FIC: Disneyland Kadam
Tuesday's theme for 2013 Kadam Week is "Kadam AU". I've never worked for Disney, so this is probably wildly inaccurate, but it seemed like a fun idea. :)
Checking himself over critically in the mirror, Kurt adjusted the fit of his black doublet, making certain that the scarlet panels on its leg-of-mutton sleeves were perfectly puffed. Turning this way and that, he nodded in satisfaction, then pinned the costume’s short scarlet cloak perfectly into place around his stiff, stand up collar.
“You look very handsome, Prince Phillip,” a voice said from the doorway of the cast-member’s dressing area, drawing a smile from Kurt as he turned and bowed elegantly in her direction.
“And you look lovely, Princess Aurora,” he said, returning the compliment to his partner, Brittany Pearce.
He took a moment to admire how perfect she looked with her shimmering pink gown and a delicate crystal tiara perched atop her long blonde wig. It was a slightly darker shade than her own hair, but thicker and curlier. Kurt had been lucky enough not to require a wig, and did not envy the many cast members who did wear a head-covering in the blazing summer heat. It was bad enough that he had to spend his days in a velveteen doublet and cloak!
Brittany alternated the pink dress and the blue frequently, and refused to be called by her own name or to use any of her fellow cast members’ names while she was in costume. She devoted herself to the fantasy entirely, in appropriate Disneyland fashion.
“Is everyone ready? The parade starts in five minutes!” she said excitedly. Brittany dearly loved the character parade down Main Street, USA. She had never missed her cue by even one minute and was always anxious to see that no one else missed out on the fun either. “Have you seen John Smith?”
“Did we finally get a replacement?” he asked in surprise, not having met the newest member of their group. Usually they were introduced at the early morning staff meeting once they had completed character training. Santana (aka Pocahontas) had been working alone for several days due to her usual partner, Sebastian Smythe, having had an unfortunate encounter with a freshly spilled slushie over in Fantasyland that had resulted in a broken arm.
Blaine and Rachel, aka Aladdin and Jasmine, entered the staging area just in time to hear the exchange. “Yeah, we got a new transfer out from Florida last night. Luckily, they had a backup Smith trained and ready and he volunteered to come west,” Blaine said, adjusting his tiny purple fez in the mirror.
“I met him briefly this morning before the park opened,” Rachel said. “He’s very nice, and he has the character’s accent down pat! He never dropped it the entire time we were talking. I found his dedication very admirable. It’s not everyone who has as much discipline and work ethic as I do. In fact, I was thinking that maybe Santana and I should switch characters. I’m sure that Adam, that’s his name, and I would do a much better…”
“Can it, Jasmine,” Santana snapped, noticing that Brittany was beginning to look upset at this blatant disregard of their “real” Disney names. “You already bumped out Sunshine when the Arabian midget came along, even though she had the perfect look and the voice. There’s no way you could pass for one of my people.”
As Brittany and Santana walked out arm in arm, Blaine leaned over and whispered to Kurt, “Isn’t her heritage Mexican?”
“Yes, but that’s still a lot closer than an Irish and German Jewish milkshake,” he murmured back, smirking at Rachel’s eye roll. Glancing up at the clock over the door, he offered each of them an arm. “Shall we?”
Jasmine and Aladdin drew themselves up taller and pasted on their show faces, each smiling broadly as they hooked an elbow through one of Prince Phillip’s and allowed him to escort them to their stage. Brittany was already on board the Sleeping Beauty stage - all the Disney couples were placed upon small individual platforms on a large float, traveling in a group down Main Street.
Just as the wranglers began hustling everyone into place and checking the timing of each group to insure that everyone traveled along the parade route in perfectly timed order, a young man came rushing up to the float.
He was tall, blond - Kurt could tell he was wearing a wig but his eyebrows suggested that the color was probably accurate - and tanned, with crinkly blue eyes and a bright but nervous-looking smile. He was dressed in the blue clothes, broad metallic chest plate and helmet of character John Smith, and Kurt could not help but notice that he filled out his armor far better than Sebastian - who had also been tall but rather on the skinny side - ever had.
“I’m sorry to be late on my first day!” he puffed. “I couldn’t get the buckles on this wretched chest plate fastened! Can you tell me where Pocahontas’ stage…um…oh.”
His eyes met Kurt’s and for a moment, both men went still, right hands spontaneously reaching out for one another and clasping with a shock of electricity that made them both gasp.
