Chapter 11: (4103 words)
The students already there calmed down and stayed silent as Mr. Damocles began to call up those who would be auditioning.
After three… average auditions, Mr. Damocles announced, "Next up, Chloe Bourgeois, who will be singing 'I Wonder' from the Disney movie, 'Sleeping Beauty'.
He then nodded to Chloe who had stood up at her name, and after the nod, she had walked up the stairs which were located on the side of the room so that she could stand on the stage.
The students and the judges' eyes widened at the masterpiece of the dress that she was wearing and the judges were sure to remember to ask where she got it from.
The music then kicked in and she began to sing in one of the best impressions of Sleeping Beauty Chloe's friends had ever heard. And Marinette had heard a lot of them to be honest.
-I wonder-
-I wonder-
-I wonder why each little bird has a someone-
Everyone was wearing jaw-dropped expressions, as they were not expecting the song to be sung in English, which a few of the students understood. Luckily, the judges all knew multiple languages, since one worked in a school and the other two likely toured around the world.
The judges were whispering to each other about something or another, the students who were auditioning were sat at the front of the room so they couldn't hear.
Chloe sang loudly and clearly, though she was still using the powerful voice that Princess Aurora has. This was a good sign as the judges would be able to hear her and she sang wonderfully, at least Marinette thought so.
-To sing to-
-Sweet things to-
-A gay little love melody-
The judges were back to nodding at the girl in the impressive dress. She tried very hard not to smile, and was succeeding because, like Adrien, she has had a lot of practice at concealing her true emotions.
Sure, she was always mean back then, but she was usually depressed or upset, and she had learned how to stop crying or to hide her sadness.
It was only let out when Marinette became her friend.
She pushed away the negative memories and continued to sing one of her favourite songs.
-I wonder-
-I wonder-
-If my heart keeps singing-
-Will my song go winging-
-To someone-
-Who'll find me-
-And bring back a love song to meeeeeeee-
The music then faded and applause took over, her four friends clapping as loudly as possible.
When the room came to silence, Chloe stood nervously on the stage.
She kept glancing to the judges, who were discussing her performance. Even though she wasn't going to sing with anyone and Marinette was sure to win the competition, she still really wanted to at least get through the auditions, kind of like a way to show her mother that she was strong, even without her.
Françoiz Breut looked at the nervous blonde and held up a seven. She then spoke, "I absolutely love the dress and the bling, and your voice was wonderful, perfect! I just wish that you would add some dance to it. That is all, thank you."
There was a small round of applause, and Chloe's nervousness did not disappear since it was a, though still good, disappointing score.
Mr. Damocles then held up an eight. "I agree with Ms. Breut, though I still thoroughly enjoyed the performance so I will give you an eight."
He then smiled proudly to the relieved blonde and motioned to the last judge to begin.
The last judge, Etienne de Crecy, then held up another seven, "It was a marvellous performance. I love the dress, the voice and the song itself, but I would so very much enjoy some dancing to go along with it, so for that, it is a seven."
Chloe held back her disappointed frown and smiled in thanks to the three judges, "Thank you for your time."
They nodded and she walked back down the stairs and to her friends, which wrapped her in a big hug. Well, Marinette and Alya did, since they were the two that were sitting beside her.
Marinette was sat in between Adrien and Chloe and Alya was sat in between Chloe and Nino.
(-Line break!-)
After two more performances, one that was average and one that kind of sucked, Mr. Damocles announced, "Next up, Alya Césaire, who will be singing 'Colours of the Wind' which is from the Disney movie, 'Pocahontas'."
He nodded to the girl and she strolled confidently up the stairs and onto the stage. Her outfit was incredibly well made, and the judges wanted to ask her where she got it from as well as Chloe. They'd do so after the auditions were over though, there was no point in keeping everyone in for longer when you only wanted to speak to two of them, right?
The music began to play and Alya began to sing.
-You think I'm an ignorant savage-
-And you've been so many places-
-I guess it must be so-
-But still I cannot see-
-If the savage one is me-
-How can there be so much that you don't know-
-You don't knooooowwwwwwww-
If the audience were surprised at her use of English, they didn't show it.
