Sleepover

Chapter 10: Round 1

A/N: The fair's in town the fair's in town!

HOLY CRAP! Who else saw the Ultimate Enemy? I LOVED IT! I love Dan Phantom's voice! I KNEW he was the Ultimate Enemy… thank you internet…

Leave comments on the movie! COOKIES FOR ALL… again! Man… I gotta think of more things to give out…

"Okay, you ready?" Ember asked Sam for the millionth time.

"For the millionth time, YES." Sam barked. She smoothed down her skirt Ember had just finished. It was a dark velvet purple with the waist band falling down in black strips over the material, in the front on the sides and in the back. The strips fell down to knee length, where as the velvet purple was a mini skirt. The top was different. The top was a black tank top that stopped a few inches above her skirt, and went down low enough to show the tip of her cleavage. It was formfitting with a picture of a single white rose on her right at the edge of the material. Finally, black panty hose were traced down to black boots that went up to her knee with a spike heel and a fake buckle on each side.

For accessories she had on two black arm socks that hooked on her middle fingers and a large black choker necklace with a plastic white rose bud the size of a pinky nail hanging on it.

Her hair was up in a messy ponytail, random bits of hair were held up with a bobby pin since it was relatively short for a pony tail.

Ember looked her up and down. "Well, your outfit is ready at least… one more girl and you're next. Remember, this week the only competition is to get in. After that each week will be a new thing, evening gown, talent, blah blah blah."

Sam nodded then beamed as she saw Danny walk over to her. "Danny!" She said, and made to walk over to him when Ember stopped her.

"There's no time to make out with your little boyfriend." she snapped, shoving a paper at Sam. "Rehears this." she told her.

Danny frowned at her and hung his head, turning and walking out.

"He's not my boyfriend!" Sam sighed and frowned too, looking down at her paper. Danny understands… she said. I can talk to him after this…

"Samantha Manson!" A stage hand called. "Get in the lineup."

Sam jumped and walked over to her place. She scowled, seeing Paulina up on stage. "Paulina, if you could do one thing for the city what would it be?" a judge asked her.

"Give everyone a great big hug!" She said sweetly. "I personally believe that hugs make the world go round! They just make you feel so much better when you receive one, so ultimately it would reduce crime!"

Sam pretended to gag. "Very nice Paulina." The judge told her, after a moment of discussing with the other judges he smiled at her. "You move onto the next round."

The announcer grinned out at the wide Audience before him. "Once again that was Paulina--" he paused, trying to pronounce her last name then stopped and smiled. "Uhh… Paulina!" Paulina curtsied in her pink frilly dress, and skipped off the stage as the music to Bewitched 'Hey Mickey' sounded her off.

She grinned at Sam. "Don't choke." She said sweetly with false friendliness.

Sam tripped her.

The announcer smiled broadly at the audience. "Next we have Samantha Manson!" The lights turned off and suddenly the beginning to 'Puppet' by Thousand Foot Krutch played.

That's my cue. Sam thought, walking on stage in the darkness. Suddenly the spot lights turned on, on her. A few people gasped at her, and a few sat up straighter, she surly drew attention.

Slowly the lights were brought up. The judges took a moment to take in her appearance. "Ahem." One cleared his throat. "Uhh… you're Samantha Manson?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yes."

"Well," he took in a breath and settled as the music slowly faded into the background. "Umm, very well then. First question…" he picked up a cue card and his glasses, squinting at the words.

The judge next to him, named Florida spoke up. "First off, let me say, I love your outfit! It's so unique!" she grinned.

Sam smiled. "Thank you." she said, trying not to gag from all the awkword silences. She tried to scan the audience for Danny and Tucker and her Family but the lights in front of her were too bright, all she could see were the judges.

"Samantha-" the old judge started but she cut him off.

"Just call me Sam." she said.

He nodded, backstage Ember slapped her forehead. You never interrupt a judge.

"Sam," he corrected, nodding at her. "First question is, what do you plan to do as a career?"

Sam blinked at him. She couldn't remember what she was supposed to say! Wait, why was she trying to remember that junk? She was in this contest to win it by being herself, not someone Ember was shaping her to be.

"Well, I think I may be a scientist, but what type I don't know. I also someday hope to get more people to become Ultra Recyclo Vegetarians!" She said.

Ember began slamming her head into the wall. Maybe, if she hit her head hard enough her thoughts of loosing would be knocked out.

The judge blinked. "Ultra Recyclo Vegetarians?" he asked.

Sam nodded. "Yeah, it would take a long time for me to explain, so you might just want to ask another question before I do."

Thunk… thunk… thunk…

He blinked again and nodded. "Very well then!" he laughed. "Question two, how do you help others around you?"

"Well I help my friends understand the school lessons… does that count?" she laughed with the audience.

Thunk… Thunk… Thunk…

The judges started laughing, and a different women who Sam recognized as the principal spoke up. "Maybe you should write the teachers' lesson plans then!" she laughed. "This girl right here is the top student in school." she told the other judges.

Sam blushed lightly and shifted her weight. Standing in one place wearing boots wasn't that easy.

"Question three," her principal said. "How do you give back to the city?"

