Sucked into a New World (Lady Alainn x Jalapeno)

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Jared almost burst with laughter at her reaction to having to act like quiet little mouse. "Trust me, when you meet your sister you will probably equate her more with a lion than a mouse." He thought it might be good to mention that there were other places in the world that the story had covered but they didn't seem too important just yet. They could always go over that stuff later, though it wasn't much to go off. But it was always better than nothing.

He slapped his forehead with the palm of his head. "Please just don't do anything too rash. Remember you're a bride in a medieval period. They won't care how much you drink but if you do anything ridiculous people will look down on you for it. We don't need to attract any unwanted attention until we know how to get out of here." Jared was almost appalled that she thought it was necessary to tell him not to take advantage of her in her drunkenness. "Do I really look like a rapist to you?" He didn't even look like himself actually. He had taken on the appearance of Prince Raulet as soon as he found himself in this world. But even if he did feel the urge, there would likely be more than a few servant girls around the castle who would give anything to share a night with royalty. Focus! he shouted internally.

With that settled he offered her a hand and gestured towards the door. "Unless you have anymore questions we should probably go back down. They may all be drunken fools right now, but eventually they'll be wondering where we've gone." As long as no one expected them to dance they should be alright. Jared had taken a few ballroom dance lessons before, only after being hoodwinked into them, but nothing extravagant was ever expected of him. This would be a different story.
 
"I'm not stupid," Jade muttered under her breath at Raulet's insistence she do nothing suspicious in the name of alcohol. She wisely kept her mouth shut at the rapist comment-- all men were potential rapists, that had been drilled into Chelsea's head ever since her mom had the "birds and bees" talk with her in 5th grade. She was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, but in no way would she relax her guard until he'd proven himself. Secretly, she was rooting for the guy, but no way in hell would she let him know that. No, it was best he think her capable of landing another punch at the slightest mention of anything.

Anyway, the party. They had to get back. She shook her head in response. "I'm good. You can catch me up later, Mr. Windmill," she laughed. "If they make us dance, follow my lead. And if there's any sort of medieval-styled bell or glass tinkling tradition here, I'll forgive you for the sake of the story. Now, I need an ale. Let's go party!"

She threaded her arm through Raulet's and was about to go for the door when she remembered it was the man's job. Right. Stepping back again, she gestured with her free hand and a wink. "After you, Mr. Windmill. I'm too meek and mild."
 
It was somewhat relieving to know that she had some experience in dancing, so that would at least make them look a little better, assuming she was not too inebriated to think about what she was doing. Given her lack of understanding of the situation, however, Jared would have to keep a close eye to make sure nothing was done that could compromise their identities. This would have been so much easier if he was working with the real Jade.

He rolled his eyes and led her to the door. "You just don't have a care in the world now that you're about to celebrate like they did in the fourteenth century. Just don't forget how serious this is. And are you really going to continue calling me that from now until whenever this ends?" Honestly it would feel weird to him if she addressed him as Raulet now that she knew he was not really the prince. Similarly, he was uncomfortable calling her Jade, but as soon as they walked out of this door that awkwardness would have to be forgotten.

The door swung open with a slight creek and the pair strolled down the corridor looking as royal as they could. Every so often a sentry or two would walk by and Raulet's head would give them a friendly nod. Down the steps they went and through a few more corridors before they finally came back to the hall where everyone was celebrating their marriage. As they meandered into the extravagant banquet, a roar of cheers went up from the guests when they saw the bride and groom return. So this was what it felt like to be a celebrity. It was a lot more nerve racking than Jared expected.
 
Her only response to his complaint about his nickname was another sly smirk. They could discuss proper names after this ordeal was over. No sense in adding two more names to the mix to get tripped up during the festivities.

As soon as the happy couple departed from the bedroom, it was as if a curtain had risen and the spotlight fell upon them on center stage as Chelsea retreated back into herself and prompted the character of Jade to step forward. Though still standing straight with a regal posture, she managed to curve her shoulders inward and angle her head in such a way to display a sense of submission. She practically floated on Raulet's arm, averting her eyes to give herself an appearance of far away thoughts.

