A Private Audience with the Queen

 

So here I am in lovely Hidden Springs, about to confront my ex-girlfriend Kyra Foster for an exclusive she gave to Kiss and Tell magazine about our relationship. 

But first, I’m about to have a private audience with the Queen, Catarina Vanderburg. 

She has asked me to meet her in this secluded wooded area behind the Hidden Springs Lodge.  She has done this to ensure the utmost privacy. 

When I catch a glimpse of the queen, she is reading a romance novel.  I can’t tell if it’s one of Annabelle Smith’s but it sure looks like it.  Who’d have thunk it, the queen reading Annabelle Smith???

Anyhow, when I catch a glimpse of the queen, she is as regal as I imagined.  She is wearing a long yellow gown. 

I took a deep breath.

“Your Majesty,” I managed to stammer, sinking to my knees as is protocol. “You wanted to see me?”

“No need to bow, dear,” she assured me in the slightest hint of an accent. 

Dear?

“I’ve a proposition for you that might be worth your while.”

“Proposition?” I repeated.  “You have to understand, Your Majesty, that I’m an extremely busy man.”

“I understand, you’re in town to shoot a movie.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”  I wasn’t entirely fibbing, but I wasn’t being entirely truthful either. 

"I understand you and your last girlfriend had a particularly nasty breakup in the press, and I’m truly sorry to hear it.  Therefore, I propose a match with my daughter, Francisca.”

“Me, Your Majesty?” I asked.  “But she’s vanished!  No one knows where she is.  I’m an actor, not a private investigator.  I don’t even play one on television.”

“You were Francisca’s favorite actor.  Every time she heard you were in a movie she arranged private screenings at the theater just to see it.  She saw all your movies before they came out.  She had pictures of you all over her wall.”

“Your Majesty, I’m flattered, but –"

“Mr. Plumb, I’m confident that you and Francisca would make a perfect match.  You’re a musician, and she has had piano lessons since she was no bigger than my thumb.”

“Your Majesty –“

“If you can locate Francisca and return her safely to the palace, then – then I have no choice but to give the two of you my blessing to marry.”

“But your Majesty!”

“It is settled.”

Alone

 

Daisy isn’t speaking to me.  Neither is Kyra.  In fact, Kyra, I’ve last heard, has left the country. 

And my sister, Savannah – heck, she’s left the country too, along with her husband and three remaining children, including the youngest, Sierra.  I haven’t spoken to her in two months. 

So here I am… basically alone. 

Heck, I definitely deserve it, given what I’ve done.  Go ahead, pile it on.  You’re a sorry bastard, Sebastian.  You screwed up the one thing that was good for you in your life. 

As for my movie career, I won the role of Dacian Landegraab in the Pirates & Nobles movie.  Dacian is an interesting character and my life is beginning to parallel his.  Dacian defied his father when he fell in love with Misty Darktide, the daughter of a pirate, during the Aarbyville-Tredony wars in the Middle Ages. Since Dacian was super-thin, I’m going to have to go on a serious diet to fit into his chaps.  The fact that I’m playing a Landgraab doesn’t sit that well with me, but I take whatever role suits my fancy.  The Dacian Landegraab role was highly coveted and one of the most interesting roles to come across in quite awhile. 

Daisy

 

Before I left Sunset Valley, I dealt with the other half of the equation – Daisy Ramsey.

Daisy and I have known each other since we were tots.  Literally.  Probably even before.  Her family are great friends of our family.  Her paternal grandfather was David (Dave) Ramsey, who was one of the leading founders of the Sunset Valley Orchestra.  Her maternal grandfather was Gage Briody, who was also among the founders and main supporters of the orchestra.  So they have been involved with the theatrical circles of Sunset Valley for quite awhile.   

Anyway, Daisy and I were BFFs as kids, so it was natural that we started kinda-sorta-dating as teenagers.

I guess the expectation was that with all this history behind us, the natural progression was marriage. 

But of course, things never happen like they’re supposed to.  I left Sunset Valley for Bridgeport right after graduation, and never really said a proper goodbye to Daisy. 

After my arrival in Bridgeport, I met Kyra, and we started dating.

But I didn’t tell Kyra that I had a girlfriend back home.  Neither did I tell Daisy that I had a new girlfriend in Bridgeport.

Looking back, though, it was the wrong thing to do.  Because I’ve probably lost both of them. 

