Games

by pLei4fun

Games are the norm for our favorite NJBC: Love games, war games, etc. But it's senior year and that just means that the stakes are even higher. Sequel to the Queen and her Dark Knight can Blair, Serena, Chuck, and Nate make it to the end of their high school careers unscathed and together? We'll find out. Chair always, but the rest is up in the air.

7. New Haven Can Wait

Chapter 7: New Haven Can Wait

A/N: Happy April Fool's day! But instead of a trick, I give you a chapter! ;)

Rise and Shine, early birds. Gossip Girl here. We all have dreams: some good, some bad, some fun and Freudian…and some are the dreams we've had our whole lives.

Blair opened her eyes, awaking from the terrible dream she had by the sound of her alarm clock. The dream was horrible. It was a scene from My Fair Lady and Blair was in rags and was obviously a beggar woman. The Dean of Yale was there attempting to teach her how to speak correctly, with the phrase "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain", but Blair failed as she continued talking in a horrid crockney accent. Blair remembered trying to explain that she was a straight A student, but the Dean was obviously unimpressed.

The dream became even worse when Serena walked into the room wearing Audrey's finale dress and said the line in a perfect British accent. The dean was so impressed and said that she's got it referring to Serena. Serena laughed and Blair's character began to scream and cry. Thankfully it was just a dream and Serena had no plans to even visit Yale, let alone interview with the dean. Blair scoffed at that thought as she took off her sleep mask and set up in bed, "like she could even receive an invitation if she could."

She wiped the sleep from her eyes after pushing her hair back just when Dorota walked in with her breakfast and a look of excitement. She was completely unaware of her charge's nightmare and nervousness for the day's events. And Blair planned to keep her that way.

"Morning, Miss Blair," Dorota greeted with a smile as she set the tray of food along with Blair's morning paper beside her charge.

Blair smiled in return as she adjusted herself under her blankets as she began to gush, "Dorota, can you believe that in just three short hours, I'll be stepping through the gates of Yale?"

"You used to sleep in your father's sweatshirt every night until it fell apart," Dorota spoke softly.

"I'll get a new one," Blair explained as she reached toward the tray and popped a berry into her mouth as she watched Dorota begin to open her curtains to allow the sunlight into the room, "Right after I attend the Dean of Admissions' private reception, of course. Most candidates think it's an urban legend, but Daddy was invited when he visited."

"Your mother already left for work, but she was very specific about your breakfast," Dorota explained as she finished her duties around the room.

Blair felt a bit sad that her mother wasn't able to stay and at least join Blair for breakfast and reassure her that everything will be perfect, but she knew how busy her mother was now that her line was so in demand this season. Blair could, at least, take comfort in the fact that her mother actually remembered how important the day was. Compared to previous years, the older Waldorf woman would have been known to forget that Blair even existed unless it was during social events. Blair put on a happy smile as Dorota offered her some Kombucha.

The brunette nodded as she continued on with her previous train of thought, "Since the dean handpicks the guests right after their interviews, I'm a shoo-in. if there's one thing I know, it's that I give good interview." Blair smiled in confidence as she ate another berry, "I could make Larry King cry."

Dorota sat down at the foot of Blair's bed, "I am so proud of you."

Blair felt her smile grow at Dorota's words. She may not say it out loud, but Blair loved Dorota. The Polish maid was like her second mother. While Eleanor provided Blair with the financial and social needs to survive, Dorota provided the emotional support that Blair needed throughout her childhood. It was why Blair felt so comfortable with lashing out at the older woman because she had proven to be one of the few people in Blair's life that wasn't going to leave no matter how difficult Blair became.

Blair looked over at the morning paper and saw on the cover was a familiar blonde, "I'm so ready to be surrounded by people more like me." She picked up the morning paper and saw her best friend with Lily on the cover and sighed. Even though the fashion show was a huge success for Blair's long term goals, she couldn't help but feel a bit irritated at the instant gratification that Serena's getting from it. She was the socialite to watch and her face was most likely to be found on page six. Don't get Blair wrong, she was happy that Serena was happy and the two had more than just reconnected this past week, but Blair couldn't wait for the day when she could shine on her own and not necessarily have to fight for the spotlight with her best friend.

"Serena still going to Brown?" Dorota asked as she watched her charge look at the paper.

Blair smiled and nodded, "She is. We were talking a couple of days ago about how weird it would be for us to be a part for such a long period of time. But I got the feeling that she was happy to go away for a while. After all the attention she has been getting after my mother's show, it seems that Manhattan had turned into Serenaville."

"I heard Marc Jacobs named a purse after her," Dorota added with a smile and a shake of her head.

Blair shook her head softly, having heard the rumor herself, "She doesn't seem to understand the fascination any more than I do. It's funny how when I pushed her into the spotlight that she became aware of how fickle this kind of attention is." At the look of confusion on Dorota's face, Blair clarified, "Attention for doing nothing."

With Blair going to Yale and Serena going to Brown in the fall, it would give the duo a much needed time away from the pressures of their lives in New York and become who they truly were before returning in four years. Blair had to admit that it would be nice to have friends who wanted to talk about other things besides her best friend or her mother in every other conversation and she was sure that Serena felt similar in regards to Brown. Blair sighed as she set the paper aside, dismissing Dorota as she began to eat some of her breakfast and prepare for the day.

xoxo

Meanwhile, Serena was busy lounging in her own bed, dressed for the day as she was looking over the morning paper herself. She had gotten up earlier than normal so she could pack up the last of her things for the weekend at Brown University. She felt genuinely excited about the pending trip. She knew that she wasn't known for talking about academia like Blair, but it was always in her plans to go to Brown for college. She remembered her mother talking so fondly of her experiences there and after the mess the blonde made of her life before fleeing the city to go to boarding school and then returning a year later, Serena felt that going to Brown was an even better idea. A real chance to start fresh in a new environment and find herself in a way that, she was beginning to realize, just wasn't realistic on the Upper East Side.

Looking at the paper in her hands was proof of that. She enjoyed being the center of attention, sure, but she wanted the attention because of something important. The attention she got from being in Eleanor's show last week was great and it was great publicity for her friend's mother's line, but the follow up attention on Serena herself was not so welcomed. She became as noted as she was at school but for things of the superficial nature. The photographers wanted her picture, but it wasn't because of something that Serena had done necessarily. Page six was the adult and glorified version of Gossip Girl. It was nothing but gossip and rumors to shame and very rarely uplift the people of New York that they deemed worthy, and if you were spared the shame, it was only a matter of time before they turned on you too. And Serena just wasn't looking forward to the day when the tide turned against her again. She knew that people loved a scandal more than they liked a happy ending, but at the end of the day it was people's lives that they were messing with. It was the type of attention that Serena would love nothing more than to live without.

"Ready?" Lily asked as she walked into Serena's room, startling the younger blonde from her thoughts.

Serena quickly shoved the paper under her pillow as she sat up and answered, "Um, yeah. You excited, me at your Alma Mater?"

"So I guess that means you turned down this, uh, personal invitation to tour Yale?" Lily asked, waving the piece of paper in her hand.

"Brown's always been my plan, just like it was for you," Serena explained with a shrug. She was surprised when she received the letter earlier this week, but she didn't bother with telling Blair about it. She knew that Yale was Blair's and she didn't want to even risk the chance of ruining it for her. Memories of last year's Ivy week came to mind and Serena had to work to suppress the shudder that came with them.

"And I loved it there," Lily agreed with a nod, "but if Yale had invited me, I would have said yes." Serena just sat there silently as her mother attempted to pressure her into reconsidering, "The, uh, invitation is handwritten, Serena, in cursive."

Serena looked at the letter again and slowly shook her head, "Yale is for overachieving bookworms and preppies: The Blairs of the world. She's been wanting to go there forever and there's no way I would step on that particular land mine when we're at such a good place right now."

Lily nodded in understanding, "I know, but I have to admit that the thought of you and Blair going off to school together brings a smile to my face. To have that kind of support system is not to be taken lightly during such a big step."

Serena looked at her mother in confusion, "What, you don't think I could handle college by myself?"

"I didn't say that," Lily spoke with a shrug, "I'm just saying that having a friend would help make the transition easier." Serena paused as her insecurities of the past came back. She and Blair had talked about them going their separate ways for college. Blair was excited to be herself without the burden of being in people's shadows or living up to their expectations and Serena's excitement was very similar. To be able to go somewhere where they haven't heard of Serena Van Der Woodsen sounded like a dream come true. But her mother's words brought up some fears that Serena, being left to her own devices, would go back to bad habits.

"You don't have to keep hiding the paper, Serena, I've seen it," Lily spoke, changing the subject as she set the letter down on the bed, holding a couple of black garment bags over her arm.

Serena looked down at her pillow and slowly pulled it out as she watched her mother hang up the bags on Serena's mirror, "I'm sorry that they called you my unidentified friend."

"Well, I guess it's better than "mother," Lily spoke with a smile over her shoulder at Serena.

Serena smiled back as she got up from her bed and made her way across the room, "What's in the bag?"

"It's my dress for the fall dinner at the Frick. Eleanor sent them over," Lily explained as she took two dresses out and inspected them. "I don't know why there's two." As Lily was looking over the black one, Serena saw her name on the dress as Lily continued to muse over the dress, "This one's a little edgier than I thought, but I like it."

"Apparently it's for me," Serena spoke as she looked the dress over too as she took it from her mother.

Lily laughed as she looked at the second dress and saw her name hanging on the hanger, this one more mature looking, "This must be mine."

Serena pressed the dress up against herself and looked down at it with a nod of appreciation. She glanced over at her mother's dress and saw that the older Van Der Woodsen woman wasn't nearly as happy with it as she was with Serena's. "It is a really nice color, though," Serena complimented before taking her new dress and putting it away in her closet. As the pair continued to talk about their pending trip, Serena did her best to focus back on her previous excitement and not let past fears rule her decision.

xoxo

"Get excited, Archibad," Chuck spoke as he poured himself a glass of scotch in the Van Der Bass living room as his best friend glanced down at his watch, "You are three hours away from horny women's studies majors wanting to work out all their anger towards men in their bunk beds."

Chuck smirked as he took a sip from his glass at the visual in his mind. He may not have plans to go to school in the fall, but he was easily persuaded to go with Blair and Nate to see the campus in New Haven. While Blair had been busy bonding with Serena, Chuck had been busy catching up with Nate since his return from his grandparents' place.

"My heart's still set on U.S.C., I just wish my mom wouldn't push Yale so hard," Nate spoke with a frown as he crossed his arms at his chest.

Chuck motioned his glass over at Nate, more than willing to open his eyes and see the potential of the situation, "I think she's only pushing it 'cause the Vanderbilt side of her family practically owns it. Think of it this way: It's a continuation of your efforts from bridging the gap between the generations, and Yale is your safety school."

The irony wasn't lost on either of them. Only in their world could a safety school be an Ivy League. Nate smiled softly as he thought on it, "I mean, I guess I could get away from all the drama on the other side of my family and go someplace where they don't know me or the Captain."

"You can blow off the formal visit crap and focus on what really matters: Creating your own freshman 15," Chuck continued on with the thought process.

