NEW YORK ROYALTY

Disclaimer: All characters owned by the CW and Josh Schwartz.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: They were all bound to each other, by royalty, loyalty, inheritance. Serena, Nate, Blair, Chuck. Not a lot of dialogue, so be warned.

|SERENA

I'm pretty sure that even if Blair Waldorf and I hadn't met on that fateful day in kindergarten, we still would've ended up being best friends.
Not because of fate, or destiny, or any of that. Because of society. Everyone who's born into high society knows each other. It's the rules we play by; the rules we follow.
But the truth is, if I hadn't met Blair that day, I could've ended up having someone like Penelope or Hazel as a best friend. And that would've been pretty tragic.
The same day I met Blair, I met Nate Archibald. By the second day of kindergarten, Nate and Blair were together. A couple. And the only people who weren't afraid of getting cooties.

In the second grade, Nate and Chuck Bass became best friends. Chuck Bass and his disgusting ways, even back then, made me want to barf. But I couldn't do that, because that's Blair's thing. Oops. Low blow.
Anyway, Chuck was the same as he is now. In our society, people never change. I don't know why I tried. But then again, who knew Chuck Bass would end up being my step-brother?

Dan Humphrey was a phase; an experiment; a toy. But he was interesting.
At least for a little while. And he 'made me change', at least in the eyes of everyone except Blair, Nate, and Chuck.
They knew better.
People never change.

During our sophomore year at Constance, Blair and I had started to really understand about the social hierarchy of school.
I could've cared less, but Blair, ever the perfectionist, needed to be on top. That year, Blair and I fought more times than I can remember.
And that summer, when Nate ushered me into the Shepard's wedding bar, I didn't think twice when he first kissed me.

Boarding school was interesting. I'm pretty sure every girl in the Upper East Side has been shipped away, whether it be to boarding school, rehab, or something else.
Everyone except Blair. So there I was, miles away in Connecticut, without my best friends. For the first time in my life, I was lonely.
And then, they found out who I was. Serena van der Woodsen. And suddenly, I didn't miss home. I didn't miss Blair, or Chuck. And I certainly didn't miss Nate Archibald.

When I returned to Constance the following fall, things had changed. People never change, but in our society- situations, events, standards. All those things do.
Blair was at the top of her game, Nate by her side, playing the loyal boyfriend…but I knew better. And Chuck was lurking somewhere in the background, and somehow, I wasn't needed anymore.
I was an outcast. And I was lonely.
And when people found out I was Serena van der Woodsen, no one cared.

By our senior year, Blair and I had solidified our friendship. Nate and I were finally just friends. Chuck and I were…grossly enough, related. And things were going good until Dan and I broke up, and all hell broke loose.
"From now on, all things go by me," I told Penelope and Iz. They should've known better.
The Queen always reigns. She always comes back.

And I was finally, finally back in the game. Where I belonged. Society wouldn't have it any other way.

||NATE

I loved Blair Waldorf, I did.
I just wasn't in love with her. The first day I met her, I could tell she was the prettiest girl in the room.
But, there's a difference between the prettiest and the most noticeable; the most stunning, the one that caught my eye. And that girl? That girl was off limits. That girl was Serena. My girl's best friend. My best friend.

Hearing Chuck say he cared about me all those years, I think I had always taken it for granted.
I had just assumed this was how things were supposed to be: Chuck and I smoking pot, discussing women and school and money.
I had never considered that all of that could come crashing down at once. Women, school, money.
Blair, suspension, bankruptcy. It was all crashing down on me, and then, then Chuck dropped the big bomb about him and Blair.
And I was angry, but more at myself. For taking things for granted. For assuming.

Serena was flawless, gorgeous, beautiful. There was no question that she was born royalty of the Upper East Side.
But Queen? Again?
Serena could be nice one day, and a bitch the next. Always had been. She was wholesome and good one year, and the next, back to her old self. Because people never change. But Serena sure liked to try.
At least Blair was honest.

Vanessa was temptation.
How could a guy of my status, of my wealth and standard, dare to go out with the Brooklyn girl?
Maybe I was looking for fun.
Maybe I was looking for change.

If we're being completely honest here, I won't hold back.
In the back of my mind, I'm pretty sure that Blair and I are getting married someday. We're going to live in a huge house, with two kids, one boy and one girl, and they'll be gorgeous.
They'll be flawless.
And maybe on Friday nights, while I'm on business, Blair will sneak out to meet with Chuck. And then on Sunday evenings during charity dinners, I'll go find Serena in the bathrooms of the fancy restaurant it's being held at.
But, really. Blair and Nate, Nate and Blair. We've always been end-game. Things like that; they don't change, much as we wish they could.

