Sucked into a New World (Lady Alainn x Jalapeno)

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

The brief whirlwind that had suddenly hit left Jared in a momentary daze. He was not exactly sure what had happened to him, but now he felt normal, as if nothing had happened. But that was in the single second before he realized that he was no longer in his bedroom. The badly painted walls of his apartment were nowhere to be seen, and the book that had been sitting in his hand was completely gone. He was no longer sitting in his old armchair next to the desk cluttered with papers and bills he still had not gone through.

In front of him now was a setting that he would not have been familiar with had this occurred just a day before. The grand tapestries of historic battles graced the walls of the magnificent hall, and all around him there were people feasting and drinking to their hearts' content. Singers and musicians were creating brilliant tunes and servants assisted everyone that was present. It was the Great Hall of Darmoth, exactly the way Jared had pictured it while reading his novel. And he was sitting in the chair that belonged to Prince Raulet Himarath, the lead character of the story. If he had indeed entered this bizarre scenario at the very spot he had been reading, that meant he was attending his wedding night.

Trying to make sense of it all was making his head hurt. How had this happened? Was he dreaming? Was he dead? A quick slap on the cheek told him that he was indeed awake and very much alive. So what was going on? Certainly this book he had been reading was only a fictional story. He only picked it up last night after John recommended it to him. Surely he was hallucinating or something. But how could that be? All he had to drink tonight was a single glass of wine after his dinner with Lucy. And he never abused any type of drug that would cause such a hallucination. So what was he supposed to do? Ask someone for help? Go to sleep and pray that he wakes up in his apartment?

His confused thoughts were interrupted suddenly with a tap on the shoulder. He looked up to see a beautiful young woman dressed in a brilliant silver gown laced with gold and silver ribbons. "My lord, you didn't think you could get away with going the entire night and share a dance with your favorite sister, did you?" she said with a sly grin. So this was his sister, though he could not remember which one. From what Jared recalled, the prince had three sisters and one older brother. Now he just needed some way of identifying her by name. He did not know why, but something inside was telling him to continue as if he really were this prince.

So he did, for what else could he do? "As you wish, dearest sister of mine." He took her hand and stood up from his seat, glancing around at the others. He spotted what were likely his parents, the king and queen, sitting just a few seats away from him. And that meant that the bride's parents were likely on the other end of the table. The name of his wife escaped him at the moment, though it would probably come to him later. Based on what he had been reading, she was likely in her bedroom chambers at the moment, consoling herself over this unexpected marriage. If only she knew just how unexpected this wedding really was.

 

[Lady Alainn]

Tossing her book bag onto her desk, Chelsea threw herself across her bed and kicked off her shoes. "Ugh, what a day." She rolled onto her back and smothered her face with her pillow. Visions of Lexi entering the room and finding her roommate suffocated flitted deliciously through her mind. They would wrap her poor, young, lifeless body in black velvet and place it in a mahogany casket adorned with cherubs and baroque scroll work. Students donned in black would line University Avenue, a lily white rose clutched in each hand to signify their despair at losing such a talented maiden as she. Slowly, the hearse would cart her coffin through campus while the marching band filed behind belting out the heart-wrenching tones of "Ave Maria."

Sighing heavily, Chelsea pushed the pillow off and sat up. Who was she kidding? Lexi wouldn't find her body until the stench forced her to look at Chelsea's bed. Then her body would be pickled and preserved for the haunted house the drama students always created on campus in October. Chelsea made a face. She would not tolerate her body being made into a prop. That was not the way to rise to stardom. Her eyes roved from the pillow in her lap, to the textbooks spilling out from her bag on her desk, to the pile of fiction books stacked on her dresser. Homework sounded completely unappealing, as always, but this time she reached for the pleasure-reading material. After a day like today, she deserved a little escapism.

