A Right Royal Mix-up

So, I've finally read and reread OotP, and enjoyed it very much, too, so I can now get back to my own writing. I'm really ecstatic – I got the first copy of OotP in my town – I won a writing competition and got to open the very first box! I also got my copy and one for my family (I won't let them touch mine!) for free! I'll probably post the story I wrote soon – you had to write a scene for the fifth book – so keep your eyes peeled and I hope you'll read it and tell me what you think.

            Anyhoo, here we have the long-awaited climax of the fic… he finds out! I hope it's been worth the anticipation everyone has!

            You might have a bit of a wait for the next chapter, as I'm going to write another bonus chapter for my uncut readers first – take a look at it if you can, and I hope it won't be too long before I post the next chapter of this version.

Disclaimer – if in doubt, it ain't mine.

Chapter 24

Lily packed very little the next day – mainly her makeup and a toothbrush. James had finally told her the place they were going to was very casual. People wore mostly jeans and bathing suits. When she said she hadn't brought either of these things to Grandalia, he said he would buy her whatever she needed.

            Lily was filled with equal parts of anticipation and trepidation as they flew through the beautiful countryside. Her heart swelled with love as she gazed at James's patrician profile. He looked especially handsome with the wind blowing his dark hair. It would be cruel if he decided he couldn't forgive her. She tried unsuccessfully to hide her fear as he turned his head to smile at her.

            "Don't look so worried, angel," he teased. "You're going to like where I'm taking you."

            "I'm not so sure. You must have some reason for keeping it such a deep dark secret."

            "Okay, we're almost there so I might as well tell you. It's a little fishing village on the edge of the Riviera – the unfashionable part. Havril sur Mer is the best-kept secret on the Continent. A select group of us have been going there for years, whenever we need to get away from the paparazzi, or from pointless public functions. Our parents don't know about it and neither do any of the other people who pester us for one reason or another. It's the only place I can guarantee that nobody will bother us."

            "That's hard to believe. We're both so recognisable."

            "Tourists don't know about the place, and wouldn't come if they did. There's nothing to do but swim and take long walks along the beach – and make love." He gave her a slow, sensuous smile.

            "How could you keep it such a secret? The gossip magazines and newspapers would pay handsomely to know where celebrities hang out."

            "We take good care of the natives. If they tipped off the media, we'd stop coming and their regular source of income would dry up. They aren't very hospitable to strangers, and they pretend not to know anybody's real name." James and Lily rounded a corner, to a view of the glittering Riviera. "Here we are."

            Havril sur Mer was small and unpretentious. A few men were working on the fishing boats bobbing along the waterfront, tinkering with motors or spreading nets out to dry.

            The sleepy little village, a short distance from the water, had a grocery store, a restaurant or two, and a bistro, none of them very fancy. It was, indeed, the last place you'd expect to find celebrities.

            James led the way through the village to a one-story hotel surrounded by small bungalows. When he stopped in front of a bungalow facing the water, Lily was prepared for a picturesque view, but spartan lodgings.

            When they went inside, she was amazed at the luxury of the furnishings. The room wasn't large, but the carpeting was plush, and the draperies and bedspread were made from the finest fabrics.

            James laughed at the expression on her face. "Did you expect a cot and a bare bulb hanging form the ceiling?"

            "Maybe not that austere, but I must admit I'm surprised. I don't know why, though. Your idea of roughing it is hanging up your own bathrobe."

            "Look who's talking!" he teased. "I'm surprised you didn't insist on bringing your hairdresser and maid along."

            "You might wish I had when you see what I look like when I do my own hair," she laughed.

            He put his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. "You couldn't be anything but beautiful, my love."

            Lily rested her head on his shoulder, savouring this moment of closeness. But when his hands caressed her back, she knew the day of reckoning couldn't be put off any longer.

            Drawing back reluctantly, she said, "We have to talk, James."

            "What could I have done wrong already?" he teased. "We only just got here."

            "You didn't do anything – I did. Although, in my defence, I never expected it to turn out like this."

            James didn't take her seriously. "We can't discuss anything earth-shattering until we buy you some jeans and T-shirts." He consulted his watch. "And we'd better go now before the store closes."

            "This is really important," she insisted. "There's something I have to tell you."

            "You can tell me on the way to the store. I have our agenda all mapped out. First we get you outfitted, then we come back here and make love for a couple of hours. After that we take a long walk on the beach – that's what you need the clothes for."

            Lily couldn't help smiling. "It sounds like a strenuous program."

            "That's why we'll have to go back to bed after our walk." He grinned.

            She was secretly relieved at the reprieve, although it only postponed the inevitable. She had tried to tell him, so her conscience was clear on that one point.

