[o62] gossip girl : storybook endings
Title: Storybook Endings
Author: In Fair Verona
Genre: Romance + Adventure
Pairing: CBN
Rating: T
Summary: Blair Waldorf never believed in fairy-tales. However, weeks after her best friend left for boarding school, Blair finds herself enthralled by the pages of an old book, and is thrown in the midst of a strange new world, at the center of a war, and in between a prince and a knight.
PROLOGUE | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15
A/N: Yay, actually got this one up with reasonable timing! Thanks to everyone who puts up with my inconsistent updates.
Blair didn't sleep at all that night. It had nothing to do with tossing or turning, or the restlessness of lying awake drumming over feelings and emotionally stunted monarchs. No, it was none of that. After the ball, Blair hadn't even bothered going back to her bedroom, let alone to sleep.
She dropped the queen bee act to instead play the busy bee, sneaking into the palace kitchens and gathering provisions as she saw fit before racing them out to the royal Dalmascan dock. Yes, she had spent the better part of the night searching for that in itself as well. A mile or so out from the palace, there was a river. Perhaps the only source of fresh water in all of the desert that was Dalmaca. The river flowed into the palace's water gardens from one end, while the other… predictably led to a larger body of water. It also housed a dock of smaller boats ("Dhows", she had learned from Nathaniel during one of their treacherous commutes), one of which would eventually take her out to sea. Blair wasn't sure exactly where she would go from there. For once in her life, she didn't have everything properly planned out, and for the first time she had no choice but to live life without an itinerary, the way the Serena Van Der Woodsens of the world did. C'est la vie.
Serena's fist was about to make contact with the hard mahogany of Nathaniel's bedroom door when the thing itself swung inward, revealing a tousled and tired looking knight. The look of surprise and enthusiasm that swept through him when he realized she was standing there, in front of his door, didn't escape her and in fact made what she was about to do that much harder.
"Serena." He looked at her in awe, "Wow. I thought you left." His face broke out into an ecstatic grin, "I'm glad you didn't, but, to be honest… I really didn't think you'd stick around."
"Yeah, well I won't be. For long." Serena explained tiredly, staring down at her bare feet. She was still dressed in her ballroom attire, wrinkled silk, frizzy hair, and nothing to walk in aside from her torturously tall slippers. The blonde bit her lip hesitantly, willing herself to look Nathaniel in the eye. "Look, there's something I need to tell you."
"Anything." Nate agreed, still giving her that over-the-moon expression that suggested that he really didn't get it how important this was. She was serious. Serena peered past Nathaniel's shoulder, initially contemplating talking to him inside his room before realizing that she might never actually get around to talking if they went in there.
"Will you walk with me?" Serena suggested, looking down the empty hallway. Nathaniel nodded eagerly, stepping across the threshold and shutting the door to his room behind him as he followed in her stride. "Look, Nathaniel, I wasn't being entirely honest with you last night." She explained, stopping when they were farther down along the corridor.
"What do you mean?" The knight inquired, quirking a brow at the blonde.
"I'm not from Dalmasca. Not from any part of it, town nor country." She admitted bravely as she watched the knight with wary eyes, anticipating his reaction. "What happened last night was a mistake."
"Serena, I don't care where you're from." Nate explained simply, reaching out and taking one of her hands in his. "Last night was unlike… anything I could have ever expected, or imagined."
"I feel the same way, but it was still a huge mistake." Serena stressed, pulling her hand out from his.
"What are you talking about?" Nathaniel furrowed his brow, "There's no way that anything that perfect would be a mistake. Meeting you, it may have been an accident, but… I think it was the best accident I've ever been in."
"Nathaniel, stop!" Serena held up her hands in an attempt to provide some distance between the two. "It wasn't an accident!" Nathaniel looked at her, even more perplexed than he already was by her antics. "I was looking for you, specifically." Serena sighed, "Not to do… what was, done last night. That was not a part of the plan," She persisted, "But, look…" It was best to just blurt it out and get it over with. "I met your father."
"Wait. What?" Nathaniel looked at her like she had grown a second head, shaking his head in disbelief. "I don't understand. You're from Zaibach?" The soldier in him immediately tensed up at the enemy's presence, and it didn't go unnoticed by Serena. In fact, it kind of stung her a little. Men had always been able to turn like a dime when it came to Serena. The loved her ardor and her vivacity when it inflated their own egos but when it threatened them… then her affection was seen as promiscuity and her liveliness was recklessness. "What the hell do you have to do with my father?"
"He misses you, Nathaniel." The blonde explained simply, tilting her head to the side. "He wants to make things right with you, and he wants you to understand why he did what he did."
"So he sends you to tell me all of this?" Nathaniel inquired, putting his hands on his hips as he stared at the girl accusingly. "I'd call it cowardly, but that's just like him."
"Well would you have talked to him, if he came himself?" Serena asked in return, folding her arms around herself, as if the action protected her from his incriminating stare. Luckily, Nathaniel was silent which further proved her point. Serena extended one hand cautiously out towards him, as a gesture of peace. "Hear me out, please?"
"Why should I? Apparently everything you told me last night was a lie. What makes this morning any different?"
"Nothing." Serena shrugged, "But if that's the case, then whatever it was that you felt last night… that connection, it's still there. That wasn't a lie. So trust what you feel." She studied him carefully, blue eyes open with undisguised earnestness. Nathaniel eyed the blonde warily, before deciding that it couldn't hurt to at least hear out what The Captain had to say. It should be interesting, at the very least.
"This better be good." Nathaniel conceded, placing his hand in hers. Serena offered the knight a wry smile before leading him away towards one of the more private palace balconies.