Chelsea pulled the first book off the stack and settled back onto an elbow. It was some obscure book by a self-published author, but Chelsea often times preferred the indie books to mainstream fiction. Especially nowadays with paranormal being the main attraction. Good old fantasy writing like Tolkien's was just too hard to find--unless you were Tolkien. Flipping past the introduction, she ran her finger down the middle crease and began reading.

That's when things got weird. There was nothing printed after the first page. Confused, Chelsea sat up and thumbed through the rest of the book. All. Freaking. Blank. "The heck?" she mumbled, turning to the first page again. Sure enough, when she got to the last word and flipped to the next page, it was blank. Suddenly, the book felt heavy. And it was bigger. Wait, no, she was getting smaller. Then she couldn't breathe, it was like passing through jelly, she closed her eyes and opened her mouth to scream...


The sensation passed. With relief, Chelsea rubbed her eyes and... the book had vanished. And she was definitely in a dress. And this... this wasn't her bed. Scratch that, this wasn't even her dorm room. It was some kind of royal chamber or something...

"From a fairytale," she whispered. Standing up slowly, she paced to the mirror hanging above the dainty vanity across the room. The face that greeted her was familiar somehow, but it wasn't hers. Her fingers traced her jaw, pulled at her lips, rubbed at her puffy, tear-stained cheeks, and smoothed her brow. Chelsea was definitely in this body. Then things started clicking into place. The book... was she actually imagining herself as Lady Jade?

"And they said imagination is never as real as a movie," she laughed to herself, enjoying the silvery stream that caressed her ears instead of her own hardy laugh. "Well, let's keep reading, shall we? Let's see, Lady Jade was sprawled across her bed, bawling her eyes out..." Chelsea glided back to the bed and let her body sink wearily into the sheets, digging inside of herself to produce a fresh bucket of tears.

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

Though he had learned in the past, Jared, or rather Prince Raulet, could not recall the proper form involved in this type of dance. And it did not help that this story was supposed to be set in a medieval time period, when dances were nothing like the ones he knew of. So he intended to follow the steps of his sister, though that did not work out too well for him. He found himself flat-footed and occasionally stepping on her from time to time. "You are not yourself tonight. I've seen you dance with all the eloquence in the world before." Was he that obviously bad? He almost laughed at himself for thinking he could pull off the dance. But he was a quick thinker, and an excuse came to his mind in a heartbeat. "I'm sorry. Forgive me for not being myself during a wedding that was planned without even consulting the bride or groom." From what he recalled, Raulet was rather stubborn and hot headed sometimes. He could play that part easily enough.

The laugh that escaped her mouth nearly made him trip again. "Oh, my dear brother. You were never very good at understanding women. Has living with three sisters taught you nothing? Sure you are upset that you must marry a woman you barely know. But at least you get to stay here in your home. Jade is expected to start a new life here, far away from everyone and everything she has grown up with. The least you could do is offer her some comfort. She's probably up in her chambers wondering how she will cope with all of this." Jared was not entirely concerned with his "wife's" well-being as he was not yet convinced that this was all real. But playing out the rest of the story might do something to help him snap out of whatever this delusion was. So as far as he was concerned, from this point on until he awoke in his bedroom he would be Prince Raulet Himarath.

His sister took a quick glance over his shoulder, clearly intrigued by something... or someone. Raulet turned to see what she was staring at and immediately caught site of a woman slightly younger than her with luscious brown curls. So this sister was Kyline, the one who was notorious for laying with other women and somehow avoiding every marriage her father arranged for her. He raised an eyebrow and led her away from the music. "The last thing you want is for our father to catch you on another one of your little adventures, especially tonight." Kyline seemed amused by that notion and patted him innocently on the head. "Do not worry about me. I know when I am safe and when I am not. Father is too drunk to do anything important at the moment. Besides, you need to focus on bringing your bride back to the festivities. We can't begin the bedding ceremony without her here." With that she strolled off towards the young maiden she had been focusing on earlier.

