Jenni - LOL! Your boyfriend sounds like Tybalt! That cracked me up so much, I bet he's in heaps of trouble from the school and his parents.
A - Yeah, I always imagine Benvolio as being the sweetest boy ever, not always the best looking or most charismatic, but just really sweet. I wonder how long Hermia and Benvolio will stay broken up for. And storms do suck, especially if you are in a manky old leaking tent with a mother who's convinced it's the height of fun.
Magenta - Haha, I actually imagined it as Tybalt being a mean boy and the 'King Bee' and Benvolio being a new boy who gets unwittedly caught up in all the fighting because he hates violence. Romeo could be the one who is 'too gay to function!'
So, it's the second to last chapter. Everybody gathers at Escalus' Palace, to meet up with their families and talk about the swap and what it has done for them. And will Romeo and Juliet 'come out the closet' at last? Let me know how you think it goes!
Escalus waited at the window off his palace, looking out over Verona. People moved about like ants, and the cars were like beetles, their coats of paint shining in the sun. When he looked over Verona, he always felt weirdly responsible, as if Verona was a child that needed love and attention. It certainly felt like that sometimes.
Angelo Fulgencio, his Deputy, walked up to him. Escalus was quite a modern man, and as it wasn't a formal occasion, so there was no need to bow down to him.
"The families have arrived, Escalus. They're in separate rooms whilst the camera crew set up in the big receiving room. Would you like to come down and wait there for them?"
"Thanks, Angelo. How's er, Gabriel's head?"
Angelo rolled his eyes "He's been treating me like a servant for the past week. But other than that, he's fine, and although he's absolutely convinced that he should be off school for the rest of term, he's going back to school next Monday. But he won't be able to do PE"
"Oh, well, that's good then" said Escalus "I think I will come down to the receiving room. Do you want to come?"
"Of course"
Escalus led the way down and entered the room. The camera crew were finished and several other members of his family were present, including Mercutio's mother and his nephews Paris and Valentine.
"Are you ready, sir?" asked Mr. Camera Man (This one wasn't Dave)
"Yes. Bring them all in"
Soon, the families were all in the room. Lord Capulet entered first, with Mercutio, Romeo, Benvolio, Beatrix and Hermia who had come along for the ride. Mercutio seized Escalus in a bear crushing hug to annoy him, and then a slightly more gentle hug for his mother and brother.
"Paris! Give me a big hug and a kiss" demanded Mercutio, rounding on his boring cousin.
"No!" snapped Paris.
"Surely you must have missed me!"
"No, I did not!"
The Montagues entered next with Juliet, Tybalt and Rosaline. Hermia hugged Juliet first, and then Lord Capulet hugged her and Hermia at the same time.
"From what I have experienced" began Lord Capulet. Both girls rolled their eyes, and waited for their lecture "I am going to spend some more time with both of you, and I'm not going to be so miserable as it's having an effect on our relationships. And I'm going to be a bit less strict. You're teenagers. You need to make mistakes, otherwise you will never learn anything. Understand?"
"Can I get my nose pierced?" asked Hermia.
"No!" snapped Lord Capulet "I mean, wait until you're sixteen! And as for you, Juliet, show me this belly piercing. I'm upset you went behind my back, but I suppose it's not as bad as a tattoo!"
"Or a baby" added Juliet, lifting her top and showing him the piercing.
"No. Piercings and late nights are now the limit!"
Tybalt shuffled over to meet his mum "Hey mum. How are you doing?"
"Hello, sweetipops!" cooed Regina "Oooh, you've gotten a bit podgy, haven't you? Have they been feeding you up? I've made you dinner!"
"Really?" asked Tybalt, secretly groaning and retching "What is it?"
"Only your favourite. Only...Sausage Surprise!"
"Hurray" muttered Tybalt "And also, mum, there is something I need to tell you"
"Oh. Really? What is it?"
"Ros! Come and show mum"
Rosaline walked over from where she was greeting Angelo, and Tybalt picked up her hand with the ring.
"We're getting married!"
