"So I was thinking you and I could do a number together," Shana told Unique as she followed her out of the choir room.
"Why would I agree to that?" asked Unique, giving her a weird look.
"Because we're both hot, black women and would kill it together?" offered Shana.
Unique rolled her eyes and continued walking but Shana was not ready to give up. "I don't know why you're so threatened by me," she began. "But I think--"
"Uh, uh," Unique said, stopping and turning to face her. "Let me autocorrect that for you. I am not threatened by you. If anything, I'm pestered. I am not a lesbian."
"You're not straight either," Shana said, crossing her arms defiantly.
Unique put one annoyed finger in the air and said, "Listen to me when I say this. You're attractive. I can see why any guy or lesbian would be into you. But I'm not."
"You could be," Shana shrugged. "If I had a dollar for every girl I've turned, I'd--"
"You're not a vampire!" Unique exclaimed. "You don't have that sort of power. Even if you could, I just don't have time for that sort of thing, okay? I have one goal in life. Become a star. I am not ready to throw away time that could be spent on me into a relationship, alright? Want someone who doesn't wanna go into showbiz? Great. Any of those skinny little primpy Cheerios would do great. Kitty and Bree are single. Go try to 'turn' them." She put airquotes around turn, rolling her eyes as she said the word, and then walked away, heading for class.
As the hallways emptied, Shana watched her go and grinned. "She said I was attractive," she giggled to herself, turning around and rushing to her next class.
***
Dear Journal... I'm once again at a total loss. I had it all. I was Principal. I had Robin. Everyone feared me. But now... I've been found to be incompetent. INCOMPOTENT? ME? I was outraged. Apparently everything I did for McKinley wasn't enough so they brought in that awful woman. They used to treat me like Hillary but now I've been feeling like Sarah Palin. I had to put an end to it, beginning by bringing the power back to my Cheerios now that Roz is out of the way.
Sue looked up from her journal, a frown on her face and a creased brow adding five years to her age. She shook her head and continued writing.
I had the perfect plan and it began with destroying that glee club. I've seen the way Emma and Will have been kissing up to Lisa Hallman. They've got her wrapped around their fingers. She's not likely to cut them or that awful God Squad I've been meaning to get rid of. Cheerios aren't looking too good so I thought I'd make them seem better. Starting with a new captain, that Julie girl. She was the perfect candidate. Best grades, no behavioral issues, treasured by glee club. Nobody would dare mess with my Cheerios with her on top. But now everything has fallen to pieces.
She put the pen down, rubbing her temples with frustration. When she had enough of a break, she grabbed the pen again and scribbled as fast as she could, her handwriting getting messier.
Should I continue, Journal? Should I risk the fragile girl's sanity after everything she's been through? Or should I assume she's a warrior like one Sue Sylvester and carry out my plans for her and the squad? How do I work around her guilt, Journal?
Sue looked up from her journal suddenly and called out, "Becky, bring--" Then she stopped, her voice trailing off as she realized she didn't have a trusted sidekick anymore. She needed one and she needed one soon.
***
"Hey pretty girl," said Bree as she joined Amity at her locker between classes. "What are you doing for Disney week?"
"I thought the week was really more for Julie's sake," she responded in a quiet voice. "So I was thinking of just kind of staying out of the way."
"Oh come on," Bree said, rolling her eyes. "This week is about everyone and us really being a family. And as you're like my little sister--"
"You thought we could do a number together," Amity guessed. Bree smiled and shrugged. "Shouldn't you be one of the main people reaching out to Julie and not me right now?"
"She has enough people harassing her right now," she replied. "I could tell she wasn't into it earlier. Besides, she's really not very keen of me in the moment. You know, the whole turn against her when she needed me thing."
"Julie hardly seems like the type to hold that against you," said Amity.
"Doesn't matter..." Bree shrugged again. "Right now, my focus is on you."
"Why?" asked Amity suspiciously.
"I'm sort of trying to avoid a few things and you're the perfect distraction," she smiled. "Trust me. I can give you anything you want! Popularity? Money? Love? Test answers? You name it. I'll help you get it."
"That sounds a lot like stricking a deal with a devil..." Amity murmured, shivering. "I'm really not comfortable and I'm sure there's some sort of price for that."
"No price," Bree assured her. "I'm just bored and happen to like you so--"
"I'm sorry but I'll pass..." she responded.
