Chapter Fourteen
Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

 

Finally the day and hour of their scheduled tour arrived.  Walking up to the castle, Julian holding her hand, she had mixed feelings.  On one hand she couldn’t wait to see her dad, Weiss, Marshall, Dixon and Vaughn again.  She couldn’t imagine how worked up her father must be over her disappearance.  But then again she had really begun to enjoy her stay here; it really had been like a much needed vacation.  She glanced over at the blonde walking next to her.

 

Noticing her stare he smiled reassuringly at her, squeezing her hand.  Leaning into him she wrapped her free hand around his arm.  “I was growing rather fond of this crazy place.”  She whispered.

 

He grinned conspiratorially at her, “I’m sure you CIA friends have possession of the other mirror by now.  You’ll just have to help me steal it and then whenever you want we can take a little holiday.”

 

She grinned at him, considerably cheered by the thought and not at all taken aback that she was seriously considering it.

 

After checking in they joined the tour group as they moved into the castle.  A grinning dark haired man in a pink jacket decorated with medals greeted them just inside the door.

 

“Welcome, welcome.  Gather around, gather around.  Close, close, there we go.  I’m Lord Rupert and I’ll be walking you through the castle today.  Now some areas are off limits for security reasons, but I’m sure you’ll thoroughly enjoy the tour.  Now follow me and stick close.”  He cheerfully rattled off his speech before quickly stepping off.

 

She looked over at Julian to see the disgusted look he gave the pink jacketed lord.

 

They headed for the dungeons first and the cell where Virginia and her father had been held.  Lord Rupert wouldn’t say how they had escaped the cell, for security reasons, but several talking mice started excitedly saying they knew how to escape the cell.  In a bit of a tizzy Lord Rupert tried to simultaneously keep the mice quiet and get the tour group moving again.

 

After the dungeons they walked through the kitchens, then the formal ballroom where the coronation had taken place.  They stopped in a bedroom that was supposed to be where the fake Prince Wendell had stayed.  It was now occupied by a slobbering golden retriever, the magic dog the King had switched bodies with.  When they entered the room the retriever was gnawing on a bone in front of the fireplace, next to which was a huge pile of bones.  Happily the dog left its bone to greet the tour group.  Everyone wanted a chance to shake the dogs paw or pat it on the head.  Sydney dutifully scratched the dog’s ears while Julian stayed well back.

 

Next on the tour was the room where the Evil Queen had stayed.  As they moved down the hall a white ferret haughtily marched around the corner and right passed the tour group who looked at it in puzzlement.  Lord Rupert pretended not to notice this anomaly.  The Evil Queen’s room had a guard at the door.  She squeezed Julian’s hand, according to the book this was where the traveling mirror had been kept.  That fact was confirmed by Lord Rupert.

 

“Now this is where Virginia first met the Evil Queen face to face.  In the next room,” he motioned to the closed door, but didn’t make to open it, “The Evil Queen tried to kill Virginia before she managed to break out of the Evil Queen’s spell.”

 

As they left the room she and Julian hung back and held a hurried whispered conversation.

 

“The mirror must still be in that room.”  She hissed while carefully glancing back at the guard.

 

“I believe you’re correct.  It was the only room guarded, plus we weren’t show that room when he’s been willing to show us every other bloody room in the castle.”

 

Dropping further and further back they discreetly darted down a corridor as the group continued straight.  Turning down several corridors they backtracked, not sure how much time they would have before their absence was noted.

 

Walking openly down the corridors they passed several people who didn’t give them a second glance nor ask what they were doing there.  One couple was a dark haired woman accompanied by a dark haired man who was excitedly bouncing around and waving his hands as he talked.  Sydney and the other woman politely exchanged smiles as they passed.  Darting a quick glance over her shoulder she mused, “I think that was…”

 

Julian nudged her as they rounded the last corner.  The guard stood outside the door, no one else was visible in the hallway.  Hurrying her steps before someone came Sydney walked ahead of Julian and with big doe eyes asked the guard, “I’ve seemed to have gotten lost, can you help me?”

 

As the guard turned his attention towards her Julian whipped out his gun and cracked the guard across the back of the head.  The unconscious guard fell forward and Sydney staggered as she caught him.  Julian quickly opened the door, but before they could drag the guard in a shout came from the end of the hallway.

 

“Cripes!”  The excited dark haired man they had previously passed was staring at them, the dark haired woman next to him.

 

“You can’t go in there.”  The woman said.

 

Before Sydney could respond Julian fired off several rounds causing plaster to shower the couple as they ducked back around the corner.

 

“Julian!”  She dropped the unconscious guard and darted over to the door, pulling Julian along behind her.

 

“I wasn’t aiming for them.”  He testily told her as he locked the door behind them.

 

“I know.”  She exasperatedly told him as she hurried over to the other door.  “But how many more rounds do you have?  Don’t waste them.”

 

“Right.”  He stood facing the door as she picked the lock.

 

It opened easily and she darted into the next room as Julian moved to the doorway still watching the other door.  “Well.”  He asked.

 

The room was empty except for a table and five shrouded objects.  Yanking the cloth off the nearest one revealed a mirror, but not one that looked familiar.  Darting over to one that looked rectangular she yanked the cloth off of it.  “I think this is it!”  She shouted excitedly.

 

“You think.”  Julian closed and locked the door.  “They’re coming in the other room.  How does it work?”  He joined her by the mirror.

 

“I’m not sure.”  She tilted it forward to look at the back of the frame, “It doesn’t have the Rambaldi symbol etched on it.”

 

“Does that matter?”  He testily asked, eyes back on the door.

