A/N: I apologize for the longer than usual break this time (for those of you who noticed). I've been attacked by that savage beast known as the writer's block… I know where I want this story to go, but I'm having a hard time getting there. But don't fret, because the story is never completely abandoned. ;-)
Okay, before we go on to the next part, I have some acknowledgements to make:
Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far. I think part 10 got the most number of reviews to date. I'm also beginning to notice a lot of familiar faces (so to speak)—hemlock, Jenny the Chica, chien, Lagamorph, and of course Xaviera, who you can all thank for keeping this story alive. She's the one who brought me to my senses when I was about to toss it out.
KittenGirl555—Hmm, maybe it's just our differing experience with little kids, but most of the ones I know have a tendency to repeat what they've heard others say… even without completely understanding what it means. Besides, I wouldn't consider "you suck" cussing—it's pretty tame in my vocabulary.
Kirjava—I hope I got my French right this time. Like I said, it's been a while and I never was really passionate about the language in the first place. And no worries, I don't take offence at the correction. ;-)
For anyone wondering about possible romance (hemlock, chien, christine): Nothing is as it appears on the surface. Remember, this is a parody of the original stories (though I love 'em nonetheless), so there will be no "fairytale" romances.
Other thank you's going out to Amer, Music, Calliope, and tres fancais (I don't know if you were going for an 'r' in there and just mistyped).
And I'm glad that Luke has some fans, despite the fact that he can be a bit of a jerk… or is that *why* you like him?
Now, without further ado, to the story…
Chapter 11Intersections: "Plans set into motion"
"So?" Ella asked, hazel gaze turning to their hostess as soon as soon as their children were out of earshot. "Is it all set?"
Four sets of eyes watches expectantly, shifting from Snow to her husband, Charming2. The queen, with a satisfied grin, replied, "Of course it is. I said I'd—we'd—take care of it, and we did."
"How did you arrange it?" Charming1 asked the dark-haired woman, not bothering to direct his question to her husband. Their host appeared far too absorbed in his rapidly emptying wine goblet to pay much heed to the conversation anyway.
Ella and Charming1 were especially interested in the details, considering it was their daughter at the center of this whole plan, and ensuring her safety was top priority.
"More wine?" their host declared, holding up the elegant decanter in offering. When the guests declined, he gave a nonchalant shrug and poured himself another healthy serving, guzzling it down in record speed.
"I contacted an old friend," Snow replied as if the interruption had not occurred. After twenty-one long years—emphasis on long—she had learned to tune out her husband as necessary. At times it was the only way she could keep from killing him. "He specializes in this sort of thing. Don't worry, he assures me at no point will she actually be in danger," she told them as she patted Ella's hand reassuringly.
"It's not that we don't trust your judgment, Snow," Ella replied, a slight frown on her face, which indicated just how troubled she was. Usually, she would avoid such a gesture at all cost, considering the risk of potential wrinkles and all.
"We just don't want to leave anything to chance," Charming1 finished for his wife. "If anything should go wrong…"
Being the eternal optimist, Rose decided to enter the conversation at this point, turning to the worried parents. "Nothing will go wrong," she said pleasantly, her sweet voice still innocent after eighteen years of marriage and seventeen of motherhood. "If nothing else, you can trust Vivienne to take care of herself."
"Ça vrais," her husband added, taking up her side. "Vivienne does strike me as rather… headstrong." Well, that was putting it mildly, but the girl did take after her mother.
"Ah, yes," Ella agreed with a rueful expression. "After all, that is why we had to resort to this plan in the first place."
"A blessing and a curse," the king replied with a shake of his graying head as he thought of his eldest daughter's personality. There was a moment's pause before he turned to Snow and asked, "When will it be?"
"Tomorrow, at the ball," the queen replied. "One way or another, our children are going to learn the value of the good old-fashioned fairytale ending."
And so all that was left to do was to sit back and wait.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Ah, perfect, thought Luke as he gazed upon the small statuette resting on one of the many stone pedestals. After the others headed off in their various directions, Luke had drifted about the castle until he found himself in the vacant library. Usually, he would never have bothered stepping into such a room, for books rarely held any value for him. However, this time, when he unknowingly entered the room, he found himself remaining, his gaze drawn by the various trinkets and ornaments strewn about. He had drifted about until finally coming upon his current prize.
He was so intent upon the figurine, and so confident that he had found himself the perfect window of opportunity that he didn't realize when he was no longer alone. His hand reached out to grasp it, when a voice spoke up from behind him, "I don't think that's such a good idea."
It took all of Luke's willpower not to scream and jump in surprise. But not much to keep the guilty expression off his face as he turned around to face the owner of the voice. Truth be told, being morally challenged, guilt was rarely of concern to him.
He was surprised, however, to find himself staring back at the honey-bond haired Lillith. "I thought you were supposed to be checking up on your sister," he replied, not bothering to deny her implicit accusation.
"Yeah, well," she replied a little shyly, "Viv's throwing a little temper tantrum right now, and I didn't want to be in the way when she started throwing other things."
