After Miley and Lily had changed back into Hannah and Lola they informed the people at Pop Hits Live that Hannah would appear…under certain conditions. Hannah wanted complete freedom to do and say whatever she wanted when she stepped out to surprise Mikayla. The show's producers, sure that there would be all sorts of fireworks between the two girls, were more than happy to agree.
Robbie Ray, having listened to his daughter's plan, asked Lola to step outside Hannah's dressing room for a moment. But when they were alone, it was the young pop star who spoke first.
"You're not upset, are you?" she asked.
"No, I'm not upset. But I am worried. Are you absolutely sure you want to go through with this?"
"Yes." It was clear from her tone that she was nervous but also determined. "It's the right thing to do."
"You realize that this may blow up in your face," he said. "In fact, odds are it will blow up in your face."
Hannah was silent.
"I understand why you're doing this," her father continued. "But you've got to know that this might not do any good for you…or Mikayla. Even if you're lucky, you might help Mikayla but still end up hurting yourself."
"Yeah," she admitted. "As best case scenarios go…this one pretty much sucks."
"And you still want to do it?"
"Daddy," she said swallowing hard. "Ever since that tape of me came out, I've been worried about my image and my reputation being ruined. I was acting like that would be the worst thing that could happen. It's not. It's not even close to the worst thing." She forced some false bravado into her tone. "Besides, if this is it for Hannah Montana…then I'm going to decide the way I'm going down."
Robbie Ray pulled the girl into a hug. There had been many times in his life that his daughter had made him proud…but, off the top of his head, he couldn't recall a moment where he'd ever been prouder.
Cody, seated with his family and friends, was wondering what had happened to Miley and Lily. There were two seats being held for them as Mikayla had requested, but the girls had seemingly vanished. His curiosity was put on the back burner when Mikayla came out for her segment of the show. Instead he simply enjoyed watching his girlfriend as she gave a fine performance of the one of the songs from her upcoming album. After the performance, the show's host stepped forward to interview the singer.
At first, things went as expected. There was the typical talk about the album. A few innocent questions about Mikayla's personal life, which gave the singer an opportunity to give some shout outs to her friends. She winked at Cody when she talked about him and then blew him a kiss, causing the studio audience to let out a "woooo" of appreciation.
But after that things took an unexpected turn. The host announced there was a special visitor to see Mikayla, and the crowd erupted in shock and excitement when Hannah Montana came out.
Jim got up instantly from his seat, realizing that the people running the show must have intended this ambush from the start. Carey was also quickly standing, but like Jim she knew she couldn't rush to Mikayla's side. The show was being broadcast live and neither wanted to make a scene that would embarrass the girl.
Of course, not all of the dark-haired singer's friends took the time to think before acting.
"What is she doing here?" London's voice was filled with outrage. She all but leapt from her chair and would have likely run straight to Mikayla…or straight over Hannah…if Zack hadn't grabbed her by the arm.
"Babe, wait!" he implored.
"What are you doing?" she asked as she tried to pull from his grasp. "Hannah's not supposed to be here! She's trying to steal Mikayla's spotlight!"
Cody's eyes had been casting concerned looks towards his girl, but London's complaints drew his attention. He moved to the heiress and tried to help his twin calm her down.
"Just stay put," Cody said. "If you charge into the middle of this it could make things worse."
But the rich girl was not one to be easily dissuaded. And she was also, as Zack well knew, remarkably strong for someone her size. The twins were stunned when she pulled away from both of them. Fortunately, Carey and Jim had noticed her by that point. Jim reached out as she tried to pass by and caught her in a gentle but firm bear hug. With the pronounced differences in their heights, it was simple for him to simply stand up straight and hold her so that her feet couldn't reach the floor. At the same time, Carey quickly got in the girl's face and gave her a stern look.
"Young lady you will settle down this instant," she ordered. Her authoritative tone was enough to make London comply. Jim let the heiress stand on the floor again, and then all of them just looked to the two teen singers who were the center of attention.
"Mikayla, I'm sorry for surprising you," Hannah said. "And I'm not here to fight. Please just let me say something and then I'll go."
The stunned Mikayla couldn't think of anything to do but listen to her rival.
Hannah turned to address the audience in the studio and the millions of television viewers who were tuned in.
"Everybody has seen or heard about the big feud between the two of us. It's been all over the news for over a month now. It seems like a lot of you can't get enough of it." A flash of anger appeared in her eyes and she raised her voice. "But I've had enough of it! I'm sick to death of it." She pointed to Mikayla. "You see her…you see me. We're not some sort of gladiators that you get to watch fight for amusement. We're just two people who try and entertain you. Why can't you just leave it at that?"