Her breath caught in her throat as they were hailed with cheers and laughter upon their arrival to the banquet hall. What would Jade do? A half-smile pulled at her lips. Yes, she would do her damnedest to appear content with this arrangement. Jade's fingers tightened their grip on Raulet's arm to offer him her support. No, the real Jade probably wouldn't have dared to instigate a touch like that, but she wasn't paired with the real Raulet now, was she?

Scanning the hall, she located the seats of honour at the head table and the booze keg. Thank goodness it was still frothing. She stood silently, smile still plastered to her face and eyes now downcast in a feign of embarrassment as she waited for Raulet's guidance.
 
The crowd did not gather in front of them as Jared had expected. Instead it parted for them to make their way to the table. The rest of the royal families were sitting there already, and his eyes landed on the lovely blonde woman sitting near the left end of the table. That was undoubtedly Loxly, the one they would have to be extra careful around. Two seats down was her and Jade's father. Jared had not read too much about King Arnall yet, but Loxly had to have obtained her manipulative ways from someone, and it certainly wasn't her beautiful but brainless mother.

Jade's fingers tightened around his arm and he took that as a sign to lead them onward through the crowd. As they passed with all of the elegance they could display, there shouts of "Lead us in a dance!" and "Display those dancing shoes, my lady!" Thinking quickly of an excuse, Jared picked out the first thing that came to mind, which luckily didn't have to be much of a lie at all. "In time," he insisted to those who were calling for them to dance. "My lady and I are rather tense on such an important night. First a small drink will calm our nerves." Whether she actually kept it to a small drink was something of a different story.

They finally reached the head table, and Raulet bowed first to Jade's father and then to his own. Jade's mother stood up and embraced her 'daughter' with a joyful smile. "So glad you came back down, my love. I hope you are well. Come, you must try this roasted pigeon. I don't usually care for foul but this was done most wonderfully." The idea of eating a pigeon was not very appetizing to Jared, though it probably wouldn't taste any different from chicken.
 
Chelsea consented to let Raulet to make the calls for her, claiming nerves as a reason not to dance just yet. It was smart, actually. While they had their drink, she could study the other party-goers who were engaging in the activity already and hopefully get a good enough feel for the way they danced to lead Raulet in one. A genuine smile flickered across her lips. Jade leading a man in a dance in a backwards-century medieval story. Sounded like fun. The real challenge would be to make it appear that he was leading, but she was confident that would pan out well.

They approached the head table and Chelsea drew back as far as she could within Jade to allow the woman's instincts to take over. Because Chelsea hadn't had the chance to fully acquaint herself with Jade through the book, finding Jade within herself seemed so much more difficult than how Mr. Windmill was fairing with Raulet. Plus, the girl was so damn passive. If someone had invaded Chelsea's body, she just knew she'd give them a hell of a time whether they'd read a paragraph about her or a whole biography.

In any case, she drew far enough back that Jade was able to embrace her mother how Jade would and respond to Jade's mother the way Jade would. "If you say the pigeon is wonderful, it must surely be so," Jade agreed with a warm smile. She cut off her words there and turned to look up at Raulet with a subtle questioning look. Should they go sit down? Did they need to go get their drinks themselves? Did she need to let him make every call? Well, if Jade wasn't outspoken, she probably should. And so she stood there.
 
He let Jade exchange pleasantries with her mother before leading her back to their respective seats. "Don't make a move to a retrieve anything by yourself," he whispered to her as they sat down. "They'll think it's odd that a princess is having to lift a finger on her wedding night." Jared could see that she was unsure about what she was supposed to be doing in her current position. Though he imagined that a little more time spent as royalty would be enough for her to not want to leave such a life of luxury.

One of the servant girls came their way in no more than a few seconds and immediately filled their goblets with a red wine that smelled tangier than the kind Jared was used to. He usually preferred a good beer or even tequila once in a while, but the odds of anything like that being present were slim to none. Even a brew of ale was not likely to be found at such an extravagant party. Grabbing hold of his own goblet, Raulet held it up as if to inspect the drink before consuming it. "To my lovely, endearing wife," he said with a smirk, followed by a large gulp of the drink. It tasted as tangy as it smelled, and he fought to keep his face from squirming at the strong flavor.

Jade had taken a rather large drink herself, and Jaed was not the only one to notice. "Jade, I've never seen you drink that much wine in one sitting," her father stated in what sounded like an amused tone. "In fact you rarely drink at all." Luckily for them he already looked half drunk himself, so this king so notorious for having a razor sharp mind was probably rather dulled at the moment.
 
