Pictures in magazines, movie screens
Mirrors and cameras, so many beauty queens
It's so good to be
Fabulous and glamourous,
We love ourselves and no one else
Vanity.
The Monday that Blair Waldorf had taken the crown from Serena, she had put into motion a chain of events that would change the future of Constance and St Judes.
After school that day, she had spent two hours researching the subjects of her kingdom, mentally compiling a list of Projects and Victims, then had began to read Gossip Girl archives on "the ones to watch" (namely Chuck, Serena – best friends or not, they were still frenemies - Jenny and Penelope). From this information, she started to realise that Penelope's fatal attraction for Chuck could have possibly handed her the scissors to cut Penelope down. She stored everything away in her mind for a time when it would be most helpful, which would hopefully be the coming Friday at her first party as hostess since returning the UES.
Midway through designing the invites, Blair smirked as a scheme began to twirl in her complex female mind.
To say her plot had been a screaming success would be an understatement. She had managed to indirectly push the two together without having to acknowledge each of them further than a cool smile and a polite nod, and had received news that they were now making out heavily in a back booth.
(She was a little angry that it'd happened so fast, but had later realised that sooner rather than later in one of these situations was always for the best.)
"Hurry up!" Blair hissed, pulling insistently on Kati's hand, dragging her (and Is) further into the thrumming crowd of people inside Socialista. "Where the hell is she?" Blair murmured.
Kati and Is looked at each other, then cautiously back at Blair. "Blair?"
Blair froze for a moment, then whirled around to glare at the two. "You both hate Penelope, right?" Kati and Is nodded instantly and vehemently, not because they actually hated Penelope but because they'd hate whoever Blair hated or told them to hate. Their leader smiled happily in response, but her smile quickly grew into a devious, triumphant smirk as she spied her prey in the corner. "Then you'll be glad to see her and her overly-generous nose sent on a one-way trip into social oblivion. Watch and learn ladies."
She plucked her phone from her purse, extended her arm, and captured the moment that would send Penelope right back to the bottom of the social ladder. Kati and Is looked in the direction of her arm, and gasped in shock when they saw who it was that Penelope was currently straddling in the corner booth; the "passionate" exchange looked extremely one sided, as the guy's hands lolled emptily on the seat of the booth.
Blair stepped forward, a dangerous glint in her dark eyes, calmly tapping Penelope on the shoulder with one hand as she sent the fatal text message with the other. "Hi!"
Penelope's lips came away from Chuck's as she turned to meet her smirking (subtext: fabulous) Queen and adversary.
The brunette looked hesitantly back at Chuck, who was too drunk comprehend what was going on. He just smirked lazily at her, shrugging his shoulders as he saw Blair staring at the two of them. Blair only had to place a hand on her hip, raise a perfectly polished eyebrow and pout her pretty red lips before Penelope practically leapt from his lap.
"Blair-" Penelope began anxiously, only to see Blair's eyes narrow disbelievingly.
"Shut up," Blair snapped, her eyes flashing warningly. "I'll deal with you in a minute."
Penelope nodded submissively, and Blair stepped towards Chuck with betrayal shining in her eyes. "You don't get to do this to me, Bass. Say goodbye to life as you know it."
Chuck simply grinned in response, not coherent enough to realise that Blair was deadly serious. "I'm Chuck Bass," was his only reply.
"And I'm Blair Waldorf. Never underestimate that."
Chuck's mouth opened in appreciative awe, just as Blair's hand raised and slapped him hard across the cheek. "It was a pleasure doing business with you. Enjoy the party. It'll be your last for a while."
She stepped away from Chuck quickly after that, but she still saw the angry red mark that her palm left. Turning back to Penelope, she barked, "Outside," and pushed past her, her shoulder narrowly missing making contact with Penelope's.
Blair stood facing away from the three girls surrounding her. She could practically hear Penelope chewing on her thumbnail, could almost feel the anticipant thumping of Kati and Is' hearts. She took a deep breath and slowly turned to face her taller brunette subject.
