Hey everyone! Hope everyone had an awesome weekend. Here's the next chapter, and I hope you guys like it. Sorry about the wait, but I was out of town longer than I expected, and I didn't have my laptop with me. Thanks to everyone for the support. Reviews are always appreciated. See you guys next time, and take care!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of The Underland Chronicles, only the characters I make up and the plot itself.

Regalia High

Chapter 12: Showtime

He had read somewhere that vampires were cold, pale and beautiful. Well, now Gregor knew that her skin wasn't cold at all. It was still pale, though. And she was definitely beautiful…

Vampire or not, Luxa was definitely two out of three.

Very pale, and very, very beautiful.

-O-

As the weeks went by, Gregor's life became more and more of a routine. Except for the weekends, every day was pretty much the same thing.

Gregor tried to wake up every day at the same time so that he could do some homework before class. It was his least favorite part of the day, since it cut into his sleep. Every time he got out of bed, it was like his pillow wanted a hug and his blankets became softer. But he couldn't afford to get a detention for not doing his homework. He didn't really do it after school anymore. There just wasn't enough time.

After school, Gregor had to go to practice and then to rehearsals. When the rehearsals were over, he and Luxa would walk to his apartment, where the private rehearsals would take place. It had been a little weird at first, but now, it was a normal thing.

Right before the regular rehearsals with the rest of the actors, Gregor had to attend practice. The kind of practice Gregor had to go to depended on the day.

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Gregor had dodgeball practice with Ripred. The coach had actually made a team of it, thanks in part to Gregor's performance against the Fount. There was a small survey that took place during lunch that asked if students would go see another game, and it had apparently been a huge success. With all those promises of support, the district had allowed Ripred to make a team, and some of the other schools had made teams as well.

When the games had started, it was clear from the start that all other teams were trying their best. They wanted as many players as possible to play against Gregor, since he was the best player on the team.

During the games, it was like if Gregor was playing by himself. Against Ripred's orders, Gregor had chosen to be first in line. Ripred wanted him to be last so that he could win the games if it got to that point, but Gregor always went out first.

Whenever he played, Gregor always had that same blurring sensation. It was like if things moved in slow motion. He could feel his arms and legs move, and when everything came back into focus, he was always surprised to see the other team eliminated. Though it always happened, it never failed to surprise him.

Sometimes, the other team would get a few hits on some of Gregor's teammates. Sometimes, they didn't. Most of the time, Gregor could take them all by himself. His teammates were in the process of picking up dodgeballs when they discovered that Gregor had already finished taking the other team out.

It made the crowd go wild, seeing him do all of that. After the games when he would get rushed by some of the other students, they would ask him how he was so good, and he never knew how to answer. Not knowing made him feel uneasy, and Gregor had finally gathered up the courage one day to talk to Ripred.

He remembered the day when he had talked to him. After one of the dodgeball practices, Gregor stayed afterwards inside the gym and waited for Ripred to come out of his office. He was in a hurry, since he had to go to rehearsals, but he was more nervous than anything. Ripred tended to be sarcastic and insensitive, which caused Gregor to reconsider his decision several times. But the truth was, there was no one else he could talk to about it.

"Don't you have to go dance on stage somewhere with Mrs. Cormaci?" asked Ripred. Gregor hadn't heard him coming, and he jumped slightly at the sound of his voice.

"Yea, but I wanted to talk to you about something."

Ripred sat on one of the bleachers and looked up at him. "Alright, twinkle toes. What do you want to talk about? I don't have a lot of time, so make this quick."

Gregor sat down next to him and took a deep breath. "I wanted to talk about… how I play during the games."

That got Ripred to look at him with a different expression. His eyebrows rose slightly, and he leaned forward a bit. He turned his head to look around quickly, as if making sure they were alone. "What happens when you play, boy?" he almost whispered.

It was strange to see Ripred so interested all of a sudden, and Gregor spoke with a little more confidence. "I don't know," he admitted. "It all happens so fast, but slow at the same time. It's like the world turns blurry, and when it goes back to normal, everything's done. And I can't help it. I feel like… like… -"

"Like you can't control your body," finished Ripred. Gregor turned to him, surprised that the coach had actually finished his sentence. Ripred was more serious than Gregor had ever seen him, and the coach's face was set in deep concentration.

"Do you know what I'm talking about?" asked Gregor.

Ripred nodded slowly, a small smile spreading over his lips. "I thought I was the only one. But you described it so perfectly. It happened to me when I played sports in high school and in college. Hell, it still happens from time to time."

Gregor remembered the stories of how Ripred was the best athlete ever to have attended Regalia High, and it made a little more sense to him. Not only did it explain so much, but it also gave Gregor relief that Ripred really did know what was happening to him.