"What do you have for last period?" Bree asked her, getting in her way so that she couldn't walk away.
"Study hall," Amity told her.
"Perfect," Bree said. "I'll be pulling you out of class with some made up excuse so that we can discuss this further, got it?"
"Umm..." Amity said. "I'll just see you at glee club..." As she walked away towards her next class, Bree crossed her arms. I guess she doesn't know how persistent I can be, she thought to herself.
***
"Hey man, can I borrow a pen?" Joe asked John as they sat in Environmental Systems. "Mine's out."
"No problem," John mumbled, passing him a spare pen from his backpack. "So, uh, you've been pretty quiet lately..."
"I've always been quiet," Joe responded as he began writing down answers to the problem set they were working on.
John, who didn't care for their assignment, leaned back and said, "Sure. But when we sit through a student council meeting and you stay quiet the entire time that's a problem, considering you're the president and you're supposed to lead the damn thing."
"I've just been busy," Joe shrugged, not glancing over at him for even a second.
"Dude, what's going on?" he asked, putting his hands down on the table and leaning forward. "Is everything alright with you? I mean, you're not in some serious trouble or anything, right?"
Joe looked around nervously, struggling to come up with a response, before finally leaning in and saying, "If I tell you... You can't tell anybody okay?" John nodded, curiously killing him as Joe began to reveal the secret he was keeping.
***
"Hey superstar!" exclaimed Sam as he walked down the McKinley High School corridor and crossed paths with Julie. "Headed to class?"
"Cheerios practice," she told him.
"I'll walk you," he offered, nodding over to the end of the hallway. They began walking towards the gymnasium and multiple people turned to look at them as they passed by, most of them muttering what Julie could only imagine were negative things.
"The basketball team is running drills outside today so we finally get to use the gym," she told Sam, distracting herself from her classmates' glares.
"You don't have dibs on wherever you want anymore?" Sam asked.
Julie shook her head and pursed her lips. "Unfortunately not," she told him. "Principal Hallman doesn't seem too keen on cheerleaders. She hasn't asked us to perform at any pep rallies or games since she's been here. So we've kind of been useless."
"Useless gets cut," Sam muttered.
"Yup..." she said, shrugging. "Who knows what'll happen next."
"So umm... how are you?" he asked. "With everything?"
Julie sighed. "I've been trying to find a medium between not caring and wallowing in self-pity," she said nonchalantly.
"That's, uh... nice?" he said as they reached the gym. "Well, here you go then."
"Thanks," she said. "I should probably go in there now... Lead the team and all that."
"Have fun," Sam said before walking away.
When he was clearly out of earshot she muttered, "Doubt it," and headed into the gym. Inside the girls were doing a cardio routine. Confused, Julie put her gym bag down by the bleachers and headed towards them to join in, but just as she was dropping in line behind them, Sue called out to her.
"Not you Vasquez," Sue called out from the other side of the gym, signaling for her to follow her out to the hallway. Julie did so, and ended up walking behind her all the way to her office.
***
"Where are we going?" Amity asked Bree as they walked away from the library, where she had her study hall. "I really didn't want to be taken out of class."
"Oh, boo-hoo," said Bree, dragging her down the hall. "It's a useless class. Nobody uses it to study."
"I do," Amity informed her. "And shouldn't you be with your Cheerios or something?"
Bree grinned. "Coach Sylvester and Julie left the gym so we all just spread out," she explained. "I had to come and convinced you to accept my deal. And I kept thinking, what is the one thing that Amity will definitely want? And then it came to me. Alex."
"I kind of already have Alex..." Amity pointed out, squinting suspiciously. "He's my boyfriend, remember?"
"Right," said Bree. "But I haven't seen you two together for a while. Will he be your boyfriend for long? Let's find out, come on."
***
"What's going on?" Julie asked Sue once they were inside closed doors. The latter took a seat behind her desk and waited until Julie had sat down in front of her to begin.
"Juliet, I've got to admit," said Sue, "when Kitty first recommended that I let you back in the squad, even though you quit just after joining, I was a bit skeptical. I didn't think you had what it took to be a part of my little army. But, and I don't admit this often, it would appear that I was wrong. Despite initial believes that because you're of mix-raced, and that's two of my least favorite nationalities, that because of that you'd be missing the type of zest that Quinn Fabray had. Or even, that you'd end up disappointing me. Do you want to disappoint me?"