Before I returned to Bridgeport, I drove down to the beach where Daisy lives.

Her house is raised on brick platforms and looks right out over the ocean.  Waking up every morning with those views… it’s practically paradise. 

“Hello, Sebastian,” Daisy greeted me coolly.  I took a deep breath.  “Come in, my mom and dad are just getting my brother ready for school.”

“Look, Daisy,” I took a deep breath.  “There’s something I have to tell you.”

“And I you.” 

“Who wants to begin?”

“I got on at the paper!” Daisy exclaimed.

“Really?” I asked, masking my dread.  “I know you always wanted that, I’m happy for you.”  I reached for her and gave her a hug.

Then, after taking another deep breath, I told her about Kyra in Bridgeport.

Daisy rose up with an anger I had never seen from her before.  “Are you serious?” she asked me with tears in her eyes.  “You cheated on me?”

I nodded.

“How long has this been going on, Bassy?”

“I met her at a party in Bridgeport.  We started dating pretty soon after that.”

Then, she did something I didn’t expect.

She slapped me across my cheek, leaving a mark. 

“Bassy, we’ve known each other since we were kids.  When you left here you didn’t even bother to tell me, I had to hear about it from Savannah and I had to pester her about where you were.”  She turned around.  “I’m not even sure if I can forgive you for this.”

I’m Still Alive, or, Catching up with Ole Bassy

 

Hey guys, sorry it’s been so long since my last update.  Things continue to be crazy on this end.

When I got back to Bridgeport after being in Sunset Valley, I worked up enough courage to tell Kyra about my situation.  I mean, between my parents’ divorce, Neil’s pregnancy, and AJ and Imsety’s legal troubles, I’ve been simply thrown for a loop and I have to admit, I’m really not dealing with any of this well.  And that’s not even counting the fact that Kyra didn’t know about Daisy and Daisy didn’t know about Kyra either.  So I told her everything.  Let’s just say, she wasn’t all that happy about it.

“I can’t believe you, Sebastian.  You lied to me.”

“I swear, Kyra,” I told her, “I didn’t lie to you.  I just – you know, I just didn’t tell you the absolute truth.  I wasn’t ready to come clean.  I wasn’t ready to reveal everything.  I know I haven’t been honest and I’m sorry.”

She stood there, tears streaming down her cheeks.  “You hurt me, Sebastian.  You hurt me really bad!”

I know I did.  “Heck this isn’t easy.  I have to tell Daisy about you and I haven’t even done that yet.”  If telling Kyra about Daisy is bad enough wait till I have to tell Daisy about Kyra.  Sigh.  By the end of all this I could end up with no body.  I suppose I deserve that.

And did I mention that Kyra’s pregnant?  She thinks the baby is mine but I’m not a hundred percent sure about that.  There’s no possible way I am ready to be a father. 

Then she left.  I hadn’t seen her again. 

Now I hear she’s in Hidden Springs, where she sat down with ace reporter Sonia Wicked, who wrote an exclusive for Kiss and Tell gossip rag.  I swear, those are lies she’s telling, absolute lies.  Wait till I see her again. 

Ain’t no business like show business or, making lemonade out of a pile of lemons

As some of you know, I was born into a showbiz-type family.  Both of my parents were involved with the Sunset Valley Orchestra, my mother as the first female conductor of that orchestra and my father as conductor before she took over, then he went on to write music for movies and TV as a hit movie composer. 

I still remember my father practicing his guitar in front of my brother Noah and me.  Gosh I miss that guy, Noah.  Sucks that he is dead. 

This gets lost sometimes, but my mother was as well known and respected as my father was for her talent and her tireless work in bringing the orchestra to a new level. 

She also supervised most of my musical training. 

Yet my parents are not the only members of the family involved in entertainment of some sort.

My sister, Savannah, is the author of several books, the two most well known are Interview with a Mummy, based on her experiences in Egypt, and Dances with Ghosts.  Both of them were best sellers.  She’s also written articles on such subjects as the origin of nectar and the different types of death states.  There is even talk of a movie based on ‘Mummy’ but it’s just talks at the moment.  Savannah has put her adventuring and writing career on hold to raise her five (!) children (two adopted and three biological). 