Raulet could not remember exactly where the bedroom chamber was located. There were some details in the book he had not paid much attention to, though he desperately regretted that now. "Guard," he stated with authority to one of the armored men roaming the corridors. "Escort me to Lady Jade's chambers. My father insists that I not be alone with so many people in the castle tonight." It sounded as good an excuse as any other, and now he was on his way to his wife's bedroom. He had not read much about Jade Carre yet, though he knew she was supposed to be rather appealing to the eyes. But he did not have the faintest idea how to comfort her. And he was not sure how he would carry out a long conversation without giving himself away.

After taking a a few flights of stairs up and strolling down a few empty corridors, save for the other guards on patrol, Raulet was finally brought to Jade's door, nodding to the sentry posted there. He knocked loudly and called in to her. "My lady, your lord husband wishes to enter."

 

[Lady Alainn]

As the seconds and minutes ticked by, Chelsea became increasingly aware that this vision or dream or whatever this was, was not in fact her active imagination while digging her nose into a book. For one thing, nothing gave her the cue to move on from sobbing on the canopied bed. Her mind didn't switch scenes, it didn't give her dialogue or the inner-workings of Lady Jade's head, and it didn't prompt her to do anything. Either this was the most boring book on the face of the planet, or something really did happen with that book. And honestly? Those tingles down her spine were beginning to make her suspect the latter. This bedroom was in way too much detail.

The rich, tapestry-like comforter on the heavy oak frame of the four poster felt rough under her fingers. Her gown pinched and cinched way too uncomfortably, and who took the time to imagine such scratchiness? Certainly not her. The massive wardrobe, the lady's vanity, the heavy velvet curtains hanging from the one large window, it was all too intricate, too real, just to chalk it up to imagination. She'd just come to the conclusion that this was some Lost In Austen freak accident when a rap sounded on the bedroom door.

"My what?" Chelsea immediately sat up on the bed, heart pounding. This was this part of the wedding night? But she'd just read... crap. "Focus, girl. Treat it like Improv. Roll with it, and if he launches himself at you, deck him." She wasn't sure if Lady Jade's fists could actually 'deck' a full grown man, but she sure would try. Scooting onto the floor, she pulled the sheets tight on the bed and smoothed out the wrinkles. Next, she padded over to the mirror and smoothed her curls, wiped her cheeks, and tightened the cord of her bodice.

"Pray, enter," she finally answered in a quivering voice. 'That'a girl,' she cheered herself on. 'This is Shakespeare, and you are his star...'

Jade braced herself for the first confrontation with her new husband.

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

The door opened and Raulet stepped into the large room. He gave a nod of acknowledgement to the sentry before turning his attention to the woman sitting on the bed, shutting the door quietly behind him. The first thing he noticed was that Jade was immensely more beautiful than he had pictured while reading the description of her. The next thought that settled in his mind was how tear streaked her cheeks were. She was obviously distraught about being sold off into marriage for no reason other than giving her family a powerful ally. If he this was actually her husband he might be capable of showing some sort of sympathy. Unfortunately the new Raulet would now have to put his acting abilities to the test. They were undoubtedly hollow, but until he figured out just how to get back to his home the only thing he could do was pretend that he was the real prince. But one wrong phrase could cause more than a few problems for him.

Unfortunately he had not reached this point in the story yet, so he had to improvise. What would the real Raulet do? He elected to walk towards the window rather than approach her directly. Outside in the courtyard there even more guests dancing and celebrating. The irony was that the two people this night was meant for were currently inside one of the taller towers of the castle. "I'm sure I can't convince you that this marriage was agreed to with your interests or mine in the highest of concerns. But I want you to know that you don't have to be alone in this." And where was he supposed to go from here? He was speaking to a woman that he was married to, except he himself was not married to her. If only he had taken those theater classes when he was in high school instead of joining the band. He doubted a trumpet solo would help him here.

