A/N: Now, time for some more author's notes… you know, if I took all the A/N from all the chapters and put them together, I bet I could make up a whole mini story. Just a thought.
I have to admit all the speculations make for interesting readings. I love to see how everyone thinks things will work out… but I'm not saying anything about who's right, or who's close. But I did realize something. I guess I never clearly stated the ages of all the characters, so I suppose I should do that to clear the air: Valor (20), Virtue (16), Vivienne (18), Lillith (15), David (17), Luke (15), Terrence (10), Rebecca (5). So you see, that throws some of the theories off (e.g. Val + Lilly)… because the age gaps are too big.
I've been receiving some mixed reviews about Vivienne… Lea, you said she was still bratty—"bratty" or "too bratty"? Yes, I'm making a distinction between the two. I'm perfectly fine with her being bratty, so long as she's not too bratty. She's still a princess, and considering who her mother is, and what she's like, I think it's perfectly conceivable that Vivienne would be a little spoiled and self-centered. If she weren't… well, that would make her the typical fairytale heroine: "… she was as kind as she was beautiful." As you may have noticed, all the characters have some faults or points of weakness.
And Luke… what can I say about Luke? Well, perhaps that right now, he's at a point in his life where I don't think he's capable of loving anyone but himself. The question is then, will he change? I ain't telling!
At this point, the time frame may get a little confusing. Basically, the scenes from the next two chapters are actually taking place at about the same time; we're just shifting between the various groups.
Chapter 17
Intersections: "I hear the garden is lovely at night"
"David," Rose approached her eldest son, with her two youngest in tow. "Oh, hello Virtue," she smiled pleasantly as she spotted the princess, and then she turned back to David. "David, I need you to do me a favor."
A sleepy Rebecca rubbed her eyes with one balled fist, while the other hand clutched at her mother's extended one. Her pink dress looked a little worse for the wear, rumpled from the night's activities. Behind them trailed Terrence, shuffling his feet, an unhappy expression on his face.
"What do you need, mother?" David asked, eyeing the trio.
"I'm afraid that Becca has to call it a night, could you please take her to her room?" Rebecca released her mother's hand and drifted forward to David, arms outstretched. David reached down and picked her up, and she immediately placed her head on his shoulder, eyes fluttering closed. "And you could take Terry as well?" Rose continued. "You might as well put them both to bed."
"Sure, I'll take care of it," he replied, and his mother gave him a relieved smile.
"Well, good night, you two," she brushed a kiss against Rebecca's forehead, but when she moved to do the same to Terrence, he merely shrugged away. Rose shrugged, unperturbed. She'd had to deal with two other sons before him, and knew there was a stage in every boy's life where being kissed by his mother in public was no longer acceptable.
"'Night mommy," Rebecca murmured without opening her eyes.
"I'll go with you," Virtue volunteered, leading the group to the nearest door that would take them to one of the castle's many corridors.
They were nearly out of the ballroom, when abruptly, Rebecca lifted her head, just narrowly missing David's chin, and only because he saw the move coming and instinctually tilted his face away. "I have t'say goodnight to Luke… and Vivi."
David let out a mental groan. "I'm sure they won't mind if you missed it this one time," he assured her.
"No," Rebecca replied stubbornly, suddenly looking quite wide-awake. "I have to say goodnight." Their gazes locked and they engaged in a brief battle of wills. Rebecca's face tilted closer and closer until the pair's noses touched.
"All right, fine," David conceded, rolling his eyes while barely containing a threatening grin. "We'll say a quick goodnight, and then you're off to bed."
"Okay," the little blond girl agreed happily.
"So, where are they?" Virtue broke in, giving a cursory glance over the ballroom.
"I don't know, I haven't seen either in a while," David replied.
Terrence, who had remained quiet, obviously discontented by something, spoke up. "Outside."
David glanced down at his brother. "Both of them?"
Terrence nodded glumly. "Vivienne's with Val, and Luke's with Lilly."
David and Virtue exchanged a look. Vivienne and Valor together, well that must have been arranged by Lillith. But what was she doing with Luke? Finally, David gave a shrug. "Well, I guess we're going outside." He snuck a quick look at Rebecca. "Are you sure I can't convince you to just skip them tonight?" She shook her head adamantly.
"This way," Virtue directed, taking them along an alternate path, a hallway just outside the ballroom, that remained unused by the guests. After a full night spent within, the crowds were becoming a bit oppressive for them all.
