(( AN: There ended up being a lot more love angst/drama in this than I expected. Oh well. We'll get back to the action shortly, promise! ))

27.

The Ball was exactly how Toby had envisioned it to be -- huge, brightly lit, totally packed, filled with gorgeous fairies and creatures of every sort of shape, and overwhelming. The sudden rush of sights, sounds, and unfamiliar faces made her grab Fiz's arm for support. They were all staring at her and it was all she could do not to turn and flee from all of those expectant, glittering gazes.

"Remember, Princess," Fiz said under his breath, as if sensing her distress, "they're all wishing they were you."

"Funny," Toby muttered in response. "I'm wishing I was anyone but me right now."

There, at the head of the room, sitting on an elevated dias so that everyone could see her, was Rosepink, her pale hair tumbling about her shoulders. She was watching Toby and her son with those crimson eyes, waiting for them to come to her. The Queen reminded Toby of the Jade Lady, only instead of shades of green, she was in shades of vibrant scarlet, as red as rose petals.

The crowd parted in front of them and Toby concentrated on getting to her chair without passing out. The trek seemed to last forever. She could feel the weight of their gazes -- both happy and less than so to see her.

Sinking into her chair, she flashed Fiz a grateful smile, then was distracted when she caught sight of Dominic. He'd traded in the tunic and pants for a black and silver outfit that had all of the Fairies around him swooning, and with good reason. It wasn't right that he could look so very good. At least Fiz had the excuse of being a Fairy so being naturally and magically attractive.

As the attention that had all been turned to her was diverted elsewhere and the dancing and music resumed their pace, Toby breathed a sigh of relief and let herself relax just a little bit. Well, until Dominic's hand appeared in her line of vision.

She followed the curve of his arm up to his face. He was smiling at her. "Shall we see if you learned anything at those dance lessons?"

She shrugged and took his hand. "It's your feet you'll be losing."

Then off into the throng he lead her, sweeping her into the flow and the pace of the dancing so swiftly that she didn't have time to object or stiffen up. Laying her hand against his strong upper arm, she wondered at his sudden ability to dance. Had he always been so dashingly prince-like and she'd just never noticed? Come to think about it, she'd never noticed a lot about him. What he did in his spare time when he wasn't with her, his friends, the teams he'd played on. It'd always been about her, Toby, and she'd never bothered to change that. She felt suddenly guilty and grateful for his prescense. At least one thing hadn't changed in all the craziness that had ensued since her 'coronation' -- she still had Dominic to rely on.

"Hey," he said, smiling at her. "No being unhappy tonight."

She shook her head; he'd always been able to read her, but she was wondering if she was growing more and more transparent to him. "I'm not." Confused, tired, out of her league, yes... but sneaking amongst all of that was another feeling she wasn't used to. Purpose. A sense of belonging. She was actually starting to like this Princess stuff.

"Good!" Then he spun her around, her long skirts twirling out despite the sword hanging from her belt.

After they'd danced for a time, she returned to her seat while he brought her a drink. She sipped at it, smiling at the Fairies that thronged around her as soon as she'd sat down, gushing about her dress and how handsome he was and how it made them so happy to see a Princess and her Knight together.

"After all," one Fairy, a symphony of purples and marroons, stated solemnly, "it's been so long since we had a Princess, much less a Princess with her own Knight. It makes me happy to see things are the way they're supposed to be."

Another Fairy twittered, flicking her long peach-colored hair over a white shoulder. "You're so lucky to have a Knight as perfect as Dominic, Princess."

"Yeah, I am lucky he's here," Toby acquiesed, though the more the Fairies giggled and whispered, the more uncomfortable she was feeling. She didn't mean to sound ungrateful or anything, but she'd rather expected Fairies to be a little less... vapid.

"So..." The first Fairy suddenly leaned forward, her voice conspiratorially low. "Has he kissed you yet?"

"What?" Toby jerked upright and the Fairy blinked.

"... he hasn't?" A third Fairy looked at her sympathetically, even reaching out and putting a hand on Toby's knee. "Oh, Princess, I'm sure he will..."

