Kokogirl: I know, me 2! I'm glad I'm the first one, J Thanks! Of course I will, J It looks really cool, I'll read it A.S.A.P., J

Regards,

Britannia

Lynnicaec: okay, lol. J thanks 4 reading!

Regards,

Britannia

Shoelace22: Thanks! I plan to! J

Regards,

Britannia

Title: My Favorite Mistake

Author: Britannia Eitwards

Summary: Madeline "Maddie" Fitzpatrick, and Lance the pool guy we're an item, then broke up, then London spread a rumor they got back together, which wasn't true, but Maddie's senior year she changed her mind about Lance, and later ended up with Natalie. She never told Lance Nat was his, she insisted she didn't know who it was. Eleven years later, after Maddie fled Boston, word of London's engagement, to someone surprising, sends Maddie and Natalie back to Boston for a week of wedding plans, reunions, and of course, insured Tipton chaos.

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I don't own The Suite Life Of Zack and Cody, though I wish I did. The title comes from the song: 'My Favorite Mistake,' by Sheryl Crow.

"Everyday Is A Winding Road"

Upon arriving at work, Maddie was almost immediately ambushed with piles of papers, designs to approve, re-draw, draw, and about four thousand conferences to attend.

"Madeline!" her very uptight, very annoying boss shouts in the doorway of Maddie's now cluttered office.

"Please, Ms. Camden, Maddie." Maddie said.

"Your given name is Madeline so that is the name I will call you."

"Alright…what did you need me for?"

"You have a call on line one."

"But…isn't Linda supposed to-"

"Linda is out today, therefore I am giving you your messages, is that a problem?"

"No, no, who's on the phone?"

"A Miss Natalie Fitzpatrick,"

"Nat?"

"No, Natalie. She says it's, 'mega important,'"

"Alright, thank-you." Maddie says, as she slides backwards in her roll-around chair to her phone, picks up the phone and presses one, "Hey Nat."

"Hi Mom, oh my GOD there's something so important I have to tell you!" Maddie's elated eleven year old says.

"Okay, spill,"

"Well, y'know how Kristy's always stealing her sister's make-up, just because…?"

"Yeah…"

"Well today she-"

"Madeline, conference, room 2A, NOW." Ms. Camden says as she struts by.

"Honey, I have to go." Maddie says into the phone, then switches it to speaker so she can collect all of her things for the conference, while Ms. Camden waits in the doorway.

"Oh, Cross Camden again?"

Maddie panics as she says quickly, "Ms. Camden's not cross, you know that." then she looks at Ms. Camden like, 'Where did she get that?'

"Yeah-huh, remember when you told me she reminds you of Mr. Moseby-"

"Y'know, I have to go, like now, so I'll call you back as soon as I can, love ya."

Maddie slaps the speaker phone and smiles at Ms. Camden, "Children…" she says as she rolls her eyes.

Ms. Camden purses her lips as Maddie, armed with design portfolios passes her and they head to conference room 2A.

Meanwhile, at Washington Middle School Natalie and her friend Kristy who has waterproof make-up all over her face, and can't get it off. Natalie's pacing nervously around the bathroom in the school, she can't begin to imagine why her mother didn't listen to her emergency.

"She always listens when I talk!" Natalie says.

"Nat, big picture here, I look like a clown!" Kristy says.

"Come on, her conferences only last about thirty minutes, I'll call her back then."

"But what if she can't come? Or can't help?"
"Krist, she'll be able to help, don't worry."

Back at the Fashion Industry, Maddie's sitting in the conference trying desperately to stay awake as various drones babble endlessly about the fiber count of rayon.

"And to share her outlook on five percent rayon versus five percent polyester is much better is Madeline Fitzpatrick."

"Hm?" Maddie says, "Oh, oh, of course," she says, and collects her sketch portfolio.

She stands next to the easel and sets her sketches on it.

"Hi, I'm Madeline, Maddie, and I think that rayon is much fancier material than polyester, and makes the clothing appear, and feel like a much better quality item…"

The others nod in approval.

Maddie smiles and continues, "Rayon, being synthetic, like polyester, makes it more or less for dress material, but it could also be used for-"

Ring, Ring!

Maddie's cell phone sounded as everyone stared.

"Um, anyway, it could also be used for-"

Ring, ring, RING!

"Maddie, I think that's you…" the man who had been speaking before her said.

"Oh, my, yes, it is. Does anyone mind…no? Okay," she says, and runs to her purse.

"Hello?"

"Mom!"

"Natalie! I'm in a conference, and they actually wanted my opinion! I-"

"Mom, we have a 911."

"What's going on?"

"Kristy can't get her waterproof make-up off before Science, and now Riley can't get the pins in her skirt out so it's long again, and one's stuck in her leg, and-it's a total mess! Mom, I totally need you here, or we're all looking at detention this weekend."

