Sunnydale High School Drama Presents
by Ben: The Vampire Hunter
b_church@yahoo.com
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Part 5: Kareoke and Understudy's Glory
"All right everybody!" Joe called from the stage. "Just a
reminder that you can come and take over the mike any time, just be aware that
if you suck, you will be removed from it."
He pulled a hat from the stool next to him and held it aloft.
"I have in my hand, the hat of requests!" He reached in for the first
selection."
"Knowing this crowd," Cordy grumbled. "It'll be some lame
show tune."
She was immediately proved wrong as heavy guitar music split
the air. Offspring.
At another table, Izzy, Ziggy, Ben and Nicole sat discussing
the events of the day. And further back.
"Personally," Ziggy said, glancing in the direction of Xander
and Cordelia. "I don't know what he sees in her. Okay," he corrected.
"Physically yes, but other than that?"
"Some people can't look beyond that." Nicole said.
Ben thought for a moment. "But from you two have told me," he
pointed to Izzy and Ziggy. "And from my own observations, her
relationship with Xander has changed her somewhat."
"How so?"
"Well, she just doesn't seem as Evil Incarnate as she used to
be."
"That's right." Izzy grinned evilly. "And we're helping her
grow up some more." Then she sobered. "She's not as much fun to
torture as I thought she'd be."
"Yeah," Ziggy agreed. "It's like she's maturing or something,
and we haven't even gotten to laugh at her or tell her off."
Izzy sighed. "Oh well."
Buffy sat nearby with Willow and Oz. She'd overheard the
theater kids' conversation. She remembered an encounter with Nicole
early last year.
"Did you really attack Cordelia at the Bronze last night?"
the girl had asked.
"Well," Buffy stammered. "It was an accident!"
Nicole had shaken her head sadly.
"Great," Buffy'd thought. "Now total strangers think I'm
nuts!"
"I'd have finished the job." she'd heard Nicole mutter as she
stalked away. Buffy wasn't sure whether or not to feel better.
"Are we breaking a rule?" Willow asked.
"How so?" Oz looked at her quizzically.
"Well, I mean, crew, cast and band hanging out together? Isn't that against the
rules?"
"Nope." Buffy reassured her. "Micky said it's okay since we're not on theater time.
It's more good natured ribbing than any sort of clique thing."
"Oh," Nicole cried, suddenly remembering something. She dug
into her backpack which she'd conveniently brought along. "Ben
I'm finished with that comic you lent me. She handed him an issue of
Johnny: The Homicidal Maniac.
In the back, shrouded by darkness, a sinister figure lurked.
"What's Buffy doing hanging out with this crowd?" Angelus
thought. Being a regular visitor to the Bronze, he'd gotten to know
who came what days. The only people who came to Kareoke night were the
theater geeks. This would bear some investigating.
In the meantime, he stood, enjoying the music. He'd never
known Joe to give a bad performance. It was weird, his enjoyment of
the boy's singing had been the only thing he'd retained when he'd lost
his soul again. He smiled. A number of the requests in the hat were
his. He liked Oldies.
"Oh god." Willow fretted. "Oh god." She paced back and forth
across the floor of the Green Room, more nervous than she had ever
been. Today was the Understudy Rehearsal. She and Ben had been the
first to arrive.
Ben, in contrast to the frantic girl, was sitting calmly,
alternating his time between reading a Sci-Fi book, and watching Willow
wear a rut in the floor.
"How can you be so calm?" Willow asked him finally.
"Well," Ben said. "For one thing, I've done this before. I've
been in the theater for four years, and you're just starting out. I've
also been an Understudy many times."
"How did you deal with it the first time?"
"That's the weird thing." Ben said. "I expected it to like,
paralyze me, but it didn't. I just sort of used the energy it gave
me." He set his book down. "The thing to remember is, this is just a
rehearsal. Half the understudies are going to be on book anyway. So,
since you're off book, you'll look good anyway."
Willow smiled. "But what if something happens to Andrea?"
she worried.
Ben hastily knocked on the wood of the piano. "Don't worry."
he grinned. "By being prepared for such an event, you've pretty well
made sure it won't happen."
Willow smiled at this, her nervousness abated somewhat. Ben
silently congratulated himself. "C'mon." he said, heading for the
stage. "Let's knock 'em dead."
Ben winced as he hit a wrong note. Then he winced again as
a loud buzzer sounded. "Whose bright idea was the Suck Button anyway?"
In the booth, Christi and Justin laughed.
Fortunately, it was one of the few mistakes that had been made.
That wasn't saying a whole lot however, for the rehearsal had just
started, and they were still on Skid Row.
Once the song ended, the rehearsal proceeded as expected. For
the most part.
"Oh crap." Cordelia swore.
"What's wrong?" Micky asked, thinking maybe the other crew
members had pulled another prank.
"I can't get this old set piece apart. The screw's stripped."
"Cordy can't screw?" Ziggy asked.
"Those jokes are really old now!" Cordy growled.
"Here." Micky handed her a hammer.
"Oh thanks!" she smiled. "This should work just fine. I don't
suppose you could hold Ziggy down too?"
Micky grinned. She was really starting to go native. She set
to work hammering the old set piece apart.
"This is gonna be a piece of cake." Buffy smiled. She'd been
given the duty of hammering nails. And then left on her own. Starting
the first nail a little, she then hit it with all her strength.
The nail went right through the wood, and then through the
floor.
"Whoops," Buffy thought. "Better pull my punches a little
here."
"But won't it hurt?" Ben asked plaintively.
"Only until you pass out." Kamau grinned sadistically.
"Hold it!" Dean called from the audience. "Take it back a
bit!"
Ben shrugged and started again from a few lines before.
"Hey," he said. "That thing's rusty!"
"Well it's an antique." Kamau explained. "They don't make
'em like this any more. Sturdy, reliable, dull."
That's when the hammering started.
"DON'T I GET ANY NOVOCAIN OR SOMETHING?" Ben shouted over the
din, in the process his voice lost most of it's emotion.
"WHY?" Kamau shouted as well. The hammering stopped. But
Kamau and Ben had been set off. Silliness entered the picture.
"IT'S GONNA HURT!" Ben shouted, grinning. He deliberately had
no emotion at all in his voice.
"ONLY UNTIL YOU PASS OUT!" Kamau shouted back, following suit.
"Woah!" Dean yelled, stopping them before they could continue.
"Save it for the F-Up rehearsal!"
To be continued... (
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