Blair was making her way back towards the kitchens with another round of provisions when she spotted Nate and Serena across the hall. The pair walked side by side, exchanging soft smiles and warm remarks, so taken in with one another that they barely even noticed her heading towards them. "Serena," Blair announced unceremoniously, stopping in front of them, "How nice of you to acknowledge me during your stay at the palace." The brunette threw down one of her signature icy stares. Needless to say, it wasn't the first time Serena had been on the receiving end of one of them.
"Blair." Serena smiled awkwardly, neglecting to respond to her sarcasm.
"You two know each other?" Nathaniel asked, furrowing a brow in confusion as he looked back and forth between the two girls. Before Blair could get a word in about Manhattan and Constance Billiard and fake boarding schools, Serena had beaten her to the punch with a precomposed fib.
"We met at Princess Georgina's masquerade ball." Serena explained innocently.
"Another event, much like last night, in which you were kind of not invited." Blair returned without missing a beat. She forced herself to smile transparently, prolonging the tension between the two and willing Serena to break it.
The blonde had no problem doing so, dismissing the brunette and instead turning to face Nathaniel. "Nate," Blair cringed at the use of her given nickname and once again as Serena gently placed her hand on his forearm. "Think about what I said." Serena stared at him intently before dropping her arm and making a nonchalant exit back in the direction from which they came.
"What did she say?" Blair asked accusingly, looking back and forth from Nate to Serena's retreating form.
"Nothing, don't worry about it." Nathaniel piped quickly; almost too quickly. Blair looked at the boy, sternly, disappointed in his lame attempts at switching the subject. "Blair, it's nothing." He reassured her, throwing an arm around the other girl's shoulders. "So, how did it go with Charles last night?"
"Um, nothing short of disastrous," Blair returned bitterly, "but back to you and that blonde haired hussy-"
"What do you mean, disastrous?" Nathaniel frowned. He seemed almost too affected by Blair and Chuck's tumultuous relationship, like he was suffering more than either of them. "You got cold feet." Nathaniel guessed, "Couldn't tell him how you felt?"
"No, actually, I think I made that pretty clear, Nathaniel." Blair spat out, "Why do you assume it's my fault everything went wrong?" She asked accusingly, "I went to his doorstep with my heart on my freaking sleeve and got greeted by a half-naked Charles and his new… chuck-buddy." The brunette gagged at the thought, shaking her head. "So if anyone got cold feet, it was him, though I'm sure Elle is keeping them quite warm."
"Blair, I'm sorry." Nathaniel sighed, shaking his head. When would Chuck ever learn? Didn't he understand how important his relationship to Blair was? It was the core of everything Nathaniel believed him, everything that gave him hope that they were all going to be okay. No blood shed or lives lost, no facing off in battle against his own father. Even as a king, Chuck failed to take his responsibility to people seriously, and this was beginning to eat away at the knight's fidelity. It was then that he noticed the food rations in her hands. "Blair, what are you going to do?" He asked with uncertainty.
"Nothing, Nathaniel. Don't worry about it." Blair replied mockingly, pushing past the knight and continuing on her way.
When Blair had returned from her third trip to the docks, stopped only by the now slowly fading daylight and a need to relax her tired feet, she was surprised to find the imperial throne room occupied, not only by her peers, but by the thick tension that hovered over the room like settling dust. Charles stood in front of his throne, hands on his hips as he stared down at the people below him. Nathaniel stood defensively in front of Serena, and behind her were Daniel and Vanessa, looking as adamant as ever.
"What's going on?" Blair inquired from the doorway, looking at them all with worry. She had never seen Chuck and Nathaniel stand opposing one other before, the way that they were now.
Chuck barely cast Blair a glance, instead keeping his eyes narrowed and focused on Nathaniel as he pointed accusingly at the knight and the girl behind him. "Nathaniel has decided to leave us for the enemy, as a result of his infatuation with this manipulative bitch!"
"Don't call her that!" Nathaniel shot back, his hand threateningly poised just above the handle of his sword.
"Would the term whore be more preferable?" The king inquired mockingly, "That's what she is, Nathaniel! Are you absolutely daft that you cannot see that this girl is playing you!"
"As if you're one to talk about whores, Charles." Nathaniel returned bitterly, "You spend most of your days shacked up in your bedroom with Elle than attending to your responsibilities as a king! You accuse me of abandoning Dalmasca, but if anything I'm just abandoning an already sinking ship, of which you were supposed to be the captain." He turned away angrily, "So I hope you go down in this hell."
"Wait!" Blair exclaimed, interrupting the pair and running out into the middle of the room, poised in between the two arguing men. She looked back and forth at both with concern, "Nate, you can't be serious?" Blair looked at him softly, reaching forward and placing a hand on the boy's shoulder, "You and Chuck, you're best friends… you would never leave each other's side." She reminded them, "Think about all that you've been through together."
"All I can remember," Nathaniel began, "is all the comfort and advice I've given him which has been vastly ignored and disregarded. It's like the only reason he even wants me around to is to fight his battles for him, being the coward that he is."
"Chuck," Blair looked desperately back at the king, "say something! Tell him how wrong he is."
"Nathaniel's right." Chuck countered stubbornly, "Why would I take advice from a mere soldier? You're not a politician and you never will be, my friend. If all it takes is shiny hair and some sweet words to swindle you, you were never meant to be a leader."
"Chuck!" Blair chastised, growing increasingly frustrated, "This is serious! Drop your pride and just tell him how you really feel!"
"This is how I really feel, Blair." Chuck narrowed his eyes at her, "You of all people should understand that by now."
