Oh Lookie! Another intermission! I know how much everyone just LOOOOVES my intermissions! We're getting really close to the end now. One more intermission (and an epilogue), and two more scenes. I hope you people really like long chapters, because my finale is one LOOONG act. : ) Break out those long attention spans!

And, since everyone seems to like my idea of doing "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as a... sequel, or maybe a seperate play altogether, I will now be taking casting calls from now until the second chapter of AMND. Start reviewing now, so I can make EVERYONE happy! (plus... I can't decide who should be who with the exception of Matthew (duh!))

Friday afternoon and the bell rang. Even as the last traces of the bell died away, it was replaced with the excited chatter of students as they moved from the classroom to their lockers, making weekend plans as they went. Rath moved with the main throng out to the hall, staying silent as he did. Silence was good. People talked too much anyway, so why did they need him adding to the confusion?

"Rath! Hey, Rath!"

Rath turned silently, looking for the all-to-familiar voice that was calling out his name. It wasn't that he didn't like the person – it was just that Wil never seemed to shut up.

"Hey! Hey!" Wil greeted Rath when he finally caught up to him. "I was wondering if you wanted to come over to my house this weekend? We're, like, having this, I dunno, sleep-over party-type thing for the people in the archery club, and I mean, you're, like, the best of us, so I mean you've just gotta come, y'know? I mean, it, like, wouldn't be the archery club without you, y'know what I mean?" Wil paused for a moment to breathe and watch Rath's expressionless face. "Well?"

Rath looked at Wil for several moments before arching one eyebrow. "Sure."

"YEAH! I knew you would!" Wil grinned. Did this boy... man... person, ever shut up? "Ok, so it's like, tonight, at my house, you know where that is, right? Right, and, uh, ok, it's like sleepover, and there's girls gonna be there too, just so ya know, and we're gonna watch a movie and play some games and all of that, ok? Just so you know, it starts at, like, 5, 'cause people all gotta go home and change and get ready and all that, y'know, and its all night, and you can come whenever you want to, 'cause there's no rush, and I'm home all day – well, y'know what I mean, it's my house, so DUH! I'm gonna be there, why else is the party sleep-over thingy at my house – "

"WIL!" one of the teachers called.

"Oh, oops, I guess that my mom's waiting for me or something, you know how parents are, huh? I mean, they just never go AWAY, and they just nag and nag and nag and talk and they NEVER shut up, y'know? So, yeah, I'll see you tonight, right? Right, yeah, I mean, we can ALWAYS count on you! You're solid, dependable Rath, right? Right! See you then eh – "

Rath stood, staring after Wil as his high voice was slowly drowned out in the general chatter of the other students. He sighed and turned back to his locker.

"Hey Rath!" Another high voice greeted him. He groaned inwardly and had to exercise extreme restraint to keep from adding a few more dents to his locker – with his head.

"Hello, Rebecca," he said evenly as he turned around.

"Hey, are you going to Wil's "party" tonight?" She asked, a little nervously he thought.

"Maybe."

She looked a little more nervous at his on-word answer. "I'm not sure if I'm going to go. I mean... I dunno." Her voice trailed off.

"...Why wouldn't you go?"

"Uh... well, I mean... it's just... ah... I have... homework, you know? And, if I go, I might... fall behind or something..."

"...Tell you what," Rath offered. "If you go, I'll help you catch up any homework you don't do."

"Really?" Rebecca's head snapped up and she smiled at him. "Oh..." She seemed at a bit of a loss for words, and stood there, looking for something to on," Rath said, picking up his backpack and heading for the exit. "I'll drive you home."

"What - ?" Rebecca stood, shocked for a second. "Hey! Wait! Rath! Wait up!" she called as she ran after him.

A few hours later Rath stood on the doorstep of Wil's house, wondering for the thousandth time why he was there. It wasn't like he was the sort of person to go to parties. And Lyn wasn't exactly available anymore, unfortunately. Wil was annoying; nice, but annoying. Bartre was... stupid. There was no other word for it. Unless you asked him to spell it: stew-pyd. And Rebecca... well, he wasn't quite sure what to make of her. She was young, and cute and... cheerful. Very much like Wil. Then again, they had almost grown up together, so that was understandable. People from nearby neighborhoods seemed to develop similar personalities. Rebecca was just a bit more practical than Wil. Probably something to do with being a girl.

He reached up, but before he could ring the bell it was thrown open, almost hitting him in the face. "Hey, Rath, I knew you would make it! You're a bit late, y'know, but who care, you're here - ...Rath? ... Why are you down there?" Rath glared up at the happy-go-lucky teen boy from where he lay sprawled on the sidewalk.

"Wil? Next time... WATCH how you open the door."

"Huh? Oh, right. I forgot the door opens outwards. Sorry about that! Well, come on in, you'll forgive me right? Yeah, of course you will!" Wil answered for him. Rath groaned. Didn't he get enough of this at school? Why was he wasting a Friday night going through intentional punishment?

"Why don't you, A) help Rath up off the pavement, and then B) invite him in, Wil?" Rebecca asked, peering around the doorframe.