Jade balanced her goblet delicately between her fingertips, knowing enough to wait for her lord and master to make a toast or at the very least, sip first. It was common politeness, right? Right. Inwardly, Chelsea gagged at Raulet's sarcastic toast, but Jade hid it well with lowered lashes upon her round cheeks. He thought he was oh so suave, didn't he? After the imposter prince downed his glass, Jade raised her liquid to her lips and breathed in the sultry fragrance of the strong drink. Yes, this would do nicely.

She sipped it tentatively at first, as if she were uncertain about partaking of the drink. Then, as if succumbing to the drink's persuasion to drink and forget, Jade took another and another, allowing ample time between large sips to let the alcohol deaden her senses and beg her lips to wet themselves with the potent wine again and again.

Her head buzzed. Chelsea groaned. Jade really had no stomach for strong drink. This was so annoying. She hadn't meant to get drunk! No more, she couldn't drink anymore. Not if she was going to keep Jade's head on her shoulders for the rest of the evening.

"I've never been married before," she mumbled only loud enough for Raulet to hear in reply to her father. Let him guess what Jade's reply should be, she had no idea how to respond to the man. Leaning closer to her 'husband', Chelsea implored him quietly, "Apparently I've been cursed with a weak stomach. Make sure I don't drink anymore?"

Then she sat back and trained her eyes on the dancers in the middle of the hall. Chelsea had no doubt they were up next and she'd promised she could get them through it.
 
Jared felt a pit form in Raulet's stomach when he heard King Arnall questioning his daughter's sobriety. They had to tread carefully with anyone that was close to them or risk being caught. And to make matters worse Jade had already taken in far more than she was capable of drinking. If she did not sober up quickly the they would both look like utter fools when called upon to lead the dance. He refrained from using the 'I told you so' family of phrases. Their relationship was already rocky enough as it was. "Just drink some water or something. Hopefully they won't demand to see us dance just yet. Sober up as much as you can before any of that happens."

Luckily for them another distraction showed up in the form of Ser Robyyn Vancen, the Captain of the Guard. Jared had only read a few descriptions about his legacy, but it was enough to know that he was one of the most respected knights in the kingdom and even beyond the seas. The tall man approached the royal table and bowed with an unmatched elegance. "He is one of the most respected knights in history. Look at him with awe, but not too obviously. I think that's what Jade would do," he whispered to his wife. In truth it was probably something that a drunken Jade would do, and seeing as how that was what they had at the moment it made perfect sense to him.

The knight did not wait for any of them to speak as he quickly addressed Raulet's father, King Galston himself. "My liege, I hate to interrupt such a festive night but I have received word of suspicious activity beyond the city's gates. Some are claiming it is just a rowdy bunch of bandits. Others believe it is.... something else." He shifted his eyes as if to say he would rather continue this conversation in private. King Galston understood the message and immediately stood up to follow him from the hall.

For a moment Jared wondered if he should go with him as well. That's what Raulet would have done, right? He was supposed to be the dutiful prince who spent more time trying to learn the art of ruling than enjoying himself. But his thought was cut short when a hand grabbed his shoulder. "Come on you two. We've been waiting all night to see the bride and groom dance for the first time!" Ettrian's voice rang loudly in excitement, and more than half the hall echoed the sentiment.
 
Water, yes water was a good idea. Not as good as coffee, but it was a start. Chelsea forced herself to sit up straighter, more refined, gracefully reach for the goblet of water at the edge of the table. Damn, it sucked having a sober mind and a very drunk body. But, things could be worse. It could be the other way around. A drunk Chelsea in a sober Jade's body. She'd lose her head in mere minutes! Or burned at the stake. Jade held the goblet carefully in her hands, a subtle sniff to make sure it really was H2O and not some other kind of alcoholic beverage. Then another thought crossed her mind. This was drinking water, right? Not some kind of fancy dish for wetting fingers? She shifted her gaze further down the table and spied her mother reaching for her goblet. Sipping. Yes, this was drinking water.

