Chapter 12: Insight into the Girl

"Jessica, did you know they think I kidnapped you?" Markl asked.

Aboveground, Jessica bit her lip and paused to think about how to respond. Of course she knew. What she couldn't decide on was how to explain everything to him. At first, she had thought she was doing the right thing. She had been proud of her. But at the same time something was telling her that it was all wrong. She knew she shouldn't be speaking to Markl, but he has seemed so nice. She just couldn't fathom that it had all been a ruse.

"Jessica?" Markl asked again.

"Jessica!" A familiar voice called. She jolted up from her kneeling position quickly and was straightening her skirts when Nathaniel rounded the corner. Nathaniel was Prince Justin's aide, although that was only what was told to others. The reality was that he was a hired friend and had been since both of the men had been boys. Finding playmates of the same princely standards was a difficult feat for many a monarchies doting parents. All the same, it was a peculiar relationship they had, Prince Justin and Nathaniel…

The young man was just slightly on the wrong side of thin, but he was by no means sickly. His black hair was pulled back into a short ponytail and his icy blue eyes gleamed with intensity.

"What were you doing?" He asked, narrowing his gaze at Jessica suspiciously.

"Walking." She said haughtily. "Is there a rule against that now too?"

"No…" He said, glancing at her skirts. "That is, if that really is what you were doing."

She followed his line of vision and was not a little mortified to see that the spot she'd been kneeling on was wet and stained.

"What are you?" She snapped, going red, "My wet nurse?"

He shrugged. "In any case, your mother is going livid with wanting for you."

She muttered something unladylike under her breath and stomped past the unbearable man. A smile made his lips twitch before he smothered it and followed dutifully after Jessica, in order to make sure that she did indeed go find her mother.

Jessica knew that mother would be in the sitting room. She loved it. Because that was all she did in it. Sit. Running amuck outside was unladylike and silly. Jessica tended to disagree. Immensely.

This was why she took every possible opportunity to leave the castle and her mother's watchful eye. Her father understood, she brooded. So why couldn't her mother? The castle was stifling, and the only part she really enjoyed with the seldom used garden. And now, even that was being taken from her.

"You wanted me, mother?" Jessica said dully.

Her mother turned slightly in her chair to look at Jessica. She was an almost perfect mirror image of what an older Jessica would grow up to be. A voluptuous beauty with blue eyes and perfectly coiffed blond hair. A woman fit to be seen sitting beside a King. Jessica's and Justin's mother, the King's wife, Victoria.

"There you are, darling. Where were you?" Her eyes fell to take in Jessica's dress and a horror filled gasp escaped her mouth. "What happened?!"

"I…I was…um-." Jessica had been so busy thinking about other things on the way over that she had completely forgotten to think up a story!

"If you'll pardon the interruption, your Majesty…" Nathaniel said, "Milady Jessica was walking in the garden and a rock tripped her."

Jessica stood there, staring up at Nathaniel, mouth slightly ajar. It had been totally out of the blue and she couldn't figure out why Nathaniel of all people would make an effort to help her.

"Is that true?" Her mother asked sharply, suspiciously. Victoria, for all her faults, knew her daughter well.

"Yes." She said quickly, not daring to contradict Nathaniel's story for a better one. She didn't want to get Nathaniel in trouble for trying to help her… that is, if that really was what he was doing. She'd have to interrogate him later.

Her mother stood, the stern presence creasing her marble smooth skin gone, a look of maternal love in its place. "You poor thing. Are you hurt? Mother is sorry for being rash… it's just that this is the third time this week, my sweetness." She unfolded her fan and aired herself gently. Getting angry flushed the skin horribly. "You may go." She said to Nathaniel without looking at him.

He bowed respectfully and left quickly.

"Have I done something wrong, Mother?" Jessica asked.

"What? Goodness no!" She laughed, a fluttery becoming sound, honed to the perfect pitch. "I just haven't seen you all day. Is it wrong for a mother to want to check up on her daughter?"