Penelope began to smirk, but, seeing Blair's phone in her hand and the glares of Kati and Is, she soon realised that she would most definitely not escape punishment. Penelope looked fearfully at her shoes. "Look at me. I said, look at me." Penelope raised her eyes to Blair's. "I always knew that you were a desperate, attention seeking whore, but I never thought you'd be a backstabbing bitch too."
"But, Blair-" Penelope looked to Kati and Is for support, but they gave her none, choosing instead to glare maliciously at her.
"Nobody cares what you have to say, P. You and your opinions are irrelevant. I was going to plot your destruction myself, but it turns out that you were stupid enough to hand me the means to do it. Making out with Chuck Bass will never be acceptable. Especially not when he's specifically been forbidden to you. Your life is over, do you understand me?"
Penelope nodded.
"It's time for you to hang up your headbands and go home, Penlope. You aren't wanted around here anymore." With that, Blair turned on her heel and Kati and Is rushed after her, leaving a shivering Penelope alone outside the club as the double doors slammed closed behind the life that Penelope had always known.
Spotted: Queen B dismissing a disgraced subject in one of the nastiest takedowns we've seen in months. We always knew P had a thing for our resident bad boy, but why so angry, B?
You know you love me,
XOXO Gossip Girl.
Blair smirked at the Gossip Girl blast as she made her way back towards Chuck. He now sat alone, lounging in a different booth nursing another glass of scotch.
"Haven't you had enough?" Blair quizzed, narrowing her eyes at him in disapproval. Chuck smirked back at her, and made to raise the glass to his lips to take another defiant swig. Blair was faster though, and plucked the glass from his hand before he was able.
"Bitch," he muttered in protest.
"Alcoholic."
Chuck smiled genuinely this time. "Touche, Waldorf."
Blair rolled her eyes and sat down beside him. "Enjoy the party girls, your work here is done." She smiled at Kati and Is as they made their way back into the thrumming crowds of people on the dance floor. She waited until the two were out of sight, then drank the glass of scotch herself.
Chuck stared at her questioningly, shook his head and then rubbed his temple with his right hand. "Thirteen years," he murmured.
"What did you say?"
"I said I've known you for thirteen years and yet you still manage to surprise me. How do you do it, Blair? You're the only girl who ever surprises me." The intensity of Chuck's gaze brought heat to Blair's cheeks and she looked away for a second, but it was enough to break their moment. Chuck looked at this hands, then at his watch. "I should go." He stood to leave, and Blair's inner turmoil surrounding her feelings for him caused her to grab his arm.
"Wait. Stay. Just for a minute."
"I thought I was 'saying goodbye to life'? Backing out of threats already, B? I thought I knew you better than that," Chuck smirked at her threateningly, and Blair dropped his arm like it burned her, then smiled cruelly.
"Fine. Go. But just remember that the next time that you're at one of these events, you'll be all alone."
"That's never going to happen, Blair."
Blair scoffed a laugh. "We'll see."
"I'm Chuck Bass," he replied scornfully, and Blair stood up, staring him directly in the eye.
"So you keep saying." She smirked. "But you seem to forget that I'm Blair Waldorf, and for right now and the forseeable future, I own you and everybody else inside this place. This is my game now, Bass; I thought you of all people would've recognised a hostile takeover. Now please leave before before I call security, I no longer want you at my party. Goodnight." She stood and brushed past him, leaving him staring at the back of her head and her swaying hips as she walked away, frowning as he felt lust and admiration building up inside of him for the retreating brunette. Damn her.
Blair felt his gaze burn into her back and took a deep breath to clear her thoughts, and when that failed, she grabbed a drink from a passing tray and gulped down the contents. Knowing she'd regret that decision the following morning, she ordered a bottle of water from the bar and sat alone, watching the throng of her classmates' bodies swaying to the pumping music. Funny, she mused, how one could feel so alone and so isolated, even when surrounded by three hundred other teenagers who would do whatever she wanted them to. She spied Chuck making his way out of the door, shaking off a drunk sophomore wearing an orange dress, and smirked. Know your place, jackass.
