A/N: Ooh. An update! Spring Break means more plot bunnies, I suppose! I'm playing with POV switches, tell me how it goes
Update: Thank you, Calyn! I've made the change. And, yes, I think I was mistaken when I put 'never'.
Edmund heads to the back of the library, searching through the dusty shelves. He trails his fingers down the many spines, processing the titles with a flick of his dark eyes. He finds his book, and pulls it gently from the shelf. Blowing on the cover, he reveals, in faded gold lettering, the words: Tales of Evil From Beyond.
He moves to a small table, and settles himself in an armchair. Flipping through the book, he finds the chapter in which he is most interested.
The Mary-Sue:
Background- A mysterious force, the Mary-Sue is best known for being absolutely perfect in every way. Generally, they can only focus their charms on one person at a time, but more powerful members of the species can entrance two to three. Many people are easily put under their spells, but those who are particularly true of heart and mind resist the first onslaught of magic. However, with no assistance, they will soon succumb to the wicked enchantments.
Appearance- They are generally blonde, with blue, green, violet, or grey eyes. Very rarely a brunette, and sometimes manifest as a redhead or with raven hair, depending on the interest of the target(s).
Motivation- Usually, Mary-Sues are commissioned by sorceresses, most often for revenge. In occasional cases, a Mary-Sue's desire for another person's heartbreak and/or power will make them act on their own.
There is more on the page, but Edmund closes the book, leans back, and deliberates on what he has just read. If his suspicions are correct, there is much more to the Lady Mary-Sue that meets the eye.
Lucy and Susan, unaware that their brother, Edmund, is also in the library, settle down in front of the records books.
"So… Do we have a father's name? Or lineage, at all?" Lucy asks hopefully.
"No. All we have is her first name, but we can rule out Telmar and Calormene. She isn't dark enough for that. Check Archenland's records. I'll do Terabinthia. Then, we can go through the Lone Islands together. Okay?" Susan asks. Lucy nods, and grabs the book of Archenlandian records. Sitting down, the two queens flip through old pages, searching for any trace of their visitor.
Hours pass, and they set the final books aside.
"She's not anywhere!" Lucy exclaims softly, slapping her palm against her forehead.
"Don't," murmurs Susan out of habit, holding her sister's wrist. A noise from the shelves behind them startles them both, and they jump, turning sharply to face Edmund.
"Sorry. I was a little preoccupied, and I… well, bumped into the shelf… But you probably know that," he apologizes sheepishly.
"It's okay, Ed. Susan and I were just doing a little digging about our… guest," Lucy trails off, glancing at Susan.
"Really? So was I," confides Edmund. "Although, by the looks of it, our researches went off in two different paths," he continues, glancing around at the books. "Did you find her?"
"No, we didn't. What did you learn?" Susan asks, an inquisitive look on her face. The three sovereigns sit down, eager to share all that they know and suspect.
As three siblings converse in the library, the fourth is walking about the castle, head held high. He too, is thinking about the Lady Mary-Sue, but his thoughts are very different than the others. Peter cannot get the vision of blonde hair and blue eyes (not his own) that haunt his mind. Just then, as though she was summoned by his very thoughts, he bumps into someone as he turns a corner.
"Oh!" came a gasp of surprise from a very familiar, very feminine person.
"My lady! I'm so, so sorry," Peter apologizes profusely.
"You are quite forgiven, my lord," giggles Mary-Sue sweetly. She tucks her arm into his, and looks at him with her doe eyes. "Shall we walk?" She frames it as a question, but in reality, it is an order. Peter, too enamored by her looks to see this, nods happily.
"But of course!" he says. They stroll out into the sunshine, and into the garden. Together, they chuckle over little jokes and other unimportant things.
As they reach a section of the garden darkened by thick green foliage, Mary-Sue gently removes her arm from his, and turns to face him.
"My lord-"
"Peter."
"Peter. Do you… think me beautiful?" she asks shyly.
"My lady-"
"If I call you Peter, you call me Mary," she says sternly.
"Well then, Mary, I think you to be the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on," Peter says, lightly running his finger down the side of her face. She giggles softly, and lifts her hand to take his.
"I'm glad," she says, now more flirtatious. "I don't think I could bear it if another woman caught your fancy." Peter, too lost in the way her eyes peep at him from beneath her full eyelashes, does not catch what she implies.
Lifting her hand to his mouth, he kisses it lightly. "I don't think that's possible, Mary," he murmurs. With a slight laugh, Mary-Sue lightly places her free hand on the back of Peter's neck. Carefully, hesitantly, she stands on her tiptoes and gives him a soft kiss.
"Um…" As they break apart, Mary-Sue is blushing furiously. "Good day, Peter," she says quickly, dropping into a curtsy and darting off. Peter, leaning against the plant-covered trellis, is unaware that she ran, not out of embarrassment, but out of the need to grin evilly and celebrate her triumph. While Peter stands in the garden, a silly smile on his lips, she runs to her room and does just that.
A/N: *shudder* that was an awkward chapter to write... You know what would cheer me up? Reviews. :) Also, this was my first attempt at POV switches during a chapter. Or, I guess, it's sort of... a location change since I have a narrarator. LOL I don't know which. Maybe... You could tell me in your review? *hint hint*
