Author's Notes: Prequel to "A New Life," though you don't have to read that to understand this. I wrote this first, thinking I wanted to tell the story of Dan's life without Vanessa based on Dan's comment to Vanessa in the finale about him having a better life before she returned. I wanted to write an AU series based on that premise, wrote this, and then the muse took me in a different direction and I wrote "A New Life."
I have the arc pretty well planned out to get Dan to where he is during "A New Life." If there's interest in me continuing this AU, I'll probably see it through. So, I am shamelessly begging for literary validation via reviews. If you like and want me to continue this AU, please review!
When Dan hung up the phone, he couldn't keep the smile off his face. Even though he never thought he'd attend something as pretentious as a masked ball, his excitement was palpable. Serena van der Woodson had invited him to another event in her world following the debacle at the Bass brunch. While Dan still felt wildly uncomfortable in the presence of the majority of his classmates, he also recognized a second chance when he saw one. If this thing with Serena was going to work out, she was going to have to take him out in public on occasion. Dan figured an event where the entire premise involved him hiding his identity was a good opportunity to get his feet wet.
Just as Dan had picked up his phone to tell Jenny to pick him up the tux she had mentioned earlier, his phone rang. The caller ID revealed an unfamiliar number. Dan shrugged and answered with a questioning, "Hello?"
"Cabbage Patch," Blair Waldorf said tersely. While he and Blair had reached something of an understanding at her mother's photo shoot, she still made him uneasy. He also had no clue why she would be calling him.
"To what do I owe this pleasure, Waldorf?" Dan responded, an edge in his voice.
"Upon my urging, Serena invited you to the masked ball tonight. I wanted to make sure you wouldn't make me regret that decision."
Dan couldn't decide whether to focus on the complimentary or insulting part of that statement. Still feeling good about the invitation from Serena, he decided to focus on the positive. "Why would you urge Serena to take me to the ball? You don't think I can even dress myself properly."
"Despite the fact that you still wear horrible shoes and appear to have your hair buzz cut at Fantastic Sam's, Serena seems to like you. I figured you would only be minimally embarrassing with your face covered for the bulk of the night," Blair answered, then continued, "As far as your inability to dress yourself, that brings me to the original point of this call."
"Which was?" Dan asked, getting impatient, feeling that everything with Blair seemed to be two steps forward, three steps back.
"I ordered you a tux and mask for tonight. I have already texted your sister to pick it up as part of her list. I also wanted to make sure you understand that Serena is on call as my handmaiden for tonight, and no matter how much your hipster instincts may be pushing you to leave early, Serena must remain until she has performed her duties, " Blair informed him.
"Your handmaiden? Seriously?" Dan scoffed.
"I have something special planned for Nate tonight which requires handmaidens, and Serena has the most important task of the evening. I am approving of your presence tonight based on the condition that you understand I will also be requiring Serena's services tonight," Blair told him haughtily.
Dan couldn't decide whether to question Blair's sanity in regard to involving Serena in her surprise for Nate or to admire her audacity in facing Nate and Serena's past indiscretion head on. He decided to remain silent on the subject, and instead try and use this opportunity to suit his own interests.
"Say no more about your 'something special' for Nate. I will follow your terms under one condition," Dan said.
"What makes you think you have any negotiating power, Humphrey?" Blair asked.
"Because I can tell that this evening going well is important to you."
"Fine. What is your condition?"
"My sister gets an invitation to the ball. She's been running around doing your bidding all day, all in hopes of getting to go tonight. I don't want to see her disappointed," Dan said firmly. While Dan didn't despise Blair like he did initially, he hated to see his sister continually jumping through hoops for limited rewards.
"Freshmen are not generally permitted to attend, but I will make an exception if your sister adequately completes her list," Blair said, clearly not willing to completely relent to him. Dan smiled, knowing he had won this round.
"All I ask is that you play fair. Don't rescind her invitation based on a technicality," Dan told her.
"I would never dream of it, Humphrey. I'm just happy you're finally playing the game. See you tonight, hopefully only before the masks come off," Blair said before hanging up, not allowing Dan a chance to respond.
Dan still wasn't completely on board with his sister's eagerness to cater to Blair's whims, but any reservations he had went out the window when Jenny entered the loft as excited as he'd ever seen her.
"Guess who's going to the masked ball tonight? I was worried when I first got to Blair's and she told me that freshmen don't get to go. Then she told me I had done such a great job today that she was going to make an exception for me," Jenny told him excitedly.
"I'm glad Blair came through for you, Jen," Dan said sincerely.
"Yeah, though I had thought one of the dresses that I picked up was intended for me, but I was wrong. I have no idea what I'm going to wear," Jenny said, beginning to look panicked.
Wanting his sister to return to her previous good mood, not to mention not wanting to waste the only favor he was probably ever going to get from Blair Waldorf, Dan decided to continue in his fairy godmother role and picked up his phone.
