An: okay; been working on this for nearly three weeks now; so this is just a light hearted fun little one-shot and it's AU. I got the idea for this when my mum (who works at a kids Nursery) bought home a script for a kids Nativity play, and I read through it… laughing at the simplicity and my imagination of how easy it was for a little kid who doesn't want to take part, to muck up their line… any who
AN2: some inspiration from real life e.g. (one of the Diva tantrums is based on one my sister, left my heart in Paris, had when she found out she was going to be a monkey in a school play, when she was five) and (the simplicity of the names of characters for the play, it never got too biblical)
AN3: I don't know if this really works, as I'm from the UK, so I don't know a great deal about school in the USA; I only know that the first grade in the USA is equivalent of year 2 in the UK… *shrug*
Posted: 17/12/11
"Good morning class" Mr. Schuester greeted his class of first graders, it was the Monday morning after the Friday afternoon that he had been informed of which play his class would be performing for their parents
"Good morning Mr. Schue" the class chimed back
"Now I have some exciting news" he said as he took his seat at the front of the room, the children all taking their seats at their desks "We will be performing the Nativity for this Christmas performance, and I have which parts you will be playing right here" he pulled out a piece of paper from the stack on his desk
Some of the children shuffled nervously in their seats, a few others like Rachel (on the front row, next to Finn) and Mercedes and Kurt (who sat a row behind the other diva) all lent forward in anticipation
"Now; our Christmas performance will be the Nativity" he announced, not getting much of a reaction, mostly because none of the kids knew what he was going on about. "Okay, so anyway. Here are your parts. Rachel you will be playing Mary" he looked up to gage her expression, no surprises when her eyes lit up at the fact she was getting a main part; he then continued
"Finn, you will be Joseph" Rachel looked pleased for the young boy sitting next to her to also be 'playing opposite her'. Finn just looked confused, not really sure how to react
"Quinn" the teacher continued, the little girl with the short messy blonde hair lift her head off the desk, in surprise, at the mention of hearing her name already "You will be the first Angel" she looked unsure, he smiled at her to encourage her. She timidly smiled back
"Santana, you will be angel two and Brittany will be angel three" there wasn't any need for their to be more than one angel but there weren't enough parts even though it was a small class
"The shepherd will be; Lauren, Artie and Mike. The three wise men will be; Puck, Sam and Blaine. Tina you are the inn keeper and Narrator" he wanted to give the girl with the stutter a few more lines to try and help with her nerves (he didn't know that she was faking and that she wasn't the one he should be worried about) "And lastly, Kurt and Mercedes" they sat up in their seats ready to find out their parts "You two will work together to be the Donkey"
"Aww heck no Mr. S" Mercedes definitely had something to say about this, she stood up out of her seat "How comes she gets a good part?" she pointed to the tiny brunette sat in the font row "I could be just as good, at being Mary" she protested
"Please Mercedes, Mary would have been Jewish, as I am, therefore I am the perfect choice for the part" she flicked her hair over her shoulder and continued to face the front
"Well then why isn't Puck, Joseph?" she yelled, her clenched fists resting on her hips for a tiny diva power stand
"I don't want to be Joseph" the little boy with the mohawk; joined in "I want to be a wise man"
Santana snorted at the irony of what he'd said, from the back of the class room, Quinn raised her head again and looked behind her to her friend to see what was so funny, Santana just dismissed her confused look as well as Brittany (who was sitting next to her) who questioned her Latina friend with the same expression.
"I'm sorry Mercedes, but that's what I've decided, I think you and Kurt make a good team and will work well together having to share the costume; you can decide which half you'll be" the teacher explained trying to calm the class down.
