She turned towards the queen and knelt down in front of her. The queen smiled and gestured to Catherine to stand upright. "I think you've met my husband, haven't you?" the queen asked, pointing to the king.Catherine nodded hesitantly, unsure whether or not to continue standing."You are welcome to remain kneeling, Catherine. Please, stand." she explained. "It will give me a chance to show you something."After Catherine stood up straight again, the queen turned around and faced the king. She then took a deep breath, raised her arms upwards, and yelled "Your majesty! May I have permission to have Catherine kneel before you?"The king was startled by the loud voice that came from his wife. He raised his head, which was still resting on his hand, and looked questioningly at the queen. "Why?" he asked cautiously, his gaze fixated on Catherine.The queen looked at Catherine and spoke gently, "Because, Catherine has come up with a way for the entire kingdom to benefit from our marriage
There was a knock on the bedroom door. Catherine quickly wiped the tears from her face and straightened up her posture. She opened the door, hoping to look presentable enough for the queen to allow her to leave. Instead, she saw the queen standing there with a concerned expression etched upon her features."What's wrong, Catherine?" the queen questioned, stepping further into the room.Catherine averted her gaze. She didn't want to meet the queen's eyes. She had become so accustomed to the queen's kind face when she had first arrived at the palace. But now, her kindness had vanished. Instead, Catherine was gazing anxiously into the queen's eyes, searching desperately for answers."Please tell me what happened yesterday." the queen pleaded, placing her hands tenderly on Catherine's shoulders.Catherine looked back up at the queen and gave her a small smile. "Nothing happened, your majesty. It's perfectly fine, I promise.""Catherine, you don't have to lie to me. I can tell that you'
The queen stared silently at Catherine for several moments, clearly waiting for Catherine to continue.Catherine took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a brief moment, preparing herself for whatever questions the queen had going through her mind. Taking another deep breath, she began. "My father is dead."The queen's eyes widened as she listened. She slowly nodded her head, prompting Catherine to go on."He had just died yesterday evening. We buried him the day before yesterday." Catherine continued.When she received no reaction from the queen, she continued, "We were supposed to have gone to visit our aunt at Dexter kingdom this morning, but when we got there...we just discovered that they had already moved the funeral service to the palace, along with all the other funeral ceremonies."The queen frowned and remained silent."I don't really understand what happened, Your Majesty. It seems like every time my father goes anywhere, something bad always happens to him." Catherine e
They led straight to the gate of the garden, leading to a small bridge and eventually coming to a halt right in front of the entrance of the garden.Catherine felt her heart beating rapidly against her ribcage as her eyes scanned the floor carefully. She suddenly realized that this could be evidence that whoever had been chasing Catherine last night might still be lurking in the area, and she was now certain that she had to be extra careful from now on."There appears to be some sort of trail leading towards the gate of this castle, and it looks as if someone has left behind some sort of message." The queen remarked."But, Your Majesty, I've seen the footprints myself. It could have been anyone that was following me last night." Catherine replied uneasily.The queen gave her a strange look and raised an eyebrow questioningly. "Then what do you suggest that we do about it?" she inquired curiously."We should check it out, Your Majesty. Maybe we'll find out who it was." Catherine sugges
"It's okay, Catherine. Everything will be alright." She heard the queen whisper soothingly as she tried her best to console the sobbing young woman.Catherine sat rigidly in her chair, her eyes focused intently on the floor as she continued to cry."Catherine..." the queen began hesitantly after a while. "What do you mean by you've experienced something horrible?"Catherine sniffled and wiped her nose on her sleeve. She couldn't bring herself to look up as she replied quietly, "I... I saw my own mother die."There was a long pause and Catherine finally dared to raise her head. She found the queen staring at her intently with wide, disbelieving eyes.Catherine lowered her eyes again quickly, feeling very uncomfortable. She was surprised that the queen didn't seem angry or upset with her. Instead, she was simply stunned.Eventually, Catherine felt the queen's hands brush across her back. She tensed up slightly, fearing for a moment that the queen was going to strike her. However, inst
Before Catherine could respond, the queen had already walked into the entrance hall."Your Majesty?" Catherine called out nervously, hesitating momentarily as she stared at the doors.She remained in place, unsure if she should follow the queen. She decided to wait for her to reappear before attempting to escape.After a few minutes passed, Catherine let out a deep sigh and headed toward the main entrance. She made her way through the palace until she reached the corridor next to the entrance. She walked in the direction of the room that she had spent the previous night in.As she neared the doorway, she could hear voices inside. One voice she recognized was the queen's. Two people seemed to be arguing, although neither of them sounded particularly friendly."...and don't tell me that you're happy about what you're doing right now!" the queen exclaimed angrily."Well, it's obvious that you're unhappy, Your Majesty. How can you expect us to treat you like we used to when you refuse to
She pulled her arms tightly around herself as she gazed out over the gardens below. She bit her lip and let out a heavy sigh before looking up at the stars. After a while, she heard rustling in the bushes near the entrance. Her eyes darted in the direction of the noise and narrowed when she saw the familiar figure of the queen emerging from the shadows.The queen's face lit up when she caught sight of Catherine standing a couple metres away from the window. Without hesitation, the queen marched over to her. She didn't move nor did she give any indication that she had seen her approaching.The queen stopped a couple of metres away from Catherine and looked down at her. After staring at Catherine for a few moments in silence, the queen finally spoke. "What are you doing out here?"Catherine's lips tightened slightly. She still had no idea whether or not she should say anything, but then remembered something that she had told her. "Don't let them win". She closed her eyes, forcing her
Catherine remained quiet. She looked down at her lap again as the queen stood up from her throne and walked over to where she was standing."I believe you know that I have never hated you."Catherine said nothing."I've come to realise that you haven't betrayed me because you're afraid of losing me. No, Catherine. You have done this because I deserve to live. And I think that I have come to realise what it means to be truly alive."Catherine glanced up at the queen and saw that she was smiling kindly at her. The queen gently placed her hand on Catherine's arm. "I'm sure you have many questions," the queen went on."but you mustn't worry. I will answer all of them."A small smile crept onto Catherine's lips. "Thank you," she murmured quietly."Now, you have been through hell these past few weeks. If you feel ready for some food and rest now, we can talk later. For now, though... we should get you ready to leave. I know that you must be hungry after all that you've done today."Catheri