What he would give to have a copy of the book with him now. At least then he would know what to say and what was supposed to happen from this point. As far as he knew he could be taking this in the completely wrong direction. 'Just focus on what the real prince would do,' he kept repeating in his head. He wished he paid more attention to the descriptions of his character beforehand. He tried to remember the important parts. Raulet was the second son and often felt like he was in his brother Presebal's shadow. His most notable achievement was killing Ser Tolem in single combat at the Battle of the Green River. He had three sisters, two older and one younger. What else was there?

He also remembered that he was supposed to be good friends with Jade's younger brother Ettrian. "I spoke to Ettrian just a little while ago. He is happy for the both of us. And he is also quite drunk." It was more difficult to remember the details of her two older siblings, Ruvyn and Loxly, though he at least remembered that they were not nearly as trustworthy as Ettrian. He would get to meet them later on, no doubt.

 

[Lady Alainn]

Jade wrapped her arms around her middle, hunching her shoulders and lowering her head to appear as vulnerable and unhappy as possible as her husband breezed through the doorway. Turning toward the vanity again, she took a step back and risked a peek at his reflection in the mirror as he walked past her to the window. Thank goodness he wasn't an eyesore.

Who was Ettrian? Obviously someone of importance. Someone she needed to know. 'Come on, Lady, help me out here.' Brother. Yup, definitely someone of importance. Drawing herself up to her full height, Jade turned on her heel and looked down her nose at Raulet, though she stood a few inches shorter. "I imagine his state played a part in the message," she said coldly. "Is this what you came here for? To bring up politics and deliver a message from my drunk brother?"

Ouch, that was a little on the harsh side. Jade was wallowing in self pity and despair, not angry. She dabbed her eye with her sleeve and bowed her head. "I am sorry, my lord," she said quietly. "I am still getting used to the idea." Like hell, she was.

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

Her sudden outburst was surprising, but Raulet had to think about his reaction before he said anything. What would a prince have said to that? What gave a woman living in a medieval world the courage to speak like that to her husband? It became clear that this was actually much harder than real acting. This time there was no script and he had no idea how the story was supposed to end.

"Do not be sorry, my lady. You have the right to be upset. Unfortunately I've never known a man or woman of royal blood who was allowed to marry for love. It's a curse we are born with." Damn his idiotic compassion. A real prince would likely have reprimanded her for speaking out against him. He was not cut out for a role in which he had to prove his manliness by demeaning those that were of lower status than himself, like women. But how could he bring himself to do something like that? As he clearly noted already this was not a dream. There was far too much going on that he didn't understand for this to be a product of his subconscious.

He chanced a look at her and noted that her expression was as emotionless as her words. It was possible that she wanted nothing more than to burst into tears again and was doing her best to hide it from him. "I am still getting used to the idea as well. I know we are not too familiar with each other yet, but we should be each other's support in this. Who else is going to understand our predicament besides us?"

 

[Lady Alainn]

And, cue spotlight. Chelsea racked her brain-- and Jade's-- for a suitable answer. She'd already pushed her luck with that cutting remark, but as much as she was improvising here, she was keenly aware that this was not Improv. A wrong word could cart her off to the dungeon. A wrong action could mean her head! Jade shuddered. At least this Raulet guy seemed to be a compassionate man. Understanding. Willing to allow her emotions to account for messed up lines.

She frowned. Perhaps part of the problem was the fact that she kept thinking Chelsea thoughts. To get into Jade's character, besides being actually in her character, she needed to assimilate herself with her thoughts. What would Jade do? How the hell was one page of story supposed to prepare her for that? She needed some kind of answer, some kind of acknowledgement to the Prince's ironic words. Who else would understand her true predicament? A brief smile tugged at her lips. Who indeed.

"You speak truly, my lord, and I have no quarrel with you." To prove her point, Jade moved to join Raulet by the window. Chelsea might get away with playing Jade to a man who apparently knew little about her, but to play Jade before she was comfortable with the character when there was family, even drunk, milling about turned her stomach. If they were a close family, she was screwed. Maybe her lord and master would grant her permission to stay here? Turning soft, pleading eyes upon him, she clasped her hands and brought them to rest upon her breast. Ye gads, he was fine to look at. 'Focus!' A quiver stirred in her voice as she whispered, "Must I go down again?"

