AN: Hello everyone and a Happy Turkey Day to my American readers; I hope you are all well.
My thanks to all of you who read, enjoyed and reviewed the previous chapter; hopefully you'll find this one equally enjoyable. As ever I'd like to take this opportunity to address a few of the points raised in reviews.
Fanfic-Reader-88 – yes, Yorvis was a pretty poor lawyer for Tori, though in his defence it's a lousy career move to go up against the dictator of your country. As for Sikowitz, he will continue to do things that annoy Freddie – and really should annoy the others a bit too.
Beck and the others helped out; I think Freddie needed their... skill sets and contacts to help him out. Him single-handedly getting them out of the country would have been even more unbelievable than the chapter already was.
Guest – thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
Challenge King – yes, the plan managed to come together by a measure of luck and judgement.
Darck Ben – thanks.
Pbow – as I don't really want the Secret Service knocking on my door I'll refrain from commenting on the US government and State Department. In the episode Sikowitz bought a uniform at the hotel gift shop so I just had Freddie do that instead. It would have been fun, and a great opportunity, for Trina to use her Martial Arts skills while in prison; it's a shame that Dan had her somehow forget about them while in prison.
TenorSax93 – Thanks, and here is the next chapter.
Chapter 36: Helen Back Again
Benson residence,
Hollywood Hills, CA
Thursday, 9th April 2011.
Freddie sighed happily as he staggered through the front door of his home; it was a little after midnight and Marissa was talking nineteen to the dozen at him about a variety of things. He wasn't in the mood to complain (not least because she'd given him a ride home from the airport after Mr Vaughn's private jet had landed – he'd been extremely impressed with being able to use the on-board satellite phone to let his mother know that they were on their way back to American soil).
The Benson matriarch had stood impatiently alongside the parents of most of her son's friends; of course she knew the Valentines reasonably well and spent a lot of her time talking with them, smiling at the praise that they were heaping on Freddie and observing how proud she must be of the boy, something that she readily attested to.
Next to the Valentines had stood Mrs West who, again, the couple knew very well, since Jade and Cat had been friends for so long. The adults were attempting to piece the story together from what they had been told (most of it by Freddie) and were mostly bewildered about the adventures their offspring had had.
Cat had squealed and raced to her parents, leaping into their arms. Tori had been dragged into a huge hug by her parents; their reaction to Trina's return was almost the same, which seemed to slightly surprise – and please – the older sister. Jade had attempted to be stoic and resolute at her mother's joyous greeting but it was clear that she, too, was relieved to be home and out of there, even if some of the people responsible were those that she didn't particularly want to thank.
The happy group parted ways when they reached their respective cars (Robbie's mother offered Sikowitz a lift; Mrs West's glare at the teacher showed that she hadn't forgotten about the injury to her daughter's hand and the teacher swallowed uncomfortably).
"Ok, I'll see you on Monday," Freddie nodded to the Vega sisters as they reached their dad's car; the two waved happily to him and got inside the vehicle. Cat pulled him into one more hug before getting into her father's car and she promised that she'd see him the next day.
"I can't wait," he had told her.
So once back home, with memories of the appalling hotel room in Yerba still fresh in his mind, he could think of little but a hot shower and collapsing into his bed.
"Are you sure you're alright Freddie?" Marissa pressed.
"Yes," he insisted, "I'm fine; I'm the only one that didn't get locked up there – though I can't imagine the conditions in the prison were much worse than that hotel. I'm just tired after getting them out of there."
"How did you manage it?" she asked curiously; he had only been able to give her a very brief call from the jet given both the cost and the fact that all the others also needed to call home to give their parents the good news.
"Maybe we should put some coffee on," he suggested. "It's quite a long story." As his mother bustled over to the kitchen he had one overriding feeling; despite her fussing and fretting, it's good to be home he thought.
The Los Angeles sun was pouring through Freddie's bedroom window when he awoke the following day; the brown-haired teen checked his bedside clock and was only mildly surprised to see that the time was after 10 a.m. He rubbed his eyes and struggled out of bed, stretching his muscles as he walked to his bedroom door.
He walked downstairs, rubbing his head thoughtfully as he toyed with the idea of heading to the gym after a late breakfast; his fencing class had been cancelled as so many people, like himself, were supposed to be away over Spring Break. He texted André to ask what his usual gym partner's plans were for the day and settled down to his meal, grinning at the thought that his mother's healthy foods were still better testing than the Yerbanian offerings of recent days.
After receiving a reply from his friend, informing him that he'd be interested in heading to the gym, the two made arrangements to meet there. Freddie texted Cat asking her to reply once she was around, letting her know his plans and that he'd contact her as he was leaving the gym in case she wanted to do anything today. Seeing that he still had a bit of time before he had arranged to meet André, Freddie called Sam to confirm that they were home, and to thank her for her assistance in getting the gang out of there.
"Thanks," the blonde happily accepted the praise, "I'm pleased that they were all able to escape without too many issues; hey," she added brightly, a hint of mischief in her tone, "now I know who to call the next time I get into trouble!"
"Sam….." she heard the warning tones of Carly.
"Relax, Carls, I was kidding," she assured her hostess through her giggles; Freddie laughed at the girls' exchange.
They chatted a little longer; Sam put him on speaker so that Carly could join the conversation and the trio began to discuss options for the summer, with the Seattle-based teens still both eager to head south for the Summer in Film workshop that Hollywood Arts was putting on, and to spend some more time with Freddie and his friends, and in a happier environment than previous visits.
After hanging up with the girls Freddie figured that he should also call Beck; he, too, had been instrumental in the escape and, while Freddie assumed that his friend would already know that they were back on American soil through Alyssa and her father, he felt that the long-haired actor would appreciate the call.
"Freddie! Hi! Back home then?" Beck answered jovially.
"Yeah; I guess you got the play-by-play from Alyssa's dad?"
"I did," he confirmed, "but thanks for the call anyway."
"Thanks for your help; we'd still be stuck there if you hadn't been able to get us that jet – and there's no way I'd have been able to risk getting them out of prison with no way out of Yerba. I can't imagine a group of Americans can hide easily in that country. If I hadn't got them out of there by Friday…" he trailed off and Beck instantly detected the fearful tone.
"What? What happens on a Friday?"
