The Kings Gambit: Part 2 (Dexter's POV)
The morning sun was beating against the large-scale glass walls of the tech lab, but inside, the air was thick with my nervous energy. We had reconvened immediately after lunch, the weight of our decision—and the sheer absurdity of it—pressing down on us. I really didn’t think we were doing this for real, but Humphrey and Alistair seemed so sure, like they both had plans that I didn’t know about yet. Humphrey had told the two of us to head straight to the tech lab to discuss; but there were so many missing pieces still, and time wasn’t working in my favour. When I first got there, Humphrey and Alistair were both sitting there looking at a bright red and purple screen only the school’s official website could emit.
“You’re finally here” Humphrey looked up at me with wide eyes “we’re trying to find your dads office and break in to find the tournament challenges”
I stopped in my tracks at what he just told me. We were going to break into my dads office to find the assignment outline, find the challenges, and use that to cheat? There were so many ways this could go wrong, we could get caught in his office, caught cheating, or this all could just not work in the first place. My brain went straight to Raven. I wanted her to see me win and be impressed, but at the same time what kind of man would I be if I had to lie just to look good. But then I thought of Daring, my brother who didn’t even have to try to be perfect. It just wasn’t fair. This could be my only chance of winning something against him.
“I know where it is. But we need to hurry if we can make it out before he comes back from breakfast”
They packed our things back up and we made our way out into the hallway, taking a right to my dad’s office. It was positioned right between the hero training classroom and the science and sorcery class, which meant we had to hurry if we didn’t want both my dad and professor Rumpelstiltskin to see us trying to break in. In retrospect, we could have done way more to prepare for this break in, but Alistair seemed so sure about being able to open the office door with just a few guesses. He bent down and got on his knees, positioning his eyes right at the code lock. The keypad was huge and looked almost brand new; Alistair’s fingers went straight to a few numbers I presume he previously had in mind. First they went to numbers that I assumed were of room numbers and what floor we were on. He tried a few different numbers, but alas, none of them opened the door. He stopped for a second, taking a second to stare at the lock while tapping his chin with his finger; he then put his finger back on the numbers, resting the back of his hand on the door. I figured we were going to be here for a while, so I positioned myself over the corner to make sure no one was coming. If we get caught, my dad is going to kill me. My head had been in a 180 degree position for quite some time, but while trying to make myself look normal, I ended up looking even more suspicious.
“Dexter,” Alistair called out to me, making my head click back to the front “what is your birthday date?”
After getting his answer, he did not reply to mine. He focused back on the keypad and typed up all new numbers. 0211. Incorrect. It dawned on me what he was trying to do. Though this one didn't work, he tried typing the same code a couple times; almost being so sure that it was the correct code that he thought the keypad was making a mistake. Perhaps a different format, 1102. Incorrect. The passcode was 4 digits. It flashed as incorrect the moment he typed in that 4th digit, not letting him go under or over 4. I sighed a breath of anxiety, being worried about the possibility of someone turning the corner and catching us. I think Humprey also felt the same way, turning to look at me and then around the corner as he heard my sighs. He let one out himself, but it being that of impatience rather than fear.
“Alistair, I think we seriously gotta-”
“Dexter, what is Daring’s birthday?” he asked with quickness.
“April 2nd” I replied flatly.
This time he didn't look up or make eye contact as he spoke. His fingers grazed the numbers back with shaking hands. 0402. Correct. The screen flashed green writing and the doorknob was able to be pulled; he did and it opened up and the door opened inwards with a smooth clicking sound. We all peered in, exposing an office that I’ve never actually seen before. I was used to dads exorbitant desires in his own spaces, but this seemed excessive especially for a school. It held dozens of pictures of past charmings, golden quills, and decorative swords of all different sizes on high display. Humphrey slowly and quietly closed the door, making the click sound almost non existent the second time. I could tell they were both trying to avoid eye contact with me, as they locked eyes with each other several times with pitying looks. Whatever, I thought. Daring was the first born, so I figured dad wouldn't even consider my birthday for a keypad. Just ridiculous.
“Lets just find the file and go” Alistair whispered
Humphrey moved to the heavy oak desk, his expression a mask of concentrated disdain. He tapped his thick watch against the velvet chair, to which he also took a seat in and began looking inside the drawers that laid perfectly closed. Me and Alistair took his initiative and began looking in separate drawers. I could hardly breathe as my heart hammered against my ribs, a frantic rhythm that felt like it was loud enough to give us away.
“Found it” Humphrey announced, holding up the document above his head
He slid a thick, heavy document bound in black leather with our family crest embroidered on the front. I scrambled closer, my knees bumping into Alistair’s. Humphrey laid it flat on the desk, his fingers trembling as he flipped through to the challenge outlines. There, written in crisp black ink, were the headlines we were desperate to see. The titles consisted of three parts that would take place in the tournament tomorrow; where the descriptions of the challenges were written right below. I scrambled to find what the challenges were, scanning the text at razor speed. I leaned down, peering over Humphrey’s shoulder while Alistair was kneeling down and leaning his chin on his hand.