The clear liquid slid down her throat, waking her body up just enough to register Raulet's words of warning and the confident male who approached them. Damn, he was good looking, too. In a rugged kind of way. Chelsea easily complied to Raulet's suggestion, lifting her eyes to the knight before dropping them after a few moments as he spoke to the king. It sounded... important. Then the man next to her shifted in his seat as if he was thinking of getting up as well. Wait, was Raulet going, too? Leaving her alone to face the brunt of drunk party-goers? Like hell he was if she had anything to do with it....

But Chelsea didn't have to worry about being left just yet. Ett was calling for a dance. Great, yes, she could do that.

Jade's cheeks were already a bit rosy, so the blush she maneuvered to the surface didn't really show through. "I suppose we should oblige them," she whispered quietly. "I am willing if you are." And indeed, she was. The dances looked simple, actually, though to an outsider they probably appeared quite complicated. She'd been in a musical once set in a similar time period. It was amazing how similar it all was. They could definitely pull this off.

Chelsea then waited for Raulet to take the initiative. Waited for him to lead Jade to the dance floor. It would make it so much less obvious that she was doing the leading if he could just get them there without casting suspicion on themselves.
 
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Jared was still under the impression that he should have followed the king and Ser Robyyn out into the corridor, but now this best friend of his was clamoring for him to dance with his bride. He just hoped she wasn't too drunk at this point. They would both look like complete idiots if she couldn't stay on her feet long enough for this to pass. Without further ado, Raulet stood up and offered Jade his arm before leading her to the dance floor. This was either about to be an extremely lucky break or a complete and udder failure. Jared had his bets placed on the second option but prayed for it to be the first.

"I hope you're sober enough to do this," he whispered. "Dancing isn't exactly my strength, so I'm counting on you to get us through this part." Jared spotted Loxly waiting for them to begin. His stomach sank a little, knowing that she would be watching their every move. One slip up and she would grow suspicious of them. At least at this moment she wasn't actually looking for them to mess up. But she knew her sister better than anyone. At least he wasn't dancing with her. He could only imagine what would happen in that scenario...

Before he knew it, the two of them were in the center of the floor with a crowd of onlookers gathered in a circle around them. Raulet was sweating bullets now, but Jade seemed to almost be enjoying herself. Either she was supremely confident in her dancing abilities or she was still drunker than half the people here. With a deep sigh, Raulet placed his hands on her waist and waited for the music to play. It did not take long for the music to begin, but as quickly as it started it was suddenly over...

A loud screech rang out through the hall and everyone covered their ears in pain. Raulet was suddenly on the floor after what felt like a freight train hit him squarely in the chest. He was dizzy for a moment but regained his senses quickly, though now his entire body was sore. It took only another second to realize that Jade was on the floor a few feet from him, but over stood what looked like something straight from a bad horror flick. What was it? His question was answered by the numerous guests screaming "Demon!". If only he had read just a little bit further he would have seen this coming.

There were about two dozen guards on the scene in a matter of moments, four of them stopping to help their prince. "Don't worry, my lord. We'll protect you." Raulet was on his feet again, and Jared heard himself say, "Forget about me. We have to help Jade." But how the hell was he supposed to fight this thing?
 
"Of course I'm sober enough!" Chelsea hissed, keeping a submissive and bashful look upon Jade's face as he led her to the dance floor. Oh, she would show him, she would! As they took their spots, her eyes gloated up towards his. Oh, she would show him. He placed his hands around her waist, pulling her closer to him. If only the guests could see just how absurd that simple gesture was. Though for their bodies such a position was natural, expected, Chelsea could bet that there were a million other places the person inside Raulet would rather be, a million other actions he'd rather be doing, than drawing the feminist spitfire towards him.

The musicians struck up their tune, Jade inclined her ear to determine the step, and had just counted for them to come in when a high-pitched shriek shattered her eardrums. Her legs crumbled beneath her as her body seemed to be tossed to the side in a heap. Damn, was she really so wasted?

But no, there was some kind of foul presence in the room. The merry party-goers had turned into quaking chaos. What had them so riled up? Where was Raulet? Then, she felt it. Something standing over her. Turning her gaze towards the ceiling, she locked eyes with the most horrific thing she'd seen in her entire life.

Jade screamed.
 
Jared was frozen in place, and he felt as though his legs might give out at any moment. No one told him there were such frighteningly intimidating creatures in this book. Was he supposed to fight it, considering that it was standing over his bride with the most menacing of looks? Even if he knew how to fight, he was dressed in a tight-fitting doublet that restricted his movement. No one in their right mind would choose to wield a sword while wearing that. But it didn't matter, because he didn't even have time to act before he saw Ser Robyyn and a host of about seven guards head straight for the beast, swords and spears ready to strike.