"No I don't wanna be a donkey!" Kurt exploded, not taking any of this, he stood up, picked up his exercise book and violently threw it across the class room, before folding his arms and glaring at his teacher (earning the full attention from the rest of the class and a few of them sniggering at his tantrum)
"I'm sorry guys but that's my final decision; now I think you should just get used to this idea and try and give the best performance you can)
The Diva's huffed but took their seats again, Mercedes then turned to Kurt, next to her; and said, actually more like demanded "I'm the front"
Kurt sighed; he knew he wouldn't win against this Diva and his best friend
…
"Hey little buddy, what's up?" Burt asked his son as he picked him up from school
"I don't want to be the back end of the donkey" he blurted out
His dad, to say the least, was confused "Err, what's wrong"
"We got our parts for the Christmas play, we're doing the Nativity story, and I'm the back half of the donkey" he groaned as they reached his dads truck. Burt opened the door before lifting his son into the front passenger seat "and that's a stupid part"
"Now, now Kurt" he attempted to reason with his son, it was just an elementary school play, he didn't need to stir up any trouble because his son was upset for once "I think the Donkey is a very important part, I mean, how else would Mary have got all the way to Bethlehem" Kurt lightened up a little at his fathers words "and I will be proud of you as long as you go out there and do your best, okay?"
"Okay" he sighed"
"God boy" Burt ruffled his son's hair, knowing Kurt hated it. He chuckled and shut the car door, chuckling to himself while the boy tried to flatten his hair, and he walked round to the drivers side of his truck.
.
"But mum; I don't wanna be in the play" Quinn grumbled dropping her head to the dining table, while Judy laid out the sheet of white material on the floor next to the table
"Don't be like that Quinnie; you get to be the Angel, that's so important right? And I really want to see my little girl with a main part for once"
"But Rachel and Finn get the main parts" she lift her head slightly to look at her mum, her moth resting against her folded arms on the table and her feet swinging back and forth under the seat "… and Finn's useless anyway he doesn't get it. Rachel had to espain 5 times to him what he had to do"
"Well what do you get to do?" Judy knelt down to line up the folded sheet perfectly
"I talk to the shepherds and I give Mary and Joseph the baby Jesus when they get to the stable"
"That's great Quinn!" Judy then chuckled to herself, what a shock those kids would be in for when they find out how babies are really 'delivered' "Honey I need to draw round you now for your costume" she gestured for Quinn to lay on the white cloth so she could use the marker pen to draw round her.
The little girl huffed before climbing down from her chair to get her simple costume started. "Mum why do you have to make the costume?" she whined
"Its my right as your mother, to make you a costume; all the other parents are anyway"
"You don't know that" she muttered, lying on the sheet
"I spoke to Brittany and Santana's mums, Rachel's dad, Finn's mum and Tina's mum; they're all making their costumes. Now stay still so I don't mess this up"
Quinn sighed again but did as she was told
.
"Dad, Daddy" Rachel started to announce shortly after she and her fathers sat down to a vegan friendly dinner "I have some great news; I'm playing Mary in this years Christmas play"
"Oh congratulations honey"
"Yeah, I guess Mr. Schue must have felt I was perfect for the part, although I am disappointed I didn't get a chance to audition, it would have been good practice for the future" the 7 year old rambled on "I do think he made some wonderful choices though, Quinn is perfect at the angel, and I think she's strong enough to take on a bigger part" she continued; taking this simple 20 to 30 minute performance much further.
"Well, we look forward to seeing you and your class perform, Rachel" her taller father said supportively
…
At the beginning of the first rehearsal there was a small amount of tension, of course Rachel didn't help by starting with a lecture
"… I just feel we should all make sure we get into character, and perhaps stay in them through out rehearsal, that way we can be prepared for the performance; in case, for whatever reason, we falter with our lines, we can stay in character and improvise until the-"
"Okay Rachel, thank you for your input" most of the kids in the room were staring at her with their mouths open completely hypnotized into confusion, Quinn sat absentmindedly, adopting her usual position of her head on her desk, her arms curled round a book that she was doodling in. Puck was throwing paper at Mike who sat on the front row with Tina. Mr. Schue had given up on trying to control young Mr. Puckerman, he wasn't going to listen; Mr. S wondered to himself sometimes if that boy would end up in a juvenile detention centre in years to come
…
A couple of days later they were getting closer to their performance, they were in rehearsal, and while Tina was going through her lines (miraculously, her stutter didn't seem as obvious as usual) Rachel noticed Quinn had wandered off.