Her voice was better than average, and she was doing small motions with her hands at certain words, and the judges hoped that she would do better dance moves.
-You think you own whatever land you land on-
-The Earth is just a dead thing you can claim-
-But I know every rock and tree and creature-
-Has a life-
-Has a spirit-
-Has a name-
This was an incredibly famous song for its message, and so far, Alya was delivering the message wonderfully.
She was now moving her hands more noticeably.
Alya was walking around, though not much. It was still better dance moves though, and the judges were nodding along at good parts of the song. It was a well know song, and everyone knows it, after all, so almost everyone was mouthing along the words, even though it was in English.
-You think the only people who are people-
-Are the people who look and think like yooouuuuuuu-
-But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger-
-You'll learn things you never knew, you never knew-
-Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon-
-Or asked the grinning bobcat why he grins-
-Can you sing with all the voices of the mountain-
-Can you paint with all the colours of the wind-
-Can you paint with all the colours of the wind…-
The judges clapped at that point, though it was quiet. It was such a well sung moment and it deserved some praise though, so they decided to do it.
It was a beautiful message and Marinette was sure that if everyone in the room hadn't heard of it before, they certainly did now.
-Come run the hidden pine-trails of the forest-
-Come taste the sun-sweet berries of the Earth-
-Come roll in all the riches all around you-
-And for once, never wonder what they're worth-
-The rainstorm and the river are my brothers-
-The heron and the otter are my frieeeeeends-
-And we are all connected to each other-
-In a circle, in a hoop that never ends-
Marinette closed her eyes and mouthed along to the next two lines, which were one of her favourites, ever. Pocahontas and Mulan were her favourite Disney movies, what with them having a female heroine in it.
This did not go un-noticed by Adrien, who smiled a little love-sick smile at her, which in turn did not go un-noticed by Chloe, who smirked at him.
He rolled his eyes at the blonde and looked back to Alya.
-How high does the sycamore grow-
-If we cut it down, then we'll never know-
Marinette opened her eyes to see Adrien looking at Alya and Chloe smirking to herself about something.
The black-haired girl just shook her head and thought, 'Wow, I have weird friends. Still love them though.'
She smiled at the end.
-And you'll never hear the wolf cry to the blue corn moon-
-Or whether we are white or copper-skinned-
-We need to sing with all the voices of the mountain-
-We need to paint with all the colours of the wind-
The judges had already begun to whisper to each other about things that went well and things that went wrong.
-You can own the Earth and still-
-All you'll own is Earth, until-
-You can paint, with all the colours of the wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiind-
She had a large round of applause and Mr. Damocles held up a hand to silence it.
Françoiz Breut held up an eight and smiled at the relived girl, "Well, Miss. Césaire, that was a beautifully sung song, so thank you for that. You're wearing a lovely dress and the dancing suits the song, though you could have gone more out there, so for that, I'm giving you and eight."
Mr. Damocles nodded at the woman's words and held up an eight as well, "I have nothing to add on, so I will just say, well done."
Alya nodded at him and gave out a relieved little smile, she didn't have as much practice at hiding her emotions, since there was no real need to. Etienne de Crecy then held up a seven. "I would have liked to see a better choreographed dance, though the rest of the performance is spectacular."
Alya nodded once more and strolled over to her friends, though this time, it wasn't as confident as before.
She was given a hug as well, by Chloe and Nino. Nino gave her a kiss on the cheek, too.
She smiled at him and the five friends waited for the next person to audition.
(-Line break!-)
After six more performances, with four being average, one being horrible and another one being better than normal, Mr. Damocles announced once more, "Next up, Nino Lahiffe. He will be singing a song called… 'Never Ever Getting Rid of Me', which is from a Broadway musical called… 'Waitress'."
It wasn't a very well-known musical, and apparently, Mr. Damocles had never heard of it because he had to read of a sheet of paper, when before, he could just glance down and know the full name.
For the third time that afternoon, the judges wished to ask from where he got the very well-tailored suit from.
