AUTHOR'S NOTE
I just realized Frozen came out way after TDA. Therefore, this story is officially an AU.
WARNING: HUGE SPOILERS FOR FROZEN. LIKE, ASTRONOMICAL. If you haven't watched the movie and plan to, skip the epilogue entirely just to be on the safe side.
Okay, I will just skip to the surprise-of-my-life event because describing the boring details of the party would be tedious as heck: The whole Total Drama cast showed up! They were like angels come down to save me from hell (to me, boredom is one of the definitions of hell). I, the final formerly-lost angel, would join them, and we would all fly away to somewhere fun (not heaven, I don't want to die yet).
I had a million questions in my mind, but they all were like feathers with the weightless feeling I had. I mean, the whole cast had come for me! I didn't know they liked me that much. Unless they just came for the chow, heheh. Still, it was a Christmas miracle. I sure was glad Mom brought Seb and me out of her lack of trust in us.
As the receptionist spoke something in the background, I was busy checking the cast members off on a mental list. My eyes were drawn to Owen first, then to my other favorite people, Noah and Eva. Once I finished my attendance, I realized that Mom and Dad were arguing.
"Elizabeth, the whole group came here for Isabelle!" Dad said. "Are we really going to send them back home now?"
"Have you seen these teenagers on TV? They will trash the party and completely embarrass us! In front of our bosses! Besides, we can't reward Isabelle for bad behavior," Mom snapped.
"I'll behave," Courtney said, then pointed at Duncan. "And I'll make sure he does too."
"Dear, try to consider our daughter's happiness this time," Dad whispered.
There was a flicker in Mom's eyes, and her scowl faltered. She shook her head. "We can't." She faced everyone else, who was already looking at her. "I'm sorry that you all have come, as we will have to refuse your entry. We are sticking to our guest list for our party."
The whole cast and Noah's and Owen's families turned around to Noah and Owen. "You said we were invited!" Leshawna shouted, pointing at Owen.
Cody jabbed a finger at Noah. "He did too!"
I got two things from this moment: 1) Owen and Noah brought the whole cast together for me, and 2) I had to save them from an angry mob. "Everyone follow me! Let's crash the party!" I yelled over the voices.
They all fell silent. "You know, it's actually pretty ironic that you said that," Noah said, shaky laughter in his voice. "We were originally going to crash the party and not tell you guys until we got to it." A flood of voices slammed into my ears. Well, there goes my chance to save them, I thought. As I watched the group move in on Noah and Owen, a hand grabbed my arm. I yelped and tried to pull away, but Mom had a steel grip. She pulled me into one of the halls.
"Did you invite all those people?" Mom half-said, half-hissed.
I yanked my arm away, heart pulsing in my ears. "No!"
"I don't believe you. Look what your father and I had to do- turn them all back home! You have to ask before you invite anyone Isabelle!"
"You really don't care about my happiness, do you?" I yelled. "You're sending away all my friends. You lock me up whenever I do something you don't like. You won't let me see my own boyfriend!"
Mom slid her hand under my chin. I froze. Her fingers were icy cold. I twisted my head away, and saw Mom's face flinch. "Owen is not your boyfriend. You deserve better than him and most of these people you call your friends. You're beautiful and of higher class than they are, and you possess a spirit like my own as an adolescent. I've just been trying to tame it so you can live a fulfilling life when you're older."
Mom's words bounced off me like foam frisbees. I thought they were pure garbage. "Don't you think all those choices should be mine? Maybe you don't see the worth in the people I love, but I do. What if I want to hang out with them and act wild, huh?"
I hated the look Mom was giving me, like she had the wisdom of everything and I didn't. "Isabelle, that's not how you're going to succeed in this world."
"Really? Making good relations seems like the recipe to success to me, you follow it too! Except in our family, you fail miserably in that account."
Her face was like a cement brick crumbling- it was showing little cracks now. I wanted to see if I could break it, my hate for her was burning me up. "No, I only fail with you," she said. "I gave you free reign with your phone to contact anyone you like, but that tempted you into seeing Owen in person. I can't let you contact him anymore."
It felt like she had pushed a button inside of me that spilled all my contents onto the floor. Except rage. No, that came roaring back a hundred times over. "Wrong, I won't let you stop me. I am beyond done with letting you control my life. I am exhausted of being pushed around like a stupid ragdoll, like I don't have a mind of my own! Just because I'm certifiably crazy doesn't mean I can't make any decisions, for God's sake! What makes you think I can be happy with you treating me this way? I'M NOT LIKE YOU, MOM! I DON'T WANT TO BE FAKE!"
