Chapter Twenty-Two

Theo was right—the ballroom was spectacular.

In the space of seconds, the ballroom had been completely restored. The floors, golden mahogany, shone under the unblemished light of the chandeliers. Those had been cleaned so they winked at the two friends from above. The mirrored walls were clear enough to reflect their bemused faces, and the windows near the balcony were almost invisible against the morning light. All the candelabras had been polished and lit, even the piano cover had been removed. The lonely echoes seemed to be gone, shooed away with the cobwebs and dust.

"Wow." Mable said for the second time that day. She walked towards the center of the dance floor, smiling helplessly as she spun a slow circle to encompass it all. A few moments ago, the room had felt forgotten, but now it was as if it were greeting them, like a friend back from an extended trip. "Oh, this is wonderful."

Theo was still standing in the doorway, mouth agape. "H-how did this happen? It wasn't like this a moment ago!"

Mable whirled to look at him. "You mean, the castle has never done this before?"

"No!" He strode purposefully into the room, stopping to glare at his own reflection in one of the mirrors. "I've never seen this happen before, in all the years I lived here." He murmured. He glanced at her. "You don't appear to be surprised."

Mable shrugged at him. "The castle has been doing weird stuff since I got here. This is just another one to add to the list. Why are you so upset, anyway? It got a good cleaning, that's all."

"I'm not upset, just…baffled." He grumped. "The castle does do the occasional odd thing, but never to such a fantastical extent."

Mable laughed at him. "Theo, this entire damn place is fantastical!"

Theo's mouth curved up as he considered this. "I suppose you are right. And it certainly did a good job, didn't it?" He put his paws on his hips and shook his head. "It must be you."

"I didn't do anything."

Theo ran a gentle paw over the piano. "You said you wished that you could have seen the ballroom in its element. The castle must be responding to you, to what you want."

"If it did that, wouldn't I be home by now?" Mable pointed out; reasonably, she thought.

Theo jerked his shoulders in a lazy shrug. "Maybe there are limits to what it can and cannot do."

Mable snorted. "Naturally. Why are things never simple?" She went over to survey the forests from the huge windows. "God, what a great view." She put a hand on the window and felt the sting of cold through the glass. It was a shame it was winter; she would have loved to sit out on that balcony.

It was large enough to fit about twenty people comfortably. It jutted out from the castle over the snow, a waist-high wall running along the edge. Tall lanterns, about four feet apart, broke up the wall into sections. Benches were built right into the wall, carved to resemble clouds, one underneath each of the lanterns. The soft greens and browns of the forest aligned so well with the balcony it was if a painter had just gently brushed the colors onto the horizon.

Theo sighed next to her. "It is a beautiful view. It was always a sight to see, when we had parties in here and the sun went down. The last of the light would fade, and all the stars would appear in the sky. People would venture out onto the balcony or towards these windows to witness the sunset."

Mable smiled at the dreamy note in his voice. "Or the sunrise, depending on how crazy the party was."

"Oh yes, we had a few that were extravagant. Father used to hold balls twice a year. Once during the summer and once during the winter. He always invited an absurd number of ladies; I think he was hoping I'd be smitten with one. But I never really met any I liked. The richer ones were too false, and the not-so-rich ones giggled incessantly. Personally, I feel giggling should be outlawed. Once or twice is fine, but more than that it just becomes preposterous."

He sounded so ruffled that Mable herself giggled. She instantly covered her mouth when he looked at her. "Sorry, I couldn't help it," she said, trying and failing to look serious.

He smiled at her wryly. "No, do not be sorry. It is not nearly as irritating when it comes from you."

Mable ducked her head as she blushed.

"My mother and father met at one such gathering." He continued obliviously. "My father used to tell me how he knew, without a doubt, that she was the woman he wanted to marry the minute they spoke."

"Very Romeo and Juliet."

"What, did your parents not have the same fateful meeting?" His voice was light, teasing.

Mable smiled. She had heard several variations of her parents meeting over the years. "Not even close. They were both set up through mutual friends; a blind date. My dad told me that the date wasn't exactly full of fireworks, so he was just going to let it all go, chalking it up to a not-so-stellar date and move on. But they ran into each other the following morning at a coffee shop and ended up talking. That moment led to another, and another…until they both realized that they didn't want to spend their lives with anyone else." Mable found her shoes suddenly very interesting. "I think it's rare, to find someone who you just know is the One in such a short time."

She glanced up through her lashes. Theo had an odd, pensive expression on his face. "I agree," he told her, "I think friendship can be the best starting point, for some. That is how it happened for Labelle and Jacques, after all."

"What happened for Labelle and Jacques?" asked an inquiring voice from behind them.

They both spun around to see Maestro standing in the doorway. He was dressed more casually than normal, and Mable was startled to see that he didn't have his sword sheathed at his hip. In fact, had she seen him outside their current surroundings, she would have thought him just a handsome, well-to-do young man.

