My Time to Shine (Dance Moms/Harry Potter Crossover - Part 1)

Chapter 7: Pyramid

When the weekend finally came and the girls left the school to go to dance, Mackenzie was extremely fearful. She was afraid of what was going to happen. You would not be forgiven for making stupid mistakes in front of the Ziegler's incredibly tough coach, Abby Lee Miller. Maddie clearly felt the complete opposite. She couldn't be more thrilled to be back in the studio with Abby.

The girls drove with their mother in her rental car to a studio about an hour away. They would spend Saturday and Sunday in the studio then return to the school Sunday night. They entered the studio and were immediately enveloped by shrieks of glee and pulled into tight hugs from their fellow dancers.

Kendall and her mother Jill, Nia and her mother Holly, and Jojo and her mother Jessalyn were already in the studio anticipating the Zielgers' arrival. The girls all stretched and caught up, as did the mothers.

The film crew and producers readied the cameras for the famous "Pyramid". A ranking system the Ziegler girls were well used to from the time on Dance Moms. Each episode would start out with Abby ranking the dancers. If you were at the top of the pyramid (which usually Maddie was), you would get better opportunities such as being the lead in a group dance or a solo. Everyone knew that pyramid took about two hours to film. The crew had to set up the filming equipment so as not to film themselves in the mirror. This was a difficult process in a dance studio as at least one wall was always made consistently of mirrors depending on where they were dancing. 

This studio was located in Edinburgh and rented for rehearsals by Lifetime so that filming for the show could continue while Maddie and Mackenzie were attending Hogwarts. The facility was beautiful as it has a wall of windows, grey Marley floors, brand new ballet barres, and a washroom attached to the studio. As far as facilities go, this one was gorgeous. There was also a large waiting area for the moms to hang out in while their daughters danced. The crew would use this area to film the mama drama. This is also the area where they would be setting up the green screen to film everyone's interviews once the episode had been filmed. 

"Where's Kalani?" Maddie asked the room as the girls stretched, the moms chattered, and the crew set up half a dozen cameras.

"Well, Kira is going to have her baby soon and couldn't get on the plane, and Kalani was already booked for some work so she couldn't leave Arizona right now." Jill, who had obviously been eavesdropping filled Maddie and Mackenzie in. Kendall rolled her eyes. Her mother's knack for sticking her nose into everyone's business had evidently been wearing on her. 

"And Abby is not happy about it, as you can imagine." Holly rolled her eyes. All the girls knew that Holly and Abby had not gotten along well lately.

Abby walked in and was bombarded by hugs from all five girls. She especially hugged Maddie and Mackenzie after not seeing them for over a month. The other moms all had objective looks on their faces, knowing full well that Abby was subject to extreme favouritism where the Zieglers were concerned.

"Ok, enough with the reunion! Girls, we've got a lot of work to do." She stood in front of the mirror and faced the girls. They were standing in a line facing her with expectant looks on their faces. The producers made sure everyone was standing where they should be and gave the crew and Abby the thumbs up to begin. 

"Let's start with the pyramid. First, we have... Kalani. She isn't here. Woop-dee-do. Next... is Jojo. Your bow fell out of your hair on stage. Maybe it's time for you to grow up. Lose the bows. Jojo, no Bow Bow." She glared at her. Jojo stared back, holding her ground. That was one thing that Mackenzie always admired about Jojo - her unwavering confidence.

"Now wait, Abby!" Jessalyn spoke up. All the girls cringed. Nothing good came about when a parent opposed Abby, especially during pyramid. The film crew zoomed in on Jessalyn. They could not miss the opportunity to capture an outburst or an annoyed look regardless of where it appeared in the episode. You could never be too careful with these reality show crews. They will stop at nothing to portray anyone on the show in an unflattering manner. It's good for ratings. "It wasn't her fault she..."

Abby cut in before Jess could finish her sentence. The crew zoomed in on Abby. "You're right, it was YOUR fault. You're supposed to sew that stupid bow into her actual hair and did you?! No! That's why your daughter is on the bottom of the pyramid, got it?!" Everyone was used to Abby's outbursts but it didn't make them any more pleasant.

"Next is Nia." She addressed her, "You didn't stick out in a good way or a bad way. You need to work on sticking out in a good way." Abby shrugged. "Next on the pyramid is Mackenzie." Mackenzie was honestly surprised she had made it this high up. "At the last competition you did, you stayed in time with the big girls and got a judges choice award on your solo. Let's see if you can pull that off without having been under my eye for a month."

"Next... Kendall. You won your division when Maddie was gone. Are you my number one girl all the time or are you only my number one when Maddie isn't there to beat you? I guess we'll have to find out next weekend at the competition." Kendall looked nervous after hearing Abby's critique. She usually did.

    "...And on the top of the pyramid is Maddie! She went all summer without having a single solo beat. Great job darlin'." She gave her a smile which Maddie returned.

"Ok girls, next weekend we will be competing in St Andrews. We will be doing a group piece called No Better Place To Go." The girls and moms clapped and smiled at each other, as they usually did when they were fans of an idea."It is a contemporary jazz piece about the earth as the planet we call home and how beautiful it really is. It has a bit of a Wall-e theme to it. Maddie, you'll be performing a lyrical solo called Stargazing." The room paused again to clap. Maddie looked extremely satisfied with this news. "The final solo will be going to... Kendall." More clapping and cheering filled the room. "It's a sassy jazz piece called One Girl. Ok, thank you, moms, you're dismissed. Girls, spread apart, let's begin."

They rehearsed the group piece first which Kenzie actually liked quite a bit. There was a big part of her that had missed dancing while at Hogwarts. She found, however, that she did not miss the favouritism Abby showed towards her sister.

The weekend was grueling. She was so sore from not having danced. Miss Abby was constantly yelling at her to stretch her knees, point her feet or else get up higher on releve.

"Mackenzie, if you haven't gotten it together by the next rehearsal, I will have no choice but to cut you from the group dance!" Abby yelled at her when she messed up the timing of the front aerial with the group. "These girls, including Maddie, have been working extremely hard while you've been doing what?! Magic tricks?! It's unacceptable, Mackenzie. You are on the ALDC Junior Elite Competition team for heaven's sake!" It was embarrassing to be yelled at in front of the girls. They were all her friends and teammates and she felt like she had let them down.

In the car on the way back to Hogwarts, she told her mom that she loved Hogwarts and was doing really well there. She told her about her good grades, the extra curricular's that she was involved in - charms and knitting club, and all the amazing new friends she had. She also told her that she might not even want to be on the team anymore. Maddie ogled at her.

"No. Absolutely not, Mackenzie. You are not quitting the Junior Elite Competition team!" Her mother's voice rose slightly as she said this. "Do you know what I have given up to put the pair of you through dance?! I've given up most of my days, changed my lifestyle, and had my marriage to your father crumble because of dance. We have come too far to give up."

Mackenzie tried to refute but Melissa cut her off. Hot tears welled up in her eyes but she refused to let them fall down her cheeks. 

"That's final. I don't want to hear another word. You can stop cryin' about it Kenz, this is the way it is. And while we are on the topic you had better pull your socks up and get your head in the game. I've never seen you so off."

"Gee, thanks, mom."Mackenzie sniffled. They had arrived at the gates of Hogwarts. Mackenzie grabbed her bag, got out of the car, slammed the door, and walked up to the castle without another word.

Her mother didn't understand. All she cared about was if Maddie was winning or getting the best solo. It was always about Maddie and never about her, Mackenzie.