Nate laughed, "Are you not seriously considering going to Yale either? I would have thought Blair would have talked you into reconsidering."

Chuck sighed as he picked up his bag for the trip, subconsciously smiling at the mention of a certain brunette, "Despite her best efforts, I'm afraid she's failed. I'm evaluating colleges based on secret societies and nothing more. Yale has the crème de la crème, the skull and bones. My goal is to get inside their inner sanctum."

Nate smiled as he shook his head at his friend, not completely believing that Blair was admitting defeat in regards to Chuck going to college just yet as he asked the next obvious question, "And how exactly are you planning to do that?"

Chuck smirked, "By showing up."

Nate couldn't help but laugh at the obvious arrogance and followed after his best friend to head to school. Something told him that it was definitely not going to be a trip to be forgotten any time soon.

xoxo

"This weekend concludes college visits," the headmaster of St. Jude's began his obviously rehearsed speech to the group of seniors in the courtyard of the school but few were even paying attention. Blair smiled over at Serena in excitement and the blonde gave one in return, not quite feeling the pending trip as much as she was this morning when she was getting dressed. Serena couldn't help but remember her mother's words about how much easier it would be to have a friend with her through the transition and began to feel a twinge of dread. She remembered when she went off to boarding school a couple of years ago and how she continued on as the life of the party just as she did while she was living on the Upper East Side and the only thing that snapped her out of it was the call from her mother that Eric had hurt himself and was being put in the Ostraff center for observation.

She couldn't help but think that if it wasn't for her friends to keep her on the path she had chosen for herself, Serena herself would have gotten back to bad habits and it was the last thing that she wanted to do. Maybe she just wasn't strong enough to resist the temptation and it would be a better idea to just avoid it all together.

"…We urge you to present yourselves in the best possible light. Good luck," the headmaster wrapped up with a smile as the group slowly started to disperse.

Chuck and Nate were located near the door, ready for a quick exit once the formalities were done. At the signal for the end of the headmaster's speech, Nate immediately began to head towards their awaiting limo, ready to enjoy the free pass of ditching school.

Before Chuck could follow after him, he spotted a familiar vermin passing by and couldn't help but snark at his friend, "I wonder what lucky school will be the subject of the next nursery rhyme penned by Brooklyn's lamest fiction writer?"

"Actually, Chuck, I think the Dean of Admissions at Yale will actually appreciate my ability to write about, uh, damaged characters," Humphrey responded without hesitation.

Chuck wasn't even the least bit impressed as he deadpanned, "Looks like we'll be spending the weekend together. How nice," Humphrey sighed and finally left the pairs presence as Chuck called out after him, "Say hello to the characters on public transportation for me."

At the sound of a scoff, both Nate and Chuck turned to spot Blair and Serena, "Why do you insist on taunting vermin, Bass?" Blair asked as she hitched her black bag over her shoulder, "It's beneath you."

"The guy just bugs me," Chuck played it off with a shrug. He hadn't told Blair yet about his findings about the Brooklynite because he didn't feel it was that important. He always knew something was up with Humphrey and now he knew. Telling Blair wasn't going to be some big surprise, and besides she needed to spend the past week focusing on her pending interview at Yale. "Are you ready to go?" he asked with a nod towards the limo waiting at the curb.

"Not quite, I need to grab something from my locker for the long trip," Blair explained. "Besides, it'll give you two time to get the bulk of your bonding out of the way so I don't have to bear witness to most of it."

Chuck smirked, "In that case, take your time." He nodded to Serena, "Have fun in Providence, sis."

Nate just smiled as him and Chuck walked toward the car. Sometimes it was just better to just stand back and watch. "You know, one of these days you're going to have tell me the truth on your beef with that guy."

Chuck just shrugged in reply, glancing over his shoulder as he watched his girlfriend and sister walk inside the school building together.

As Blair walked into the main hallway with her best friend, she couldn't stop herself from smiling in excitement. She guessed her excitement was pretty obvious as Serena asked rhetorically, "Excited about Yale?"

"Of course," Blair replied as she began to play with the ends of her hair beside the straps of her bag that was currently on her shoulder, "What about you? Excited for Brown? I know you set your sights on that place since middle school."

"That place?" Serena asked, catching the emphasis and sighed indulgently, "B. let's not start the school comparison conversation again."

"It's an enclave of trustafarians and children of celebrities who major in drum circles and semiotics, whatever that is," Blair ranted immediately before taking a breath and smiling at her best frined as the pair paused in the hallway, "But, knowing you, you'll find your place amongst them and shine like the blinding sun that you are."

Serena furrowed her brows as she tilted her head to the side as she forced a smile on her face a bit offended at Blair's dis on her school of choice. "Okay, you do know that Brown is an Ivy League school, right? It's just as prominent as Yale," she spoke up, already seeing it as a lost cause. Blair had been giving this same argument for as long as the blonde could remember.

"Everyone knows that the only real ivies are the holy trinity: Harvard, Yale, and Princeton," Blair spoke bluntly with a nod of her head.

Serena rolled her eyes and began to adopt a condescending tone as she replied, "Well, I know you may find this hard to believe, but not everyone wants to go to Yale because not everyone wants to be Blair Waldorf."

Blair looked at her best friend with a look of disdain she replied in an obvious tone, "Not everyone can be, S."

Serena couldn't help but laugh at the brunette in front of her and nodded in agreement as she spoke, "You are a rare breed." Serena was beginning to feel a bit of the potential loss she'd be feeling if she went to Brown by herself.

Blair smiled in triumph before her smile of excitement returned as she grasped Serena's hands in her own,"Alright let's be serious for a moment. I'm actually looking forward to next year you know? Not the whole being away from my friends, but for the new environment and a chance to start fresh. Shine for myself instead of for who I know."

"Would us going to college together be such a terrible thing?" Serena found herself blurting out at the mention of the pair being separated.

Blair thought about it and instantly saw the potential problem. The rivalry would be even worse and that was if Serena could even manage to get in. Blair began to remember her dream from earlier this morning and began to shake it off. Serena was just asking a hypothetical question, Blair assured herself. She had no designs for Yale. Besides, Yale would only accept one student from Constance and Blair had made sure that that student was going to be her.

"I guess not," Blair finally replied carefully before continuing on that her position with Yale was safe since Serena wanted Brown, "But come on, Serena, do you really think you can pull it off? I mean you're smart, sure, but…you lack focus and discipline. To be the type of girl that Yale would want, having those two things are essential." Seeing the blondes raised eyebrows, Blair quickly reiterated, "Don't get me wrong, charm is most definitely your strong suit, but I have my doubts on your ability to charm your way into the first round of admissions never mind get through the first year."

Serena forced herself to not say a word while Blair talked, deciding to not mention the fact that she was actually invited to Yale by the Dean of Admissions himself. She was genuinely hurt by her best friend's words.

Unaware of the challenge that she just served, Blair glanced at her watch on her wrist and saw the time and began to say her goodbyes, "Anyway, have fun in Providence. Try not to get your hair dreadlocked while you're there?"

Serena gave Blair a half-hearted wave as the brunette continued down the hall towards her locker. Serena couldn't believe that Blair was so sure that Serena couldn't get into the brunette's beloved Yale. Choosing not to think on it too closely, Serena decided that it would do Blair some good to be brought down a few pegs. She quickly dug into her purse and pulled out her cell phone and began to dial her mother's number.

When Lily answered, Serena didn't waste any time as she spoke, "Hey mom, change of plans. Tell the driver we're going to Yale." She'll show Blair that she is more than capable of getting into Yale if she wanted to.

Gossip Girl's hardly a war buff, but I did cram for a quiz or two on the American Revolution. The last time New Haven was invaded was in 1779.

Heads up, B.

There's a cannonball coming your way.

xoxo

A few hours later, Chuck and Nate were sitting in the grass watching Yale students walking by. Blair had already left to look around the second the trio arrived on Campus before she planned to end up at her meeting with the Dean of Admissions. Chuck knew how important this was for her so he let her go without a fuss and simply wished her success even though he knew she wouldn't need it. She wished him luck on his venture as well before walking off. Chuck had sent Arthur off to their hotel to drop off their things and check them in as the group disbanded.

Chuck smiled to himself at the memory of the look on her face after Nate spilled the beans in the car on their way here about Chuck's ultimate goal for the weekend. At first, his girlfriend was shocked but Chuck could tell that it didn't last long and was proven right when she turned to him and simply replied "That's brilliant" with a look of obvious pride on her face.

"Okay, maybe you can explain this entire idea to me then," Nate asked in confusion.

Blair turned towards her ex-boyfriend with a roll of her eyes, "Come on, Archibald, I know you have a few brain cells left in that head of yours." Chuck smirked, but chose to stay silent as Blair continued on to explain, "The reason why people join these type of clubs is for the prestige and the connections for their future endeavors. If Chuck is successful he'd have every resource he could possibly need at his fingertips. I admit that I know better than most what a well-placed favor can get you in our world and Chuck's going to have that in spades."

Nate just shook his head at the picture Blair just painted and chuckled as he simply replied, "You two are definitely meant for each other. Makes me fear for the fate of the world."

"Don't worry, Nathaniel," Chuck spoke up with a smirk as he laced his fingers with Blair's, "We'll leave it much better off than how we found it."

"But the real question is: According to whose standards?" Nate retorted with a slight smile as he teased.

"I thought we were gonna do something," Nate spoke up beside Chuck, bringing him out of his head. He had been lying down with his hat over his eyes, pretending to sleep. "What happened to your master plan, finding the skull and bones?"

Chuck removed his fedora and slowly sat up onto his elbows as he patiently began to explain, "You don't find them. They find you."

"Hmm. That's good," Nate replied, obviously not impressed with the cryptic words, "So we'll just sit here and wait." Chuck glanced around as he played with his hat beside him as his best friend took out a piece of paper and began to read it out loud for potential things to do while they waited, "There's a football game at 1:00 or a tour of the university art gallery at 3:00."

Chuck didn't even bother with responding as he glanced at Nate whose attention was currently diverted to a girl that passed by with her group of friends. "Whoa," Nate spoke softly as he watched her go. Chuck mentally shrugged as he watched the girl leave too, deeming her decent to look at, but that was as far as it went for him.

He shared a look with Nate and instantly knew that Nate was going to go for it before he even said, "Good luck sitting on your ass," and taking off after the girl calling out, "Hey. Excuse me. Can I ask you a question?"

Chuck stood up and checked his watch, noting the time. It took Nate an hour to grow bored and go off on his own. Chuck his head and began to walk off in another direction. It was for the best anyway. The way these things worked the secret society preferred to "kidnap" their potentials when they were alone. Besides, Nate needed to learn to go on his own and get what he wanted. With Chuck not going to college himself, the Archibald was going to need to get used to finding their standard of fun on his own.

Chuck was walking around a stone building not ten minutes later when it happened. At first he thought it was just a misstep when the first guy bumped into him resulting in him dropping his hat, and Chuck responded as he would with any other person who'd dare touch him, "What the hell?"

The situation became crystal clear when Chuck heard a guy behind him saying, "Come on, get him!"