“Yo! Blondie!” Santana barked, breaking the moment as she waved her arm to get the new guy’s attention. “Get your gorgeous little tush over here before the parade starts or Miss Sylvester will scalp you for being a deserter!”
The mention of the character coordinator who had hired them all - nobody but nobody got approved to work here without at least two interviews and the express written approval of Sue Sylvester - had his bronzed face paling in alarm. “Right, coming. Sorry!” He began to hustle away, then paused, looking back at Kurt. “May I ask your name?”
“His name is Phillip,” Brittany chirped, looping her arm through Kurt’s and smiling hugely. “He’s my prince! I’m Aurora. Are you John? You don’t look like the last John Smith, but I think you’re very handsome! You’d better go or Pocahontas will get her magic tree to put a spell on you.”
Blinking in surprise, as if he had not even noticed her in spite of her hot pink ball gown, the new man just smiled and nodded. “Ah. Perhaps later then.”
Making sure that Brittany did not see him, Kurt pointed to his chest and mouthed “Kurt!”
The blond man grinned and mouthed back, “Adam”, giving a little tug to his conquistador helmet.
He said nothing more, jogging away to take his place on the Native American inspired section of the float and whisper a quiet introduction to Santana, who whispered something back, gesturing quickly over to Kurt and Brittany and then grinning with a wickedness that Disney artists had never dreamed of giving their noble Pocahontas. Whatever she said, it had her new partner blushing and grinning like a flattered schoolboy as he glanced again at Kurt.
The float lurched slightly as it began to move forward along the parade route, and Kurt faced forward, breaking his line of sight to the other couple, but today all through the parade his own show-face had no trouble staying in place. His smile was entirely genuine as he waved and threw silk roses to cute little girls (and a couple of shy, hopeful-looking little boys who clearly felt the same way about the handsome fairy-tale prince that Kurt himself once had) who waited along the parade route.
The parade was timed so that each of the couples got to sing - and waltz in Kurt and Brittany’s case - a chorus of their signature couple song. He and Brittany sang “Once Upon a Dream”, then Rachel and Blaine took over with “A Whole New World”, and then Kurt’s ears pricked up as Santana and Adam sang a couple of verses from “If I Never Knew You”. That song was from the soundtrack rather than being set within the film itself, but the crowd never seemed to care one bit when it was performed.
Vaguely, he was aware of the other couples in their group singing their designated parts, but Kurt did not really pay them any attention. His mind was still reeling a bit from the attractive baritone voice of their newest cast-member. He was barely even aware of it when the float reached its final destination and Brittany had to tug his arm to get him to disembark.
“Come on, Phillip! We have to go say hello to the guests,” she reminded him.
“Huh? Oh … right. I’ll be there in a minute,” he said, craning his neck in hopes of seeing “John Smith” again.
After the parade, each couple was on duty for a couple of hours of strolling through the park greeting guests and posing for photos before it would be time to report back to one of the many stages around the park for a performance of their story. Sleeping Beauty was always one of the most popular shows, especially with little girls, and Kurt loved every minute of it. Today he was just a little bit … distracted.
“He’s cute, isn’t he?” Blaine murmured, elbowing him in the side with a playful grin.
The two of them had dated for a short time before deciding that they liked their relationship better as friends. Ever since they had passed on romance, however, Blaine had been playfully offering to set Kurt up with every cute gay man that came along. Even Sebastian Smythe, though his and Kurt’s personal chemistry had turned out to be an atomic explosion of mutual loathing.
Kurt wished he could have returned the favor with Blaine, just as payback, but his friend was now happily dating Trent Matthews, the cast member playing LaFou to this season’s Gaston - aka Kurt’s step-brother Finn Hudson.
“Who’s cute?” he mumbled, busily straightening his costume and brushing at the fabric to insure its perfection before going out to face the crowd.
“Our new John Smith,” Blaine teased. “I saw that moment you two shared before the parade started. Oh, don’t deny it. You both practically had hearts popping out of your eyes. You liked him!”
Kurt flushed. “Was it that obvious?”
Blaine looked surprised when Kurt did not put up more of a protest. “Wow. You really liked him.” Before Kurt could think of a response, Blaine distracted him by perking up and waving his arm crazily in the air, jumping up and down to be better seen.
“What are you doing?” Kurt demanded with a laugh. “You’re Aladdin, not Tigger!”
Blaine shot him a broad wink and quietly sang, “Gotta go. Have fu-uuun!”
