Chapter 10-Dance

The next morning, Lottie woke up feeling more refreshed than she had in weeks and she knew it was because she'd made peace with everyone in her family. Finally, she'd been honest with Mama, Papa, and Rapunzel, and they still loved her. As she dressed, she hummed happily. When she finally was ready and opened the door, she found a small bouquet of daisies there with a note. She opened it up and read it.

Dear Lottie,

I'm proud of you. I knew you could do it.

-Tom

She smiled. He was proud of her!

XxXxXxX

After that day when she lost it, the week before the ball passed quickly for Lottie. It was almost a blur of final preparations, crammed in lessons with Rapunzel, and dress fittings with their seamstress. Because of all the busyness, she barely saw Selena and Simona at all. Not a bad loss, she had to say. But she had to cancel some of her meetings with Tom. She did feel…rather sorry about that because she missed seeing him. Yet she was still not sure whether she was in love with him or not and part of her wanted to know before she did talk to him. She just didn't how how she could know, though. She was completely bewildered about it. So when she was at a final dress fitting the day before the ball with Rapunzel, she decided to talk to her about it. Rapunzel was obviously in love with Eugene, and surely there most have been a time when she'd known.

"Rapunzel," she said. "Can I ask you something?"

Rapunzel smiled. "Of course, Lottie."

Now that she had permission she wasn't sure exactly how to phrase it. She decided the direct approach would be the best. "How did you know you loved Eugene?"

A thoughtful expression crossed her face, and she was quiet for a minute. "I knew that I loved him because I couldn't imagine life without him. And what I wanted- what I dreamed of- was being with him forever." She smiled a little, as if remembering something really special. Then she looked at Lottie. "But I'm sure it's different for each person, Lottie," she added. "The way I knew might be different than you."

"Hmm…" Lottie said. She couldn't imagine her life without Tom, but she wasn't certain about the rest of it.

"Why do you ask?" Rapunzel said.

"Um…" What to say? Tom would encourage her to tell the truth. He always did. "Sometimes…I wonder if I love Tom." She bit her lip. "I mean, I know that I love him as a friend, but then my heart always beats faster when he hugs me. And it wouldn't do that if I thought of him as just a friend right? So sometimes I think I-…." She stopped. She realized she was babbling on like a simpleton.

Yet Rapunzel had listened to her patiently. "Do you want my opinion?"

Why not? "Sure…"

She started to smile, one that went all the way to her eyes. "You do," she said. "I don't think you're fully conscious of that yet. I'm sure you will be one of these days though. But trust me .When you know….you'll know."

Lottie wasn't entirely sure that helped her any, but Rapunzel did probably know more about it than she did. "Okay."

After that, she changed the subject to the ball. That was enough ball talk for one day.

XxXxXxXx

The day after that was the ball, so Lottie and Rapunzel spent most of the day preparing for it together. They talked and laughed, and Lottie thought that she was so glad to have more time to spend with her sister. Rapunzel seemed happy to be with her too, and they chatted about anything and everything. She did see Rapunzel seem unhappy once though,when her hairdresser, Lucinda, muttered something about the shortness of her hair. Rapunzel's face looked like she could cry. Lottie remembered that Eugene had cut it when he was dying, and she completely understood her sad expression. "You know, I like it," she said loyally. "It's different than everyone else and makes her look special."

Rapunzel smiled at her gratefully, and that was the end of it. Soon after that, they changed into their gowns- Rapunzel's a beautiful emerald that matched her eyes, and Lottie's a pretty blue. They sat for a while silently, and Lottie was thinking about how much she wished Tom could be there tonight. How fun would it be to dance with him? Suddenly she heard Rapunzel speak.

"I'm nervous, Lottie," she said softly.

Lottie reached over and patted her shoulder. "It's completely normal to feel that way, Rapunzel," she said reassuringly. "But you've got nothing to worry about. Just be your normal self, and everyone will love you. And don't forget that Eugene will be there every step of the way."

Rapunzel's smile came back after that, and Lottie shared some of her funnier ball stories to keep her laughing. But eventually they heard a knock on the door, and Lottie got up to answer it.

It was Eugene, looking very handsome. "Hi Lottie," he said. "Your mother told me to tell you two girls that it's time."

"Thanks, Eugene," she said. She turned to tell Rapunzel, but she had already come up to the door. Lottie didn't miss how Eugene's eyes had lit up at the sight of her. Of course, she did look beautiful, and she decided to leave them alone. "I'll see you in there, Rapunzel."

Rapunzel nodded, but she looked slightly distracted. They both did. So Lottie left them in peace, wishing that she could enter the ballroom with someone by her side like Rapunzel. Yet she still managed to walk there on her own. As soon as she did, she was immediately asked to greet everyone.

She did obediently, and she even danced with young men that she disliked.