Julie was downright confused. Unsure how to respond, she slowly shook her head, which seemed to be enough for her coach. Sue stood from her chair and walked around the desk, sitting at the edge of it right in front of Julie.
"I want to help you," said Sue. "How would you like it if I took you under my wing?"
"What do you mean?" asked Julie, trying to hide her dubiousness.
"I am a mother you know," Sue said, shrugging as though her words had elicited admiration from Julie. "Some say I'm very maternal."
"Umm..." Julie replied, almost completely sure nobody had ever used the Sue's name and that word in the same sentence, unless it had NOT somewhere in between them.
"So what do you say?" she asked. "This could be a great opportunity to break the bad blood between the Cheerios and your little glee club..."
"Tempting..." Julie mumbled sarcastically. The truth is, she didn't really care about the bad blood. As longs as she didn't order the Cheerios on anybody, the glee kids were pretty safe. Some of them had never been slushied before and she had it in her power to make sure it stayed that way. She might even bet she had more say over the Cheerios than Sue.
"It's true," Sue went on. "Ask the Cheerios. I've helped many Cheerios here and there with whatever was troubling and I can help you if you let me."
"I don't know..." Julie said, unsure.
"Give me a chance to show you that I, for once, have nothing but good intentions," Sue said as the music began playing. Julie watched her with a mixture of curiosity and incertitude.
["Poor Unfortunate Souls" from Little Mermaid.]
Sue: I admit that in the past I've been a nasty. They weren't kidding when they called me, well, a witch.
She walked towards the door and opened it, looking out into the hallway as Julie turned and watched her.
Sue: But you'll find that nowadays. I've mended all my ways. Repented, seen the light, and made a switch. True? Yes!
Julie looked out the the window, the blinds open, and saw that several Cheerios were roaming around instead of practicing. She expected Sue to call them out but saw her once fearless leader just watch them go, her arms crossed.
Sue: And I fortunately know a little secret. It's a talent that I always have possessed. And here lady, please don't laugh. I use it on behalf of the miserable, lonely, and depressed... pathetic.
She looked back at Julie and forced a smile, waving her over to the hallway and continued as the two walked down.
Sue: Poor unfortunate souls in pain, in need. This one longing to be thinner, that one wants to get the girl. And do I help them? Yes, indeed!
As she sang, she pointed to Michelle Olson, a cheerleader who had as of lately been criticized for the extra pounds she had put on over break. She also signaled at Iris Boone, the only lesbian (as far as anyone knew) on the squad, who had recently come out of the closet after people stopped being bullied for their sexuality so much.
Sue: Those poor unfortunate souls... So sad, so true. They come flocking to me crying, "Will you help us pretty please?" And I help them! Yes I do!
Julie watched as Bree rounded the corner with Amity. She wasn't sure why they were together and couldn't really tell as she only saw them for a brief second before they disappeared around the corridor. Whatever it was, she was sure Bree was up to no good.
She turned back to Sue, who was staring at a pretty bored and somewhat depressed Kitty.
Sue: Now it's happened once or twice. Someone couldn't pay the price. And I'm afraid I had to rake 'em 'cross the coals. Yes I've had the odd complaint. But on the whole I've been a saint... to those poor unfortunate souls...
***
Bree walked Amity past more cheerleaders skipping practice and finally came to a stop in front of a classroom. She indicated for Amity to look into the window and as she did, she saw that Alex was sitting in a lesson, as he was clearly in view, talking to a pretty girl. Or rather, listening as she drooled over him and flirted away. Amity attempted to seem unnerved by this, but Bree could tell she was bother, so she leaned in and shrugged.
Bree: The men up there don't like a lot of blabber. They think a girl who gossips is a bore! Yes on land it's much preferred for ladies not to say a word. And after all dear, what is idle prattle for? Come on.
She began pulling Amity away from the door and kept going.
Bree: They're not all that impressed with conversation. True gentlemen avoid it when they can. But they dote and swoon and fawn on a lady who's withdrawn. It's she who holds her tongue who get's a man.
Amity shook her head and said, "Sorry but I can't let you play with my mind like this. I trust Alex and there's nothing wrong with our relationship so I'd appreciate it if you left me alone. I'll see you at glee club."