“Wait! Wha-“ But it was too late. Almost as if he really did have genie magic on his side, “Aladdin” had vanished, leaving Kurt gaping into empty space as his friend scurried off to join Rachel. They were due to perform their magic carpet ride for the guests in only a few minutes and had to hurry.
“Hello,” a low voice with that unmistakable accent greeted, making Kurt whirl around to find his newest co-worker smiling at him. “You’re Kurt, right?”
He nodded, pleased that his earlier pantomime had been understood. “Yes, and you’re Adam and apparently you weren’t just in character when Rachel met you earlier.” At his questioning look, he added, “The accent?”
The other man laughed. “Oh, no, it’s quite real. The character director at Disneyworld felt it would add to my authenticity. Luckily, Miss Sylvester agreed so here I am!” Santana called out for Adam, looking irritated. They had to meet-n-greet their way over to Frontier Land, where they would be giving their own stage performance soon. “Looks like I’m needed elsewhere. I just … wanted to say hello and to tell you how good I thought your performance was today. You have a breathtaking voice.”
He smiled shyly. “Thanks. You were great today. I’d never have guessed this was your first performance. Say, um,” he paused, hoping he was not being too bold considering they had just met. “Would you like to meet me after closing and maybe grab a cup of coffee or a drink somewhere. Get to know each other a little?”
Kurt waited nervously, realizing that he had not even firmly established that the other man played for his team. Then Adam smiled his big sunny smile and said, “Yeah, that’d be great. Meet you at the dressing rooms after final fireworks?”
“Perfect,” Kurt breathed, thrilling from head to toe. He rolled his eyes as Pocahontas bellowed again. “You’d better go or she might actually kill you. I’d hate to lose our first date to a random act of character-assassination.”
Adam laughed at the joke “I fear you’re right. Later then.”
“Right. See you later,” he said, watching as the other man walked away, then indulging in a little spontaneous happy dance right on the spot.
“Oh, good, you’re warmed up!” Brittany announced, reappearing by his side wearing her blue dress again. “We’re going to have a great show! Did you see all the girls in little versions of my dress out there today? Don’t you just love living in the Magic Kingdom?”
Kurt grinned. “You know, sometimes I really do!”
Flipping his cape back to settle just right against his shoulders, Prince Phillip threaded her arm through his own and escorted his Princess out of the staging area and out into the waiting crowd.
THE END
Checking himself over critically in the mirror, Kurt adjusted the fit of his black doublet, making certain that the scarlet panels on its leg-of-mutton sleeves were perfectly puffed. Turning this way and that, he nodded in satisfaction, then pinned the costume’s short scarlet cloak perfectly into place around his stiff, stand up collar.
“You look very handsome, Prince Phillip,” a voice said from the doorway of the cast-member’s dressing area, drawing a smile from Kurt as he turned and bowed elegantly in her direction.
“And you look lovely, Princess Aurora,” he said, returning the compliment to his partner, Brittany Pearce.
He took a moment to admire how perfect she looked with her shimmering pink gown and a delicate crystal tiara perched atop her long blonde wig. It was a slightly darker shade than her own hair, but thicker and curlier. Kurt had been lucky enough not to require a wig, and did not envy the many cast members who did wear a head-covering in the blazing summer heat. It was bad enough that he had to spend his days in a velveteen doublet and cloak!
Brittany alternated the pink dress and the blue frequently, and refused to be called by her own name or to use any of her fellow cast members’ names while she was in costume. She devoted herself to the fantasy entirely, in appropriate Disneyland fashion.
“Is everyone ready? The parade starts in five minutes!” she said excitedly. Brittany dearly loved the character parade down Main Street, USA. She had never missed her cue by even one minute and was always anxious to see that no one else missed out on the fun either. “Have you seen John Smith?”
“Did we finally get a replacement?” he asked in surprise, not having met the newest member of their group. Usually they were introduced at the early morning staff meeting once they had completed character training. Santana (aka Pocahontas) had been working alone for several days due to her usual partner, Sebastian Smythe, having had an unfortunate encounter with a freshly spilled slushie over in Fantasyland that had resulted in a broken arm.
Blaine and Rachel, aka Aladdin and Jasmine, entered the staging area just in time to hear the exchange. “Yeah, we got a new transfer out from Florida last night. Luckily, they had a backup Smith trained and ready and he volunteered to come west,” Blaine said, adjusting his tiny purple fez in the mirror.