"What sort of relationship do you think Dom and I have?!" Toby demanded, her cheeks burning a scarlet to rival the Fairy Queen's dress. "He's a friend. Nothing more!"

"But..." The peach Fairy -- Didara, was it? -- looked over at the purple Fairy -- Viviletta. "Princesses and their Knights go together. That's just how it is. The Knights save the Princesses, win their hearts, the Princesses eventually marry them, then retire from being Princesses, and their daughters become the next Princesses. That's just how the Story goes."

"He's not even a Knight! He's a squire!"

Viviletta giggled and Toby was suddenly reminded very strongly of Julie. "He's not a Knight yet, anyway, but there's no need to rush these things..."

"I... I need to get some air. Excuse me." Toby stood up in a rustle of white skirts, turning and fleeing the Fairies and their expectations and giggles and everything else she'd thought she'd left back in Highschool.

Ignoring the fact that Rosepink was, once again, staring at her, she made her way through the crowd and finally found a small alcove with a potted plant she could stand behind. She ducked into it, leaning back into the shadows of the pot, trying to get her head back in order. They expected her to fall in love with and marry Dominic? Yes, he'd always been there for her, but wasn't that putting a lot on her shoulders? She hadn't even asked him to become a Knight, he'd done that all on his own.

You don't realize how much he likes you. Julie's words echoed in her ears again and she felt her chest constrict at it. She was right. Toby hadn't realized, not fully. She'd always known he cared about her, but... love? Somehow that terrified her even more than any of this 'Princess' stuff ever had.

"Hiding, again?"

She raised her eyes and found her gaze caught up by a kaleidoscope of cerulean and azure. All at once, all that confusion and headiness rushed back to her and she felt her heart forget a beat then race to catch up again.

Theo bowed -- awkwardly -- then held out a hand. It was the most cleaned-up she'd ever seen him and for a moment he didn't look like the spikey haired punk her mother had referred to him as, but a true gentleman. His outfit was nowhere near as fancy as Dominic or Fizzybink's, but that suited him. The tunic he'd pulled over a simple white shirt was a blue so dark it was only evident it wasn't black when the light struck it, trimmed with silver embroidery along the edges. His pants were a black, tucked into boots that hadn't been polished perfectly.

He was the handsomest man Toby had ever seen, and before she'd even realized she was doing it she'd put her hand in his.

When he went to pull her towards the dance floor, however, she balked. He looked at her, blinking. She was staring at the twirling fairies with their shimmering gowns and their beautiful smiles and frowning. Looking up at him, she smiled faintly.

"Neither of us belong out there. Let's fly the coop."

"Fly the what?" Theo asked, confused, but Toby wasn't listening to him. She'd gripped his hand firmly and was dragging him quite singlemindedly away from the dance floor. This wasn't a movie, this wasn't a fairy tale. She wasn't going to be swept off her feet into the swirling skirts and have the music swell around her and everything be perfect. Everything wasn't perfect, and she wasn't the perfect Princess. Theo just followed her, blinking still, as she poked her head through the various curtains along the side of the massive ball room.

"Don't you think we should go back and dance or something?"

Toby eyed him. "You can if you want. I'm not."

Theo chuckled. "It's your Ball..."

"It's not! It'd be 'my' Ball if I asked for it. But I didn't. I just wanted to be left alone. All this Princess stuff, all this Knight stuff, it's all too much for me. You guys should have picked a better Princess, someone like Julie who'd love all of this stuff."

As she was saying such, she found a door -- an actual door like the ones to Rosepink's throne room and not the gauzy curtain-doors that the rest of Avalon used -- and shoved it open. The lock stuck and she put her shoulder against it, leaning her weight into it. Almost nonchalantly, Theo reached over and gave the door a light push. 'Light' being strong enough that the door swung open with a protesting squeal, a fine layer of rush on the hinges.

One of Theo's eyebrows arched. "Do you think we should be going in here?"