Chuck did what was expected and gave a struggle as he was quickly surrounded by strangers before a black bag was pulled over his head and he was carried away. The game had started and Chuck knew then that this was going to be just as easy as he thought it would be.

xoxo

Meanwhile on the other side of campus, Blair was sitting primly in the Dean of Admissions reception area. On the outside she looked pristine and unconcerned, but on the inside, she was a bottle of nerves. The campus was everything she remembered it to be from the few times that her father brought her when she was a little girl. In a few short minutes she'd impress the Dean with her application and recommendations from her charity work advisors and Headmistress Queller.

The thought that her future goal of attending Yale was almost upon her resulted in Blair refraining from fidgeting in her seat. She smiled over at the secretary, doing her best to not frown at the display of porcelain cats all over the older woman's desk that she was currently dusting carefully. It was one thing to know that the Dean's secretary collected such things, but to see it in person was quite disturbing.

Fortunately, Blair was distracted by the sound of the Dean's laughter in the next room and began to feel her nerves return. Whoever was in there was really charming their way into the Dean's good graces. Blair attempted to shake it off, figuring that it wasn't that big of a deal. So what if the applicant in there was making the Dean laugh, Blair had nothing to worry about. It was just going to be a bit of a struggle form a good impression if he was still remembering this applicant instead of focusing on Blair.

When the laughter came back even harder, Blair began to get a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach when the Dean's secretary spoke, "Oh, my. The Dean hasn't laughed like that in years."

Blair found herself gritting her teeth, knowing that this person would most definitely be at the mixer tonight at the Dean's house and was definitely a threat to Blair's plan of winning the Dean over. She forced a smile onto her face when the office door opened to reveal the Dean escorting the threat out, allowing Blair an opportunity to look upon the face of her enemy.

Blair felt her face freeze at the sight of the very familiar head of blonde hair as the Dean spoke with a smile, "It was an utter delight to meet you, Miss Van Der Woodsen. What a lovely surprise."

Blair did her best to hide her horror. No. No, this couldn't be happening. Serena wouldn't do this to her! But at the sound of the blonde's laughter and her response, "Oh, and who doesn't like a surprise?" Blair knew that she would and in fact is doing it to her. She gently shook her head to herself as she looked down to the floor. She should have known something like this would have happened after that awful nightmare. Blair had always thought she was a bit psychic and she cursed herself for not taking the subconscious warning for what it was.

"I do hope you enjoy the rest of your visit," the Dean spoke friendly as he offered his hand towards Serena.

"Thank you so much," Serena returned as she shook his hand and laughed lightly before turning her attention to Blair, acting as if the pair didn't know each other at all, "Looks like he's ready for you."

"Shall we, Miss Waldorf?" the Dean asked with a smile, obviously still dazzled by his recent interview with Serena.

Blair paused before putting on her game face as she stood up from her chair and replied, "I've never been more prepared."

She gave Serena a look of confusion, silently asking what the blonde was even doing here, but received no answer other than a polite smile from her supposed best friend before she walked out of the office and down the hall. Blair had no choice but to make her way into the Dean's office before he shut the door behind her.

Blair sat down in the offered chair, clinching her hands tightly in order to prevent them from shaking as she did her best to concentrate as she waited for Dean Ruthers to finish reading through the packet she brought for him to read over at his desk. She still couldn't believe that Serena was here on campus. What was she even doing here? She was supposed to be at Brown for god's sake. And the fact that the blonde didn't appear to have any qualms with hijacking Blair's chances at getting into the school of her dreams, led Blair to believe that something was up. Now she had to work on doing some damage control.

"I have to say," the dean's voice brought Blair out of her thoughts and allowed her to focus on the man in front of her as he looked over her packet that she brought with her, "Your application is most impressive, Miss Waldorf."

Blair smiled at the compliment. She knew it was, but it was nice to be acknowledged for it all the same from the guy that would determine her future for next year.

"There's just one thing I'd like to know," he spoke as he set her file down on his desk before turning towards her and leaning against his desk, "Tell me something about you that isn't in that packet."

Blair was shocked and she didn't do too well in hiding it, "Oh. Not in there?"

"Do you like to drive race cars?" Dean Ruthers offered, "Can you cook authentic Szechuan? The young lady before you told me a delightful story." Blair began to feel a sinking sensation in her stomach at the mention of Serena during her interview. She was once again being compared to her best friend and it was becoming obvious that she was found lacking. She forced a smile as he smiled in delight as he told the story, "She was recently in a fashion show just for fun."

Blair couldn't help but find the irony. She was the one that put Serena in the show last week, therefore giving her an edge against her for Yale. Blair couldn't help but laugh a bit at the situation. The dean of course took it that she was laughing with him over the story and Blair didn't bother attempting to dissuade him.

"I know I must seem rather traditional compared to that young lady, but isn't tradition what Yale is all about?" Blair asked with a slight shrug.

"Well, yes, but we've been trying to change that image," Dean Ruthers explained as he moved to stand behind his desk, "Too stuffy." Blair couldn't help but clutch her hands tightly at the description and it took her a minute to realize that he was still awaiting her answer until he asked, "So?"

"Well…I'm aware I lack some people's easy grace with strangers, and I don't exactly make you feel like you've known me forever even though we just met. When I laugh, you might not smile just at the coquettish sound of it. And I may not be "spontaneous" or "delightful" or "full of surprises," and my hair might not sparkle when it catches the light…" Blair paused at the end of her rant and realized that she was losing any ground that her packet may have granted. She didn't need the Dean to compare her to Serena because she was painting that picture herself.

She took a deep breath and reflected on the many conversations she's had in the past with her friends in regards to her as a person and what she had to offer and tried again, "Dean Ruthers, I pride myself on being a natural born leader. Despite being born into a life of privilege, I was raised on the importance of hard work and I feel my focus and discipline are some of my best qualities and it has gifted me with anything that I've truly wanted whether it's being lead deb of my Cotillion or the perfect transcript.

"Since the age of five, I've known that I've wanted Yale and almost every decision and goal I've made since then have led me here, in this office, interviewing with you. So you ask me to tell you something about myself outside of that packet? Here it is: I love a challenge. I treat every goal as such and will pull all my available resources to get what I want. And I want Yale. Now that may sound a bit over-confident, but my track record is proof that it's the truth," Blair motioned over to the packet in front of him.

At first the dean didn't say anything as he took in her words before he stood up from his desk. For a moment Blair felt real fear, she thought that she gambled her future and was about to come up short. But then he finally spoke with a soft smile, "I have to say, Miss Waldorf, that I find your passion for Yale as impressive as your packet. I can't tell you how refreshing it is to meet an applicant who knows who they are and know what they have to offer and aren't willing to change that just to impress me." Blair smiled in relief at his words and stood up from her seat as he motioned for her to stand and led the way towards the door. The interview deemed complete.

As he opened the door and allowed her to step out he spoke, "I look forward to seeing what you'll do next, Miss Waldorf."

Blair smiled, but began to feel the familiar fear come over her at the fact that she wasn't invited to the mixer which was her ultimate goal from this interview, "Well, isn't there anything else you'd like to ask me? Maybe about what my plans are for tonight?"

"Uh, there's so much to do on campus. I'm sure you'll find something," he answered as he offered his hand to her.

Blair forced a smile and shook it gratefully before saying her goodbyes to the Dean and walking out the door. She glanced at her watch as she walked down the hallway of the Admissions building in a complete daze. She was in there for about twenty minutes. The most important interview of her life and it was over so quickly even though it seemed to have lasted forever. Blair could not believe what just happened. She felt she somehow managed to pull it off. Sure, at the beginning of the interview she was a bit off her game after being confronted out of nowhere by seeing Serena walking out of the Dean's office, but reflecting back over her answer to the Dean's question, Blair felt she showed her best side in spite of the blonde's presence.

She pushed through the doors leading her outside and paused as she saw her supposed friend standing there talking to some random group as she flipped through the course catalog. Blair felt anger grow at the sight of her and figured that now was as good a time as any to confront Serena about what she was up to and stormed up to her.

"What are you doing, Serena?" she demanded.

"Oh, these lovely people were just showing me the course catalog," Serena explained nonchalantly with a smile as she closed the book in her hands.

"No, here. Yale," Blair spoke forcefully, "Yale is mine."

It seemed that with that statement, Serena's little group decided it was best to leave and quickly gathered their bags and made their exit without another word. Blair watched them go silently, not worried about what they thought about her at the moment. What she wanted was answers, and she wanted them now.

Once the two were officially alone, Blair spoke again, "I just don't understand because, silly me, three hours ago I was under the impression that you wanted to go to Brown for college. So, what exactly has happened that has resulted in you being here, Serena?"

Serena sighed and finally showed that she felt a little bad about the situation as she set the course catalog down beside her, "I was going to Brown, but then I changed my mind."

Blair frowned, making it obvious that Serena's explanation wasn't enough. She looked at the girl in front of her who she thought was her best friend and began forming a theory as to the real reason why Serena Van Der Woodsen was on this campus, "So, what? You just came here to sabotage my attempts instead? Why, because of those stupid things I said earlier at school?"

Serena sighed as before she confessed, "Well, I'll admit, I came to punish you for the things you said this morning."

"Fine," Blair interrupted, still not completely buying that it was Serena's only reason but she just wanted her gone, "Consider me punished. You can go home now."

As Blair walked past Serena to leave and wait for a specific phone call from the Dean, Serena called out to her, "I actually like it here." Blair paused and slowly turned around, unable to understand the words that just came out of Serena's mouth. "The campus is beautiful, the people are so nice, and do you know how great the drama school is?" Serena continued on.

"Of course I do," Blair snapped back in anger, "It's world-renowned."

"The Dean made me realize that by being so set on Brown, I closed myself off to all other options," Serena explained, coming off as sincere.

"Well, that's a lovely epiphany," Blair replied sarcastically before lashing out, "I'm afraid it's irrelevant. It's not as if you'd actually get in here."

Just then Serena's cell phone rang interrupting the conversation. "Hello?" Serena answered and began to smile as she replied to the person on the phone. "An intimate gathering at the Dean's house tonight? I'd be honored. Thank you."

Blair felt her blood run cold at Serena's words. That was supposed to be Blair's invitation! Blair took a deep breath and worked to keep her face calm as Serena hung up the phone and looked at Blair in triumph. "You were invited to my gathering," Blair couldn't help but state slowly in order to prevent herself from causing a scene.

"You might want to make other plans," Serena replied, the remorse from earlier long gone, "She said I was her last call."

Serena turned away from Blair and began fiddling with her phone. Blair couldn't believe that because of Serena, her plans to cement Yale had been completely destroyed. It was one thing if it was some random person from California or Connecticut even, but to find that, once again, she was losing to Serena brought back the feeling of betrayal that used to be the norm between the friends.

"Don't do this Serena," Blair spoke softly to the blonde's back, "It would be one thing if you seriously wanted Yale and talked to me about it instead of blindsiding me, but for you to do this behind my back is like Ivy week last year all over again." Blair took a step closer as her voice grew stronger, "If you continue on with this, I swear I will take you down."

"I'm not doing this to hurt you, Blair," Serena replied, turning to face the Blair head on accepting Blair's challenge, "I was invited. And as for taking me down, I'd love to see you try."

