam Morrible, and Fiyero. Jeanette wasn't surprised to see that Alvin was trying out for both The Wizard and Fiyero, the lead villain and lead male roles, respectively. Like her sister, Alvin always shone brightest in the spotlight, whether he was saving the day or taking over the world. She was a little downtrodden to see that all the boys who were trying out for Fiyero were like Alvin, stereotypical jocks and popular boys in their high school. They, like Britney, probably assumed Fiyero ended up with Glinda, the beautiful princess, at the end. More than likely, they had failed to read past the first few scenes to realize that Fiyero fell in love with the green witch instead.
But it didn't matter who Fiyero was anyway. She knew she would never get the part of Elphaba; there was always someone better, someone more talented, someone prettier. Her hands shook at the mere thought of reciting lines in front of all these people. She'd been in a fair share of plays in grade school, and had helped produce nearly every one that had ever been at her school over the years. She even sang in front of thousands of people. But going up against someone like Bethany Turnage, lead soprano in the school chorus, made her head spin.
"ELPHABA!"
Oh no. This is it.
Jeanette stood shakily to her feet as the rest of the audience looked around at the girls trying out; she could almost hear their disbelieving remarks through their stares. She kept her head down as she felt the familiar burn in her cheeks. She smoothed her skirt nervously as she slid past Theodore and Eleanor, stepping on their toes and rushing out jumbled apologies. Her sister smiled up at her warmly, understanding she was a nervous wreck and trying to sooth her frazzled nerves.
By the time she approached Mrs. Wilson, Jeanette's knees were literally knocking together.
I can't do this, she thought miserably. There's no way. If I can't even make it down to get my script, how am I possibly going to sing in front of all these people?
"M-M-M-Mrs. Wilson. I think there was some mistake. I-I-I-I'm just g-going to be helping with p-p-props and scenery, m-m-maybe fill in for the extras."
Mrs. Wilson cocked one sculpted eyebrow, peering down at the sign-ups.
"I-I-It was just a…a dare. I-I-I couldn't…"
"Hmmm. Very well then, Jeanette. You can join Mr. Seville backstage, he seems to be the most organized of the bunch back there."
Disappointed that she had let Simon down, but too horrified to try out, Jeanette slumped backstage, peering behind the bundled curtains at Simon, who was busy directing traffic already.
The older they got, Jeanette saw a leader blossom in Simon. He wasn't bossy, like Alvin, and he wasn't passive, like Theodore; he was a perfect balance. Simon was level-headed and intelligent enough to formulate a plan in any situation within minutes. But though Simon's confidence had risen, hers had remained dormant. She was still timid and bashful Jeanette, no matter how hard her sisters and the Chipmunks tried to push her out of her cocoon.
She came around the corner, feeling like a puppy with its tail between its legs. She stood beside Simon quietly, who was circling sections of a large diagram with different colors.
"So why'd you cop out?" he asked, not taking his attention off his work. "Afraid of what your sister might think?"
"Bullying me isn't going to help, Simon." Jeanette tried to focus on anything else as she tried not to cower.
After a few minutes of silence, Simon laid aside the bundle of markers he'd been using and rubbed his temple.
"Jean, I understand what it means to be afraid. But nobody ever got anywhere by being frightened all the time. When I think of all the stuff I never…" Simon broke off, shaking his head as he looked down. After a moment, he raised his head and looked at her with a confused gaze before touching her cheek with his thumb, sending a fire clear down to Jeanette's toes.
"C'mon. You can help me get these idiots in order."
A half-hour later, Jeanette leaned up against a wooden backdrop watching her sister rehearse the final scene of Act I with Beth, who was trying out for the part of Elphaba. After a few tries, Britney had snagged the part of Glinda effortlessly. She didn't blame Mrs. Wilson; there was no way any other person would be able to play the part of an egotistical, self-centered, yet soft-hearted princess like her sister. The part required her to sing, act like a spoiled brat, and twirl around in pink party dresses drenched in glitter. She was even rehearsing on the first day with Glinda's tiara placed on her auburn head.
Beth was doing well, her voice was lovely as always, but even in a moment centered around Elphaba and the Wizard, she was letting Britney take over the scene.
