Chapter 16

On wednesday morning, Art collected in all the diary entrys. "Does anyone not want me to read theirs?" he asked

No-one put their hands up.

Art laughed, "Good good, I'll have some fun reading them then." he sniggered.

"Bastard." Seiji muttered.

"I'll not read it if you don't want me to." Art grinned.

Seiji shrugged, "You steal my normal diary and read it anyway."

"Now now Seiji, that's a forbidden word in this lesson," Laughed Fergie, taking the mick out of an earlier lesson, "There's no such thing as normal."

After the lesson, Seiji was just walking out when Art grabbed him round the waist, "You ok?" he asked

Seiji shrugged, "Fine."

"Liar." Art slipped his arms around him, and kissed him softly, "Are you ok, seroiusly?"

Seiji pushed him away, "Yes," he said, as his phone began to ring, "I'm fine." He walked out of the room, hitting the answer button on his phone, "Hey Amber, what's up?"

At lunch time, the weather was beginning to turn, so, for the first time that term, the kids ate lunch inside, chatter filling the lunch hall. It wasn't long before the bell rang for the start of drama. Everyone filed into the drama room, including Eagle, Ariadne, Thomas and Phillip.

"Right! Sit down" said Andi the drama teacher, in her usual blunt manner, "Part's, I'll read out the list, and then we'll get on with a read through? Yes? Good."

Everyone hurriedly sat down on the floor.

"Right, I'll do the Upper Sixth first, because they already know, I just want the lower sixth to be familiar with it. Ariadne will play Hippolyta, Phil is going to play Theseus, Tom: Egeus, and Eagle: Philostrate." She turned to Eagle, "Eagle, perhaps later on this week, you can get your sister to go through your lines with you, yeah?"

Eagle grinned gratefully,

"Right, for the lower sixth, Nienna is Helena, Toni is Hermia, Lysander will be Charlie, and Tor will be Demetrius," she grinned, "With me so far? Commoners, Satu will be Quince, Mikey will be Bottom," a few sniggers, "Ash: Flute, Alex: Starveling, Snug: Ally, and Snout: Matt. Now for the fairies, Seiji will be oberon, Mara will be Titania" she turned to Mara and Seiji, "And I hope we'll be able to see some dancing and gymnastics, yes? Raven will be Peaseblossom, and the random fairy that talks to puck, J will be Cobweb, and Fergie will be Puck." She sighed, "I think that's everyone."

J put her hand up, "How are the audience going to tell the difference between Fergie and Tor?"

The twins laughed, "We we're kinda wondering that ourselves."

"Ahh," Andi smiled a knowing smile, "Fergie's playing puck, who is traditionally covered in makeup, hopefully by the time we've finished with him, you wouldn't even think they were related. Now, shall we get on with the readthrough everybody?"

Phillip opened his book, and declared in a loud pompous voice, "Now, fair Hippolta, our nuptial hour..."

Everything went smoothly, until Tor's "Relent, sweet Hermia..."

Andi frowned, "Tor?" she asked, "Can you do an english accent?"

"Sawt orf" said Tor, in a not too bad english accent.

Andi grinned, "I need you to work on that one, because you're gonna have to sound like one of these toffs,"

Fergie looked shocked, "You're not gonna make me talk all funny are you?"

"No, I don't think we could ever get rid of your accent," Andi laughed, "I think it suits the character anyway,"

(A little explanation here: Fergie's accent is stronger than Tor's)

She looked around the class, "Shall we continue?"

"Relent, sweet Hermia; and, Lysander, yeild
Thy crazed title to my certain right."

The read through continued, from Oberon and Titania's entrance Andi was just wandering if she'd made the right choice making Seiji Oberon, after making him too speak in an english accent, until he reached his cupid speech:

"That very time I saw, but thou could'st not,
Flying between the cold moon and the earth
Cupid, all arm'd; a certain aim he took,
At a fair vestal, framed by the west,
And loos'd his love-shaft smartly from his bow,
As it should peirce a hundred thousand hearts,"

By the time he had reached this point, Andi had tears in her eyes. As he looked to her, to see if he should carry on, she grinned, "That children, is how shakespeare should be read,"

"What," Seiji laughed, "In a rubbish accent, by someone who's trying not to laugh?"

"Why is it funny?"

Seiji sniggeredm "The fifth line," he winced, "Sorry, that would be being Art's influence on me."

Fergie started to laugh as he checked it up in his script, he whispered something to Tor, who started to laugh too. As soon as Eagle had read it, he cracked up, Matt, glancing over Eagle's shoulder shook his head. Raven looked up, "I don't get it!"

Do you?

