Hundreds of Capitol citizens sat in their living rooms, making a fresh bag of popcorn, looking into their televisions at the newest reality show that had taken the Capitol by storm.
"Watch the highest highs-" the screen cut to the girl with a pink braid hitting an impressive high note- "and the lowest lows-" an image of a person with red and blue hair breaking down into tears appeared. "We're reliving the greatest moments in anticipation of the finale, where one hopeful's dreams will come true: tonight on Sweet Dreams are Made of This: the totally new singing competition show."
The song after which the show was named: performed by the band in question: played, as each of the band members was introduced as a judge, and clips of the 6 hopefuls were shown going into the finale.
"Now, we'll trace the journey of the six hopefuls, all vying for the prize: a headlining position with new Capitol band Out of Spite and a cash prize of 50,000 dollars!"
"First, meet Rose Westmore." The clip showed the very first introduction. "Hello, my name is Rose Westmore, I'm 19, and I'm from the West End." The footage showed Rose walking into her first audition, with a voiceover playing behind her from an interview. "I have been following Out of Spite since their first song went viral, and I hope that I can show them that I can be a valuable part of their band. I have a… Unique background, but I'm hoping they'll see my dedication."
"Good afternoon," Oliver said as she walked into the room for the first performance. "What's your name?"
"Rose Westmore."
"And how old are you, Rose?" asked Theodore, leaning back into his seat.
"Nineteen," she said.
"And what is it that you can do?" asked Hosanna, grinning.
"I sing, and play the guitar."
"Very nice. Well, whenever you're ready to begin," said Oliver.
A background track different from any other they'd heard thusfar began. The surprise was evident on the judge's face as the highlights reel showed the highlight of her first audition, for which she sang Dido's Lament from Purcell's opera, Dido and Aeneas. Her voice was different from any of the ukulele girls that had come before her, and the performance was also heartfelt and emotional. She had a very pure and innocent tone to her voice: not typical of most typical opera singers. The highlights reel cut the performance short.
"She stunned with a performance of an ancient aria," said the narrator, "And was immediately green-lighted by the judges." They showed brief footage of each of them saying "yes" and the elated reaction from Rose, who blew them all kisses as she left the room.
"For the second round band performance, she shone on the guitar and vocals for Titanium." The clip showed Rose performing with the rest of the band, the best moments from the song with the chorus. "She dazzled, showing them a side that they hadn't yet seen, and showing her voice could fit in with the rest of the group."
Oliver was shown in an interview. "Rose has such a unique energy: she's by far the most resilient of the competition, as shown by her different moods. Her strength lies in her background with acting on the stage, and developing her stage presence."
Hosanna was also shown in an interview. "There's something special and empowering about seeing another woman that is comfortable with herself enough to be so vulnerable," she said. "She was personal and friendly, and seemed to mesh well with the different personalities of the group."
The narrator cut back in. "After rehearsal, sparks flew."
Footage was shown of Rose and Oliver, talking about their musical pasts. Halfway through, he took her hand and held it through the rest of their heartfelt talk.
"Do I think Oliver has feelings for Rose?" asked Theodore in an interview. "Of course I think so. He's been drooling since her first audition."
"For this third and final performance, we want to see that Rose can be flexible and go with the flow," said Oliver.
"We want to see balls to the wall from her!" said Hosanna.
"We want to make sure that Oliver can keep it in his pants during rehearsal," said Theodore, always the comic relief.
The screen showed Rose, backstage as she and the other six were preparing for their final performance, taking a drag from a cigarette while remaining calm.
"Will Rose be able to win their hearts with a sweetly-scented final performance? Or, will it be Maximillian Spellmeyer, the aspiring vet tech from the South Shore?"
The music shifted as the first audition from the lanky young man with blue and red hair. "Hi, my name is Maxi Spellmeyer, I'm nineteen, and I'm going to school to be a vet tech." An encouraging song played as he was shown practicing for his audition. "Someday, I want to be a veterinary technician. I have always loved animals, just as much as I love making music." The music became sad. ""This audition is for my late dog, Spinster. He loved to hear me play for him. We put him down last May. He inspired me to keep playing." A tear rolled down his cheek, and he was shown walking out on the stage as he said, "This is for you, buddy."
"What's your name?" asked Hosanna, hanging over the microphone.
"Uh, Maxi Spellmeyer."
"And where are you from, Maxi?" asked Theodore, raising an eyebrow.
"South Shore."
"Me too!" said Oliver, throwing up his hands. "So, what are you going to do for us today?"
"I'm going to sing and play the piano."
"Very well, whenever you're ready," said Hosanna.
The reel showed the highlights from his performance of All of Me. It was heartfelt and he had a good voice, as well as being talented at the piano. He was greenlighted right away into the next round.
During his rehearsal and performance with the band, he made the risky move of performing a Theodore classic, Everybody's Lonely. The risk paid off as the band was impressed with his resilience and making it just as good as the original.