"Well, at the prison there's a guys' side and a girls' side," he explained. Even with his friends no longer incarcerated the dread would not leave his voice as he concluded, "on Friday night they open up the fence between them."
Beck's horrified gasp was clearly audible on the other end of the line. "Well," he tried to inject some humour into his voice; he was only partially successful, "it's good that you got them out of there on the Wednesday then."
"So when are you back? Sunday?"
"Saturday," the Canadian teen clarified, "we land early evening so I've Sunday to prepare for being back at school on the Monday."
"Great. Well, if you're up to meeting up with us on Sunday then let me know; I'm sure we can find something to do – and if not then I'll see you Monday."
"Hmm," Beck mused thoughtfully, "it would be good but I'm not sure how welcome we'd be – as I'd be bringing Alyssa."
"Jade will behave around her; she still cares about you and you two did help with the rescue so that will count for something."
"I guess," Beck still sounded doubtful.
FunXional Fitness, 4111 West Alameda Avenue,
Burbank, CA
Cat had called Freddie just as he reached the gym; the redhead was a little disappointed that she wouldn't be seeing him just yet; he promised to call over on his way back, suggesting that they could maybe go out for a late lunch. A placated Cat had agreed to this and was waiting impatiently for her boy's arrival.
Freddie grunted with effort as he pushed himself through his sets at the gym; André smiled at the concentration etched on his friend's face.
"Dude," he laughed, "any reason you're working that hard on this?"
"While I was freeing the girls," he panted as he continued his work-out, "one of the… guards… caught me. If… I hadn't… had Sam's… pen, I'd… have been there… with you." He set the weights back and sat up. "I want to make sure that I could win a fist-fight if anyone sneaks up on me when I'm out with Cat."
"You got her out of there," the songsmith countered reasonably, "you can't be Superman and just expect to win no matter who you come up against."
"She trusts me to keep her safe; I need to make sure that trust isn't misplaced," he argued.
"You did and you do," the dreadlocked teen stated emphatically before grinning, "and you'll be no good to her if you push too hard and injure yourself."
"I guess so," he conceded reluctantly. "Your turn?" he stood.
André nodded. "Got to keep pace with you," he grinned; the two had a friendly 'competition' over their work-outs.
Valentine residence
"Freddie!" Cat leapt into her boyfriend's arms after opening the door to him.
"I guess you missed me over the last twelve hours," he teased; she kissed him by way of confirmation.
"Where do you want to go for lunch?" she asked as they left her home and headed for his car.
"Well I was going to suggest that we play some 'baby golf'," he teased her nicknaming of the game, "and eat somewhere around there but you don't have your putter with…" the redhead squealed, turned and flew back inside the house, racing up to her room, "…you," he finished with a grin; a few seconds later the girl returned, putter in hand and an even broader smile on her face.
As usual Freddie won their game of golf but as usual neither of them particularly cared, just enjoying spending time together and enjoying a pleasant, sunny Spring day in Los Angeles well away from the cares and troubles that had plagued the earlier part of their week. Just as they were debating which of the nearby diners they should go to, Cat's phone rang.
"It's Jade," she observed, looking at the caller ID. "Hi-iii," she greeted her friend brightly as she answered.
"Hey Cat, I was just wondering what you were doing today."
"Hi Jade!" Freddie called as Cat put her on speaker.
"Oh hey Freddie. Big surprise that you guys are together," the mean girl laughed. "So, are you two busy?"
"Not really; we just played baby golf and now we're going to get some lunch," Cat supplied.
"Do you want to meet up somewhere?" Freddie asked generously.
Jade hesitated; she would quite like to meet up with them but didn't want to be the third wheel. "Sure," she relented, before inspiration hit her, "hey, maybe I could call the others and we all meet at Wok Star? Chinese ok for you two?"
The couple glanced at one another. "Sure, Chinese would be great," Cat confirmed. "We'll see you there." She rang off.
"Well, we know where we're going for lunch now," Freddie grinned; the two headed for his car.
Wok Star Restaurant
1710 N Highland Ave, Hollywood, CA
Jade had called André, Tori and, reluctantly, Robbie. She had toyed with not inviting either him or Tori given that Tori would likely be accompanied by her sister; their time spent in prison together had done nothing to improve Jade's opinion of the diva.
Cat and Freddie arrived shortly before the Vegas; they met the others in the lobby area where they were waiting for them.
"Hello again," Freddie smiled at André, who grinned and nodded. "We went to the gym earlier," he explained for the benefit of a slightly-confused looking Jade; she nodded.
The teens heard Trina before they saw her; the elder sister seemed to be possessed by some manic energy and was gabbling away, much to the obvious irritation of Tori. Jade couldn't suppress a smirk at the look of pure irritation on her fellow singer's face as the siblings joined them.
"Hi Tori; having a good chat there?" she teased.
"Yeah," the brunette's eyes lit up malevolently, "Trina will tell you all about it now."
Jade looked horrified as the older Vega began her tale again; Tori sat at the far side of Freddie and Cat, as far from her sister as she could. Freddie stole a glance at the black-haired girl sat next to him; her eyes had already glazed over at Trina's complaints about how there had yet to be a Big Showcase this year and how she was being denied the chance to show the world, and more importantly the Hollywood talent scouts, how talented a singer and actress she was.
"She has a point – about the Showcase," he clarified hurriedly as he spoke to Cat and Tori in a low voice. "Principal Eikner hasn't put on the Big Showcase yet this year. I can imagine the Senior Class wouldn't be happy about it as it is when quite a lot of them get noticed and picked up by the agencies."
"That's true," André, who had overheard him, added thoughtfully. "If there wasn't one next year, we'd all be upset about it."
"Except for you since you've already got your record deal," Freddie grinned, gently pushing his friend with his elbow; the musician bowed his head in mild embarrassment.
"You know what I mean though," he continued. "There really should be one."
"He's right," Cat agreed. "I'm surprised the Seniors haven't done anything about it yet."
Mrs Lee, who had spotted the group, came over to personally seat them; she frowned a little at Tori and Jade, doubtless remembering the play and some of the things that had happened with it, but was polite as she took their orders. She paused as she suddenly 'recognised' Trina.
"Jackie Bonet?" she asked in surprise, before turning to the others. "You kids know her? Wait, I thought you," she looked to Robbie, "said she never eats at same place twice."