The corridor was darker than usual, the torches lining the walls left neglected during the night's revelry. But Virtue knew the place well, and could probably have led them along blindfolded, so David was unconcerned.
Suddenly, Terrence let out a yelp as he collided into a moving body, and a high-pitched scream echoed through the hallway. The scream seemed to disturb him even more than the unexpected contact, and he leapt behind the safety of Virtue's skirts.
Virtue took a defensive stance as she peered into the darkness beyond before her eyes focused on the startled figure clinging to the far wall. "Oh," she let out the word with the visible relaxing of her body, though David noted, the tone was a mixture of relief and disappointment.
They waited and watched as the figure collected itself and moved forward, where there was at least a feeble amount of light in the hallway. By the elaborate dress, jewelry and hairstyle, it was clear the girl before them was a guest at the ball. "I… I didn't expect anyone else to be here," she finally said, her breathing still harsh from the shock.
"Then why exactly are you here?" Virtue asked a little suspiciously.
"Oh, I was just trying to get outside, and I thought I'd avoid the crowds," the young woman quickly explained. "I guess I just got a little… lost."
"We were going outside too," Rebecca declared helpfully. "You can come with us."
The girl gave a weak smile. "That sounds wonderful," she replied.
As they continued walking, the newcomer took up position next to Virtue, at the head of the group. Virtue sent her a sidelong glance. "You know, you look familiar, but I'm afraid I don't quite remember your name."
"Princess Nora," the girl replied, but offered no further comment. By David's assessment, either she wasn't a very talkative individual, or she just didn't have anything to say to them in particular. And he got the feeling it wasn't the former. In fact, she seemed to want to get away from them as was possible, if her brisk pace were any indication of her thoughts.
Virtue's mental shrug was almost palpable, and she didn't try to engage Nora in any further conversation as they finally walked through a door that led them into the cool night air.
David turned to his brother. "Do you have any idea where out here either of them might be?" Terrence shrugged.
"Well, we should probably try the garden," Virtue suggested. "One of them is bound to have wandered in there."
Suddenly, Nora's interest seemed piqued. "Oh, I was just on my way to the garden. I think I'll join you."
Virtue sent an annoyed look in her direction, but the other girl's gaze was turned away. "Why don't you…" she paused, catching David's apprehensive look. "Do that," she finished, obviously not what she'd originally intended to say, but it would have to do.
The garden, which both David and Rebecca had noticed the day of their arrival, was massive, but it seemed even more so at night. Thus finding someone "in the garden" was a lot easier said than done.
"You know," David remarked wryly, "I've seen forests smaller—" He cut off sharply.
"What?" Virtue asked, pausing in mid-stride to look at him.
For several moments, he remained still and utterly silent, head cocked slightly to one side, ears straining to catch whatever it was that had drawn his attention. Finally, he spoke, "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Nora asked, glancing about in puzzlement.
Another pause. "That!" he suddenly declared. But this time, they had all heard it, even Rebecca, who was no longer quite as sleepy as she had at the onset of this little trip.
"Vivienne!" It was unmistakable, that was the name being called. And so was the desperate edge to the voice calling it. "Vivienne!"
"Is that…?" David began.
Virtue frowned, confirming his thoughts. "Val?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
They'd been outside a few minutes now and Luke had managed to get next to no conversation out of Lillith. He was starting to get a little worried. Wasn't a night stroll supposed to be every girl's idea of "romantic"? What more could she want? He contemplated this silently for a moment before an idea came to mind.
"Let's go to the garden. I would think it'd be especially beautiful at this time of night." Now that was perfection. And look, the moon was out at full. A moonlit walk through a garden… she'd be putty in his hands in no time.
"No."
He frowned. "No? You don't think it'd look beautiful?"
There wasn't light enough to tell, but he got the impression that she blushed a little, stumbling over her words as she attempted to clarify. "Oh, I'm sure it would. What I meant was, I'd rather stay away from the garden. I'm, um, allergic… to flowers."
"Which kind? Maybe we could just stay away from those."
"All of them."
Luke gave her a sidelong look. "You are a strange one, aren't you?"
She seemed to blush again. "What? I can't help what I'm allergic to," she defended.
"Fine," he conceded with a nonchalant shrug.
There was a long moment of silence as they continued to walk along a cobble path that surrounded the perimeter of the castle, before Lillith finally spoke. "So," she said, clearing her throat. "Are you ready to go in now?"
Luke frowned again, disturbed by her eagerness to get away from him. "You seem to be in an awful hurry to get back to the ball. And you've been acting strangely ever since I suggested coming out here. What's wrong?" Then he turned to her, his face deliberately innocent. "Don't you trust me?"
