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°➶☽∘ ✥ ∘☾➴°
𝐈𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐒late at night, when Harry went to visit Catherine. He didn't want anyone to know of his whereabouts. Only Alexandra knew of departure from Westminster. He enters the largest room in her apartments with an unreadable look on his handsome features, "I'm coming in, so don't say no."
"I have something to say," Catherine replies, sounding relieved.
"But I came to you," Harry objects.
"You came to tell me you will fight for me," Catherine replies quickly, "Am I correct?"
"Yes, I - " Harry starts to say.
"And you hate your father for stealing me away and. . .you want me to know that if I marry him, I condemn myself to a miserable, loveless life," Catherine says, taking the exact words Harry wanted to say and saying them.
"That's right, yes," Harry admits.
"That is what people do," Catherine explains, "The prisoners begging for their lives and offering contrition, they beg and plead but their pleas are always met with deafness for one simple reason, that they must go to the block because the king decrees it."
"So you're saying you must marry him because he said so," Harry says, putting her words in a simpler form.
"Because he is the king. I'm saying there is a duty. . .that both of us must cleave to," Catherine explains slowly as she wrung her hands together.
Harry scoffs quietly, "You know, I admit that when I first wrote to you in Spain, it - it was a game. But then the more I read of you and knew you, I - well, I haven't known as many women as you think, Catherine, and those that I have were of the flesh. You are not. I mean, I-I want to - "
He pauses for a moment, thinking of the things he can say, knowing he would much rather say them to Alexandra, but knows he can't and never will be in the public eye. And that was fine with him, all he needed was her by his side all the time.
"But - But the point is that - the point is that. . .that I love you," he lies. He lies right through his teeth as he looks Catherine in the eye, "And love exalts us into God's arms. I-It is his greatest gift to us. It makes us one with him. Catherine, it leaves duty in the shadows. You are a wonder. You make me yearn to be king so that I can be a better man for you."
"You are a wordsmith," Catherine counters, "You bend words to your whim."
"Well, then feel what I'm saying," he says, holding her cheeks in his hand, he kisses her.
God, he wishes it was Alexandra's lips on his and when he closes his eyes, he can feel her lips on his instead of Catherine's. He can almost feel himself being with his sweet princess.
But he can only wish.
When they pull away, he looks at her and says, "And then give me your answer."
With that, he separates himself from her, leaving the room all together. He leaves Catherine to drown in her thoughts and the belief that he truly loves her.
It is that night that Catherine has a dream about her mother.
In the dream, her mother warns her about the betrayal Harry will set upon her.
She doesn't believe it at the time, but one day, the betrayal will break the world.
But little does she know the dream is true, so for now, she acts like it didn't happen.
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"Maggie Pole is banished from court," Lina informs Catherine the next day as she places a letter on a nearby table, "She said she lied for you."
"Banished?" Catherine asks in shock, her voice stuttering slightly, "For how long?"
"Forever," Lina replies, turning to the princess. She seems displeased - displeased that someone else has to suffer for the Spanish princess to triumph.
"Is she at her home in Stourton?" Catherine asks as she ignores Lina's distaste.
Lina nods her head.
"We will go to her, this very moment, now," Catherine replies, not leaving any room for her handmaiden to argue.
With that, she leaves the room. It is that day that the princess and Lady Maggie Pole converse, not knowing the horrors, casualties, and tragedy they will face in the future.
°➶☽∘ ✥ ∘☾➴°
When Harry returns to Westminster, he is greeted by Alexandra who is waiting for him in his chambers. She wore a simple, white dress that only pronounced her innocence and trueness, exempt of lies and corruption.
Her blond hair cascades down her back in soft tendrils that Harry so badly wants to curl around his fingers. He stares at her for a moment, the princess catching sight of him and smiling.
He can't wait any longer. He walks over to her, shedding his cloak in the process, he doesn't hesitate to make his way over to her and kiss her passionately.
At first, he's soft about it, brushing their lips together lightly, leaving a tingling sensation on their flesh, but as he starts to think about all his feelings for her, the kiss becomes deeper and more intimate.
He holds her close to him, pressing their bodies together, so there is no space between them.
Alexandra grips the back of his neck in one hand and in the other, she fists his shirt, securing herself to him. Harry holds the princess's waist in one arm, wrapping it around her slim torso. The other hand goes to her hair, which he weaves his fingers into.
They only pull apart when they start to run out of air.
"Woah," Alexandra breaths in a slight daze. She looks up at him softly, "What was that for?"
"I've been lying all day, and I needed to do something I truly want to do and truly mean," Harry replies, reconnecting their lips.