"Blair, don't waste your time on him." Nathaniel took a step towards the king, defiance pouring from every vein on his body. "Tell me, Chuck, would you say the same about your father? The great king who destined his own kingdom for destruction by falling for a whore of his own? A married whore, on top of that. Your Mother."
"Don't you dare!" Chuck growled, raising a fist as he dodged around Blair and threw himself at his best friend, "Don't you dare talk about my mother like that, you worthless prick!"
"Your mother is the reason that my mother is broken inside!" Nathaniel screamed, shoving Chuck off of him with a good punch in the jaw, "Your family destroyed my family! I've never blamed you because I thought you were going to fix everything! I thought you would make it right!" Nathaniel gasped, fighting to hold back tears as he slugged Chuck once again, releasing eighteen years worth of agony into each punch.
Blair turned towards Serena, stalking towards her accusingly, "What have you done?"
"Blair, I didn't do anything. This was Nate's decision… I'm just a messenger."
"Serena," The brunette began condescendingly, "it doesn't matter what world we're in, you will never be innocent in my eyes. I know you better than that." Blair informed her, "I saw you last night, throwing yourself at him! What are you up to? Why are you doing this?"
"Chuck is not a good man, Blair. He said it himself. You should at the very least understand that by now." Serena lowered her voice, "He's not going to help you get home."
"So you take away the one person that will?" Blair asked angrily, gesturing towards Nathaniel. It was then that Blair remembered Daniel and Vanessa's presence. She glanced at them over Serena's shoulder, "and what do you think you're doing with them?"
"Serena's not taking anyone away, Blair." Vanessa looked at her somewhat regretfully, "If anything, you and Chuck are the ones that are pushing us in the opposite direction."
"I don't know if the prophecy is true," This time Daniel spoke, with much less regret than his friend. He was an emotional void, unlike the friendly stranger who had saved Blair on multiple occasions. "But you and Charles… you really deserve one another."
"Excuse me?" Blair arched a brow, looking at a former shadow of her friend in surprise. She turned again to Serena, even more livid than before. "What have you done to my friends?"
"I'm not your friend, Blair. Never really was, in your eyes." Daniel remarked, "Just a tool, something for you to use to get what you want… just like Aaron."
"Dan, that's not… that's not entirely true." Blair reasoned, looking at the boy earnestly. "Look, I don't know what Serena told you-"
"Stop blaming Serena for your own mistakes." The scribe cut her off, "The only thing that Serena has done is help us. Which is more than I can say for you or his highness over there."
"Help you?" The girl furrowed her brow. She wasn't quite sure that Daniel was referring to, but it was clear that whatever this was, it had started much earlier than last night. It would seem that Serena had been planting the seeds for Dalmasca's destruction all along, and now reaping the rewards when the time was right. She turned to look at Vanessa, helplessly, pleadingly, even though it killed her inside to lower herself to the point of silently begging the barmaid.
"Bye, Blair." Vanessa shook her head, intertwining her hand with Daniel's and leading them both away towards the doors. When Blair returned her scrutinizing gaze back to Serena, the blonde's eyes refused to meet it, instead turning towards the still sparring boys.
"Nathaniel, please…" just from her look alone, Nathaniel stopped his furious attack on his friend. "He's not worth it." Serena explained sympathetically, extending her hand to the knight. "We need to leave."
"Nate, no, don't listen to her!" Blair exclaimed, rushing up to the boy and placing both hands square on his chest, as if she had the strength to physically stop him from going any further.
"Blair, please move." Nate insisted emotionlessly, gently prying her hands off of him and easily moving the girl aside.
"We're a team. You, me, Chuck. Daniel, Vanessa, and even Aaron too. We have to see this to the end, together."
"Aaron's gone, Blair. Nobody's seen him in weeks and without the seer on our side, it's a hopeless cause." Nathaniel replied. His expression softened, looking at her sincerely. "Come with us."
Serena opened her mouth to protest, but Blair was quick to decline herself. In fact, she appeared offended at the very thought. "No." Blair shook her head, looking at the knight defiantly. "I don't know what kind of person you are, Nate, but I know myself. If I've sworn my loyalty to a friend… no matter what they do or how wrong they are, the worst thing they've ever done, the darkest thought they've ever had," Her eyes flashed quickly to Serena, "I would stand by them through anything"
"Okay." Nathaniel nodded, staring down at the floor before bringing his gaze back up to hers. "Then this is good-bye."
"Good-bye, Nate." The brunette replied coldly, her voice dripping with disappointment.
"Good-bye, Blair." Nathaniel pushed past her without another glance, reaching for Serena's hand and leading them out the door after Daniel and Vanessa. The room echoed with its awkward silence, as its only occupants stood there stunned.
Blair was the first to move. She did so without much further thought and without a word, inciting the confused king to loudly follow.
"Where are you going?" Chuck questioned, pushing himself up off the ground and jogging after her. Blair was still stalking speedily ahead, only stopped once Chuck reached out, grabbing her by the arm and effectively spinning her around to face him. "What are you doing?"
"What do you think I'm doing?" Blair responded hastily, "I'm going after them."
"You're going to join them after all?" Chuck inquired, the edge in his voice rising at the thought of losing the last person to stand by him.
"No, you idiot. I'm going to convince them to come back!" Blair exclaimed, "I mean, at least one of us has to do something besides sitting on our ass all day, bedding stick-thin skanks."
"Hey-"
"Oh, I'm sorry, does she prefer the term whore?" Blair mimicked his earlier words, raising both eyebrows as she looked at the king expectantly.
"How are you even planning to go after them?" Chuck inquired, placing his hands on his hips as he looked at her expectantly. "You don't even know your way around the marketplace, much less the continent."
