Giselle found herself humming as she studied the sleeves on the dress the mannequin was wearing. They were either too short or too long, she wasn't sure which.
Perhaps Peggy would know; Giselle looked around to see Peggy sitting at a table with two other designers of the studio, having an earnest discussion. Giselle had often seen these conversations take place - older employees letting newcomers know the realities of working at Andalasia Fashions. Giselle grinned; she remembered Robert's disbelieving running commentary when she had first sung for him in Central Park. People in New York evidently weren't used to that sort of thing.
With a sigh she glanced down at her watch. Almost three. It was her turn to pick up Morgan from school. Twitching her nose, she decided to think about the dress overnight and see if inspiration arose. It often did.
Just as she was turning to grab her jacket, Robert came up alongside her. Her heart skipped a beat as it always seemed to do in his presence, and she smiled widely. "I'm just on my way out. What would you like for dinner?"
"Actually, I thought I'd come with you." Robert held out her jacket.
"Oh." Without another word Giselle put it on and walked with Robert towards the elevators. She knew enough of him to recognize the signs of Robert wanting to talk about something serious. A vague foreboding settled over Giselle, dampening a bit the cheerful mood she'd had when welcoming Peggy.
Silently they walked out into the cool early spring afternoon. Robert had once commented how fortunate it was that the studio, Morgan's school, and the apartment were so close together. Giselle did indeed feel lucky; she'd made a few journeys into different parts of the city and had always been awed and amazed by what the people in this world had built with stone and metal. And it seemed to go on forever. Robert had talked about visiting other far-away lands with exotic names like "Europe" and "California", and evidently there were relatives in "Duluth". But for now Giselle was happy with the world centered around 117th and Broadway.
Robert waited until they were well away from the studio before he began. "So I talked with Nathaniel today."
"Nathaniel was here?" Giselle felt a flash of guilt. "I didn't even say hello."
"You were busy with Peggy. He understood." Robert hesitated a second. "I talked to him about our pregnancy issue."
"Oh Robert." Giselle felt heat rising to her face and turned her head slightly away. "You shouldn't embarrass him so."
"I... I didn't mean to do it. But he's a smart guy, maybe the smartest guy I know. And he knows more about our... situation than anyone else in New York."
Slowly, Giselle nodded and looked back at Robert. "I understand why you asked. But this is a private matter between us."
"I think we can count on Nathaniel's discretion." Robert was looking at her curiously. "Don't you want to know what he said?"
Giselle lowered her eyes for a moment but couldn't think of a good reason not to find out. She nodded once.
Nodding himself, Robert spoke softly. "He thinks I should go to Andalasia."
"Andalasia!" Giselle came to a stop, starting at Robert. "But whatever for?"
"He doesn't know what might be preventing you from getting pregnant, but he thinks there are people there who might have more insight."
Giselle paused to think that over. "Prince Edward. And, and Nancy."
"Nancy mostly, but yeah."
"Don't discount Edward. He knows a lot of people in other kingdoms, too. They might be able to help." Giselle continued walking down the street, perhaps just a bit more slowly. "How would you get there?"
"Well..." Again Robert hesitated a second. "I thought perhaps you could help."
"Oh don't be silly. I don't know how to do magic."
"I think Peggy would disagree."
"That's not magic. That's singing."
"Peggy told me herself she couldn't sing. Where did she suddenly get the ability? Not to mention, how'd she know the lyrics?"
"She knew how to sing; it was in her all the time."
"Perhaps. But you brought it out of her."
"That's not magic." Giselle lifted up her wrist and pointed to her watch. "This! This is magic. The elevators are magic, the lights are magic, the shower is magic, everything in this world is magic. All I know how to do is sing and make dresses."
"It's more than that, Giselle, and you know it."
"I do not! Don't tell me what I know."
He grinned. "And there I've done it again."
Giselle couldn't help smiling. It was a running joke between them that the only person in the world that could make her angry was Robert. He'd always been the one to inspire her passions both good and bad.
By way of apology she reached out and grasped his hand. They walked in silence for a bit before coming to a street corner. There, Robert brought them to a halt. "Anyway, I called Sam and asked her to pick up Morgan today and babysit for a few hours. I thought maybe we could try seeing if you could get me to Andalasia."
Giselle fought a sudden, irrational irritation and managed a simple, "Why now? Why is it so important we do this right away?"
"I just thought the timing now was good. You have your spring show next month and the studio's going to start getting busy very soon. I don't have any court cases pending for a while, so now is the perfect time."
"You... you want to be the one that goes?"
"Well, one of us should stay with Morgan. And it seems like you've never been comfortable talking about... our problem. I thought maybe it would be better for me to be making the inquiries." Robert reached into his jacket, pulled out a small square device. "Besides, I'll have my phone with me, I can call you any time."
"Oh." Giselle mulled that over. "How long do you think you'll be?"
"Just an hour or two. Long enough to find Nancy and ask her a couple of questions. Assuming, of course, I can get there."
Giselle shook her head. "You don't need to go. This isn't necessary, it will happen when it happens."
"Giselle... I know. I watch as you look at other babies. I see the expression on your face. I know how important it is to you. It's important to me, too."
Unexpectedly Giselle's eyes began watering. "I know. Believe me, I know. I wish... oh Robert, you can't force something to happen. I know that's as true here as it is in Andalasia."
"But if nothing you're doing works, you ask for help. That's also true in both our worlds."