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

It was more than a little surprising when Jade joined him by the window. Given her initial conservatism towards being in the same room as him, Jared could not help but wonder what was going on in her head. Then again this was a confusing time for her, and supposedly for Raulet as well. Maybe she really did want to get along with her new husband, or maybe she was simply performing what was required of her. Either way, it was good to know that she held no resentment towards him. Maybe he was doing something right after all. Surely he was supposed to make sure the relationship between Raulet and Jade was strong, right? Perhaps those spoiler articles would have helped him after all.

"I'm glad to hear it," he said with a smile. "And I have been told many wonderful things about you. I am sure all of them are true." He could not help but give himself a mental pat on the back for his smoothness. If only he could be this collective at the bar on Saturday nights. Although he had no idea what Jade looked like when she was drunk, but it was probably more attractive than her brother's antics. He tried to remember more about her other two siblings, but not much information was coming to mind. He would likely see them when he went back down. Maybe that would jog his memory?

Jared suddenly remembered that they would be required consummate the marriage tonight after the festivities began to slow down. How could he bring himself to do that? She barely seemed interested in marrying him, let alone sleeping with him. Surely the prince himself would have no problem with it. But he was not the prince, not at heart anyway. But not going through with it would cause too much suspicion...

His mind snapped back to Jade when she asked her question. He felt his knees buckle a little when he saw the look in her eyes, almost begging him to tell her that she could stay here. What would Raulet say here? "It would mean a great deal to your family and to everyone here if you did," he began, "but I do not have the heart to tell you that you must return. If you wish to stay here then I will inform them that you need to rest."

 

[Lady Alainn]

Jade's gaze dropped to her hands. It was evident by the way he worded his response that it would be failing in her duty if she did not appear. A refusal could cause even more suspicion than her being amongst her people. Whatever else Jade may or may not be, she certainly didn't shirk her duty. It was the reason she was here, now. Married to a man she didn't know. Living in a place that was not home. Alone. Companionless. Unless... unless the prince proved to be someone she could rely on. Raulet surprised her. From the little she'd gathered about the story from the synopsis, Chelsea had expected a little more grit to him.

While sifting through her thoughts, Jade paused a good full minute for effect before turning her back on Raulet once more. 'Idiot! You're giving a strange man an opening. In a bedroom. And he's got legal rights over your body!' Not until the ritual. The words danced through her mind. Ritual? There was a ritual she needed to know.... Suddenly, Chelsea felt sick. Jade's face blanched. That kind of ritual. Her step faltered. The party sounded really good all of a sudden. Chelsea could use a drink. Or two. Or three.

"Thank you, for your concern," she finally responded. "I shall rejoin the carousing if you will permit me to retire again after 20 minutes."

Too late did she think about the concept of time in a Medieval world like this. They didn't have watches. They had sundials. And had the term "minutes" even been invented yet? Chelsea crossed her fingers that things weren't so backwards here. That she hadn't just made a blunder. Damn, why couldn't she have read more of this story first?

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

Jade seemed to consider the idea for a long moment. He wasn't about to rush her in this decision making, so he went back to his thoughts about the story as a whole. What was happening and where? He recalled from the previous chapter that Soton was likely going to declare war soon, which probably meant that he would be marching off to battle. Did they expect the prince to fight much? If so then he was as good as dead. Jared had never swung a sword in his life. He owned a replica of Narcil that he won off a Lord of the Rings fan contest, but he kept that for display only. And if he attempted to fight at all there would certainly be some confusion among his men, all of them wondering why their prince was suddenly incapable of swinging a sword.