"Oh, well…" Blair eyed his jacket, running a hand over the smooth material and pulling one side back as her other hand reached in and retrieved the folded up map from the inside pocket, "I figured you wouldn't be needing this anymore."
"You have no way of going after them." Chuck replied, somewhat amused at the girl's sudden assertiveness. "If you wait a few days, I'll have travel arrangements made. We'll go by sea, using one of-"
"One of the boats in the royal dock?" Blair inquired, smirking at the look of surprise on Chuck's face. "Yeah, found it." The girl added lightly, "I've made my own arrangements, and I'm not waiting around for you any more." They didn't have a few days. Blair didn't know exactly how Serena was getting around the continent but she doubted that her friend would be roughing it on horseback. Who knew what kind of technology the Zaibach Empire had up their sleeve. Noting Chuck's silence, Blair didn't waste any more time before turning back around and continuing on her way.
Chuck burst back into his bedroom, barely giving the girl in his bed a second glance as he rifled through documents, various pieces of clothing, tossing only the most impertinent of items into a pile on his bed.
"Um, hello to you too?" Elle questioned, sitting up and holding the sheets up against her naked form. "Are you going somewhere or something?"
"Do you mind moving off the bed?" Chuck suggested. "Running out of room." He mumbled as he tossed a few more items onto the duvet.
"Charles…" Elle wrapped the silk sheet around herself, knotting at the top as she approached the young king. "Is this one of your games?" The woman inquired coyly, reaching forward and sliding a hand down his back. "You want me to convince you to stay?" She smirked, undoing the knot on the sheet and allowing the thin fabric to fall to the floor.
Chuck paused in his actions, unable to deny the temptation that was standing before him, the temptation that was being offered. His eyes followed her rapturous form up from sinuous legs to hungry eyes. The king set down the papers in his hand, collecting himself as he took a step towards the woman. "Elle, last night… was the last time."
"You say that every time, Charles." Elle informed him, "Yet you somehow always come back to me."
"Which is why I'm removing the temptation. I'm sorry, Elle, but this time… you can't stay here. You have until morning to move out."
"You can't…" Elle began, but they both knew the truth. He could, and he would. "Is this because of that girl?" Elle aked quietly, "The one from the prophecy?"
"This has to do with my kingdom." Chuck replied icily. Elle persisted to ignore him.
"You will never be happy with her, Charles."
"Right, but I will be with you?" Chuck inquired mockingly.
"No." Elle shook her head, "With me, you feel nothing. Which is the best that someone like you can ever hope for." Chuck was silent as Elle circled him, eyes flashing like a livid hawk studying its prey. "I know you, Charles. Intimately. The only type of men who bother with me are the ones who feel they have nothing left to live for. Like your father."
Chuck merely chuckled, shaking his head. "My father. Of course. If you expect that to surprise me, you're entirely misguided."
"Merely pointing out the similarities." Elle replied simply. Chuck lightly pushed her aside as he rummaged through his closet, tossing aside useless garments and various family heirlooms until he found the one thing that really mattered. He stood up, gently holding a two foot long arabian saber, sheathed in engraved mahogany bearing the Dalmasca flame and with a heavily gilded handle encrusted with rubies. "She may save Astoria, Charles, but that doesn't mean she'll save you." Elle warned him darkly.
"I'll take my chances." The king eyed the exposed woman with pity before grabbing whatever his pockets could hold from the bed and then running out the door.
By the time Chuck had made it out towards the docks, the sky was beginning to lighten with the fast-approaching dawn, cascading a blue sheen across the desert sands. He was grateful when he spotted all of the dhows still tethered into the dock, and the silhouette of a girl struggling to reign one free.
"Need some help?" Chuck inquired, standing on the wooden bridge before the boats. Blair looked up in frustration, dropping the knotted rope she had been trying, to no avail, to loosen.
"What are you doing here?"
"What do you think I'm doing here?" Chuck replied, tossing a knapsack of his belongings into the boat. "I'm coming with you."
"I don't need your help!" Blair protested, eyeing his things with disgust as she pushed herself to a standing position. "Just go, Chuck! I'll be fine on my own, I always have been."
"No!" Chuck jumped down into the boat, causing it to rock under his weight and for Blair to lose her balance. The king reached forward instinctively, steadying the girl in his arms. Her piercing gaze met his and Chuck mustered every ounce of earnestness in his body to back him up, "This is something that we were meant to do together… to see this through until the end."
Blair looked up at him in surprise, before regaining her composure. "The end." She was reminded of the fatality of the their situation. "If you do this, there's no turning back now."
"I know." Chuck nodded. He took a step back, reaching for the handle of his sword and unsheathing it swiftly. Blair had always thought that Nathaniel was the swordsmen of the two but it appeared that Chuck had had his fair share of training as well. He probably just never felt the need to use it. Chuck raised the blade, swinging downwards and swiftly slicing through the rope that held their small ship to the dock. In an instant the river's current began to pull it away.
"Just to be clear," Blair began, "You may be the king or whatever on land but this boat is my territory, got it? So whatever I say, you do, and for starters, stay out of my way." The brunette folded her arms, eyeing him haughtily.
"Blair," Chuck moved to sit down facing her in the small boat, "If you wanted to play the dominatrix, all you had to do was ask."
"You're despicable." Blair rolled her eyes, turning away from him, but not fast enough for Chuck to miss the tiniest twitch of a smile that tugged at the corner of her ruby red lips.