When the song that he would sing was revealed, Chloe had to snorted and tried to hide her laughter; she was a big fan of musicals, and that was one of the reasons that she and Marinette became such good friends so quickly.
Marinette had to swat her arm so that she would stop, though Marinette was grinning too.
Then the music began to play and Nino grinned at Adrien, who hadn't heard the song yet, and the dark-haired boy started to sing along.
-Dawn…-
-I will never let you let me leave-
-I promise I'm not lying-
-Go ahead, ask anybody-
-Who has seen me trying-
-I'm-
-Not-
-Going-
-If it seems like I did-
-I'm prob'ly waiting outside-
There were already large amounts of laughter coming from the students. Even the judges were chuckling merrily at the comedy number. Him singing in English didn't stop anyone from laughing since the pure rhythm of the song screamed 'comedy number'.
Nino was moving around a lot, since Marinette showed him the scene of the musical when Odie sings the song, and though he could never dance as amazing as the actor who played him, he can still do some things.
Those things sure were making the audience laugh, including his friends.
-Such a stubborn man-
-You'll likely never meet another-
-When we have our family dinner-
-You can ask my mother-
-She's-
-The-
-Best-
-You'll learn more about her-
-On our family history test-
The laughter came back and bigger than before, since the audience was already laughing before, though it was getting quieter.
The song sure does fix that problem quickly.
-I'm gonna do this riiiiight-
-Show you I'm not moving-
-Wherever you go-
-I won't be far to follow-
-Oh, I'm gonna love you sooooo-
-You'll learn what I already know-
-I love you means your never ever ever getting rid of me-
Some members of the audience went 'aww' at the somewhat romantic line, including Alya, which made sense.
They rest just burst out laughing though, also including Alya after a few seconds.
-Yooouu can tryyyyy-
-Oh, but I…-
-I love you means your never ever ever getting rid of me-
-Not quite-
-Pie for everybody-
Most were confused at that but since the auditions were supposed to be sung on your own, those who were doing the music took away the voices of others, unless they were behind the main voice, in which they couldn't do anything.
It was still a funny line though, and those who had heard the song understood the silence and laughed like crazy.
-I grew up a lonely child-
-In the suburb of the city-
-I spent my days alone-
-My only friend was a stray kitty-
-Called Sardine-
-Yeah, I thought it was hilarious-
-To call a cat a kind of fish-
They audience laughed again, though the background singers who sung the 'sardine' part after Nino says it were removed, sadly.
It was a very funny part.
Since it was removed, there wasn't as much laughter as could be, though those who had never heard of the song before didn't know that so they laughed like lunatics, which was a great sight to see.
-She played hard to get-
-Hissing as she scratched me-
-What she was try'na saw was-
-"Ogie come and catch me"-
-I-
-Learned-
-Quickly-
-That perseverance stood-
-Between a cat-
-And her new best friend-
-Me-
This certain line makes everyone laugh for some reason, and it has not failed any of them yet, since they theatre was filled with laughter in every corner, it was a great atmosphere to be in.
Nino's friends were sure that he would get in, what with how things were going at the moment.
-Oh, I'm gonna do this right-
-Show you I'm not moving-
-Wherever you go-
-I won't be far to follow-
-Oh, I'm gonna love you so-
-You'll learn what I already know-
-I love you means you're never ever ever getting rid of me-
Dawn was supposed to speak in this silence, but it was a small silence and most didn't know that so there wasn't as much laughter, which was disappointing, thought Marinette.
At least they were clapping and nodding at certain points of the song, it was that good.
-Yooouu can tryyyyy-
-Oh, but I…-
Marinette, Chloe and Alya were disappointed that Cal wouldn't sing that hilarious verse, it makes them all laugh everytime.
At least Adrien seemed to be enjoying the song.
-Yooouu can tryyyyy-
-Oh, but I…-
-I love you means your never ever ever getting rid of me-
Everyone, and that is supposed to be read as everyone, laughed like crazy when the opera voice showed up.
It was a wonderful noise and Marinette grinned happily at Adrien, who grinned back.