"It obviously hasn't been used in a while so no one will think to check for us in here. Now either shut up and come on or go find yourself a shallow little Fairy to dance with." Without a glance backwards, Toby gathered up her rustling skirts and stepped through the doorway. As if triggered by their entrance, crystals along the periphery of the room began to glow, softly at first but then more brightly.

The room was long and narrow, but filled with .. things. At first they just looked like the most random assortment of items -- she could see a plain wooden spinning wheel, a large mirror fringed with silver on a frame, a single red rose wrapped in black silk, even a pair of well-worn boots that seemed to be only big enough for a child. Each of them was sitting on a pedastal, a translucent curtain hanging around them as if to protect them.

"What is this place?" Toby asked, wandering amongst the items. Here, a single golden feather that made the air around it ripple as if it was scalding hot. Over there, a dainty pair of shoes encrusted with small sparkling pieces of glass.

"I don't know. But it's like a museum..." Theo replied, then paused in front of a large golden egg. "It is," he said with sudden realization in his voice. "All of these things... They belonged to Stories, to Princesses and Knights. This is the physical history of Believe. Here, this, this is the egg that the mischievous fairy Gricklegrack enchanted to make people stick to the farmboy Drummel. It was so ridiculous that the Silent Princess laughed, breaking the spell that had bound her entire town to never making a sound.

"And look, there -- that hand mirror. That belonged to Rosalinde herself. When she was locked away in the tower by her overprotective mother, that was the only connection she had to the outside world until she was freed. And there, those shoes. Those belong to the Princess of Cinders, Elsa. They freed her of the curse of clumsiness that her godmother had placed on her to get revenge for protecting her stepmother, allowing her to dance at the Ball and win the heart of Prince Caspus. All of this... Every item in here has been part of the Story, of the history of Believe."

He paused in awe, staring around him, and Toby couldn't help but let her eyes wander through the silent room that even now rang with echoes of the past. All of this history... It crashed like a sudden weight around her. Golden eggs, years locked in a tower, jealous godmothers... What part did someone as simple and un-magical as she hope to play that could even compare to any of this?

Toby sank to the ground, staring up at the shining mirror that had belonged to the infamous Rosalinde. She was the true Last Princess of Believe, Toby thought, because Toby herself was certainly no Princess.

"What am I doing, Theo?" she whispered. "I'm not a Princess. I'm not anything... I can't be what they want me to be, who they want me to be... What am I even doing pretending?"

Theo crossed to her, kneeling in front of her. "Hey," he said softly, reaching out and tilting her chin up to look at him. "Listen to me. You don't have to be anyone but who you are, Toby. It doesn't matter how Princess or un-Princess-like that is. Just be yourself."

"But... all of the other Princesses... They were so.. perfect."

Theo chuckled softly. "Do you really think that? Toby, all of them had flaws. They were real people just like you are. Why, Rosalinde couldn't dance to save her life. Every time she stepped on a dance floor, no less than a dozen people around her would walk away with injured feet."

Toby couldn't help but smile slightly. "Really?"

"Oh yeah. It was terrible. We never had Balls when she was around because no one could bear the thought of having to dance with her." Theo chuckled softly. "And Princess Elsa? Why, she was deathly afraid of horses. She couldn't even be near one or she freaked out. It was such a pain getting her around places. Then there was Princess Snowpea. She was a real piece of work. No matter how many mattresses or blankets or pillows you threw down, she was never happy. She would complain all morning about how terrible a sleep she had... She was not a morning person, you see."

He paused when Toby smiled, an honest smile, and reached out, cupping her cheek with a small grin. "That's better. You're not as pretty when you're frowning, your face gets all wrinkly like an old woman's."

"What?! It does not!" She slapped his hand away in a huff, but then ruined her false-anger with laughter a moment later. "I guess I could be worse. At least I can dance well enough."

Theo grinned. "When you aren't running away..."

Toby shook her head, one hand sliding down to adjust Kjavaeos as it rested against her side. Then she pushed herself to her feet, brushing out her long skirts. "You can't really talk, by the way. You're the one who ran away from me last time..."