Just like that, they were back to the where they began. Back to verbal sparring, perverted remarks, witty banter, playful insults. Back on track in their mission to save the world. Back to being Chuck and Blair. The king smiled inwardly. He had missed this.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
SONG
Minus the Bear - Knights Nathaniel's Theme
Author: In Fair Verona
Genre: Romance + Adventure
Pairing: CBN
Rating: T
Summary: Blair Waldorf never believed in fairy-tales. However, weeks after her best friend left for boarding school, Blair finds herself enthralled by the pages of an old book, and is thrown in the midst of a strange new world, at the center of a war, and in between a prince and a knight.
PROLOGUE | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15
A/N: Yay, actually got this one up with reasonable timing! Thanks to everyone who puts up with my inconsistent updates.
Blair didn't sleep at all that night. It had nothing to do with tossing or turning, or the restlessness of lying awake drumming over feelings and emotionally stunted monarchs. No, it was none of that. After the ball, Blair hadn't even bothered going back to her bedroom, let alone to sleep.
She dropped the queen bee act to instead play the busy bee, sneaking into the palace kitchens and gathering provisions as she saw fit before racing them out to the royal Dalmascan dock. Yes, she had spent the better part of the night searching for that in itself as well. A mile or so out from the palace, there was a river. Perhaps the only source of fresh water in all of the desert that was Dalmaca. The river flowed into the palace's water gardens from one end, while the other… predictably led to a larger body of water. It also housed a dock of smaller boats ("Dhows", she had learned from Nathaniel during one of their treacherous commutes), one of which would eventually take her out to sea. Blair wasn't sure exactly where she would go from there. For once in her life, she didn't have everything properly planned out, and for the first time she had no choice but to live life without an itinerary, the way the Serena Van Der Woodsens of the world did. C'est la vie.
Serena's fist was about to make contact with the hard mahogany of Nathaniel's bedroom door when the thing itself swung inward, revealing a tousled and tired looking knight. The look of surprise and enthusiasm that swept through him when he realized she was standing there, in front of his door, didn't escape her and in fact made what she was about to do that much harder.
"Serena." He looked at her in awe, "Wow. I thought you left." His face broke out into an ecstatic grin, "I'm glad you didn't, but, to be honest… I really didn't think you'd stick around."
"Yeah, well I won't be. For long." Serena explained tiredly, staring down at her bare feet. She was still dressed in her ballroom attire, wrinkled silk, frizzy hair, and nothing to walk in aside from her torturously tall slippers. The blonde bit her lip hesitantly, willing herself to look Nathaniel in the eye. "Look, there's something I need to tell you."
"Anything." Nate agreed, still giving her that over-the-moon expression that suggested that he really didn't get it how important this was. She was serious. Serena peered past Nathaniel's shoulder, initially contemplating talking to him inside his room before realizing that she might never actually get around to talking if they went in there.
"Will you walk with me?" Serena suggested, looking down the empty hallway. Nathaniel nodded eagerly, stepping across the threshold and shutting the door to his room behind him as he followed in her stride. "Look, Nathaniel, I wasn't being entirely honest with you last night." She explained, stopping when they were farther down along the corridor.
"What do you mean?" The knight inquired, quirking a brow at the blonde.
"I'm not from Dalmasca. Not from any part of it, town nor country." She admitted bravely as she watched the knight with wary eyes, anticipating his reaction. "What happened last night was a mistake."
"Serena, I don't care where you're from." Nate explained simply, reaching out and taking one of her hands in his. "Last night was unlike… anything I could have ever expected, or imagined."
"I feel the same way, but it was still a huge mistake." Serena stressed, pulling her hand out from his.
"What are you talking about?" Nathaniel furrowed his brow, "There's no way that anything that perfect would be a mistake. Meeting you, it may have been an accident, but… I think it was the best accident I've ever been in."
"Nathaniel, stop!" Serena held up her hands in an attempt to provide some distance between the two. "It wasn't an accident!" Nathaniel looked at her, even more perplexed than he already was by her antics. "I was looking for you, specifically." Serena sighed, "Not to do… what was, done last night. That was not a part of the plan," She persisted, "But, look…" It was best to just blurt it out and get it over with. "I met your father."
"Wait. What?" Nathaniel looked at her like she had grown a second head, shaking his head in disbelief. "I don't understand. You're from Zaibach?" The soldier in him immediately tensed up at the enemy's presence, and it didn't go unnoticed by Serena. In fact, it kind of stung her a little. Men had always been able to turn like a dime when it came to Serena. The loved her ardor and her vivacity when it inflated their own egos but when it threatened them… then her affection was seen as promiscuity and her liveliness was recklessness. "What the hell do you have to do with my father?"
"He misses you, Nathaniel." The blonde explained simply, tilting her head to the side. "He wants to make things right with you, and he wants you to understand why he did what he did."
"So he sends you to tell me all of this?" Nathaniel inquired, putting his hands on his hips as he stared at the girl accusingly. "I'd call it cowardly, but that's just like him."
"Well would you have talked to him, if he came himself?" Serena asked in return, folding her arms around herself, as if the action protected her from his incriminating stare. Luckily, Nathaniel was silent which further proved her point. Serena extended one hand cautiously out towards him, as a gesture of peace. "Hear me out, please?"
"Why should I? Apparently everything you told me last night was a lie. What makes this morning any different?"
"Nothing." Serena shrugged, "But if that's the case, then whatever it was that you felt last night… that connection, it's still there. That wasn't a lie. So trust what you feel." She studied him carefully, blue eyes open with undisguised earnestness. Nathaniel eyed the blonde warily, before deciding that it couldn't hurt to at least hear out what The Captain had to say. It should be interesting, at the very least.
"This better be good." Nathaniel conceded, placing his hand in hers. Serena offered the knight a wry smile before leading him away towards one of the more private palace balconies.