"You and I are just some of the lucky ones, boy," said Ripred. "It's just an ability we have."

"Is there a name for it?"

Ripred let out a loud laugh. "What is this? A story book? There doesn't have to be a name for it." He laughed again. "Is there a name for it… that's a good one." The coach turned to him again. "We can't help it. We're just natural born athletes."

What? Was that a good thing, or a bad thing? One thing was to be naturally athletic, and another thing was to have something strange happen to you where you could take on an entire team by yourself. It made Gregor feel like he had an unfair advantage over the other kids. Maybe he didn't want this ability.

"It won't go away," said Ripred, almost as if he were reading Gregor's thoughts. "Just accept it, and use it. But make sure it doesn't go to your head."

"What do you mean?" asked Gregor.

"Going first to take on the whole team? What's that about?"

"Well, if they don't have to go in, why should they? Those dodgeballs hurt. If I can take them by myself so my teammates don't have to get hit, then I'll do it. I mean, I guess I can, so why not?"

Ripred gave him a curious stare. "You know, if we lived in a different time period and you had that mentality in times of war, you'd be a noble fighter for wanting to avoid casualties. Don't you think, warrior?"

Gregor turned red at the mention of his unofficial nickname. He hadn't thought of how easy it might be for Ripred to hear someone call him that, and he felt embarrassed. Still, the coach had been a lot of help, and he was grateful.

"Thanks. I didn't actually think you would know. But I was curious."

"And you decided to talk to me about it?" asked Ripred, opening his eyes wide in mock surprise. "I think this is the start of a very long relationship between us."

Gregor laughed. "Whatever. And thanks again. I have to go to rehearsals now." He turned to leave.

"See you tomorrow, happy feet."

Gregor's talk with Ripred made him feel a little bit better, and it made his experiences with the strange ability not so strange. During practice, it didn't happen, and he just focused on working out with the rest of the team. They worked on stamina and strength, lifting weights to make their arms stronger. It only helped Gregor become more deadly, throwing even harder and jumping higher when he needed to avoid incoming dodgeballs.

Tuesdays and Thursdays were different, as those days were track practice. Since Ripred had made the dodgeball team, he was no longer coaching the track team. In his place was a new coach. Her name was Perdita, and she had taken over for Ripred.

Perdita was the same as Ripred. No one could bring themselves to call her Ms. Perdita, and they just called her by her first name. She seemed okay with it, and after a few days, it was the only thing they called her.

She wasn't as hard on them as Ripred, and she was a little more understanding. Still, Perdita's workouts were pretty intense. Gregor couldn't help but think that her and Ms. Solovet would be the perfect teachers to train them for war. Perdita would take care of discipline and training while Ms. Solovet ordered everyone around.

Despite all the changes to his life, the evening sessions with Luxa were the ones that took the longest to get used to. After only a few private rehearsals, Gregor and Luxa improved by a noticeable margin. They did much better on the rehearsals with everyone, and Mrs. Cormaci praised their hard work.

"Excellent! Absolutely wonderful! How did the two of you improve so much in such a short time?" she asked one day.

Gregor turned to look at Luxa, unsure of what to say. He didn't want to tell Mrs. Cormaci that they were practicing together at his apartment, especially not in front of the other actors. A few people had seen him and Luxa walking together after rehearsals, and there were a few new rumors going around. Because of this, he only remained quiet, not wanting to risk hurting Luxa's image or something.

Mrs. Cormaci only shrugged after a moment when she saw neither of them would answer. "Well, it doesn't matter! Whatever it is, keep doing it! It's working perfectly!"

But Luxa was the biggest surprise of all.

Gregor and Luxa never had enough time to talk. They would whisper to each other between scenes when Mrs. Cormaci was talking to some of the other actors, or when they were waiting to go onstage. They did most of their uninterrupted talking when they walked to his apartment after rehearsals and when he walked her to her house after their private sessions.

The first time Gregor's mom had met Luxa was one of the most embarrassing days of his life.

Gregor and Luxa had walked in to find his mom in the kitchen. Gregor expected Luxa to be a bit judgmental of where he lived, and he was shy at first. However, Luxa smiled when she walked in, looking around to admire everything.

He gave her a small tour of the apartment, stopping by the kitchen to get her a glass of water. Gregor wished he had more to offer, but there wasn't much else. Luxa was very polite though, and she walked around with her hands behind her back.

His mother had been very awkward from the moment he presented Luxa to her. She was expecting her, since Gregor needed to ask permission, but it didn't mean she was any less awkward.

While Gregor ran his lines with Luxa, his mom just sat at the kitchen table, pretending to be busy with cutting some vegetables. The table had a perfect view of the living room, and it was pretty obvious his mom was there to spy when she brought out every single vegetable in the fridge out to the table.