“I met him briefly this morning before the park opened,” Rachel said. “He’s very nice, and he has the character’s accent down pat! He never dropped it the entire time we were talking. I found his dedication very admirable. It’s not everyone who has as much discipline and work ethic as I do. In fact, I was thinking that maybe Santana and I should switch characters. I’m sure that Adam, that’s his name, and I would do a much better…”
“Can it, Jasmine,” Santana snapped, noticing that Brittany was beginning to look upset at this blatant disregard of their “real” Disney names. “You already bumped out Sunshine when the Arabian midget came along, even though she had the perfect look and the voice. There’s no way you could pass for one of my people.”
As Brittany and Santana walked out arm in arm, Blaine leaned over and whispered to Kurt, “Isn’t her heritage Mexican?”
“Yes, but that’s still a lot closer than an Irish and German Jewish milkshake,” he murmured back, smirking at Rachel’s eye roll. Glancing up at the clock over the door, he offered each of them an arm. “Shall we?”
Jasmine and Aladdin drew themselves up taller and pasted on their show faces, each smiling broadly as they hooked an elbow through one of Prince Phillip’s and allowed him to escort them to their stage. Brittany was already on board the Sleeping Beauty stage - all the Disney couples were placed upon small individual platforms on a large float, traveling in a group down Main Street.
Just as the wranglers began hustling everyone into place and checking the timing of each group to insure that everyone traveled along the parade route in perfectly timed order, a young man came rushing up to the float.
He was tall, blond - Kurt could tell he was wearing a wig but his eyebrows suggested that the color was probably accurate - and tanned, with crinkly blue eyes and a bright but nervous-looking smile. He was dressed in the blue clothes, broad metallic chest plate and helmet of character John Smith, and Kurt could not help but notice that he filled out his armor far better than Sebastian - who had also been tall but rather on the skinny side - ever had.
“I’m sorry to be late on my first day!” he puffed. “I couldn’t get the buckles on this wretched chest plate fastened! Can you tell me where Pocahontas’ stage…um…oh.”
His eyes met Kurt’s and for a moment, both men went still, right hands spontaneously reaching out for one another and clasping with a shock of electricity that made them both gasp.
“Yo! Blondie!” Santana barked, breaking the moment as she waved her arm to get the new guy’s attention. “Get your gorgeous little tush over here before the parade starts or Miss Sylvester will scalp you for being a deserter!”
The mention of the character coordinator who had hired them all - nobody but nobody got approved to work here without at least two interviews and the express written approval of Sue Sylvester - had his bronzed face paling in alarm. “Right, coming. Sorry!” He began to hustle away, then paused, looking back at Kurt. “May I ask your name?”
“His name is Phillip,” Brittany chirped, looping her arm through Kurt’s and smiling hugely. “He’s my prince! I’m Aurora. Are you John? You don’t look like the last John Smith, but I think you’re very handsome! You’d better go or Pocahontas will get her magic tree to put a spell on you.”
Blinking in surprise, as if he had not even noticed her in spite of her hot pink ball gown, the new man just smiled and nodded. “Ah. Perhaps later then.”
Making sure that Brittany did not see him, Kurt pointed to his chest and mouthed “Kurt!”
The blond man grinned and mouthed back, “Adam”, giving a little tug to his conquistador helmet.
He said nothing more, jogging away to take his place on the Native American inspired section of the float and whisper a quiet introduction to Santana, who whispered something back, gesturing quickly over to Kurt and Brittany and then grinning with a wickedness that Disney artists had never dreamed of giving their noble Pocahontas. Whatever she said, it had her new partner blushing and grinning like a flattered schoolboy as he glanced again at Kurt.
The float lurched slightly as it began to move forward along the parade route, and Kurt faced forward, breaking his line of sight to the other couple, but today all through the parade his own show-face had no trouble staying in place. His smile was entirely genuine as he waved and threw silk roses to cute little girls (and a couple of shy, hopeful-looking little boys who clearly felt the same way about the handsome fairy-tale prince that Kurt himself once had) who waited along the parade route.
The parade was timed so that each of the couples got to sing - and waltz in Kurt and Brittany’s case - a chorus of their signature couple song. He and Brittany sang “Once Upon a Dream”, then Rachel and Blaine took over with “A Whole New World”, and then Kurt’s ears pricked up as Santana and Adam sang a couple of verses from “If I Never Knew You”. That song was from the soundtrack rather than being set within the film itself, but the crowd never seemed to care one bit when it was performed.
