Chapter Twenty Three: In Which We Pause for Thought

What do you think, gentle reader? Is Ralph the Timid in spite of his years of cuddling baby sisters on his knee about to discover the truth about his birth? Was he abandoned on the mountain side by royal parents anxious to protect him from destiny?
Have we met his brother already? There are so many questions. Inquiring minds want to know. But this is the time where we pause for thought and take stock of the situation.
At this moment, Ralph the Timid is sitting in the library of Mad Pete, trying not to think that he might have been better off without going on his adventure. He had thought that on going this adventure to seek his purpose would be fun. He had thought that it would be good for him. He had thought that finding out his birthdate would be a weight off his mind. Instead he was now in this conundrum. Was he going to turn into a raving lunatic? Was Mad Pete telling this story to him for a reason, other than had he just been forced into it? But Mad Pete knew about Ralph's quest. Was he telling him as a way to working up to some very bad news?
At this moment, Mad Pete is also in the library of Mad Pete. He is torn between two thoughts. The first is a pleasant reverie of the good times. He remembers fondly the popularity he enjoyed. He also remembers the money and the adoring looks of the public and the job satisfaction. The second is fear. Had he done the wrong thing? And how was young Ralph going to take the next thing he had to say? He was looking nervous already. Had he guessed?
At this moment, Ginger McSporran, the black beast of the caves, was sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace in the library of Mad Pete. He was stroking Twinkle and thinking two things. The first was along the lines of "Well, this is not going to turn out well." The second was "He still hasn't explained the parcel that was left in my caves." Ginger McSporran was a very single minded black beast.
At this moment, Twinkle is sleeping happily in front of the fireplace being stroked by the giant hand of his master, Ginger McSporran. He is not thinking anything much except cat thoughts, which are not terribly relevant or interesting to the other occupants in the room who are experiencing a crisis. Well, perhaps that is not entirely true. Ralph the Timid would probably like to know when ever the "bite" thought came into Twinkle's head, but otherwise the sentiment stands.
So that covers Ralph the Timid, Ginger McSporran, Mad Pete and Twinkle. But what about Lady Ann and Prince Rupert?
Well, Lady Ann is still bored. What did you expect? She has not been able to escape. She has thrown innumerable paper darts at the wall. She has rearranged the order of her kitten pictures at least three times every day. She has positioned her Prince Rupert whacking bottle in the ideal place to a) conceal it from her villainous swain's servants, lest they discover it and take it away from her and b) have it conveniently at the ready should Prince Rupert take it upon himself to visit her. She has done her daily pacing. And now - a slight moment of interest to brighten her otherwise tedious and routine day - someone had knocked on her door. Picture her there in her room, standing halfway between her bed and the table, staring at the door. Who could that be? Was it Prince Rupert? Could she get to the bottle in time? It is a moment frozen in time. We will not know until we get to the next chapter. We shall have to wait and see.
And that just leaves Prince Rupert. He has contemplated his villainy. He thinks he has been quite nice to his prisoner. He has climbed up a lot of stairs. A lot of stairs. A huge amount of stairs. He has regained his breath. He is about to knock the door of his captive romancee. We know all this. But how do we consider him in the light of recent revelations? We know he is the son of a King. Or at least we can assume that he is, given he is a Prince, after all. We know that he is evil, so the year of the snake fits as a birth date. We know he has a scar on his cheek. Could he be the evil older twin of which Mad Pete spoke? Time will tell.
Well actually, Mad Pete will probably tell. He was Boris the Brilliant. He must have records. He will be able to tell us with it was the ruling house (or at least, the erstwhile ruling house) of Xanadu. We shall see.The point is that we had to have a summary there. All good things take time.

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