"Yeah, that was all just a trick to keep you here so I could put on my play in front of my dad," Jade admitted, seeing the awkwardness engulfing the group; the restauranteur scowled at them before consenting to take their orders.
In the more relaxed environment of a restaurant serving good food and safe in the knowledge that they could leave any time they like to go anywhere they like, the group discussed their recent adventure. While the memories of the prison were still rather raw, the whole thing seemed almost comical to them with a little extra detachment.
"I still don't get how you were able to blind a despot from across the room," Jade chuckled.
"It was a shoe malfunction!" Tori whined. "What I can't believe is Robbie murdering an octopus!"
"That was an accident too," he complained.
"You're such a klutz," Rex taunted his handler, shaking his head.
"Quiet!" the ventriloquist hissed.
"Hey, has anyone heard from Beck since we got back?" Tori asked suddenly; she threw an apologetic glance at Jade as the gothic teen's face contorted slightly. "I'm sorry, I uh…"
"It's fine, really," Jade insisted. "It's a natural question to ask since he did help out."
I spoke to him this morning," Freddie confirmed, relaying some of what they had talked about.
"So he'll be here Sunday," Jade was thoughtful. "I guess I should at least say thank you to him."
Beck's RV,
Sunday, 12th April 2011.
"Jade?" Beck was surprised at his former girlfriend's appearance. He was briefly thankful that Alyssa hadn't come over to visit him (in truth the socialite wasn't too impressed at visiting the boy in his RV and was trying to persuade him to let her set him up in his own apartment, insisting that she – i.e. her daddy – would pay for it). "Come in," he invited her.
"Hey. I won't come in; I'm on my way to the beach with some of the others," she explained. Cat and Freddie were going, as were the Vega sisters, "and I just wanted to see if you wanted to come – and to say thank you," she managed to get the words out, feeling a little pleased with herself for the achievement.
"Thank you but I have plans – with Alyssa," he replied. "She's the one you should really thank for the private jet being available."
Jade smirked. "One step at a time," she told him; he nodded.
The girl's smirk, however, left her face as she walked away from the RV; by the time she reached her car her face had fallen considerably. She knew the reasons, the things that Beck had done to push her into dumping him, but the pain and the sense of loss (particularly with him seemingly moving on so fast and so well) were beginning to affect her.
Asphalt Café, Hollywood Arts High School,
Monday, 13th April 2011.
"And then she just laughed and said it would be one step at a time," Beck concluded his tale of Jade's visit.
Freddie patted his shoulder as they reached a vacant table; the café was beginning to fill up with teens eager to trade stories of their Spring Break (Freddie was willing to bet that nobody would have as entertaining a story as his group's). "Did you really expect more right now?" he asked reasonably.
"No," the actor conceded, "but maybe I hoped for a little more. I mean, I still care about Jade and I'd like it if she and Alyssa were on good terms."
"Yeah, good luck with that," the master fencer grinned; Beck was forced to smile along with him. "Hey, what are Robbie and Sinjin talking about?"
Freddie peered round him. "Oh, he's still trying to sell his bike," he shrugged, turning his attention to his phone and firing off a text to find out how long it would be before his girlfriend joined them.
Sinjin was indeed selling his bike; Robbie walked around it, inspecting it.
"It is a cool bike," the ventriloquist conceded.
"I know," the unusual blond agreed. "I got three other guys dying to buy it. Four hundred."
"Four hun... uhhh... Ah geez..." Robbie balked at the cost; he smiled as he spotted the Vega sisters arriving.
"Later," Tori called as Trina went to gatecrash a gathering of the 'A'-listers again.
"Tori, Tori, c'mere..." the curly-haired teen urged.
"What?" she sighed. "I told you I'm not gonna shave the back of your neck."
"I know," he accepted sadly. In a more level voice he turned to the topic at hand. "Sinjin is selling this bike."
"Oh. Cool bike," she noted.
"Right," the vendor agreed.
Robbie rested his arm confidently on her shoulder; Tori looked a little uncomfortable about it. "Okay, so, if this were my bike, would it make you wanna date me?"
"No," she stated flatly; he dropped his arm from her in disappointment before she brightened, "but it is a really cool bike."
"I'm growing impatient," Sinjin called.
"Okay, I'll take it," Robbie relented, bending down to retrieve his wallet from his jeans pocket and giving Tori a clear view of the back of his neck.
"It is hairy."
Sikowitz had climbed onto the gantry above the seating area; he held a microphone and, over the tannoy, began, "Hello. Your attention, please."
The kids, far too busy with their Spring Break tales, were ignoring him; Principal Eikner climbed the stairs to join him on the gantry, along with a Polynesian woman who Freddie, after sparing his balding nemesis a disinterested glance, focussed on, assuming her to be the Principal's new girlfriend. "Up here. I'm waving. See my hand, moving to and fro?...Please!" he begged.
Jade, who had just arrived with Cat, wasn't in the best of moods (both from her best friend's incessant chatter and from spying Beck sitting with Freddie; her mood over the whole Beck/Alyssa relationship had not improved and she didn't particularly relish sharing a table with her ex-boyfriend). She did, though, want to help the teacher she still considered to be her favourite out a little. "Everybody shut up!" she yelled as she approached their table; the café fell silent.
"Ah Jade, so sweet and feminine," Sikowitz noted. "And now, I give you a man who needs no introduction. He was born beside a River in Kentucky, way back in nineteen..."
"Sikowitz, gimme the mic," the Principal demanded impatiently.
In an embarrassed voice he muttered, "Principal Eikner," and handed it over to muted applause from the kids.
"Students and faculty," Eikner began, "it's with a heaving heart that I tell you... that as of today... I'm resigning as principal of Hollywood arts." As the students began to mutter among themselves he continued, "Okay, now shhhh... Please hold your murmurs. It's not that I don't love running this school. I do. But I've fallen in love with a Tahitian woman," he extended his free arm and she walked into his embrace, "and I want to spend time with her, and her people." He kissed her forehead; Sikowitz walked behind them, took her half-eaten banana and walked off with it down the stairs.
"He took her banana," Cat gasped, seemingly more interested in that than the rest of the development.
"I'm not too shocked really," Freddie shrugged.
"About the banana?" the redhead asked.