She shook her head and smiled as Serena gestured to her from the dancefloor, then squealed as Nate plucked her from her barstool and deposited her next to her blonde best friend.
She wasn't lonely, Blair realised. She was Queen.
School on Monday was eventful to say the least. Blair remained silent for most of the day, only speaking when necessary, choosing instead to nod her approval or to narrow her eyes at things that she disliked. To say it was ugly when Penelope crossed her path would be an understatement.
Penelope glanced around worriedly, trying her hardest to avoid Blair and her mean girls. As if she had screamed their names, she walked directly into Kati and Is. The two sneered at her disrespectfully, looking her up and down and shaking their heads.
"Look, Is, it's a lying manipulative whore."
Is looked around, as if trying to see something, then her eyes landed on Penelope and she smiled cruelly. "Oh yeah, Kati, I see it now. The one with the huge nose and last season's hair cut?"
"Yeah, that's her. God, she's so dumb. To think she went against a specific order," replied Kati quickly.
"To think that she made out with one of her closest friend's exes."
"When it was specifically forbidden."
"Pity," said Is.
"Pity," murmured Kati, the two almost like a mirror of eachother.
"And to think, we almost invited her to Blair's birthday party. Ridiculous."
"Ridiculous is quite the understatement." The two girls jumped at Blair's cold voice, lowering their eyes to the floor as their Queen stared at them. "Disobeying orders, ladies?" The two shook their heads and looked hopefully at Blair, smiling in relief when she smirked at them in response. "I knew you were smart enough to know the different between A-List and Z-list." She turned to Penelope.
"I thought your species of cockroach had gone extinct, but apparently not. If you're waiting for me to squish you myself, by all means continue staring."
Penelope shook her head meekly and looked at her shoes. "No, Blair."
"Then run along."
The following Saturday, Blair laughed gaily as Nameless Guy #3 twirled her around on the dance floor, pausing a moment to tear the silver headband from her head as she shook her mane of now-wild curls loose. She stuffed the offending piece of material into her clutch and swatted jokingly at the hands of Nameless Guy #4 who'd grabbed her hips and her hand.
Except he definitely wasn't nameless. Chuck pulled Blair roughly against his chest and locked her in place. "If this pathetic little charade is for my benefit, you're wasting your time."
Blair looked up at him from under her lashes and smiled. "Don't flatter yourself."
He scoffed in reply. "You flatter yourself by thinking I'd be affected by your amateur display."
"No display, Chuck. I'm just having a good time."
"Right. Since when does the 'Queen B' do anything without an agenda? I can see right through you." Chuck knew this was a lie as soon as it left his mouth, because in truth, Blair's little 'display' was indeed getting to him, and he had absolutely no idea what was going through her mind or what she had planned.
"No, Chuck. I can see right through you. You're panicking because I'm not doing what you expect me to do," Blair mocked. "Besides, I thought you liked being surprised?"
Chuck stared at her blankly, choosing to ignore her last statement. "You're right. I didn't expect you to act like a whore."
Blair grinned to show how little his remark bothered her, then leaned forwards so that her mouth touched Chuck's ear.
"First things first, Bass; I am not acting like a 'whore'. Dancing with a harmless couple of guys is not whore-like behaviour. Secondly, if I was acting like a whore, who says it's unallowed? I suggest you read 'The Art of War'. 'To know your enemy, you must become your enemy'; haven't you ever heard of research? Now, if you'll excuse me, I must go and powder my nose." She pulled herself out of Chuck's grasp easily, her mouth remaining in a line but her eyes laughed at his expression. Blair back-stepped until she was out of the reach of his arms, "And by the way; the next time you tell somebody about your 'feelings' for me, make sure that person isn't the boyfriend of my best friend. Turns out you're not as indifferent as you would have had me believe. Maybe you should remember that your best friend is more loyal to his girlfriend (me) than he is to you. Poor Chuck. Nobody to turn to but the real whores you pay for. Enjoy the party." She smiled angelically and made her way back to Serena and the girls. Chuck just stared dumbly after her.
