a/n: Thank you for all the lovely reviews. All mistakes are mine, but I'm still searching for a BETA, so if you're interested, message me! I'm not particularly happy with this chapter, but still, feedback would be lovely, so please review!

For the entirety of the day, Blair could not focus. It was unusual for her, as Blair was usually an avid learner in all her lessons, even the ones she did not see fit. But much to the dismay of her teachers, Blair was restless today, and Harold could only pinpoint it on one problem.

"Blair" he began slowly, briefly stopping his daughter as she made her way to the final lesson of the day "I understand that you've grown tired of hearing this by now, but there is really nothing we can do to prevent you from marrying Charles."

Blair stiffened slightly and nodded, fully aware of the situation. Despite accepting that she had no other alternative, Blair was still hoping that perhaps something would befall the Bass family, henceforth preventing the marriage, as there was nothing else that could be done. She was aware that it was not very kind to think of such things, but Blair was rather against having to marry a man she did not love, a man she knew she would never love. It was still good to know her father understood her, even though Blair's future was no longer in their hands.

"It's alright, father" Blair replied, as she and Harold walked down one of the many halls in the palace. Eleanor, of course, was nowhere in sight, and Blair was glad that her mother was not around to intrude on Blair's conversation with her father. Blair loved her mother, but she very much wondered if her mother cared for her.

"I'm positive all the saying around Charles are false" Harold continued, although neither Blair nor Harold himself believed it. From the brief meeting they had had recently, it was clear that Charles was a very dark boy. Blair simply nodded in reply, knowing that if she dared open her mouth something cruel would slip out. It was a practice her mother had taught her after a particularly disastrous incident involving another lady. Luckily, the Waldorf family had been spared any embarrassment, but since, Eleanor had made sure Blair kept her cold thoughts to herself. Sadly, Blair realized, she would be using the method a lot in the coming years with Charles.

"Right" Harold nodded, noticing Blair had no desire to pursue this conversation any further, much to his dismay, as he had wanted to help Blair the best he could. However, when his daughter refuse to pursue anything, that was that. The only time that it appeared her usual attitude would not work was in her coming marriage.

"Your mother asked me to inform you that Duchess Lillian is coming tomorrow, and Lady Serena will accompany her. I understand that you two get on quite well, so perhaps you'd like to discuss the situation with her."

Blair frowned, pausing at the door to her class "I'm afraid that the chances of Lady Serena understanding are very slim, however, I will enjoy her company." She turned to enter her classroom, when a loud noise was heard outside, causing the princess to stiffen.

"I am sure it is nothing, princess" Harold remarked gently, but headed briskly towards the doors nonetheless, Blair at his heels, refusing to miss out on whatever was about to take place. That was one of the many things about Blair Waldorf-she liked knowing things. Even if somebody left out the slightest detail it annoyed her, simply because Blair enjoyed knowing everything about everyone. And honestly, after a while, those little tidbits of information became useful, and whatever was going on outside was worth seeing.

Arriving behind her father, Blair expected to see something other than a horse acting wildly. It wasn't the most thrilling thing that could've taken place, and there was certainly no need for all the commotion, regardless of whether or not it was caused by the animals. Blair was about to make such a remark and head back inside when something caught her eye, something other than the horses in front of her. It was one of the stable boys attempting to calm the mare down, although Blair could never recall seeing him before. It wasn't as if she made it a task to remember the name of each and every servant, but for the most part, she remembered their faces, and this boy was certainly new. Squinting, Blair scrutinized him. He was young, only around Blair's age but the looks of it, with thick black hair and a square jaw. He didn't appear to be much different from all the others around him, but Blair was still interested. Her mother would've rolled her eyes at such a thought, and even Blair herself was slightly disgusted. Then again, Charles Bass didn't seem to be any better than him.

Blair's thoughts had distracted her, and she barely managed to register the mare headed towards her and her father's voice warning her to get back inside, before it was a millisecond away from being too late. However, the horse was pulled away at the last second, and Blair gasped, looking up to see it was the new stable boy.

"Blair!" Harold gasped, causing Blair to turn away and face her father, her heart beating fast and her breath catching "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine" Blair replied shakily, her thoughts still on the boy. Of course, it was expected that anybody would do the best they could to protect the princess, but in Blair's opinion, in was still somewhat of a heroic act. Her father pulled her close and Blair swallowed, still shaky as she took ragged breaths.

"Daniel" said the croaky voice of the stable master, and Blair's eyes flicked to where he was standing with the boy. Daniel. Perhaps not the nicest name, but then again, Blair did not really consider any better for the name of a stable boy.

"You saved the princess' life" the stable master continued, causing Harold to take a few steps forwards towards the pair. Blair, after a moment's hesitation, followed, refusing to look the boy in the eye, for reasons unknown even to her.

"Thank you" Harold said, turning towards Daniel "You saved my daughter's life. If there is anything I can do to repay you..."

"I'm sure it's what any good gentlemen would've done" Daniel replied, his eyes drifting to Blair's for a fleeting moment, causing the princess to straighten her shoulders. She was unsure of what the boy was thinking, but she was not going to let some stable boy get the better of her, regardless of whether or not he saved her life. "Anything to protect the princess."