Blair was making her way back towards the kitchens with another round of provisions when she spotted Nate and Serena across the hall. The pair walked side by side, exchanging soft smiles and warm remarks, so taken in with one another that they barely even noticed her heading towards them. "Serena," Blair announced unceremoniously, stopping in front of them, "How nice of you to acknowledge me during your stay at the palace." The brunette threw down one of her signature icy stares. Needless to say, it wasn't the first time Serena had been on the receiving end of one of them.
"Blair." Serena smiled awkwardly, neglecting to respond to her sarcasm.
"You two know each other?" Nathaniel asked, furrowing a brow in confusion as he looked back and forth between the two girls. Before Blair could get a word in about Manhattan and Constance Billiard and fake boarding schools, Serena had beaten her to the punch with a precomposed fib.
"We met at Princess Georgina's masquerade ball." Serena explained innocently.
"Another event, much like last night, in which you were kind of not invited." Blair returned without missing a beat. She forced herself to smile transparently, prolonging the tension between the two and willing Serena to break it.
The blonde had no problem doing so, dismissing the brunette and instead turning to face Nathaniel. "Nate," Blair cringed at the use of her given nickname and once again as Serena gently placed her hand on his forearm. "Think about what I said." Serena stared at him intently before dropping her arm and making a nonchalant exit back in the direction from which they came.
"What did she say?" Blair asked accusingly, looking back and forth from Nate to Serena's retreating form.
"Nothing, don't worry about it." Nathaniel piped quickly; almost too quickly. Blair looked at the boy, sternly, disappointed in his lame attempts at switching the subject. "Blair, it's nothing." He reassured her, throwing an arm around the other girl's shoulders. "So, how did it go with Charles last night?"
"Um, nothing short of disastrous," Blair returned bitterly, "but back to you and that blonde haired hussy-"
"What do you mean, disastrous?" Nathaniel frowned. He seemed almost too affected by Blair and Chuck's tumultuous relationship, like he was suffering more than either of them. "You got cold feet." Nathaniel guessed, "Couldn't tell him how you felt?"
"No, actually, I think I made that pretty clear, Nathaniel." Blair spat out, "Why do you assume it's my fault everything went wrong?" She asked accusingly, "I went to his doorstep with my heart on my freaking sleeve and got greeted by a half-naked Charles and his new… chuck-buddy." The brunette gagged at the thought, shaking her head. "So if anyone got cold feet, it was him, though I'm sure Elle is keeping them quite warm."
"Blair, I'm sorry." Nathaniel sighed, shaking his head. When would Chuck ever learn? Didn't he understand how important his relationship to Blair was? It was the core of everything Nathaniel believed him, everything that gave him hope that they were all going to be okay. No blood shed or lives lost, no facing off in battle against his own father. Even as a king, Chuck failed to take his responsibility to people seriously, and this was beginning to eat away at the knight's fidelity. It was then that he noticed the food rations in her hands. "Blair, what are you going to do?" He asked with uncertainty.
"Nothing, Nathaniel. Don't worry about it." Blair replied mockingly, pushing past the knight and continuing on her way.
When Blair had returned from her third trip to the docks, stopped only by the now slowly fading daylight and a need to relax her tired feet, she was surprised to find the imperial throne room occupied, not only by her peers, but by the thick tension that hovered over the room like settling dust. Charles stood in front of his throne, hands on his hips as he stared down at the people below him. Nathaniel stood defensively in front of Serena, and behind her were Daniel and Vanessa, looking as adamant as ever.
"What's going on?" Blair inquired from the doorway, looking at them all with worry. She had never seen Chuck and Nathaniel stand opposing one other before, the way that they were now.
Chuck barely cast Blair a glance, instead keeping his eyes narrowed and focused on Nathaniel as he pointed accusingly at the knight and the girl behind him. "Nathaniel has decided to leave us for the enemy, as a result of his infatuation with this manipulative bitch!"
"Don't call her that!" Nathaniel shot back, his hand threateningly poised just above the handle of his sword.
"Would the term whore be more preferable?" The king inquired mockingly, "That's what she is, Nathaniel! Are you absolutely daft that you cannot see that this girl is playing you!"
"As if you're one to talk about whores, Charles." Nathaniel returned bitterly, "You spend most of your days shacked up in your bedroom with Elle than attending to your responsibilities as a king! You accuse me of abandoning Dalmasca, but if anything I'm just abandoning an already sinking ship, of which you were supposed to be the captain." He turned away angrily, "So I hope you go down in this hell."
"Wait!" Blair exclaimed, interrupting the pair and running out into the middle of the room, poised in between the two arguing men. She looked back and forth at both with concern, "Nate, you can't be serious?" Blair looked at him softly, reaching forward and placing a hand on the boy's shoulder, "You and Chuck, you're best friends… you would never leave each other's side." She reminded them, "Think about all that you've been through together."
"All I can remember," Nathaniel began, "is all the comfort and advice I've given him which has been vastly ignored and disregarded. It's like the only reason he even wants me around to is to fight his battles for him, being the coward that he is."
"Chuck," Blair looked desperately back at the king, "say something! Tell him how wrong he is."
"Nathaniel's right." Chuck countered stubbornly, "Why would I take advice from a mere soldier? You're not a politician and you never will be, my friend. If all it takes is shiny hair and some sweet words to swindle you, you were never meant to be a leader."
"Chuck!" Blair chastised, growing increasingly frustrated, "This is serious! Drop your pride and just tell him how you really feel!"
"This is how I really feel, Blair." Chuck narrowed his eyes at her, "You of all people should understand that by now."