            The general store in the village didn't have much of a selection, but Lily was able to get what she needed. After she'd completed her purchases, she and James strolled down the short main street, each with anticipation of a different sort.

            What happened next was both shocking and unexpected. A man and a woman came out of a bar and turned in their direction. For a moment Lily had the unsettling sensation that she was walking into a mirror. Except for their different outfits, the other woman was her exact double!

            After the first instant of surprise, Lily realised the woman had to be Princess Gabrielle. So this was where the princess had been hiding out all this time. Suddenly Lily feared their chance meeting had ruined everything – James would never believe she had meant to tell him the truth. He was staring from her to Gabrielle with an amazed and bewildered look on his face.

            The princess was initially as startled as they were, then she reacted angrily. "What are you doing here?" she asked James. "I suppose you told my father where I am and ruined this place for everybody. You always were a jerk!"

            "Neither of us knew you were here," Lily said, because James was speechless.

            Gabrielle turned on her furiously. "You! I'm surprised you have the nerve to face me – either of you."

            "I must be losing my mind," James muttered. "Who is this woman?" he asked Lily. "You two could be twins."

            "Scarcely," Gabrielle said witheringly. "She's just a cheap little actress they dressed up to look like me. Don't pretend you didn't know. You must have been in on it."

            "In on what? Will somebody please tell me what the hell this is all about?"

            Lily moistened her dry lips. "Let's go someplace where we can talk."

            "You're not going anywhere until I tell you how I plan to get even for what you did to me," Gabrielle raged. "I'm going to expose you for the fraud you are. If it weren't for you, my father would have had to call off the wedding plans. He'll be sorry, though. When I get through talking he'll wish he had. I intend to tell the whole world that the engagement was a sham, and I don't care about the consequences!"

            As her voice rose, the handsome young man beside her tried to quiet her. Glancing at him for the first time, Lily recognised him as Sirius Black, the famous Quidditch player.

            "Calm down, Gaby," he said. "We've been over all this. You know it's no solution. Your image would suffer, too."

            "I don't care! She can't steal my identity and get away with it!"

            "She's done a good job so far," he said crisply. "Let's go inside and talk about it over a drink."

            "No! I can't stand the sight of them," Gabrielle stormed.

            "Stop acting like a brat," Sirius ordered. "If we discuss the situation rationally, maybe we can find some way out of this mess that won't make us all look stupid." He led her into the bar, glancing over his shoulder to be sure that the other two were following.

            Lily gazed at James despairingly. He didn't know the whole story, but he'd heard enough to know he'd been massively deceived. The stony look on his face didn't promise forgiveness.

            When they were inside the bar, she put her hand on his arm to prevent him from joining the other two at a table. "I can explain," she said haltingly.

            "I doubt it, but it will be interesting to hear you try." He raised an eyebrow sardonically. "I'm especially looking forward to the part where we made plans for a life together after we were married."

            "You have every right to be angry, but please believe that none of us meant to hurt you."

            "Is that supposed to make everything all right? You pretended to be Gabrielle, let me believe you were in love with me, and you didn't think I'd mind when it all turned out to be a joke I wasn't in on?"

            Unshed tears made Lily's eyes as bright as stars, but she willed herself not to cry. "I do love you, James, with all my heart. I know you'll never believe that now, but it's the truth. It wasn't anything I planned or could control, it just happened."

            "How gullible do you think I am?" he asked angrily. "You love me and that's why you helped arrange my marriage to Gabrielle? Give me a break!"

            "I'm not trying to shift the blame, but her father and Henri said it was a perfect match, that you and Gabrielle were both just skittish about giving up your freedom. By the time I found out that neither of you wanted to marry the other, it was too late. Nobody could find her, and everyone thought I was the princess. I didn't honestly care about relations between your two countries, but I cared about you. It would have been horrible for you if the story had gotten out that she ran away rather than become engaged to you."

            "That would have been preferable to marrying her." James looked over to where Gabrielle was listening sullenly, while Sirius talked to her in a low voice. "How could you possibly think that I wouldn't know the difference if she returned and took over? You might look identical, but she's the same spoiled shrew I remember from the old days. She'll never change."

            "You've changed," Lily insisted. "From everything I'd read and heard, you were pretty imperious yourself. But when I got to know you, I fell in love with the real you. I hoped Gabrielle would, too, and she'd change as well."

            He stared at her intently. "You would have tried to make us fall in love?"

            "I wanted you to be happy," Lily answered simply.

            "I was happy – with you." His anger was diluted by a mixture of love and impatience.

