Chapter 84. Caught
Rifiuto: Non Miniera
Thanks to Akasharouge, Elphaba1Fan, and Beautifully Tragic Ozian for reviewing 83.
Twelve-year-old Fae, Crown Princess of the Vinkus, should have known better than to trust anyone that said that her parents were heavy sleepers. She should have known better than to trust Fabla…..
….but hey, she was twelve, and gullible.
Weren't you ever like that?
Slowly, the girl turned the knob of her parents' door, only to find it locked. She pulled a hairpin out of her hair, and, as quietly as she could, slipped it into the lock, working it until she unlocked the door. As she pushed the heavy Quoxwood door open slowly, she glanced around, making sure her parents weren't awake. The young girl slipped inside, and softly closed the door behind her.
Dark eyes scanned every inch of room, finding nothing. As her slender green fingers slid along the dresser top, feeling for a book, something made her stop.
"Mmmm. Oh Yero."
Oh shit.
Taking a deep breath, Fae quickly glanced over her shoulder, to see her parents, laying in bed, talking softly. They seemed so focused on each other that Fae went unnoticed.
For now.
With quiet footsteps, Fae moved throughout the room, looking for Fabla's book, trying to ignore the soft voices coming from her parents' bed.
"Yero!" The girl froze, and slowly, closed her eyes, counting to ten silently, before opening them again. The talking stopped.
"Thank Oz." She breathed sofrly.
Not quite.
"Mmmm. Again Yero, please. You know exactly what to do to get me there. Please Yero, a little harder."
Fae's eyes widened, and she grimaced.
"Oh eew." She muttered softly. Then, she turned. All she wanted to do was get Fabla's book, and get out of there. "Eew. Eew. Eew. Eew. Gross!"
As she turned, she wasn't counting on coming face to face with her mother's vanity table. She wasn't counting on knocking over her mother's oils, or hitting the vanity hard enough that the silver handled, engraved, mirror, brush and comb would go toppling to the floor, or that the mirror would shatter on impact.
She wasn't counting on her mother's screams, or her father calling, "Who's there?"
And she wasn't counting on her father turning on the bedside lamp, as her mother hurriedly pulled the sheet to her chest; nor was she expecting the door to burst open, with her grandmother and the rest of the household standing behind her in the doorway.
"Fae!" Elphaba screamed, hugging the sheet tighter to her chest.
And she wasn't expecting to see Fabla and Liir laughing silently into their hands behind Musetta.
"What is going on in here?" Musetta asked.
"Um...uh......I...I....." Fae stammered, looking from her parents, to the broken hand mirror, to the others out in the hall and back.
"Fae? What are you doing in here?" Musetta asked.
"I.....I...."
"All right, all of you out! Now!" Fiyero ordered. Fae bolted for the door, but her father stopped her. "Except you."
"Honestly Fae, what were you thinking?" Elphaba asked, as she and her husband got dressed again. The girl refused to look at her parents until she was certain she could turn around.
"Fae. Look at me." Slowly, the girl did as told, turning, to see her father fully dressed, his robe wrapped tight around his waist, hands on his hips. Her mother was pulling her black silk robe on, the light pink belt the only article of pink clothing she cared to admit she owned. Her long raven hair tumbled down her back in messy tangles, and she crossed her arms.
"I.....I....Fabla said she left her book in here and asked me to come get it for her." Fae blurted, wincing, waiting for her father to hit her.
Fiyero didn't. He never hit his children. He and Elphab believed in using words as punishment for their children, not harmful actions. They were the exact opposite of Elphaba's parents.
"Why would she do that?" Fiyero asked.
"She figured that...."
"You mean this book?" Elphaba asked, picking up a hardbound volume and holding it out to Fae.
"Yes.....she...figured you wouldn't notice if I got it."
The young royals nodded.
"Go back to bed Fae." Her father said. She nodded, and let her father open the door for her. Elphaba followed.
"Love.."
"I'll be right back Yero. I'm gonna go have a little chat with Fabla." Elphaba said, moving to Fae's door. She knocked, and when Fae opened it, the young queen shoved her back in, following, slamming the door behind her.
"What were you thinking?" She demanded. Fae sat down on her bed, not meeting Elphaba's eyes.
"Just.....thought it'd be a good lark."
"A good lark? I wouldn't be surprised if you scarred her for life!" Elphaba snapped.
"So? Liir scarred me for life." Fae muttered.
"What?"
The younger girl sighed.
"I did the same thing when I was twelve. Liir caught me......"
"Caught you what?" Elphaba asked, arms crossed. She raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing. But....he made me do the exact same thing. Sneak into your room to get a book for him. He promised he wouldn't tell."
"Tell what?" Elphaba asked.
"That......I kissed Azel."
"Azel? The head cook's son?" Fae nodded.
"It was just an experiment. It didn't mean anything. And Liir had promised not to tell if I got the book for him. But...when I went to get the book.....you and Daddy weren't......asleep."
"We weren't?" Fae shook her head. "Well what were we doing that.....oh. Oh Oz. You mean--?" Elphaba asked, looking back at the door and covering her mouth. Fae nodded.
"I never forgave Liir for that."
"Did we--?"
"Freaked out the exact same way."
Elphaba nodded, and turned, grabbing the door.
"Where are you going?"
"I'm gonna have a nice chat with Liir."
"But I thought......"
Elphaba turned back to her.
"You already learned your lesson. Besides, if it was payback you were looking for, you went after the wrong person. You're off the hook. For now." She said, leaving the room.
"Thank you." Fae said.
"I said you're off the hook. For now."
Fae gulped. She knew what her mother was like when she wasn't happy.
It was like playing with fire. It was like playing with a dormant volcano.
And when the volcano erupted, cover was out of the question.