"Well very little that Sikowitz does shocks me anymore," he admitted, "but I was thinking more about Mr Eikner; he mentioned her to me back in January – remember when you wanted to put your play on?" he prompted to Jade; she nodded. "And like Trina's said, there's been no Showcase so he's not fully focussed on running the school."
"Right, maybe this is the best thing then. I wonder who'll replace him," she mused, thinking of vice-principal Dickers as the obvious choice.
Robbie, meanwhile, was concluding counting out his money for Sinjin's bike. "Three eighty... four hundred." He handed it over.
"Thank you Robbie. The bike is yours."
"Yay."
"Congrats," Tori patted his arm, you're gonna look really snazzy..."
She was interrupted by the beeping of a horn as a car tore into the parking lot; the trio dove for cover and the car crashed into the bike, ruining it.
"What the..." Robbie gasped.
"Uh-oh!" Sinjin scrambled to his feet.
"Gimme back my money!" Robbie demanded; the blond fled instead. "Sinjin! No... awww!" He sighed in defeat.
The car's driver, a heavy-set African-American woman, approached them. "You, uh, shouldn't park your bike there," she commented.
"What? I shou... ?! Maybe you should watch where you're going!" the ventriloquist countered.
"Maybe you better watch that mouth," she threatened.
"Excuse me!" Tori interjected. "But you were the one who came speeding in here like a maniac and..."
"I blinked my blinker on and told you I was coming..." the woman fired back; she and Robbie escalated their argument, shouting over one another.
"Okay, wait, wait, wait," Tori interrupted them. "Who are you?"
"My name is Helen. I'm the new Principal of Hollywood Arts."
The teenagers looked at one another in surprised concern. "You shouldn't park your bike there," the brunette told her friend.
Sikowitz's classroom.
Cat had been called up on the stage; the redhead's back was to the class and her teacher was tying a frilly pink bonnet around her head.
"All right!" he clapped. "Tori and Jade, you two are going to play husband and wife."
"I'll be the wife," the brunette decided.
Jade grinned. "Yeah, no kidding," she agreed.
The teacher turned Cat's chair around, showing her to the class. "Now, here's your brand new synthetically red-headed baby."
"Wait," the girl called, "before we start, I was just wondering, I have three question..." he cut her off by shoving a dummy in her mouth.
"Sikowitz? Really," Freddie challenged angrily; the balding eccentric ignored him.
"Let's just get on with the scene," he turned to the girls, leaving Freddie fuming in his chair. One more term, one more term, then I'm done with this clown, he told himself, not bothering to suppress his scowl.
"Now," Sikowitz continued as the two girls climbed onto the stage, "your dialogue should all be friendly and happy but your subtext is anger, so you must say your happy lines angrily. Action."
"Hey!" Tori snapped. "I am so honkin' happy that we got married, and then had this cute little baby!"
"Ditto to that!" Jade fired back. "I tell ya this: Nothing on this planet warms my cockles more than lookin' at that magical pile o' baby right there!"
Cat pulled the dummy from her mouth; in an annoyed voice she declared, "Goo!" before beginning to suck on it again.
"Aw, did ya hear that goo?" Tori asked.
The door at the back of the classroom opened, held by the new Principal's PA; Helen bustled inside.
"Excuse me," she interrupted. "I hate to interrupt but I'm gonna do it anyway. Hello children. Sikowitz."
"Helen," Sikowitz retorted tersely.
"Well, I'm just stopping by all the classrooms to say hello, y'know, introduce myself personally, y'know, get a feel for the vibe of the school," the Principal began; she spotted Robbie and turned to her lackey. "Hmm, you see him? That's the spazzy boy whose bike I ran over."
"Heh heh! Spazzy..." Rex laughed.
"So, Helen, maybe you'd like to tell the kids a little bit about your... background," the acting teacher invited.
"Oh! Glad to! As a child I starred in the television program, Happy Times."
"Oh my God!" Tori recognised her. "You were the little girl who always said: 'That is not my job.'"
"Ha ha ha! Yes, yes I was," Helen confirmed. "And most recently, I was the senior manager at the premiere movie theatre in San Diego." She suddenly spotted Cat and wrinkled her nose. "Ugh, is that child suckin' on a binky?"
"I was just teaching the kids about sub-text, in terms of acting," Sikowitz tried to explain.
"Oh! Well, carry on then. I'll see you all at the re-auditions."
This caught the group's attention. Amid a confused murmuring Tori called out, "what?"
"What do you mean re-auditions?" Robbie demanded.
"To stay in this school. Next week, you gotta perform a scene, sing a song, do a dance, bang a drum, tickle a banjo... i don't care. Just show me some talent," Helen explained.
"You know... All of us already auditioned," Freddie pointed out.
"That's how we got here," Cat backed up her boy.
"You auditioned for the old Principal, not for me," the Principal declared.
"Wait, so you mean like... I sing a song for you, and if you like it, i get to stay at the Hollywood Arts..." Tori asked nervously.
"Mmm-hmm," she confirmed, "and if I don't, bye-bye!"
In a scathing voice, Jade asked, "Uh, no offence, Helen, but what do you know about singing a song?"
She cleared her throat and handed the file she was carrying to her PA. "Heyyy-ayyy, you need to shut your mouth, open up your eyes and seeeee... That ya don't know nothin'... nothin' about meeeeeee," she sang confidently. Helen then used her right index and middle fingers to point from her own eyes to Jade's as she turned and left the room; her lackey was a step behind her.
"Who else is frightened by her?" Sikowitz asked the class; he raised his hand as did the rest of them, aside from Freddie and Jade, both of whom looked decidedly unimpressed.
"Screw that. I am not re-auditioning," the ex-Seattleite snarled as he stormed from the room after the lesson.
"But she'll kick you out," Cat gasped, having to almost jog to keep up with him.
"No she won't. She has no grounds for it so I'll sue her, the school, the school board, anyone else I can think of and see how long it takes them to fire her. And what about the seniors? All they need is a lawyer and an injunction – for half a semester? They'll graduate anyway before she can kick them out!"
The redhead nodded nervously, though she felt that she needed to plan something anyway as she felt far less certain than her boyfriend did.
Vega residence
The rest of the junior class felt the same way as Cat; André was fairly relaxed and confident, though Tori was panicking and he had called around to try and ease her nerves. He played his guitar idly as he waited for her worry to burn itself out.
"Let's see... uh... you could sing Crank the party?" he suggested.