"Yes, well" Harold continued, placing his hand on Blair's shoulder "If there is anything you need, I will be sure to help you out, as you have helped me." He nodded once, before steering Blair back inside.

"I'm not quite sure what you were thinking, Blair" Harold said sternly "What possessed you to come out and see what was going on?"

"I was intrigued" Blair replied stiffly, mind still reeling with thoughts from the encounter-both with the horse as well as the stable boy Daniel. "I'm alive and well, father, and I believe that is the main thing."

Harold chuckled "Of course. Heavens, if it hadn't been for that boy..."

Yes, Blair thought, if it hadn't been for that boy.

...

The next day, Lady Serena arrived, eager to hear the news on Blair's meeting with the prince. After a brief conversation with their mothers, Serena suggested a walk, and Blair, eager to confide in Serena her sorrows about being engaged to Charles, accepted, under the condition that they would stay in the gardens, and not go near the stables.

"I don't understand why the stables are a problem" mused Serena, the pale yellow of her dress lightly dusting the grass bellow them. Blair paused, unsure of whether or not to inform Lady Serena of her trouble the previous day. Deciding to do so later, if at all, Blair merely raised an eyebrow at Serena's comment.

"I don't see why it matters" she replied, glancing around "I much rather prefer the gardens. Prettier, and the gardeners tend to stay out of your way."

Serena smiled, a smile that Blair had become all too familiar with. It was the smile Serena reserved strictly for her, when Blair made a comment that made her feel oddly like her mother. Blair hated that look, mainly because she simply detested the thought of ending up like Eleanor. At least Blair was determined to see her children, as often as she could. Even in her rare free moments, Eleanor stayed well out of Blair's way, much to the dismay of the younger brunette.

"Did you have a good time at your meeting with Charles?" Serena questioned, turning to Blair and smiling. Serena was the only person Blair felt she could truly talk to, whether it was because Serena was constantly warm, even in Blair's worst moments, or because she knew Serena would never tell, Blair was unsure. All she was certain of was that she liked the company of the blonde, much more than she did the company of a few other girls she knew, at least.

"It wasn't very pleasant" Blair admitted, glancing around to make sure the gardeners were doing the work instead of eavesdropping. Whilst it was quite common knowledge around the palace that Blair did not fancy the company of the prince, she was not eager to have people whispering about her life more than normal. "He's very dark" Blair continued, frowning slightly "Nor does he seem very caring. However, it is not my choice, and perhaps I'll grow fond of him."

Serena frowned, obviously weary of Blair's attitude towards the marriage. "Have you talked to your father about it?" Serena questioned, tucking a stray piece of blonde hair behind her ear "Perhaps he could arrange something different with Bart?"

Blair laughed lightly at that, shaking her head at Serena's unthinkable remark. "It is out of his control, Serena, and of that you are well aware. I have as much choice in my marriage to Prince Charles as you do to Lord Nathaniel, even though you have stated that you would much rather prefer Lord Carter. But you should know that these are not are decisions, Serena."

Blair finished, feeling a slight twinge of guilt. She was not intending to hurt Serena, nor was she intending the offend the blonde. It was more that Blair had grown tired of the endless questions asking if she could do anything about Charles, even though everybody was aware of the story by now.

"Of course" Serena muttered, a slight iciness to her voice that was not there before, causing Blair to feel even worse, which was the last thing she needed at the moment. Lady Serena was not aware of that factor, but at the same time, Blair was still upset.

They had nearly returned to the palace when Serena suddenly stopped, much to the annoyance of Blair. Frowning, Blair moved her head in an attempt to see what had intrigued her friend, only to discover it was merely the stable boys doing their job. Rolling her eyes, Blair wondered why Serena had such a fascination with the help, among anything that was not tied in with their world.

"Oh, there's no need to worry" Serena announced, reading Blair's facial expressions and smiling. "It's just, I've never seen him before. He is new?" Serena nodded in the direction of one of the boys, and it did not take Blair long to recognize him as Daniel, causing her stomach to tighten. Why would Serena being interested in him? Besides, it wasn't as if he even worked at the van der Woodsen estate-it was the Waldorf one, and Serena really had no business eyeing him like that.

Blair coughed shortly, and the other girl laughed, a laugh that Blair occasionally despised. She had no idea what Serena had done to irritate her to this point, but Blair could barely stand there a second longer with the blonde.

"Fine, I'll forget about him" Serena said with a slight smile, taking Blair's arm as they headed back up to the palace. "I must say though, he does look quite nice for a stable boy."

Blair was unsure what her expression was, whether it was merely one of fear, or disgust, or even jealousy, although the last one was the very slimmest option. Serena seemed to find it hilarious either way.

...

That night, as Blair prepared herself for bed, she wondered what on earth possessed her to get upset with Serena like that. The blonde got on her nerves, yes, but even Blair could tell she was overreacting. Why did it matter what Serena thought of some stable boy, who, much to Blair's annoyance, did not seem to notice her when she was down with Serena earlier. Serena always had questionable taste in nearly everything, and Blair had long since learned to brush most of her comments off as ridiculous theories, or something even worse. So there really was no need for her to be so upset about it, Blair reminded herself as she slid in to bed, determined to forget the events of the past two days tomorrow.

But regardless of all that thinking, she had yet to come up with an answer to her question. Why did she care so much?