"Hey, Serena," Dan said when she picked up. "I have a favor to ask you." Dan could see Jenny perking back up, and he grinned at his sister, glad to be the one making her happy. He still had reservations about these lavish parties, but if he was going to the masked ball to please Serena and Blair, far be it from him to stand in his sister's way.
Later, Dan and Jenny arrived at the Palace, the former with his tuxedo slung over his shoulder. Jenny could barely contain her excitement at getting to peruse Serena van der Woodson's closet. In the lobby, Dan spotted a familiar figure who had just entered through a different set of doors.
"Nate? It's like deja vu all over again," Dan quipped, cautiously approaching the other boy.
"Huh?" Nate looked distracted and a bit confused. He then shook himself out of it a bit, "Hey, Dan. I was just leaving Chuck's. You here to see Serena?"
Dan didn't know Nate very well, but he could tell that he wasn't quite himself. He didn't have the same easy smile he usually carried, and he completely failed to recognize Jenny's presence. Dan knew that Nate's good breeding would make introducing himself to Jenny an automatic response, but instead Nate looked like he couldn't wait to flee the hotel lobby.
"Hey, Jen, why don't you run upstairs to start looking for a dress. I'll be right behind you," Dan told his sister. Jenny nodded at her brother and smiled at Nate before heading off.
Nate sighed once Jenny left. "Look, I really was here to see Chuck. I'm not trying to cause you any problems with Serena," Nate said, sounding irritated. Dan had initially taken Nate's statement about seeing Chuck at face value, but now he felt that the boy doth protest too much.
"I never said you were here to see Serena. Honestly, if you were here to see Serena you should be more worried about what Blair would say than what I think," Dan said, feeling strangely protective of Blair.
Nate sighed again, running his hands through his hair. It mussed his bangs, making him look more boyish and flustered. "No offense, Dan, but I don't need this right now. I've had a really crappy day and I still need to get ready for tonight."
Dan took a breath, realizing the conversation had gotten away from him. "Look, man, I wasn't trying to accuse you of anything. It looked like you were upset, and I just wanted to ask if you were okay. I know we didn't exactly get off on the right foot, but if you needed to talk to someone..."
Nate looked at Dan for a moment, clearly contemplating how much he wanted to divulge. After a few silent moments, it appeared that Nate couldn't hold in whatever was bugging him any longer. "Have you ever found out something about your parents that worried you?"
"In what way?" Dan asked, carefully keeping his tone neutral.
"Like, you think that they're in trouble, but you don't know what to do?"
Dan thought about his own parents' current marital problems, and couldn't help but relate to what Nate was saying. "Yeah, it's hard when your parents' problems come into the open and you don't know how to deal with it. It seems like everyone then just goes more silent and tries harder to act like everything's okay," Dan said.
Nate became more relaxed, seeing that Dan did indeed understand where Nate was coming from on some level. "So what do you do?" Nate asked with genuine curiosity.
"I want to tell them to just tell me the truth, but there's a part of me that keeps holding back. If I were braver, I would force the issue more," Dan said honestly, "But I'm not that brave. I think I'm afraid of what happens then."
Nate nodded. "Yeah, it's hard. Sometimes I feel like I'm responsible for holding the family together," Nate said, looking surprised at his own open admission.
"Yeah, I know what you mean," Dan said, then looked at the clock. At that moment, Dan's phone rang. Dan answered, putting up one finger to indicate to Nate he'd be just a moment. "Hey Serena," Dan said in greeting. Nate began to look uncomfortable, and just waved at Dan and signaled that he had to go. Dan waved back, then started to walk towards the elevators while he continued to speak with Serena on the phone.
Dan, Serena and Jenny arrived at the ball together. The second she stepped foot in the door, Jenny took off in a cloud of red silk.
"Even though I scored an invited from Serena van der Woodson, apparently I'm still too uncool to be seen with Jenny Humphrey, even being incognito," Dan said laughingly.
Serena wrapped her arm in his fondly. "Aw, it's never cool to be out with your big brother. Don't take it personally. However, I am really happy to be here with you," Serena told him warmly.
Dan smiled down at her. "Believe it or not, I am actually really happy to be at this thing with you too."
"Do you want to dance?" Serena asked.
"Can we just grab drinks and get acclimated for a moment first? I think I'm having a bit of sensory overload," Dan said, taking in the lavish surroundings.
After getting their drinks, Dan and Serena stood in a comfortable silence, watching the partygoers. After a few moments, Dan broke the silence.
"So, what is this whole deal with Blair tonight? She called me to make sure I didn't screw things up for her tonight," Dan said, his voice raised over the noise in the room.
"Blair called you?" Serena asked, looking surprised.
Dan nodded in the affirmative. "It sounded like it was a big deal."
