Chapter Text
Me and my friends are Jem girls
Jem!
Jem is my name
Exciting adventure
Fashion and fame
Once you’re a Jem girl
You’re never the same
Come on, come on and be a Jem girl
Jem!
Jem is my name
Eric Raymond sat, surrounded by Misfits merchandise with rainbow stickers slapped on them.
“How didn’t I think of it sooner,” he said to himself. “If we just take our products and make them rainbow we will get the support of those fruits…and I can still make donations to my preferred political figures, but the public will be none the wiser.”
He laughed, evilly.
“Of course! And if somehow I paint those lousy Holograms as being against those people, Jem’s audience will eat her alive. And then they’ll all flock to us, the last bastion for those freaks.”
He looked out the window at a billboard of Jem and the Holograms.
“Jerrica Benton…count your minutes. Because by tomorrow, you and your circus act will be in the trash, and Starlight Music will be mine.”
-X-
“Jem!” a man who looked suspiciously like Eric Raymond wearing a coat and fedora and phony mustache shouted. “Jem, I just have a few questions!” He pushed past the crowd of screaming fans and got right up in Jem’s face.
“Uh, yes, what is it?” Her sisters made their way into the limo, but Jem didn’t mind hanging back a moment to help this reporter.
“How do you feel about the number of gay fans you have showing up to these concerts?”
The crowd fell silent.
“Um, excuse me?” Jem asked.
“Well, you do seem to draw in…” He looked around at the people around him and wrinkled his brow. “…a certain crowd.”
Jem tutted. “Oh, I hate you reporters, trying to provoke celebrities into saying something they’ll regret just so you can make a buck. It’s disgraceful. Of course I will always stand with the LGBTQ+ community. And I say you’re not welcome here — you’re making everyone uncomfortable with how you ask your questions. I think you should make the smart decision and reevaluate your life. We all have a choice in how we treat other people — gay, straight, or otherwise.”
The reporter smiled. “That will be all, Jem.”
-X-
“TECHRAT!” Eric bellowed. He grinned evilly as he stepped into Techrat’s lair. “I have a project for you.”
Techrat was hunched over their computer, black hair falling over their right eye. “What is it, Mr. Raymond?” they asked, not looking up as they continued to type.
Eric approached. “I know how we’re going to regain control of Starlight Music.” He put a hand on Techrat’s shoulder.
“Don’t touch me!” Techrat hissed, pulling away. “Just tell me.”
Eric waved a cassette in Techrat’s face. “On this tape is some very damning evidence against a certain beloved celebrity.”
Techrat snatched it from him. “What is it?”
“With your help, it will be proof of how Jem truly feels about her fans. I just need you to, oh, rearrange a few things. Nothing major. Just enough to make the public think Jem hates those fruitcakes who are always buying up her music.”
Techrat frowned.
“What? Do you have a problem, Mr. Techrat?” Eric shook his head. “By all means, if you have something to say, be a man and say it.”
“…nothing, Mr. Raymond. I’ll get right on it.”
-X-
“I—HATE—gay—PEOPLE,” Jem said on the TV. “THEY’RE—making everyone uncomfortable. Make the smart decision. STAND AGAINST—the LGBTQ+ community. We all have a choice.”
Kimber, Aja, and Shana gaped at the TV.
“JERRICA!?!?!?” they all shouted in unison.
Jem came running in, holding a tray of snacks. “What’s the hubbub, sisters?”
“I can’t believe you said that,” Kimber said, looking down at her feet. “My own sister.”
“Huh? What happened, Kimber?” She set down the snacks and approached the couch to see what was wrong, but then loud crying came from another room. Jem gasped. “That sounds like one of the Starlight Girls.”
She ran to the top of the stairs just as Lee, an older Starlight Girl with lilac hair, came running toward the stairs in tears. The girl ran straight into Jem, crashing into her arms. She blinked and looked up, then furrowed her brow when she saw who was holding her. She pulled away and huffed. “Jem, I trusted you.”
“Wait, what’s going—”
But Lee ran down the stairs, out the door, and out into the night.
“—on? LEE!” Jem gasped. Lee was running straight into oncoming traffic!
A car was coming right at her. Jem and Lee both screamed.
Jem will be right back after these messages!