Mom stepped back and braced herself against the wall, her mouth moving between open and closed. Tears shone in her eyes, and the fine wrinkles she had turned prominent. I had won, but why couldn't I bring myself to stare at Mom's face and soak in my victory?
She sank down, knees coming in front of her face. "I'm fake, huh? I really have become my mother."
I knew absolutely nothing about my grandmother on Mom's side. She was dead. "What?"
Now it was Mom who couldn't look at me more than briefly as gray tears fell down her cheeks. "Your grandmother tried to give me a perfect life. She thought she could change me so I would like her ideals. I was just as stubborn as you, but a lot more insecure. She criticized me constantly, and one day I just let her do what she wanted with me in the hopes I'd be made perfect, especially in her eyes. I have deluded myself. I am a monster, I have failed our whole family, I am living a web of my own lies."
My thoughts were scrambled. Was this a case of Invasion of the Body Snatchers? Yet, my intuition was telling me she was telling the truth, and my intuition never lies. "We all live in our own lies, Mom. Life isn't fun with just reality."
Mom laughed and sniffled, two amazingly weird sounds to hear from her. "I suppose. It's amazing how I was miserable with your grandmother, yet I still miss her. She's a collection of memories I prefer to keep stored away. But I need to recall my childhood so I don't act like her anymore."
Is this real? I thought. Probably, but I can never be sure. I was tempted to sit by her. "That would be wonderful..."
"I'm glad you're so strong and independent. Even if you don't make a good living, those qualities will bring you more fulfillment than I have ever experienced."
I actually felt a pleasant tingling from those words. Those were real compliments, the type Mom hadn't given me in forever. "Now let's not get too mushy! As a fresh start, can I hang out with my friends in our party please?"
A little of Mom's hardness came back. "Have they ever influenced you to commit any crimes?"
"Uh, I'm more of a bad influence on them."
"If they are still there, then yes. Just make sure you all behave. Your father and I are still working on getting you excused from your kitchen accident."
I could feel hope rising inside of me, but I suppressed it. "What about Owen?"
My heart lurched in the two seconds that Mom was silent. "For today. I would like to have him over so I can supervise you two first, then decide."
Mom had exceeded my expectations to infinity. I was over the clouds, I was floating. "Sounds terrific! Beyond amazing! Thank you thank you thank you!"
"You're welcome," I heard her say as I sprinted out of the hall into the lobby. The air deflated out of me, and I stopped. Everyone was gone.
"Miss Wellington?" I turned to the receptionist. "Your father booked a room for the people that were here. He would like you to join them." She pointed down the hall from where I just came. "Third door to your left."
I swear, this day just kept getting better and better. For once, my parents were working for me, not against me. "Really? Neat-o!" I ran back, passing Mom halfway.
"Izzy!" Mom said. I turned around. The vulnerability was swept off her face, but there were still faint lines on her cheeks. "I'm sorry."
I looked into her eyes. They were different now, clearer. Maybe it was my imagination, but they deserved my apology. "I'm sorry too."
I went to the third door on my left in the hall and pushed open the doors to a glorious sight. Almost everyone was dancing in the middle of a huge room. "All I Want for Christmas is You" played from speakers in all four corners. A glistening buffet stretched across one wall. Eva and Noah were sitting together at one of the tables, and Heather sat by her lonesome. My first instinct to was to join Owen on the dance floor, but I was feeling considerate tonight. So I joined Eva and Noah!
I ran to their table and jumped on the back of a chair, then climbed in. "Hi guys!"
"Getting in from the side would've been easier," Noah said.
I leaned over and pinched his cheek. "Oh Noel, I know you're smiling inside."
"Noel? Are you becoming Lindsay n-"
"Merry Christmas! Thanks for bringing the whole cast here, by the way. It was really nice of you and Owen."
"Yeah, well, we nearly got beat up by them until your dad rescued us," Noah said, then nudged Eva. "But She-Hulk here would've held them off while we made a run for it, right?"
Eva gave a grin that looked more like baring her teeth. I do that sometimes just for scares. "Nah, I would've flattened you guys." Noah's mouth fell open. "Kidding. Can't you take a joke?"
"Not by you!"