"Beth! Stop; stop right there. Dear, you have a beautiful voice and a foot in the door of your acting career, just like every other girl I've sent out of here today. But this is the fifth time I've given you to take charge of the scene and you've failed to do so. I'm sorry, but the part isn't for you."
Horrified, Beth tossed her perfectly sculpted blonde curls over her shoulder, huffing off the stage. Britney smirked, crossing her arms over her chest.
"That was the last person auditioning," Jeanette whispered to Simon, who had stopped beside her to watch. "How is she going to continue rehearsal s with no lead?"
"Miller!"
"Yes, Ms. Wilson?" Britney replied, delicately folding her hands behind her and thrusting her shoulders back.
"No, Britney, I—"
"Mrs. Wilson?" Eleanor called, coming down from her seat in the auditorium where she had been practicing her lines.
"JEANETTE!"
Shocked, Jeanette stepped out from behind the curtain. "Me, Mrs. Wilson?" She asked quietly.
"Yes, you. Here," she said casually, sliding a script across the stage to Jeanette. "Read for Elphaba. So Britney will have someone to act alongside, for the moment."
Jeanette's cheeks burned with their familiar blush as she bent down to pick up the small green book. She stood slowly, looking over her shoulder at Simon.
"Go!" He whispered, pushing her gently forward.
"Pick up near the end of Scene 8, Alvin, beginning with spies," Ms. Wilson instructed the trio.
Alvin, reading the part of the Wizard, crossed downstage to stand across from Jeanette.
"Won't they make perfect spies?"
"S-s-pies?" Jeanette mumbled, stumbling through the lines.
"You're right, that's a harsh word…how about scouts? That's what they'll be really. They'll fly around Oz! Reporting any subversive animal activity," Alvin crooned, sweeping his hand through the sky before narrowing one eye over his shoulder in Jeanette's direction.
The script shaking in her hands, Jeanette took a deep breath. She closed her eyes, focusing on the words she was about to say, the words she knew by heart and didn't need to read on the paper before her. She imagined herself not as shy, scared Jeanette Miller. But instead, she imagined herself as Elphaba, realizing that the man she had idolized her entire life was a cruel, fake bigot, merely trying to look good in front of the town of Oz. She saw Simon's face before her, his confused expression as he used the word "frightened."
He was right; no one ever got anywhere by being frightened.
"You can't read this book at all! Can you?" The words gushed out of her as she narrowed her eyes at Alvin, stepping toward him. "That's why you need enemies, and cages, and spies. You have no real power."
Alvin blinked a few times, stunned at her sudden snap into character. "Exactly…that's why I need you. Don't you see?" He replied, recovering quickly. "The word is your oyster now! You have so many…opportunities. You both do."
"Thank you, your Ozness!" Britney called out, swooping herself into the spotlight as she touched Alvin's arm lightly.
"NO!" Jeanette shrieked, turning on her heel and stalking offstage, her head down. She felt the words coursing through her veins as she almost plowed into Simon, who was watching with a smirk on his face.
"Sorry," she whispered, turning around to get ready for the next scene.
He elbowed her gently in her side, turning his attention back to the stage.
"Elphie!" Britney called in Jeanette's direction before running offstage to join her sister. "I am so sorry, your Wizardship. I'll fetch her back! Elphie, wait!"
"We must get her back. She knows too much," Alvin continued. "Guards, guards! There is a fugitive loose in the palace! Find her, capture her, and bring her to me!"
"Alright, Alvin, offstage. Jeanette and Britney, let's go!" Mrs. Wilson instructed as Jeanette strode onstage with Britney trailing behind.
"Elphie, wait! Where are you going?" Britney began, her heels clicking as she quickly followed behind Jeanette, who was looking for imaginary stairs.
"Oh no! There are no more stairs! This might be the attic…"
"Elphaba, listen to me…"
"I have to barricade the door!" Jeanette cried, grabbing a long stick lying against the tattered canvas backdrop, using it as the broomstick.
"Elphaba, why couldn't you have stayed calm for once instead of flying off the handle?! I hope you're happy!" Britney began to sing, moving closer to her sister. "I hope you're happy now; I hope you're happy how you've hurt your cause forever, I hope you think you're clever!"
Instantly, Jeanette found her voice. She didn't think about the fact that she was singing next to her superstar sister, and it wasn't backup for a change.