"No." She said, grudgingly. Though she desperately wanted to add that there was something wrong with this mother for checking up on her daughter. "Is that all?"

"Yes. You're such a good girl, humoring a doting mother like this."

"Thank you." She made to leave as well.

"By the by, I know what a gentle creature you are, darling, so I just wanted to let you know that you did the absolute right thing. What any loving sister would do without hesitation."

Jessica stood with her back to her mother so that she couldn't see the look of doubt on her face. "I know."

Victoria smiled, "Of course you do. Now go change out of those rags, dear, before someone thinks that you don't have anything cleaner to wear."

"Yes, mother." Jessica didn't bother to turn around and give her mother the usual angelic deceiving smile she usually did. She just left.

Her head with filled with confused thoughts now. She didn't know what to believe anymore. She needed to see her brother. He would quicken her resolve, or at the very least, help steady the foundation.

She found him where he seemed to be spending most of his time lately; in the library. He was sitting at a table, surrounded by complicated wordy texts, some of which seemed to be written in long dead languages. As to what he was looking for… No one was really sure.

"Justin?" She said, quietly, afraid of disturbing him.

He looked up at hearing his name and smiled, "Hello Jessica. Do you need me for something?"

"No. I just wanted to see you."

He smiled, no doubt baffled by the mysteriously ways of women children. "And now you've seen me. Is that all you wanted?" He wheedled. "Maybe a talk?"

When she didn't answer, he nudged on of the seats out from under the table with his foot. "Have a seat."

She sat, looking forlornly like the world was coming to an end. He didn't pressure her to tell him what was wrong, however. He was twelve years her senior and he knew her better than her own mother did. Jessica was unable to keep her thoughts and emotions bottled for long.

"Are you unhappy?" She burst out.

He blinked, not sure what he had been expecting but knowing that it surely hadn't been that. "No, not right now." He said, deciding on utter honesty.

"I mean," She said, frustrated with his bluntness, "Are you… heartsick?"

He didn't say anything while his mind whirled. Could Jessica be referring to what he thought she was? If so, how could she possibly have found out?

"Why do you ask?"

"Because you can't be with your true love, right? Wouldn't that be painful?"

He didn't know how to answer, so he tried to evade, "I'm fine."

He was lying. She knew he was. How could he not be? What else could explain his strange behavior ever since he'd returned?

Prince Justin saw the look of skepticism on her young face and sighed. Jessica was far too perceptive for her own good. "Okay, look." He said taking a breath. "I don't know how you found out, Jessica, but I'd appreciate it if you kept this to yourself. Even from Mother and Father. Can you do that for me?"

This confession only served to confuse her further. Didn't he know that Mother already knew? Perhaps not, considering how slippery she could be sometimes. It was possible that Mother had a plan in mind to help that, for some reason, she hadn't revealed to him yet. If that was the case then it was in his best interests to stay out of the whole ordeal and let Mother handle it, since she seemed to know what she was doing.

"I can do that for you." She said seriously.

Justin smiled, "Good. Don't worry, Jessica. I'm trying to find a solution and you know what they say… when there's a will there's a way."

A/N: When I started this fan fiction, I had just recently watched the movie. As time when on and chapters were produced, my memory's of the places and locations wavered. That is why, back in chapter 4, Markl went to visit Madame Suliman in the "palace" in some un-named city… which really should have been Kingsbury. But for the sake of the plot, I'm going to have to ask that you ignore this rather ugly hole and pretend Madame Suliman's home isn't in the palace in Kingsbury. Maybe someday I'll re-write this whole thing so that it makes chronological sense… Sorry for the mix up and thanks for understanding!

By the way, thanks to everyone who reviewed when I stopped writing. If I hadn't gotten your reviews every now and again, I would never have picked it back up :. Sorry this chapter is so boring. It's kinda necessary though. I'll try to update soon, if any of you are still out there reading.