"Not by me either," I said, and stood up. "Come on, let's go to the dance floor!" When neither of them moved, I grabbed their hands and pulled them. Noah stumbled out of his seat, but Eva was too strong for me, and I accidentally let go of her. I staggered backwards with Noah in tow before regaining my balance. "Thanks for the boost Eva!" I ignored Noah's whining and dragged him into the crowd. But the second I let go, he scrammed. Le sigh.
I found Owen in the crowd instead, and jumped on his back. "WAH!" he shouted, turning his head.
"Don't worry, it's Izzy!" I said.
"Izzy? Is it really you?" He met eyes with me. "It is! I thought you were staying with your parents, but it's awesome that you're here!"
"I know right? Now I get to have you as my Christmas date!"
The joy drained from his expression. His mouth became a solemn line instead of a smile. "Here, anyway. I found out why you can't have me over. It's your parents, right?"
"Not anymore. They both approve of you now."
His eyebrows shot up, his jaw going down. "Wow! How did you do that?"
"Voodoo magic, baby." Owen laughed and leaned forward, and I met his lips. Kissing while riding your boyfriend's back, boo yeah. It would've been even more epic if Owen was riding someone too, but I doubt they could carry him. Actually, Eva could maybe fit that role! I'll ask her if she's able to lift him later.
"Cotton-Eyed Joe" came on, and I fell off Owen's back. "Oh my geese, I love this song! C'mon, we gotta get Noah!"
As we ran off the dance floor, Owen asked, "Why not Eva too?"
"We can't pull her." We covered the distance to Noah's and Eva's table and grabbed Noah. "AMBUSH!"
"GAH! WHAT IN TARNATION-" Noah continued spurting out phrases as we dragged him between us.
"Ah, stop your yappin'," I said. Owen and I stopped on the edge of the crowd. "We're here. Now dance."
"Can you let go of me first?"
"Ohoho, no. No escaping this one pal!"
Looking at everyone else dancing in rows, he said, "I don't know how to dance to this anyway."
"Really dude? We have to bring you to more parties!" Owen said.
"It's easy to learn," I said, and instructed him. Once he (sort of) got it down, we walked into the heart of the group, between Cody and DJ.
"'Sup dudes? And Izzy," Cody said with a chuckle. "Noah, you're actually dancing?"
"Not happy to." We all clapped and spun, then started the dance routine over again.
"You're supposed to tap with your right foot," I said.
"Does it matter?" Noah said.
"Hm, maybe not." I experimented with using my left foot first for the rest of the dance. By the end of it, Noah didn't look happy, but at least he wasn't giving Owen and me death glares. I patted his head. "You did well, young dance apprentice."
"Yup, I'll definitely need to know how to dance to Cotton-Eyed Joe for my future." He walked away, and a slow song came on.
Owen and I looked at each other. "Do you wanna dance to this one?" he asked.
"Nope."
"Yeah, me either. How does the buffet sound?"
"Duh, delicious!" We ran to the buffet and piled our plates with most of the major food groups: Turkey, pasta, meat and vegetable kabobs, anything appetizing. Then we pigged out. Later, I talked at least once to everyone, even Heather and Justin (my evil ex). But I have to admit, the moments that resonated with me the most were the ones with my closest friends, which is why I wrote them here. About 50% of the time, I was trying to get Noah to have fun. By the way, Noah waited a month later to tell Owen and I that that party was the second-best one he'd ever been to, the sly devil.
I feel the need to write about the day after Christmas all of a sudden, so I will! I think this is called an 'epilogue' or something of that sort. Anyway, Mom let me invite Noah and Owen over. I would say that was really nice of her, but she was really just acting like a normal parent, which is a high achievement in itself.
I'll start with the shocking revelation that was revealed through Owen's arrival. The doorbell rang, and Dad came lumbering down the stairs in his robe. "Can't you have invited your friends a little later Izzy?" he grumbled.
I sprang up from the living room sofa and walked toward him. It was time to do something awkward, but necessary. "You let my nickname slip."
"Truthfully, I've always preferred calling you that to Isabelle." He gave me a sloppy wink. "Suits you more."
On the last step, I stepped forward and hugged him, reaching only his waist. It kind of felt like I was hugging a foreign object, but at least his sweater was nice and soft. I felt his arms slide around my shoulders. "Thank you for booking a party for the cast last night."