"It is. Blair's set up a scavenger hunt with her 'handmaidens' each giving Nate a clue. If he finds Blair by midnight, he gets his prize," Serena explained.
"I'm assuming the prize is what I think it is," Dan said. Serena nodded in response.
"I don't get it. Why is tonight such a big deal? It's not like Nate and Blair have never..." Dan trailed off once he saw the look on Serena's face, then his own face took on a look of recognition.
"Oh. So that's why..." Dan trailed off again, deciding that there was no good end to that sentence. Dan didn't know what to say. Serena just looked down at the ground, ashamed.
Dan took a breath and reminded himself that Serena was trying to move forward, and obviously so was Blair. None of this had any bearing on his own relationship with Serena.
"Do you want to dance?" Dan asked. Serena smiled and grabbed his hand, pulling him to the dance floor.
They danced for awhile, and Dan just lets himself relax and have fun with Serena. He didn't know if it's the anonymity the mask affords him or simply being in Serena's company, but he hadn't felt this at ease in a long time.
"I'm having a really nice time tonight. Thank you for inviting me," he said into Serena's ear.
Serena beamed at him. "You're welcome. I'm really glad you came."
A moment later, Serena pulled away apologetically. "I need to go be ready for Nate. He should be ready for his final clue soon."
Dan nodded in understanding. "I'm going to run grab us drinks, then I'll come join you."
"You don't have to do this, you know," Serena said. "I know this whole scavenger hunt of Blair's is pretty over the top. It won't hurt my feelings if you want to just go home."
Dan shook his head and leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips. "There's nowhere I'd rather be. Besides, your friends are growing on me."
On his way to find drinks, Dan spotted Blair looking very alone. He walked over tentatively, not quite sure whether his company would be welcome or not.
"Serena's in position for the grand finale," Dan said as he approached.
"She'd better be. Nate's running out of time," Blair said anxiously.
Dan shook his head. "Why does there have to be a deadline? Can't you just let Nate come to you at his own pace?"
Blair glared at him. "Nate needs to show he's willing to work for it."
Dan shrugged. "Just take it easy on the guy. I talked to Nate earlier today, and I don't know everything, but I know he's going through something with his parents."
"Since when are you two friends?"
Dan chose to ignore the question, wanting to avoid any mention of Nate being at the Palace. It was plausible that Nate was seeing Chuck, but Dan had his doubts and he had a feeling Blair might share those same doubts.
"You don't have to take my advice. I'm just trying to help," Dan told her.
"Why? Trying to keep Nate out of the picture with Serena?"
"Is that what this is all about tonight?" Dan volleyed back.
Blair's glare got even narrower. "Just go find your date and my boyfriend," Blair said dismissively.
"Fine. Goodnight, Blair. I hope things go as you hope tonight."
Blair didn't say goodnight, merely smiled and waved at him sarcastically before he turned around to leave.
Dan found Serena just as Nate took off in the other direction. Serena looked tense as Dan approached with their drinks.
"Nate heading in the right direction?" Dan asked, trying to figure out the source of Serena's discomfort.
"Yeah, I think so," Serena said distractedly. Dan handed Serena her drink, then softly cupped her cheek with his free hand.
"What's wrong? Is it Nate?" Dan asked gently, not wanting to seem jealous.
"Yeah, I don't know what's wrong with him. He said it was something about his dad. I just told him what Blair is wearing and told him to go find her," Serena said. "Blair really needs this to happen tonight."
Dan suspected that Serena also really needed this to happen tonight, a sort of symbolic new beginning for them all. He decided to keep those thoughts to himself, figuring the night had gone too well for them at this stage.
Dan decided to lighten the mood as well. "Were you actually given that much discretion in your handmaiden duties?"
Serena laughed. "I decided it was for a good cause."
"I'd say our work here is done. We really should find Jenny and get her home soon," Dan said, grabbing Serena's hand. "Besides, I'm not sure I want to be here when the masks come off."
Jenny walked quickly toward the street to hail them a taxi, Dan and Serena holding hands a few paces behind. Serena lightly squeezed Dan's hand and nudged his shoulder. "Look over there," Serena said excitedly.
Dan followed Serena's gaze and saw Nate giving Blair a light kiss before entering a limo. "Looks like things worked out," Dan said, then removed his hand from Serena's. He then flung his arm around Serena's shoulder and picked up their pace to catch up Jenny. He flung his other arm over his sister's shoulder affectionately.
"So, Jen, how was your first masked ball?"
Jenny smiled, though Dan saw the hints of a mischievous smirk as well. "It went really well. Let's just say I took care of some unfinished business and leave it at that."
Just then a taxi pulled up, and the three of them got in. During the ride home, Jenny grinned to herself out the window while Dan and Serena sat in contented silence, happy to have spent a relatively drama free evening together.
