Again, thanks everybody for reading. I hope you enjoy this chapter, I've been looking forward to writing this one! :)
Rothbart dragged Odile downstairs to the decrepit ballroom and threw her onto the floor. Odile protested, but Rothbart was too fast for her. She was preparing herself to be transformed into a cat for allowing the animals to steal that parchment, but the change never came. Not that change, at least. She definitely felt the magic hit her, burning her bones, as her body transformed into something. When the magic ended, she looked up and saw Bridget standing in front of her. She looked down at her hands and gasped. They were her own! She felt her body. She was Odile again! She stood up and looked down, marveling at the feeling of being in her own body again. She was about ready to laugh with joy. But she knew that there had to be some sort of catch. Rothbart never played fair.
"Do you like your old body, Princess?" Rothbart asked. Odile didn't respond as she waited for the clause. "It probably seems familiar. I wonder, is this familiar as well?" He tossed something at her, and she caught it with grace. She didn't drop it or stumble; she wasn't clumsy anymore! She looked at the object and nearly passed out. It was Odette's locket! Odile hadn't seen this in nearly six months! Even though she borrowed it in the summers when she went to take Odette's place, she hadn't had it in her possession when Rothbart had kidnapped her.
"Where did you get this?" Odile demanded loudly, glaring at him. Ah, her voice! It felt so good to be able to speak again! But her joy was tempered by her shock and anger at Rothbart.
Rothbart smirked. "Why, your sister, of course!" he informed her smugly.
"My sister?" Odile gasped. "What?"
Rothbart beckoned her over to the large window that was usually covered by a curtain. It had a perfect view of the shores of Swan Lake. Odile kept her eyes on Rothbart's face for a moment before turning to look out the window. When she looked, she felt as though she had been stabbed in the heart. It was Odette, crying on the shore! "Odette! What have you done to her?" Odile demanded viciously. She turned and stared venomously at Rothbart, who only seemed amused.
"Just a simple spell, one not so different from you own. By day, she is a swan; by night, she is a princess," Rothbart explained.
Odette was the swan? Odile nearly crumpled. She had been living with her sister so close by for months and she hadn't even known it? She pressed herself against the glass, staring down at the fetal form of her twin. "Let her go!" she screamed, seizing the front of Rothbart's clothing. Rothbart plucked her hands off and patted her shoulder.
"Odile, I have every intention of doing so," Rothbart said. "However, it will require a little payment on your part."
Odile drew back. "What do you mean?" she asked.
"You see, Prince Derek stopped by earlier this evening, and he invited your sister to a ball. He wants to make a vow of everlasting love to her, but of course, your sister doesn't want that. She told me so herself; that's why she's crying. If you go and take her place, then I will set her free and you will earn your body back."
Derek had been here? How? Odile frowned. "And why do you care what Odette wants? You've turned her into a swan!"
"Only temporarily!" Rothbart protested. "And to be frank, I don't care what your sister wants. My grudge is against Prince Derek. If he makes his vow to you, he can't back out of that, and once he realizes his mistake, then we'll be quite even. You are quite unbearable company, Odile, and he won't appreciate the replacement."
Odile bit her lip at the obvious insult, slightly hurt but unwilling to let Rothbart know that he'd gotten to her. She pondered his former statement, though. "Why would you have a grudge against Derek?"
"Enough questions!" Rothbart exclaimed, clearly exasperated. Odile shut her mouth, but she continued thinking. Obviously, Rothbart didn't know that she'd been taking her sister's place with Derek every summer for years. Derek had clearly thought that the Odette he'd invited to the ball was the same Odette he'd known since he was six. Why would he want to make a vow of everlasting love, though? They had never liked each other! He was probably doing it to make his mother happy. Odile could think of no other reason. And if he'd been going to marry her anyway because Odile had taken Odette's place, what would the difference be if she took her sister's place one last time? True, it would sentence her to a lifetime of annoyance, but if it would make Odette happy and set her free from this cruel magician, Odile would do it. But she had to be certain that she was making the right choice, first.
"What happens if I say no?" Odile said, testing Rothbart. She was also enjoying getting on his nerves, but it was also imperative that she ask this question.
Rothbart began turning beet red. "What happens if you say no?" Odile knew she had been foolish when he advanced on her and pinned her to the wall by the neck with one of his large, gloved hands. Her breathing was cut off, and she sputtered behind his hand. "I'll tell you what happens, Princess! You and your sister will both die! You think I won't do it? I will do it! You and your sister are worth nothing to me. So unless you want to dig your own grave, you will take Odette's place at the ball tomorrow night!" He released her and she slid to the floor, gasping for breath.