Lillith looked like she was about to answer, then something stopped her. Probably, Luke thought, the expression on his face. Right now, he could have been deemed the new poster boy of sensitivity, peering back at her with what he hoped could be termed a "soulful" look in his green eyes. Instead, she said, "Alright. I guess we can stay out here a little while longer."
~*~*~*~
Lillith watched him carefully, looking for any sign of an underlying motive beyond the pleasant exterior. She hadn't known Luke long, but trust was not a word she would associate with him. Rather than outright answer his earlier question, she had simply deferred to his wishes, because truth be told, she didn't trust him. Yet, because she didn't really know him, she was basing her opinions off his siblings' reactions, she felt guilty for jumping to conclusions. For all she knew, it could be simple sibling rivalry that put him at such odds with his brothers, and he could really be a good guy.
She snuck a glance in his direction and found him struggling with the collar of his coat, trying and obviously failing to loosen it. The action reminded her so much of Terrence that she couldn't help but smile.
"Here," she said, reaching forward to help him before he ripped a button, or worse.
"Thanks," he replied as she undid a couple of the top buttons, which had been cleverly designed so they were perfectly concealed when done up, but inordinately difficult to open afterward.
Lillith found herself smiling back, some of the earlier tension receding as she stared into the unusually open expression, and the slightly self-deprecating grin.
Then suddenly, he reached up, one hand coming to cover hers, which was still resting at his collar, and the other on the back of her head. Without warning, he pulled her forward and kissed her.
Her eyes widened slightly before she closed them because, well, his were closed and it seemed rude not to. 'I can't believe this is happening,' she thought in the maddening whirlwind of her mind. 'My first kiss.'
~*~*~*~
When Luke first moved in for the kiss, he had surprised himself. He had done so spontaneously, without thought, but when he pulled back and saw the expression on her face, the look in her brown eyes when they drifted open, he got a strange feeling… guilt?
He wasn't looking for anything serious, not with Lillith, or anybody else. The whole point of the game was to annoy Terrence and amuse himself, but he wasn't used to seeing such open vulnerability in the faces of those he tormented. Fear, anger, annoyance, yes. Not vulnerability.
And now he had just worked himself into a trap of his own making. She would obviously think he was interested in her, and the easiest way to disentangle himself from the situation would be to tell her the truth. But even to his warped sense of conscious, that did not seem to be an acceptable option.
Or… he could pretend that he was interested, and when it came time to go back home in a couple of days, he'd just tell her, "Hey it was nice, but these long-distance things just don't tend to work out."
Perfect.
But then why was that strange gnawing feeling in the center of his stomach still there?
He blinked rapidly a few times, realizing that Lillith was still staring at him.
"What was that for?" she asked timidly.
Luke let out a shaky breath a nervous laugh. "Um, just seemed like the right thing to do at the time," he replied. How wrong he was, he thought regretfully.
No, he did not feel regret. That was his way. He did what as he pleased, walked over whoever got in the way, and didn't think twice about the consequences of his action.
He dropped his hands suddenly, realizing that they were still where he'd placed them earlier. He was going to nip this thing in the bud, right now, before he dug himself in any deeper. Who cared if Lillith got a little hurt in the process? She didn't mean anything to him… she wasn't even his type.
"Listen," he began, but was cut short as a new voice drew their attention away.
"Vivienne!"
Luke frowned at the interruption. The voice was familiar, and there was only one person he could think would be bellowing the princess' name out here at this time.
"Oh great, what now?" Lillith sighed in frustration.
"Vivienne!" Was it just Luke's imagination, or was there a touch of panic to that voice?
The weary look on Lillith's face was quickly replaced by one of apprehension. "Come on," she said, turning.
"Where?"
"To the garden."
"I thought you said you were allergic."
He got a mumbled reply that sounded vaguely like, "I lied."
"What?"
"Um, I said 'I'll survive.'"
"Okay." He followed her quickly, both relieved and annoyed by the distraction. Well, as soon as they got a moment alone—after dealing with this—they were going to have a little conversation. The sooner he got the truth out, the less painful it would be for her. Right?
Luke let out a small sigh.
Damn. If this was guilt he suddenly knew why he spent all his time avoiding it.
TBC
A/N: I made this chapter extra long, just in case I don't get around to updating next weekend. I have three research papers, a presentation, and a book review to do over the next month, not to mention two more midterms next week. Needless to say, I'm a little short on time these days.