"Blair, don't waste your time on him." Nathaniel took a step towards the king, defiance pouring from every vein on his body. "Tell me, Chuck, would you say the same about your father? The great king who destined his own kingdom for destruction by falling for a whore of his own? A married whore, on top of that. Your Mother."
"Don't you dare!" Chuck growled, raising a fist as he dodged around Blair and threw himself at his best friend, "Don't you dare talk about my mother like that, you worthless prick!"
"Your mother is the reason that my mother is broken inside!" Nathaniel screamed, shoving Chuck off of him with a good punch in the jaw, "Your family destroyed my family! I've never blamed you because I thought you were going to fix everything! I thought you would make it right!" Nathaniel gasped, fighting to hold back tears as he slugged Chuck once again, releasing eighteen years worth of agony into each punch.
Blair turned towards Serena, stalking towards her accusingly, "What have you done?"
"Blair, I didn't do anything. This was Nate's decision… I'm just a messenger."
"Serena," The brunette began condescendingly, "it doesn't matter what world we're in, you will never be innocent in my eyes. I know you better than that." Blair informed her, "I saw you last night, throwing yourself at him! What are you up to? Why are you doing this?"
"Chuck is not a good man, Blair. He said it himself. You should at the very least understand that by now." Serena lowered her voice, "He's not going to help you get home."
"So you take away the one person that will?" Blair asked angrily, gesturing towards Nathaniel. It was then that Blair remembered Daniel and Vanessa's presence. She glanced at them over Serena's shoulder, "and what do you think you're doing with them?"
"Serena's not taking anyone away, Blair." Vanessa looked at her somewhat regretfully, "If anything, you and Chuck are the ones that are pushing us in the opposite direction."
"I don't know if the prophecy is true," This time Daniel spoke, with much less regret than his friend. He was an emotional void, unlike the friendly stranger who had saved Blair on multiple occasions. "But you and Charles… you really deserve one another."
"Excuse me?" Blair arched a brow, looking at a former shadow of her friend in surprise. She turned again to Serena, even more livid than before. "What have you done to my friends?"
"I'm not your friend, Blair. Never really was, in your eyes." Daniel remarked, "Just a tool, something for you to use to get what you want… just like Aaron."
"Dan, that's not… that's not entirely true." Blair reasoned, looking at the boy earnestly. "Look, I don't know what Serena told you-"
"Stop blaming Serena for your own mistakes." The scribe cut her off, "The only thing that Serena has done is help us. Which is more than I can say for you or his highness over there."
"Help you?" The girl furrowed her brow. She wasn't quite sure that Daniel was referring to, but it was clear that whatever this was, it had started much earlier than last night. It would seem that Serena had been planting the seeds for Dalmasca's destruction all along, and now reaping the rewards when the time was right. She turned to look at Vanessa, helplessly, pleadingly, even though it killed her inside to lower herself to the point of silently begging the barmaid.
"Bye, Blair." Vanessa shook her head, intertwining her hand with Daniel's and leading them both away towards the doors. When Blair returned her scrutinizing gaze back to Serena, the blonde's eyes refused to meet it, instead turning towards the still sparring boys.
"Nathaniel, please…" just from her look alone, Nathaniel stopped his furious attack on his friend. "He's not worth it." Serena explained sympathetically, extending her hand to the knight. "We need to leave."
"Nate, no, don't listen to her!" Blair exclaimed, rushing up to the boy and placing both hands square on his chest, as if she had the strength to physically stop him from going any further.
"Blair, please move." Nate insisted emotionlessly, gently prying her hands off of him and easily moving the girl aside.
"We're a team. You, me, Chuck. Daniel, Vanessa, and even Aaron too. We have to see this to the end, together."
"Aaron's gone, Blair. Nobody's seen him in weeks and without the seer on our side, it's a hopeless cause." Nathaniel replied. His expression softened, looking at her sincerely. "Come with us."
Serena opened her mouth to protest, but Blair was quick to decline herself. In fact, she appeared offended at the very thought. "No." Blair shook her head, looking at the knight defiantly. "I don't know what kind of person you are, Nate, but I know myself. If I've sworn my loyalty to a friend… no matter what they do or how wrong they are, the worst thing they've ever done, the darkest thought they've ever had," Her eyes flashed quickly to Serena, "I would stand by them through anything"
"Okay." Nathaniel nodded, staring down at the floor before bringing his gaze back up to hers. "Then this is good-bye."
"Good-bye, Nate." The brunette replied coldly, her voice dripping with disappointment.
"Good-bye, Blair." Nathaniel pushed past her without another glance, reaching for Serena's hand and leading them out the door after Daniel and Vanessa. The room echoed with its awkward silence, as its only occupants stood there stunned.
Blair was the first to move. She did so without much further thought and without a word, inciting the confused king to loudly follow.
"Where are you going?" Chuck questioned, pushing himself up off the ground and jogging after her. Blair was still stalking speedily ahead, only stopped once Chuck reached out, grabbing her by the arm and effectively spinning her around to face him. "What are you doing?"
"What do you think I'm doing?" Blair responded hastily, "I'm going after them."
"You're going to join them after all?" Chuck inquired, the edge in his voice rising at the thought of losing the last person to stand by him.
"No, you idiot. I'm going to convince them to come back!" Blair exclaimed, "I mean, at least one of us has to do something besides sitting on our ass all day, bedding stick-thin skanks."
"Hey-"
"Oh, I'm sorry, does she prefer the term whore?" Blair mimicked his earlier words, raising both eyebrows as she looked at the king expectantly.
"How are you even planning to go after them?" Chuck inquired, placing his hands on his hips as he looked at her expectantly. "You don't even know your way around the marketplace, much less the continent."