"Noooo," she dismissed the idea.
"Okay... you wanna sing California midnight?"
"Noooo. Wait, yes."
"Yes?" he asked hopefully.
"Nooooo," she decided.
"C'mon, you sing that pretty good," he encouraged.
"Pretty good isn't good enough!" she fretted. "Pretty good means Helen is gonna hate it! We gotta be pretty rockin' fantastic."
"You need some warm cocoa," he decided.
"Oh! Hey, you know what we could do?" she brightened.
"Tell me."
"What if we take Make it Shine, but we do like a twist on it... Y'know, like, we could ah..." Her sister interrupted the rest of her thought; Trina wore her martial arts robe and was kicking and punching a dummy.
"Hah! Yah! Eeeee-yah! Nyah! W'chah!"
"Trina!" the younger Vega complained. "We are trying to pick a song to audition with."
"And I'm trying to practice hurting people. Hoo-ah!"
"Shouldn't you be rehearsing for your audition?" the dreadlocked boy asked.
"Yeah, I'm soooo worried about that , seeing that I graduate in a couple of months," she laughed. "Like I could fail the audition anyway. W'cha!"
"Um, our new Principal is really tough," Tori reminded her.
"And I'm really talented," her sister noted. "Eh!" She kicked the dummy again, causing André to wince.
"He better put some ice on that."
Principal's Office, Hollywood Arts High School,
Monday, 20th April 2011.
An irritable Freddie hammered on the office door; he was angry that he had been 'summoned' and was having to miss his class. He wasn't the only one, flanked as he was by Cat and Jade. The previous week had passed well for them; they had stuck to their guns and refused to consider re-auditioning, although both Cat and Jade had begun to prepare something, and he had helped them with their efforts, in case something was needed for any other performances (which was something that the trio had discussed). Jade wanted to do a short film and Cat had asked him to act a little alongside her and also play the accompaniment as she sang.
"Mr Benson, Miss West, Miss Valentine, come in," she beckoned them. The eleventh-graders walked over to her desk and took seats in the most comfortable chairs that they could find.
"Make yourselves at home," she snapped in surprise.
"What's this about," Freddie began, feigning ignorance, "as I need to get back to class."
"You won't have any classes to go to soon. You still haven't registered for a re-audition," the Principal pointed out.
"Yes, that's because I'm not going to," Jade informed Helen.
"Excuse me?"
"You're excused," Freddie countered idly.
"I mean," she was rapidly losing her temper, "what makes you think you don't have to do this."
"Hmm, let me see," he made an exaggerated mocking attempt to think, "there's my original audition that brought me here," he counted off on the fingers of his left hand, "my perfect GPA, my unblemished disciplinary record… oh and then there's the lawsuit we're ready to file against you, the school and the district board if you try and kick any of us out without justification." Seeing Helen hesitate and her confidence flicker a touch, he pressed on. "The freshman class only just auditioned, the seniors will be gone soon. Do you really want your first act as Principal, having only been here a week, to lead to a class action lawsuit?"
"I want to see some talent!" she blustered.
"This is a Performing Arts High School," Cat reminded her calmly, "why not put on a performance and ask people to show up and show off? Hey, why not put on the annual Big Showcase and invite the talent scouts who usually come here and look for people. Everyone would be happy to perform, including us, as it's why we all come here in the first place."
"So why are you…"
"Because none of us don't like bullies – or threats," Jade interrupted her. "I'm looking forward to performing, I love being in plays here and singing, and I really want to try something a little different," she smirked at the thought of what she had in mind for her performance, "but I'm not letting anyone try and threaten to kick me out of school for no good reason."
Chastened, and worried about what might happen if she pursued her plan, Helen relented. "So this… Showcase. When and where?"
"We usually put it on at one of the bigger theatres as there's quite the turnout. Parents, scouts – like we said – so loads of people come and see it," Cat explained readily.
"I'll look into it," she promised, "but I want to see talent soon."
"We usually get a week or two's notice to put the show on; you've already given us one week to start planning so whenever you arrange it for, we'll be ready," Freddie promised.
"Ok then. I'll see you at the Showcase. You can let yourselves out."
Helen sat there as if a statue so Freddie and the girls, feeling triumphant and vindicated, left their seats and returned to class, smiling happily.
"That went well," Jade grinned as they reached the locker area.
"I thought she'd be angrier," Cat observed.
"Angrier?" Freddie raised his eyebrows. "She's fuming about this but knows that she hasn't got the authority to do what she's trying to do. I think we should all watch our backs for a little while as she strikes me as the sort of person who will bear a grudge for a long time."
"What I still don't get," Jade was thoughtful, and not in the least bit worried about someone bearing a grudge against her, knowing that she could give as good as she got, "is why none of the seniors have been demanding that she put on a Showcase. I know some of them went to Eikner before he left and got some vague waffle from him that led to nothing. Why not try with the new principal?"
"Maybe they thought the scouts would be at this re-audition," Cat suggested.
"That makes a bit of sense at least," Freddie agreed; by now they had reached their classroom (Science) again, "why else would they bother to perform for her given that, as we said, they're leaving soon anyway?"
West residence
True to his word, Freddie called over after work. Mrs West directed him to the den, where her daughter was busily preparing for her 'performance'. To the brown-haired teen's immense surprise, Jade wasn't alone in the den; a boy of around nine sat nervously, eyeing the heavily made-up girl with her black lip-stick and mascara and her skin tone even paler than normal.
"Uh, Jade?" Freddie asked cautiously.
"Don't worry," she grinned and immediately her scary facade dropped, "this is our neighbour's kid; he's lived next door long enough not to be freaked out by my stuff anymore."
Freddie immediately found himself wondering exactly what the poor boy had been exposed to in the past; he decided that he really didn't want to know.
"So I'm filming?" he prompted.
"You will be," she confirmed, "I just want to do a little run-through tonight. See if you can think of anything that will be easier, anything that needs a couple of takes and different angles. Y'know, stuff like that."
Freddie nodded and Jade, eyes lighting up with relish, began her scene.
Hollywood Arts High School,
Tuesday, 21st April 2011.
Jade was a little surprised with how quiet Freddie was around her. She briefly wondered whether he was feeling that she was going too far into the disturbing and surreal with her planned film (while not being too willing to openly criticise her) but the black-haired girl brushed the concerns aside; she knew Freddie well enough to know that he would find a way of speaking out if something really bothered him.