All the while, she wished that a certain someone was there to dance with her too. As she waltzed with the tenth annoying lord, she decided that she was not a big fan of balls-not when all the wrong people were there.

And the right one was not.

XxXxXxXx

Eugene wasn't a big fan of balls either. Oh, he liked dancing with Rapunzel and everything, but that was about it. The rest of it was a big snore, because all the nobles were snobby and talked about tedious things like the weather and pedigrees.

Dull. And Rapunzel usually had to talk with them at least part of the time, so he hung around the punch table, waiting for her to be finished. He looked over only to see a bored looking young man to his left with brown hair and kind eyes. Well, he might as well say hello. After all, it wasn't often that he saw somebody who appeared to dislike these events as much as he did. Besides, he looked almost nice, which was rare. "Well, hello there," he said.

The young man smiled. "Hello. Nice party, isn't it?"

He decided to be honest. "Actually," he said in a low voice. "It's a little dull. Too many stuffy nobles."

He stared at Eugene for a minute, and he was almost afraid he'd misjudged him and he was one of those aforementioned bores. But then he laughed. "I have to agree with you," he said. "Though I'd hope I'm not one of the stuffy nobles. I'm Tom, by the way."

"Eugene."

Tom looked closely at him, almost as if he was trying to place him. "Eugene…as in Eugene Fitzherbert? Aka Flynn Rider?"

He laughed. "I see that my reputation has preceded me."

"Quite," Tom said. "I recognized you from your wanted poster. Though they didn't capture your nose right."

He shrugged. "Who could capture such perfection?"

"Exactly," Tom said with another laugh. "So, you're here with the princess?"

"I am indeed," Eugene said. "And you?"

Tom's eyes briefly flicked over to Lottie. "I'm not…I'm not here with any one particular."

Right. No one particular, his foot. Clearly, he had a torch for Lottie. "So, I've got a question for you."

"Yes?"

"Well, I've been hearing a lot about a Tom from Princess Lottie," he said, and he noticed how Tom's expression changed to a knowing one. "That wouldn't happen to be you, would it?"

Tom smiled. "Guilty."

"If you don't mind me asking," he said. "How do you feel about Lottie? I mean, obviously you're friends…."

His eyes grew soft. "I….I love her," Tom admitted.

Eugene wasn't surprised to hear it. He already knew that from the way he'd briefly looked at her. It was the same way he probably looked at Rapunzel. "Yeah…I figured," he said. "Mind if I give you a piece of advice?"

"Go ahead."

"Don't wait too long to tell her. You never know what might happen."

Tom nodded slowly. "Yes….." He grinned again. "So what about you and the Princess?"

"I love her," he said. "And she loves me. Everything is perfect. Rapunzel's amazing."

"Did I hear my name?"

He turned around only to see Rapunzel standing behind him with a large smile on her face. He grinned back. "Yes. I was just telling Tom here about my favorite princess."

Understanding dawned in her eyes. He was sure that she knew it was likely Lottie's Tom. "Tom, it's so nice to meet you."

"Pleasure is mine, Princess," he said kindly with a small bow.

She smiled, and then she turned to him. "Eugene, I think it's time for our dance."

"Right," he said. He looked at Tom. "Would you please excuse me? My lady calls."

Tom laughed. "Of course. Wouldn't want you to get in trouble with your lady here."

"It was nice to meet you," Rapunzel said.

"Mutual," he said.

At that, Rapunzel grabbed Eugene's hand and led him toward the dance floor. He put his arm around her waist and took her hand. The music began to play a gentle waltz and they started to dance. He liked dancing with her; she was just so graceful. Besides, he loved any chance he got to hold her.

She smiled up at him. "So, what did you talk about with Tom?"

He grinned back. "You, me. Him, Lottie."

Her eyes started to shine. He was sure that her matchmaking wheels were turning. Probably because she wanted Lottie to be as happy as she was, with a man of her own. That's just the way she was. "There's a him and Lottie?"

"Yes," he said. "He told me that he loved her."

"Oh, how wonderful," she said softly. "Does she know?"

"No. But I said that he should tell her soon. You never know what might happen."

She nodded knowingly. "You don't have any personal experience with that, do you?"

"No, of course not," he joked. He knew she was referring to the tower, when he'd done his best to make sure that she knew how he felt about her. He pulled her closer. "But just in case you didn't know already….I love you," he said in her ear.

"I love you, too, Eugene," she said.

He grinned at her, and began to lead her off the floor. After all, he couldn't kiss her in the middle of the ballroom, now could he?

XxXxXxXx

Lottie had been to enough balls in her life to settle into a certain routine. About half-way through, her shoes would begin to pinch, the nobles would annoy her, and she'd start getting that piercing pain in her left eye.