Even more successful as a writer was my aunt, Margaret.  She was my dad’s half-sister, who was actually born in England, and, Savannah tells me, spoke with a tiny hint of a British accent.  (She died when I was a baby, I never knew her.) Anyway, she wrote 26 or 27 (I don’t remember the exact number) books, mostly science fiction and fantasy.   My boss, Kristy Verhoeven, is currently working on a screenplay based on her Moon Colony series.  So, too, is Emmitt Stanley, the teenage son of Emmy Starr and Alan Stanley.  It’s pretty much a done deal that a movie will be made from my aunt Margaret’s book series.  But it’s also a race as to whose version gets made first. 

My brother Noah followed dad into the orchestra.  He was a member of the exclusive quartet. 

And then there’s me.  How I became an actor instead of a musician, especially with all the musical training, is still a mystery to me.

So now I’m back in Bridgeport, trying to make lemonade out of a whole pile of lemons.  Looks like I’ll be splitting time between the two cities, Bridgeport and Sunset Valley, for the time being while getting the fam sitch straight.  It’s not a schedule I like but hey, what can I do?

My first stop upon returning was Annabelle and Kyra’s apartment downtown.  I had forgotten how to use the call box so I was pressing buttons madly until I got the right combo. 

“Oh… it’s YOU.”  Annabelle was not happy with me.  Again. 

“Is Kyra in?”  I asked her.

“No, she’s practicing with Lola’s band.  You know they’re going on tour next week.”

I let out a deep breath.  “Oh yeah, that’s right.  I forgot all about that.”

“You were supposed to be gone two weeks, Sebastian.  It’s been two MONTHS.  Now that you’re back, you expect her to crawl right back into your arms.”

“Look, I had a family emergency.  My brother died, my parents are getting a divorce, my one nephew just had a baby, my other teenage nephews are out of control -- things are just a mess right now.”

“Save it for Oprah, buster.”  Annabelle wasn’t done.  “You needn't bother batting those baby blues at me, sonny boy, they don't work. Trust me on that one. Besides, you have NO idea what I've got to put up with day in and day out with Kyra. It's always Sebastian this and Sebastian that. When's he coming back? Is he on location this week, wonder what he’s up to...... BLEH!!! So I suggest you do something fast, or can it. Not interested."

While I waited for Kyra to return, I flipped through my latest script, a romantic comedy called Commitment Issues.  The one thing I haven’t done yet since becoming an actor is rom-com.  I don’t know how my comic timing would be, since it’s not something I really practiced in acting class. 

On average I get about 4 to 5 scripts a month.  There were twelve waiting for me when I returned. 

Musings on music

I was fiddling around with the big grand piano in our formal dining room, and I got to thinking.

Music is a big part of who we are as Plumbs.

It started with my grandmother, I think, and has gone all the way down the line.  My grandmother was Jamie Jolina, and when she wasn’t treating patients down at Sacred Spleen she was rocking out with her guitar, to the delight of her artist and writer friends.  My sister Savannah says if she weren’t a doctor she might well have made a career in music. 

I found this old worn picture of my mother as a sock hopper girl, again with a guitar. 

There is my grandmother again in the old farmhouse, with my dad listening and watching. 

And of course, dad performing for none other than the Reaper himself. 

Here’s an older picture of my brother, who now sadly is deceased. 

Savannah, though she won’t admit it, has musical chops of her own.

Then there’s me.  Guess I couldn’t help it.  Especially given the fact that it was drummed (pun intended) into me at every occasion.  That was the day I’d gotten my electric guitar and I thought it would be cool to show it off. 

The movies come callin’ again

Today I got a stark reminder that, while I’m back home in Sunset Valley with my family, chillin and relaxin and dealing with my family issues, I have a very real movie career that I have back in Bridgeport.

It came in the form of a movie script.  And not just any movie script. 

Apparently these two medieval kingdoms, Aarbyville and Tredony, were at war, and a pirate from Aarbyville fell in love with a noble from Tredony.  Guess which character I’m being considered for?

You guessed wrong. 

Yep, I’m up for the pirate role.  Actually, I think it’s kind of fun, although I’m not sure about all the fake hair they’re putting on me for it.   I think I might vaguely remember Neil and I playing pirates a few times when we were kids.

Of course, Hamming is up for the role too, and no doubt that if he gets it he wants his real life girlfriend to play the female lead. 

This also probably means a shoot on location in Barnacle Bay.   They’ve even picked out the house they’re going to use.

It’s supposed to look like a castle.  I’m not sure if it does or not, especially given the pictures I’ve seen of the old castles.