We were all reading when finally we reached the description of each challenge: the first challenge was centered around decision making. It would take place in a bushed maze where each pair would run through and make decisions on the damsels’ situation; we would then capture a flag at the end of the maze where a bell would go off, indicating that someone got the flag. The last pair still in the maze would be disqualified. The second challenge was centered around climbing and strength. Each pair would be presented with a relay race which consisted of running across a field and climbing a tall roped tied wall. The last 3 teams to be left behind would be disqualified. Lastly, the third challenge would be based around reflexes and stealth; the last two pairs would be facing off with a sleeping dragon, where they would have to retrieve a scroll that was trapped in its hands. After achieving it without waking the dragon, the pairs would then race to the finish line where the final winner would be determined.
As I read each challenge, my heart stopped further down my chest each time. The plan of cheating was being deleted letter by letter in my head. These weren't just simple obstacles we could simply bypass with a clever trick like I had expected; they were carefully engineered designed to expose every single flaw I possessed. I didn’t know about Alistair, but knowing me, I would ruin this for the both of us. Though Humphrey and Alistair stopped reading, I continued on down to the grading system. The winning team would automatically be given an A, and the ones to get out in the first challenge, an F. The rest of the pairs would be graded on their performances during each challenge. I began doing the optimistic pessimism thought process I always did. Maybe we can scrap the idea of cheating and just try our best to not get out during the first challenge. Though I was among the weakest boys in our class, maybe Alistair could pull through and I wouldn’t have to take him down with me.
“Ok I've got it,” Humphrey said, tapping his smooth chin. “I’ll hack into the bell technology and set it off early. That way all the teams would realize someone already got it and let their nerves take over the rest. It’ll give you two ample opportunity to get through the maze while everyone else is distracted”
“How about when the professors and all the girls realize something is wrong?” Alistair chimed in
Humprey stopped typing as fast as he began, but he didn’t give up. He deleted the idea off his document and leaned back to look at us, hoping we would give him another idea. I didn't have any. Alistair was intensely tapping his chin hoping to come up with something. We had been in such deep thought I forgot we were still in my dads office. We had to get out before he found us, and with top secret documents no less. I whispered to them both that we needed to get back to the library before anyone caught us, that way we could discuss more of this properly. Humphrey put back the paper exactly as it was and we left the office looking better than what we came in to. We closed the door behind us and cautiously made our way downstairs to the library, still making sure no one spotted us coming out of a professor's office.
When we entered the library, the evil step librarians were the least of my worries for once. We made our way to the nearest table in the back behind the science and sorcery book shelf and took our seats. Alistair occupied a chair with his backpack and Humphrey pulled his laptop back out and opened that document to jot down more ideas that we didn't have. We began thinking deeper. What could we do to sabotage Daring that wouldn't catch his, my dads, or the entire audience's attention? We could try hacking into the bell system, but that would most likely trigger an investigation and get Humphrey in trouble. From an outside perspective, we looked so normal; just 3 guys doing what looks like homework and talking about random nonsense outside of class. However, we did have class in about half an hour, so we needed to formulate something. I felt bad taking up all of our breaks just to talk about this, so I shut off the rest and got to thinking.
“Ok how about we mess with Daring’s shoes so he can’t participate” I suggested
“He’ll probably notice the moment he steps foot out of his dorm. How many pairs of shoes are you willing to bet he has?” Alistair quickly replied
“Ok. Do you have any ideas Mr. Riddle master?”
I snapped back at him. We were running out of time and it seemed like we came up with nothing in all the time that we were sitting here for. He leaned back and nearly rolled his eyes, looking down at the scratched up table trying to find an idea. I looked at Humphrey, hoping he had an idea to jot down in his empty document. He chewed on the inside of his cheek, staring blankly at the blinking cursor on his screen. I had a few thoughts, but they didn’t seem good enough to share. I picked through all of them, trying to find all the flaws and reasons why they wouldn't work. But then I remembered everything about him, and why I was going through all this trouble. I have to live with him, so I’ve seen the ridiculous boxes he drags home. Every time a new recruitment flyer arrives, another pair of those exact same white-and-gold running shoes show up. He's got an entire fortress of identical pairs sitting in his dorm room right now because he's too lazy to rotate brands. We could sneak in and cut the insides of his shoe laces; that way it wouldn’t show up by the blind eye, but if he tries to run or tighten the laces they would fall apart. It could guarantee the first challenge for us. And maybe he wouldn’t be completely out of the challenges, but it will slow him and his partner down which could give us a huge window of opportunity. I explained all that I said to them and Humprey wrote down every detail in his document.