"But Hannah," the show's host spoke up, earning him a dirty look from the southern singer. "Nobody was interested in this feud, or even knew about it, until you launched that tirade against Mikayla that was caught on tape."
"That's true," the pop star conceded. "I said some nasty things about Mikayla, and everyone found out about it. And now a lot of people think I'm a horrible person." She paused. "But some people don't. I've got some fans out there that have reacted by going around and saying that Mikayla's a horrible person. And I have a message for those people in particular."
Hannah started directly into the main camera.
"Cut it out!" she yelled angrily. "Seriously, what are you thinking? You saw a tape of me saying some stupid things and you react by saying stupider things?" She took a deep breath and then continued in a quieter tone. "I have always appreciated the support my fans have given me. And I realize that many of you out there now are doing what you're doing because you want to help me. But I'm telling you...it's not helping. I'm asking you to stop. And if you don't want to stop, then I don't want you as my fans."
Standing off to the side with Robbie Ray, Lola gasped. "Does she know what she's doing?"
Hannah's father nodded silently.
Back in front of the cameras, Hannah continued speaking. "Y'all seem to want some big showdown between Mikayla and me. Newspapers are taking polls about us. Which one is more popular? Which one is going to sell more records? Those are the questions you seem to care about. Well, I don't care about it. Not anymore. I think there's more than enough room in the music business for both her and me. But if I'm wrong…if for some reason the whole wide world only wants one of us to be successful…then I think it should be Mikayla."
As millions of people around the world reacted in shock at those words, the show's host once again spoke up.
"What are you saying Hannah?" he asked.
Before the girl could answer, several of the show's crew members started motioning frantically off-camera. The host saw this and quickly spoke again.
"Sorry, one second…we have to break for some commercials," he explained. "Hannah you can continue when we return live." He looked to the camera. "Stay tuned."
With the broadcast temporarily interrupted, Mikayla turned to her rival. "What are you doing?"
"I'm just trying to end this," Hannah replied.
All of Mikayla's friends took the opportunity to finally make their way to the girl's side. Robbie Ray and Lola similarly joined Hannah. However the two stars kept their attention focused on one another.
"I appreciate what you're trying to do," Mikayla said. "But I--"
"I know," Hannah cut her off. "If you say something that your record label doesn't approve of…you're in trouble. That's okay. Don't say anything."
"But I have to say something," the girl countered. "I can't just let you--"
Once again, Mikayla found herself interrupted, as the show's host quickly announced to everyone that the show would be live again in less than a minute.
Mikayla looked to Carey and then to Jim. Her manager's expression was conflicted, but only for a split second. He leaned forward and whispered to the girl.
"Whatever you want to do, I've got your back."
Carey was close enough to overhear those words, and she gave Jim a look of admiration before turning to Mikayla and giving her a hug. "We're all behind you," she said.
There was no time for further conversation. But Cody reached out quickly and squeezed Mikayla's hand once before retreating off to the side. When the show's broadcast resumed Mikayla, Hannah and the show's host were the only ones left within the camera's view.
"Now Hannah," the host began. "You--"
"No," Mikayla interjected forcefully. "It's my turn now." Now she was the one who stepped forward to address the show's vast audience. "Everyone is blaming Hannah because of what she said about me. But did you ever think I might have said things just as bad about her? I have. The only difference is that nobody ever filmed me doing it."
The dark-haired singer went on to explain that the problems between Hannah and herself didn't start with the now famous tape of Hannah's rant. She gave a brief but accurate account of how there'd always been friction between them, and admitted that she been the one responsible for it.
"But by the time I saw how childish and wrong I'd been, everything started to go crazy," Mikayla went on. "I was ready to make peace with Hannah and she was ready to make peace with me…but too many people want us to keep fighting. I don't want to fight anymore."
She turned from looking directly into the camera and faced her fellow pop star.
"I'm sorry for all the mean things I've ever said to you," she said.
"And I'm sorry for what I've said about you," came the reply.
There was a slight hesitation after that. A moment of awkwardness that passed surprisingly quickly. Then, with millions watching, the two girls embraced.
The show ended, and once again Mikayla and Hannah were surrounded by their loved ones. Cody hugged Mikayla and kissed her, telling her how proud he was of her actions. A sentiment that was echoed by everyone.
Hannah, who was getting her own congratulations, was surprised by a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see London Tipton staring her in the face.
"You're really not going to be mean to Mikayla anymore?" the heiress asked as she stared unblinking at the pop star.
"No," she answered, a bit unnerved by London's gaze. "I don't want any trouble with her ever again."
London's entire expression transformed instantly. "Great," she said with a bright smile. "Now we can all be friends. Yay!" She gave Hannah a quick hug and then skipped back to Mikayla and company.
"That girl scares me a little," Lola commented.
"Uh huh," Hannah agreed.
