Chapter 2
New chapter, 2nd of, probably, 4.
Title: Run, Juliet!!!!!
Description: Set in Buffy, season 3, sometime between "Consequences" and "Enemies." Harmony goes out for the school play.
Characters: Harmony, Andrew, Wesley, Faith, Cordelia, Snyder. . . no Core Four; I’m trying a “Zeppo” kind of thing here.
Note: Remember, since this is season 3, Harmony is still human, not a vampire.
Rating: PG
Disclaimers: Not mine.
Written for: harmficathon, at mosca's request (she asked for Harmony & Andrew, with reference to Margaret Atwood’s poem “Bored”); crazydiamondsue suggested the premise, and title.
February 19, 1999
All right, so I totally wasn’t planning to go back to play practice again, but then I came home and my mom had put all these job applications on my bed - April Fools, the expresso place, even Doublemeat Palace. And I thought - this is what’s in store for me if I stay in Sunnydale? So I started thinking about what I needed to do to get into college, and I even thought maybe I should at least look at my homework.
So I opened up the English book, and I’ve got to say, Mr. Fury knows what he’s talking about with the reading assignment, because as soon as I looked at the book, I was bored, and the poem we were supposed to read was even called Bored. I woudn’t say that I really got what the poet lady was talking about (why do poetrists use so many words instead of just saying what they mean???), but this part made some sense:
I could hardly wait to get
the hell out of there to
anywhere else.
I could totally see why Mr. Fury assigned that (he probably wishes HE could go to Spain too - and for real! Me, I’d rather go to France, because honestly, I think sangria is just nasty).
But then I read some more and it went like this:
Perhaps though
boredom is happier. It is for dogs or
groundhogs. Now I wouldn't be bored.
Now I would know too much.
Groundhogs? Now I ask you, what’s that about? If some of these crazy ladies would just take their medication, we wouldn’t have to deal with all this poetry!
So I got “bored” with Bored pretty quickly, so I decided to look at the script for the play that Wesley gave us. I pretty much just flipped through it to look at Juliet’s lines (because, duh, if I’m going to do this dumb play, I’m totally being Juliet! The only other girls are people’s moms and some dumb nurse!) One thing I did find was the thing about pilgrims that Tucker’s brother was saying in the cafeteria yesterday. It turns out that it’s from the play! It’s something Romeo says. (And does Andrew Wells seriously think he’s going to play Romeo when I’m Juliet? OK, I mean, the only other guy trying out is Larry, but Larry used to play football! There’s just no competition).
Wesley said we just had to memorize a short speech, so I was going to do the one that Juliet has, right after that, but it was totally confusing. I mean, I never heard of Pilgrims kissing. I’d think their funny hats and belt buckles and stuff would get in the way. So instead I just learned the “Romeo Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo?” part (I knew most of it already, and everybody knows acting is all about expressiveness and emotionalism and stuff, anyway.
So all day today I was going through the lines in my head, plus I wrote them out in my notebook during English class when Mr. Fury was being boring about the “boring” poem. I sort of set it to a rhythm in my head, so it was more like learning a cheer than memorizing a speech and stuff, and that helped. Still, I went to the cafetorium a little early and sat backstage so I could go over the speech in my head (I really am a very conscientious student when I apply my mind to a task, even Mr. Fury says so; it’s just linearity that is a problem!)
So anyway, that’s why I was there when Wesley and Principal Snyder came in, and I totally didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but it seemed like they were in an argument, and I didn’t want to create a situation that was awkward for anybody. There’s my conscientiousity again! Maybe I can get Wesley to write a letter to San Diego State and explain that about me, except then, I guess I would have to admit I was accidentally eavesdropping, so it’s not such a hot idea.
Besides, from what I could tell from overhearing them, Wesley is not even a real teacher!
He was trying to explain that to Snyder. “I simply do not think that I have sufficient qualifications for the job.”
“It’s Shakespeare,” said Snyder. “You’re a limey. I really don’t see the problem. Of course, if you’d rather do Grease again, the orchestra already knows the music.”
“No!” said Wesley, really fast. I thought that maybe he was afraid of something about Grease, like maybe he knew somebody like Sandy in high school, and she broke his heart, and maybe now he’s afraid of love now (or at least of girls) and that’s why he has a really old guy like Mr. Giles for his boyfriend. “Still, it will be difficult. We only have two weeks to put it on. I think the language might present a challenge."
“You know what language I understand, Pryce? Four hundred tickets. Five bucks a pop. Two thousand bucks in the school budget that we cannot afford to lose, no matter how many of our teachers move to Spain! You get it?”
“Yes, but I’m still not entirely certain why I. . .”
“Why you what? Trespass on school property, pretty much every damn day? Show an excessive and suspicious interest in certain female students?”
“Mr. Snyder, exactly what are you implying?”
“I don’t imply!” said Snyder. “I tell. And right now I’m telling you. I don’t care if you get those kids onstage to juggle porcupines and call it experimental theater. But if we don’t have some kind of school play ready to go two weeks from now, or you’d better be sure your green card is in order.”
“England is very nice this time of year,” said Wesley, like he sort of wished he was there. Then he kind of sighed and said, “Very well then.”
And just then I heard Cordelia bust through the door, and I stopped listening to them, and started going over the speech again in my head.
Be but sworn my love, and I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
Whatever a Capulet was. Weren’t they like the nuns who invented cappuccino? Well, whatever. I just hoped I was ready for my audition.