"All right … I'll do it," Odile coughed, trembling. She was truly terrified of Rothbart now. She didn't question his power or his drive. She knew he would kill her and her sister if she didn't do this. What would one more night in Odette's shoes do anyway? Odile had been resigned to marrying Derek for years now. What would the difference be? She crumpled in a small ball and moaned. Tears were welling in the corners of her eyes at the pain throbbing in her neck and the prospects of her future. At least everything would turn out right if she did it. Odette would be free, and she would be allowed to have her old body back. Everything would be right.
"Now, go upstairs to minor chamber and start making yourself pretty for tomorrow night. Goodness knows you'll need it," Rothbart said softly but harshly. "Go!" Odile didn't hesitate. She leapt up and ran off like a frightened deer, much more swiftly than she would have before. Her heart ached and her body ached, but it would all end tomorrow night. It had to.
Derek was over the moon with joy. He had found her, at last! She was alive! His efforts had not been futile. And tonight, he would break the awful spell that was placed upon her and they would be together. His mother had been shocked but pleased when Derek had come in and insisted that all these changes be made to the food and decoration and music because he would have his bride tonight. The all around mood of Uberta's castle was joyous as Derek's attitude spread infectiously to all who were near. Derek glowed all evening, anticipating the moment when Odette would enter and all would be proven wrong. He would have her as his wife, and they would rule together. He had to make a vow of everlasting love to her tonight; in fact he was rather pleased with himself that he had figured out how to do it before the whole world on his own.
The evening began and guests began filtering into the ballroom. Derek greeted everybody pleasantly, but truly his mind was far away, at that lake where Odette was being held captive. Not for long. She would come, and he would set her free. He only vaguely heard his mother going on about how every single princess on the planet would be here tonight, including Portia, Guinevere, and Janet. She enjoyed boasting. She claimed that they would come by coach or boat to be here, and she was sure that some would even swim the moat to be here! Derek just shook his head at his mother's bragging. He'd asked her not to go to such lengths, but he'd known that there'd be no stopping her. Now that he'd found Odette, though, he really didn't mind. None of it mattered, so why not let his mother have her fun?
He couldn't help but be a bit annoyed when the chamberlain, most probably at his mother's orders, began the pageant. He didn't like such affairs. He subtly rolled his eyes when the princesses of the kingdom of Tchaikovsky filed out. The princesses were virtually all identical. The eldest two were twins named Primrose and Thomasina, and the third was named Tertia. The next three were triplets: Deltina, Quintette, and Sextana. The youngest two were named Septima and Octavia. When dressed alike, and even when they weren't, they all were so similar that no one could tell them apart. They were often known as the Performing Princesses, since they travelled all throughout other kingdoms to perform in song and dance. King William had once mentioned to Derek how alike Odette and her twin sister Odile looked, but he was sure that it was nowhere near as similar as the Tchaikovskian princesses. Derek was getting déjà vu as they danced around him.
Chamberlain soon began to introduce princesses from the neighboring kingdoms. The first, apparently, was Princess Crisanta from Colcester, the agricultural capital of the region. Derek remembered meeting her a couple of time when he was younger, but mostly because he'd enjoyed the company of her elder brother, Prince Elio. Personally he found her a bit dull and too reserved, unlike Odette. Princess Antonia he was also familiar with, but she seemed to have the opposite problem as Cristana. She was a bit too violent for his taste. Then again, everyone from her kingdom seemed to be that way. This was why Derek was glad that their kingdom was so far off. Derek held back a laugh when Griselda came on to the scene. She was several years his senior and still unmarried, likely to remain so as well. She was friendly enough but a bit of a pushover. Derek loved Odette's independent mind. Princess Brunhilda took Derek by surprise when she came in donned in full armor and on horseback, but she had always been a bit show-offish. While their kingdom's armor was superb, Brunhilda was a bit too conflicted for Derek's taste.
The more princesses that filed out, the more Derek reflected on his love for Odette. No matter who it was they were - Leonora, Patricia, or Beatrice - none of them matched up to Odette. Where was she, anyway? It should be late enough for her to have changed out of swan form and arrive. Derek was beginning to get nervous. What if she didn't come? What if the enchanter had stopped her? Derek would find him and force him to free Odette! His fears were quickly resolved, though, when shortly after the pageant concluded, there was a knock at the door. Derek's heart lifted. Chamberlain ran up quickly to answer the door, and standing at the entrance was Odette. Derek stared, enraptured, as she made her way down the long staircase towards him.