"Okay, I'll be right there." Maddie says.

As she's heading for the door, she says, "If you'll all excuse me, I have a 911."
She dashes through the office, down the elevator, to the parking structure, and into her gold Lexus SUV.

After breaking several laws getting there, and more for not signing in to get into the school, she dashes down the halls of the school looking for the girls' bathroom that Natalie's in.

She opens the door of about five before she finds the one with three panic stricken eleven year olds in it.

"Mom! Thank God!" Natalie says.

"Hey. So what trouble have you gotten into now?" Maddie asks.

"Okay, well, Kristy has on waterproof make-up, which might as well have been put on with a Sharpie, and Riley has a pin stuck in her leg, and her skirt is stuck short, so we're all gonna get detention!"

"Okay, well, Kristy, waterproof make-up is not permanent, all you need is some simple make-up remover, and Riley, when we get that pin out, you're going to have to see a doctor, because you could get sick from that, and I'll fix your skirt," Maddie immediately goes to work, she takes out her make-up remover, and puts it on a Kleenex for Kristy, then she bends down to examine Riley's knee, it wasn't so bad, but he skirt did not want to be long, Maddie had to really fight with it, but it ended up looking fine.

"Thank you so much Mrs. Fitzpatrick!" Kristy and Riley both said.

"Wow, I wish my mom was as cool as you," Riley said

"Aw, you're welcome girls."

After Riley and Kristy file out of the bathroom, Natalie hangs back.

"Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime,"

"Mom?"

"Hm?"

"You're the best,"

"Thanks, lovely,"

The two of them walk to Natalie's science together. After she's inside, Maddie heads back to her car.

-------------

After school lets out, Maddie waits in her car for Natalie.

"Hey Mom!" Natalie says rushing to the car.

"Hey, Nat! How was the rest of your day?"
"Pretty good, oh, we watched flies in a dome, and one got out, and Randy got so scared he peed!"

"Ew…gross."

"Yeah, but it was so funny! Everyone about died laughing! Even Mr. Lowell!"

"Poor kid, I bet he was humiliated."

"Not really, he ended up laughing, Randy doesn't let people make fun of him,"

"Good."

They chit chated about this and that until they got to the apartment building.

"Man, I love being home." Natalie said as they walked through the door.

"I hear ya, sister." Maddie said, "Oh, Dang it!"

"What?"

"I forgot to get the mail."

"I'll go get it,"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah,"

"Alright, take the key, we're box-"

"Seven. I know."

"Okay, be careful."

"Noted."

Natalie ran down the hallway, hopped in the elevator and danced her way around the main lobby area to 'Just The Girl' by The Click Five.

She finally got to the mail boxes, and opened seven's.

In it was a piece of paper with, "Fitzpatrick. Madeline & Natalie."

"That's us," Natalie thought, as she pulled out a thick stack of letters.

When she got back to the apartment, she says, "Back."
"Great! Who'd we get mail from?" Maddie says.

" 'Kay, we got a letter from…Visa, Cosmo, your subscription expired, electric bill, phone bill, Popstar, my subscription expired, bank statement, Nordstrom, London Tipton, Saks-"

"Wait go back,"

"London Tipton? What's that? Like one of those Donna Karen, Dana Buchman, Diane von Furstenberg, Liz Claiborne designer people you like so much?"

"No, silly, London Tipton was this girl who's dad owned the hotel I used to work in back in Boston."

"Really? Wow."

"Yeah, but what could she be sending me?" Maddie says as she takes the letter from Natalie and opens it carefully.

The letter is an invitation, that Maddie swears is gold trimmed, and in the finest calligraphy is written:

Dear Miss Madeline Margaret Genevieve Catherine Fitzpatrick,

You have been cordially invited to the unity of

Miss London Eyscalsta Tipton

To Mr. Cody Jackson Martin

In holy matrimony

Maddie nearly dropped the invitation, "CODY! London's marrying Cody!"

"Who?"

"There were these two twins at the hotel too, they always caused trouble, and messed things up. Wow, I can't believe this."

"So, did they like each other even then?"

"No way, they were about three years younger than us, and we always found them annoying."

"So this London girl, were you friends?"

"Well, I guess, but I was always really envious of her."

"Why?"
"Hello! Her father owned a hotel, all your grandfather owned was a cheese collection, shaped like a hotel! That, and she was pretty, and had all the boyfriends, and all the money, and expensive clothes, and jewelry, and ugh! I wanted to be her."

"So are we going…?"

"Of course, these were two of my friends, plus, none of them have met you."

"They haven't? Really?"

"Nope, I left when I found out about you."

"Why?"
"You've heard the story, because I was scared, and needed to be away from everything."

"Huh…it'll be cool to see all these people you knew, Boston sounds fabulous. And this London chick, sounds like a trip!"

"Trust me, she is."

A/N: TAFN, that's all for now!

--Britannia