-TBC
Title: Run, Juliet!!!!!
Description: Set in Buffy, season 3, sometime between "Consequences" and "Enemies." Harmony goes out for the school play.
Characters: Harmony, Andrew, Wesley, Faith, Cordelia, Snyder. . . no Core Four; I’m trying a “Zeppo” kind of thing here.
Note: Remember, since this is season 3, Harmony is still human, not a vampire.
Rating: PG
Disclaimers: Not mine.
Written for: harmficathon, at mosca's request (she asked for Harmony & Andrew, with reference to Margaret Atwood’s poem “Bored”); crazydiamondsue suggested the premise, and title.
February 19, 1999
All right, so I totally wasn’t planning to go back to play practice again, but then I came home and my mom had put all these job applications on my bed - April Fools, the expresso place, even Doublemeat Palace. And I thought - this is what’s in store for me if I stay in Sunnydale? So I started thinking about what I needed to do to get into college, and I even thought maybe I should at least look at my homework.
So I opened up the English book, and I’ve got to say, Mr. Fury knows what he’s talking about with the reading assignment, because as soon as I looked at the book, I was bored, and the poem we were supposed to read was even called Bored. I woudn’t say that I really got what the poet lady was talking about (why do poetrists use so many words instead of just saying what they mean???), but this part made some sense:
I could hardly wait to get
the hell out of there to
anywhere else.
I could totally see why Mr. Fury assigned that (he probably wishes HE could go to Spain too - and for real! Me, I’d rather go to France, because honestly, I think sangria is just nasty).
But then I read some more and it went like this:
Perhaps though
boredom is happier. It is for dogs or
groundhogs. Now I wouldn't be bored.
Now I would know too much.
Groundhogs? Now I ask you, what’s that about? If some of these crazy ladies would just take their medication, we wouldn’t have to deal with all this poetry!
So I got “bored” with Bored pretty quickly, so I decided to look at the script for the play that Wesley gave us. I pretty much just flipped through it to look at Juliet’s lines (because, duh, if I’m going to do this dumb play, I’m totally being Juliet! The only other girls are people’s moms and some dumb nurse!) One thing I did find was the thing about pilgrims that Tucker’s brother was saying in the cafeteria yesterday. It turns out that it’s from the play! It’s something Romeo says. (And does Andrew Wells seriously think he’s going to play Romeo when I’m Juliet? OK, I mean, the only other guy trying out is Larry, but Larry used to play football! There’s just no competition).
Wesley said we just had to memorize a short speech, so I was going to do the one that Juliet has, right after that, but it was totally confusing. I mean, I never heard of Pilgrims kissing. I’d think their funny hats and belt buckles and stuff would get in the way. So instead I just learned the “Romeo Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo?” part (I knew most of it already, and everybody knows acting is all about expressiveness and emotionalism and stuff, anyway.
So all day today I was going through the lines in my head, plus I wrote them out in my notebook during English class when Mr. Fury was being boring about the “boring” poem. I sort of set it to a rhythm in my head, so it was more like learning a cheer than memorizing a speech and stuff, and that helped. Still, I went to the cafetorium a little early and sat backstage so I could go over the speech in my head (I really am a very conscientious student when I apply my mind to a task, even Mr. Fury says so; it’s just linearity that is a problem!)
So anyway, that’s why I was there when Wesley and Principal Snyder came in, and I totally didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but it seemed like they were in an argument, and I didn’t want to create a situation that was awkward for anybody. There’s my conscientiousity again! Maybe I can get Wesley to write a letter to San Diego State and explain that about me, except then, I guess I would have to admit I was accidentally eavesdropping, so it’s not such a hot idea.
Besides, from what I could tell from overhearing them, Wesley is not even a real teacher!
He was trying to explain that to Snyder. “I simply do not think that I have sufficient qualifications for the job.”
“It’s Shakespeare,” said Snyder. “You’re a limey. I really don’t see the problem. Of course, if you’d rather do Grease again, the orchestra already knows the music.”
“No!” said Wesley, really fast. I thought that maybe he was afraid of something about Grease, like maybe he knew somebody like Sandy in high school, and she broke his heart, and maybe now he’s afraid of love now (or at least of girls) and that’s why he has a really old guy like Mr. Giles for his boyfriend. “Still, it will be difficult. We only have two weeks to put it on. I think the language might present a challenge."
“You know what language I understand, Pryce? Four hundred tickets. Five bucks a pop. Two thousand bucks in the school budget that we cannot afford to lose, no matter how many of our teachers move to Spain! You get it?”
“Yes, but I’m still not entirely certain why I. . .”
“Why you what? Trespass on school property, pretty much every damn day? Show an excessive and suspicious interest in certain female students?”
“Mr. Snyder, exactly what are you implying?”
“I don’t imply!” said Snyder. “I tell. And right now I’m telling you. I don’t care if you get those kids onstage to juggle porcupines and call it experimental theater. But if we don’t have some kind of school play ready to go two weeks from now, or you’d better be sure your green card is in order.”
“England is very nice this time of year,” said Wesley, like he sort of wished he was there. Then he kind of sighed and said, “Very well then.”
And just then I heard Cordelia bust through the door, and I stopped listening to them, and started going over the speech again in my head.
Be but sworn my love, and I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
Whatever a Capulet was. Weren’t they like the nuns who invented cappuccino? Well, whatever. I just hoped I was ready for my audition.
-TBC