Theo stiffened. "... that's different."

"Oh? How is it different? One moment we're talking just fine, then you freak out on me. I have no idea what's going on in your head, Theodore. You and Dominic! Neither of you talk to me. It's so frustrating." She sighed, blowing a stray curl of chocolate brown out of her eyes.

Theo stood as well, but was staring away from her again. There he went, once more... "Hey," she said, reaching out and grabbing his arm. "Don't turn away from me."

He moved with a fluid grace, turning and stepping towards her. Her breath caught in her throat as his hand found her chin, cupping it and tilting it up so her eyes were inches from his captivating blue ones. "I have to," he said in a voice barely above a whisper. "Because I can't look at you knowing that I can't be close to you."

"Says who?" she replied, her voice trembling finely. "Verum? The Fairy Queen? I don't care what they say, Theo. I don't think you're evil and I don't think you'd ever hurt me. I trust you."

"You shouldn't. I can barely trust myself around you." He smiled faintly, his thumb running along the curve of her jaw. His touch made her heart forget what it was supposed to be doing, that stupid fluttering back, and worse than ever. "All my life I've wanted to be part of the Story, Toby. But there's no room for a dragon except one for the Knight to slay. There's certainly no place for one at the Princess's side."

He stepped back, dropping his hands from her, and his eyes were unbearably sad. "Maybe it was silly of me to think I could be part of the Story at all."

"Stop it, Theo. Don't you dare talk like that," Toby hissed through clenched teeth. She wouldn't let him back away from her this time. She was tired of him always running away from her. She was tired of all of these questions and no answers. This time she wasn't going to let him get away until she had the answers she wanted. "You know what? I'm a Princess. I decide what the Story is going to be. And if I decide that there's a place for the dragon right in the middle of the Story -- on the good side -- then there is. And everyone else who objects can just go stuff their head in a gopher's hole."

"... a gopher's hole?" Theo repeated, and Toby blushed.

"I couldn't think of a better metaphor, all ri--" He cut her off by suddenly moving in towards her and she was keenly and acutely aware of the silence of the room broken only by her thudding heart. "--ght..." she breathed, his hands sliding to her bare shoulders.

"You're adorable when you blush," he whispered, his lips inches from hers and she found herself standing on her tippy toes. Her brain was somewhere in the background, screaming for her to hold on a second and think through this decision, but it was impossible to heed it when he was leaning in towards her and their lips were so close she could feel his breath and they--

"What, praytell, is going on here?"

Rosepink's voice was soft, unnaturally calm, but it was like a whip cracking through the silence. Theo jerked away from Toby guiltily, leaving both of them staring at the slim crimson-clad figure standing framed by the relics around her. Her eyes were like twin rubies, glittering with a cold anger in the semi-light of the room and Toby felt her throat close up.

"Nothing, your majesty," she said, but her voice sounded tiny and tinny in her ears. The Fairy Queen ignored her and instead looked at Theo.

"I have been forced to allow you to reside here in Avalon because of the nature of your foster mother and her importance to our land. I have allowed you many freedoms that you, by your very nature, do not deserve. Do not think, even for a second, that those allowances mean you are accepted or even welcomed here. Return to your room immediately, dragon, and do not disobey me in this. Otherwise Avalon's doors will no longer be open to you -- Georgette or no."

"You can't--" Toby began, outraged, but Theo grabbed her hand and squeezed it so tightly it was painful. She looked up at him, but he was staring at the Fairy Queen.

"It's fine," he said under his breath to her, then bowed that awkward bow again to the Fairy Queen. Toby's lips moved but she could find no voice to utter a protest as he turned and strode from the room, making the curtains curl with his passing.

Then he was gone and it was only Toby and the Fairy Queen gazing at her with those crimson eyes. Rosepink extended a hand to Toby, suddenly kindly. It made Toby's stomach twist in knots of dread, though she didn't quite know why.

"Walk with me, little Princess. We have much to discuss."