It was a Friday at Disney High and students flopped, ready for the weekend. Meg headed through the crowded corridor that morning, feeling pretty good. She loved that Friday feeling. Her eyeliner had winged perfectly, the new jeans she ordered looked great and things were looking up.

"Meg, Meg my little nut-Meg" Hades whispered, walking beside her in the bustle

Meg scoffed, "Can I help you, Mr Gray?"

Hades gave her a questioning look, "oh come on, don't be uptight" he said playfully,

"What are you doing tonight?" He continued,

Meg considered for a moment. She spotted Hercules and Phoebus further up in the corridor, they were chuckling and Hercules was wearing a tight orange t-shirt today.

"Nothing" she said rather sadly,

"Nine O'Clock then?" he asked with a smirk,

Meg nodded, "sure" she complied, "but you're ordering us pizza" and she strutted off, past Hades and Hercules. However, Meg should have known better by now to have tried and walked past Hercules without fuelling his puppy love.

"Meg!" he called, ditching Phoebus and catching up with her,

"Sure" Phoebus said to himself as Hercules scampered away, "I'll go to homeroom alone"

As Meg and Hercules made their way up the corridor, Hades watched from a distance, with a sneer on his face and anger boiling through him.

"Alright then" he grimaced, "have your little 'Wonder Boy'"


The Junior girls sat in homeroom. Mulan bit her nails and Ariel was showing them all a funny video, at that moment the classroom megaphone echoed from the right side of the room, "Any one who auditioned for the school play last week, head over to the auditorium now please" Mr Crab announced.

Mulan and Ariel jumped out of their seats, "Good luck!" Jasmine, Rapunzel and Anna all called watching their two friends leave the classroom. Esmeralda, Pocahontas and Phoebus strolled towards the front row where Mr Crab and Clopin were all stood, excited looking and welcoming everybody to sit down.

"You've all auditioned so well, there was not a performance in here I didn't love" Mr Crab started

"But there are four main roles and three smaller roles in this play" Clopin continued "and I'm afraid not everyone here landed one"

"There's always next year for some of you"

Everyone's breathing slowed as Clopin picked his clipboard up and a small print list could be seen. Names were starting to be read, the teachers took it in turns to read a name each.

"Aurora Briar"

"Phoebus Victor"

"Eric Shipman"

"Pocahontas Amonute"

"Vanessa Shell"

"Esmeralda Hugo"

"Ariel Triton"

Silence.

Mulan's heart dropped to her stomach. She knew she had sung well, but she knew the acting let her down. She expected it, but the shame was still stinging.

"I'm sorry those of you who didn't make it, if your name was called please stay"

Kuzco, the Tremaines, Giselle, Mulan and a few others got up and left with heavy hearts. When the auditorium doors closed, the teachers continued.

"Now, well done to you all. I suppose you're wondering what this years play is going to be!" Clopin said excitedly. The students nodded.

"High School Musical!" Crab declared.

"What are we, twelve?" Phoebus whispered, but Esmeralda was enthusiastic. High School Musical was her childhood! She wondered who she'd be playing.

"We've already cast roles" Clopin said "Miss Aurora Briar, your new name is Taylor McKessie. Best friend, intellectual and she breathes prep!" Aurora grinned and thanked her teachers. She was a little downtrodden to not have had a role of Sharpay and Gabriella but considering all the activities she was already committed too, a smaller character was best.

"Phoebus Victor! You're playing Chad Danforth. I want to see you with a basketball in your hand from now on!"

Esmeralda laughed at Phoebus' clear disdain, "Esmeralda! Wipe the smile off your face! You'll be playing the fierce Sharpay Evans!" Mr Crab told her. Esmeralda whooped, grinning she was very excited to be playing the iconic Sharpay.

"Pocahontas, my dear, you're request for a smaller role has been taken into account and you'll be the pianist, Kelsey"

Ariel glanced at Vanessa and then at the teachers, there was only one female role left now. Would one of them would be playing Ryan?

"Mr Shipman!" Clopan called, and Eric sat up in his seat "You'll be the one and only, Troy Bolton!"

"Great! I won't let you down!" Eric beamed.

"And that leaves our very own, Gabriella Montez" Clopin smiled and he turned on his heel, pacing dramatically. Ariel's heart pounded but she knew it now, she wasn't supposed to be here. There had been a mix up, her name was called by accident.

"Vanessa Shell" Clopin said, Vanessa stood up and bowed exaggeratedly to nobody and Mr Crab had a contorted and grumpy kind of look on his face. Ariel was close to tears, her cheeks pinked and her lip quivered. Why was she here? For Vanessa's expense?

