Talent Night of the Lepus - Chapter 1
Mr. Schneider wanted to finish watching the rest of the talent show in peace, but between irritated parents and students in distress, a teacher's work is never done. OC-heavy Gravedale High fic, set directly after the events of "Night of the Living Dad". Author's note: Knowledge of "Night of the Living Dad" is not required to read this, it's just being used a backdrop for this fic. Chapter word count: 1,824
The second intermission had begun. Most of the families filed out, leaving the auditorium quiet.
Mr. Schneider was told that past talent shows didn't go this long, that a third section had to be added to accommodate all the students who turned in their permission slips late. Between the late night and the emotional crisis he had to help manage, he found it to be a tiring ordeal.
He slumped down into a seat. He wasn't going to abandon the performing students - especially since the last one was one of his - but he did want to take a moment to relax. He closed his eyes to let the calm atmosphere of the near-empty auditorium sink in.
There was a sudden heaviness on his shoulder, and hot breath ran down the side of his neck. “I don't see what the big deal is,” a voice said.
Shivers went up Mr. Schneider's spine, sending him up straight. He tried to get what was on his shoulder, but it was already gone. He winced as he hit himself and then turned around to see what was harassing him.
A human was sitting behind him, one with a wide, smarmy grin on his face. “I mean, they let us in here, didn't they?”
Working at Gravedale High made Mr. Schneider develop an even greater caution around strange humans on school premises. “And you are...?”
The man forcefully took his hand and shook it. “Steven Wray.”
He had to pull his hand away from him. “Do you have a student here, Mr. Wray?”
“Nope.” He pointed over to the woman next to him. “But my lovely lady does.”
Said woman looked up from what she was reading and scowled at him. Not out of disagreement, but out of annoyance that he acknowledged it. With her deep green skin and golden eyes, she looked like she belonged there in audience.
Mr. Schneider couldn't blame her for being annoyed. He switched his attention to her. “Do you have a student here...” He chose the prefix carefully. “Ms. ...?”
Based on the glare he got from Steven, he figured he guessed correctly.
“Scientist,” the woman told him, taking his hand and shaking it much more professionally than her companion did. “Eve L. Scientist.”
He forced himself to ignore his gut reaction to her name. “Max Schneider.” He mentally went through the list of students who hadn't performed yet. “You must be Maddie's mom.”
Eve narrowed her eyes. “Yes?”
“I'm her homeroom teacher,” he quickly clarified.
“Oh, yes.” Her face relaxed but her tone didn't. “She did say she was being taught by a human this year.”
“I must have missed you earlier at the meet-and-greet.”
“I did not attend that event. And if I knew my daughter was performing last, I would not have come for the first two acts, either.”
“I see.” Mr. Schneider kept on his cordial smile. “Well, I'm sure Maddie will be glad you’re out here supporting her. She's excited to be performing.”
Steven snorted. “You could put it like that.”
Eve scowled at him again, her teeth slightly gnashed. She then turned back to Mr. Schneider. “Pay him no mind. Maddie does know I am here watching her, and though I find these school activities inane, I do suppose this one is the most reasonable she has wished to participate in. It is always important to test skills.”
Mr. Schneider was starting to think that Maddie wasn't exaggerating when she explained why it took her so long to get her permission slip signed.
Steven decided he was not going to heed his girlfriend's looks. “You know what would liven up this place up? Some stakes! I mean, what kind of talent competition has no prizes?”
“It's a talent show, Mr. Wray.” Mr. Schneider could have kept going, but he knew the man wasn't really interested in the discourse surrounding the use of academic settings to encourage outside interests.
“That's just like schools, refusing to teach the real world.” He leaned forward, trying to get into Mr. Schneider's face. “Winners, losers, that's what kids need to realize.”
Despite the chair he was in physically separating him from Steven, Mr. Schneider still felt the need to get away from him. He shifted over a seat to be in front of Eve.
Eve took notice of that. “Again, do not pay him any mind. He has done far too much losing to properly discuss success with you.”
Mr. Schneider wasn't planning to. He tried to redirect the conversation back to the original topic. “Just between us, Ms. Scientist, what exactly is Maddie's act? She insisted on not telling anyone.”
“Of course. I told her not to.”
“Right.” He didn't take Eve as the kind of person to like surprises, but he wasn't going to prod her to find out what she really meant. “I guess we'll find out what she's got planned for us, then.”
“I'll tell you what she's doing,” Steven butted in, still ignoring his girlfriend's warnings. “She'll be bringing down the ho- hey!” He barely dodged the notebook Eve tried to smack him with.
