1. Chapter 1 (1/2)

masquerade

a

gossip girl fic by gigi

summary:

what if the masquerade ball wasn't just for the teenagers? lily and

rufus find themselves dragged to the ball by their insistent

children--and bump into each other.

chapter

1: into the fray

a/n: so, i really

don't think there are enough gossip girl fics out there, especially

of lily and rufus. this is tv-centric. i have never read the books

(but they're on my list!!) so please no flames about inaccuracies.

a/n: btw this is set

after 1.18, but lily never went through with the wedding because bart

was called away for an urgent business trip that day. the wedding is

still on, but postponed until further notice.

"serena,

please don't make me do this," lily whined as her blonde vixen

of a daughter handed her a silver mask similar to the gold on her own

face.

"no,

mom," she responded, tying the mask around her mother's head.

"you're going. come on, you'll have fun."

"how

can you be so sure?" lily replied glumly, letting her blonde

shoulder-length hair fall forward.

"because,

contrary to what you might believe, you're hot." that statement

made lily's head whip up to stare at her daughter in disbelief.

"you

must be kidding," she sputtered.

"i

almost wish i was," serena admitted, "but even chuck thinks

so...but he does tend to look at anything with legs and boobs,"

she added thoughtfully.

"you

really know how to comfort a woman," lily replied dryly,

adjusting her silver-tinged white dress. the dress gathered at her

waist in an almost corset-like fashion and fanned out to the floor,

giving her a positively royal demeanor. she had to admit, she did

look amazing in that dress. "i just don't see the point in my

going."

"and

why not?" her daughter prodded as she

ought her golden locks

over her shoulder to go with her equally golden gown.

"because

no one will be interested in a woman in her late thirties."

"ah,

and that, my dear mother, is the beauty of a masquerade ball,"

serena declared triumphantly. "nobody will know who you are, so

this is the perfect chance to see just how appealing you are to the

opposite sex."

"before

i ponder why you are so insistent on my meeting guys, it hardly

counts if the members of the opposite sex are half my age and

completely drunk."

"well,

you'll at least know one guy there."

"who?

dan? eric?"

"rufus."

lily did a double take.

"rufus?!

why will he be there?"

"he

doesn't want both his kids there without being there himself,

especially since jenny was about an inch away from becoming chuck's

latest victim," serena said matter-of-factly, leaning over the

vanity to apply some lip gloss. "you can hang out with him."

"so

is that why you wanted me to come?"

"why?"

"so

rufus will have a friend? or shall i say distraction?" serena

looked over at her mother with a sheepish grin. "sometimes i see

a little too much of myself in you, serena."

8d

as

lily and serena van der woodsen entered the palace ballroom, the

effect was immediate. lily couldn't help but smile as heads turned

upon their arrival. it was a nice feeling.

a

young man with

own hair and the mask of a devil soon made his way

to the two--no, just lily. she raised her eye

ow in amusement as he

bent over her hand and placed a kiss on it.

"hello,

beautiful," he greeted in a sleazy, supposedly sexy voice.

"hello,

charles." lily's face

oke into a smile when charles, or chuck,

straightened, stumbling in surprise.

"ms.

van der woodsen!" he exclaimed in a slightly higher than normal

voice. "it's very nice to see you."

"and

to see you," lily chuckled. "enjoy the rest of your night,

charles."

"see?"

serena nudged her mother. "you just got here and already you've

been hit on." she winked.

"you

can stop trying to prove your point now. i'm already inside the ball.

it's not like i can turn around and leave now."

the

two women had developed a little following as they made their way to

the drinks. one man, in particular, had eyes for lily. as she laughed

with her daughter, he made his way behind her an inhaled her scent.

familiar. like lilies.

he

whispered in her ear, "you know, a woman i loved used to wear

that scent."

his

hushed statement startled lily, causing her to jump and whip around

to the man. he was...gorgeous. he had wavy

own hair with bangs that

fell in front of his liquid

own eyes; a boyish half-smile adorned

his face. even with the black and deep red mask on, lily could tell

who he was instantly.

rufus.

she

did all she could do at the moment. she flirted, "well, she has

good taste."

"she

does at that. do you know why she liked to wear that fragrance?"

"why?"

"because

it matched her name."

"so

i guess her name was rosemary?" she joked.

"n-no."

he was confused. "lily."

"don't

be so worried, i know it's lily."

rufus

suddenly realized who he was talking to. the woman was glowing, her

short blond hair framing her perfect face. most importantly, the eyes

that held so much pain and openness. combined with the scent, he

mentally slapped himself for not seeing it sooner. it was lily.

"i'm

sure you do," he replied, amusement in his eyes.

this

was going to be an interesting night.