“If we are going to pull this off we need to all go to his dorm,” I explained “that way one of us can be on the look out, one a distractor, and I can cut his laces”
“Class starts soon though, let's go there at lunch. If we are lucky, nor him or Hopper will be there” Humphrey said
We all got up and got to our next classes. Unfortunately, we didn't have any classes together this time. Alistair had advanced crownculus, Humphrey had a spare period, and I had advanced wooing. We were cutting it close for tomorrow and we only had a plan for the first challenge. Daring would figure something out and request new shoes before the second challenge and change them. But honestly, it didn't matter. All we needed to do was stay in for the first challenge and then we could make do for the other two. Or maybe I could magically acquire another idea.
By the time the midday bells rang through the halls, the three of us reunited in the boys dormitory wing in front of Daring's door. The entire corridor was eerily quiet, since everyone was settled in at the cafeteria for lunch. Everyone except us. I had apologized over a million times to Humphrey and Alistair for dragging them along this long, but they didn’t want to hear it; perhaps they liked the adventure and just wanted to get this part over with. Humphrey brought his voice down to a hush and began whispering the plan to the both of us.
“Ok, Alistair will be on the lookout and I’ll stand inside the dorm with you if I need to warn you. If any of us hear Hopper or Daring coming we get under the beds and Alistair will distract them until we can escape”
I swallowed hard and began chewing at my fingernails. Humphrey mentioning escaping and potentially being caught made my stomach turn. I had no clue how this was going to go but I knew getting caught wasn’t an option; we needed to get in and out as fast as possible without any problems. We all nodded to each other and made our ways in; I had a spare key from when he asked me to bring him and Hopper food in the past so I gingerly opened up the door where we slickly slipped inside. As we stepped inside, the aroma of Daring inspired perfumes and a tinge of body odor snuck into my nose with a bang. I nearly threw up with the mix dancing in my nostrils but proceeded nonetheless.
I made my way to his ginormous and excessive shoe closet and grabbed his running shoes. Only one pair was necessary for this procedure but I wanted to increase the probability of him grabbing a rotten one for this to work properly. I made sure to be as quiet as possible, the air turning thinner and more pungent as seconds passed. My heart beat faster and faster, finally making the nervousness pulse through my entire body over to my now shaking hands. The small pair of scissors I brought with me pierced its way through the laces as I made sure they looked completely normal from the outside. I surgically only cut through a little over half of the lace, so that when Daring did walk, everything seemed normal; but as he began something more intense like running or climbing, they would snap under pressure. My body relaxed a bit since no sounds other than my puffing breath took up the dorm. No one seemed to be coming and Humphrey stayed quiet. But right when my nerves were calmed, I heard a phone ring.
The moment I heard the first ring, my heart dropped to my stomach. I needed to get out of there asap without anyone catching me. Alistair opened the door and my heart sank at the same time. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting to be on the other side of that door, but it was nightmare fuel. Would Daring be standing there with a shocked look on his face? Was it going to be Hopper? Headmaster Grimm? Alistair warning us someone was coming?
“Sorry guys. That was just my phone” Alistair whispered
My heart remained in my stomach as I took a huge sigh of relief back to the shoes. I continued cutting the shoes up with utmost nervousness yet with a tinge of rage. I wanted so badly to win against my brother that I had to resort to property damage and backstabbery. Though the thoughts grazed my mind, I proceeded with cutting the shoes, making sure to keep it as clean as possible to the blind eye. Once I was finished, I put them back in perfect order and slid the shiny white closet door closed; I grabbed Humphrey's arm and let him outside of the dorm with a quickness only a guilty man could execute. We snuck out, met Alistair, and locked the door all in a matter of seconds, making sure to keep our guards up for anyone watching.
“Lets go back to the castleteria to avoid any suspicion” I spat out
And we did exactly that. We made our way back to the castleteria, avoiding eye contact with anyone, especially Daring. We took a seat near the huge windows on the first floor and took out our food to further discuss the events that just took place.
“So, now that that’s out of the way,” Alistair began, “what are we going to do about the last one?”
The last challenge was the stealth of trying not to wake up the dragon, trying to get the scroll, and running back to the finish line. We had no plan for it so far and we were running out of time. At this point, giving up was no longer an option; we already broke into my dads office, broke into Daring's room, and ruined all of his running shoes. The shoes weren’t what mattered. Not really. It was the principal of me destroying things he earned just because I wanted to win for once. Just to make my dad proud and to maybe get the affection and attention of Raven. She probably wanted a brave guy. One that took initiative and broke the rules when necessary. Probably not what I’m doing though. Though I was overtaken with guilt, I wanted to proceed with the plan.
“Guys,” Alistair whispered, leaning his chest on the table to get closer to us “I have an idea”
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Ok guys this is the second part (as you read from the title) but its not the final part. Im planning on doing a third part of the rest of the plan and the entire tournament till the end. I rlly liked this part and i hope it is as good a the first one (and as always please give any feedback you can share!) these will also be on Ao3 if yall prefer it on there. Thx for reading
