Flamme Éternelle: A Reign Fanfiction

Fronces Les Sourcils Correspondants

Back in the castle in a darker room stood two figures who seemed suspicious. "What did you see? You saw something or you wouldn't have brought me to this dingy corner of the castle." Catherine snarled at the tall dark haired man in front of her.

"It's about your son," Nostradamus replied.

"Tell me," Catherine said, her face composed except for her eyes which betrayed the fear she felt in her heart for her son and heir. She masked this fear as soon as Nostradamus spoke.

"Mary will be the death of him."

A sharp intake of breath came from Catherine, "Mary,"she glared at him, "the Mary I raised as my own, Mary Queen of Scots, the Mary betrothed to my son is going to be the death of him?"

"Yes, I have foreseen it."

"We will have to take care of her," Catherine turned her back on him and tried to compose herself. The girl had been like a daughter to her, but she had to go now.

"Are you sure you want to that, Your Majesty?" Nostradamus asked, taking a step towards his Queen.

"Yes!" Catherine snapped.

Nostradamus took a step back, "Very well. We will have to tread carefully though, my Queen, there are troubled waters ahead." Catherine nodded and left, not looking at him.

Elsewhere in the castle, Mary roamed the halls in search of what, she knew not. She certainly found something though, Francis was making his way down the halls toward her accompanied by Sebastian. "Ah, Mary!" he called with a warm smile.

"Hello, Francis, Sebastian," Mary replied, barely looking at the older brother. Sebastian, however, could not keep his eyes off her.

"My brother and I were just about to go for a ride, would you like to join us?" Francis asked.

"That sounds lovely," Mary smiled.

"Excellent, I shall have another horse prepared for you," he took her arm and they exited the castle, the future Queen of Scotland flanked on either side by her French suitors.

They rode in amiable silence, Francis in the lead, followed by Mary, and then Sebastian. Mary kept herself from glancing at Sebastian, but felt his eyes on her at all times. At one point, he rode up next to her and opened his mouth to speak, but she ignored him and rode forward to talk to Francis. She couldn't help but see the hurt look in his eyes as she left him behind. His expression brought a pang of sorrow to her heart and she tried to shove it down, almost successfully.

For the rest of the ride, Mary kept quietly to herself. Bash remained silent in the rear of the group and Francis babbled on at the head. When they returned to the castle in the early evening, Mary quickly dismounted, thanked them for the ride, and hurried off to her chambers.

She did not leave her room again that night. She had food brought to her, bathed, and dressed for bed. She lay on her bed for what seemed like ages, tossing and turning, sleep evading her wakeful mind. Eventually, her mind gave in and she drifted into a restless sleep.

She saw him, over and over. She watched the way his face fell as she rode away. Guilt weighed down her heart as the scene from that afternoon played out in her dreams. She saw his smile from when she called him Bash and felt the joy he had brought surge through her. Her mind conjured the image of them sitting in the courtyard, laughing. Bash played with her hair; she smiled. He looked deep into her auburn eyes and leaned in, brushing his lips gently against hers. They were soft and sweet and her heart raced. Then he pulled back and his face was the same as when she had ignored him.

Mary awoke with a start with a name on her lips, "Bash."

Author's Note

It's starting to get a bit interesting, isn't it? ;-) Let me know what you thought, I love comments!