Blair just looked at her and shook her head slowly before turning to leave. She didn't enjoy her methods of taking Serena down at Ivy Week, it ended up hurting someone else Blair loved more than it hurt the blonde. This time, Blair was going to be much more careful with her attack, but first she needed a little bit of back up. She knew that Chuck would be busy with infiltrating the skull and bones, but she hoped that he could help with a bit of recon work.

Serena sighed as she watched Blair walk away, obviously upset. She didn't like being at war with Blair, and she had to admit that, although Yale was beautiful and had a lot to offer, it wasn't what she really wanted. Her best friend was right; it was like Ivy Week all over again. She wasn't this type of person. She knew that Yale was Blair's major button and her best friend would only give her blessing if Serena had sincerely showed that it was something that she wanted. Throughout all their talks about the future, Serena had only talked about Brown, while Blair talked only of Yale.

As the blonde walked off to head back to her hotel she silently admitted that she only came out of fear. Fear that she wouldn't be able to handle college on her own. She feared that her mother's words might ring true and Serena would just mess up her life all over again only on a larger scale. The rivalry between her and Blair would help distract her from her fears, but it may cost Serena her one true friend in the process and the blonde wasn't so sure that it would be worth it in the end.

The rule is never retreat, never surrender. But whoever said that never met the new Serena.

xoxo

"So whatever major you decide on, you can mix up with electives," Jordan explained as she sat next to Nate on a bench, "Yale's are better than most."

Nate smiled, "Oh, really?" The two had been talking for about twenty minutes and so far she seemed really cool. So far he wasn't regretting his decision at all in coming here. It seemed like a place close to home that he didn't have to worry about the backlash that came with being Nathaniel Archibald. "Well, what's your favorite?"

She smiled as she bit her lip before giving her answer, "It's a toss-up between the role of sex in art and great hoaxes in archaeology."

Nate looked at her in disbelief, not quite sure if she was serious or not, and couldn't help but blurt out, "Those are seriously classes?"

"Mm-hmm," she confirmed with a nod before the pair laughed together. "What school are you here from?" Jordan asked as she looked him over.

"St. Jude's in New York," Nate answered.

"St. Jude's?" a voice called out from the next bench over. Nate looked towards the guy and nodded. "Then you must know, uh, Nate Archibald," the newcomer spoke with distaste, "I heard he's on campus this weekend."

"Why does that name sound familiar?" Amy asked curiously.

Nate began to feel the sinking feeling that he wasn't so free from the burdens of his father's mistakes as he once originally thought as the guy began to explain Nate's familiar connection, "He's the son of Howard "The Captain" Archibald. We've been talking about him in Econ. The guy's like a modern Milken."

"Oh," Jordan replied with a nod.

Nate knew he had to get out of here. He was fortunate enough that the kids here didn't know what he looked like because he could only imagine the trouble he'd be facing if they did. He quickly jumped up from his seat and attempted to steer Jordan away. "Hey, uh, Jordan, do you want to show me around campus?" He asked charmingly, "I'd love to see it."

"Sure," she replied as she hitched her bag over her shoulder, "But before I go anywhere with a stranger," she teased, "I think maybe you should tell me your name."

That was what Nate feared. He obviously couldn't give her his real name and knew he couldn't possibly give her Chuck's since he was more infamous for his history with women and besides he couldn't risk this getting back to him or Blair. So he picked a name that meant nothing. "Oh, my name, of course, um, is Dan. Dan Humphrey."

Jordan nodded in acceptance, "All right."

Nate offered her his hand, which she took and the pair began their tour. Nate was relieved that he was safe, for now. He had no idea for how long he could pull this off; he just hoped that he could get through the weekend unscathed.

xoxo

Meanwhile, Chuck was sitting in a dark room surrounded by strangers after having the bag removed from his head. He sat quietly as, what he assumed to be the leader of the pack, began to state Chuck's resume. Chuck had to admit that he sounded very impressive according to this guy, but then again it wasn't as if he wasn't aware of what he brought to the table in any situation. It was part of the reason why he knew he could so easily infiltrate the ranks of secret societies such as this one. He slowly fixed his hair as he listened to the speaker drone on.

"Chuck Bass, heir to Bass Industries, Champion of the legendary Lost Weekend. Rumor has it you've slept with more "Maxim" covers than John Mayer."

"And better, I might add," Chuck couldn't help but inflate his reputation with a smirk.

The guys surrounding him laughed as their leader continued speaking, "If our intel's correct, you're our prime candidate from next year's class, but we don't take anything on hearsay. We need to know firsthand if you're as good as your advertising."

Chuck figured as much. He slowly stood up from his seat and addressed the room at large, "Well, I come prepared." He focused his attention on the leader, "How about a little private party to kick things off?"

"What do you have in mind?" the leader spoke, obviously intrigued.

That's when Chuck knew that he had them right where he wanted them. It was going to be almost too easy, but then again these guys weren't even in the same league as he was. It was kind of sad that such a big, scary skull and bones group could be pulled to their knees so easily, but Chuck wasn't one to hold back on weaklings. They were practically begging for it and who was Chuck Bass to deny them.

After setting up the event for the night, he promised to bring entertainment and refreshments and went on his way with ease. With a smirk on his face, he strolled across campus, making his calls for the night.

"…Just make sure they are up to anything," he explained with a smirk, "This crowd can get particular." Just at that moment, his call waiting beeped at him. "That's my other line, I have to go. Make sure that they are on time and dressed appropriately." He quickly switched over to his other line and answered, having an idea who it was.

"Let me guess. The Dean was so impressed with you that he offered you a spot at Yale right then and there without the formalities of applying?" he spoke by way of greeting.

"Hardly. I didn't even get invited to the gathering at the Dean's place tonight," Blair replied, feeling her anger and disappointment dwindle at the sound of Chuck's voice. He always had that effect on her.

"How is that possible?" Chuck asked.

"Serena," Blair replied with a sigh.

"Is in Rhode Island," Chuck finished, growing more concerned over the course of this conversation.

"No. Serena is here at Yale," Blair replied, "She had an interview with the Dean just before me and she got my invite to the gathering."

"So Serena now wants to go to Yale out of the blue?" Chuck asked as he frowned into the phone, instantly knowing something was up.

"She claims to, but I don't buy it. Don't worry about me Bass, I'm not giving up without a fight," Blair smirked.

"Is there anything you need me to do?" Chuck replied, smirking back as he realized that his girlfriend was forming a plan. He was very much aware that in the past he would have to rally her to fight for thing she wanted most and here she was finding determination in herself and Chuck couldn't be any more proud of her.

"Just a bit of recon work; I know that you're busy with your own game so I just need the bare minimal," Blair replied, "Find out the real reason why Serena's here. Find out if she's sincere despite her actions. I want to be sure that no one else is involved or gets hurt."

Chuck silently recalled the event in question that Blair was referring to and agreed that it was best that they got as much information as possible, "For you, anything. And what will you be doing?" he asked just as he saw the blonde in question heading his way. He casually turned his back to finish his phone call.

"I'll be getting ready for that gathering tonight. There's more than one way to get into an exclusive party and this way…let's just say that the Dean will be impressed with my execution," Blair answered.

Chuck pursed his lips, intrigued, "Just make sure you have some fun. Otherwise what's our youth for other than to be constantly underestimated?"

Blair laughed lightly into the phone, "But that part is fun, especially when we take advantage and get what we want in the end."

"Truer words have never been spoken, Waldorf," Chuck replied before hanging up as he heard the familiar sound of heels walking towards him.

He turned around and locked eyes with Serena and feigned confusion, "Well. I know you're not a geography whiz, but you are aware that Providence is in Rhode Island right?"

"I don't have time to explain," Serena replied, obviously in a hurry, "I've been invited to the Dean's house tonight. I have to get ready."

"The Dean's house?" Chuck asked as he approached Serena, pleased that she paused in her trek to talk. Chuck was not wearing the proper footwear to keep up with her kind of pace.

"Uh-huh," Serena replied impatiently.

"Nice. What's your answer to his question?" Chuck asked. He knew that Serena would have no idea what he was referring to and was actually banking on it. Since the blonde was obviously in a rush, Chuck would just have to settle for setting her up for a little test on if she truly was sincere.

"Yes?" Serena answered with a question.

"No, no, no," Chuck replied with a shake of his head, "'What person, real or imagine, living or dead, would you most like to have dinner with?' The rumor is, if your answer impresses the Dean enough, it gets you on the short list for early admission, or so says Blair."

Serena sighed as she closed her eyes, "Oh, I should have given my spot to her."

Chuck raised his brows at his step-sister, "You got invited, and she didn't?" Serena nodded silently before Chuck replied, "You're lucky to be alive."

"Yeah, well, I won't be much longer if I don't find an answer fast," Serena replied before continuing on her trek.

"Steal Blair's," Chuck called out to her, "She has no use for it anymore."

Serena turned and looked at him in shock before quickly shaking her head, "No. No, I can't, no matter how good it is."

"George Sand," Chuck spoke with a smirk.

"I did not want to know that. And how could you of all people tell me that?" Serena exclaimed. "Wait. Why does Blair want to go to dinner with some guy named George?"

"A hot girl named George," Chuck corrected, "she dressed like a man and apparently is the Dean's favorite writer. I know this because talking with Blair about how she's going to get into Yale gets her really-"

"Chuck, no." Serena physically reached towards him to stop him from continuing on, not even realizing that he never answered her on his reason why he was helping her against Blair in the first place. "You just told me two things I never wanted to hear, and one is going to haunt me for the rest of my life."

Chuck smirked as he watched the blonde quickly walk away without another word. He knew that hinting towards his and Blair's sex life would distract her from her second question. In the end it didn't matter. The information was given and now Serena had a real choice to make. If she used the answer to lash out at Blair at the gathering tonight, Blair would have her answer. Serena didn't want Yale she was just doing it to maybe hurt Blair and to hide from some other problem that only Serena knew about. If she didn't use it and attempted to find her own answer and win Yale for her own merits than Blair would then know the truth either way. Chuck was very pleased with the position he put the blonde in and he looked forward to finding out how the night would end for Blair.

xoxo

Nate was definitely back to enjoying his time at Yale. After Jordan gave him the complete tour, Nate insisted that he get a glimpse at the dorms. Just to prepare himself for what was coming if he did decide to come here. She agreed with him and it was how the pair got to where they were now. Alone. On Jordan's bed. Making out The only problem was that Jordan, who turned out to be a teacher's aid for the English department, wanted to know Nate's thoughts and views on books and certain authors. And since Nate took on Dan Humphrey's identity, he had to play the part.

"Okay, before we go any further…," Jordan spoke as she reluctantly pulled away from Nate once again, "I have to know something. Tell me the truth." Nate just smiled and decided to play along as he continued to kiss her lips and neck as he listened to her question. "As a writer, what do you think of Marquez?" Jordan asked as she leaned away from Nate's lips.

"Marquez….," Nate stumbled attempting to come up with some form of an answer, "Um, that's a tough one."

Nate was relieved and she laughed and agreed with him, "Okay, you're right. It's too broad." Nate was about to give a sigh of relief, but then she reached over him towards her night stand, "Let's just talk 'Cholera.'"