A little while after the show had ended, the two singers and all their companions were heading for the back exit. London had insisted that everyone should go out for a celebratory dinner together before parting ways. While many of them were still concerned about what was going to happen with the media reaction and Mikayla's record company, it was hard to argue with the rich girl's enthusiasm.
But just as the group was reaching the exit, an angry voice called out. "Stop right there!"
The group turned around to see and uptight looking woman in a business suit marching towards them.
"Who's that?" Robbie Ray asked.
"Ms. Quigley," Jim answered. "She works for Mr. Tipton."
Without offering a greeting, the woman began speaking angrily as she walked up to Jim. "I just so happened to be in the New York offices of Tipton industries, when I received a phone call about Mikayla's unauthorized comments on a live television broadcast. How could you allow this?"
"It's what she wanted to do," he replied. "And if you ask me, it's good publicity."
"Nobody asked you," Quigley snapped. "You were well aware of the marketing plan we have in place for Mikayla…and it did not involve ending the feud with Hannah Montana."
"Then I guess you'd better change the plan," Carey spoke up. Just as in their last encounter, Carey refused to be intimidated. In fact, she decided to try some intimidating of her own. She walked right up to Quigley and stared down at the shorter woman. Quigley didn't show any fear in her expression, but did take a noticeable step backwards.
"I hope you're all very satisfied," the unpleasant woman said. "You've just destroyed Mikayla's career. Consider the album cancelled."
Several people started speaking at once, pointing out the stupidity and pettiness of that move, but a loud shrill whistle cut through the din.
Everyone turned to see that it the sound had come from London.
"You can't cancel Mikayla's album," she said with just a touch of petulance in her voice.
"You have to listen to her," Zack added. "You work for her dad."
Ms. Quigley was entirely unimpressed. She ignored London and addressed Zack. "Mr. Tipton does not want his daughter interfering with any further business matters. He made that very clear after the fiasco with the Hannah Montana clothing line."
"We'll just see about that," the heiress said as she pulled out her phone.
"Go ahead and call," the businesswoman said in a dismissive tone. "And then tell all of us what he says."
"Oh, I know what he's going to say," London replied matter-of-factly as she looked at Quigley. "He's going to say that it's none of my business and that I have to listen to you."
Surprised that the girl realized this, Quigley nonetheless responded in an arrogant tone. "Exactly."
"And he'll say that when I call him the next time," the heiress continued. "And the next time. And the next time. And…" She went on for quite some time before letting out a low chuckle. "You get the picture?" Do you know how many phone calls I can make in just one day?"
Ms. Quigley said nothing as an evil smile appeared on London's face.
"When Daddy gets annoyed with an employee he fires them," the rich girl said. "But I'm not an employee, I'm his little girl." She folded her arms across her chest in a satisfied manner. "If I decide to make this all about me versus you, do you really think you have a chance Quigley?"
Everyone saw the look of nervousness on the businesswoman's face. When she finally spoke again, her tone was far less strident.
"Since we are so close to the release date," she said. "I suppose it wouldn't make much business sense to cancel the album now."
"So I guess you should go work on changing the marketing plan," Jim said. "Shouldn't you…Quigley?" He deliberately mimicked the way London had said her name a moment earlier…his way of pointing out that they'd all enjoyed watching the woman being beaten by a teenage girl.
Ms. Quigley turned and left without another word. Everyone else looked to London, who once more had a big, cheerful smile on her face.
"Yay me!" she said brightly while clapping her hands.
Mikayla burst out laughing and hugged her best friend. "You are awesome!"
"That she is," Zack said as he gently separated the two girls so that he could take over hugging the heiress. "Well done, babe." Then he added a kiss to the hug.
Cody came up behind Mikayla and encircled her with his arms. "I don't think they should have all the fun," he whispered. The singer responded by turning into his embrace and kissing him enthusiastically.
After a moment, Carey loudly cleared her throat. The teens ignored her. Jim laughed.
"If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," he said before giving her a quick kiss. She smiled and decided to give the two young couples a bit longer before clearing her throat again.
Watching the affectionate displays, Hannah thought about her actor boyfriend who was off working on the other side of the country.
"I wish Jake were here," she sighed.
"I wish Oliver were here," Lola chimed in.
"I really need to get a girlfriend," Robbie Ray commented.
Finally all the kissing couples separated and once again the entire group headed for the exit. But suddenly Mikayla spoke up.
"Wait a second," she said. "What happened to Miley and Lily?"
To be continued...
author's note: I think the next chapter will be the big finale. What did you think of this chapter? Is there anything in particular anyone wants to see before it's all finished? (I already know one thing that some people really want to see...but I'm curious if there are other hopes and/or suggestions.) Thanks so much to all of you who've stuck with the story this far. Please review.