Everything ran smoothly, until it got to Philostrate's first line, although philostrate appears many times throughout the first half of the play, he doesn't appear until Act Five. Eagle began, "Here m...mi...mighty The...the..."

Andi grinned, "Sound it out" she said smilling encouragingly,

Eagle scowled, "The-see-us"

Ariadne giggled, "Its pronounced THEE-see-us" she rolled her eyes at Matt, "He can't even read."

Matt looked down at the floor, trying to avoid all the gazes,

Ariadne turned to Eagle, "Awww poor baby birdie, just a little chick really."

Matt looked up, "I don't know why you give him so much attention, you should just ignore him, he's not worth your time and effort."

Ariadne thought about it for a while, and then grinned, "You're right of course Matthew, what a genious," she turned to Thomas and Phillip, "We just ignore him."

Eagle looked up at Matt, "Thanks" he mouthed.

That evening, Raven sat on Eagle's bed, with her script infront of her, "Learn it parrot fashion," she grinned, "I'll say it, and you repeat it until you know them, okay?"

"I've got an awful lot to do,"

"So we start now," she grinned,
"There is a brief how many sports are ripe;
Make choice of which your highness will see first,"

They had nearly finished memorising Philostrates 5 lines, (some of which are quite hefty) when Art walked in

"Lights out people," He grinned and turn to Seiji, who was lying on his bed, "Coming?"

Seiji thought about it, then shook his head, "No, I spent last night in your room, can't be bothered."

Art scowled at him, "You have no idea how much I hate you," he said, kissing Seiji, "No really, I do."

"Yeah yeah yeah," He grabbed Art around the waist and pulled him down beside him, "Stay with me, please." he whispered

Art grinned, "I'm gonna get up, turn the lights out, and then I'll be right back." He frowned, "You really have got me twisted round your little finger, haven't you?"

Seiji sniggered, "Or round something else."

"SEIJI!" Art gasped, "How uncharacteristically suggestive of you," he got up and turned the lights out, not noticing Fergie in Tor's bed, and Tor, still in Mara's

Tor stroked the side of Mara's face, "I'll leave if you want me to," he whispered,

"No" she shook her head, "Stay,"

Fergie lay in bed in the darkness, staring at the bunk above him, listening to the rain pounding on the windows. He glanced at the window, the rain was really hammering down. He shook his head, half lauhging at himself, and silently got up. Thankful for the fact that Art was so distracted by Seiji he wouldn't notice, he got out a pair of trousers for himself, and, putting them on, grabbed another pair. He crept over to Mara's bed, and silently tapped Tor on the shoulder, "Coming?" he asked, handing him the trousers.

Tor gently kissed Mara, "Love you beautiful, I'll be back, just gotta go and...." he thought for a second ".....dance." He pulled on the trousers, and, taking Fergie's hand, walked out of the room.

For a few minutes, Mara lay alone, wondering what on earth had just happened, when she heard laughter from outside. She got up, and silently walked to the window. Staring out, she could just make out the figures of Fergie and Tor, dancing in the rain.

Fergie reached out for his brother's hand, rain dripping down his face, laughter in his eyes, and bowed theatrically, "Torin, will you dance with me?"

Tor laughed, "Surely I should be doing the bowing, and you should curtsey,"

Fergie laughed, and grabbed Tor by both hands, pulling him round in a circle, both of them dancing like the devil was after them.

"Dance FASTER!" Tor laughed, and faster they spun.

"Stop!" Fergie caught Tor around the waist, and pulled him close, rain washing his hair over his eyes, "Look," he whispered, pointing up at the window.

Tor could just make out the figures of most of their year, standing at the window watching them. He grinned at Fergie, eyes sparkling, "Shall we ask them to join us?"

"No," Fergie grinned back, "We'll make them."

Hand in hand they ran up the stairs, bursting into the dorm, "You've gotta come!" they laughed, "come and dance with us, it's so much fun!"

A few of the kids looked to Art for permission, who shrugged, "Why not?"

"Come on!" said Tor, grabbing Mara by the hand and pulling her out of bed, "Come and dance!"

In a few minutes the whole year were standing outside, shivering in the rain, while Tor and Fergie lept around.

"It's cold," muttered Ash,

Fergie stopped, and grabbed him by the arms, shaking him, "If you dance, you warm up." he laughed, "Have you never danced in the rain?"

"No,"

Fergie shook his head, "What is the world coming to?" he turned to the rest of the year, "You've gotta dance, dance like no-bodies watching you!"

Slowly, but surely, they began to dance. Not dancing as you or I might think of dancing, but dancing in it's pure form, leaping around in the dead of night, jumping and laughing, screaming and crying, twirling and bursting with joy. Have you ever danced in the rain? No? You should try it sometime.