The trio had become heroes in some circles within the school after the Principal announced her climb-down before first period. Instead of re-auditions there would simply be the Showcase the seniors had been demanding from the previous Principal.
"How did you do it?" one of the seniors who ran The Slap demanded as she saw Freddie and Cat chatting casually by their lockers before first class. "The Showcase," the blonde twelfth-grader elaborated, "we were bugging Eikner for months over it and then a couple of us went and asked Dubois about it last week but didn't get anywhere with it."
"We just suggested it to her," Freddie shrugged, "maybe we were more persuasive."
The blonde smiled, shook her head and walked off, mentally putting the final touches to her performance, which had just become the biggest of her life.
Asphalt Café
"So," Jade decided to force the issue; she took a seat with Freddie and Cat, who were alone at a table waiting for the others to arrive, "what did you think of the rehearsal last night?"
"It was… dark," he began awkwardly, "I thought your performance was great and your little neighbour was really believable as a terrified kid."
Jade smirked confidently. "That's what I was going for; like I say he's used to it."
"Just so long as his parents don't come over complaining he's having nightmares and banning him from appearing in it."
"Nah, they're already happy for him to appear; I had to ask, of course, for them to give him permission to appear in my film. I don't know if he wants to perform at all but if he does then it's a bit of a head-start. So, what about you? What else are you doing for the Showcase?"
"This year I'm helping you and working with Cat really; I'll appear in her scene and help with her song. I enjoy the performing but I'm not sure about it as a career, so I'll decide over the next year or so and if I do want to be noticed then I'll pull all the stops out in the next Showcase and see what happens."
"But you've already got a movie to your name," Jade argued.
"True but there haven't been any other offers since then, even though it was reasonably well received."
"Well, you didn't have that big a part," the gothic teen reasoned.
"True," he agreed again, "and Jennifer Connelly was a lot easier to work with than Melinda Murray ever was. The studio knows my name and the guys on set said they wanted me to have a bigger role or more parts so we'll see; maybe something will come up this summer," he finished hopefully.
"What else are you thinking of, if you don't stay in performing?" Cat asked; they hadn't really discussed the future in any great depth.
"Well there's the production side, the technical stuff I did on iCarly, I tinker with stuff and fix stuff at the Pear Store so there's that sort of thing – new products, stuff like that. I have options."
His girlfriend nodded thoughtfully.
Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Boulevard
Saturday, 25th April 2011.
"Next up," the announcement came to the packed house, "singing 'You haven't seen the best of me', Trina Vega!"
The audience applauded politely, though somewhat muted given that the diva's reputation preceded her for a lot of the families of students. Trina wore a pretty turquoise dress as she took centre stage; she threw a look at Sinjin and he started the music track.
"Hey you, what's your face? Get back in line, it's not a race," Freddie groaned and winced as the girl started; Jade could barely contain her laughter, though she also felt rather annoyed at the poor impression of the school that some people would get from this performance.
"Trina, you should have played to your strengths," the ex-Seattle native commented sadly.
"That's tough when she doesn't have any," André interjected harshly.
"Alright, we all need to be perfect now to get the memory of this out of people's heads," Tori declared.
"I am thinkin' man, tell me the dream,
I'll show you the plan, you don't know what you got
every time I hit the spot.
Red stop, green go, make up your mind I'm starting the show.
Oh oh oh, you haven't seen the best of me,
oh oh oh, what you get's not what you see,
oh oh oh, I'll give you something to believe,
you haven't seen the best of me.
Aaayyyyay aaayay ay,
ay ay aayyay ee yay ay..."
By now most of the crowd were wincing in pain at the girl's performance; Helen looked horrified at the performance coming from a student at her school and mentally cursed the three juniors further for talking her into putting on the public show. The watching scouts, meanwhile, almost as one drew a firm line through the name 'Trina Vega'.
Once Trina's torture had been concluded Beck took to the stage, delivering a short monologue to the watching masses. He scanned the faces in the crowd and smiled as he saw Alyssa and her father sat watching and focussed on them as he delivered the speech.
"… and in that moment, he wasn't my big brother anymore; He was a part of me... That I had to let go of... forever," he concluded, earning himself a tumult of applause.
"Ohhh, that is powerful. Powerful!" Helen had recovered her manic energy. "Excellent. And will you just look at that boy's hair? Look at his hair!" she cried to her ever-present lackey. Beck gave a slightly embarrassed smile as he walked from the stage.
"Congratulations," Jade smiled at him as he passed.
"Thanks," he accepted her praise. "You're next?"
"Yeah. Let's see what they make of my little film," she grinned, walking out onto the stage as her name was called. She glanced to the back of the stage and smiled as a big screen was unveiled.
"Good evening, my name is Jade West," she began. Unlike in the film she was dressed in a smart, black dress. Her hair was still black and she wore her green extensions but her make-up was more understated and she was smiling pleasantly. "I'd like to present the following short film that I wrote, directed and starred in. I'd also like to thank my good friend Freddie Benson for his excellent camera work; I couldn't have done this without him." She then turned to the screen and stepped to the side of the stage so as to give the audience an unobstructed view of the film.
The scene began with a close-up of Jade's face; she wore her black lipstick and pale face paint; a child's musical box played in the background but, instead of being comforting, it somehow sounded eerie.
"Why are you doing that?" her neighbour's child asked in fear.
"Because you're bad," the actress retorted softly yet menacingly.
"Let... me... ou-out..." he pleaded; the camera pans out revealing that he sat on rocking horse close to her. Jade, meanwhile, lay in a shallow bathtub, which was otherwise empty; the girl wore a black dress. A child's jack-in-the-box rested on her midriff.
Helen had left her seat and sidled over to Jade. "So, you wrote this movie yourself then?" she asked.
"Mmm-hmm," she confirmed.
The on-screen Jade began to sing, "All around the mulberry bush the monkey chased the weasel.
The monkey thought 'twas all in fun..."
With mounting terror Helen whispered, "You just gonna sing, huh? I... I don't understand what..."
"Shhhhhh," Jade tried to calm her. Helen was far from alone; there seemed to be a mounting sense that the audience were unnerved by what they were seeing.
"B... but, you're in the bathtub..." the Principal asked.
"Shhhhhh!" Jade repeated.