He chuckled. "Well, I didn't want to send all of them back home." He let go and walked toward the door. "Your mom has been quiet lately. Did you two argue?"
"Yeah. We didn't argue like that since I signed up for Total Drama! We're better now though, trust me."
"That's good. Maybe the family can have a fresh start before the new year." Dad opened the door to reveal Owen and Mr. Nickelson in matching brown trench coats. Cold flooded into the house. "Hello Owen! And you must be Owen's father. Please, come in."
They came in, and I slid over to Owen. "May I take your coat, sir?" I said in an imitation of a man's voice.
Owen grinned. "Wow, not bad!" He took off his coat and handed it to me.
As I hung his coat in the closet, something caught in Dad's voice grabbed my attention. "Leroy? Is that you?"
"Bob?" Mr. Nickelson whispered. "My God, have you changed." I shut the closet and turned around to see him and Dad embracing each other. Tears were running down both of their faces.
"It's been so long! Where you have been?" Dad said.
"Only a few miles away from here. If I had known you were here, I would have come earlier." Owen and I glanced at each other. It felt like we were stepping in on a private moment, so we retreated to the living room.
Owen's eyes swept the room. "You have a really nice place!" They hit the TV on the wall and slid open a tad wider. "Whoa, is that a plasma TV?"
"Nah, it's a LCD," I said.
"It must be awesome for watching movies and stuff!"
I shrugged. "I guess. Seb uses it more than I do."
"Yeah, Izzy doesn't watch that many movies." Seb came into the living room. "Hi Owen."
"Hey dude!" Owen went over to him and shook his hand vigorously. "Nice to meet you! You're Izzy's younger brother, right?"
"Yup. I came in here to watch a movie, but I'll leave if you guys are using the TV."
"Nah man, stay! Maybe we can all find a movie to watch together." Owen turned to me. "What do you think about that?"
"Okay, sure! How about 'The Rat Plague'?" I made claws with my hands and bared my teeth for special effect.
Seb took a step backward. "Anything but that, please."
Seb hates horror movies. One time I pinned him down and forced him to watch half of "The Exorcist", and he didn't talk to me for days. "'Friday the 13th'? It's not even that scary."
"Heck no! Can we just watch Frozen?"
"Heck no!" I shouted.
"Oh, I heard of Frozen! Is it good?" Owen said, which launched Seb into a whole plot summary that I blocked out.
Once he finished, I said, "Well, I'm not staying for that."
"Come on, Izzy, please?" Seb crossed his arms. "It's rude to leave guests alone, you know. You didn't even see the whole thing."
Curse it all that Owen has to be the guest, I thought. Wait, what am I thinking? I wanted him here! "Fine. But I refuse to hold back on my comments."
"Then whisper them. I'll make the popcorn!" Seb ran out of the room. "You can start the movie!"
The doorbell rang just as I was about to sit, and I came back up. "That must be Noah!" I snickered. "Oh man, he's not gonna like Frozen."
Owen followed me to the door. "It sounds interesting to me. Who knows, maybe he'll like it!"
"He hates Disney movies, remember? He told me his younger siblings are Disney fanatics." I opened the door. "Bonjour, Noah!"
"Is today a French holiday?" he said, then stepped inside.
"I'll take your coat, monsieur," I said in my manly voice. Noah arched one eyebrow and gave me his coat, which I threw into the closet with gusto.
"Excellent service," Noah said.
"Sorry, I felt like it." I hung it up, then pulled him into the living room. "Now sit. We are about to watch a movie which makes no sense."
"Sounds fun." He sat on one end of the sofa, with Owen between us.
"See, I told you he'd like it!" Owen said.
I exchanged a look with Noah. Time for another one of those awkward yet necessary moves. "Owen honey? He was being sarcastic as usual."
Owen drooped. "Oh."
Seb rushed into the living room with a large bowl of popcorn. His eyes darted to Noah. "Oh, hi Noah. Darn it, now I have to make more popcorn."
"Hi Seb. Don't worry about me, I don't eat microwave junk."
"Could you make more for me though?" Owen said.
"Sure thing!" Seb placed the popcorn bowl on the table and went back out, and I put the disk in the DVD player. Owen picked up the bowl and started eating.
When the main menu appeared, Noah got up. "Nice try Izzy, but it says 'Disney' right over the title."
"Hey, it's not like I want to be here either! Owen and Seb want to watch it," I said.