"Do I feel threatened by Maxi?" Theodore asked to the interviewer. "Nah, he's too skittish to pose me any sort of threat."
"Maxi has shown us a lot of dedication and heart," Oliver said in an interview.
"He has a good heart, and is very friendly," Hosanna said.
The narrator spoke again. "Behind the scenes, things got charged."
It showed Maxi talking with the green-skinned Pierre about why they were there, the tears coming out of his eyes as he talked about why he was here and how far he came.
"What we want to see from Maxi tonight is the ability to come out of his comfort zone," Theodore said.
"We want to see him do something completely different and show us he's resilient!" said Hosanna.
"We need a band member that we know is willing to try something new and put themselves out there," said Theodore.
It showed footage of Maxi backstage, looking at a picture of his dog and sighing quietly as he played some scales on the piano.
"Will Maxi melt the hearts of the band tonight? Or, will it perhaps be Felicity Joiner, the special education teacher from the East Borough?"
Encouraging music played as the first audition of the girl in question was played. "Hello, my name is Felicity Joiner, and I am a special education teacher." Music played as footage was shown of the young woman in the classroom with various little children with special needs. "I love to teach, it's always been my passion," she said. "My interest in music began when I became devoted to making it accessible to my students. We sang songs, and I learned the ukulele. From there, my passion has only grown." The screen switched to her audition.
"And what's your name, darling?" asked Theodore.
"Hello, I'm Felicity Joiner," she said, clearing her throat.
"And what do you do for work Felicity?" asked Oliver.
"I'm a special education teacher. I'm doing this for all of my students!"
"It takes a person with a very special heart to do that," said Oliver. "Thank you for your service to our children."
"So what will you do for us today?" asked Hosanna.
"Today for you I'm going to play the ukulele and sing."
The narrator cut in. "Felicity wowed the group with a sweet, heartfelt ukulele rendition of Over the Rainbow." It showed each of the judges saying yes to her and greenlighting her to the next round, and the narrator continued. "For the second round, she showed the group her more vulnerable side with a rendition of What About Us."
Highlights from the performance were shown, her voice taking on more of a mature sound from the light sound she had before.
"Felicity has a heart unlike any other," said Hosanna. "Her performances have been inspiring."
"She is obviously passionate about helping people, and her genuine nature shows in her performances," Theodore said.
"I really think she could have what it takes to be part of this band," Oliver said.
"And along the way, emotions were high." Footage was shown of Felicity shedding tears at the end of the song, and her telling the group how much it meant to be here for her students. Even Hosanna teared up at that and the band all came around her.
"What we want to see for her final performance is her breaking free of her sweet persona. We want to see something more than just the good girl," said Oliver.
"We want her to swing for the fences and show that she can be more than just a ballad singer," Hosanna said.
"We want her to find a strength in herself that she can share with the audience," Theodore added.
"Will Felicity teach the competition a lesson? Or will the position of band member in Out of Spite be given to her competition? Meet the other competitors and stay tuned for our live finale later tonight, after this commercial break!"
Speculation about the competitors so far buzzed during the commercial break, which was long as it was a long-awaited program.
"Welcome back to the Sweet Dreams are Made of This finale special!" said the narrator. "Before the break, we met three of the six hopefuls competing for the coveted position in flaming hot Capitol band Out of Spite! Next up, a young firecracker from downtown, DJ Icaria!"
The boy with the mohawk was shown in his first introduction. "Hi. My name is Dante James Icaria. I'm fifteen, and I'm from downtown. I lived a pretty quiet life. I have always loved music, but I took a while to actually pursue it." He took a deep breath as the music got sad. "When I was ten, I was diagnosed with melanoma, a type of skin cancer. I was taken to District Three for testing and treatment. It was… Such a long process. So many nights in the hospital, just wondering… When I was in remission, I decided to pursue music, learned how to play the drums… I'm here today because I want to make my family proud of me, and live my dream."
The scene switched to his audition.
"Hello love!" said Oliver. "What's your name?"
"DJ. DJ Icaria."
"How old are you DJ?" asked Theodore, raising an eyebrow and pushing glasses up his nose.
"Fifteen."
The group exchanged looks of surprise at how young he was.
"What sort of musical talent do you have?" asked Hosanna.
"I play the drums, and… Well, I'll save that for my audition."
"Alright, well, whenever you're ready then DJ," said Oliver.
The boy obviously looked nervous, taking a deep breath and launching into a pretty impressive beatboxing routine, which showed highlights as the narrator cut in.
"DJ impressed all three judges with his beatboxing demonstration." Footage of the judges telling him yes was shown, and his excited reaction as the narrator continued. "For his second round, DJ played drum with the band for Proud Mary, to demonstrate his proficiency at a couple different styles and tempos." Footage from that was shown, with Theodore in front for once providing vocals.
"DJ is an amazing kid," Oliver said. "He might just be exactly what this band needs: some young, zany energy."
"I like that DJ has gone through so much, but still continues to have a positive attitude," Hosanna said, smiling. "You'd never even know that anything happened."
