This is Prompt No. 36-Green
Though they walked into the dining room together, Shane and Mitchie found themselves at opposite ends of the table. Mitchie sat down in her seat, regretting having to leave Shane, but exulting because of the seating arrangement. One of the generals of the Confederate Army, the youngest of the commanding officers, sat to her left, trying not to gulp down his food as fast as he could fork it into his mouth. Protocol insisted that he speak with her throughout the dinner.
"How's your dinner?" he asked stiffly in between forkfuls of food.
Mitchie tried not to groan. If she was going to get the information she wanted out of him, she would have to skip past the formalities. She smiled charmingly, and she could see in an instant that the general was quite dazzled by the young woman in front of him. "It's wonderful," she told him, letting her voice drop to a deeper, silkier voice than she usually used. She sat back for a moment, pretending to regard him. "You wouldn't by any chance be part of the ninth division, would you?"
The general looked slightly disappointed, and his gaze flickered enviously towards one of the other generals at the other end of the table. "Unfortunately," he said, his voice straining to be polite, "I haven't had the pleasure of serving under that division. We don't interact much."
Mitchie managed to look disappointed, though she was anything but. "Oh, that's too bad," she said with a sigh. "Part of the ninth division rescued me from the Union camp."
The general's eyes widened. "You were held hostage?" he asked incredulously.
Mitchie nodded. "Yes," she said, "and I was trying to explain one practice in the Confederate camp to a friend of mine, but I couldn't quite get it straight. I was hoping that you might be ninth division so that I could ask you." She "caught" herself babbling and ducked her head. "Forgive me for rambling on so."
She turned back to her bowl of soup, mentally counting down the seconds. Three. Two. One.
"Perhaps I could help you," the general offered, scooting toward the pretty young lady who seemed to show such an interest in him.
"Are you sure?" Mitchie asked him hesitantly. "I wouldn't want to impose."
"Not at all," the general insisted. "Tell me what has you troubled and I'll try and straighten it out."
"Oh you'll straighten it out, alright," she thought. "It's like this," Mitchie said, using her hands to demonstrate as she talked, keeping the general occupied. "The Confederates keep the money they're allotted in a special place. Now, I say that it's kept with the general of the division, but my friend says that it's kept elsewhere."
"Where does this friend think it's kept?" the general asked.
Mitchie shrugged and tensed slightly as she took a huge risk. "I'm not sure," she told him, "and I don't think my friend really knows either. I think he just likes to debate me, but our debate has made me curious."
The general shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Well, I'd love to help put things to rights," he told her, "but I'm afraid that that information is-"
"Classified," Mitchie finished for him, her voice conveying sympathy and understanding. "I understand," she told him, still looking glum. "Really, I do." She laughed slightly. "Believe me, I know about secrecy. When the Confederates rescued me, I had to sign all sorts of papers promising not to give away any government secrets."
Her voice sounded teasing, and the general immediately asked, "You really signed papers of secrecy?"
Mitchie nodded. "I thought the stack would never end."
Servants came at that moment and cleared the table, and Mitchie spotted Louisa in the small little group. She gave a slight nod of acknowledgement and turned back to the general, knowing that his story was probably about to change. "Well," he began, "if you signed papers, then I don't see that harm in clearing up your little debate."
"Really?" Mitchie asked, trying not to appear overly excited.
"Really," the general said. "You were partly right. The generals keep the money wound tightly inside of a waterproof bag."
Mitchie frowned. "Why would it have to be waterproof?" she asked.
The general grinned, "Because we keep the money in our whiskey bottles."
Mitchie's mouth fell open in actual shock. "Whisky bottles," she repeated, making sure that she had heard the general correctly.
The general nodded. "Sure! It's fire safe, easy to carry, and the last place anyone would ever look."
"That's for sure," Mitchie told him with a winning smile. People were starting to rise from their seats to head back onto the dance floor, so Mitchie knew that it was time to plant the seed of doubt. She touched the general's arm in a caressing manner, knowing that the touch would keep him ignorant. "Thank you for clearing up my problem," she told the general, "but next time, you might not want to speak so loudly." She glanced around the room warily, vaguely noticing Shane watching her with a scowl on his face. "You never know who might be a spy."
The general's eyes widened and he groaned. "How stupid of me!" he hissed. "I should know better than that!"
Mitchie patted his arm once more and smiled again. "I'm sure everything's fine, but I felt that I should warn you. Spending time with the Union soldiers taught me a bit about keeping your business to yourself." She held out her hand and batted her eyelashes. "Would it be too forward of me to ask you for a dance?"
The general gulped, surprised at the way Mitchie was breaking from tradition. After a moment though, he smiled up at her and nodded, taking her hand as he stood. "Why not?" he asked, tucking her hand into the crook of his arm as he led her into the ballroom and onto the dance floor.
They moved through the steps, but Mitchie's mind was constantly reminding her feet not to step on the general's toes. She grimaced as she shuffled to make up for a lost step. Why was it so difficult to dance with men other than Shane?
As though he had heard her, Shane appeared behind the general, tapping him gently on the shoulder. "May I cut in, sir?" he asked politely, saluting as he did so.
The general grinned widely, his ego boosted by the dance and the salute. "Of course," he said and bowed to Mitchie, lifting her hand to his lips so that he could kiss her fingertips.
He moved away and Mitchie turned back to Shane, who was watching the silly general float off the floor, and she couldn't help but giggle. Shane's narrowed eyes turned and focused on her. "What?" he asked as his arms circled around her, guiding her effortlessly through the steps.
Mitchie tilted her head to the side. "I didn't realize that your eyes were green, Shane," she said, trying very hard to act serious.
"Green?" Shane asked, confused. "What are you talking about?"
"Your eyes have changed from that beautiful brown to a horrid green color," Mitchie said, scrunching up her nose in disgust. "You wouldn't beā¦jealous, would you?" she teased.
At that moment, Shane understood, and he smiled a small smile. "Seeing you flirting with him didn't make me feel too well," he admitted. He pulled her slightly closer. "You're my wife," he told her, as though she didn't already know.
Mitchie smiled in response. "Always and forever," she said, and then she began to give Shane all the details she had learned in a hushed voice.
"Good," Shane told her when she had finished. "We'll get the money at some point and transfer it back to base."
Mitchie nodded. "Can I ask you something?" she asked.
Shane nodded. "Of course."
"Is this where you were for all those months?"
Shane nodded. "I had to establish a connection with the people before you showed up so that it wouldn't look suspicious. I knew that it was going to be some rich family's daughter, but I had no idea that it would be you." He glanced over her face. "I've missed you so much," he said honestly. The dance ended and Shane, with a groan, stepped away from Mitchie. "I have to see you sometime without restraints."
Just as Mitchie's father strode forward to claim a dance with her, Mitchie whispered, "Tonight? My room?"
Shane smiled and whispered so that only she could hear, "I'll be there."
A/N: Did you like it? Please review and let me know! :D
