Moulin Rouge Discotrain AU (part twenty seven)
Summary: (Post-game canon) The Conductor and DJ Grooves agree to finally work on a movie together. They come up with 'Moulin Rouge', a musical drama filled with romance. Over time the two directors grow closer and discover that maybe they don't hate each other as much.
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Word count: 1,073
Warnings: Mentions of blood
Author's notes: Please don't sue me. Everything will turn out well eventually. I promise.
Conductor rocked back and forth on the heels of his feet in the reception, waiting for Grooves to arrive.
It didn't take long for the penguin to show up.
"What's got you so excited, diamond?" Grooves chuckled.
Conductor's heart fluttered at the nickname that Grooves had started using for him.
"I've got a surprise," Conductor said, trying to keep his excitement from showing too much.
"For me?" Grooves asked.
"Well, kind of, yeah. It was gonna be a treat for myself but I thought you would want ta see it too," Conductor explained, grabbing ahold of the penguin's flipper.
"Where are we even going, diamond?" Grooves questioned as Conductor led him through the studio.
A few birds shot them curious looks as the two directors went past.
"If I told yer, it wouldn't be a surprise," Conductor told him, pulling the penguin into the elevator.
"Why are we going down here? Did you want to practise somewhere quiet again?"
"Wait and see."
"Oh so my surprise is down here," Grooves responded.
Conductor let out a huff of laughter, impatiently waiting for the elevator to arrive at its destination.
He let go of Grooves, flicking the lights on and walking out into the room.
The floor was clear, not a box in sight. The stage floor hadn't been repaired but the signs bearing his name had been removed.
"Is this why we had to wait for the cleaners to leave before we went to visit Roxie?" Grooves asked, walking out behind the owl.
Conductor couldn't keep a giddy grin off his face as he spun around in a couple of circles. "Yeah."
"It looks…amazing," Grooves breathed, looking around in awe.
"Come on!" Conductor took hold of Grooves once more, leading him over to the flight of stairs that led to the multiple areas of seating.
"Connie!" Grooves laughed.
"Here!" Conductor announced, letting go of the penguin and flopping onto the velvet sofa that occupied a balcony.
"You can see the whole room from up here," Grooves mused, sitting down at the other end of the sofa.
Conductor let out a hum of agreement, tentatively moving to curl up against Grooves' side.
The two of them sat there in silence for a while, just enjoying each others' company.
"So, um, there's something I think I need to get off my chest," Grooves said quietly.
Conductor pulled away from his friend, watching the penguin as he tried to gather his words.
"Take your time," Conductor told him, holding onto his flipper.
Grooves let out a deep breath, staring down at the floor of the ballroom.
"I like you a lot. And I know that it's unlikely you feel the same way but I needed to get it off my chest," Grooves explained. "And I understand if this makes it awkward for us to be friends. So, uh, sorry in advance I guess."
Conductor shook his head.
"You peckin' idiot. I like you too," Conductor muttered.
"What?"
"I said 'you pecking idiot, I don't like you'" Conductor lied, panic searing through him.
"Oh. Okay. I'm going to go now for- uh- totally unrelated reasons," Grooves blurted, standing and rushing off.
Conductor mentally kicked himself, brain taking a few seconds to process what had happened.
"No! Peck! No! Wait!" Conductor rushed to his feet, racing down the stairs and towards the elevator.
Grooves was dabbing at his eyes with a flipper as the doors were sliding close.
Pain bolted through Conductor's left ankle as he put on a final burst of speed, throwing himself at the doors as they closed.
The metal let out a resounding clunk but didn't budge as the elevator went into motion, ascending back towards the studio.
"No! Peck!" Conductor cursed again, hitting a panel on the wall next to him.
A section of the wall opened up, revealing the hidden staircase.
He pushed through the pain, ascending the stairs as quickly as he could, tripping in the darkness.
An iron tang flavoured the air. A trail of red coated the floor. Left over from his battle with Hat Kid.
Eventually he stumbled out into the brightly lit hallways of the studio, slamming the hidden door closed behind him.
"Where's Grooves?" Conductor shouted at the first bird he saw.
"Mr. Grooves said that he was taking the rest of the day off and going home," the bird stated, eyeing him worriedly. "Sir, your foot is bleeding!"
"Don't care!" Conductor barked, moving as quickly as possible to the reception.
He let out a squeak of outrage as someone picked him up.
"Going somewhere?" Empress questioned, half-lidded gaze judging him.
"I need to talk to Grooves! Let me go!" Conductor shouted, trying to swing a few punches at her.
Empress easily dodged his futile efforts.
"No. I'm going to sort out your ankle first. Then you can go. Go and sing him a song or something. That worked with Scarlett," Empress replied.
"How do you-"
"Gee, you're dense," Empress sighed. "I haven't changed that much. Emily may not have had my power and status, but she still had my attitude and excellent fashion skills."
Conductor stared dumbly at the cat.
"Emily?!"
"Miss Empress, please, stay out of the way!" Pinguini exclaimed as the large cat prodded at Conductor's ankle again.
"You really blew it, didn't you?" Empress sighed, crouching down to Conductor's height.
"Yeah. I messed up," Conductor agreed, trying to keep from crying.
"So…?"
"So what?"
"So, go get him, peck neck!" Empress shouted. "If you want to be with him, then you need to show him that! Do a big romantic gesture! Sing him a song like you did with Scarlett."
"Do not bring Scarlett into thi- ow ow ow ow, Pinguini!" Conductor shouted.
"I'm sorry sir but I have to! It won't get better if I don't make this brace," Pinguini argued, glaring up at the owl. "Besides, you need to be a little less of a mess when you show up at Grooves'."
"Woah, Pinguini's got an attitude," Empress laughed.
"I'm sorry, I'm just stressed with sorting out the last props and sets. Some of the penguins seem like they've forgotten how to paint," Pinguini apologised. "And I like Mr. Grooves a lot. I don't like seeing him upset."
"I know! I messed up! Now let me go!" Conductor replied, pushing away from the two of them.
"Now there's the Conductor I remember," Empress said.
"Shut up, peck neck."
"Good luck."