"I like the kid! He brings a bit of a fiery energy to the group. And I would love the opportunity to get up in front more and show off some of my piano skills as well!" chirped Theodore.
"And backstage, he was a hit with the other competitors," said the narrator.
Footage of DJ hanging out with multiple contestants one-on-one was shown.
"What we would like to see from DJ in this final audition is a little bit of vulnerability," said Oliver.
"We would like to see a more genuine part of DJ with this performance," Hosanna said to the interviewer.
"We want to see what this kid is really made of!" said Theodore. "The only way we can trust him is if he opens up a little bit."
DJ was shown back stage, twirling a piece of paper around in his hands nervously.
"Will DJ be able to beat the competition, or will he not be able to break out of his box? We'll find out later tonight, but first, let's hear from Chicago Pearson-Kennedy, the city-dweller with a taste for adventure."
The young man wearing a neon green hat with pink flowers on it was shown skateboarding on the way to his audition, a guitar case on his back.
"Hi, I'm Chicago Pearson-Kennedy, I'm 17, and I'm from downtown Capitol," said the voiceover, as the boy on the screen kicked up his skateboard and opened his mouth in a big grin with his tongue sticking out as he gave the rock and roll hand sign to the camera with his hand that isn't holding the skateboard. "I grew up in a very disciplined household. My fathers were both retired Peacekeepers. I love them, but it's time for me to break free, with a burst of color! I wanna rock and roll!"
Footage was shown of him walking out on the stage, holding his guitar and waving to the group.
"Heeeey, what's your name, Sweetheart?" asked Theodore.
"Chicago Pearson-Kennedy," he said, grinning at them.
"How old are you, Chicago?" asked Hosanna.
"Seventeen," said the boy, still grinning widely at them.
"And what are your musical inclinations?" asked Oliver curiously.
"I play guitar, bass, and I sing," he said, with a nervous giggle.
"Alright, whenever you're ready then, Chicago," mused Theodore.
The narrator spoke. "He wowed the judges with his first audition, a cool and heartfelt rendition of Blackbird." Highlights were shown of his voice hitting all the right notes on the song, and the genuinely impressed expressions on the faces of the judges. "It was a ballsy audition, and the group was excited to hear more from him." The narrator continued, as footage was shown of the event described. "For his second round with the band, he pulled it out with a performance of Born to be Wild." Highlights were shown of the second performance, the boy looking totally thrilled as he played guitar and sang with the band.
"Chicago is crazy, in the best way possible," said Theodore. "He and I are on the same wave."
"He seemed to get on well with Theodore, and he gives the group a high rocker type of energy that we may be missing," Oliver said.
"Do I think he was flirting with Teddy?" Hosanna asked, with a giggle. "Maybe! Anyways, he's a kind person that wears his heart on his sleeve, on and off stage."
"Backstage, his attitude ground the gears of his competition."
Footage was shown of Pierre's obvious annoyance at him from across the room, giving scowls when he wasn't looking and even whispering to Rose after he left from talking to them about the group.
"What we want to see from Chicago is taking control," said Oliver.
"He is so eager to hear from us, which is nice, but he has to be a little independent of our feedback," Theodore said.
"We want full confidence from him tonight," said Hosanna. "He'll do great!"
The screen showed the boy backstage, headphones in as he hummed quietly, bobbing his head as he was trying to get into the zone for the last performance nervously.
"Will he get to rock and roll? Or will the coveted position go to the fashionista from West End, Pierre Rosseau?"
The scene cut to the first audition of the young man, strutting confidently onto the stage in his iconic platform shoes. "My name is Pierre Rosseau," said a voiceover of him speaking. "I'm from the West End, and I'm 19 years old. I want to be part of this group because there's nobody in this world that's like me, honey! I love beautiful things, and the music I make is beautiful." He was a polarizing personality from the beginning as he strutted out on the stage.
"And what's your name?" Oliver asked, trying to smile. The judges looked bored as it was a particularly rough day of auditions.
"Pierre Rosseau."
"Welcome, Pierre. Where are you from?" asked Theodore, appearing bored.
"West End, the place where dreams come true," he said, with a brief wink.
"And what are you going to do for us today?" asked Hosanna with a smile.
"Start with singing, but I also play the bass for all of your needs," he said, quirking up a smirk.
"Alright, whenever you're ready Pierre," said Theodore, leaning back in his seat.
"Pierre shocked and dazzled the judges with his performance of We're Not Gonna Take It." Highlights from the performance were shown, which was a total wildcard for the shocked audience. For all the talk, his singing did the rest. "The judges immediately green-lighted him onto round 2, where he continued to impress and fit right in for a performance of Under Pressure." A long clip was shown of Pierre playing bass and singing with Theodore. Their voices blended shockingly well, and they were both able to ham up the performance. It was as if they were in perfect sync, but many wished that Teddy would be up front to sing with Pierre in person.