Nate looked at the very thick book she was waving around in front of him and had a vague recollection of his first attempt at reading it, "Oh. Uh…very painful." Jordan laughed at his response and Nate decided to just be honest since she found it so amusing, "No, I'm not kidding. I tried to read it, and I couldn't get through it. It's ridiculous."

"You're funny…," Jordan replied as she tossed the book onto the foot of her bed and returned her attention back to Nate before giving him a kiss, "and sweet." Nate took that as his cue to go back to their previous activities and held her close as she continued talking in between kisses, "Not like most writers I meet."

Unfortunately, they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Jordan paused before calling out to the visitor without moving from her spot, "Hello?" When the person didn't respond, Nate sighed as Jordan hopped up from the bed and walked over to the door and opened it up, peeking through the crack as a voice that sounded vaguely familiar to Nate began to speak.

"Hi. Jordan Steele?" the voice asked.

"Do I know you?" Jordan asked softly in return.

"No, I was told by the other T.A.s that you work for the chair of the lit department," the voice spoke again. It was then that Nate recognized who it was and quickly sat up on the bed as he realized that the real Dan Humphrey was standing outside of Jordan's door. Nate began to panic. It amazed him that his friends could lie and put on a false identity with ease for as long as they needed it to last for, but for Nate's first time, he gets caught before the day was even over.

"Yeah. Um, can you come back later, maybe?" Jordan replied, unaware of Nate's change in demeanor behind her.

"I apologize for hunting you down now, but I'm- I'm desperate," Dan pleaded, "I need someone to read my work and write a letter before the weekend's out, and I- I was, uh, I was hoping you could help me."

Jordan opened the door, revealing Nate's presence behind her and Nate attempted to signal to Dan to not sell him out. He knew it was a long shot, but he hoped that he was that lucky that Dan would do him this small favor. "Nate?" Dan asked.

Jordan, missing the slip, asked, "Um, help you what?"

Nate continued to attempt to salvage his deception by signaling Dan to let it go, but it seemed that Dan was just clueless to the signs as he pointed to Nate and began to speak to Jordan, "That's, uh, that's Nate Archibald."

Nate rolled his eyes, knowing that he was caught as Jordan turned towards him and replied, "No, that's Dan Humphrey."

Nate looked down at his lap in silence, not saying a word as the pieces began to form the picture in Jordan's head and Nate was rather forcefully asked to leave her room. Of course Dan instantly wanted to know what was going on and began to pester Nate about it as they left the building. When Nate attempted to explain part of the situation, obviously nixing the part about the reason why he needed to be someone else, Dan was obviously not impressed. "She seemed pretty into then," Dan replied, bringing up the way Nate was thrown out not even five minutes ago.

Nate sighed and reiterated, "No, she was really into me, and next thing I know, she's throwing a book at my head." Nate was just fortunate that he knew how to duck.

"Yeah, Faulkner. It looked like a first edition, not that you'd know," Dan taunted.

"No, what I do know," Nate replied as he turned around back to the outsider upset, "is that you didn't have to mess it up for me right then and there."

Well, what should I have done, watch you continue to screw up my last chance at making a connection in the lit department for pseudonymous sex?"

"No, that's not why I did it," Nate replied getting angry that Dan Humphrey was judging him for things he did not understand.

"Is it funny for you?" Dan asked angrily, "Because my future's not a joke."

"It's not," Nate yelled back, "Just let me finish explaining, okay?"

Dan obviously didn't want to hear it as he raised his hands in the air to stop Nate from talking, "Look, Nate, I'm sure that your life is complicated with- with your family and, um, I don't know, girls," it was at that point that Nate was over attempting to explain himself to this condescending nobody. Dan knew nothing about his life and for him to attempt to belittle it just because Nate was from the Upper East Side and he was privileged makes him just as bad as others at their school that he claimed to be above morally.

Nate turned around before he lashed out, but stopped when Dan called out, "But you can't pretend to be me. Maybe it's okay to use people like that in your world, but not in mine."

"Do you ever get tired of carrying around that chip on your shoulder, Dan?" Nate asked as he turned around, "No wonder Serena dumped you."

Nate backed away after that, finished with the conversation and with this guy. It wasn't about using Dan's name to get into some random girl's pants. It was about Nate being able to be himself without the extra baggage that came with his family's name. He just wanted a weekend to have fun and forget about his problems and so far it has been the opposite.

xoxo

That night, Blair arrived at the Dean's house with a flourish, invitation in hand. She was just glad that she thought of the worst case scenario this morning before she arrived at school and set some things in motion just to be prepared. Of course she wasn't prepared at all for Serena, but, once again, Blair had shown that luck favors the prepared. She smiled as she remembered her conversation with the Dean's secretary:

Blair just walked up to secretary Shirley's desk with an innocent smile on her face before deciding to be direct with what it was that she wanted from the woman, "Hello, Shirley. I would like an invitation to the private reception at the Dean's house tonight, and you're going to get me one."

Blair kept her confident smile in place as she gave a shrug to the older woman, knowing that what she said was a fact and not a request. She was amused when Shirley attempted to dissuade her. "I'm sorry. I'm not in charge of the Dean's private affairs."

"I have it on good authority that you are," Blair replied without hesitation, "And I need to cement my position of good standing with the Dean."

"Interviews are so stressful for you students," Shirley patronized.

By this point, Blair decided to just put her offer on the table. "Check your e-mail," she spoke bluntly. She smiled sweetly, already knowing what Shirley would find there and knew that she won the moment the older woman gasped in delight at the pictures of the ceramic cats that were currently on her screen. Blair leaned onto the desk and began to speak, "Eighteenth century. Do you know how rare a pair is from that era?" Judging by the look on the woman's face, she did. "I had someone at Christie's put them on hold just in case."

Blair couldn't help but chuckle at how quickly Shirley was to give Blair the needed address to the Dean's house in exchange for the cats. She took in the room and saw all the other applicants along with a handful of prominent professors of the Yale community and immediately felt in her element. This was what she'd been dreaming about since she was a little girl and this was her opportunity to make a good first impression to her future professors.

As she glanced over towards the side table behind her she saw the one thing standing between her and victory. She hadn't heard back from Chuck outside of a mere text message stating that he set the game for Blair to find out her answer on if Serena was really here because she wanted to go to Yale or for other ulterior motives. Blair had no choice but to wait and see how he could have possibly set something like that up in less than thirty minutes.

Figuring that it was as a good a time as any, Blair decided to approach her rival, seeing that the blonde in question was trying to come up with an answer for the Dean's question of the night. "Trying to come up with an answer for the Dean's parlor game?" she asked with a smirk.

Serena quickly turned to look at Blair in surprise before realization came over her face before she spoke, "You manipulated your way in here?"

Blair shrugged lightly as she looked around the room, "When someone leaves you off the list, don't get mad. Get in." Blair turned her full attention to Serena, "I wasn't kidding when I said you have to have focus and determination to play at this level, Serena. I get what I want, just like I'm going to win tonight." Blair tilted her head to the side as she asked, "What's your answer?"

Before Serena could even answer, Blair waved her hand in the air and interrupted, "Oh, no, let me guess. Lauren Conrad."

Serena looked at Blair for a moment before responding, "Try George Sand."

Blair froze in shock as she watched her supposed best friend begin to write the answer onto her card, "Wait. That's-"

"Your answer?" Serena interrupted, "Not anymore. If you're going to cheat your way in, then why should I play fair?"

"Play fair?" Blair asked incredulously as she watched Serena put her card in the bowl, "You call going behind my back about something you know I want almost more than anything playing fair? Fair went out the window the second you arrived on this campus and met with the Dean."

Serena sighed and replied angrily, "I'm sorry that I didn't think to consult with you about the decisions I make for my future, Blair." Before the blonde walked away she added, "Oh, and I heard that the Dean asks his question in alphabetical order, so since "V" comes before "W," it looks like the answer is all mine."

Blair fumed silently as Serena left to go mingle. As the pieces began to form in her head on how Serena of all people got Blair's answer, Blair realized that there was only one person and she now knew exactly why he did it. In the end he was right. Blair knew Serena's intentions in regards to Yale and it had nothing to do with her wanting to actually attend Yale, it was something else entirely. With that knowledge in mind she looked at the glass bowl in front of her and made a decision.

She had just picked up a slip of paper when she was interrupted by the host himself, "Ms. Waldorf. I'd say that I'm surprised to see you here, but that wouldn't be true. After you impassioned speech earlier in my office, I'd actually expected it."

Blair found herself genuinely smiling at his words as she took the Dean's offered hand in greeting, "In that case I'm glad to have not disappointed you, Dean Berube."

"My secretary doesn't extend invitations easily, Ms. Waldorf," the dean spoke politely, smiling before continuing on, "It speaks volumes of your tenacity that she made the exception. You are definitely a force to be reckoned with."

"I'm glad that I was able to show you that side of me, Dean Berube after such a short time," Blair replied happily. She had found a way to stand out in a good light by just being herself; all her planned answers and hard research, although was a good fall back and information to have on hand, presenting herself as she was seemed to be working much better in her favor that she could ever hope.

"I must admit that I'm intrigued to hear your answer for my little game later," the dean nodded to the slip of paper still in Blair's hand.

Blair smiled politely, "It's definitely going to be one to remember."

xoxo

Meanwhile, Chuck was busy setting his own game into action with the skull and cross bones group. Everything was perfect and Chuck presented his offerings to the guys in his usual pomp and circumstance. "You gentlemen wanted a Chuck Bass party. Well, your party has arrived, straight from…I can't tell you where they're from actually." Chuck smirked as he glanced over at the three women behind him, covered in cloaks and black masks over their eyes, and very revealing outfits underneath it all.

"But I can guarantee you, they're the best money can buy," Chuck assured as the first girl walked over to the leader who was currently sitting on his throne while the rest of his minions stood around in excitement. "Before you ask, they don't speak English, and they don't care," Chuck explained softly as the other two followed after the first, taking off they cloaks slowly as Chuck finished speaking, "By the way, that's not one for each of you. They do their best work in threes."

The group of guys laughed in delight as the three women, started their work on the leader and began to have their fun briefly before he sent them off to a minion as he stood up and spoke, "Not bad, Bass, but you're not done. The girls are all right, but they're just girls." The leader slowly walked up to Chuck, leaving the girls behind. Chuck felt that this whole offering was too easy, and knew that the final card was going to be played right then and there. At the end of it all, Chuck was comfortable with whatever was asked because it didn't matter; by the end of the night, Chuck knew that he had already won his game. So, he silently listened to the next demand of this pathetic group, who were older than him and yet he found them to be more than wanting.

"You still need to prove your loyalty. We want Nate Archibald," he spoke. Chuck scoffed, but said nothing as he continued to listen to the insect in front of him, "We know you're tight with him. We know he's on campus."

"Archibald's not worth your time," Chuck replied, knowing that it wouldn't be enough to get these guys off of his best friend's trail. He only spoke the words to give him time to come up with an alternative plan of action.

"We think he is," the leader spoke.