Chuck Bass is the biggest prick I know. He's a womanizer, a complete asshole, and well, if we're going to be honest (again), he's a good friend.
He's always been my best friend, and I have to start wondering what could've been if I had met someone else on that first day of second grade. How my life would've been different.

Nathaniel Archibald. The name itself is bound with careful promises, and that New York royalty that no one can deny.

The person inside the name…well, he was meant for greater things. But for now, I guess I'll just have to live up to it.

|||BLAIR

I like labels.
I always have. I liked being the preppy girl, the trendsetter, the timeless beauty, the bitch. My least favorite would have to be slut, but where there's gain, there's always pain.
In this world, labels define you. Reputation defines you.
I am who I am, and I like it. I like it a lot.

Sooooo many people act like they hate this society, this world we grew up in. This wealthy, privileged place. They act like it's the worst thing in the world.
Have you met Serena? Of course you have. It's Serena van der Woodsen, who hasn't heard of her? She's practically notorious, infamous around here.
She mopes and broods about how she's so different from everyone else. How she has a heart of gold to match her golden locks.
Yeah, okay.

And Nate? That boy has seen too many episodes of The O.C. because his life is like a freaking soap opera. Oh my God, his best friend and his girlfriend betrayed him. Like we haven't heard that one before. Oh no, his dad left his family bankrupt but then his mistress stepped in. All he needed to do was give in to some hot sex.
Yeah, that sounds like a real hardship…

That's why Chuck is the one I respect. Chuck is the one I go to for advice, and for everything else.
Because Chuck knows that we're not supposed to be happy. We're supposed to be fabulous, rich, gorgeous. Happiness isn't on the menu.
And Chuck and I, that's why we're alike. We love this world. We thrive in it.

The Queen's throne at Constance has always belonged to Serena.
But, she left, and things change, and I plan to keep things that way because now, that crown is mine. I earned it.
And I love a good challenge.

I don't trust, or love, people easily.
Serena is the only girl I've ever truly trusted and loved, and sometimes, even now, I have my doubts.
Nate is the only boy I've truly loved, even if it was the idea of him. I know true love when I see it.
And then there's Chuck. The only person I would trust with my life, the only person I can imagine learning to love at this point.
But like I said, happy endings don't happen to us. Not in this world.

Marcus was supposed to be a distraction. I never wanted that stupid title, because why would anyone want to rule England when they can rule the Upper East Side?
I would never leave this place. It's my life. It's my home. It's the only place I've got.
Thus, it didn't hurt one bit when I sent Marcus and his "mom" back to where they belong.
There's no room for more royalty here in our society.

I am a Waldorf. I make my own rules.

And as for change…everyone knows you can't keep a bad girl down.

||||CHUCK

I live a dramatic, horrendous, heinous lifestyle.
And I love it.

Serena is a free spirit. She'll never be happy, she'll never end up with anyone who she loves as much as they love her.
It's who she is, it's who she was born to be.

Blair is controlled. She has to be in control in order for her to be happy, and that's rare because I love taking away that control. It's exhilarating to see the Queen fall.
It's how things are, how they're supposed to be.

Nate is flawed, but every girl loves a brooder. I certainly don't see the appeal, but who am I to talk? I down a glass of scotch whenever I can.
I love this world. I love the secrets we have, the gossip I spread…the privilege, most of all…

In sixth grade, when I cut my leg on a big rock at the beach, Blair was the first one there.
She had taken off her scarf (don't ask me why the fuck she was wearing one to the beach. Stupid trends.) and put pressure on my leg before calling the others over.
She had smiled at me slightly before shaking her head. "Oh, Chuck. At least we can always count on you to make a scene."
I had smirked, and then I chuckled, until Nate and Serena showed up, and Blair moved closer to Nate, and farther from me.
That's how it had always been, how it would always be.

The game of jealousy is a dangerous game, but I can play it just as well as Blair can.

In our first year of high school, Nate had been out with his lacrosse buddies. Serena had been partying with her socialites.
And Blair came to the Palace, tear-stained face and all.
"No one likes me here," she sobbed. "Everyone loves Serena. Do you know how that feels, Bass? To have everyone love your best friend more than you?"
I had fought the urge to laugh because of how close her words hit home. I had whispered into her mass of dark hair, "You have no idea, Waldorf. You have no idea."

People are deceitful.
You can call me cynical, but I prefer realistic.

People don't change, you can't force them to, and why would you want them to?

It makes things a hell of a lot more interesting around here.

Author's Note; Nothing special, but it's been sitting in my computer files for awhile, so I figured why not? Comments, criticism, etc. All welcome.