Oh no, she did not.
It was a little after twelve thirty when Blair spotted Chuck alone at the bar, nursing a glass of scotch. She was feeling braver, probably thanks to the copious amounts of champagne currently coursing through her system, and so boldly made her way towards him. He didn't see her coming until she sat beside him.
"I'll have what he's having."
Chuck raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you drink scotch?"
Blair shrugged disinterestedly. "I forget." She took a long swig, and after settling her glass onto the bar top, licked her lips. "Nice choice. I prefer mine a little more aged, but that was surprisingly adequate."
In spite of himself, Chuck was impressed. "Spoken like somebody who knows their scotch," he remarked passively, and Blair smirked at him.
"I know a lot of things."
"You win."
Blair blinked. "Excuse me?"
"I don't want us to fight any more," Chuck replied honestly, the alcohol in his system also making him a little bolder.
She raised an eyebrow. "You hate to lose," she accused suspiciously; "I don't believe you."
"I don't was us to fight any more tonight," he relented, brushing her hair away from her eyes. "Blair..."
She knocked his hand backwards off of her face, but caught it before he could place it back onto the bar. She watched his expression carefully. "You're drunk. I'm drunk. I'm still very angry at you. Me speaking to you now will not change anything. You still have a long stint left in Coventry come tomorrow morning."
"Ah yes, the delightful state in which nobody speaks to or looks at me. How did you manage to do that? Getting people to shun me must have been very difficult, even for you. I am Chuck Bass, after all."
"Your name doesn't carry as much weight as it used to."
Chuck smirked. "The guys still listen to me."
"No," Blair corrected. "The guys listen to whoever controls their social lives and sex lives."
Chuck nodded in understanding. "And since the girls control their social and sex lives, and you control the girls, you're in charge. What did I do to deserve this?"
In response, Blair scoffed and raised an eyebrow. "You made out with Penelope." Despite the indignant expression on her face and the tone of her voice, Chuck recognized something unfamiliar in the way Blair was acting; hurt.
Blair pulled her hair off her neck and twisted it into a knot, feeling lucky that the cut of her red dress would work well with an up-do as well as a down-do. Chuck's eyes widened as her slender neck was exposed, and soon looked back at his now-empty glass of scotch. "I'm sorry," He choked out desperately, hoping to salvage whatever was left of their twisted relationship.
"I should go," Blair remarked coolly. "Fraternizing with the enemy will almost definitely send the wrong message."
"I completely agree. Would you like to dance, Blair?" Blair narrowed her eyes and stayed staring at Chuck as the voice behind her spoke again. "Ignorance is rude, Blair. I thought someone with breeding as good as yours would at least know some manners."
"You weren't invited, Carter."
"Since when has that ever stopped me? I'm Carter Baizen, baby."
Chuck stared at Carter in disbelief, incredulity making him raise an eyebrow. Blair's eyes flashed as she turned to face Carter. "I'm not your baby. I have no time for manners when it comes to people like you. Please leave." She stared at him ominously, her eyes narrowing as Carter began to smirk.
"That's not what you said-" Blair cut him off by standing on one of his feet with her heel.
"Get out. Now."
Carter grinned and mock-bowed. "As you wish, your majesty."
Watching his retreating back, Blair sighed in relief. She rubbed her forehead and checked the time on her phone. "Thank god," she muttered, jumping as Chuck cleared his throat behind her.
"What was that about?"
Blair turned to glare at him. "None of your business. You can leave too. I've had quite enough of people with your initials turning up uninvited at my events. Next time don't bother. If you see him in the near future, grace him with the same information. Excuse me."