She went to investigate, but she soon found the blonde curled up in between pieces of various sets (the same plays were repeated every year) that were being stored backstage
"Quinn, why aren't you with everyone else?"
"I'm sorry Rachel, I'm just a' worried, I'm gunna mess it all up"
"Why would you do that Quinn?" she gently took a seat next to the blonde
"I dunno, I don't want to disappoint people"
"You won't disappoint anyone Quinn; you're going to be the best angel, this school has ever seen"
"You think so?" she looked at the girl sat next to her shyly
"Yeah I do" she smiled genuinely to reassure her class mate "… we should go back to the others, Mr. Schuester was getting a little stressy with the others"
"Well yeah Kurt and 'Cedes have been really mad lately"
"They make a really funny donkey though" both girls giggled remembering their recent memories of the unfortunate pantomime donkey falling over and walking into itself.
…
The children waited in the class room across from the stage door, with Mr. Schue. Tina was giggling as her friends Kurt and Mercedes struggled to get into their shared costume. Mr. Schue tried to assist while they struggled. Santana was straightening Brittany's silver halo made from tinsel, her own was being held up by her devil horns; Quinn was waiting near them, the itchy gold tinsel was irritating her head, she couldn't help but mess up her hair a little as she scratched at it; Rachel was trying to explain something to Finn who was just staring into space, obviously not listening; while Sam, Mike, Puck, Lauren, Blaine and Artie were all waiting; lined up by the door as their teacher had asked them too.
The nerves only seemed to get to Quinn as they finally were led across the hallway to the stage door. She didn't want to mess up her part; she wanted to make her parents proud, they were so happy when they found out what part she got. She also didn't want to mess up for her friends, this seemed so important to them… well important to Rachel and Quinn didn't like being a disappointment.
.
They took their places at the side of the stage as 'Mary' and 'Joseph took their places on the stage. Quinn and her Angels prepared themselves to walk on stage after Tina had stuttered through the introduction.
The play started smoothly, Quinn was relieved that she didn't miss her cue or muddle her lines. When she spoke to the shepherds she had grown a little more confident. Rachel performed perfectly, and there were no worries for Finn, he basically had to be dragged round stage by Rachel for most of the play, he actually had few lines. It seemed Quinn and Tina actually had the most.
It came to the part where Quinn passed the Baby Jesus to Mary and Joseph. She knew not to mess this up so she held the doll like a real baby as she passed it to Rachel. The little brunette, being the performer she was born to be, drew out the acting, she tried to carefully pass the 'baby' to 'Joseph' Finn looked at her awkwardly, not sure what to do (well he didn't have any dolls like that at home, he didn't know how to react) he took the doll awkwardly by the arm and dropped it into the manger
Quinn stood to the side again, after handing Rachel the baby Jesus; she crossed her arms and discretely sent the back of Finn's head death glares for the disappointment that had grown on Rachel's face because of his careless actions.
The tall 7 year old stepped forward to say one of his lines; as he stepped back Quinn stuck her foot out to trip him. He fell spectacularly grabbing the curtain behind him, ripping it down. The movement of his tall frame falling, had the word 'timber' on the tip of Santana's tongue
The falling curtain draped itself over a tiny Rachel, she screamed as her lights went out
"Rachel!" Quinn leapt forward and started digging at the curtain.
While Finn managed to stand again, straightening the cloth and hoop on his head "Quinn, that's not Rachel that's Mary" he stage whispered, remembering what Rachel had told them all about staying in character, while the angel with the short blonde hair continued to lift the curtain trying to find her way to the little diva.