Maestro peered about the ballroom as he stepped inside, the only sign of surprise on his face was the lazy raising of one eyebrow. "Well, this is a change." he drawled as he came towards them. "Is my memory faulty, or wasn't this place rather unkempt a few days ago?"

"I think it was Mable." Theo told his friend. "She said that she wished she could see the ballroom as it was, and the castle just made it happen."

That rocked Maestro back on his heels for a moment. "Did it?" His black eyes bored into her face long enough to make her uncomfortable. "That is quite impressive, Lady."

"We don't know it was me." She retorted, her face blazing with color. She was glad she hadn't ever mentioned the closet to Theo. "It's just a theory."

"What are you doing here so early anyway, Jacques?" Theo made a pained noise. "Please tell me that you just arrived from the stables, not from Labelle's rooms."

Now it was Maestro's turn to flush. "That is no business of yours, mon ami." He warned Theo, his eyes narrowing.

"It isn't," Theo replied amiably, "and you two are my closest friends so I wish you nothing but happiness, but that does not mean I wish to know about all your romantic trysts." Theo grimaced. "In fact, I'd rather pretend that part of your relationship does not exist, if you do not mind."

Maestro's grin changed his face from handsome to devastating. "Ah, then it will please you to know that I did just arrive from my daily drills with the men. I actually wanted to spend time with Lady Mable, if she does not mind."

They both turned to her expectantly. "Ah, well…" she stammered, trying to regain her mental footing. Since when did Maestro want to hang out with her? "I suppose that's all right."

"She hasn't had breakfast yet." Mable couldn't read the expression on Theo's face. "We usually dine in the library."

"The library?" Maestro frowned in disapproval. "Not the dining room?"

"I'm usually the one who suggests we eat in the library." She explained hurriedly, because Maestro's tone seemed to annoy Theo. "The dining room is too formal for me. Besides, I like having breakfast with just Theo and Maddie, surrounded by all the books."

It baffled her that this seemed to make Theo's irritation with Maestro completely dissipate. "Yes, I've also enjoyed having breakfast in the library." He smiled at her. "Before you arrived, I spent most of my meals in my private rooms, but I found that I like the change in atmosphere more than I anticipated."

"Well, then perhaps you and I should dine there if it makes you feel more comfortable, Lady." Maestro was peering at her in a way that was not at all comforting. "I'm sure I can ask Maddie to—"

"Ah, no, why don't we have breakfast in the dining room this time?" She said quickly. For some reason, the idea of eating breakfast with Maestro in the library bothered her. That was her and Theo's place. "I can handle it just this once."

"The smaller dining room." Theo told Maestro with a surprising amount of authority. "It is more intimate and there is no need for formality so early in the morning."

"As you wish." Maestro held out an arm to her. "Shall we go, Lady?"

"I guess." She turned back to glance at Theo, not certain why she felt she needed his support. "Will I see you later?"

"Of course. Come find me after you breakfast with Jacques." She felt Theo's eyes on her back as Maestro escorted her out of the ballroom.

They walked down the hall in silence for quite a while before she finally worked up the courage to ask just why he wanted to talk to her.

"Well, Labelle is always going on about you." Maestro said easily as he led her through the foyer. "And since she and Theo seem to enjoy your company, I felt that it was far past the time for me to get to know you as well."

"You weren't exactly this friendly the last time I talked to you." She pointed out. She followed him down the hall that led to the small dining room.

"I wasn't, and I apologize." It was impossible to tell if he was being sincere or not. "I only understood that you wanted to leave us, that we would have to spend another year in this frozen version of hell." He opened the door to the dining room and motioned for her to take a seat. "But I have had the time to think about what you said to me that day."

She wracked her brain but couldn't think of anything she had said that would be that effective. "What was it that I said?"

"You told me that I should want Theo to find someone who shared his interests, had his respect, and respected him in return." Maestro sat on the other side of the table from her and smiled. "You told me that if I was truly his friend, I would want him to be with someone worthy."

"I said all that, huh?" Now that there was about a foot or two of table between them, she was a bit more relaxed. "Well, I do make the occasional good point."

They were interrupted by the chatter and greetings from the kitchen staff as they brought out breakfast. Mable greeted each one by name, attempting not to show her relief in front of Maestro. She had spent several days in the kitchens and had gotten to know each of the chefs, and it was reassuring to know they were just behind the door in case she needed them.

After she was served a large bowl of oatmeal, with several small bowls of dried fruits, honey, and nuts for her to add as she wished, she turned back just in time to catch an odd expression on Maestro's face.

"Carnier and his group are quite fond of you." He pointed out the obvious, stirring the oatmeal in his own bowl absently.