"She must give the lord a child," the demon hissed, its red eyes boring straight into Jade's. "The lord must have a child, and the child must be birthed by the one who commands the power. She must give the lord a child." Jared did not have a clue what any of that meant. Who was this lord? Who was the child? And why did it need Jade for all of this?

The demon was distracted momentarily when a spear was heaved directly towards its head. As spectacular a throw as it was, it clunked off its skull and fell to the floor with a loud thunk. The guard that threw it stood still in disbelief as the others continued their attack. Unfortunately their attacks proved as useless as the first, and the demon flung its long, scaly arms at them, sweeping every attacker off his feet. More and more guards were now convening on the uninvited guest, but Jared could see that their attacks were going no where quickly.

His eyes landed on one of the torches lighting the hall. He just hoped this thing knew how to burn.
 
Everything started spinning around Jade. Soldiers came running, brandishing their weapons. The demon screamed something about a child. Like hell she was going to let anyone touch her long enough to bring that about. And then an idiot threw a spear right at the demon! Chelsea bit her tongue and swallowed hard, forcing her cursing to herself. If that spear had been thrown any closer, it would have impaled her when it tumbled from the demon! But thankfully, it distracted the creepy thing and taunted it to move away from her.

She needed to get out of there. Rolling onto her stomach, Jade crawled along the floor to get out of the reach of weapons made clumsy by the thick hide-- or was it the vapor hide-- of the creature. She didn't care how ridiculous she looked or may seem to any of the guests. A demon was a demon and it didn't matter how refined or dainty a person was when their life was at stake. Propping herself up on her elbows when there was enough distance put between herself and the commotion, she lifted her head and sought out the prince. Where was Windmill? Holy crap, did he even know how to wield a weapon as Raulet?

There he was, moving towards the wall. He was going for... fire? Chelsea couldn't help the slow smirk that stretched her lips. It looked like Mr. Windmill had a head on his shoulders after all. Initiative. Innovation. She liked that. Good. She could go "cower" in his corner without fear of her head accidentally rolling from her body. Obviously, cowering was all she could do. Was all she was expected to do. Jade wouldn't go banshee crazy on a demon.

Switching directions, Jade pulled herself onto her feet and began slinking around the arena towards Raulet, keeping her eyes trained on him. Heck, she hoped that thing could burn, too.
 
People were running and panicking as only people could. Jared could not help but think that a situation like this in his own world go just as awry. Leave it to people to completely lose it when experiencing fear. He was almost surprised that he was able to overcome his own fear and actually think of using fire to repel the beast. The only question was whether or not it would actually work. If it didn't he might accidentally cause even more damage and set something on fire.

Pulling the torch off the wall, Jared immediately felt the heat of the flames gloss over his skin. Mishandling that would make him look even more foolish. But what really surprised him was to see Jade retreating towards him now. Either she was attempting to remain in character or she was actually looking to him for protection. He liked to think it was the latter reason, but he could contemplate that later. Although the real Jade probably would have looked for her family during such a time. Luckily everyone was too focused on the demon to notice a detail like that, or so he hoped.

Willem placed himself in front of her and brandished the torch in front of him. "Stay back and don't let yourself into it's sight." He then leaped forward between the men attempting to drive off the demon with their futile attacks, waving his torch in front of its blood red eyes. "Come on you ugly brute! Let's see if you can burn!" The demon did not notice him at first, knocking aside another spear that was projected in its direction. But then it caught sight of the torch and immediately stepped back and let out another screech, this one even louder than the previous one. Yes Jared thought. It was afraid of fire. A few of the other guards grabbed torches as well and joined Raulet in scaring the beast. It continued its aggravated cries, and Jared desperately wanted to drop the torch to cover his ears, but he resisted the urge.

Finally the demon snarled with fury and took flight once more, barraging through the open doors of the hall and disappearing into the night. Ser Robyyn began barking out orders without missing a beat. "Don't just stand there! Go after it! I want four search parties, one in every direction. Report back before dawn or if you find the damn thing, whichever comes first." Jared looked around at the ravaged hall. Everyone was still noticeably shaken.

