Greetings, dear readers. And welcome back to Bayley's Universe! Now, if you all will remember from last time, it looks like Sasha's going to have a practice partner in Seth for her upcoming musical lessons in Drama. And let's not forget the strange gift Bayley got from her dad (three rocks in a box...how bizarre). So, after a night of practice, how will the first day of musical lessons in Drama go for our magenta-haired cinnamon roll? Read on to find out, my loves, and I hope you all enjoy. =)

Thursday came. And with it came a new day of school, one that would bring about the start of learning new things.

"And people actually think selling bones for decorating is a good idea?" Shayna asked that morning as she stood outside of the school building and looked at the raven-haired girl before her squeezing some kind of plush toy made in the shape of what she remembered Paige told her was a skeleton dressed in some form of apparel with Lana and Nia doing the same, the older three girls all sharing similar looks of confusion mixed with curiosity.

"Not just for decorating, Shayna love," Paige said as she smiled at her toy. "They can also be used just for comfy times."

"Really? That's …nice, I guess," the brunette nodded, even though she was still feeling very much in the dark about this. 'But if it's something some humans think is fun, then …can't hurt to learn more about this.'

Laughing a bit at the older teen, Paige said "Don't you worry, Shayna. You're in good spooky hands with me. I'll show you some of the finer and funner points of the Halloween season."

"Looking forward to it, Paige," the brunette nodded as she thought 'Well, this sounds like a point of no return, so …best to just go on and see what's next.'

Meanwhile with Sasha, she had seemingly taken to the start of her musical practice with Seth well enough. …If not for a few hiccups with what came with the first of his lessons.

"So, your uncle Seth seriously got a bit ticked that you didn't dress up in a costume?" Mia asked as she walked along to school with Sasha, Bayley, and Sami.

"Yes, well, …it's just because he can get fairly serious when it comes to things related to the field of Drama. He actually took part in a number of plays over the years where he'd take the roles he had quite seriously," the magenta-haired teen explained, memories of some of Seth's past play roles coming back to her. "I'm guessing he just wants to make sure I'll do well when it comes to my parts I'll be having."

"Well, I wouldn't worry too much about that, Sash," Bayley piped up, remembering how Sasha's first round of practice went. "With the way you sang that horseman song, I'd say your first musical lesson'll go just fine. And who knows? Maybe when the school does a musical, that could be something you could maybe audition for."

"Thanks, Bayley, I'll be sure to keep that in mind," the magenta-haired Gem nodded as the four made it to school. 'Well, I won't have too much longer to go until Drama, so hopefully my first class of musical scene practice will go well. …I can only hope.'

…

Humming a tune from a musical he had a part in years ago, Seth went about taking care of one of his usual daily duties, this one being washing the dirty dishes from yesterday's meals. This was a chore he didn't really mind doing, and with music being very much on his mind, the two-toned Gem was actually finding the work to go by a bit quicker than it usually did.

'I wonder how Sash's class has been going. I know it's just been one bit of practice we've had, but I'm sure she'll do fine, as it did seem like she was starting out on a good foot. All she'll have to do is keep in mind what we've touched on so far.'

A slight swell of pride starting to build within him as he grinned a bit, Seth's simple humming soon turned into him singing a song about a band of pirates from one of his favorite past roles. "Yo ho, blow the man down," the two-toned Gem sang, being careful to not be too loud so that he wouldn't disturb Dean, who was taking a nap, completely unaware of the glow that came from up in Bayley's "bedroom".

…

It was finally time. After making it through her four other classes and Lunch, it was finally time for Drama. And with it brought a new type of lesson for the students of Mr. Matt Harry's class.

"And, class, as Ms. Kanellis and I just showed, it can help to have good chemistry with your scene partner before the big musical numbers you'll have if you'll be performing a duet. Now, let's all give her a round of applause," Mr. Hardy said as he began a round of applause that the class contributed to. "Thanks again so much for coming to help me out here."

"No problem, Ma-I mean, Mr. Hardy. I had another break anyway, so I didn't mind coming to help out," the redhead said. "Now, I'd like to hang around and see how your class is going to do, but I should be heading back to the office now. I think Ms. McMahon may need my help with some student forms."

"Understandable. I won't keep you any longer."

"Thanks again. And good luck to all of you. I'm sure you guys's musical rounds are gonna go well," the redhead smiled before waving goodbye to the class and taking her leave, a few of the students saying "See you later" and other such things.

With Ms. Kanellis having gone, Mr. Hardy clapped his hands together. "As I did when class started, I'd like to start off with a trial number. Would anyone like to come up first and give it a try?"

Looking around the room and seeing that most of her fellow classmates seemed a bit nervous, Sasha took a breath and, with a slightly nervous swallow, raised her hand and said "Mr. Hardy? I …I'd like to give performing a number a try first."

"Wonderful, Ms. Ambrose. Excellent," Mr. Hardy said as the magenta-haired student reached the front of the room. Grabbing one of the pieces from the top of a pile on his desk, the Drama teacher gave it to the teenager. "Now, the paper I just gave you has a scene from a musical called The Hunchback of Notre Dame, where in this particular scene, you'll be playing the part of one of the main characters, the gypsy Esmerelda, who will be singing her song, 'God Help the Outcasts'."

"OK," Sasha nodded. The magenta-haired Gem knew of this musical, so the fact that she had such a big part with a big number was making her actually feel a bit nervous. 'But, it'll be okay. I've seen performers play this character in the past, so I'm sure I'll be able to embody the role of the gypsy girl well enough in my own right.'

"Excellent," the brunette teacher said with a reassuring smile. Taking his chair and moving it to the end of the front row of seats, Mr. Hardy took his seat before saying "And, action!"

So! Looks like a fair bit of stuff happened this chapter. Shayna's getting a new lesson in Spooky Season Appreciation from Paige, which seems to have drawn the attention of Lana and Nia (at least Paige decided to use her skelly plushe as a teaching aide...sounds pretty cute). Seth's feeling so proud of how his first bit of musical practice with Sasha went that's got him in a bit of a musical mood himself (which seems to have caused something to happen in Bayley's "bedroom"...ruh-roh, that might not be good). And finally, we get to Drama class, where after an example with the help of Ms. Kanellis, Mr. Hardy launches into his first lesson, with Sasha being the first to step up for a chance to have a performance of her own (and whoa, sounds like she's got a pretty powerful song to sing). So (again)! We've some stuff to look forward to next chapter. Just how will Paige's next spooky season lesson go? Just what was that weird glow that came from Bayley's "bedroom"? And, the biggest question here, how will Sasha's performance go? These questions and more shall be answered...next time! Until then, don't forget to RR please. =)

(Stay safe and healthy out there, lovelies. *sends much love and many big and extra positive vibes out to you all*)