The Crown (Prince Harry fanfic #5)

Chapter Eleven

Flowers started to bloom April in London, and fresh air was brought in. When Lucy could, she spent her time outside, taking in as much fresh air as she could. Harry was gone for the last week and was to be gone for the next week as he toured. Lucy almost went with him, since she only seven months, but he ended up adding another stop to his schedule. That one stop was one she couldn't end up doing. Harry wanted to do it and Lucy wanted him to go too. However, the stop ended up not being safe for Lucy in her "condition," no matter how she argued she was fine. It wasn't Harry that told her no, so she couldn't be angry at him. But rather it came from his father, who ended up having the final say.

With Harry gone, Lucy went to her own events, which included a lot more lunch-ins nowadays. There wasn't much for physical movement, when she could still easily get around. Also, this was her last month on duty before she stopped at eight months. Lucy wasn't exactly sure what she was to do for assuming two months and not just one month. Boredom was about to take over her life.

Lucy had been reading aloud for a while without an event today. There were some studies about the baby being able to hear outside the womb, and reading was supposed to help its mind. Lucy wanted to catch up on some reading and any book was supposed to do well for baby's mind.

The door open and she heard it creak. She thought she was supposed to spend the day alone. "Tony," Lucy called from the living room, her finger slipping between pages.

After a few steps on the hardwood floors, the bodyguard popped his head in. "Yes, ma'am?"

"Weren't you supposed to have the day off?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am."

"You're here?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Do you plan on staying?"

"Would you like me to leave, ma'am?"

"No, it's fine." Lucy closed the book and slowly got up. "If you're here, it means we can go out."

Tony stopped in the doorway. "Ma'am, I don't think that's a good idea."

"I'll go get ready."

"Ma'am--"

"I'll be a few minutes, Tony. Prepare." Lucy walked past him and started up the stairs.

"Where specifically are we going out?" he asked.

"The park. The flowers are in bloom and I want fresh air." Her head appeared around the corner. "Not true. I need fresh air."

"Car, ma'am?"

Lucy shook her head no.

Tony turned away from the staircase and knew he was eventually going to get into trouble for this. But that was the future and this was now. Even if it ended badly, at least there was fun to be had. It never really ended badly when Lucy decided to go on a spontaneous trip to the park; in fact, no one ever quite noticed her. Somehow no one ever noticed her. There was more of a chance to be noticed when Harry was with her, but it was rare someone noticed her while she was out and not as a royal. It was probably because she never truly looked like her royal self when she went out not as a royal.

Deciding early on, Lucy took the liberties to change things about herself so they were different in the public eye compared to the private. First was her hair. Though blonde, her natural hair was curly and she let it fall natural when she was in private. When in public, it was stick-straight perfect. Second was the makeup. In the public eye, usually there wouldn't be an imperfection anywhere, especially on her face. That meant all scars were covered up, and all the skin was the same shade. In private, Lucy usually put on less than normal makeup, so that she had on eyeliner, mascara and lipstick. Third was the clothing. When Lucy had the chance, she wore jeans.