That thought could wait until later, as Jade had finally decided to rejoin them. He smiled with gratitude, but he was not sure if it was supposed to make him happy. Now they would be expected to walk together through the ceremony and show how happy they were without looking fake. But twenty minutes would not be too long. He was hoping to only have to handle this for a short time anyway, although it did seem a little on the short side, especially for a princess on the night of her own wedding. Was she really that upset by this marriage?

Raulet's head lifted in a sudden realization, and he whirled around to face her. Jade's back was still facing him, but he did not let that stop him from questioning what he just heard. "Sorry... my lady. I must have misheard you. How long did you say you would rejoin us for?" Jared was at least a hundred pages into this book, and never once did he see anything about minutes, seconds, or hours. They usually told time by referring to the time past since dawn, midnight, midday, or dusk. It usually corresponded to ticks on a sundial. Maybe he actually misheard what she said and was just hearing what he wanted to, and yet....

 

[Lady Alainn]

Damn, he'd picked up on her mistake! Chelsea racked her brain for a simple solution. Any solution. One that would hopefully make sense. Jade bit her lip while fiddling nervously with a sleeve. Normally, Chelsea would have breezed her way over a blunder. She would have laughed it off with confidence and turn it on her partner. But this improv didn't work like that. There was no audience reaction to assuage an error. A distraught woman didn't "breeze" anything. She could speak without knowing what it was she spoke... Yes, Chelsea would go with that and hopefully pull it off that way.

"A little while," Jade answered weakly. "I would rejoin for a little while."

"Little while" sounded nothing like "20 minutes," but in a time where they didn't use minutes, that would hopefully be overlooked. Jade straightened her shoulders, preparing for any sort of response from Raulet. If he took this ill, she may be found out. Deemed a spy. Beheaded. She shook her head adamantly. That was not going to happen. It couldn't!

"A little while," she whispered one last time. Was that over-doing it?

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

There was a tone of confusion that seemed to settle on Jade's voice. Had she really said 'minutes'? And now she was denying it. But that just made him even more curious. He knew what he heard. Jade was clearly hiding something from him. Did she know that he was not the real Raulet? Or perhaps she was someone else...

Struggling to find an answer was not helping him at all, but finally he calmed his mind and offered her a warm smile. He would have to catch her off guard, make her think he had not heard what she said. Jared did not know what exactly was going on with her, but she was clearly hiding something. His new wife was not about to keep secrets from him if he could help it. Oh wow, he thought to himself. He was almost starting to believe the whole scenario now. Despite how on edge he was, it was definitely more entertaining than real life.... assuming of course that this was not real.

He strolled over to her and offered an arm to her. "Very well then," he said cheerfully. "If anyone keeps you longer than you intend to I will personally have them escorted out of the castle." Once she had a hold of his arm the two of them made for the door. But just as he reached to open it he could not help himself from smirking. "Twenty minutes isn't a very long time though. Are you sure you wouldn't prefer to stay for at least an hour or two?" Her reaction would give him some insight as to what she was hiding. Maybe he wasn't the only one who found himself here without warning...

 

[Lady Alainn]

She had no choice but to slip her hand under his arm and allow the prince to escort her. As her fingertips wrapped around his wrist she felt.... muscle? ...through the fabric of his doublet. Butterflies erupted in her stomach, twisting and turning into burning sensations within her core and bringing a flush to her cheeks. Chelsea always longed to cling to the arm of a hottie, but had never been able to procure one's attention except as a colleague on stage. Her charm only seemed to work on dweebs and in no way did that improve her image. But here, now, whether in dreams or reality, she was definitely rocking a hot guy.

But wait, what was that? A smirk? He said what? Chelsea clamped her mouth shut to keep her jaw from dropping in shock at the tease. Did they actually use those terms in this book? Or was he...? No way. Hell, no. That-- that wasn't possible. Was it? Well, if he was going to be oh so coy about it, she'd dish it right back at him. Only Chelsea would triple the dose. And add an open flirt. Her stomach did that weird twisting thing again, but she pressed on boldly before she lost her nerve.

