Disclaimer: RENT is not mine. And neither is McDonald's. Or Wicked. I don't own anything good... Except my can of Amp. Amp is such a good energy drink, eight times the caffiene of coffee. Helped me finish Deathly Hallows in about thirteen hours. Then I slept for another twelve. Either way, here's the chapter! -LostOzian

"So if we…" Maureen started standing up McDonald's toothpicks to represent her idea. "Made a paper-mache head, we could hang it on the frame and put a curtain behind it, and that's our Wizard head."

"How are we going to do a giant cage?" Mimi asked.

"We're going to have to pretend there's a cage using pantomime," Maureen explained. "It's called establishing," Maureen continued to rant off things they would need to establish when Mark pulled Roger aside.

"What's up?" Roger asked.

"Hi," Mark said. Roger raised one eyebrow.

"Hi," he said back, wondering what this was all about. Was Mark trying to get him in some awkward position, perfect for good film?

"So… uh… How are the 'As Long As You're Mine' rehearsals going?" Roger shrugged.

"Joanne and Mimi blocked the whole thing so they don't go crazy," he said.

"Well, about you and Mimi…"Mark said. "She might like it better if you…did Boq…" Roger looked at him strangely.

"You just want to do Fiyero so you can sing that song with Maureen," Roger said. Mark's face grew red, like mashed potatoes with ketchup in them. Unfortunately, Roger thought of the mashed potato analogy and had to struggle to keep from randomly laughing at Mark.

"Okay, you got me, but it might make Mimi feel better if you were playing in love with a lesbian as opposed to a bi," Mark tried to argue

"I do play in love to Joanne either way," Roger said. "And I think she's already grossed out from me playing in love with her." Mark did puppy-dog eyes.

"Please, Rog?" Mark said. Roger stopped short.

"Don't call me Rog," he said seriously. "Mimi calls me Rog." Mark immediately looked horrified.

"Sorry," he said, choosing to stare at his shoes. Roger looked him over for a few seconds, thinking about the mashed potato analogy.

"Y'know what, I'll pitch it to Maureen," Roger said. "And call it my idea. But only if you stop begging." Mark looked up.

"Thanks, Roger," Mark said, smiling. He sat down again as Roger tapped Maureen on the shoulder.

"Could I talk to you?" he asked. Maureen nodded, joining him in the corner where Mark had begged to trade roles.

"Listen, I was thinking, and I realized Mark might do better as Fiyero," Roger said. Maureen smiled at him dubiously.

"You're kidding, right?" she said. Roger sighed. He hadn't expected Maureen to go for it, anyway.

"Well, I'm kidding about me doing the thinking," Roger said. "But I'm cool if Mark and I traded. I mean, Mimi's already up the wall about the whole Fiyero-Elphaba issue…"

"Look, Mark's a great guy," Maureen said. "But I'm trying to think of the show as a whole rather than what each of us wants to do. Personally, the big song would have the best chemistry if Collins and Angel sang it, but I wasn't able to cast it that way." Roger nodded in agreement. He noticed Maureen bite her lip as she proceeded with caution.

"Honestly, there were some obvious choices in casting, and you weren't one of them," she went on. "Joanne for Glinda, because of the vocals, but then I cast Mark as Boq because they click. They're a lot alike when you think about it. I wouldn't dream of changing it." Roger nodded again. He should have known Maureen had her own reasons for casting things the way she did, even if there was the possibility she got Elphaba of her own accord.

"I'd say Mark and Joanne like the Dancing Through Life scene, at least," Roger said.

"I still don't get why they crack up at that 'save one dance for me' line! Maureen started to whine a little bit. "Do you?"

"Don't I wish?" Roger snorted. "Maybe they're high or something."

"Pookie, high? Mark, high?" she said, pushing the point they were the two people least likely to get high, omitting Yuppie Scum, who had apparently never been truly drunk before.

"Hey, Maureen," Angel called. "How are we going to do the big Wizard voice?"

"I was thinking we use the cool echo-mike from the protest, the vocorder-thingie," Maureen responded. Mark and Joanne immediately started laughing. Maureen folded her arms impatiently and turned back to Roger.

"Okay, somehow I'm always dating some sort of geeky freak," Maureen said. "Why?" Roger shrugged, thinking of how his girlfriend was practically a stripper.

"No idea," he said.

Needless to say, geeky Mark would still be stuck with.Boq.