Tonight was particularly bad though and her head ached. So she searched for Mama to tell her that she had to rest for a least a little while. She finally found her talking to some man. "Mama," she began. "I-…"

Mama looked at her with a smile. "Oh, good, Lottie, you're here," she said. "There's someone I'd like you to meet." She gestured toward the young man standing next to her, and he turned around. "This is Lord Thomas McLean of Screlandria."

It was Tom! She stared at him with wide eyes, completely speechless. He was a….lord?

Luckily for her, he hadn't lost all ability to speak. "Princess Charlotte," he said with a smile. "It's a pleasure." He winked at her subtly and she found herself blushing.

Mama looked decidedly pleased when a waltz started playing. "Oh, Lottie, why don't you show Lord Thomas here our waltz?"

"Ummm…." She stammered.

Tom's grin increased. "That would be lovely." He extended his hand, and she cautiously took it.

Once they reached the dance floor, he took her hand again and put one arm her waist. Her back immediately felt hot, but she liked it. He was smiling at her too, and she melted a little inside. After a few seconds of dancing, he let herself ask the question burning in her mind. "You said your name was Tom!" she said.

"It is," he said. "It just so happens you're one of the few people who calls me that."

"I see," she said, even though she didn't. She wasn't sure why he hadn't told her before. But she hadn't told him at first that she was the princess. Maybe it was the same thing."I feel bad that I didn't know who you were."

"Don't," he said kindly. "How could you have known?"

"I guess….I guess that I thought my nobility radar was better than that," she admitted truthfully. He laughed heartily. She loved his laugh. It made her heart leap.

"Well, I think your nobility radar is just fine," he said.

"But why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't feel like it was necessary," he said. "And I just thought that you should have a friend who liked you for you."

She looked up at him, only to see a hint of….something in his eyes. "And you do?" she asked.

"Well, not quite," he said, and her heart sank. "I don't just like you. I love you."

Without even realizing it, she stopped dancing and stared at him. "You…what?" Did he really say what she thought he had? He….loved her? Really?

He smiled at her. "I love you, Lottie."

She just wanted to cry, right there in the middle of the ballroom. How long had she dreamed of a moment like this? Involuntarily, a tear trickled down her cheek. He loved her! Tom, the most wonderful man she'd ever met, loved her.

Through her blurry vision, she could see that his eyes stayed focused on hers. "Lottie?" He sounded very concerned. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry. I just-…" He stopped and cleared his throat. "Anyway, if you don't…well, I wanted you to know."

She shook her head. He couldn't think that she wasn't happy about this! "I love you too," she whispered, and even as she said the words, she knew they were true. She couldn't explain why, yet deep in her heart she knew she loved Tom. She knew it like she knew the sun would rise every morning. Rapunzel's words echoed in her mind. When you know….you'll know. She was right.

A slow smile appeared on Tom's face, and he gripped her hand tighter. "Come on," he said softly, pulling her away from the floor.

"Where are we going?" she asked. But she still followed him. She had a feeling she'd probably follow him anywhere, even to the ends of the earth.

As it turned out, though, he only walked as far as the small balcony off of the ballroom. She felt rather confused. "Tom, what-…."

But all he did was put his finger to her lips. "Shh…" He smiled at her again, and then his arms were around her, and he was kissing her, gently, tenderly….She felt like he was caressing her heart.

She put her arms around his neck and kissed him back. Like most girls, she'd dreamed of her first kiss. But it wasn't at all like she dreamed.

It was even better.

XxXxXxXx

The rest of the ball was a blur to Lottie. All she could remember was dancing with Tom, laughing with Tom, talking to Tom, having fun with Eugene and Rapunzel….and then more Tom. It was probably the best ball she'd ever been to, and she couldn't have been prouder of Rapunzel. She'd acted like the perfect princess, and Lottie had taken her aside later to tell how well she'd done. Rapunzel had only smiled, and said that she couldn't have done it without her. It almost made her entire night, but Tom's kiss had done that first.

After the ball, she and Rapunzel said goodnight to their beaus, and, as they previously agreed, went to Lottie's room to have their own little sister slumber party. They changed in their nightgowns and huddled under the covers, talking quietly.

"This was my favorite ball, by far," Lottie said to Rapunzel.

"Oh, mine too!" Rapunzel said eagerly.

She couldn't help her laughter. "This was your first one!"

Rapunzel giggled. "Yes, I guess it was. But it still was my favorite party. I had so much fun with you, Eugene,…." She glanced at Lottie. "…and Tom." She felt her cheeks heat up in the dark. "He's very nice, Lottie."

"Yes, he is." She thought for a moment, and she could feel Rapunzel snuggle into her pillow. She knew she was starting to fall asleep. But before she did, Lottie had to tell somebody about the kiss. That wonderful, amazing kiss. "He kissed me, you know," she said softly.

"And was it amazing?" Rapunzel muttered sleepily.

She smiled just thinking about it. "It was perfect."