"Well, I'm pretty fond of them." She smiled shyly. "I've spent a few nights in the kitchen helping with dinner, and breakfast sometimes. Thankfully lunch is usually a light affair for everyone, otherwise Carnier would probably have me in there for that too!"

"I don't believe any of the past Ladies assisted in the kitchens as much as you have."

The words were blandly spoken, but Mable bristled nonetheless. She was tired of feeling as if she wasn't good enough, wasn't Lady enough for these people. "I don't help them because it is a Lady thing to do." She told him coolly. "I work in the kitchens because I like it, and I like spending time with them."

She was startled when her outburst got her a pleased smile from across the table. "As you should. I wasn't criticizing, Lady, just making an observation. Lady Liana, Master Theo's mother, was simply too awful a cook to spend time in the kitchens, so I must admit this is a pleasant change."

Mable perked up at the mention of Theo's mother. He had told her some stories over the past few weeks, but he always looked so pained that she tried not to ask for them very often. "Liana was a bad cook?"

"The worst." Maestro's black eyes twinkled at her. "In fact, I think the only reason she didn't help out with Carnier is because after the one time she tried, he had her permanently banned from his kitchen."

Mable bit back a chuckle. She could only imagine the fuss Carnier made when someone came in and made a mess of his beloved kitchen. "I can't believe Carnier would yell at the Lady of the castle."

"Oh, he didn't yell. I don't think anyone ever yelled at Lady Liana, she was too beautiful, and far too sensitive. Had he yelled at her she most likely would have run away from the castle in tears. No, he gently insisted that she work on other pursuits, anything other than cooking." Maestro stared off into space dreamily for a moment, then focused his attention back on her. "That was why I was so surprised you don't eat in the dining room every day. I thought Carnier would want to keep his favorite Lady near his domain as much as possible."

"I'm not his favorite anything."

Maestro made a noise that from a less handsome man would be a snort. "Nonsense. I have never seen him act that generous towards anyone in his kitchen, even Margot. And she's his wife."

Mable nearly spat out her oatmeal. All the times she had been working in the kitchen with the chefs, she had never once thought that plump, cheerful Margot was married to Carnier. "Margot is Carnier's wife?" she sputtered. She tried to think back, to find a moment in her conscious where he had ever given the female chef a romantic word or affection and couldn't think of one. "Since when?"

"Oh, they keep it very quiet." Maestro reassured her. "They've been married since Theo and I were boys, but they never show affection when they are working. Carnier believes if he shows too much favoritism the rest of his staff would take offense, and Margot just enjoys being treated the same as the men in the kitchens." His smile was wicked and boyish. "Surprised?"

"A little." More like flabbergasted. Monsieur Carnier and Margot. Who knew?

She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. He was eating with immense enjoyment, his eyes laughing at her across the table. Never in her time at this castle had he been so…pleasant towards her. "What's going on?" she demanded. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you like me more now than you did a few days ago."

Maestro stopped chewing and placed his spoon carefully on the table. "You think you know better, do you?' he asked slowly.

"You've barely talked to me since I arrived, and now here you are, teasing and joking with me like we're best friends." She pushed aside the niggling voice at the back of her head reminding her that this was how she and Theo had started out as well. "So, what gives?"

Maestro leaned back, gazing at her thoughtfully. "Why don't I tell you a story?"

This was the opposite of what Mable expected. "O-ok."

"I was not born in the castle, like Labelle or Theo. I was born to a stable hand out in the barracks, the only child my mother could bear before she lost her life. My father, much like Lune, raised me on his own, along with some help from the rest of the stable lads. I grew up very comfortably there, only hearing the occasional mentions of the noble family who lived here." Maestro gestured to the elegant surroundings. "But one day, when I was about four or five, Master Acelin came to the stables, bringing his son with him, to gift the boy with his very first pony. When he saw me, he noted that I was the same age as his own son, and because of our secluded origins, might be a good friend for a boy who had no one his own age to play with."

"What about Labelle?" she interjected. "I thought she and Theo grew up together."

"Oh, they did." He assured her. "And Acelin thought I would make a good playmate for her as well. Much like Maddie, there weren't many children living in the castle then, or at least none close to our age. And so, Theo, Labelle and I began to spend time together; first to please our respective fathers and then to please ourselves, because we became quite attached. Theo and Labelle would come down to the stables almost every day and we would watch the soldiers practice. Theo and I would practice with each other, using leftover or broken weapons, and try to imitate their moves. But even with their acceptance and friendship, I very rarely joined them here in the castle. I had grown up in the stables; it was familiar to me."