"Pierre is unlike any person I've ever met in my life," said Theodore, grin stretching cheek to cheek. "I dig it."
"He's an interesting character, I wasn't sure how he would fit in with the rest of us, but he's actually pretty cool underneath his sassy exterior," Oliver said maturely.
"He gives the group a little bit of coolness, despite his huge, fiery voice!" said Hosanna.
"Behind the scenes, old friendships were rekindled."
Footage of Pierre and Rose sitting together was shown, the two of them old friends and previous neighbors getting to know each other again.
"From Pierre, we want to see him continue to blow everyone away," said Oliver.
"I want to see him reign in that powerhouse and completely own it!" Hosanna squeaked, clapping her hands.
"I want to see Pierre bring it, and show us how much he wants this," Theodore said, cracking his knuckles and still unable to stop grinning.
Footage showed the boy sitting next to Rose, talking to her quietly about the songs they were going to sing, telling her if he doesn't win, he hoped she did.
"Six hopefuls remain, all of them aiming for the coveted position in Capitol band Out of Spite, and the cash prize of fifty grand! Which one will rise to fame and stardom, and whose sweet dreams will end tonight? Stay tuned to find out, on Sweet Dreams are Made of This: a totally new singing competition show."
The live auditorium was shown, the timer counting down as the crowd cheered the numbers and counted down.
3…
2…
1…
It was time.
~.~.
-Camellia Gallen, Survivor of the 127th Hunger Games-
She couldn't feel nervous. She had to act like she was nervous, but she couldn't feel nervous. All of that training with Wolf seemed excessive at first, but now, she felt like she wasn't prepared enough. She was asked to become a whole nother person in a matter of weeks. And looking around at her peers, she could see how well they were doing at their new personas.
But Rose didn't get upset, and she rarely felt nervous, especially about performing, which she loved. Camellia just had to tap into that to get her through tonight.
She watched as the timer hit zero, and the three original members of the band appeared on stage to the cheering crowd. All of them were dressed in their best, pumping up the crowd. She was so proud of the three of them for carrying on so well in such a high-pressure, high-profile position. She was smiling now as she thought about how much she'd seen Malloy grow since the last time she'd been with him. He really stepped up to the plate to make this work. Hopefully, the three of them would continue the legacy of those before them.
"Good evening, Capitol!" said Teddy, and the crowd burst into applause and screamed. She knew that there were thousands of little girls there to see Oliver in person- they were so absorbed in the band, just like she was for Upward Voyager. Then again, no one in UV had literal blue balls. She thought back to her fangirl days for Upward Voyager: since then, she had been called up on stage with them, and now she was going to go out there and perform. Damn… She hoped her voice would be okay. Maggie had taught her how to warm herself up to belt, but what if it wasn't enough?
She had no idea why she felt so nervous. She already knew how the show was going to end no matter how she did. But she had to be convincing.
"Miss Westmore?" she almost didn't look up until she saw the smiling face in front of her. "Just wanted to say good luck to you," said Chicago, smiling and holding out his hand for her to shake.
Rose, she thought to herself, as she stuck it out and gave a dainty handshake. Damn, she didn't think that she would actually use the handshake training Wolf and Maggie made her do.
"You don't seem nervous at all! How do you do it? I mean, it's a rush, but I am also terrified."
Rose gave him a small smirk. "Well, I am really here to have the time of my life, dear, and well… I have to say, that's what this experience has been."
"You know what, you're right!" he said, smiling and putting his hands on his hips. "Let's give them a great show out there tonight!"
"That's the spirit," she said, smiling politely at him. "And best of luck to you."
"Hey, thanks!" He blinked. "Oh, they're about to announce me! And I haven't said good luck to Pierre yet! Excuse me!" he hurried off to talk to Jace, and Camellia tried to hold back a laugh. Jace did plenty of complaining about the excited young shot. He was a nice guy, and Camellia liked him, but Jace was just always annoyed by him. She wasn't exactly sure why, but she had a hunch… A hunch that she was staunchly in denial about.
She watched Pierre try to be polite as Chicago wished him the best of luck, talking a mile a minute as he was trying to hide his nerves.
"Hey." DJ's voice calmed Rose slightly. At least she knew he wouldn't ask her anything she'd have to think on the spot about.
"Well, hello dear," Rose said, "How are you feeling? Being the youngest one left?"
"I'm confident that I can show them what they want to see," DJ said, "You?"
"I'm feeling good myself," she said. "I think they're going to like my final performance."
She and Coda were trying not to laugh, already knowing the outcome of the show, and feeling weird keeping on conversation.
"First up, we have Chicago Pearson-Kennedy!" announced Oliver.
"Bye guys!" Chicago said, picking up his guitar and heading onto the stage to the huge applause of the audience.
Camellia couldn't say how much he reminded her of Elliot, but she was thinking it.
"He's really good," DJ said.
"So is everyone here," Rose added, feigning nerves as she looked around the room.
Pierre was coming towards them, but not exactly, so Rose called out to him. "Pierre!"