"Well then she's not Quinn, she's the angel; dummy" Santana whispered harshly
"Wait if she's the angel; what does that make you?" Finn asked, not registering the volume of his voice. The parental audience were all trying to stifle their laughter as the play was abandoned and their discussion continued
"I'm angel number two. Duh" she said proudly, folding her arms and shifting her head on her shoulders. She shot her glare to Puck when she heard him sniggering with Sam "What the heck are you two laughing at!" she stormed towards them
"You said number two" Puck answered still sniggering, and fist bumping Sam next to him, who was in a similar state
"Dummies!" she yelled at them and stormed back to the other side of the stage, shoving the pantomime donkey as she passed, sending the rear (Kurt) onto his backside and the front (Mercedes) on her side, splitting their shared costume back into two.
In the back ground Quinn had finally found Rachel again; who'd lost the hood to her costume. Quinn brushed some of the brunettes messed up hair back; she smiled in relief that the diva wasn't harmed. A set of brown shiny eyes joined with a beautiful beaming smile looked back at the Angel. Quinn held Rachel's hands in her own to help her stand again. As soon as Finn tried to step in Quinn shoved him away with a glare.
"That's it!" Mercedes yelled from inside the head of the Donkey "I've had enough of this stupid play" she took the head off and threw it towards Santana; it narrowly missed her and nearly collided with Brittany who screamed before jumping out of its way.
"Oh no you didn't, wheezy!" After checking angel number three (Brittany) was okay she went straight to tackle Mercedes, but Kurt got in the way trying to convince Mercedes to calm down and got knocked to the ground instead with a girlish scream. By now the parents were laughing, watching Santana clamber off the Donkey's rear and lunging at Mercedes again.
She ran off stage with a shriek; an angry 7 year old Latina on her heels.
Mr Schue sat in the front row with the parents, just staying in his seat, his head shaking slowly from left to right with his hands over his eyes. Rehearsals had been real work with this bunch of miss-fits, but the actual performance… a disaster
Mercedes Ran back across the stage, screaming, Santana still close behind, far from resembling an angel.
"Oh crap" Mr Schue muttered before rushing from his seat, backstage to finally take hold of the situation.
Before Santana slipped out of sight again; she shoved Puck who was still laughing at her (probably for missing Mercedes in that tackle) he stepped back toppling into Sam who knocked into part of the set behind him, it fell back with a slam, revealing Mr Schue trying to keep Santana off of the other Diva.
Brittany ran over and slipped her arms round her best friend pulling her away.
Over in the corner, Tina seemed to have fallen asleep, finishing her lines already and waiting for her last one. Out of worry Mike nudged her "Tina?"
Unfortunately that bought her out of her light slumber and she mistook him nudging her as her cue; she stood from her seat, walked straight to the middle front of the stage, not noticing all the drama that had unfolded, and said "W-we hope you enjoyed our p-p-performance. Happy H-Holidays"
By now every parent in the small audience was laughing. Tina was unsure of what she had done, she slowly turned round to see what was so funny; she didn't do anything to get that reaction.
Behind her she saw a furious little Latina being held back by Brittany, a real angel; Mr. Schue calming down Mercedes and keeping her away from Santana; Finn with a furrowed brow watching Rachel and Quinn who were just looking at one another, smiling, holding hands, ignoring everything around them; Artie and Mike were looking round the stage unsure of what to do, Puck was helping Sam who's robe was now trapped under the piece of the set that had fallen over; she just caught Kurt's tail as he stormed off stage as dramatically as the back half of a donkey could, Blaine rushed after him to make sure he was okay; Lauren stood in the corner laughing along with the parents.
Mr. Schue disappeared once Santana had settled down and shortly after the curtain was slowly pulled back across the stage.
…
The parents waited in the corridor while their children changed out of their costumes
"All I'm saying is, that was the best play I think he's ever dragged me to" Burt chuckled in the hallway as he spoke to Carol; Finn's mum
"Definitely; the most entertaining yet" she agreed as a small boy huffed past and grabbed his fathers hand
"I'm changed; Can we go now?" Kurt grumbled
"I guess, we're going" Burt sighed as his son grabbed his hand and started to drag his father away "See you round Carol"
"Yeah, see you" she smiled back. She soon felt her own son slip his hand into hers
"Mum? I think I messed up"
"Oh, Finn; you did great out there" she reassured him "Come on, lets get you home"
.