"My family lost our compound in Newport because of his father," one of the followers spoke up angrily. Chuck had no sympathy for the guy and didn't really give his complaint a thought as he pursed his lips in thought as he vaguely took into account one of the girls he brought making out with another member in the background.

"Pull him in. Take him down," the leader spoke again to gain Chuck's attention, "You've got one hour." Chuck mused over the instructions and smirked. It was sad really that these people don't even have a clue who their dealing with. Chuck Bass was one of the most loyal person in their world and the fact that they were attempting to make him betray someone who's been with him since he was five as a way of proving loyalty to them, was more than a little bit amusing.

"If you want in, you'll bring us Archibald," the leader spoke as Chuck looked at him in the eyes. He couldn't help but revel when the game was over when he could wipe that look off this guy's face. There's only a select few that were allowed to task Chuck and neither of them were in this room. He was definitely going to enjoy this more than he originally thought when he came up with this take down.

xoxo

"Aiment-vous les films du Lelouch?" the chair of the French department of Yale asked Serena eagerly.

"Oh, j'adore Lelouch," Serena replied with gusto. She was genuinely in her element. Blair wasn't wrong when she said that charm was Serena's forte. Serena always knew that she had a way with drawing people to her. Unfortunately, most of the time it was guys and it was because they wanted something from her and didn't expect her to have much intellectually. She did her best to brush it off and move on, but Serena couldn't help but feel disappointed that she didn't gain the attention because of something she earned.

With women, it was a different story. Most women of authority saw what Serena had to go through and made the assumption that Serena was encouraging such attention. They end up looking down on her and don't expect much from her other than the bare minimum. But, since Serena arrived at Yale, she couldn't help but notice that it wasn't the same. Everyone had been so welcoming and friendly and seemed to honestly want to hear the things she had to say. The only downside was that it was at the sacrifice of her best friend's efforts.

Serena quickly cleared her head and went back to the conversation she was having with the chair of the French department and her husband in regards to a French director named Lelouch. "'Roman De Gare' e'tait un de mes films pre'fe're's cet anne'e. Et toi?"

As Serena began to take a sip from her glass of water, the conversation was interrupted by Blair, "Actually, it's 'vous,' as a sign of respect." Serena took a deep breath in order to keep her composure as Blair continued being condescending with her correction, "I'm sure that's why you don't know it very well."

"Blair Waldorf," the brunette introduced herself to the French chairwoman and her husband politely who were instantly welcoming as Serena took a sip from her glass as Blair took over the conversation. "You were my father's favorite teacher. I've been looking for you. You inspired his expatriation to France. I'd love for you to hear about it. Shall we?"

Without another word to Serena the Chairwoman and her mother walked away with Blair, leaving Serena standing by herself. She couldn't fault her best friend for playing the game that the brunette in question perfected at a very young age. Serena just couldn't help the feeling of guilt that had been slowly growing in the pit of her stomach since the moment that she greeted the Dean just outside of his office. She didn't lie when she told her best friend that she really liked Yale. It had a lot to offer, but in the end all of Serena's motives for even coming here was because she was afraid. Going to college next year was scary enough, but to do it completely alone in a new state and basically without a net was downright terrifying. So she avoided the situation entirely and got overly angry over Blair's taunting, that in reality weren't that different from her usual words in regards to Brown, and focused her attention on getting even by showing that she could get into Yale if she wanted to.

It didn't even occur to her that by showing Blair up just a little bit, would risk jeopardizing Blair's place here entirely until just before this very party. Yale would only offer one position from their school. That was a fact. It was the reason why Blair worked so hard on her school work and the reason why she worked to sabotage Nelly Yuki during the S.A.T.'s in the spring. Just when Serena was planning on bowing out and leaving the party to go look for her best friend to make up, there the brunette in question was and the claws were out.

And, once again, Serena chose to engage rather than walking away. Letting her insecurities of never having anything to offer beyond her looks take hold instead of being the bigger person and being honest. She admitted that she was being selfish and inconsiderate when she put down Blair's answer as her own and she knew at this point in the game that Blair wouldn't respond to anything short of groveling or an all-out act of war. So, Serena let her pride rule her for the night and let Blair think that they were in competition for the coveted spot at Yale. She watched as her best friend reveal to the professors of Yale that she deserved to be there with little to no effort and Serena couldn't be prouder.

Serena sighed and decided that enough was enough and it was time to call a truce before the situation got any worse. She made her way purposefully over to Blair as the brunette was talking to a professor and saw her opportunity when the professor was pulled away by a colleague. "Blair? Can we talk for a moment?" the blonde asked hesitantly.

Blair sighed and rolled her eyes, "Whatever you want to talk about, Serena, don't bother. I'm don't want to hear you brag about your supposed accomplishments tonight."

Before Serena could reply, Dean Berube began to tap his glass to gain everyone's attention and called out to the group, "Everyone. Everyone. It's time for my favorite part of the evening, which has delightfully become known over the years as probatur. "

"That's Latin for 'the quiz'," Blair taunted softly to Serena.

Serena glanced at her best friend and didn't bother responding for a moment as the Dean continued to speak, "We'll begin with Ms. Applebaum."

The blonde had no idea to how to make up with her best friend at the moment now that the parlor game had begun and with Serena having the winning answer, she couldn't help but feel that she was putting an even bigger obstacle in between Blair and her chance to get into the school of her dreams. As the Dean continued down the list of names getting closer and closer to the end, Serena felt her guilt rise more and more. She glanced over at Blair and realized that the brunette didn't look nervous at all about the game and couldn't help but mention softly, "You look really calm."

Blair looked over at Serena with a serene smile and said reproachfully, "You didn't honestly think that I came here without a backup answer did you?"

Serena felt her guilt lose momentum at Blair's response. It was still there, sure, but knowing that Blair was the type of person to have a backup answer to something of this nature, Serena began to feel a sense of relief as the Dean called out for a girl named Steinberg to give her reasoning for her answer of Artemis.

"Artemis is the Goddess of the forest and the hills. As a freegan, I believe in all living things being equal to all people," Steinberg began, but it was obvious that not only did the Dean seem unimpressed with her answer but so was the rest of the room.

Serena shared a brief look at her best friend that screamed that the two were on the same mind wavelength that the stranger was definitely not doing much for herself in her answer. The pair would have shared a smile, but Blair, almost as if she remembered that she was still mad at Serena, quickly looked away from her. Serena saw it as an opportunity and tried again to make peace with Blair as she spoke to her softly, "I'm glad that you at least have an answer, anything you say has got to be better than that."

"I can tell you right now that my answer is definitely going to be killer," Blair replied as she smirked to herself.

"..And also screw the man at the same time," Steinberg finished resulting in a few laughs from the crowd.

"Very nice, Miss Steinberg," the dean replied with ease, if one wasn't paying too close attention, they would have no idea that he wasn't paying attention to the bulk of the girl's answer and was simply responding to be polite rather than impressed. He looked down at his list and continued on, "Uh, now on to Miss Van Der Woodsen. The person you would most like to have dinner with, real or imagined, living or dead is…Pete Fairman. Uh, I do not know this person. Who is Pete Fairman?"

The smile on Serena's face froze at the answer that was not hers. What made the situation worse was that the person mentioned instead of George Sands was the guy that Serena thought she had killed a couple of years ago before she fled New York and there was only one person in the room who would have knowledge and the destructive capabilities to use it against her like this. And that person was currently standing right beside her, looking at Serena with a look of pure curiosity.

"Um…," Serena responded trying her best to get her bearings, "He, uh, he…" Serena paused and cleared her throat as she tried again, putting on a smile, "He's…"

"He's the man she killed," Blair answered for her bluntly.

"I cannot believe you did this," Serena hissed at Blair as the room stood silent, waiting for some form of explanation.

"Why?" Blair asked just as quietly as she turned her attention to the Dean of Admissions, "It's not like you don't deserve it."

"Miss Van Der Woodsen, would you like to, uh, explain," the Dean spoke up, gaining the blonde's attention.

"No, of course, Dean Berube," Serena replied in a normal voice as she did her best to save the situation, "Um, Pete Fairman was a man I knew."

"Man/Dealer," Blair interrupted as if filling in the unsaid to the room.

"Miss Waldorf, let her speak," the dean replied.

"He died almost two years ago when I was with him," Serena explained genuinely, "What happened was a tragedy, and I am filled with regret over it, but I was not responsible-"

"Were you responsible for the sex tape?" Blair asked bluntly.

"Blair," Serena spoke as she turned to her best friend, silently asking her to stop.

"It wasn't very sexy, if you ask me," Blair continued on with a laugh, making it obvious that she had no plans to pull back.

Serena reached over and grabbled Blair's arm, "Blair, that's enough. Let's go." Blair attempted to detangle herself as Serena attempted to save them both from making the matter worse in the Dean's eyes, "Dean Berube, do you mind if we, um, sort this out privately, please?"

"Take all the time you need," the Dean replied graciously.

Serena wasted no time in dragging Blair out of there. She was upset sure, but in the end she should have known that Blair would have pulled something like this and it was Serena's own fault for setting this entire thing in motion. Almost as if she knew that she wasn't going back into the party, Blair called out to the Dean, "My answer was George Sand. I idolize her. Worship even!"

Serena quickly pushed and dragged Blair out onto the porch as the brunette continued to yell as the door was shut behind them, "Get your hands off of me! Or are you trying to kill me, too?"

Serena stormed after Blair as she yelled back, "A guy died, and you use it as part of a game. Who does that?"

"it isn't a game, and this isn't just another thing on a laundry list. This is Yale, my dream. You crossed the line," Blair snapped back.

"And so did you when you brought up Pete!" Serena yelled back, "As far as my being here, you take that up with the school."

Blair scoffed, "Why did you think you were invited, Serena? You know on paper you're not Yale material. Could it be your face on "Page six", your name everywhere? Face it, Serena. Yale needs to up their "Q" rating, just like all the other schools, and they're going to use girls like you to do it."

Each point Blair made hit Serena hard in the chest as the blonde realized that Blair was right. Serena was in the same situation that she had always been; being offered opportunities just because of her notoriety and looks and nothing more. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked away. Her hurt obvious over Blair's words of truth. All those people inside that she was charming with ease were going along with the idea that she could bring more to them than just herself.

After a beat of silence, Blair spoke up again, "I asked you a question earlier today, Serena, and I'm going to ask it again. Why are you here? Because, judging from your poor attempt at using my answer earlier, it's not as if you actually want to come here. The only answer that I can come up with was that you want to sabotage my efforts, but that doesn't make any sense."

"No," Serena spoke up as she looked at her best friend and shook her head, "I don't. In fact that's the last thing I'd ever want to do to you."

"Well you have a funny way of showing it," Blair replied. "You asked me last week to accept you for who you are without competing and I have, but this friendship…this friendship isn't going to survive past high school if you keep doing this. I can handle the rivalry, obviously, but I'd rather spend my efforts on complete strangers who actually want what I want."

Serena nodded silently before speaking up, "I get that and you shouldn't have to worry about things like that…the reason why I'm here instead of at Brown like we've talked about over a hundred times…is because I was afraid."