"Hey," he said, approaching them cooly, but Camellia could see how calculated each of his steps were so she crossed the room to meet him, leaving DJ behind.
"How are you feeling?" she asked, to the loud sounds of Chicago's finale song, Moves like Jagger. He was really putting himself out there for being so young.
"I'm ready to go out there and show them what I'm made of," Pierre said, and Camellia could see Jace in it despite how much Wolf tried to mask each of their personalities behind their characters.
"You'll have some waiting to do," she said, as he'd drawn the short stick and was going last.
"You will too, honey," he said, and she nodded, as she was next to last. "I'll try not to show you up too much."
She wanted to laugh, but Rose wouldn't have laughed at her pride being tested like that so she just gave him side-eye. This felt so ridiculous.
The auditorium was once again filled with loud screaming and applause as Chicago's song ended, that went on for close to a full minute.
"He must be playing the crowd," Pierre said, his scowl back on his face.
"Be a good sport now, dear," Rose mused, running one of her hands through his thick ponytail. We're going to win anyways. Each of the judges gave him glowing reviews, to the continued applause of the audience, much to Pierre's chagrin. They gave it up for him one more time, Pierre tried to resist for making a vomit sound. Camellia was going to have to drill him about that later. She didn't want to know the answer though. Jace wouldn't fall for Trap of all people! He was a dumbass, but he wasn't crazy.
Chicago came back to the stage to greet them with a huge smile on his face. "That was wicked!" he said. "I want to perform like that all the time."
She felt a little bad for robbing him of the opportunity. Wolf was going to have some form of compensation for them all of course, but while Felicity would take funding for her school and Maxi would take the money for vet school, Chicago just wanted to perform.
"Hey, nice work out there man!" DJ said, and he and Chicago clapped their hands together, pulled each other in, and gave a hearty pat on the back.
"Thanks!" Chicago said with a grin.
"Good luck Fel!" he said, as she was announced up on stage, to another round of great applause. Chicago went back to the bathroom to wash the sweat off his face, leaving the rest of them to watch her sing Born This Way, a special tribute to her students.
"She's good," Rose commented.
"But she's not fucking the guitarist," mused Pierre. "That's you, honey."
"I'm not fucking the guitarist!" she said, and it took all of the self-control in her and the fear of squats to not crack a smile because she totally was.
"But you want to," he said, grinning and flicking her shoulder.
"I will neither confirm nor deny that statement."
She was definitely going to fuck him tonight.
Felicity was raved about by the band, as the audience applauded and shouted in agreement with each of them. Felicity gave them one last wave and then headed backstage.
"Congrats!" Pierre said when he heard her arrive.
"Nicely done, darling," Rose said, catching her to kiss both of her cheeks.
"Thank you!" Felicity said, grinning with the thrill of performing. Camellia's stomach did a flip at the thought of performing…
"Please welcome DJ Icaria!" announced Monte- er, Hosanna.
"No turning back now," said DJ (or Coda, honestly, it could have been either). He put up a hand, running onto the stage to greet the adoring crowd. Camellia let herself smile at how much he'd grown. He never thought he'd be able to act like DJ, but Wolf never gave up on him, and now he was running like he didn't even have a prosthetic. He really embraced the shift in character. He was even warm, and friendly. It was honestly a miracle.
He waved to the crowd as he was received on stage. He went to the drumset for the group to perform one of the most ambitious reaches for the group thus far: Bohemian Rhapsody.
It was a long song, and the vocals were a huge reach. But, Wolf put all his faith that Malloy would be able to have the range for it, and they worked on it for a long while. As much as she'd heard about it from Malloy, she hadn't yet seen it performed all together. Camellia had to cover her mouth to hide the wide grin at him out there, completely nailing every single note (and the guitar solo as well). After a whole year of not hearing his voice- even as Oliver- it felt so good to watch him sing something so ambitious. And, of course, the background vocals, including DJ even, were great.
When she looked over to see Pierre's reaction, he looked surprised. For them to have a genuine reaction, this was the first time they were seeing each other perform. Hosanna played the challenging piano part with grace, slightly simplified by Wolf and Piccolo: but Oliver was really the star.
The crowd went wild, and Rose allowed a small smile to cross her face as the band all gave their raving statements about DJ.
"I know this isn't exactly what you wanted from me," he said, as the crowd went silent. "So I wrote a little letter to you all to show you that I am dedicated to this." The other three acted shocked by this and the crowd applauded as he began to read. It was truly heartfelt- good job, Wolf- but it was now completely up to Coda to sell it.
