Morning Glory-Francis (Reign)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"Can I finish my puzzle?" Charles asked Francis. We had been traveling for a few hours and had finally made it to the shore where Madeleine's boat should be landing.

"We'll come for you once the girl's boat is a shore." Francis said to his little brother before walking a ways away from the carriage. Mary and I were standing on some rocks a few paces away, looking out over the water. The ocean air was a little cold, but I welcomed it. It almost reminded me of home.

"Do you ever miss Scotland?" I looked down at Mary who had wrapped her arms around herself against the cold.

"Sometimes. I haven't been there since I was a child. It's probably much different now." She answered, almost indifferently. "France has been my home since I was about six." I nodded my head, acknowledging her words.

"If you're cold, Mary, you can wait with Charles in the carriage." Francis' cut into the conversation, joining our group so that I was in between the two of them.

"I'm fine here, thank you Francis." Mary answered quickly and coldly. Francis looked slightly taken back by her sharp tone, but I ignored it. Something had caught my eye in the distance.

"Is that an English ship?" I asked, recognizing the white flag with the red cross, on the larger boat surrounded by smaller vessels.

"It's a warship." Francis said worried, immediately calling over the guards.

"What are they doing here?" Mary asked at the same time that I said "But France and England are at peace."

"Did they come for me?" Mary gasped out nervously, backing away from the water. The ships had reached the shore and men were climbing onto the dry ground. A French guard led a horse over to Francis as others ran down the hill to drawing their bows.

"Get Mary back to the castle." Francis said to me, grabbing my waist and swinging me up onto the horse. A second later, he had lifted up Mary as well, setting her behind me.

"What about Charles?" I asked, wheeling the horse around to face Francis.

"The carriage will follow you." Francis assured me. His eyes begged me to leave, and return to the relative safety of the castle, but I didn't want to leave him here alone. "Go, Anya, please." He pleaded, and Mary was trying to grab the reins out of my hands in order to steer us back towards the road.

"I'm not leaving you here." I said sternly, elbowing Mary's hands away.

"Anya, we have to go!" Mary whimpered behind me.

"Be quiet!" I snapped at her, before looking back down at Francis. "Please, I can't leave you here." I said, whispering.

"You have to go."

The sound of an approaching horse caught everyone's attention.

"Wait! Don't shoot!" Bash shouted from his horse when he saw the French soldiers standing with their bows drawn.

"But that's an English warship!" Francis protested.

"The English come in peace," Bash explained as he dismounted his horse. "The French ship was taking on water. The English stopped to help them."

"How can you be sure?" Mary asked, suspiciously as I guided our horse closer to the two brothers.

"They sent an envoy onto the castle. He's being held there."

Francis still looked cautious but still walked over to me and lifted me down from the horse. To his credit he turned to help Mary down as well, but Bash had already pulled her down to the ground. Seeing she didn't need his assistance, Francis pulled me with him towards the carriage where Charles was still waiting.

"Come on, Charles. Madeleine is coming now." Francis opened the door and Charles sullenly stepped out onto the sunny grass. I glanced down towards the shore, where I could see a small girl approaching with some guards accompanying her.

When the group meets us, no one speaks. Francis nudges Charles forward, but he didn't respond.

"Go on and introduce yourself." Francis tried again, but Charles shook his head, refusing. Mary sighed before picking up her skirts and walking over to Madeleine and crouching down next to her so they were eye level. I couldn't hear what she said to the little girl but I smiled when Madeleine started to walk over to us. Mary would be a good mother one day.

Francis and I watched as Madeleine and Charles introduced themselves to each other. Charles picked a flower and handed it to Madeleine. I could feel someone watching me from the side, but I didn't have to look to know it was Francis.

Slowly our party began to walk back towards the carriage, Francis and I bringing up the rear.

"Wait," Francis whispered, holding me back by the wrist as Mary climbed into the carriage after Madeleine and Charles.

"What?" I turned around looking at him, smiling when I saw a glint in his eye.

"Go over to that horse," he nodded towards a stallion standing riderless by the rest of the caravan. Shrugging, I did as he said, grabbing the reins gently from the ground. "It's too crowded here in the carriage." I heard Francis saying to the carriage's occupants, "Anya and I will ride."

My smile grew with Francis' words. Feeling a little cocky, I pulled myself up into the horse's saddle, not waiting for Francis to return to help me. The look of surprise on his face made it worth it when he turned around to see me.

Once he had reached me, I extended a hand to help him take his place behind me. Between the two of us and my heavy skirts, it was a bit of a tight fit on the saddle, but I couldn't say that I was really complaining. I let myself relax back slightly against Francis' chest as we began the long ride back towards the castle.

"You planned this didn't you?" I asked, turning my head slightly so that he could hear me speak over the horses.

"Of course I did." Francis pressed a kiss on my forehead, but kept his eyes forward, gently guiding the horse to follow the carriage and the guards. "I had to get some alone time with you somehow. I've already spent far to long away from you." He whispered.

I let out a contented sigh, as we continued on our ride. Through the back window of the carriage, I swore I could see Mary watching the two of us, an evil look in her eye. But at the same time, I couldn't bring myself to care if she was upset. Momentarily, I let a challenging look glance over my face before letting myself relax again and enjoy the trip back towards Fontainebleau.