Owen bumped Noah with his elbow. "Come on Noah, give it a chance! Have you even watched it before?"
"No, but I don't plan to."
"Well, this is what Izzy and I will be watching for the next few hours. What else can you do?"
Noah pulled out a tiny book from his back pocket. "I always bring around a book for many reasons, including this one." He opened it in front of his eyes as I started the movie. As the first song was playing, Seb came in with another bowl of popcorn, laid it where the last one had been, and sat next to Noah.
"You're not watching?" Seb asked. Noah twitched his head side to side. "It's really good though."
"Seb, don't bother. He hates Disney movies," I said.
Seb's eyes bulged into near-perfect spheres. "ALL Disney movies?"
"Oui," Noah said.
"Shhh," Owen said, leaning toward the screen. Noah flicked his eyes up before returning to his book.
"But- but Disney has so many of my favorites!" Seb whispered. "You don't like The Incredibles? Monsters Inc.? Toy Story? Toy Story 2? Toy Story 3?" Noah was shaking his head like a sideways pendulum, never taking his eyes off his book.
Lines crept in between his eyebrows, and he put down his book. He faced Seb. "You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to predict the whole plot for Frozen within the first twenty minutes. No, shorter. Fifteen. That'll show Disney people like you."
"I'd like to see you try," Seb snapped. Being considerate of spoiling anything for Owen, they sat on the floor in front of him. I joined them, wondering if Noah could really do it. He had surprised me several times before, I think he might actually be smarter than me! That is, when he tries.
Noah when Anna's and Elsa's parents keep Elsa in her room: "Their parents will die, forcing Elsa into the position of queen. She'll have to appear in public for her coronation, where she'll lose control-"
"WRONG!" Seb shouted, then covered his mouth. He lowered his voice again. "She keeps her powers in check during that time."
"Then it will happen at the reception," Noah muttered. Seb scowled and looked away. "As I was saying, she'll run away, and Anna will go off to bring her back. But Disney always throws in extra obstacles for the journey required in every movie, right? Elsa will most likely cause an eternal winter."
Seb jumped to his feet. "You watched the movie before!"
Noah grinned, which gave away he was enjoying this. "Nope, I didn't. Anna also needs a companion... probably her future boyfriend. Elsa freezes her heart by accident again, her future boyfriend brings her back to Arendelle, and the royal soldiers come after Elsa. They capture and imprison her, and Anna is brought back to her castle, but goes back out when she realizes she needs her future boyfriend to kiss her to be cured. Now that I think about it, there needs to be another guy she kisses first- trial and error and all that. This guy, this prince, makes relations with her at the start to become king of Arendelle, and betrays her. As Anna goes outside to find her future boyfriend, Elsa escapes, and the prince finds her and is about to stab her when Anna throws herself in front of Elsa. She freezes and deflects the sword, because she's made of impenetrable ice. Elsa cries on her, just like Blondie in Tangled- oh yeah, originality points there- and Anna thaws. They get rid of the prince and all the other bad guys and live happily ever after, because love is always the answer to everything."
Seb looked like his whole childhood had been crushed. He was frozen like an ice statue. "Ooh, harsh Noah," I said.
Noah patted Seb's head. "Reality is cold, but it's my specialty. Maybe I can make him a mini-me, that'd be fun."
Noah resumed reading his book, Seb went upstairs, and Owen was absorbed by the movie. At least Noah gave me all the plot points to watch for, eh? That was actually great fun, believe it or not.
Well, that's all folks! I'd tell you the rest about the hangout, but really, Noah spent the rest of it trying to crush Owen's love for Frozen (he couldn't). I guess that, aside from wanting to preserve my memories around Christmas, I wanted to show that I'm not just a complete psycho like Total Drama usually portrays me. I just let loose while I was on that show, y'know? And now you all know why- super strict parents. So I might have seemed a little mild in my story, eheh. I might publish this one day, who knows? Or maybe I'll just show it to Owen, Noah, and Seb. Yeah, that seems better.
Cheers, pilgrims! And non-pilgrims too, I'm not prejudiced.
I apologize if you wanted to see more of the Total Drama first-generation cast. However, this story is really Izzy's, and she's not very close with most of the cast. I pictured her mainly sticking with her best buds: Noah, Owen, and Eva. The first two also had a lot to do with the plot, as you read. :-) Review please! I would like to know if this was a satisfactory conclusion for readers of this story.