Regina squealed delightedly "Oooh, congratulations Tibby! I'm so excited already! What colour scheme are you going to have? What kind of dress? Oh, Rosaline, you could wear my wedding dress from when I married Tibby's daddy! It's got little embroided cats on! We'll have to start preparing! I'll make sure you have the wedding of the year!"
Rosaline went back to Angelo, and then Romeo went over to meet his parents.
"Mum, dad, I've missed you-"
"You, young man, have some explaining to do" said Claudio sternly.
Romeo's face fell "What?"
"Prank calls" began Paulina "Harassment. Cat kidnapping. Tormenting your English teacher. Rude messages on the school whiteboard. We've heard all about it. What have you done?"
"Nothing!" protested Romeo "I'm a good boy!"
Anthony turned to his twins "So, did you have a nice time?"
"Yes" said Beatrix.
"It was ok" replied Benvolio.
"Did you cause any trouble?" asked Anthony.
"Yeah! We dressed up in Lady Capulet's clothes after she left Eugene and then paraded around Verona, and Hermia and Mercutio went up to Demetrius' house, knocked on the door and flashed him!" giggled Beatrix.
"Oh, honestly Beatrix" muttered Anthony "What about you, Benvolio? Did you cause any trouble?"
Benvolio had been looking over at Hermia, who had been looking at him "Oh. Not a lot. I mean, we played music loudly and I shouted at Eugene once or twice and we did try and sneak in Tybalt's room one Saturday. And then last Friday we had a party and I got drunk. But other than that...I've behaved myself"
"Well" said Escalus loudly, so everyone turned to face him and pay attention "How has it been?"
The teenagers cheered.
"Are you going to call truce and stop feuding?"
"Yes!" declared Romeo and Juliet loudly. The other teenagers agreed and nodded. Even Tybalt nodded, but his expression remained neutral. Claudio and Paulina nodded.
"I'll be civil" muttered Lord Capulet.
"Do you think the experiment has helped?" asked Escalus.
"Yeah!"
"How do you view each family now?" Escalus asked again.
"It's helped us realise that they're actually people like us" said Juliet "I mean, we are actually a lot more similar than we realise. Aunty Regina calls her cats her babies, but Paulina also calls her dogs her babies, and we both have someone in the family who is a bad cook, someone who's a bit crazy, someone who's really annoying – I'm looking at you, Beatrix, you Twitard, and you, Hermia, for just being Hermia, and we have someone who's a stereotype, and both Rosaline and Paulina come from humble backgrounds"
"What a lovely politically correct way of putting it" added Paulina. Juliet laughed, as by now she was used to her sense of humour.
"Exactly" said Tybalt.
"Tybalt? This sounds rather unusual" remarked Escalus.
"Yeah, well, they're people too, and I mean, like Juliet says, we have some stuff in common with them and that. Do you get me?"
"Yes, I do. Are you going to stop causing trouble?" asked Escalus.
"I can be civil" replied Tybalt "And I have other things besides feuding to be getting on with now"
Rosaline held her hand up with the ring on for the cameras to see. They focused on it for a moment.
"What about you, Egues? I remember you said that the boys helped you to feel young again" asked Escalus. Mercutio, Romeo and Benvolio sniggered.
"Well..." said Lord Capulet "Like Tybalt says, we do have our similarities and differences. And they are more important things in this life to be doing than feuding. As irritating as Mercutio and Romeo can be, I have more pressing matters to attend to. Like spending time with my girls, and sorting out divorce suits"
"And what about you two, Mercutio and Romeo?"
"Us?" asked Mercutio.
"Yes. You"
"Well..." Romeo dithered "We're not going to prank call Tybalt anymore pretending to be from Planned Parenthood, are we, Mercutio?"
"No" said Mercutio, shaking his head "We're going to stop being so sneaky, if Tybalt stops being so homophobic and aggressive, right?"
"Good. I'm very proud of you" beamed Escalus "Is there anything anyone else wants to say?"
Juliet charged through the crowd and tapped Romeo on the shoulder. He turned, and kissed her deeply on the lips.