Serena looked at Blair hesitantly as the brunette slowly processed what was just said. "Afraid of what?" Blair asked as she took a step towards her, the genuine look of concern on her face giving Serena courage to continue.

Serena sighed as her arms dropped and motioned over to the steps and moved to sit down, Blair not too far behind her. "This morning before we talked at school, my mom found this letter I received in the mail. It was from Dean Berube, personally inviting me to visit Yale." Serena glanced over at her best friend and quickly explained, "I didn't tell you because I figured that it didn't matter. I wasn't planning on accepting the invitation."

Blair pressed her lips together and silently nodded, "So what changed?"

"My mom was going on about how much of an honor it was to be invited and kept saying how 'if she was invited, she would have gone'. When I explained that Yale was yours and I wasn't interested in causing problems over something like this when everything was going so well with us…she hinted that it may be a good idea to go to school where I know someone there. 'Just in case'," Serena scoffed and shook her head to herself. "Then I started thinking of when I went away to boarding school and how I was before with Nate and all the things that I did…I got scared that maybe I'll end up just as I was before."

Serena looked down at her shoes silently before she felt a hand rest on her clutched ones in comfort. She looked over at Blair and saw the look of understanding on her face and continued on, "It just got to the point that it was so overwhelming that I lashed out by doing what I did today, and I am so sorry, B., for jeopardizing your chances because of my issues."

Blair nodded softly accepting her apology before speaking for the first time in a while, "S., you are in no way the same person you were before you left two years ago. Just because you mom doesn't have faith in that, doesn't mean that you shouldn't. Because you know what? I do. And so does Chuck and Nate. We're a family and no matter what happens, if you for some reason do fall, we will always be there to catch you no matter where we are."

Serena smiled, knowing that Blair was right. The group made a pact last spring to always be there for each other and to not judge. They had more than proven that they would do anything for Serena throughout the whole Georgina problem and it was time for the blonde to trust that no matter the distance between them, they will always find their way to each other if anyone of them was in need.

Serena sighed, grateful that everything was off her chest and that she and Blair were okay again, "What do you say that we get out of here and head to the hotel and hang out? I'll go in and see the Dean tomorrow to fix everything."

Blair smiled and nodded in agreement as she wrapped an arm around Serena in affection which the blonde quickly returned before the pair set off; leaving the mess they created inside behind them to deal with the next day. Life was too short to worry about the future. Sometimes important things like friendship and family have to come first.

xoxo

Nate sighed as he sat at a well-known haunt for the students of Yale, called Mike's Bar, waiting for Chuck to arrive. He checked his watch and saw that Chuck was more than his usual late and was about to call him just when his phone went off, indicating that he had a text message. Nate opened the message after seeing that it was from Chuck stating that he was back at the hotel instead with Blair and Serena if Nate was still serious about leaving tonight.

Nate sighed as he was about to reply his answer, wishing that Chuck realized this before Nate trekked over to this place first, that he was on his way. In the end it was probably for the best, Nate took the opportunity while he waited to order himself some food and now he wasn't so quick to leave. Maybe spending the evening with his friends would do him some good.It had been a while since the four of them just hanged out like they used to and since they were all basically going their separate ways next year, time was running out.

Just then a loud group made their way into the bar the leader yelling at the bartender, "A round of shots, Mike."

"Coming right up, guys," Mike called back.

Nate polished off his drink and looked over at the newcomers as the leader continued talking to his group, "We just taught Nate Archibald a lesson, and he'll never come back to Yale."

Nate frowned in confusion, wondering what happened to the guy that these guys thought was him. After spending the day ducking and hiding who he was, Nate had had enough and stood up from his chair as he called out to the group, "Excuse me. Did you say 'Nate Archibald'?"

"Yeah, we just tied that chump to the statue in the gazebo," one of the guys bragged in triumph, "It's priceless."

"I hope he freezes his ass off," another one chirped up. The whole situation reminded Nate of the many times he witnessed Blair and her group taking down someone at their school. This was the scene after their game was done and was in the midst of reveling in their victory. It cemented Nate's decision to wash his hands of Yale after this trip was over. The last thing he needed was to continue on with another four years of high school.

"Well, you got the wrong guy," Nate spoke confidently as he stepped up to the group's leader, "I'm Nate Archibald, and I look forward to coming here next year and kicking your ass. In fact, why wait?"

With that Nate pushed the guy down onto the floor, taking a few of his guys with him. It wasn't until after the fact that he realized just how outnumbered he was and rethought his strategy. "Okay, it can wait," he spoke as he raised his hands in the air before quickly throwing down a nearby bar stool and running out of the building as fast as he could. He was just glad that it didn't take long to lose them before he circled back to campus to help out the poor unfortunate guy taped in the gazebo.

As he arrived he instantly recognized the voice of the victim as he tried to get a passerby to help untie him. "Dan?" Nate called in surprise. He was definitely not prepared for the sight before him. There was Dan Humphrey, in his boxers, tied hands around the statue in the gazebo.

He slowly walked into the gazebo and couldn't help but joke as he took a moment to catch his breath, "I hope you at least bought the statue a drink first."

He began to work on the knots as Dan spoke, "No, you know, I don't know if I want you to help me."

Nate rolled his eyes and sighed as he explained, "Well, you might, if you knew that the only reason you're here is because they thought you were me."

"How is that even possible?" Dan asked in confusion, "I-I didn't lie about my name."

Nate figured as much and as he made his way to the gazebo, he realized who the culprit possibly be that mislead those guys into thinking someone else was him. "Yeah, but I have a feeling someone else did for you."

Dan looked at him before seeming to take him for his word as he asked the next question, "Why would anyone want to hurt, uh, Mr. Perfect Nate Archibald?"

"Apparently my legacy at Yale involves a lot of people hating my father's guts," Nate replied as he continued to work on Dan's knots. "It turns out he killed a few trust funds around here. By the way, this knot is ridiculous."

"Yeah, I know," Dan replied before seeing something just beyond Nate and began to obviously panic, "Could you, uh, could you try a little faster? 'Cause I see something approaching that looks female. I'm not entirely proud of my choice of boxers."

"You two again?" a voice asked as they approached the boys.

Nate looked over his shoulder and saw Jordan from earlier. Figuring the situation could be worse, Nate just went with it, "Yeah."

"Hi," Dan greeted obviously embarrassed.

Jordan pointed to Dan's position and asked, "Is this performance art piece your new plan to get my attention?"

"Uh, w-would it work if it was?" Dan asked.

Jordan pushed Nate aside as she immediately got to work on the knots. Nate had no problem letting her take over since he wasn't having any luck on his own. "Move over. My mom was in the Navy," Jordan explained, but even she was surprised at how intricate the knots were when she got a good look at them.

xoxo

Blair waited by herself outside of the admissions building the following morning, reflecting on the events of the last 24 hours. Serena was inside explaining the situation to the Dean the events of the previous night. Blair offered to go in with her, but Serena felt that it was something that she needed to do on her own. 'It was her mess to clean up' she explained before heading inside and Blair was proud of her for being willing to do that on her own.

After the girls made a truce they headed back to Chuck's hotel room and spend the evening with Chuck drinking and having a good time like they used to. They stayed up pretty late in the hopes that Nate would join them, but he never showed up. It was then that Chuck mentioned that Nate had found a sophomore to play with and he may have just spent the night with her that the girls decided to not worry about it too much.

Serena was the first to go to sleep that night, while Chuck and Blair stayed up and talked about their days. Chuck told Blair about his success with the skull and cross bones crowd and Blair told Chuck about what she deemed a successful introduction to Dean Berube despite Serena showing up at the last minute. Overall it was a successful weekend for the couple and looking back Blair couldn't help but see it as a good omen for what their future could entail come next fall.

Sure she was worried about being a part from her friends, but she trusted in their friendships and love and they'd get through it and come out on top the way only they could. Blair sighed softly as she watched the morning traffic on campus beginning to imagine her amongst them for next year. She couldn't help but consider that there was a chance that despite all her hard work that she may not be good enough to gain acceptance and there was nothing she could do about it.

Before she could delve too deep into that scary thought, she heard the door open behind her and looked over her shoulder at Serena, "How'd it go?"

Serena sighed and put on a smile, "I don't think he even blinked. He was definitely hard to read after I finished explaining." Blair nodded silently, not knowing what to expect now that everything was mostly out in the open.

"Remember the first time we came here together when we were nine?" Serena asked. Blair smiled and nodded as the two locked arms and began their trek to their waiting car. They decided to ride together and let the boys return home on their own. "Your dad took us to that Harvard/Yale game, and you tackle Senator Schumer's daughter for wearing a Harvard sweatshirt."

Blair laughed at the memory fondly as she responded, "I bet those grass stains never came out." Serena joined in at Blair's joke. "Promise me something?" Blair asked carefully.

Serena nodded in agreement without even waiting to hear what Blair wanted. "Promise that no matter what happens we'll get through this together?"

Serena looked at her best friend in shock that she would ask something that had now become so obvious, but Blair just needed the reassurance that at the end of the day she'd have what mattered most. Her family.

"Definitely," Serena replied, "We're sisters, B. Just like you'd never let me fall; I won't let you either."

Blair smiled, "You know what? I think we ought to say a proper good-bye. You know, just in case I end up at Hunter after the weekend's events."

Serena laughed at her dramatics and turned them around to look over the campus one last time. Blair took one last look around and sighed. This would be her last chance to see this place before acceptance and rejection letters were sent out. Blair could only hope that in the end all of her work and efforts led her to success. It seemed that all the dreams she had for her future from when she was a little girl were falling through the cracks. Like her dreams of marrying Nate and having the perfect life, but that was soon replaced with an even better partner and adversary in Chuck Bass. Blair could only hope that if this dream didn't come into being, that she'd gain something even better than she herself could have hoped to have in regards to her academic future.

xoxo

Chuck let Arthur carry his bags from the hotel as he strolled out to his waiting car. He sent a text to Nate to meet him outside the gates of campus to head home this morning after he didn't show the previous night. Here was the next morning and Chuck had yet to receive word about if Nate was actually going to be there or not. Figuring that he'd worry about it when he got there, Chuck turned his musing to the infiltration of the skull and bones society last night.

He'd admit only to himself and Blair that he was a bit worried on how he was going to pull of his last task from the brotherhood but thanks to Nate's phone call asking Chuck to meet him at Mike's bar the previous night, gave Chuck exactly what he needed to come out victorious. Nate was explaining that he had a rough day thanks to a certain Humphrey and how much he rather just leave right then and there than see how the rest of the trip played out. Chuck saw it for the opportunity that it was and took advantage. Wasting no time in sending the brotherhood after Humphrey, claiming it was Nate. Of course, the idiots believed him and did their thing while Dan kept screaming for help.

"Here he is," a voice spoke up as the same group from the brotherhood the previous night surrounded him. It was obvious that they figured out his deception and had come to seek retribution. Chuck checked his watch and smirked. They were right on schedule.

"It looks like someone messed up last night," the leader, who Chuck found out during the course of his research, named Bradly spoke. "You sent us after the wrong guy."

"He may have been the wrong guy for you, but he was the right guy for me," Chuck shrugged as he put his hands in his pockets casually.

"You'll pay for this when you get here next year," Bradly warned confidently.