"I hope you're happy! I hope you're happy too. I hope you're proud how you would grovel in submission, to feed your own ambition!"
Jeanette stepped forward until she was nose-to-nose with her sister.
"So though I can't imagine how, I hope you're happy, right now…" The two girls voices blended in beautiful harmony, perfected through years of singing together.
"Citizens of Oz!" Alvin interjected, his voice coming from offstage. "There is an enemy that must be found and captured! Believe nothing she says. She's—"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a minute." Britney marched toward the front apron of the stage, her hand placed on a cocked hip. "I believe there's been a misunderstanding here."
"Yes, Miss Miller?" Mrs. Wilson asked, folding her hands in front of her, her wildly colored nails gleaming in the overhead stage lights.
"Call me crazy," Britney replied with a short laugh, "but it seems to me like this green girl is beginning to be the star of the show…? When clearly the production is about my character, Glinda the Good. I don't think the lead usually participates in a lot of duets," Britney continued, beginning to flip through her script. "And as I can see just by browsing through, this 'Elfababble' girl is singing with me an awful lot."
"It's Elphaba, Britney," Jeanette hissed.
"Whatever."
"Well, Miss Miller, you would be correct." Mrs. Wilson rose from her seat, walking down the aisle and toward the stage.
Britney laughed nervously. "About what, Ms. Wilson?"
"Elphaba is the lead of the play. Glinda is a major character, but the entire play is centered on Elphaba and her story. I'm surprised it took you this long to figure that out."
Britney looked as though she'd been slapped. Jeanette was trying to hide a smile, and from the corner of her eye, she could see Simon and Alvin holding each other up backstage they were laughing so hard, which was oblivious to Britney.
"Well, I—" Britney began, cocking one hip to the side in her traditional argumentative stance.
"And Jeanette?"
"Yes, Mrs. Wilson?" Jeanette's cheeks turned pink merely at the sound of her being called upon.
"You're our Elphaba."
"What?!" Britney and Jeanette echoed together.
"Now wait just a minute, Ms. Wilson," Britney started again, walking to the edge of the stage. "I have something to say."
"The floor is yours, Miss Miller."
"I believe I have the best potential when it comes to playing Elphaba. I mean, I have the most experience, the best figure and appearance, and as for the requirements for E-El…whatever her name is, do they not call for a mezzo-soprano?"
"They do."
"Well then, I'm obviously your girl!" Britney threw back her head, pleased at her brief argument.
"Britney, I'm a mezzo-soprano too, you know." Jeanette spoke up, surprising even herself.
Britney laughed casually. "Jeanette," she replied, placing a degrading hand on her sister's shoulder, "your voice is deeper than mine. Besides, we both know I have better stage presence."
"Just because I can hit a wider variety of notes than you can does not mean I can't hit a note high enough to be a mezzo-soprano," Jeanette answered smartly, her face growing hot. "And Britney, do you not realize that as Elphaba, you have to wear green body paint? For the entirety of the show?"
Britney wrinkled her nose. "Well, green's not exactly my color but," she turned, placing a hand to her chest to croon at Mrs. Wilson, "I'll do anything to put myself in character!"
"Then aren't you better cast as the princess?!" Jeanette fired back, her cheeks red from anger now rather than embarrassment.
"Jeanette! Oh my gosh! I cannot bel—"
"This is exactly why I thought you two would be perfect for the parts!" Mrs. Wilson cut in, clapping her hands as she approached the stage where the two girls stood nose-to-nose, their chests rising and falling heavily.
"You're sisters, so you naturally have a sense of occasional tension and competition between each other, the same that Glinda and Elphaba reflect. Yet you have the same sisterly bond of love for each other as our characters share." Mrs. Wilson's face was split into a bright, ruby-rimmed grin, as if she was pleased with the outcome of the seething sisters in front of her.
"However, I cannot ignore the tension you are expressing. For all intents and purposes, let me grasp an understanding here, so that we may clear this air and focus this rich emotion toward our production," Mrs. Wilson continued smoothly, tossing the long tail of her colorful shawl over her shoulder.
"Britney, you're expressing to me that you would like to abandon your character as Glinda and instead, take on the role of Elphaba. Correct?"
"Of course," Britney replied, casually flipping her sleek, straight hair over her shoulder.