Then the applause kicked in and it was everywhere. Eventually, Mr. Damocles held up a hand to get the rowdy students to stop and he let Ms. Breut speak.
"Mr. Lahiffe, that was one incredible comedic number, which musical was it from? Waitress, was it?"
He nodded at the famous woman.
She smiled and continued, "I thought that your singing was wonderful, and I hope to hear it again someday in theatre. Your dancing suited the song well but it was a bit too much so I will give you a seven."
She held up the seven and then Mr. Damocles held up a seven too and told him, "I agree with everything, but it was hard to hear your voice over all of the laughter so I will be giving you a seven as well."
Etienne de Crecy then held up an eight and smiled encouragingly to the dark-haired boy.
He shuffled on his feet and her smile grew in warmth, "I thought that the dancing was a wonderful addition to the song and your singing fit the song perfectly so I will give you an eight."
He nodded with a smile and then walked nervously back to his seat.
When he got there, Alya noticed that he was shaking and decided that it was his turn to receive a kiss on the cheek.
He did and then he blushed violently as Mr. Damocles announced the next to audition.
(-Line break!-)
Nine more auditions had past, and the majority were horrible this time, with some of them being average or just above it.
Mr. Damocles then announced, "Next up will be Adrien Agreste- "
Gasps were heard around the theatre room, two of them coming from the celebrity judges next to the school's principal. "He will be singing 'Go the Distance' from Disney's 'Hercules'."
There was a round of applause, it was bigger than usual because of his celebrity status and for the millionth time, he wished that it didn't exist.
He walked up to the stage and the judges wanted to ask once more, where he got his suit from. He was rich, like Chloe Bourgeois, the mayor's daughter, so he probably got it from a super expensive store and the suit looked like it costed hundreds of thousands of euros.
The music kicked in and Marinette gave him the thumbs up with a comforting smile and he smiled back before he started to sing.
-I have often dreamed-
-Of a far-off place-
-Where a great warm welcome-
-Will be waiting for me-
The audience widened their eyes at him singing in English. They didn't realise that their precious model knew English. Marinette had a little gut feeling that some fangirls would be attempting horribly to learn a certain language.
She sighed and shook her head. There were claps already, and his friends were getting annoyed by how people only cared about how he was famous.
Since they were his friends, they understood how he hated it, and they also got to know him so know they see him as an actual human being with feelings and likes and… y'know, human things that everyone has, including the people that worship.
His friends wished that all of the fans would just stop raving about how perfect he was, no one was perfect.
-Where the crowds will cheer-
-When they see my face-
-And a voice keeps saying-
-"This is where I'm meant to be"-
It is true that he can sing very well, and he's proud of that, but his fans make it seem like he sings the best, or that he is the only person in the world who can sing, and it was really annoying.
He just kept going anyway.
It would be over soon and then maybe he'll finally be able to hear Marinette sing. He really wants that.
-I will find my way-
-I can go the distance-
-I'll be there someday-
-If I can be strong-
-I know every mile-
-Will be worth my while-
-I would go most anywhere-
-To feel like I belong-
The audience was clapping, and Adrien and his friends really hoped that the judges wouldn't be as biased as the audience, because that's just cheating and if that was the case, his friends and him would certainly be having a word with the judges after school.
They crossed their fingers and prayed as Adrien did motions with his hands to do with the words that he was singing.
-I am on my way-
-I can go the distance-
-I don't care how far-
-Somehow, I'll be strong-
-I know every mile-
-Will be worth my while-
-I would go most anywhere-
-To find where I belong-
There was a big instrumental break here, and Adrien just fidgeted where he stood as Nino, Alya and Chloe looked at him in worry.
Marinette was turned around in her seat and was glaring at the judges, hoping that they wouldn't be biased towards the celebrity.
She knew that Mr. Damocles wouldn't be, since Adrien was late once and he had a ten-minute detention, though he told his father that it was a short study session.
She sighed.
Marinette kept glaring though, and she wouldn't stop until the scores were given and Adrien came back.