            She shook her head sadly. "There could never have been anything between us, even if things didn't work out between you and Gabrielle. You're a prince, the heir to the throne of Grandalia. You have to marry royalty. I realise that."

            James's patrician face registered strong emotions. "I don't know of anyone nobler than you."

            She tried to smile. "Unfortunately, good intentions don't count as a title. I just want you to know that I intended to tell you the truth. I tried to before we left the hotel."

            As he reached for her, Gabrielle called out shrilly, "How long do you think I'm going to wait? Get over here this minute or I'm leaving!"

            Taking Lily's hand, James sauntered over to the table. "You're not addressing your adoring subjects, Gabrielle. I'd advise you to knock it off before I tell you what I think about your part in this sorry mess."

            "I had nothing to do with it," she said indignantly. "It's all her fault!"

            "There's plenty of blame to go around – starting with us. We should both have told our fathers that we're mature adults, capable of picking our own mates. The trouble is, we haven't always acted mature in the past."

            "Speak for yourself!" Gabrielle ordered.

            "Give it a rest, Gaby," Sirius said curtly. "James is right. I told you that we should tell your father we intend to get married."

            "Married!" Lily exclaimed. "How can you do that? Sirius is a commoner."

            "Luckily, Gaby isn't in line for the throne. It's not the fact that I'm a commoner that's going to panic her father." Sirius grinned mischievously. "It's the thought of having a Quidditch bum for a son-in-law."

            "A Quidditch star," Gabrielle corrected. Her expression softened and changed to pride when she looked at him.

            "Congratulations," James said. "But I thought you two broke up – rather publicly, as I remember."

            "Several times." Sirius laughed. "Both of us were used to being top dog in a relationship [A/N – Sorry for the pun, I just couldn't resist!] and neither of us would give an inch. When we discovered what cold comfort that was, we agreed to compromise."

            "I'm the one who gives in most of the time," Gabrielle said in mock complaint.

            "You're enjoying the novelty of it," Sirius teased. "You never did it before."

            "I'm happy for the both of you, but you've created quite a headache," James said. "How could you let Lily and me become engaged?" he asked Gabrielle.

            "I never thought Father would go that far. I was furious when I heard he'd gotten somebody to impersonate me. I phoned and said I'd never marry you, so they'd better call off the deception. But Henri said it would be a diplomatic nightmare and everybody would blame me for running out on James."

            "That should tell you how much she's changed," Sirius remarked fondly. "The old Gaby wouldn't have given a hoot."

            "I never wanted to make trouble," the princess said plaintively. "I only wanted to marry Sirius."

            "I can understand that," James said. "But it wasn't a situation you could just ignore. How much longer were you prepared to let it go on?"

            "I didn't know what to do. If I came back and assumed my own identity, how could I break the engagement? The papers were full of your storybook romance," Gabrielle said with a tinge of bitterness. "The longer I stayed away, the harder it got. I still don't know what to do."

            "You're going to tell your father that we're getting married," Sirius said forcefully. "He and his ministers are the ones who planned this charade. They can put their spin doctors to work and figure some way out of it."

            "We've been over and over it and there just isn't any way," she said hopelessly. "How can I expose my own father?"

            "Do you want to let Lily marry James, while you spend the rest of your life as a non-person?" Sirius demanded.

            "I'm sure you realise none of us would ever have carried the masquerade that far." Lily spoke up for the first time. "I wanted this last weekend with James and then I was going home. I am going home," she corrected herself.

            Gabrielle looked at her curiously. "Who are you? Where did my father find you?"

            Lily explained how the whole deception had started. She finished by looking wistfully at James. "I know you can't forgive me now, but maybe in time you won't think so badly of me."

            "I'll never forgive you – if you leave me," he added, taking her hands and raising them to his lips. "You're the love of my life, no matter who you are or what your name is. I'll never let you go."

            "You're just making it harder, James," she groaned. "Please don't ask me to stay. This thing with Gabrielle will be resolved somehow, but sooner or later you'll have to get married and have children. There won't be any room in your life for me."

            "I can't imagine life without you. You're going to be my wife and the mother of my children. If my father can't accept that, then he'll have to find another successor to the throne."

            "I couldn't let you give up your birthright for me," she protested.

            "You couldn't stop me, darling. What good is a kingdom if it costs me the woman I love?"

            "That's really sweet, James." Gabrielle's expression was uncharacteristically gentle. "You're a pretty good guy after all."

            "It's too late to change your mind," Sirius laughed, putting his arm around her shoulders. "You're already committed to me."

            "For a lifetime," she agreed softly. "But two fiancés are one too many. What reason can we give for calling off the engagement?"