"Oh! Right! Thanks Rebecca!" Wil grinned and bounced down to help Rath up. Rath scrambled up on his own, however ungracefully he had to do it. Hearing Wil was bad enough.

"Thanks," he said, not really meaning it. Why would he thank anyone who would whack him with a door? Maybe he should teach Wil a few things about archery... while filling him with holes. That could be fun.

"Hi, Rath," Rebecca greeted him as he – finally – got to the door. "You all right?"

"Yes," he nodded. Ok, so maybe he didn't HAVE to be so curt, but it was a hard habit to break.

"That's good," Rebecca smiled. Nothing kept her down for long, he noticed. "Come on! We're watching 'Indiana Jones'!" Sometimes Rebecca reminded him strongly of Wil.

Inside the archery club sat sprawled around Wil's living room. Lyn sat on the floor leaning against the couch. Bartre was sitting on an overstuffed chair, stuffing his face with something that could have been chips or popcorn – he was eating it so fast Rath couldn't tell. Wil bounced past Rath and Rebecca and scurried about, putting the movie on. Rebecca walked past Rath and sat down on the couch and indicated that Rath could sit next to her. Rath shrugged slightly and sat down.

"Are we all ready?" Wil asked, smiling cheerfully.

"Yes, Wil!" Lyn said, a little testily Rath thought. "Just start it, alright?"

"Yes, mi'lady," Wil said with a smile and started the movie.

Finally, after 10 minutes of previews – Wil refused to fast-forward through them – and Bartre having to re-fill his popcorn/chip bowl at least 4 times, they finally got to the movie.

Three hours or so later – although it felt a lot longer – the movie finally rolled to an end. Rath breathed a sigh of relief. Watching a movie about a guy with a girls name running around trying to find an ark – or whatever it was – wasn't his idea of fun.

"Wow, that was fun!" Wil grinned, then looked at his watch. "Well, it's almost 10 – what kind of pizza do you guys want?"

"Everything!" was Rebecca's vote.

"Pepperoni," Lyn said.

"Hawaiian!" Bartre yelled, spraying popcorn bits all over the room. Rath tried to ignore him.

Wil looked a little intimidated. "Er... can we... just decide on one? I don't think I can afford 3 or 4..."

"What kind do you want, Rath?" Rebecca asked him. Rath shrugged.

"Doesn't matter. Everything is fine."

"Oh... um, ok, one everything... a pepperoni, a Hawaiian... um..." Wil looked a little uneasy. Rath rolled his eyes.

"Wil," he said, "get one medium everything, and one large with one half Hawaiian and one half pepperoni."

Wil looked at him, surprised, for a few moments, before a smile spread across his face again. "Yeah... yeah! That's great! Good idea, Rath! Thanks!" he cried, before running out to the kitchen to put the order in.

Rebecca smiled at Rath. "How did you know all that?"

"... I worked for a pizza place. Last summer."

"Really?" Rebecca looked surprised. "I didn't know that."

"I didn't tell anyone."

"Why not, Rath?" Lyn asked, looking over at him. Sometime during the course of the movie the ground had gotten hard and she'd moved up to sit next to Rebecca on the couch.

He shrugged. "No one wanted to know."

"Aw, that's not true!" Rebecca declared.

Rath shrugged again. "Doesn't matter."

"Yes it does!" Rebecca was looking a little concerned, and the look she was giving him was a little odd. "We do care about you, Rath! You shouldn't just assume we don't care!" he raised an eyebrow at her, then decided giving in would just be easier than fighting.

"If you say so, Rebecca."

"I do!" she sounded a little upset, and when he looked at her, she blushed a little and the other way. He frowned, then sat back to wait for whatever punishment Wil had in plan next.

"So, what's next Wil?" Lyn asked when he finally returned.

"Shrek!" Wil said happily, ignoring Rath's – almost – silent groan. Rebecca heard it, and flashed him a quick glance.

The pizza came some twenty minutes later. Wil jumped up and ran to the door, tripping over Lyn in the process, who had moved back to her place on the floor. There was then a delightfully semi-quiet interlude while the pizza was divided up among the archers, and then it was back to the movie. Rath considered staying in the kitchen, just to get away from the stupidity of it all, but when Rebecca waited for him, he sighed and grudgingly followed her into the living room where the mindless torture continued.

It was past midnight when the movie ended. Rath liked the ending the best. Not because it was in any way funny or touching, but because it meant the end of the movie, and an end to the inane "humor".

"Wow!" Wil exclaimed. "That was fun! Let's do that again!"

Rath groaned.

"I'm willing to watch as long as you have more popcorn," Bartre grinned stupidly before placing the metal bowl on his head. What DID Karla see in him?

"Let's not," Lyn said. At least there was ONE other person in this place with SOME sense.

"Okay, then," Wil thought for a minute. "I know!" he cried. "Games! And the first one is – TWISTER!" Rath let his head fall back against the couch with a loud "thunk" that Wil didn't seem to hear. The girls did, though. Lyn grinned a little and Rebecca looked concerned. But they were all too soon immersed in a twisted game, and no one had any time to concentrate on anything but themselves and the ground in front of them.