"Ah and Ariel" Clopin finally noticed her "What with Vanessa's throat in such bad condition, you'll be her understudy for now. Just in case she has any trouble opening night" Vanessa smirked. So Ariel was to show up to rehearsals each week and do nothing? Learn lines and songs for no benefit? What a waste of her time, of her voice! Her whole life Ariel was compared to her sisters. Since she could remember she had the nicest voice, and she always took pride in that but now she wasn't so sure. Clopin dismissed them all and they made their way up the stairs, discussing excitedly. All except Ariel who was a little glum.

"But, Sir" Esmeralda called from the top of the hall "You haven't cast Ryan"

Clopin chuckled slyly "Didn't I?" he tapped the side of his nose.

"Weird" Phoebus commented

"I can't wait to tell the others about the play!" Pocahontas said

"Oh, shit" Phoebus said. He could see it now. Flynn and Aladdin, rolling around singing 'Breaking Free' in roaring mockery.


Ariel and Mulan were pretty upset for the rest of the day. Mulan didn't necessarily want a role but it would have been nice to know she was good enough for one, especially after cheer leading didn't work out. Ariel too felt like a failure, she was an understudy for a girl who obviously despised her and she had to admit, she was jealous. After laying eyes on Eric, everything changed. She knew her friends would call her dramatic but she couldn't help it. She wanted to get to know him, she thought what it would be like acting together, spending all that time together. She even found his Facebook profile before realising how creepy she was being. Now she was an understudy. No singing or acting or dancing or being on stage at all. Just sat around, learning lines for no reason.

Mulan saw no other option now. Chess Club. This is what all resorted too now. She sat in English class sulking with Ariel, who usually loved reading out the voices dramatically but today opted not too. Instead, Miss Radcliffe chose different people to read but no one spoke with the enthusiasm like Ariel did. It was as if life couldn't get any worse when there was a knock on the door,

"Come in" Miss Radcliffe beckoned, and a tall senior boy walked in,

"I'm here to see... Mulan Fa?" He read off a clipboard, "and Ling?"

"That's me!" A lanky guy from the back called,

"Mulan?" the boy called again,

Mulan raised her hand, "that's me"

he raised his eyebrows at her before talking again.

"You signed up for, ahem, soccer" he stated curtly, "try outs are on Monday after school"

He left the room and Miss Radcliffe began teaching again, but Mulan couldn't believe this. More try outs? No way. Why couldn't she just sign up for something and do it, no hassle, no problem, just some plain old extra curricular.

Nope, not this time. She thought. I'm not humiliating myself again, I'll sign up for chess club and that's that.


The end of the day bell had Belle darting out of the school as fast and she could. She was hoping to get home quickly so not as to see Gaston. Sure, Adam had offered to help her but that days ago and she hadn't seen him since, almost as if he'd vanished. She punished herself for it, she shouldn't have been so stupid to strike deals with violent loners and then expect them to comply.

"Hi Belle" a voice said and she looked like to see none other than the violent loner. Adam was walking casually alongside her taking huge strides with his much longer legs.

"Hi" Belle replied curtly,

"Had any trouble recently?" he asked

"No, as a matter of fact I haven't... I've been thinking that maybe this deal is pointless" she said, but Adam held his hand up to stop her

"No you don't understand" he said rather smugly "I know you haven't had trouble because I've kept it away"

Belle raised an eyebrow and considered whether or not to trust him, but he looked way too smug to be lying.

"Oh well, thanks" she said politely. "and about this deal-" Adam cut her off again.

"Yes about this deal" he repeated, "Now this party is pretty fancy so do you have any clothes that are a lot less..."

"Conservative?" she suggested. He shook his head. "Baggy?"

"You look like a missionary" he said flatly "a pope's wife, a governess"

Belle glared at him "Well I'm sorry I'm not in designer mini skirts"

"That isn't what I meant, you just need something more elegant" he said calmly

"I have an old dress I wore to my aunts funeral?"

Adam grimaced, "right, we'll buy you one. It's important you look good"

"Why?" she asked, getting rather annoyed now by his insults on her dress sense,

"I need to prove my father wrong" he answered, "but I don't need to explain myself to you"

Belle opened her mouth to say more but he continued,

"We'll go to the mall at some point" he told her, "I'll get you a dress and then I'll give you the lowdown on how to behave at my house"

"I wasn't raised in a barn" she argued

"No of course not" he said kindly but still with a smirk, "but it's all necessary"

Belle was rather offended at this point. He'd mocked her clothes and now her manners. What next?

"This is your house?" he asked as she stopped by the pathway to the little house,

"Yeah, why what's wrong now?" she snapped,

He stared at it for a moment, the rose bushes in the garden and the ivy climbing up the brick wall.

"Nothing, I like it" he shrugged. And he walked away.


A/N I feel bad doing this to Mulan I'm so sorry guys but don't worry things will start looking up hopefully. AND Ariel! I'm also so excited it's HSM I know it's so childish but also I figure it's something everyone knows and likes especially (I'll assume) if you're reading this