Giselle drew a deep breath. "All right, dear. If it means that much to you, I'll try."
Robert smiled. "Thank you."
He led her to a subway stop and they took a short journey. Giselle still had unpleasant memories of her first subway ride and held tightly on to Robert's hand. She struck up a conversation with a teenaged boy standing next to her in the crowded subway car. A little to his evident chagrin, they uncovered a shared fascination with horses and chatted amiably about it. The boy seemed as disappointed as she was when the subway came to a halt and they separated. It was always good to meet new people, and there were hundreds of them in New York.
They stepped out into light and noise. This part of New York had always bedazzled Giselle and she found herself blinking at the sights. She allowed Robert to lead her down the street as she fought off feelings of dizziness and dread.
Robert came to a stop and released her hand. "Here we are. Fortunately, I came prepared." He pulled a kind of metal hook from his pocket. Giselle looked at it in puzzlement. Robert crouched down, and only then did Giselle realize where they were. In the middle of a crosswalk in Times Square. Standing over a manhole.
Slowly Giselle crouched down next to him as Robert, with no small effort, got the manhole cover off and pushed to once side. She wrinkled her nose slightly at the smell. She didn't remember that.
Robert looked at her. "Is this the right one?"
"I, I think so." She'd often described her first steps in New York to Morgan and Robert, and it was Morgan who had first decided that Giselle had been describing Times Square. "I don't know how it works, though."
Robert nodded thoughtfully. "Maybe you can... sing a way through?"
"Maybe," Giselle said uncertainly. No music was immediately forthcoming. She looked around for inspiration. The pedestrians who had been crossing had barely spared them a glance. Now the light had changed, and the taxis and trucks that rolled slowly past them were honking in annoyance. Not exactly the muses she was looking for.
Robert shook his head in irritation. "I should have brought some safety cones. This was all so last-minute. Thank goodness it's rush hour; no one will be moving more than five miles an hour for a while. Anything?"
"I told you, there are some things you can't force." Giselle clamped her mouth shut before she could say any other mean things. After a brief struggle for control, she said mildly, "Morgan and I watched a movie together. It was the movie about a journey and it started with a song. Maybe I can use that."
"That sounds good. Anything I can do to help?"
"Just... be ready. I don't know if anything will happen, or how long it will last. If, if a way does open up, you should move quickly."
"Got it. Anything else?"
Giselle looked up into his eyes and smiled. "I love you."
One of the many reasons she loved him was to see the way his face softened at moments like this. "I love you too."
The exchanged a brief kiss that still managed to linger. Giselle drew as much serenity out of the kiss as she could. Her mind stilled and her love for Robert remained strong and true, and out of those things she pulled the words she'd heard, the words that had touched her heart with Morgan sitting by her side, and she began channeling them, singing softly as she stared down the manhole cover.
"Why are there so
Many songs about rainbows
And what's on the other side?
Rainbows are visions
But only illusions
And rainbows have nothing to hide."
The pedestrians who had reclaimed the crosswalk still barely spared her a glance, but one or two paused a moment to listen. Giselle could feel their appreciation for the song, and it helped. Encouraged, she sang with more conviction.
"So we've been told
And some choose to believe it.
I know they're wrong, wait and see.
"Someday we'll find it -
The rainbow connection -
The lovers,
The dreamers,
And me."
Robert reached over and put his hand on her shoulder. She welcomed his touch as she had every day since their ballroom dance. Giselle hugged it by shrugging her shoulder and tipping her head, but her focus remained on the song and the music.
"Who says that every wish
Will be heard and answered
When wished on the morning star?
Somebody thought of it,
And someone believed it,
And look what it's done so far.
"What's so amazing
That keeps us stargazing,
And what do we think we might see?"
Something sparked inside the manhole. Robert gasped out loud. Giselle studied the tiny point of blue light, let its warmth fill her as she continued singing.
"Someday we'll find it -
The rainbow connection -
The lovers,
The dreamers,
And me,
All of us under its spell,
Who knows,
But it's probably
Magic."
More points of light were appearing, in increasing numbers. Robert bent over to take a closer look and Giselle smiled at the back of his head, enjoying his wonderment.
"Have you been half-asleep
And have you heard voices
Each of them calling your name?
Are those the sweet sounds
That called the young sailors?
I think they're one and the same."
The points were merging, become a disk of light floating a few feet down the manhole. Robert looked up at Giselle. She met his eyes, gestured urgently towards the light. Nodding, Robert touch her check briefly then sat on the edge of the manhole, looking down.
"I've heard it too
Many times to ignore it.
There's something that
I'm supposed to be."
Robert jumped, and the disk of light flared and was gone. Blinking back a sudden rush of tears, Giselle stood and looked up at the lights of Times Square.
"Someday we'll find it -
The rainbow connection -
The lovers,
The dreamers,
And me."
The music faded from her mind. A couple of people clapped from the sidewalk. Giselle couldn't bear to accept their applause. Because she knew. She knew Robert's journey would not be a simple walk to the castle, finished in an hour. Giselle had to go back to Morgan and explain why her father might be gone for days, even weeks.
Andalasia had Robert now. And, as Giselle had discovered about New York, it might not want to give him back.
Wiping the tears from her eyes, Giselle pushed the manhole cover back in place. Then she turned back towards the subway and prepared to make her way back to the apartment.
~*~