Chuck relished in wiping that smile off of this guy's face as he shook his head and took something out of his pocket as he explained the situation for what it really was, "Oh, I'm not coming here next fall. Those girls I brought to the party last night? They witnessed some pretty incriminating acts with their lipstick cameras." Chuck handed the photos over to Bradly as he finished, "You may be the future leaders of America. You're now under the control of Chuck Bass. I own you."

Chuck gave a final smirk, relishing in his success up front and center as he tossed a flash drive to Bradly, "Keep it. I've got plenty."

With that, Chuck stepped pass the group and headed to where Arthur was waiting for him with his bags to head toward the car. The only thing that would have made the scene that just played out even better would be if Blair was there to enjoy it with him, but he looked forward to sharing in the memories with his girlfriend over and over again. She already knew he was successful, but she was a big fan of the climax scene of a take down and this one would be no different.

xoxo

Meanwhile, on the other side of campus, Nate was working his charm on Jordan on Dan's behalf. They were able to get Dan untied and since it was so late the trio went to where Dan was staying and got him some clothes before they went for breakfast. Nate honestly had a great time and it was nice to see that Jordan appeared to have forgiven him for his deception earlier. After witnessing the length of cruelty put upon Dan when those guys thought that he was Nate, she could see why Nate wasn't so forthcoming about his identity.

After the hostility had disappeared, Dan seemed like a very cool guy and Nate could definitely see them becoming friends now that they had gotten passed the illusion of what they thought they knew about each other to find out the truth. The only problem was that Dan still needed a letter of recommendation for his application into Yale and for that they needed Jordan.

They discussed it while Jordan was in the bathroom that it was best that Nate do the talking since it was obvious that he and Jordan had a connection despite their beginnings. This suited Nate just fine. As the three walked across campus, Nate began to explain the situation that Dan was in, fully aware that Jordan most likely already knew what they were up to when Dan had handed over his folder to her as Nate talked.

"So you think you can, uh, maybe help him out a bit?" Nate asked with a smile, feeling confident at the sight of Jordan smiling back at them as she held the folder in her hands.

"Well, I can't promise anything, but I'm pretty sure I can get someone in the department…," Jordan trailed off as Dan celebrated with a fist pump, "…to read these and write you a recommendation."

Nate and Jordan laughed at Dan's enthusiasm as he began to thank Jordan, "Yes. Thank you so much, really. It's so nice to know that my dream of going to Yale isn't dead. It might be, uh, embarrassed and humiliated, but not dead."

"And I really am sorry about lying to you," Nate spoke to Jordan. It was the first time he'd actually said the words throughout their time together despite their conversation earlier about his reasons.

Jordan nodded as she gave his arm a squeeze, "I can definitely understand the need to be someone else for a while, but next time you're up here, why don't you just be yourself?"

"Okay," Nate agreed with a smile as she stepped closer to him.

The two shared a lingering kiss before Jordan whispered, "I would have liked you whatever your name was." Nate raised his eyebrows as he bit his bottom lip. The thought was very comforting to know and it was unfortunate that he would never know for sure. Jordan gave him one last smile before saying her goodbyes, "Bye, Dan."

Nate smiled as he watched her go as Dan waved to her retreating form. "You know, you do Dan Humphrey better than Dan Humphrey," Dan said with a smile.

"Really?" Nate asked playing along.

"That, uh, that thousand yard squint- can I steal that?" Dan deadpanned.

"Well, thank you," Nate replied with a laugh as he checked his watch and realized the time. "I gotta head out, but I'll talk to you later, okay?"

Dan nodded before Nate headed to gather his things and take it to the car. He remembered a text message from Chuck the previous night about where they were going to meet. As Nate thought on his time with Dan, he couldn't help but get a bit upset with Chuck for using Dan the way he did. He knew that his friend didn't like the guy, but he didn't understand why it was to that extreme.

The more Nate thought about it as he made his way to the waiting car, seeing Dan in the distance, the more angry he became. Dan was a good guy and despite their differences no one deserved to go through what he did. Nate couldn't even imagine how bad it could have gone if he and Jordan wasn't there to help him out. When he finally arrived at the designated spot where Chuck and the car waited, he couldn't stop himself from having the conversation now rather than later. The idea that what happened to Dan could have easily have happened to him was what was driving him.

"Missed you last night," Chuck spoke with a smirk as he looked up from his phone as Arthur took Nate's bags form him and placed them into the waiting trunk.

"Did you? Or was it your plan all along just to get me out of the way?" Nate lashed out as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"What?" Chuck asked, not sure where the hostility was coming from.

"I know what you did," Nate replied as he motioned over to Dan in the distance who was currently looking lost as he carried his duffle bag.

Chuck glanced in the direction that Nate was indicating and didn't even bother giving Dan a second look as he turned his attention back to Nate, "You should be glad. Those guys were coming for you. I saved your ass."

"You didn't have to send them after Dan," Nate snapped back.

"Two birds, one stone. Seemed good to me," Chuck replied with a chuckle, "Besides, since when do you care about Humdrum Humphrey anyway? He's nothing."

"I actually think he's pretty cool," Nate retorted as he looked at his best friend.

Chuck sighed before responding, "Look, despite what you think he may be, Humphrey is nothing more than a lowlife who uses people like us for the things he needs all the while looking down his nose at us."

Nate shook his head in disbelief. Sure Dan had illusion about who they were because of their wealth, but he didn't use people like the people in their world. "I don't believe that. He's nothing like the people in our world," Nate denied

Nate watched as Chuck raised his brows at him in question. "Really?" he challenged, "Then explain to me why just last week he attempted to 'bond' with me only it turns out he was just attempting to soften me up to gain my secrets on what makes the 'Great Chuck Bass' work for some pathetic story he was writing?"

Nate frowned in confusion as he looked towards where Dan still stood. He slowly shook his head, not believing that Dan would pull a play like that. Nate's attention was pulled back to the conversation as Chuck asked, "Think about it Nate. You mean to tell me that he didn't gain anything form you other than his freedom from that statue, in regards to his future last night?"

Nate couldn't help but remember how just that morning he talked Jordan into helping Dan gain the chance to get a letter of recommendation for his Yale application and the feeling of getting played began to overwhelm him a little bit. Was it all just a lie like Chuck said? Nate looked at his best friend, feeling as if he didn't know all the facts like he thought he did and if what Chuck was saying was true about the game that Dan attempted to play on him to gain Chuck's secrets, than Dan was just like the people that Nate went to school with.

Chuck nodded silently; figuring out exactly Nate's thought process without him even saying a word. "I thought as much. Look,Blair has a saying in regards to her and S's views on people and I happen to think it fits us just as well: You like to see the good in people, I like to see the truth."

Nate looked down at the ground, finding the similarities between him and Serena not surprising. It didn't surprise him that he and Serena were viewed as the more trusting of others while Blair and Chuck remained the more cautious and cynical. In the end it worked for the group as a whole because it allowed them to protect each other from those people who weren't so sincere with their intentions.

"So are you riding home with me or are you riding the train with your new best friend?" Chuck asked. At the sound of Chuck's voice, Nate looked up and saw that Chuck was genuinely letting him make the choice on how Nate was going to play this. "I'm the last person to judge anyone, but you know how important loyalty is to me. At the end of the day, I chose to protect you last night and I have no regrets on throwing him under the bus after what he tried to pull last week," Chuck explained with conviction.

Nate thought on it and realized that there wasn't really a decision to be made and nodded softly, "I think I'll ride with you." The feelings of trust Nate felt earlier with Dan all but disappeared with the morning's revelations and because of that, Nate didn't feel comfortable with confronting Dan about the accusations that Chuck made at the moment.

"You sure?" Chuck asked cautiously. Nate nodded in confirmation.

Overall, Dan hadn't done anything to him beyond what almost everyone else around him had done. All Nate could hope was that maybe Dan's eyes had been opened after their time together the previous night and change, but then again he dated Serena for a year and came out the other side with preconceived notions of who they were. You'd think that it wouldn't be that way, but Nate witnessed it first-hand the previous morning when Dan lashed out at him for using his name to gain some solitude.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Nate spoke out loud before he climbed into the back of the car with Chuck following after him. "Where's Blair anyway?"

"She and Serena are riding home together for some girl bonding time," Chuck explained with a smirk as the car door shut behind him.

"Explain to me why Serena was here this weekend anyway? I thought she was going to Providence for Brown," Nate clued in on the fact that Serena was actually on campus with them.

"It's a long story. But fortunately for you, we have a long ride ahead for you to get caught up on the workings of the women in our lives," Chuck replied still smirking.

The pair went into their easy conversation. Their earlier confrontation forgotten until well into the trip, about an hour later when Nate would ask for more details on what happened last week with Chuck and Dan. Maybe Chuck was rubbing off on Nate, finally, but Nate didn't want to be put in the same position that was in not too long ago because he chose to trust the wrong people around him. He wasn't planning on going full suspicion on every new person that crosses his path, but the events of the past twenty four hours taught Nate to be a bit more cautious.

In the end the dreams he had of going away to college and escaping the mistakes and burdens of his parents were proven this weekend to most likely never happening. As he sat there in the back of the limo with his best friend, Nate noticed that the realization wasn't as devastating as he would have assumed it would be. Nate was privileged in a way few people were and it wasn't what was found in his bank account or his family prestige. It was in the friends he surrounded himself with. Despite their flaws they were his family and they'd protect each other till the end.

Dreams, everybody has them, some good, some bad…some you wish that you could forget.

Sometimes you realize you've outgrown them…sometimes you feel like they're finally coming true…

And some of us just have nightmares.

But no matter what you dream, when morning comes, reality intrudes and the dream begins to slip away.

Dream a little dream of me.

X.O.X.O.,

Gossip Girl

A/N: And the chapter is done! It took some time, but I'm overall happy with how it came out. I stayed up until 4 am this morning to finish this before the end of the month and I look forward to getting started on the next chapter for you all. Thank you all for you continued support and words of encouragement. Welcome to new readers and followers and I promise there will be more B and C next chapter!

Obviously I made some major changes in comparison to the canon with Nate not going off with Dan into the proverbial sunset and Serena's reasons for coming to Yale in the first place, but I felt that with the amount of changes I've inflicted on these characters throughout both this and the previous story that this was a true to character development. With half the NJBC at a better place than they were in the canon it forces the other half to come along for the ride. Granted, as I've shown with B still using Pete to get back at S for stealing her answer, there's still a growing period to be had with all of them lol

I took out the fighting scene because as amusing as it was…I just didn't think it fit for me. Watching it again as I wrote this chapter I found myself embarrassed for them rather than rooting for a specific person to win. Although I'll admit was all for B throwing her clutch at the back of S's head, but I've already established that the blonde wasn't my favorite of the characters on the show so it shouldn't come as much of a surprise. I feel that the way I wrote it gave them clarity and to show them actually growing up into adults.

Anyway would love to hear your thoughts and opinions. Good or bad. It gives me a feel on the perception of the story and I like getting e-mails telling me I have reviews for my story. Still would love to know your thoughts on who my version of Gossip Girl is! See you next month!

Lots of love

-Plei4fun