"Stop it! Ahhhhhhh!" the child yelled on screen.
The jack-in-the-box on the on-screen Jade's chest popped open; her voice changed from the sweet, lyrical singing voice to a scream in a low, rasping voice, "Pop goes the weasel!"
"I hate you!" the child yelled.
"I love you!" she rasped.
"I hate you!"
"I love you!" Sikowitz, backstage, had seen enough; he fled in terror and even Helen hid her face behind her bag as the scene played out.
The screen faded to black and, after a few moments of stunned silence, applause broke out from the masses. A little more polite than Jade had hoped for; clearly, she mused, she had pitched the wrong thing to this audience. The gothic teen hoped that it would get a better reception from the assembled scouts.
"Ladies and gentlemen, there will be a short intermission before our next act," the announcer declared. The spectators began to mumble between themselves, some went for a drink or a comfort break as the curtain fell.
"Well that didn't go as well as I hoped," Jade complained.
"You tried something different. Think about it," Freddie urged, "there'll be so many acts and songs and stuff that quite a few will blend into one for people. They'll remember you!"
She grinned. "That's true. So, you guys ready? You're up next."
"I think so," Cat nodded eagerly. "We've practiced the act, the juggling," Jade raised her eyebrows at this comment, "and the song. We're good to go."
"And now," came the announcement once the audience were back in their seats, "please welcome on stage, Freddie Benson and Cat Valentine."
The curtain raised to reveal the young couple; Freddie swallowed a couple of times seeing the enormous crowd, bigger than any he'd experienced before, waiting expectantly. Cat grinned, absolutely in her element in front of the throng.
"Hi," she greeted them. "We're gonna start with some juggling, then we'll do a short scene and then to finish Freddie will play along while we sing a song from my favourite musical as a duet."
"Action," Freddie whispered as silence descended and the spotlight turned to them.
"Just marry me," he demanded as the scene approached its conclusion; the juggling act had worked well between them as they cycled the six pins between them without dropping any, much to Freddie's relief.
"But I'm supposed to marry somebody else," she protested.
"You know you don't want to be with him," he insisted, inching closer to her.
"I dunno what I want anymore," she wailed.
Freddie stood almost toe to toe with her. "I think you do know," he said in a soft voice, cupping her chin gently.
"Why do you always have to complicate my life?" she groaned but felt herself melting, and not just because the scene demanded it.
"I love you," he whispered.
"I love you," she decided and they kissed as the crowd began to applaud again.
"Ok," Cat broke character and smiled at the audience; Freddie moved to the piano that had been wheeled on to the stage and took a seat behind it. "Now, we'll finish our act with a song. Ready?" she asked her boy; he nodded – after all, he reasoned, a piano isn't that different to a keyboard in terms of the keys and everything.
"Bright smile, always glows," she began the slow ballad.
"Pearly whites with a button nose," Freddie added with a grin.
"And I knows, everyone is gonna love me now," the redhead took up.
"A life on the stage is the nail on the head," Freddie continued.
"It's better than fixing a roof but instead, it's probably packed and they'll probably sing along,
Oh what a girl! What is she singing? This is my song!"
"I'm the biggest bang with the mostest zing," he added.
"If you're the hand, I'm the diamond ring," Cat noted. "By the way, I'm here for the song and the dance woo-hoo!"
"So, give me one, just one, I've already won, all I need is just one chance!" they finished together; the audience applauded enthusiastically as they linked hands and took their bow before walking off the stage feeling as if they were on cloud nine.
"Okay," Robbie sat on a chair; Rex as usual on his hand. "So, ah, can someone explain baby back ribs to me? I mean, seriously, when I'm eating ribs, do I really wanna be thinking about a baby's back?"
"You're bombin' boy," the puppet told him as the audience stayed silent.
"Will you stop interrupting me? You're kinda killing my jokes," he complained.
"How can I kill what's already dead?" the wild-haired puppet fired back, drawing a ripple of applause from the crowd.
"I love it!" Helen cackled backstage. "A boy doin' terrible stand-up comedy and bein' heckled by his own puppet! Now that's creative! He he he heee!"
"Ah, this isn't part of my routine," the ventriloquist told the crowd in embarrassment, "he's really interrupting me."
"Knock, knock," Rex began.
"Who's there?" he asked in resignation.
"You, the terrible comedian." The audience burst out laughing at the look on the teen's face.
"Genius! That is good stuff!" His Principal was appreciative.
The Slap Mobile
ToriVega – Time to PERFORM with André. Wish me luck!
Feeling: Excited
Tori took to the stage; André sat at the back of the stage on the keyboard. "Shine, shine, shine, shine," the singer began.
"Here I am once again, feeling lost but now and then,
I breathe it in to let it go, go, go."
"And you don't know where you are now," André took up.
"Or what it will come to if only somebody could hear," she continued, "when you figure out how you disappear…"
"You don't have to be afraid to put your dream in action," the two sang together as Tori stood by her friend, "you're never gonna fade you'll be the main attraction."
"Not a fantasy," she sang solo, "just remember me when it turns out right."
André joined in and together they sang, "'cause you know that if you live in your imagination, tomorrow you'll be everybody's fascination,"
"In my victory just remember me when I make it shine," the girl sang.
"Make it shine," André echoed, "yeah…"
"When I make it shine," she repeated.
"Yeah," the dreadlocked teen backed-up.
"When I make it shine, shine, shine," Tori finished. Once again the crowd broke out into huge applause; Trina's disastrous performance seemed long forgotten.
"Well? Did you like it?" the half-Latina asked her Principal nervously as they came backstage.
"Who's next?" she called, ignoring them. They looked helplessly at one another.
"I thought it was amazing," Freddie praised; Cat nodded her agreement and Tori smiled gratefully.
"You're quiet," Jade observed, setting a drink down next to the brown-haired boy. Cat's hyperactivity had gotten the better of her and she was bouncing around the back-stage area finding people to talk to.
"Yeah," he agreed, lapsing back into silence, which caused the black-haired girl to frown. "Care to share?" she probed.
"It's just… the scene we did, it got me thinking. I've never actually told Cat I love her, even though I obviously used it in the scene."
"And do you?" Jade pressed.
"I don't know," he admitted. "I care for her a lot and she means the world to me but to actually say I love her? It was so easy to say to Carly because I was a stupid little kid at the time, then Lindsey came along and we all know what happened there." His confidant nodded sympathetically. "I think I want to say it but I guess I'm still a little scared."