-I will beat the odds-
-I can go the distance-
-I will face the world-
-Fearless-
-Proud-
-And strong-
-I will please the gods-
-I can go the distance-
-'Til I find my hero's welcome-
-Right, where, I, belooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong-
There was a huge applause at Adrien held the last note for a long time, though not as long as the actual voice actor from the movie, who held the note for at least ten second, maybe more.
He smiled at the judges and awaited their response.
Ms. Breut held up an eight and Marinette sighed quietly in relief. "Adrien Agreste, I did not know that you could sing, but quite obviously, you can."
There was a large applause for that comment. "I give you an eight for your singing skills and the overall performance was a wonderful experience."
The rest of the audience nodded ferociously and Adrien began to fidget in the spot where he was standing. Sure, he was used to the attention being on him at all times, but this was still quite unnerving.
Mr. Damocles smiled at his student before him, and gave him "A seven. You know, Mr. Agreste, that I will never be biased towards you or anyone else in this school, and you could have performed better actions. It is to be expected, of course; you are a model, not a singer, after all."
He chuckled and parts of the audience booed quietly at the score, but the majority were nodding in appreciation at his words.
Though none so as much as a certain black-haired girl.
Marinette was delighted that Adrien wasn't about to be judged only on his celebrity status. She assumed that the other two judges would, but so far, Adrien was receiving similar scores to her other friends, and that's when Marinette realised with a jolt that she would be the last of her friends to be auditioning.
She really didn't want to be an embarrassment, and she vowed to herself, right then and there, in the middle of Adrien's judging, that she would try her very best to pass the contest.
If not for her, then for Adrien, right? What other reason would she need?
She nodded slightly in determination as the last of the three judges gave her vote, "That was an absolute wonder of a performance, Mr. Agreste. I do hope that we will be seeing much more of you in the future. For now, though, I give you a nine!"
About two thirds of the audience cheered wildly at this. The scored that Adrien received meant that he was in first place, and his fans were elated at the news.
The remaining third, however, was slightly more tense. Part of the crowd was upset that they weren't in first, though they knew so already. Adrien's friends were upset that he was getting treated differently just because of his background.
Marinette turned once more to face the front and her hands were clenched in fury at the unfairness of the judges.
She would just have to prove them wrong.
Adrien made his way down to sit next to Marinette, and when she realised that he was next to her, she turned to him and before he could say anything, she enveloped him in a massive hug. The height difference meant that she could bury her face into his shoulder.
She felt him stiffen at first, but then he wrapped his arms around her and smiled cheekily at the fact that he was hugging the girl that he liked. Well… one of the girls he liked, anyway.
Their friends were too busy complaining about the judges that they didn't realise that the two members of their favourite ship were quite literally hugging each other with a fondness that they though unreachable with Marinette's stuttering habits and Adrien's reserved public manner.
Oh well, there would be plenty of chances to see the two dorks in the future, after all.
A/N: And that's it for today, folks!
I don't know why I said it like that but I sure did! (and now read the last two sentences as if I was from Alabama! ;D )
My mom and I do this… thing (?) where one of us accidentally says something in a slight Alabaman accent and the other just joins in and then we see who can last the longest, it's quite fun! It's weird though, we are very much from Western Europe, and I've never visited America or the U.S.A., though I'd like to eventually, maybe in 4-8 years? ( ;D ) Still, I don't know where this game we play came from but it's just one of those things you don't question, y'know?
Anyways, sorry! You won't get to hear Mari sing today (you wouldn't have heard her anyway, you'd have read her sing)!
I already listed all of the songs in previous chapters, but I'll list them here as well, so here you go:
'I Wonder' from Disney's 'Sleeping Beauty'
'Colours of the Wind' from Disney's 'Pocahontas'
'Never Ever Ever Getting Rid of Me' from a Broadway show called 'Waitress'
'Go the Distance' from Disney's 'Hercules'
Well, that's all for now, I guess you'll just have to wait until next week for Mari's audition!
Enjoy! (Ahhhhhh, don't you just love cliffhangers? :D)