“Enough of that!”
The two of them began to bicker, signaling the end of the conversation for good.
Mr. Schneider took that as his cue to leave. He stood up and stretched his arms out wide, suppressing the urge to do a fake yawn to go with it. “Well, enjoy the rest of the show.” He stepped out into the aisle and took a couple steps forward, only to realize he forgot another professional pleasantry. He stopped and looked over his shoulder. “Good meeting you, Ms. Scientist.”
Eve paused her lecturing. “Likewise, Schneider.” Her words were even less sincere than his were.
Steven stuck out his tongue at him like a child.
Mr. Schneider left the two of them alone and made his way behind the stage. He thought about how he probably should have stayed back there instead of venturing out to the auditorium, partially because of the awkward, unplanned parent interaction, and partially because he assumed the other teachers who did choose to stay back with their students the whole time were whispering about him.
Fortunately, his remaining student didn't seem to mind.
“How are you doing, Maddie?”
Maddie turned around to face him, two large rabbits tucked under her arms. “Hi Mr. Schneider!”
“I see you have help for your performance tonight.” He was somewhat concerned about the idea of her using living creatures in her act, but it was too late to comment on that now.
“Uh-huh. These are my bunnies, Hop-a-Long and Floppy Ears.”
Mr. Schneider glanced around to see if he could spot any hints about what she was doing. He ruled out his first guess of some sort of trained animal act when he couldn't find any pieces for an obstacle course. He took a stab at his second guess. “A magic act?”
What little color was in Maddie's face drained from it. “Oh no, Mr. Schneider. Mama doesn't believe in magic.”
Having met her, he believed that.
“This is purely scientific, promise!”
“I'm not doubting you, Maddie, and I don't think your mom is, either.”
Maddie perked back up. “She's here?”
Mr. Schneider nodded. “Out in the auditorium.”
“Good, I picked this for her.” She thought for a moment. “But how'd you know she was my mama?”
He had noted a couple similarities between the mother and daughter during his brief time speaking with the former. The direct manner of speaking, for one. And while he couldn't say the adage that children look like their parents was correct in this case, it was clear that Maddie's jackets and unkempt hair were influenced by her mother's. But most obvious of all-
“The last name kind of gave it away.”
“Oh, right.” She bobbed her head. “Is Steve also out there?”
Mr. Schneider grimaced. That guy. “He is.” He debated not saying anymore, but his curiosity came out. “I’m guessing that he's not your father?”
Maddie also grimaced. “I don't have a dad. Steve just hangs out a lot. He's a human, you know.”
“I noticed.”
“Oh, but don't worry, Mr. Schneider, you're not nearly as ugly as he is.”
Leave it to a teenager to describe it like that. He accepted the statement it as the compliment it was meant as.
The rabbits under Maddie's arms started getting restless. She let them down, and the rabbits shifted around a bit before settling down by her feet, seemingly content again.
“Looks like we gotta get back to practicing,” Maddie stated, looking down at her rabbits. “We have a lot of hopping to do.” She then decided she was done with the conversation. “Bye Mr. Schneider!” She marched off in another direction.
Mr. Schneider watched as the rabbits bounced after her without being prompted. He wondered if his initial thought of a trained animal act was actually correct. He lingered around, wanting to see if he could catch any last second clues about her act.
Maddie marched along with her rabbits in tow, going left, right, and zigzag. If there was a reasoning for her movements, she didn't show it.
The cynical part of him figured that she was doing that on purpose, trying to deflect him away from what her act truly was. The conversation he had with her mother came to mind.
The reasonable part of him knew that even if she was trying to mislead him, it didn't really matter - it was a talent show, not a court case. Besides, she wouldn’t be the first student to lie to him, and wouldn’t be the one, either.
He decided to just leave it be.
The sporadic chattering that had surrounded him suddenly increased in amount and level; one of the other teachers was starting to corral the remaining students together. It was time to start the third act of the show, finally.
Mr. Schneider opted to let his co-workers do their jobs without interruption and went off to a different part of the stage. He ended up back in the spot where he had spent the first two acts, the area nearest the front of the stage but just before the steps heading into the audience. He didn't want to risk going back to the auditorium proper - and if he had to guess, his earlier conversation partners wouldn’t want him to either - but he still wanted a view of the performances. He was there to support the students, after all.
He leaned up against the wall to get more comfortable. He rested there for a moment, and if it wasn't for the sound of everyone else getting ready, his eyes would have slipped closed. But even if he had been able to fully relax, a new noise adding into the mix would have snapped him right back awake.
Emanating from behind him was the sound of crying.