"Dear Hosanna, Theodore, and Oliver, I want to be part of this group because I believe in the power of music to change lives, just as it changed my own. I spent much of my life in a hospital. Things that came easy to others, like walking, or getting out of bed, soon became out of my reach. My family was only allowed into the testing facility for holidays, so I didn't see much of them. I have always been, in a way, a kid without a family. Until I met all of you." Camellia heard his voice crack. The mad lad was actually doing it! "I want to perform because of how music has kept me going all of these years. And I want to have a group of people that I can rely on, which I believe…" Oh my God, a tear! Camellia was allowed to let her shock show at this point. "I believe I can find here, if you will only take a chance on me. I will put in everything to continue this band on a trajectory of success. Music helped me beat cancer. Now I want to play it for the rest of my life. Thanks. And, sincerely, DJ."
The crowd burst into applause as he wiped his tears. Camellia noticed that Oliver was also crying- that big softie- as the band closed in for a group hug, all of them patting his back or whispering reassurance in his ear.
Camellia just couldn't believe that actually worked.
He came back on stage, letting out a sigh of relief that he was able to nail his part, and suddenly Camellia was worried that she wouldn't be able to do the same.
She didn't have much time to worry about it, as Maxi was going out for his song, and she was next. Her throat felt tight, as if her voice was going to give out on her.
"I am going to go finish warming up," Rose said, standing up. "See you on the other side, darling."
"Best of luck," Pierre said, as Rose blew him a kiss and went back to the small room for the contestants to use for warm-ups. Her heart pounded as she tried to steel her nerves. Sometimes, when she was dancing on her bed with Syca, she liked to pretend she was on stage with Upward Voyager. But that was just it: she was pretending. Now she would just have to tap back into that place and pretend again. She would somehow have to find it in her to move them tonight.
She was sure she could do it. If Coda could, any of them could. But this was all so ambitious for her, and anything could go wrong in live performances.
You haven't failed yet, she told herself, as she half-heartedly sung some of those things that Maggie had a big name for and Camellia just called leapy things. Be with me Syca, she willed her brother. She could almost hear the excitement in her voice and his gentle reassurance about this amazing opportunity she was getting. No, Syca knew nothing about performing. She needed someone else. Elliot. I need you to help me perform. He was a guitar guru and if Camellia needed anyone to watch over her, it was him. She could feel her eyes welling up at thinking of them. She had to keep the tears away now, though. Think about doing squats. Thinking about Kat's voice yelling at her, and that cursed airhorn, worked wonders to get her back into character. She didn't have a choice but to go up there and nail it.
The warm-up was both the longest and the shortest of her life. Before she knew it, someone was coming back to get her as they were about to announce her. The guitar felt heavy around her neck as she tried to get her fingers to remember the chords she'd learned, but everything was blanking. She was about to go perform a song that she had never sung with the band before, as the band wasn't allowed to perform with each competitor until that very night to keep it genuine. She did wish she could have been there when Wolf was filling in for her though.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Rose Westmore!" announced Teddy, and her heart pounded even harder, her mind going completely blank as she stepped out on the stage, before remembering to straighten her back and walk out on the stage as the crowd was applauding for her and the band began her song. She felt a sudden wave of strength and calming energy, her fingers acting on their own on the guitar as she began the first verse for her song Physical. By the chorus, she had completely relaxed, doing what they had practiced. She had the others behind her: or at least, Malloy and Montessori: and in that moment, all of her worries went away and she performed.
She felt steady, comfortable, and empowered. It was going to be just fine.
For as big a rush as it was, she was definitely glad when it ended without any bumps in the road. She took a deep breath of relief, making sure to keep smiling like she was truly alive at the applause of the crowd.
"Thank you Capitol!" she said, blowing them all a kiss, which had unintentionally become her thing from her first audition. "You're all beautiful!"
"Isn't her range just amazing?!" asked Theodore, and the crowd applauded again. Camellia was able to keep a smile, thinking about the airhorn to keep her from making a face at his voice.
"Rose, your power really shows through your voice," Hosanna said. "Knocks my socks off, every time!" More applause from the crowd. She imagined that Montessori was going to have no voice tomorrow. "Oliver?"
"What can I say?" he asked, grinning. "Just spectacular!" the audience clapped and screamed as the band all crowded around her to shake her hand and give her firm claps on the back. She smiled like she liked it, like this was her dream come true.
"Rose Westmore!" they said together, and the audience clapped for her again. She bowed, blew kisses, and waved as she hurried backstage, and the applause died down. Her heart was racing- it was over, and she did it.
"Alright!" said Chicago, clapping his hands.
"That was awesome!" Maxi said. "I want to buy that song, but only if you're singing it."
"Good work, Rose," DJ said quietly, smiling up at her and punching her shoulder lightly.
"Thank you darling," she said, smiling and patting his shoulder.
"Go get 'em," she said to Pierre, reaching up and squeezing his shoulder.
"Prepare to be upstaged, honey," Pierre responded, but Camellia was sure he was feeling absolutely terrified at being last. Rose and DJ sat together to watch their friend perform from back stage.
He walked straight forwards, looking slightly awkward but miles ahead of where he had been when they were rescued. Teddy cleared his throat when he reached the microphone, and Jace found it easily, much to Camellia's relief. She had no idea what Jace was doing, but she was excited to see him perform.