She surprised him by taking his hand in her two. "When the time is right," she promised, "the words will come without hesitation."
"Thanks Jade," he smiled.
"You guys!" Tori interrupted the moment; Jade hurriedly dropped his hand and the brunette appeared not to notice. "Helen's bugging because she wants a big finale for this and there isn't one."
"So what do you want us to do about it?" Jade asked with mild disinterest, still not really caring for the Principal – or the evening given the lukewarm reception her film had received.
"Well," the singer smiled, "I was thinking that we go there and do the song we had planned for our last performance in Yerba."
"That'll work," Freddie nodded, "we rehearsed it long enough. Does Sinjin have the music track?"
"Yeah, he's got it," Tori confirmed.
"Let's do it then," Jade got to her feet. Cat bustled along.
"What's going on?" the redhead asked.
"It's show time – again," Freddie declared.
"Ok," she went along happily.
Tori, Trina, André, Freddie, Cat, Jade and Robbie made their way to front of stage as the announcer hurriedly informed the waiting throng about the ensemble performance to end the evening; a number of the senior class, eager for one more moment in the spotlight, stood behind them having volunteered to be backing dancers. Tori glanced to the side of the stage and nodded; Sinjin set the song going.
"Ah huh huh huh-uh," she began, "Lemme tell ya now."
"Huh-huh," her friends backed up.
"When I had you to myself, I didn't want you around," Tori continued powerfully,
"Those pretty faces always made you stand out in a crowd.
But someone picked ya from the bunch, one glance was all it took.
Now it's much too late for me to take a second look.
Oh, baby give me one more chance."
"To show you that I love you," the others sang.
"Won't you please let me," the brunette added.
"Back in your heart," they finished the line.
"Oh, darlin' I was blind to let you go," she observed.
"Let you go baby," they echoed.
"But now since I see you in his arms," Tori took up.
"I want you back," the juniors added.
"Yes, I do now," Freddie sang alone.
"I want you back," the class repeated.
"Ooh ooh baby," It was André's turn for a line.
"I want you back," they all chorused.
"Yeah yeah yeah yeah," Jade agreed.
"I want you back," was the teens' refrain.
"Na na na na," Tori took up the second verse alone, "Tryin' to live without your love is one long sleepless night.
Let me show ya girl that I know wrong from right.
Every street you walk on I leave tear stains on the ground,
Followin' the girl I didn't even want around.
Lemme tell ya now. Oh, baby give me one more chance."
"To show you that I love you," they chorused again.
"Won't you please let me," Tori urged.
"Back in your heart."
"Oh, darlin' I was blind to let you go."
"Let you go baby."
"But now since I see you in his arms, Uh-huh."
"Bum-bum-bum-bum-bum-bum, bum-bum-bum-bum-bum-bum," André kept the beat.
"A'buh buh buh buh," Tori took up.
"All I want," Cat echoed.
"A'buh buh buh buh," her friend repeated.
"All I need," the cupcake lover continued.
"A'buh buh buh buh."
"All I want."
"A'buh buh buh buh."
"All I ne-ee-eed," Cat stretched out the note.
"Oh, just one more chance to show ya that I love ya, baby," André added.
"Baby, baby. Oh, I want you back," Cat echoed.
"Don't know what happened then," Jade sang.
"I want you back," the rest of the teens backed.
"Let me live again," the dreadlocked musician added.
"Oh, baby I was blind to let ya go-oh-oh-oh, but now since I see you in his arms," Tori took up.
"I want you back."
"Spare me of this cost," the gothic girl added.
"I want you back," they repeated.
"Give me back what I lost," Freddie urged.
"Oh, baby I need one more chance, ha," Tori began the conclusion, "I tell ya that I love ya baby."
"Baby," Cat echoed.
"Baby," Tori repeated.
"I want you back. I want you back. I want you back!" The teens finished the song and received a well deserved standing ovation from the appreciative audience. The other performers began to join them on stage until almost the entire student body crammed into the area taking the crowd's applause.
Finally Helen reached the front; she raised her arms asking for silence, which she received.
"Thank you all for coming," the former cinema manager began, "it's great to see so many of you here. Parents, friends, agents, scouts. I understand that what happens is that after the performers are done, you can approach any of the seniors you want to sign and also have an informal interview with any younger students. I insist that this is done in the presence of their parents so allow them twenty minutes to get ready. You may also approach any of my teaching staff," she gestured to Sikowitz, Marty, Anthony and the others who were on the stage with their charges, "and contact the kids through them. Once again, thank you and give it up for the kids from Hollywood Arts!" She concluded with a crescendo and the teens received another standing ovation from the public.
Hollywood Arts High School,
Tuesday, 28th April 2011.
"Trina?" Freddie happened across the diva near the lockers; she was sat, cross-legged on the floor, face buried in her arms and clearly sobbing openly. "What happened?" he asked in concern as she looked up at him.
"Nobody's interested in me, no-one," she bawled. When he looked a little confused she elaborated, "None of the scouts. Nobody gave me a card, nobody's contacted me at all."
"Well it's only been a couple of days. Give it time," he suggested reasonably; she shook her head.
"Everybody else has had calls, cards from agents, teachers contacted about them – even you guys!" It was true; the group of juniors had all received initial soundings from a handful of scouts and agents following their efforts at the weekend. "For me? Nothing!"
"Maybe it's time for a rethink?" he suggested, slipping down to sit next to her. She looked at him in confusion. "Look," he rested a hand on her thigh, "I know you want to be a singer and a dramatic actress but I'm sorry, that's not your strengths." Her face fell further but he pressed on, "Your play was hilarious. Why not try the comedy side?"
"Comedy?" She asked scornfully, "That's like being a failure!"
"Jim Carey earns millions from his movies. Is he a failure for playing comic characters?" the boy asked with a grin. Trina's face contorted as she pondered his words. "Think about it. If you really want this, think about repeating senior year, work on the comedy side of it and see what happens in next year's Showcase."
He stood up and smiled at her. "Your friends will support you whatever you decide."
She nodded gratefully as he turned to leave, still torn over his words and what to do next.
AN: Thank you for reading; I hope you enjoyed it and I hope to have the next chapter up next week. PD.