            "You could say you had an argument."

            "That makes us sound irresponsible," James objected. "As if it were just a whim in the first place. Our subjects would be disgusted with us, and who could blame them? We need a good, solid reason."

            "Well, how about this? James has to produce an heir. What if I say I had a routine physical and found out I couldn't have children?" Gabrielle offered.

            "Everybody would know it was a trumped up excuse," Sirius said. "We want a lot of children, the sooner the better."

            "I guess you're right. Our baby's birth wouldn't be celebrated the way it should be, and it would just postpone the criticism. Does anybody else have any ideas? We haven't heard your input," Gabrielle told Lily.

            Lily had been so dazzled by the possibility of marrying James that she'd hardly been listening. "I'm afraid I wasn't paying much attention," she admitted.

            "You have a stake in this, too. Start thinking."

            Gabrielle's half-heard proposal had triggered something in Lily's subconscious. "I believe you were on the right track," she said slowly. "There has to be a compelling reason why you and James can't marry. Perhaps something in your backgrounds that would make you incompatible."

            "You mean, like insanity?" James grinned. "I'm crazy about you. Does that count?"

            Lily's face lit up. "No, but what if you had a common ancestor? Royalty used to intermarry closely in the old days. What if you found out you were related somehow?"

            After a moment of surprise, the other three were jubilant. "By Merlin, I think she's got it!" Sirius exclaimed.

            "Of course!" Gabrielle said excitedly. "Our blood types could preclude our having healthy children together, or some such thing. Both our fathers will issue statements of deep regret, and James and I are off the hook!"

            James lifted Lily off her chair and swung her around. "You're brilliant! You've solved all our problems! What would I do without you?"

            "I hate to be the one to bring it up, but we still have one small problem," Gabrielle said. "Lily and I could be identical twins. It's bound to cause talk, especially when James starts to be seen with her."

            "So what?" Sirius shrugged. "People will just think he fell in love with her because she looks like you."

            "Fair enough, but some nosy reporter is sure to dig around and find out everything there is to know about her, like, where did she suddenly emerge from? The paparazzi know everything else about me – why didn't they know I had an exact double? One who just happened to be in Beaumarre when James and I supposedly became engaged. Won't somebody ask why no one ever saw us in the same vicinity? She told all her friends she was coming especially for the festivities."

            Lily smiled. "It's no problem because the substitute princess is about to vanish without a trace."

            James's jaw set. "I won't let you go. If you leave I'll come after you."

            "That's something we need to discuss, but it wasn't what I meant." She turned to Gabrielle. "This isn't my normal hair colour or style, and I don't usually wear this much makeup. I don't wear designer clothes or fabulous jewels, either. You'd be surprised at what an attention getter they are. If we passed each other in the street when I looked like my old self, someone might notice a resemblance, but nothing more. I'm really quite ordinary looking."

            "I'll take exception to that," James said fondly. "You'd turn heads anywhere."

            "I'll have to agree," Sirius said. When Gabrielle raised an eyebrow in his direction he laughed. "You can't be jealous, Gaby. She looks like you."

            Gabrielle turned to stare at Lily. "I'm afraid you're being too modest. I can't imagine hair colour and the rest making that much difference."

            "I can't, either," James said. "Your personalities are poles apart, but that's about all. You'd be instantly recognisable, no matter what you were wearing."

            "Oh, really?" Lily grinned. "Do you remember being in a little bistro the night before your official visit to Beaumarre? You were alone and grouchy."

            He frowned in remembrance. "How do you know that?"

            "You spent the evening with a girl, telling her about your dreams to work as a medi-wizard. You called her Angelique and told her your name was Philippe. She thought you looked familiar, but she never dreamed you could be Prince James, because you were just another guy in jeans and a T-shirt."

            He was starring at her in amazement. "You were Angelique? I don't believe it!"

            "Would you like me to tell you about the walk we took along the beach after to bistro closed?"

            "I knew you were special even then," he said softly. "It took a lot of willpower to put you in that taxi."

            "Isn't it fantastic?" Gabrielle said exultantly. "A bottle of hair dye is the solution to everything – no pun intended. Let's go back to the palace and start your transformation, Lily. It's spooky having an identical twin."

            "No. You two can go home. We're staying for the weekend." James exchanged a meaningful glance with Lily and held out his hand.

Well – so he's found out! Now they've just got to tackle the parents…

This chapter was really really difficult to write, mainly because some readers are clamouring for angst, and some want tons of fluff. I hope there is enough of both in there to satisfy most people, but angst-fans might think James got over it too quickly – I'm sorry!

Next chapter – the return of Angelique!