It was almost 4:30 in the morning when the "partiers" finally got to bed. Or rather, got to get close to their beds. Rath didn't stay in his for long. He could hear the girls across the hall, giggling and whispering, and sometimes laughing uncontrollably – especially when Bartre snored extra loud. That was mainly the reason Rath was up. He couldn't sleep. Wil was asleep. Wil could talk and sleep through anything. For once in his life, Rath wished he could be Wil. Just so that he could get some sleep. Irritably he slunk into the hall, since anything was better than staying there listening to Bartre.

"Ok Rebecca," Lyn was saying. "Now it's your turn. Which guy do YOU like?"

Rath stopped to listen, but when – or if – Rebecca said the name, Bartre let out a really loud snore – one that seemed to shake the floor as well as the windows – and Rath missed the name.

"Are you serious?" Lyn cried. "Rebecca!" It didn't sound like she was displeased though, whoever Rebecca'd named.

"What? He's cute, he's cool, he's single... as far as I know, anyway..."

"What about Wil?"

"I refuse to marry a childhood friend, Lyn!"

"Raven?"

"He's too cold."

Bartre let out another loud snore and Rath missed Lyn's next question.

"I dunno..." Rebecca was responding. "He only really looks at you though. I don't think I've got a chance. But it's nice to dream, you know?"

"I know Sain's looking at you."

"Sain looks at EVERYONE, Lyn, and you know it!" Lyn laughed.

"That's true. But I don't think you should just lie back and say, 'Oh, that's it. He's never going to be mine.' Be positive! No one could resist you if you tried Rebecca!"

"You think so?"

"I know so. Sometimes you've just gotta give a little, y'know?"

"Is that how you got Hector?" Rebecca teased. Lyn coughed.

"Er, tell you what 'Becca. Let's go to sleep, huh? It's, like, 5 now, and we've got all weekend to get into trouble. OK?"

Rebecca was trying hard not to laugh at Lyn's diversionary tactics. "Whatever you say, Lyn." Bartre snored again. "If we can manage to sleep through that racket!" They both laughed and then settled down.

Rath stayed in the hall for a while longer, looking at the ceiling for lack of anything else. Everything was silent, and even Bartre's snoring seemed quieter. Then he smiled, took another look at the girl's room, and went back into the one he was sharing with Bartre and Wil, to get what sleep he could before the sun came up.

Lalala! Don't forget to do casting call for AMND!

So that was my Rath-centered part. Depending on how people like it, I'll develop that relationship farthur, or kill it before it's born. Rath-lovers, act now or never! (this is the part in Shrek where "you talk now or forever hold you're peace". I really hope you're reading this!)

And now, on to my LOVELY Response Reviews for all the wonderful people who reviewed!

Review Responses.

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elven-girl10: I'm really glad everyone liked the Jaffar parts! I don't think Jaffar was too happy about them though, because he keeps on making mysterious gestures with his hand... kinda like he's reaching for a knife -.-;; help!

Bloody Mary: There shall be more Nino/Jaffar moments. I love them. They are the best. There will be more! I will write more, as I write more Jaffar/Nino moments! Just not in this chapter, since neither of them are mages and it's based around Rath anyway.

WildfireDreams: Hopefully, this chapter will have lived up to your expectations. I think everyone really likes the MND thing : )

Firelien: If I do do AMND, Matthew WILL be Puck. There is no other option. I think Lucuis as the girly-man in Bottom's posse would work too. : ) I skipped most of Jaffar's stuff becuase it's so hard to make him act. In fact, it's damn near well impossible. Why, to get the few moments he WAS onstage I had to promise him that Heath couldn't marry her at the end of the play! ... Which may present some problems, no?

::starts a tug-o-war over Rath::

Wandering Cat: It got to long (DBZ) for me to watch. I mean, you could skip 15 episodes, and NOTHING WOULD HAPPEN! But I'm glad you think all my characters (mine, they don't belong to me, but that's beside the point) are in character, I try as best I can. Also, I'm glad I can give people an excuse not to do their homework!

K-Girl: Poor, poor Lowen. I don't know what I'm going to do with him. But I'm glad everyone found this chapter so funny! : )

katelynn: Personally, I CAN'T see Jaffar wearing ANYTHING other than black... well, maybe red. And you... can have your pick of the three. Whichever one you want! However, I might want to keep an eye out for Farina, Serra, and a girl to be named later (possibly Leila?), because when they find out that you stole their boyfriends.... BOOM! ::cackles like Hanna the freak::

flamefirefox: Almost 3 in the morning?? O.O Eek! Go to bed! As for Rebecca... I dunno. As hinted at in this chapter, I don't really want to put her with one of the two - three? - people she can go with. Wil's too hyper, Lowen's too ugly, yadda yadda. So this might just be my one out-of-game pairing in the entire fic.

I'm allowed to live dangerously once, right? ; )

And I'm sure I could fight SOMETHING about Raven and Lucius in... an incident behind close curtains comes to mind.... 3

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Thanks to everyone who reviewed - and will review - and don't forget to leave me some ideas about who should be who in a midsummer night's dream! If you can't remember the cast list, check out sparknotes. com

Enjoy!