Before he could approach Jade, Loxly made her way over to her sister in a fury. "Jade! My poor, poor sister. Are you alright?" She embraced her 'sister' tenderly, tears streaming from her eyes.
 
Jade gratefully slipped behind Raulet as he reached her, letting him put himself and the torch he wielded between herself and the demon. As fun as it would have been to join him on scaring the hideous creature, she was still just as satisfied to sit back and watch him work. "Like I'm crazy enough to want that damned thing's attention!" she replied in a low voice, a laugh almost hinting in her tone. "Good luck, Windmill." And then he was leaping away from her, holding his torch high.

Thank God, the creature screamed. Slipping her hands over her ears, Jade slumped onto the floor again and pressed against her eardrums while closing her eyes. Soon, hopefully this would be over soon. Before she knew it, strong arms were slipping about her. Raulet? Her heart skipped a beat and she inwardly cursed it. No, they were too small...and the voice was definitely that of a woman's. Jade raised her head. Loxly. The one they had to be careful around. 'Well, let's see how well I can pull off my character...'

"I'm... I'm unharmed... merely ...shaken," Jade trembled against her sister, letting her breath catch in her throat as if she were trying to be so very brave and hold back a sob for fear of letting herself slip into the throes of a passionate wail in front of the large gathering. Her body was drunk, though Chelsea's mind was whirling. This was her chance, wasn't it? To get away? And now she had not only an unusual state of drunkenness to excuse her for being 'out of character,' she had a demon experience as well. Two points in her favour, and a prince who knew exactly why she needed to pack up for the night and leave.

So three points in her favour actually. And just to be on the safe side, a swoon would cinch the deal at four. Slightly shifting her head from Loxly's shoulder to meet the prince's eyes, Chelsea stared at him intently for a second and then gave him a subtle wink. 'Please, let him be a guy who can read intentions!' She returned her attention to her sister and put on her act.

"I would like to return to my room, though. Oh Lox, would it be so very wrong of me to do such a thing?" She closed her eyes, as if the room was spinning before her. "I... I..." Jade fell forward, as if in a dead faint.
 
"Make sure only the search parties leave the castle. We don't need anyone outside while that thing lurks about," Raulet ordered the nearest guards. "And make sure the city watch is informed and on the lookout as well." He then turned his attention back to Jade. She looked understandably shaken by the event and was now being consoled by Loxly. That was a little nerve racking, but she looked to be playing her part well for now, though for all he knew she might not have even been acting.

Jared was confused, however, when Jade subtly winked at him behind Loxly's back. So she was not as distressed as he thought she might be. Apparently she had more a bit more courage than he expected her to. And then came the collapse onto the floor and he forced himself not to grin like a fool. There were gasps of concern heard all around the room, but Jared did not miss a step as far as he could tell. Rushing over to her, he knelt down next to Loxly and attempted to lift Jade. "I will take her up myself." The elder sister nodded but made no verbal reply. Good. The fewer words they exchanged with each other the better it was for him.

Lifting Jade was easier than Jared had expected. He was obviously much stronger in this body than he would normally be, which he was not readily going to complain about. "I want four guards outside of our door and two more on the balcony of the window," he ordered one of the sentries. The last thing they needed was for that demon to show up in their room and attack her again.

As he carried her back up the stairs, Jared whispered quietly enough so the guards could not make out what he was saying. "I expected you to be a lot more petrified after that. Guess you have a bit more backbone than I gave you credit for."
 
It was so hard to keep herself still, limp, and completely dead to the world when she was not, in fact, dead to to the world. Thank goodness Windmill had caught her intentions. So, he was a reasoning, reasonable man after all. That just bumped himself up a couple of notches in her estimation, and the way his arms swooped around her and lifted her easily added a few more. Of course, Chelsea couldn't resist having her head fall against his chest as he picked her up and take full advantage of her situation. This book dream reality thing was getting weirder by the minute and why shouldn't she enjoy herself until she could find her way home?

At Raulet's whispered words, Jade risked opening an eyelid slightly in recognition and found she had to bite her tongue to keep her smirk from reaching her lips. Good, she'd just proven herself. Honestly, that demon had frightened her a little bit, but this was all so ridiculous-- and many of Chelsea's lonely evenings had been spent watching horror flicks at the dollar theatre-- that it was hard to take seriously. Maybe next time it appeared, Windmill would let her help scare it off. Maybe even kill it. Like Eowyn and the Witch King, though wouldn't she need a Merry to stab it in the heel while she lunged for the heart?