It was completely unlike what Camellia was expecting from him. She had never heard Marry the Night before, but it was incredibly ambitious. Pierre was absolutely killing it, though, to the point where Rose was ready to take DJ dancing (but restrained herself). She honestly just had no idea that he had such a voice on him.
DJ actually looked shocked, and Camellia could see straight through to Coda, if only everyone else's jaws weren't on the floor. "Holy shit," he said, not even trying to keep his vulgarities to a minimum.
Holy shit was right. Of the group on stage, Malloy was the only one that wasn't gaping, and Trap looked both surprised and uncomfortable (and ew, Camellia did not want to know why).
Since Rose and Pierre were old friends, Camellia didn't hold back her proud smile. Damn, she would never let him duck back from singing again. The crowd was going absolutely nuts, and Camellia was almost tempted to go out and watch from the front rather from backstage.
He kept the heat turned up all the way until the last note, and he acted the thrill of the performance with precision. Camellia knew how hard he'd been working these past few weeks to get to this point, but she never imagined that it would go like this. Between working with Jace and Coda, Camellia imagined that Wolf was exhausted and was going to sleep well tonight.
"Well, I think you had this audience on their feet!" said Hosanna, and the crowd applauded and screamed in response.
"You nailed it," Oliver said. "You took a risk, and it definitely paid off!" The crowd continued to applaud.
"I have only two words. Hot damn!" Teddy added, biting his lip, and Camellia tried not to think about where she had seen that expression before.
"Pierre Rosseau!" said the group, and the audience went wild. If she were on a real reality show, Camellia wouldn't even go out on the stage as she knew that she was upstaged. But since she knew the result, she went out when they were all called. The band all came over to put their hands on him, and subtly, through whatever form of communication those two weirdos had, Teddy oriented him towards backstage, and he strutted there without issue, even in the platform shoes. Damn, Camellia was going to have to work to keep up.
"Well, we have a lot of discussion to make a decision," Oliver said.
"After a word from our sponsor, we'll bring out all six finalists, and announce the results!" said Hosanna.
"Stay tuned!" chirped Teddy, as the screens in the auditorium lit up with commercials and the band went back to the other wing to discuss.
"I think it's going to be you Pierre!" Chicago said. "You crushed it!"
"I don't know, you did great too," Maxi chimed.
"Rose, you were totally awesome out there," Felicity said, giving her a smile.
"Don't forget DJ!" Rose said, rubbing a circle on Coda's back.
"Honestly, I don't know how they're only going to pick one," Maxi said.
"Me neither," Pierre said, and all three of them had to hold back their smiles knowing what was about to happen. After a couple of long commercials, all of the finalists drinking some water and getting touch-ups on their make-up, they were called back to the stage, each of them given spots to stay on. Rose held Pierre's hand as they were next to each other so he knew where to stop.
The three band members sat at a table in front of them all.
"This was an impossibly hard decision," Oliver said. "Each of you is so unique and talented, and we all debated every way. But, I think we're satisfied with the decision." They all exchanged smiles between the three of them.
"If we announce your name, you are one of the final three contenders, and please step forward," Hosanna said. "The first contender to move forward to the final three is…" She took a hugely long pause. Camellia knew that she was counting to thirty in her head, but she was still feeling nervous for some reason. "DJ Icaria!"
The crowd burst into applause as his spotlight turned on, and he released a nervous breath, even jumping a little bit as he grinned and stepped forward, away from the other five, who were all holding hands or touching in some capacity.
"The second finalist," Theodore said, "Please step forward…" he paused as the lights went dark, the crowd silent in anticipation except for a few calling out who they want to see move forward. Teddy announced the name suddenly, "Pierre Rosseau!"
The spotlight went up again, the audience went nuts, and Rose smiled as she patted his back, and he took a few steps forward, smiling and waving at the crowd.
"We only have one more name to announce," Oliver said. "For three of you, the journey will end here." Chicago draped his arm over her shoulder as Oliver took a pause. "The final person stepping forward will be…" he took a deep breath. "Miss Rose Westmore." The crowd went wild for her, and she pretended to be surprised, smiling as Chicago hugged her, obviously looking disappointed but not surprised. She rubbed his shoulder briefly for a moment before stepping forward, blowing a kiss to the crowd. The other three gave their final goodbyes, receiving one last round of applause and then exiting the stage. The three of them came in towards the middle. Rose put her arm around DJ's shoulder, and Pierre did the same for her.
"Between the three of you, we went back and forth so much…" Hosanna said. "But, we have ultimately come to our decision."
Oliver spoke. "DJ…" the lights went low, the crowd whooping but otherwise silent. "You have won Sweet Dreams are made of this!"
DJ yelled, pumping his fist as the crowd applauded, whistling, screaming, and Rose and Pierre had to act disappointed.