"You are mocking me, my lord," Jade teased with a flutter to her lashes. Raising her other arm to join the one tucked in Raulet's, she settled her hand on top of his arm and walked her fingers across his forearm to his elbow. Her voice continued in a seductive whisper, "Whether I stay for twenty minutes or two hours, I will still find myself in your bed come nightfall."

Hoping this sudden change in performance would confuse him for a moment, she moved to disentangle herself from the prince and slip from the room. With any luck, she'd be halfway down the passage and well into the sight of a guard before he caught up with her.

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

Jade's sudden reversal of roles took Jared completely by surprise. It had been a long time since a woman spoke to him like that. That was the price he paid for trying to make his future a successful one instead of enjoying his college days like everyone else was. But now this beautiful "wife" of his was playing a card he had not expected at all. He felt his stomach churn with a desire that was also unexpected. If this really was a dream then he would prefer it to not end. But he could not shake the feeling that something was definitely off about this whole thing.

His feelings were confirmed after Jade's next statement, and Raulet's arm quickly tightened around her's to prevent her from leaving. Their return to the celebrations would have to wait, because this was definitely not Jade. He knew he had heard her correctly. She must have been in the same predicament as he was, which was both exciting and confusing. Now Jade's sudden openness made sense. The real character would have been far too afraid of him to talk like that. And she certainly wouldn't know what an hour or a minute was.

"Be still," he whispered as he clasped his hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming. "Listen to me. I know you're not the real Jade. But I promise I won't reveal you.... as long as you don't reveal me." He felt her relax a little and decided it was safe to let her go. He released her arm and removed his hand away from her mouth before taking a few steps back. "I am not the real prince. I still don't even know if any of this is real. All I know is I was reading this book after a long day, and then the next thing I knew I was sitting at the feast and my head was spinning faster than a windmill."

 

[Lady Alainn]

Before she could even open the door, Jade found herself snatched back as a hand enveloped her mouth. That was completely unnecessary. Did he think she was a fricking lunatic or something? A fierce glare erupted in her eyes as Raulet, or stranger in Raulet's body as it turned out, called her bluff. She had been perfectly justified in doubting his character so in her book, they were even. Hopefully he'd read more of the book than she did.

What a hoot this was turning out to be! If Chelsea wasn't so furious at the manhandling, she probably would be doubled over laughing. Comedy was her forte, after all. But right now this was no laughing matter. A stranger within a stranger with legal rights to her body and no set script was way, way too close for comfort. Her tensed muscles weren't getting her anywhere with his hand over her mouth, so she worked on relaxing to convince the fool to let go. When he finally backed away, her hands settled in an angry posture on her hips.

"Of course I know you're not actually Raulet!" she snapped. "You think I'd be stupid enough to pull something like that on the real prince?" Jade held up a hand. "Wait, don't answer that. You're a man. Of course you do." Without warning, Jade closed the distance between them again and her hand flew from her side to slap Raulet across his cheek. "That's for thinking dirty thoughts about me, Mr. Windmill." Judging from that pathetic slap, Chelsea figured she was in trouble if this guy decided to try anything with her. Jade was no fighter. 'Great. Juuuust great.'

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

Jared held his tongue when asked if he thought she might be stupid, knowing she would have been even more furious than in delivering a meager hand to his face. He was not completely convinced that she already knew he was a fake, but that was irrelevant now. He touched a hand to his cheek and narrowed his eyes at her in frustration. "Was that really necessary? It's not like you made it any easier for me with your 'I will find myself in your bed come nightfall, my sweet prince.' If you're going to criticize me let's at least be fair about it. And I 'm not even going to begin what is wrong with your perception of men. You are in the wrong universe for that, princess." He emphasized the last word almost mockingly.

