Tu Es Ma Lumière

50 - Harm Pt. 2 *Modern*

The Queen of France, Catherine de Medici, trembled to the point of violence as she watched her eldest son be loaded up into the ambulance. The copper haired Queen was in the arms of her son's mother in law. Marie de Guise stared limply at the ambulance, barely even blinking. She and James had attempted to run over to Mary after that sick bastard had drawn a gun to her and pulled the trigger, but they had been restrained by the police officers and forced back to give them the space they needed to give their only daughter the best chance of survival. 

The King of France had demanded that he be brought into the hospital with Francis, and had proved his determination by clambering up into the ambulance before any paramedic could protest. He may not have been the most present father, but when it mattered, let it be known that Henry Valois never let his children down. Both of his sons were in pretty bad shape thanks to that armed madman, but it was Francis who was the heir. He had to come first. King Henry Valois would never forgive himself if his son and heir died when he wasn't there with him. 

The prefect blonde haired boy had nearly left he and his wife and Queen many-a-time when he was a child. Meningitis made her determined return four times, each one worse than the last. It had only been the dark haired pretty girl that gave Francis the determination he needed to fight the last bout of sickness. Never again had an attack of the cruel disease tried to take his son from him. He was well aware that he had the girl to thank for saving his boy's life, as he had the girl's father to thank for saving his when it really mattered. 

The paramedics were optimistic about Francis' state. With the finest care, the young man could make a full recovery, so long as they could find the bullet and make sure that the wound was prevented from infection and could be closed, stopping the blood. But because Francis de Valois was who he was, there would be no such thing as too many precautions.

"Cat, I have to go with him!" Henry called from the ambulance. Catherine could see how Henry's body shook as he clung to Francis' wrist from where it was strapped into his body on the gurney. All things considered, it was Sebastian who was the worse hurt out of the two, but Francis was Henry's royal heir. He had to come first out of Henry's eldest children. Shot to the chest or not. Besides, Sebastian would have his mother fretting over him. From the shock and blood loss, Francis had lost consciousness. A blessing in disguise, it had seemed. Since nobody was allowed near Mary or Sebastian, they didn't have to lie to the young Prince anymore, and tell him that both they and the baby the Dauphin of France carried were going to be okay.

"O-okay!" she called, still shaken at the memory that would forever haunt her, her perfect, favourite golden child, running to the mother of his child and his wife, but being struck down by an armed madman. She showed no signs of royal autority and statuesque royalty then. No, now all Catherine de Medici was was a frightened mother who worried for the life of her child.

"Your Majesty, your Grace-" an officer stated, coming up to the two bereft women who clung to each other. "His Grace, the Duke of Moray, has been taken to the nearest medical facility to await news upon his daughter, the Dauphine. We will arrange transportation to take you to him, if it pleases your Graces?" she finished.

"Of course, I must be with my son." Catherine answered quickly. Marie swallowed thickly, yet nodded. The woman may never have been the warmest mother to her only daughter, but now that it truly mattered, the woman was completley terrified. Unsure and lost, she decided. Marie always knew that marrying her daughter into a family with many enemies could be dangerous, but her husband had decided to honour his promise to his life-long friend, the King of France. To make Henry's legitimate son the best damn King France had ever seen, he needed a Stuart by his side, it had been decided. The Stuart's were strong, resilient and reliable. Henry's son would need one when he was King, but now that was all up in the air. Would Francis ever get to reign with Marie's daughter by his side? Would Francis get to reign at all, making the throne go to young, spoiled Charles?