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
The queen let out a soft chuckle. "It's no problem at all. Although, perhaps, there are some things that you need to know. First of all, I do not blame you for protecting me. I know you would never hurt anyone."Catherine pursed her lips. "But I failed you."The queen raised a single eyebrow. "You only failed me because I allowed myself to become caught up in my own anger.""Your Majesty.""Please listen to me. What happened between us doesn't matter anymore. We were children, Catherine. You only did what you felt you had to do to protect me. It's understandable that you feel guilty. But please, do not beat yourself up over it. That would never make up for anything that you've done.""But I?""And secondly..." The queen began, stopping Catherine mid-sentence. "What I mean to say is that I trust you completely. I trust you enough to know that you wouldn't put yourself above the people you loved. And if you really did feel that way, you would've left me in that room alone. So no, Cathe
Catherine froze in horror. No. No way. She was dreaming. This can't be real. Surely this wasn't real. Catherine slowly crept forward again, making sure she was careful not to be seen. She was only a few feet away now."I'm sorry. It seems that we didn't keep it a secret. We didn't have any choice though, Your Highness.""You didn't have a choice," her mother snapped angrily. "There has to have been something you could've done!""But you have to understand! She was too young for this," her father pleaded."No, Julian. I don't understand anything right now!" her mother shrieked. "I am sick of this. Sick of you. I can't believe that the king trusted you so much! Well, he should have. He should have never placed faith in you at all!""But, Your Highness! You know how hard it was for me to find someone like her!""Enough!" her mother shouted as she shot her husband a cold glare. "This isn't helping. All it does is cause me pain. If I could have my way, I'd kill both of you.""Kill... me
Even though she knew that they would never meet again, Catherine could not help but feel sorry for the queen. She couldn't imagine having to face the king with the news that their child was dying it was horrible. Just then, the door opened and Catherine quickly wiped away her tears and tried to smile at whoever entered."I heard that the queen sent for you," Thomas greeted her with a warm grin.Catherine smiled back weakly and nodded. She didn't trust herself to say anything else. Her throat was closed shut and she was completely paralyzed by fear."Come, dear girl. Let's go down to the dining room, shall we?"Catherine forced a small laugh as she followed Thomas. She really hoped that she would manage to stay calm enough during dinner. She wasn't exactly looking forward to it. At least it was only a dinner, not some kind of trial or execution. It was just food. Food. Food. Food. That was all she could think about. She didn't dare to look at either Henry or the queen. She just kept
Catherine gave her a small smile. "It's alright. I'm just a bit stressed out. You know, I haven't seen my parents in weeks, and I feel like I can't breathe sometimes. And the whole time, I've been wondering what has happened to them... if they are okay... if they have any idea that the baby was theirs."The queen frowned as she rested her hand against the side of Catherine's neck and tilted her head slightly, examining her features. Catherine felt her eyes widen as she realized that the queen was actually checking if she had a fever. The queen quickly dropped her hand as if she was burned when she found that Catherine wasn't fevered."I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. Please forgive me, Catherine."Catherine blinked rapidly in confusion. Why was she apologizing to her? The queen didn' t need to apologize, she thought. In fact, it was the other way around. If anything, Catherine should be apologizing to her."Don't worry about it," Catherine replied. "It's fine. Really. I don't
"Hey, Your Majesty," Catherine greeted as she approached the bed.The Queen lowered the book and smiled softly at her. "Hello."Catherine took a seat in front of the queen and clasped her hands in her lap. She then looked down at them and studied them silently. She had yet to take off the ring that the queen had given her. She wasn't sure why but she felt comfortable wearing the ring all the time even though she wasn't sure why exactly she liked the way it felt on her finger. Maybe it was just comforting, knowing that someone cared enough to give her a gift that had belonged to a loved one."What are you doing?" the queen asked quietly, watching Catherine closely.Catherine shrugged, glancing up at the queen briefly. "Nothing much. Just thinking about the wedding."The queen pursed her lips. "Do you still want to marry me?""Of course, Your Majesty," Catherine stated, surprised by the question. Of course, she wanted to marry the queen. The woman had become like family to her. She was