Vaguely, he was aware of the other couples in their group singing their designated parts, but Kurt did not really pay them any attention. His mind was still reeling a bit from the attractive baritone voice of their newest cast-member. He was barely even aware of it when the float reached its final destination and Brittany had to tug his arm to get him to disembark.
“Come on, Phillip! We have to go say hello to the guests,” she reminded him.
“Huh? Oh … right. I’ll be there in a minute,” he said, craning his neck in hopes of seeing “John Smith” again.
After the parade, each couple was on duty for a couple of hours of strolling through the park greeting guests and posing for photos before it would be time to report back to one of the many stages around the park for a performance of their story. Sleeping Beauty was always one of the most popular shows, especially with little girls, and Kurt loved every minute of it. Today he was just a little bit … distracted.
“He’s cute, isn’t he?” Blaine murmured, elbowing him in the side with a playful grin.
The two of them had dated for a short time before deciding that they liked their relationship better as friends. Ever since they had passed on romance, however, Blaine had been playfully offering to set Kurt up with every cute gay man that came along. Even Sebastian Smythe, though his and Kurt’s personal chemistry had turned out to be an atomic explosion of mutual loathing.
Kurt wished he could have returned the favor with Blaine, just as payback, but his friend was now happily dating Trent Matthews, the cast member playing LaFou to this season’s Gaston - aka Kurt’s step-brother Finn Hudson.
“Who’s cute?” he mumbled, busily straightening his costume and brushing at the fabric to insure its perfection before going out to face the crowd.
“Our new John Smith,” Blaine teased. “I saw that moment you two shared before the parade started. Oh, don’t deny it. You both practically had hearts popping out of your eyes. You liked him!”
Kurt flushed. “Was it that obvious?”
Blaine looked surprised when Kurt did not put up more of a protest. “Wow. You really liked him.” Before Kurt could think of a response, Blaine distracted him by perking up and waving his arm crazily in the air, jumping up and down to be better seen.
“What are you doing?” Kurt demanded with a laugh. “You’re Aladdin, not Tigger!”
Blaine shot him a broad wink and quietly sang, “Gotta go. Have fu-uuun!”
“Wait! Wha-“ But it was too late. Almost as if he really did have genie magic on his side, “Aladdin” had vanished, leaving Kurt gaping into empty space as his friend scurried off to join Rachel. They were due to perform their magic carpet ride for the guests in only a few minutes and had to hurry.
“Hello,” a low voice with that unmistakable accent greeted, making Kurt whirl around to find his newest co-worker smiling at him. “You’re Kurt, right?”
He nodded, pleased that his earlier pantomime had been understood. “Yes, and you’re Adam and apparently you weren’t just in character when Rachel met you earlier.” At his questioning look, he added, “The accent?”
The other man laughed. “Oh, no, it’s quite real. The character director at Disneyworld felt it would add to my authenticity. Luckily, Miss Sylvester agreed so here I am!” Santana called out for Adam, looking irritated. They had to meet-n-greet their way over to Frontier Land, where they would be giving their own stage performance soon. “Looks like I’m needed elsewhere. I just … wanted to say hello and to tell you how good I thought your performance was today. You have a breathtaking voice.”
He smiled shyly. “Thanks. You were great today. I’d never have guessed this was your first performance. Say, um,” he paused, hoping he was not being too bold considering they had just met. “Would you like to meet me after closing and maybe grab a cup of coffee or a drink somewhere. Get to know each other a little?”
Kurt waited nervously, realizing that he had not even firmly established that the other man played for his team. Then Adam smiled his big sunny smile and said, “Yeah, that’d be great. Meet you at the dressing rooms after final fireworks?”
“Perfect,” Kurt breathed, thrilling from head to toe. He rolled his eyes as Pocahontas bellowed again. “You’d better go or she might actually kill you. I’d hate to lose our first date to a random act of character-assassination.”
Adam laughed at the joke “I fear you’re right. Later then.”
“Right. See you later,” he said, watching as the other man walked away, then indulging in a little spontaneous happy dance right on the spot.
“Oh, good, you’re warmed up!” Brittany announced, reappearing by his side wearing her blue dress again. “We’re going to have a great show! Did you see all the girls in little versions of my dress out there today? Don’t you just love living in the Magic Kingdom?”
Kurt grinned. “You know, sometimes I really do!”
Flipping his cape back to settle just right against his shoulders, Prince Phillip threaded her arm through his own and escorted his Princess out of the staging area and out into the waiting crowd.
THE END