"Oh, well…" Blair eyed his jacket, running a hand over the smooth material and pulling one side back as her other hand reached in and retrieved the folded up map from the inside pocket, "I figured you wouldn't be needing this anymore."
"You have no way of going after them." Chuck replied, somewhat amused at the girl's sudden assertiveness. "If you wait a few days, I'll have travel arrangements made. We'll go by sea, using one of-"
"One of the boats in the royal dock?" Blair inquired, smirking at the look of surprise on Chuck's face. "Yeah, found it." The girl added lightly, "I've made my own arrangements, and I'm not waiting around for you any more." They didn't have a few days. Blair didn't know exactly how Serena was getting around the continent but she doubted that her friend would be roughing it on horseback. Who knew what kind of technology the Zaibach Empire had up their sleeve. Noting Chuck's silence, Blair didn't waste any more time before turning back around and continuing on her way.
Chuck burst back into his bedroom, barely giving the girl in his bed a second glance as he rifled through documents, various pieces of clothing, tossing only the most impertinent of items into a pile on his bed.
"Um, hello to you too?" Elle questioned, sitting up and holding the sheets up against her naked form. "Are you going somewhere or something?"
"Do you mind moving off the bed?" Chuck suggested. "Running out of room." He mumbled as he tossed a few more items onto the duvet.
"Charles…" Elle wrapped the silk sheet around herself, knotting at the top as she approached the young king. "Is this one of your games?" The woman inquired coyly, reaching forward and sliding a hand down his back. "You want me to convince you to stay?" She smirked, undoing the knot on the sheet and allowing the thin fabric to fall to the floor.
Chuck paused in his actions, unable to deny the temptation that was standing before him, the temptation that was being offered. His eyes followed her rapturous form up from sinuous legs to hungry eyes. The king set down the papers in his hand, collecting himself as he took a step towards the woman. "Elle, last night… was the last time."
"You say that every time, Charles." Elle informed him, "Yet you somehow always come back to me."
"Which is why I'm removing the temptation. I'm sorry, Elle, but this time… you can't stay here. You have until morning to move out."
"You can't…" Elle began, but they both knew the truth. He could, and he would. "Is this because of that girl?" Elle aked quietly, "The one from the prophecy?"
"This has to do with my kingdom." Chuck replied icily. Elle persisted to ignore him.
"You will never be happy with her, Charles."
"Right, but I will be with you?" Chuck inquired mockingly.
"No." Elle shook her head, "With me, you feel nothing. Which is the best that someone like you can ever hope for." Chuck was silent as Elle circled him, eyes flashing like a livid hawk studying its prey. "I know you, Charles. Intimately. The only type of men who bother with me are the ones who feel they have nothing left to live for. Like your father."
Chuck merely chuckled, shaking his head. "My father. Of course. If you expect that to surprise me, you're entirely misguided."
"Merely pointing out the similarities." Elle replied simply. Chuck lightly pushed her aside as he rummaged through his closet, tossing aside useless garments and various family heirlooms until he found the one thing that really mattered. He stood up, gently holding a two foot long arabian saber, sheathed in engraved mahogany bearing the Dalmasca flame and with a heavily gilded handle encrusted with rubies. "She may save Astoria, Charles, but that doesn't mean she'll save you." Elle warned him darkly.
"I'll take my chances." The king eyed the exposed woman with pity before grabbing whatever his pockets could hold from the bed and then running out the door.
By the time Chuck had made it out towards the docks, the sky was beginning to lighten with the fast-approaching dawn, cascading a blue sheen across the desert sands. He was grateful when he spotted all of the dhows still tethered into the dock, and the silhouette of a girl struggling to reign one free.
"Need some help?" Chuck inquired, standing on the wooden bridge before the boats. Blair looked up in frustration, dropping the knotted rope she had been trying, to no avail, to loosen.
"What are you doing here?"
"What do you think I'm doing here?" Chuck replied, tossing a knapsack of his belongings into the boat. "I'm coming with you."
"I don't need your help!" Blair protested, eyeing his things with disgust as she pushed herself to a standing position. "Just go, Chuck! I'll be fine on my own, I always have been."
"No!" Chuck jumped down into the boat, causing it to rock under his weight and for Blair to lose her balance. The king reached forward instinctively, steadying the girl in his arms. Her piercing gaze met his and Chuck mustered every ounce of earnestness in his body to back him up, "This is something that we were meant to do together… to see this through until the end."
Blair looked up at him in surprise, before regaining her composure. "The end." She was reminded of the fatality of the their situation. "If you do this, there's no turning back now."
"I know." Chuck nodded. He took a step back, reaching for the handle of his sword and unsheathing it swiftly. Blair had always thought that Nathaniel was the swordsmen of the two but it appeared that Chuck had had his fair share of training as well. He probably just never felt the need to use it. Chuck raised the blade, swinging downwards and swiftly slicing through the rope that held their small ship to the dock. In an instant the river's current began to pull it away.
"Just to be clear," Blair began, "You may be the king or whatever on land but this boat is my territory, got it? So whatever I say, you do, and for starters, stay out of my way." The brunette folded her arms, eyeing him haughtily.
"Blair," Chuck moved to sit down facing her in the small boat, "If you wanted to play the dominatrix, all you had to do was ask."
"You're despicable." Blair rolled her eyes, turning away from him, but not fast enough for Chuck to miss the tiniest twitch of a smile that tugged at the corner of her ruby red lips.
Just like that, they were back to the where they began. Back to verbal sparring, perverted remarks, witty banter, playful insults. Back on track in their mission to save the world. Back to being Chuck and Blair. The king smiled inwardly. He had missed this.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
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Minus the Bear - Knights Nathaniel's Theme