"Well, I haven't gone on a homicidal rampage yet… I'd say that was pretty giving of me." She grinned. The audience was laughing again, and a random guy in the back shouted out, "She rocks!"

Thunk… Thunk… Thunk…

The judges started laughing again, only the Mayor, who was also a judge, was laughing nervously. He made a note to watch her carefully. "I'm just kidding," Sam laughed. "I give back to the city with good deeds. You know, pointing people in the direction their looking for if their lost, picking up Nasty Burger wrappers when I see them in the park. That sort of stuff."

The judges smiled to themselves and the Mayor gave a sigh of relief. "No!" Paulina gasped. "They're liking her!" she turned to Claire, handing her three cards. "Make sure these are the next questions asked." she growled.

Claire sighed and nodded, running out of the backstage area. She ducked, once she got to the audience and crawled on her hands and knees to the judges table. While the old judge was preoccupied with laughing she switched the three cards on the table with the three Paulina handed her and crawled away as fast as she could.

The Old Judge calmed down and picked up the first card. "Question four," he said. Paulina grinned in anticipation. "Out of a recent demand from the audience, we would all like to know what really is going on between you and your friend Danny Fenton. Are you really friends or is there something between you two?"

Sam blinked staring out into the blackness, which she knew was the audience. "What? Is that really a question?" she asked.

The judge looked down at the card. "Well… it's on a card. So yes."

Sam bit her lip, blushing, and then started laughing. "Now that's the type of question that will make me go on a homicidal rampage!" The audience erupted in laughter. Inside, she let out a sigh of relief, that was a nice save.

"Next question then," the judge smiled and grabbed the next card. Behind the curtains, Paulina was gripping her hair so hard she feared it might fall out. If that last question didn't get her, this next one would. "Also due to popular demand from the audience, this question has to do with your idol Paulina." A few gasps were heard from the audience. "How do you worship the ground she walks on?"

Sam started laughing again. "First off, Paulina is not my Idol, Krystal Meyers is. Krystal is for Anticonformity where Paulina lavishes in being a Magazine clone and following every trend that comes her way." Paulina grinned, she hated the insults but the judges don't like a rude, mean, Ms. Teen. "I believe in individuality, and you can't have that by following trends. So Paulina is not my idol so I do not worship the ground she walks on. I only worship my religion."

Suddenly, the audience broke out into applause at this. Someone shouted, "You go girl!" making Sam blush. She scuffed her feet on the ground.

Ember's head perked up at the sound of applause. Maybe this attitude thing would work for Sam.

The judges grinned at each other. "And the final question." the old man said after the audience had calmed down. He looked down at the card. "Hmm… that can't be right…" he showed the card to the Principal. "Is this a question?" he asked.

"Well, I think we've got a set of false cards." she said. "That question is against regulations." she shook her head at the question asking her how many times she was in the Red Room in the past month. "And it's not even the last question we always ask."

The old judge smiled and nodded. "Ahh, I see well then. The real question is; if you could do one thing for the city, what would you do?" he asked.

Sam milled over the question, in the background she could hear Paulina throwing a temper tantrum in the back. "I would introduce this city to individuality and what it means to stand for Anticonformity."

The audience started applauding again as her leaving song 'Mouth like a Magazine' by Showbread started playing. "Well I don't think we need to discuss this one, Sam you go onto the next round!" the crowd started clapping again and Sam walked off stage, thanking the judges.

She grinned at Paulina as the Announcer called out the next girl. "What did you say about choking again?" she asked.

Paulina glared at her. "Don't think this is over!" she threatened. "We still had 6 more rounds to go!"

Sam smiled. "If you last that long." she said, walking over to Ember. Paulina gave a cry of frustration and had to be held back by Dash and Kwan from murdering Sam. "Well how was that for a first impression?" she asked grinned.

Ember glared at her. "What were you THINKING? You completely ignored what I wrote down!"

"It wasn't me! Besides, I forgot it." Sam frowned.

Ember didn't get to yell at her more, Danny and the others and ran back to congratulate her. "Nice!" Danny laughed as he walked up to her. "Wanna see who else makes it through or do you want to go get some ice cream to celebrate?" he asked.

Tucker nudged her side with his elbow. "Say ice cream!" she whispered. "Please say ice cream!"

"Duh! Ice cream!" Sam grinned.

"No way!" Ember growled. "You have to stay in shape!" she said.

"Ember," Sam sighed. "I'm not going to get fat over one ice cream cone! Besides, you've shut me out from my friends all week! Even during school! So I'm going to catch up with them there. If you need me, then… I don't know wait till I get home." She locked arms with Danny and Tucker and walked out before Ember could protest.

"Nice way to knock off a ghost!" Tucker grinned.

"Yeah, well, no one keeps Sam Manson from her friends!" She smiled, sitting down at a table outside the ice cream parlor. "No matter how evil or deranged."

Danny smiled at her. "I'll order for us." Tucker said standing up and walking over to the window, he wanted to leave the two alone and he knew what his friends always ordered for ice cream.

"So, what was with those last three questions?" he asked.

"10 to 1 says it was one of Paulina's minions. I saw her switch the cards." she shrugged.

Danny nodded slowly and they sat in silence until Tucker brought back their ice cream.