Placing a hand on his forehead, Jared let himself calm down with a heavy sigh and moment to think. "Alright, let's not argue. We're both in a predicament we don't really understand. I want to get out of this as much as you do. Although I have to admit, being a prince is a lot less demanding than trying to pay my way through college." Hopefully she had released enough anger already, though her slap was not the strongest one he could have imagined. Still, it was best not to keep trying her, mostly because everyone was expecting them to return soon.

"I assume you must have gotten here the same way I did. How far into the book were you before you ended up here?" He did not expect her to be very far, especially considering how poorly she portrayed Jade's character earlier. Either that or she was just as poor an actor as he was.

 

[Lady Alainn]

Crossing Jade's arms over her chest, Chelsea stood back and watched Mr. Windmill problem-solve with an "I've-got-a-secret" smile slowly spreading over her lips. Now that Raulet was a safe distance from her, she felt free to enjoy the unfolding scene. The irony between their situation and the situation of the characters they were playing was just delicious. And Mr. Windmill? He had potential. In truth, the guy had a decent head on his shoulders. He had enough backbone not to bowl over with her attacks and wasn't caught up in petty arguments. Yes, she could work off of him. They could make a very convincing team as long as he'd read enough of the book to give her a fair picture of her character. She didn't really play the meek and mild type, but Chelsea was willing to step outside her comfort-zone and grow a little as an aspiring actress. The only problem was mistakes wouldn't be taken too kindly on this live stage.

When Raulet finished speaking, Jade crossed over to the bed and sat down, pulling her skirt out of the way so she could sit cross-legged. At his question, she grinned roguishly and propped her elbows on her knees, setting her chin in her hands. "I read two pages in the preview on Amazon of Jade moaning and weeping about her arranged marriage and Raulet gorging himself at the banquet and the first page of the first chapter. Aren't you glad I'm not the one in charge here?"

 

[Jalapenohitchhiker]

Raulet's jaw dropped in disbelief. A mere three pages of knowledge was nothing for her to go off of. He could explain her character to her, but it would have been much easier for her to understand how to act in this role if she could read it and understand it herself. "That doesn't give us a whole lot of options. I know the basics of Jade's character well enough but I hardly know anything about her past. I was only about a quarter of the way through the book." This was beginning to seem like an impossible task.

"I suppose some knowledge is better than none," he sighed, leaning against the window with his back facing the cool night air. "From what I've gathered Jade is not the most outspoken person. She only talks when she has to, and she is very obedient and devoted to her family." He stopped for a moment when an unfortunate realization hit him like a freight train. "Damn. Your family. More specifically your sister, Loxly. She's the most cunning and manipulative character in the entire book from what I've read. You'll have to put on the performance of your life if you plan on fooling her." Now Jared was more than convinced that they would need a miracle to pull this off.

Now the main task was to focus on making sure Loxly did not suspect anything. As long as she was fooled then Jared was confident that no one else would be much of a problem. "Let's just focus on getting through tonight before anything. If anyone talks to you just smile politely and respond with the broadest answer you can possibly think of. If they think you are acting out of the ordinary just say something like 'I'm still taking all of this in' or whatever. Make sure you address Loxly as Lox and Ettrian as Ett. Being too formal with them could lead to suspicion. I'll go over what little history I know later tonight. For now let's get through this party."

 

[Lady Alainn]

"Bleck, this just gets worse and worse." Jade made a face. "That's why I like Shakespeare so much. It's got that classical, old history vibe to it and the women are real people! Not quiet little mice like this Jade person seems to be. Well, it can't be helped I suppose. Serves me right for choosing a book over homework." Chelsea mulled over the pointers Raulet had given her and her own solution for surviving the wedding night. With a sigh, she rubbed the bridge of her nose with a thumb and forefinger. Meek and mild, meek and mild. Meek and mild and quiet. Yeah, she could pull it off, hopefully. As long as Raulet didn't throw her any curve balls. But just in case--

"Oh, as an FYI, I'm planning on getting smashed at this party. Anything accidentally out of character can be blamed on being slipped too much booze. But I want your word of honour that you won't touch me. No matter what. Got that?"