When she ran out of vegetables, Gregor's mom took the sowing kit out and pretended to fix one of her old aprons. At the sight of this, Gregor rolled his eyes, and Luxa only shook with silent laughter. He could tell that Luxa found the whole situation hilarious, and somehow, it made his patience grow. He was tempted to ask his mom why she was being so weird, but he didn't want to be rude. Besides, he could just ask her after Luxa was gone.

After he had walked Luxa home, though, Gregor's mother had immediately bombarded him with questions. The moment he walked through his door, his mom led him to the table and sat him down.

There was a huge interrogation regarding Luxa for the next hour. His mom asked all sorts of random questions. Some of them made sense, but others left Gregor wondering why his mom would want to know that.

Gregor finally got the courage to ask her why she had been so determined to keep them in sight. When she said she was only making sure they didn't "do anything," he dropped the conversation. He sort of knew what she meant by that, and he decided he wanted to avoid an awkward conversation with her. He was done with awkward for the day.

The questions continued to fall until his mother looked satisfied with the answers she got. When she was finished asking, Gregor's mom leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. Then she said, "She's got real attitude."

Gregor only smiled at that and took his cue to leave. His mother never brought her up again in any conversation, and for the most part, she left him and Luxa alone whenever they were going to rehearse. The privacy let them work on the more intimate scenes with a little more confidence. It was weird enough as it was. They didn't want an audience. Plus, they could talk freely whenever they were talking a break, and it was better to be alone. They never talked about anything inappropriate, but it would be weird if his mom were just there while they talked. And that's what they did sometimes. They just sat and talked.

He never got bored of her. They would talk about random things, making huge, hilarious conversations out of pretty much anything. Luxa was very easy to talk to. He found her to be much friendlier when she wasn't with Henry. It reminded him of the time they had spent together in detention.

She had a good sense of humor, and she was never offended by what he said. She simply went along with it, drawing a joke or two while she was at it. Seeing her like this made Gregor think about the rest of her friends. He already knew that Aurora was easy to talk to, but what about Ares? Would he be easy to talk to if he weren't around Henry all the time? He didn't think about it too much, since Ares still looked at him weird. Perhaps he would bring it up with Luxa so that she could ask Ares about it.

One day, while Gregor was walking Luxa to her house, their conversation brought up Gorger. The curiosity to know what had happened that day when Gorger had dented Luxa's locker was bothering him, so he finally asked.

"It was something of little importance," she began, her voice dropping to just above a whisper. "He was harassing a very small boy and I told him to stop. He did not, and I took the boy with me, away from him. He became very mad at this, and that is why he was shouting at me."

"You were shouting back," Gregor reminded her.

"I was," she nodded. "He kept shouting that he would get even with me, and I said that he could try."

"Even? How?"

"I do not know. But he said he would do it when I least expected it."

Luxa seemed unfazed by the words as she repeated them, but Gregor was instantly more cautious. It only made him promise himself that Luxa would never have to walk home by herself. He didn't want Gorger sneaking up on her in the dark if she ever had to walk home alone. It's not like Gregor could fight him, but maybe he could hold him off long enough for Luxa to escape. It was the best scenario he could think of, and he left it at that. He didn't want to think about what Gorger might do to him if he got in the way. Surely, revenge against Luxa was something Gorger was planning for, and it might be dangerous to ruin those plans.

But he would do anything for Luxa.

And that was what affected him the most. With each afternoon they spent together, Gregor found himself liking Luxa more and more. Every moment, every word, drew him closer to her. He couldn't help smiling every time she laughed, and he would smile like an idiot when she smiled at him first. It was simply impossible to not smile back.

At first, Gregor thought that he was just getting to know her better. It was normal, since they were no longer seeing the other as a stranger. It was just how people became friends. He tried to convince himself that it was only a friendship that was forming. It didn't take long for that theory to fail, however, and it wasn't his fault entirely.

Whenever Gregor pulled Luxa in for a hug or held her hand like the script demanded, he could literally feel her pulse quicken. It wasn't hard to tell when she blushed, either. Not with the paleness of her skin.

Gregor realized he might be lying to himself with these things. Maybe Luxa just got nervous with these acting things. Maybe it wasn't him that was causing her reaction. She was just new to this whole thing. It was logical thoughts like these that made Gregor wish he hadn't hoped too strongly. Seeing the rational side, it was easy to understand that Luxa didn't feel the same way he felt about her.

But what did he feel for her exactly? Whatever it was, it was stronger than anything he had ever felt before. So he just lied to himself. He liked the thought of Luxa feeling something for him, and he decided to go with it.