 

Shuffling and muttering could be heard on the other side.  “Huff, puff, I told you I smelt something different.  What kind of magic was that?”

 

“It wasn’t magic, it was a gun.”

 

“Sydney…”

 

“I’m thinking, I’m thinking.  The suit of armor hit the mirror and that’s when the light appeared.”  She glanced frantically over the mirror trying to find something that looked out of place.

 

There was a knock at the door.

 

She traded a look with Julian.

 

“Excuse me.”  A female voice called through the door.  “Hi, my name’s Virginia and I wanted to talk to you.”

 

Sydney shrugged her shoulders at Julian, It couldn’t hurt.

 

He scowled back, You don’t know that.

 

“er, it’s just that I’m guessing that you’re not from around here.”  Virginia spoke up again.  “I thought I might be able to help you.”

 

Sydney walked over to the door with Julian, gun ready, right behind her.  Cautiously she unlocked and opened the door a crack.  The dark haired woman, Virginia, stood on the other side.  The dark haired man, who she was guessing, from reading the book, was Wolf.  He was hovering partially in front of Virginia and glared at the door.  Sydney opened the door a little further and Wolf shifted his glare to Julian who was calmly standing behind her.

 

“Hi, er, I’m Sydney and this is Sark.”  She titled her chin to indicate Julian, though who else would she be talking about.  “We’re not from around here.  I’m from Los Angeles.”

 

Virginia smiled, “I didn’t think you were from around here.  I’m from New York City myself.  Wolf here,” she indicated the dark haired man, “is from the Second Kingdom.”

 

Sydney tentatively smiled, “Yeah, I read your book.”

 

Virginia blushed a little, “Yeah, that.  So I’m guessing you ended up here through one of the traveling mirrors.”

 

“Well there was a mirror involved so I guess.”

 

“I thought they were all broken, lost or here.”  Wolf scratched at his brow.

 

Virginia too looked puzzled, “That’s what I thought.  Where did you come out at?  Not here at the castle.”

 

“No.”  Sydney shook her head and opened the door further; she didn’t think the other two meant them any harm.  “We came out in some kind of forest.  With, I guess, beanstalks.”

 

“And giants and trolls.”  Julian murmured quietly though Virginia and Wolf seemed to hear him.

 

“Cripes!  The Troll kingdom.”

 

“That’s not good.  Do you know if the mirror is still open?”

 

“Do you think we’d be here if it was?”  Julian scoffed.

 

She discreetly elbowed him.

 

“It was an asinine question.”  He defended, quiet enough this time that the other two didn’t hear him.

 

“Be nice.”  She hissed just as quietly, “They’re going to help us get home.”

 

“Right silly question.” Virginia replied not having heard their quick exchange.  “You know if you’d just come to the castle we would have been happy to help you.”

 

“Honestly that never even crossed our minds.”  She chuckled. “Habit I guess.”

 

Virginia looked like she was going to ask what that meant but changed her mind gesturing to the doorway.  “If you wouldn’t mind.”

 

“Of course not.”  Sydney moved out of the doorway, Julian at her back still.  “I wasn’t sure how it worked.  The first time was entirely by accident.”

 

Virginia and Wolf moved into the room and over to the mirror.  Wolf looked between them curiously before suddenly smiling at them.

 

She barely spared him a glance, instead watching to see how Virginia activated the mirror.  One of the carved circles on the frame pivoted down and blue and white light burst out of the mirror.

 

Everyone watched as the scene in the mirror swooped around settling in some trees.

 

“This one’s connected to Central Park in New York City.”  Virginia explained, “I can’t send you to LA.”

 

“That’s fine.”  Sydney assured her, this would be better for Julian.  That thought sobered her and she glanced over at him.  The gun was still in his hand but it was hanging casually next to his leg.

 

Feeling her gaze he smiled faintly at her while tilting his head at the mirror.  “There’s no place like home Dorothy.”

 

“I thought her name was Sydney.”  Wolf whispered to Virginia.

 

Sydney smiled as Virginia whispered back that she explain it to him later.  Hesitating a moment she thanked Virginia then stepped up to the mirror.  Turning back she took Julian’s hand before stepping into the mirror.

 

The same dizzying effect overwhelmed her so she closed her eyes until she felt solid ground again.  She took a small step forward as Julian stepped out of thin air behind her.  As he took a step the slight shimmering in the air behind him flattened out.

 

“What a world, what a world.”  She muttered as she took in the sights around them, they were indeed back in their proper world.  Still clutching Julian’s hand she made no move to leave and neither did he.

 

“I have a flat here in the city.” He suddenly spoke up.  “Neither Irina nor Sloane know about it.  Considering how dark it is perhaps we could retire there until morning.”

 

Biting her lip she glanced down at their joined hands, the peridot stone blinking in the dim light.  “In the morning I’m going to have to contact my father and go back to LA.”

 

“Of course.  In the morning.”

 

“Julian…”

 

“Things will go back to the way they were.  Mostly.”  He smiled and brought their hands up to lay a kiss on the back of her hand.

 

“But if we meet in the field…”  She worried.

 

“How many times have we met in the field before?”  He raised an eyebrow, “We’re both still alive.”

 

“True.”  She slowly conceded.

 

“And don’t forget you said you’d help me steal the other mirror from the CIA.”  He smirked at her.

 

“I did not say that.”  She indigently replied.

 

“Not in so many words, but you were planning to were you not?”

 

“Maybe.”  She coyly replied before brazenly saying, “You said something about an apartment.”

 

Grinning triumphantly he tugged her after him.

The End

Or is it?

 

Chapter Thirteen ~ Tell us a Tale