Theodore put his hands up to quiet the crowd. "This decision was basically impossible," he said. "Rose, you were such a wonderful competitor." She put up her head, feigning a sniffle and putting a hand to her eye. "Which is why we want to offer you a position in Out of Spite too!" The crowd went wild, and Camellia quickly switched her face from sad to ecstatic as people cheered for her. She held out her fist to bump DJ, but he decided to give her a hug instead.
"And that just leaves Pierre," Hosanna said, the crowd quieting again. "We just simply couldn't let you go. We want you to sign on as our bassist." Jace did a great job at acting completely shocked, grinning as an upbeat song played and confetti shot off in celebration of the three of them. She gave Jace a hug, amazed at how legitimately happy she was feeling for no real reason. The crowd cheered as the band hurried away from the table (Teddy jumping over it), and congratulating each of the winners. She was grinning as Malloy hugged her tightly, whispering "great work" to her. They allowed the hug to last for a while, as Teddy fist-bumped DJ and Hosanna gave Pierre a tight hug, and the rest of the group mingled and hugged, uplifting music filling the room.
"Outstanding darling, just outstanding," said Teddy, and Camellia didn't let him go in for the hug, cutting him off with a handshake instead, and accepting a high-five from Montessori.
They quieted slightly as the screens showed exit interviews for the three that were eliminated. They were all nice and heartfelt.
"Thanks for joining us on the journey and stay tuned for next album, releasing on September 1st!" Oliver said, waving his hands at the crowd, who were still applauding.
"Have a great night everybody!" Theodore chimed in, all of them crowding in together and waving in various different ways as the cameras cut, and the crowd was still applauding as the six of them walked off stage together. Camellia felt relieved, and so proud of all of them as the auditorium cleared out slowly but surely, all of them staying out to sign autographs (another training Camellia thought wouldn't be necessary), chatting and enjoying the time together until it was empty except for them and Wolf, to which they all went home.
They stayed at the penthouse for about an hour, to make sure that the hype had died down and they could sneak back home to the bunker for the night.
It was almost midnight by the time they got back, but all of them were chattering excitedly as they got down there.
As soon as the door shut, Wolf grinned at them all. "That was amazing! You did it! And I'm a genius, and I told you all that you could do it. Did I mention I'm a genius?"
"Hey, I didn't cry about what you wrote in the letter, I was trying hard to get it to happen," Coda said, blowing a raspberry.
"I thought it was great," Camellia said, now ready to ruffle and mess up his mohawk as she had been waiting to all night.
"Hey!" he said, swatting her hand away.
"Bohemian Rhapsody was also amazing!" Camellia said, squeezing Malloy's hand.
"You sounded great on Physical," Tessa said, beaming up at her.
"Okay, but can we just talk about Marry the Night for a moment?" Trap asked. "God, you absolutely killed it, Chief!"
"Chief?" Camellia asked, suddenly suspicious as she raised her eyebrow.
"It's just a nickname, relax," Jace said, smiling a little bit at her.
"You all have earned a much-needed day of rest," Wolf said. "No training tomorrow. Take the weekend off, and we'll start up again next week."
"Weekend! Woo!" said Coda, pumping up his hands.
"Nobody wake me up before noon," Malloy said. "For any reason."
"Fine, we'll have to plan our day for Jo when you wake up," Camellia said, not sure if she could wait so long she was so excited about it.
"Congratulations," Wolf said. "You made me proud up there."
Camellia grinned, glad she could help him out.
"You promised a chocolate fountain if we did a good job," Trap said matter-of-factly.
"Yes, I'll get you a chocolate fountain," Wolf said with a sigh.
"Yes!" Camellia cheered.
"Lit!" Trap said, at the same time, and quickly covered his mouth, hoping nobody heard that.
"You guys were legit," Numitor said, and they had no idea he was even there. "I watched it all. It was pure shit, but it was legit shit."
"Thanks Numi!" Oliver said, ruffling his burgundy hair.
"I think this calls for some pizza to celebrate!" Wolf said. "I'm calling Kat right now to bring it over." He picked up the phone.
"Hey!" Camellia said, feeling the grin spread across her face as she was coming down from such an amazing night.
"While you're on it, make sure to tell her about that no-exercise promise!"
~.~.
A/N: Well at 8000 words, I'm glad I made this a separate chapter. Hope you enjoyed the highlights from the shitty reality show and the big finale! I love this chaotic group so much, but now we will get back to your regularly scheduled Ceru for the last chapter of this story! (Omg I'm crying over here I can't even believe it's coming to an end so soon aaah)
So we get to see all of the personalities in action with a couple of extra faces as well! Wolf is a genius.
Gonna say yolo and open up the new escort form today. I have a feeling that I'm going to get more subs than spots, so they will probably end up being competitive. Returning escorts will get priority, but are not guaranteed. I want real actual characters, not memes like some of the escorts from WoF. Just know this when you consider subbing an escort. Ultimately, I'm going to take the ones I will like to write that fit in with the subplot.
CQ: On a scale of 1-10, how genius is Wolf? Lol
Next epilogue: A sweepstakes and some final thoughts from Ceru.