Luke stepped away from his intended target in an easy manner that belied his earlier intentions. "And what are you doing here?" he asked.
"Oh, I was looking for Vir and your brother, and when I saw the door to the library open I thought I'd check in here. But instead, I found you," she answered a little hurriedly, her words coming out without pause. It was the most that Luke had ever heard the girl say and he could tell she was a little flustered, and perhaps uncomfortable talking to him. She apparently wasn't much of a people person.
He decided to turn on his charm in hopes of wheedling his way out of the incriminating circumstances. So, with a blazing smile, he said, "And what exactly did you think I was about to do?"
Lillith stared back at him skeptically, and Luke was taken aback by the expression. If her earlier reaction had been any indication, she should have been swooning at his feet by now.
"I think it's pretty obvious what you were about to do," she replied wryly.
Huh? "What do you mean?" Luke asked, smile never faltering. He managed to take a couple of casual steps closer to the girl, hoping that physical proximity might help his efforts.
It didn't. "You were going to steal that statue."
Keep smiling, he told himself. Sooner or later, the desired effect was bound to kick in. "What makes you think that?"
"Well, you're in here all alone, and you were reaching for it when I walked in… and it is what you do."
Now the smile did disappear, and an expression of surprise took its place. "What do you mean that's what I do?"
"Um," the girl suddenly looked even more uncomfortable than she had before, as if she had suddenly realized that she'd said something that might have been better kept to herself. "You know, this whole stealing thing? Everyone knows it's what you do."
Luke stared back in shock. Since when did everybody know about his little habit? His family, yes. The servants at his castle, yes. But not near-strangers. Not everybody! How was a thief to do his job if the whole world was on its guard against him?
"Who told you that?"
Now Lillith looked really uncomfortable, and though it was obvious she didn't want to answer, she still did. "My mother."
Luke's eyes narrowed. Slowly, he spoke, "Your mother told you that I like to steal?"
"No, she didn't say you liked it… you like it?" she asked curiously. "Well, I suppose that explains why you do it, because it certainly can't be out of need. You're a prince, after all!" She was sidetracking and she corrected herself as she realized this. "Anyway, she just said that you do it… a lot. Like, compulsively."
He nodded distractedly as he absorbed the girl's words. It was an uneasy moment before he replied, "What else did she tell you?"
"About you? Nothing," she denied quickly with a shake of her head.
A slight gleam appeared in Luke's eyes at her answer. "Oh? And what did she say about everyone else?"
Lillith let out a slight groan. "You can't expect me to tell you that?" she asked in exasperation. "I mean, come on… your parents must have told you about the rest of us? It's what parents do before these gatherings, point out everyone's flaws and secrets… who to watch out for, who to be especially nice to. It's inter-kingdom politics!"
Now that she mentioned it, Luke realized that there was something like that during the carriage ride over from their home. Of course, he hadn't actually been listening to any of it… since when did he listen to anything that came out of his parents' mouths?
But the conversation was kept from being carried any further when they heard voices coming from the corridor just beyond the door. A moment later, David, Virtue, and Rebecca entered the room, Rebecca riding piggyback on David. "Here they are!" Rebecca exclaimed, though by the time she realized that Luke and Lillith were in the room, so had the others.
David and Virtue stared back and forth between the two, the surprise thinly veiled on their faces. Obviously, they were wondering how the pair had ended up together—in the library, no less—especially since neither had spoken a word to the other since their arrival at the castle.
"What's going on?" David asked with forced casualness.
"We were catching up on our reading," Luke snapped irritably. He was still reeling from the news he had been presented with, and was in no mood to put up with his brother, someone he had a hard enough time dealing with even when he was feeling particularly chipper.
"Oh, we just kind of ran into each other," Lillith replied before David could react to his brother's biting remark. "I was looking for you guys."
"Well, here we are!" Rebecca interjected happily.
"And what were you doing?" Virtue asked, looking at Luke. And there was just enough suspicion in her voice to make him realize the truth of Lillith's confession. So they had all been warned against him.
Pulling out one of his brightest smiles—the very one that had failed to impress Lillith earlier—he turned to their hostess. "Why, just admiring your wonderful book collection."
"Riiight," Virtue replied with a roll of her eyes and a subtle snort that showed him just what she thought of his attempt to charm her.
Luke was growing increasingly alarmed. Two failed attempts in a single day, this was beyond precedence! He must be losing his touch; that appeared to be the only answer.
David had placed Rebecca on the ground after she'd begun squirming about, nonverbally indicating that she wished to be let down. Seeing the dismal expression on her brother's face, she quickly ran over and hugged Luke's leg.
"Don't worry, Luke, I still like you," she said, sending a cheery smile up at him.
The others laughed at her little gesture, and even Luke found it impossible to suppress a smile, despite being the source of everyone's amusement. Looking back into her brother's grinning face, she continued, "And you're a lot better than that big meanie, Val."
TBC
A/N: Well, that's all for now. Hopefully, the cure for my writer's block will be found in the new year.
Translations: "Ça vrais" = it's true/that's true