"And you, Jeanette? I know you were, unsure…"
Hearing Mrs. Wilson's words flow through her ears, Jeanette felt the familiar warmth in her cheeks, unsure if this time it was from anger, embarrassment, or both. This was her one shot.
She looked over at her sister, her perfect auburn hair gleaming in the stage lights. She waited, expected to be handed the lead, just as she was handed popularity, beauty, captain of the cheerleading squad, prom queen, and every other title in her high school career to put her on top.
Jeanette turned again, looking backstage at Simon. Her best friend stared back at her, a half-smile adorning his warm face as he beckoned her forward with his crisp blue eyes. From that one gaze, that one smile, a warmth filled Jeanette from her blushing cheeks clear down to her purple flats. It was just enough for—
"Yes. Yes, I want to be Elphaba."
She blew out a heavy breath that she realized she'd been holding. Jeanette rubbed her sweaty palms on her skirt, stepping forward and raising her chin. "I'm sure of it."
No sooner had the words left her lips than Britney turned on her heel again, coming back over to get in Jeanette's face.
"What are you doing, Jeanette?" she hissed. "You're making a fool out of yourself."
Jeanette turned her head, pushing past her sister's selfishness as she approached the foot of the stage.
"What do we need to do, Mrs. Wilson?" she asked, trying desperately to cling to her confidence as one tries to hold water in cupped hands.
"Well, if two talented actors both yearn for the same part, I have no other choice but to host an audition; a sing-off!"
"A sing-off? This isn't Glee, Ms. Wilson," Britney retorted, her hands on her hips.
"Will we be singing the same song or different ones?" Jeanette asked, ignoring Britney's comment, while it gave her an idea. "I have something in mind."
"Well, I haven't really thought about it, so enlighten me, Jeanette."
"I think we should sing Defying Gravity. It has a high F, it's the climax of the first act, and it's a segment where the girls' characters part ways. Whoever sings it best gets the part," Jeanette replied simply.
"Wonderful! I think that is a fantastic idea. Very well thought through, Jeanette!" Mrs. Wilson replied, beaming up at the pair. "Looks like it's going to be a Glee moment after all, Britney!"
Beside Jeanette, Britney rolled her eyes. "Fine. When are we doing this get-up?"
"Fifteen minutes. The pianist knows your part. Go warm up ladies, and meet me back here!"
"W-w-w-what?" Jeanette stuttered, suddenly drained of her confidence. "I thought we could do it later this w-w-week. You know, when we had some time to practice."
Britney laughed at her sister. "Practice? Jeanette, a star is ready to shine the moment she's called," she said, as if it were the most obvious answer in the world.
"Britney's right, Jeanette," Mrs. Wilson stated, making her way back up the aisle. "True actors need no practice; their talent is always ready to burst through."
"Are you saying you're not up for the challenge, little sister?" Britney smirked, moving in on Jeanette.
"N-no. I can perform under pressure," Jeanette answered shakily, before turning to walk backstage.
"Oh, and Jeanette?!" Britney called after her sister, dropping her competitive, smirking attitude and retrieving her "honey-do" façade. "I got an F on my research paper and my lab report! Ms. Murphy told me my research paper wasn't long enough, and Dr. Agorham told me my lab report wasn't finished. What the hell?"
Jeanette was standing right in front of Simon as she processed Britney's words. He beamed at her, which was enough to fill the dusky backstage with enough light to burn the house down. She turned on her heel, cocking her head to one side before speaking to her sister.
"Um, Britney, you told me to turn in the lab report, which I did. And you told me to proofread your paper, which I also did. You misspelled twelve words, misused comas, and included a word that wasn't even a real word. So I corrected them. You said turn it in, so I did."
"But Jeanette, my paper was only one paragraph long! And my lab report wasn't finished!"
"It's your lab report, Britney, not mine. It's sad that you can't turn it in by yourself, but that still doesn't make it my place to finish the work you didn't do. And as for your paper, I did what I was asked. The fact that it was not typed, not edited, not cited, and basically not written, is your fault. So above all, the fact that you didn't do your homework like you were supposed to," she replied, walking up to Britney until they were nose-to-nose, as Britney had approached her all day, "is not my problem."
And with that, she threw her shoulders back, retreating back to the smiling boy behind the curtains waiting for her.