Maestro's smile was warm as he reminisced. "Then one day, when I was about eleven, Theo came out to the stables and practically tore my arm off dragging me up into the castle 'For five years you have made me haul myself down here all so I could spend time with you' he said. 'Now I'm going to haul you up there with me, so we can spend time inside for a change!' I resisted, not wanting to be teased or snubbed by the more prestigious residents of the castle, but he insisted. Finally, he managed to get me into his father's private study, and I realized that it had been a set up. The Captain of the Guard, a man named Guillaume, was waiting for me, and Theo told him, and his father, that I was far too talented with weapons to just spend my life as a stable lad. He told the Captain that he would be a fool not to take me in as a page."

Maestro grinned. "I don't think anyone had ever spoken to old Guillaume like that before, but he did as Theo asked and took me on and trained me for the guard. Eventually he trained me to replace him as Captain when he retired, just as Labelle's mother trained her, and Theo's father trained him."

"What about your father?"

"Oh, he still lives in the stables." Maestro acknowledged her shock with a nod. "Oh yes. He's older now, but he still helps out when I don't bully him into taking time to rest. He was quite upset with me when he missed both your visits." Maestro sat back, watching her.

The silence went on for so long Mable wondered if she was supposed to share her life story too. "That was a nice story and all…" she ventured. "But I'm not sure what it has to do with anything."

"After the curse was cast, and Theo was changed into the monster he—"

"He's not a monster." She snapped, unexpectedly irritated.

Maestro's mouth curved upwards. "You speak true, Lady. After Theo was…changed physically, he also started to change in temperament. The Theo I grew up with, my best friend, never shut himself in his rooms, avoided people. The boy who ran around with me at the stables, who spent hours play-fighting with swords and exploring the woods with Labelle and I, he would never shut himself off, and hide from the pain like his late mother did. But hide away he did. I came up to the castle as often as I could, trying to get him to come with me, to see that he still had friends among the soldiers, but he always refused. Until the day you, Maddie and Labelle dragged him out skating." The Captain of the Guard stared at her meaningfully. "The day Theo and I sparred at the barracks was the first time Theo had visited the stables in years."

Mable blinked. She had known from talking to Labelle that Theo had spent the past however-many years locked away from most people, with the exception of Maddie, Labelle and Lune. But she hadn't realized it was to such an extent.

"Because of you, he is starting to shift back into the boy I grew up with, the man I respected and loved like a brother. Because of you, he is braving the stares and whispers of some people," He waved his hand at the door with a look of contempt, "the ones who do not understand or care about the sacrifices he made. Your presence here, whether you meant it to or not, did that for him. And because you did, I felt it was only proper that I show you the respect you deserve."

Mable sat back in her chair, a little dazed by Maestro's proclamation. "You really think I had that much of an influence on him?" She couldn't remember a time when she had such an effect on another person. Aside from her father, and that was only because most of the time he wasn't lucid enough to make his own decisions.

"I do." He said, returning to his oatmeal. Mable had barely touched hers. "I think that because of your friendship, when the woman who can break the curse finally arrives he will be ready to accept her offer of love without argument."

Maestro dug into his food without looking up, missing her stunned expression.

She didn't know why the idea of another woman-one who could break the curse, one who most likely didn't have a sick father to get back to-made her heart sink. If she was truly Theo's friend, she would want him to happy. Wouldn't she? After all, that would mean he had found true love. Not only that, the curse would be broken. Labelle and Jacques could go on to create all those children, Maddie could make some friends her own age, and the rest of the castle inhabitants could fulfill old dreams or find new ones.

And she would go back. She would go back to spending days with her father, living with his bouts of anger and depression. She would go back to only seeing her sisters for a few days during the year, the rest of it spent in isolation. She would go back to having no friends, no career, no life.

Tears welled up in her eyes, but she furiously wiped them away. She was being selfish. If Theo found someone to love, then she should be happy for him. Besides, if he broke the curse, that would mean the castle wouldn't be hidden anymore, and she could always come visit. Leaving didn't mean she would automatically be losing the friendships she had made while she was here, it would just change how she preserved them.

A small, traitorous part of her whispered that he might not even want her to come back. After all, how would she compare, a mere friend, to a woman he loved, the one who was able to change him back to his old self and set his people free from the curse?

She played with her oatmeal, her appetite gone after a few half-hearted bites. She glanced up to find Maestro scrutinizing her, his bowl empty.

"I think I'm done." She told him, pushing her own bowl away. He watched her for a few more minutes, his expression unreadable. She wondered if this was a test and she had failed again.

"Well, if you have finished, I can escort you to the library." He got up from the table, coming over to hold out his hand for her to take.

When she stood up, he brought it to his mouth to kiss. She was a little startled to find that it didn't have the same result on her as it had before. Her heart didn't race; her cheeks didn't flush.

She was even comfortable enough to smile at him.

"For what it is worth, Lady Mable." He told her warmly, "I am forever grateful that you were able to bring my friend back to me."

Mable pushed all of her distressing thoughts aside as he led her out. Right now, it was enough that Maestro was warming up to her, maybe even becoming another friend.

It had to be enough.