As Kurt was reaching the main door, he heard someone call him "Kurt?" it was Blaine standing with his parents "Have a nice Christmas"
Kurt, the boy who had previously determined to leave now stopped "oh, thank you Blaine… ha-have a nice Christmas too" he finished with a smile
"Come on you, I thought you wanted to leave" Burt smiled to himself, pushing his son gently in the back to encourage him to keep moving, he nodded curtly at Blaine parents as they left.
.
"Hey Quinnie" her dad knelt down to greet his little angel "You did great out there"
"The play went wrong daddy… and it was all my fault" she muttered
"Why say that honey?" Judy asked kneeling down to her daughter's height
"I tripped Finn, and that sort of started everything" she muttered with a pout realising it was her actions that started the domino effect of incidents
"It wasn't your fault honey" Judy rubbed her daughters arm trying to reassure her
"Rachel's going to be mad when she sees it was my fault" she continued sadly
"Come on, let's get you home, get you some hot chocolate" Russell said standing and taking her hand
"Can I have marshmallows in it?" she looked up at him with her shiny Hazel eyes
"Of course you can; no matter what I think you did really great tonight" the two proud parents led their daughter out of the building and to their car.
.
Rachel's fathers prepared themselves for a little Diva tantrum as they saw their daughter leave the class room, they were surprised when she simply smiled and slipped each of her hands into there's allowing hers to be engulfed
"Everything okay, baby girl?" the taller father with the dark skin asked her
"Yeah, everything's fine" she replied cheerily
"The performance didn't go to plan though did it Rach?" The shorter man with glasses asked, earning himself a glare from his husband for bringing it up
The little girl walking between them sighed "Yes the performance didn't go as expected but I feel the audience rather enjoyed our miss-haps on stage" again the parents shared a look wondering exactly how their daughter knew so many 'big words'
"So you're not sad?" the father with glasses asked again
"Not really, I feel the whole experience has just better prepared me for the day I stand on a broad way stage…" she drifted off dreamily. The parents just smiled to one another as they continued to leave the school
…
"Quinn!" the blonde with the short hair turned when she heard her name, she couldn't help but smile shyly when she saw Rachel running from the front doors, down the concrete steps, towards her.
"Hi Rachel" she looked to her shoes timidly before looking up to meet Rachel's eyes
"I wanted to thank you for rescuing me, I was really scared when the curtain fell on me and I just wanted to say thank you; for saving me"
"It was nothing Rach" she tried to hide the blush. She went redder when she heard her mum and dad chuckle behind her
"Well thank you, you're my hero Quinn" she stepped forward to hug the blonde making her freeze at the action before relaxing and returning it. She didn't know she could blush any more than she already was but she did; when she felt Rachel press her lips to Quinn's reddening cheek. Just as Quinn got comfortable again Rachel pulled away. "I hope you have a wonderful Christmas" she started to skip back to her fathers who were waiting patiently further away. She stopped and turned back to Quinn "I think you made a beautiful angel this evening" she smiled brightly and gave a short wave before running off.
Quinn was left with her face redder than it had ever been and her parent chuckling behind her
"Are we going to have to have a word, with Rachel about her intentions with our little girl" Russell joked to Judy, who just laughed back. Quinn huffed, embarrassed, and kept her head down, turning back to her mother and father, shoving Russell's side
"Can we go home now?" she sighed
They each took one of her hands and led her to their car, she glanced back over her shoulder to see Rachel about to get in her fathers SUV; they instantly made eye contact and instantly smiled
Quinn thought to herself; 'Best Christmas play ever'
Let me know what you thought…
Reviews and opinions are muchly appreciated :)
Oh yeah; and: Merry Christmas, Season's greetings, Happy holidays, Happy what ever you may celebrate. Pick one, and have a great time :D