Not another muscle did the "fainted" lady move until they reached the bedroom. Once the door closed behind them, Chelsea practically jumped from the prince's arms and dusted her hands off on her skirts. Now she could smile and her smirk stretched widely across her face. "So, how'd I do, Mr. Windmill?" Chelsea asked in a teasing tone, keeping her voice low enough not to carry through the walls or windows. "Did I pass your expectations?"
 
She was not going to let go of that ridiculous nickname, but at this point it didn't really matter much anymore. It's not like she knew Jared's real name anyway, and he would rather keep it that way for now. It would be rather awkward if she were to slip up and call him Jared in front of someone else. "You certainly did, for now anyway. We made it through the evening at least, but just barely. For a moment there I wasn't sure if we would actually make it out alive." The truth of those words shook him a little, not knowing what would have happened had he actually been killed. Would he die in real life as well? Or was this real life now?

"But we have a lot more to discuss about the other characters. I hope you're not still drunk, because there is quite a bit to remember about them all." She still looked a little hazed to him. If there was going to be any learning at all tonight it wouldn't be very much. Still, a little is always better than none. He could teach her the rest of the items he knew of tomorrow. For now he would just cover the important parts and people.

"The first thing you should know is about your home and family," he began, setting himself comfortably on the bed. He would have sat on the chair by the desk that was strewed with papers, but it looked less than comfortable. "You come from the Carre family, which rules the kingdom of Feora from its capital city Tur. Your family is well liked by the Feoran citizens, but there are a few questionable things about them. Your father, King Arnall, is a brilliant man, but he has been known to make plans behind the backs of others, including his own allies. Lady Meldana is your mother. She comes from the Velaqua family, one of the noble Feoran houses. Your older brother Ruvyn is a great fighter and naval commander, but he's definitely got a bit of an untamed ego. Your younger brother Ettrian is also highly skilled but loves to drink more than fight, as I'm sure you have already figured out. But most important to know is your older sister, Loxly. She has.... well.... a bit of a history."
 
"Jade's body may be drunk, but I'm mentally fit as a fiddle, Windmill," Chelsea huffed. She was hoping Raulet would have given her his name by now, but no such luck. Apparently, he still didn't trust her. Well, she'd have to work on that. As far as her name? All he had to do was ask. But apparently he didn't want to know hers just as much as he didn't want to tell his. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't dying of curiosity about the man inside the prince's head. Just who was he? How old was he? Where'd he come from? How'd he get stuck in here? Did he even know?

But no, those would be questions for another time. Raulet's impersonator seemed to be a stickler for following procedures [not that there was a procedure for getting stuck in a novel, but if there was one she was pretty sure it'd look an awful lot like what he was doing] and not at all in the mood for exploring. Jade stumbled over to the wall and fell in a heap as Raulet continued to talk, her body sluggishly responding to Chelsea's attempts to get her to sit upright and lean against the wall. Finally situated, she clasped her hands in her lap and stared attentively at Raulet as if he were a schoolmaster.

Family of Carre, right. Tur in Feora, got it. King Arnall, brilliant but conniving, Lady Meldana, rich and nothing more to note, Ruvyn, military success and egotistical, Ett, a drunken sword master, and Lox... Chelsea knew she was supposed to ask him to continue after he dropped a bomb like that. What was so important about that history? What did she need to know about the woman?

But there were more important questions floating around her head, like... "What the hell is this bedding ceremony thing about?" Oops, that blurted out. Chelsea glowered and clamped her hand over Jade's mouth as a hiccuped giggle escaped. Great, just great. The drink was really starting to get to her body now.

"I swear, I'm not *giggle* drunk! Just this *hic* stupid *giggle* drunk *hic* wench! *giggle hic* I'll even repeat what you said word for *hic* word to prove it!"

Okay, maybe she wasn't mentally drunk, but now she was just starting to sound desperate and that was almost worse. The last thing she wanted was Windmill looking down his nose at her. Jade's body fell over in a pile again after a particularly hardy hiccup. "Woman... why can't you hold your liquor?" Chelsea groaned into the carpet.
 
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