It could turn very badly when he found out she felt nothing. Gregor had read something somewhere, and he wasn't sure what it meant back then, but now, it made perfect sense.

Ignorance is bliss.

-O-

The day of the play came faster than anyone could anticipate. School was the same boring thing it always was, but on the day of the show, the entire school buzzed with excitement. It reminded Gregor of the dodgeball tournament, and how everyone had been so anxious.

But no one felt more anxious than Gregor. His hands were twitching, and he felt like he was sweating bullets. He paced back and forth in the dressing room, not caring if people almost ran into him. He was in his own little bubble, and no one could get him out of it.

"Gregor?" came a voice from behind him.

He turned around instantly. "Hey, Luxa."

Well, almost no one.

"I just wanted to wish you good luck. Not like we need it, but it is there if you would like it. I am offering it," she said, holding out her empty hand and giving him a smile.

"Thanks," he said, smiling at her silliness and reaching out to take the fake object from her hand. When his hand was over hers, however, she reached up and grabbed his arm. Then she pulled him in for a hug.

"You are going to be great. I know you are," she whispered in his ear.

"So are you," he replied, pulling away. Both of them were blushing, and Luxa turned away slightly to hide her face.

"Well, we have better get ready." She gave him another smile before walking away.

Peering through the small space between the wall and the edge of the curtain, Gregor could see the crowd coming into the auditorium and taking their seats. His mom hadn't been able to get out of work to see the play, though she promised him about five times that she had done all she could. Gregor insisted that it was alright, but deep down, he was a little sad that she couldn't be there.

Larry, Angelina, and Lizzie came through the doors at the far end and took a few seats in the third row. It was a lot closer than Gregor had thought, and it made him even more nervous. On the other side, he saw Henry show up with a girl Gregor had never seen before. Though she was shorter than Henry, it was clear that she was older. She was very thin, and her hair was in somewhat of a mess. Despite her slight resemblance to Henry, Gregor got the feeling that she was nothing like him. She didn't give off the same vibe as Henry. He was sure they were siblings, and that she was the other cousin Luxa lived with. What was her name? Nerissa?

"To your places!" cried Mrs. Cormaci as she rushed around the stage frantically. Apparently, teachers got nervous as well.

Gregor got into place and waited for the curtain to draw back. He took a few deep breaths and waited for his cue to walk in.

The play started not long after, and it went better than he expected. Every transition between scenes was smooth, and the acting came almost naturally to him. The scenes with other actors were great too. Everyone was trying their best, and it made it was always easy to work with people who actually knew what they were doing. It also helped that they were trying their hardest to make everything perfect.

The scenes with Luxa were the easiest, though. Gregor and Luxa had gone through their lines and movements so many times, they could have done the play in their sleep. Because of all the time they had spent rehearsing, they both knew how long to wait between each lines, and how to say them in a way that gave off a certain emotion.

It had been Luxa's idea to play with the lines a bit. Depending on the scene, they could say their lines to emphasize the overall emotion of the situation. It was actually a very good idea, and the sad scenes were extra sad, while the funny lines made people laugh hysterically instead of just making them smile.

Towards the end of the play, when Gregor's character reunites with his girlfriend, Gregor smiled at Luxa. Though they weren't separated in real life, it always felt nice to see Luxa. Especially when she was acting like seeing him was the best thing in the world.

Bringing her in for the final embrace, Gregor told Luxa that he loved her. It was what he was supposed to say, but it was different. The words that escaped his mouth were more real than he had ever felt them, and he hoped his eyes told Luxa that he really meant them. It's not like he knew he would, but the past few weeks had been the best time of his life.

Luxa repeated the words to him while she gave him a wink. Because of the way they were standing on stage, it would be impossible for the audience to have seen it. Taking this into consideration, Gregor realized that it wasn't for the audience to see at all. It was just for him.

Her eyes were as gorgeous as ever, and it was funny how the dull lights of the stage gave them a sort of glow. Luxa's eyes looked they were a soft violet color, and like everything else, they looked great on her. Purple eyes didn't seem weird or out of place on her. They only added to her beauty.

At that moment, Gregor forgot where he was. Pulling her in again, he slowly brought his head down and kissed her.

I don't know about you guys, but there I no way I would want my mom watching a play I'm in. She would only criticize me later, pointing out every little mistake, even if it wasn't a mistake, and then act like she could have done better. And then she would proceed to describe how perfect the other actors were. She's done it before. I find it funny how in every book, characters can't figure out why their heart races and they are extremely happy to see somebody of the opposite sex. It's so obviously love, but they can't tell. . . Well, it adds it the story nonetheless.

Question: How will Luxa and Gregor interact after the play? It's possible that he misinterpreted her wink, and she didn't want him to kiss her.

Until next time,

-Tytonic