The weight of the crown

Chapter 4

I woke up earlier than usual, not because I wanted to, but because Marianne woke me up earlier than usual. I feared that I would have to deal with my father and a considerable number of MPs in one room again, but she was quick to reassure me that it was because of Princess Charlotte's arrival.

 I must say that the conversation with Thomas yesterday left me a little shocked, but also made me wake up, realize how dynamic things are in the palace, that things can always happen, and I mustn't remain complacent.

 It's only a matter of time before I have someone, probably a prince, and I'm really not ready for it. I stopped when I went out into the main corridor leading to the throne room. Maids went quickly, holding bouquets of flowers or silverware. In addition to the maids, women occasionally spoke to each other, and the excitement on their faces was clear.

 "I heard that she is beautiful, the prince is lucky," one of the women said while her friends nodded in response. I thought of Thomas's words, of the fact that he would have chosen a victory in battle over love.

 Now I looked down the corridor. The floor was shiny, alongside the walls were laid a stone table with flowers, most of them in shades of blue or pink. I was struck by the thought that they had managed to get such beautiful flowers in the fall season when everything fell and changed, but I didn't give much thought to it.

 I walked quickly to the throne room, finding my parents sitting on their elegant chairs, and not far from me stood my brother, his blond hair gleaming slightly in the sunlight. His clothes were formal and clean. He kept a serious expression even when he saw me. 

Since I can remember, Thomas never looked so stressed. I stood by him quietly, knowing that my parents' eyes were on me, and of course the gaze of my parents' advisers and some of the members of parliament. 

"Thomas," I whispered quietly, the silence in the hall also made me a little anxious and I hoped the Princess would come in just to disturb the silence, he didn't look at me, but I knew he heard me.

"Everything will be all right," I whispered quietly, and he nodded slightly, almost imperceptibly. After a few long, tiresome minutes the doors opened and some people dressed in formal clothes entered the big room. 

The next man to enter was the King of France. I recognized him from the few times he had visited the palace. He had a gray beard, and his curly hair was partly obscured by the large gold crown on his head. He was thin and looked relatively young for his age. All the people in the room bowed deeply and I imitated their movement quickly.

The King made his way toward my parents who greeted him. He sat down on a chair no less elegant than theirs and sat on it. His face scanned the room lightly until his dark eyes landed on Thomas; he looked at him for a few seconds, and then looked at the door that had opened again. Now a girl came into the room, which I must admit was really beautiful. 

She wore a dress of deep red that complimented her narrow figure. Her curly hair and black fell over her shoulders. Her narrow lips were painted reddish as well, and her brown eyes surveyed the room quietly as she continued to move into the room. 

Her skin was mocha-colored and she was relatively low. I was surprised when Thomas began to walk slowly toward her until he reached her, bowed lightly, and kissed her palm softly, "Your Majesty," he said quietly, but in the silence that had been created in the room, his words were clearly heard. She seemed a bit embarrassed because she blushed slightly.

"Your highness," My father spoke suddenly and stood up. "We are happy to welcome you to our palace and hope that this match will lead to the development of a strong alliance between France and England."

"We are happy to be here King Henry," said the King of France now, "I am sure that the wedding is only the first stage and the beginning of friendship and alliance between the nations." He continued to say when a slight smile appeared on his face. 

He seemed pleased with the match and Thomas. Then he continued to speak until everyone dispersed in the room and began talking to each other. The King went over to Thomas and Charlotte, who were beginning to get to know each other, and I was glad to see Tomas smiling and no longer looking as stressed. 

I thought to myself how it felt for the King, from what I knew Charlotte was the youngest of her brothers, I wonder if he was afraid to bring her here, to say goodbye to his young daughter, and just to believe that she would manage on her own. 

Did he feel fear and sadness? Or does he feel proud and happy? Perhaps he is even happy that France has another alliance, another country that will not fight against it, and another border that should not be filled by many soldiers. 

Many people turned to Thomas, I was surprised by the fact that he was patient with all of them, although I knew that all he wanted now was to get to know Charlotte and talk to her alone. I left the room slowly, trying not to draw attention and hoping that no one would draw me to another conversation.

 I was going to walk toward my room but I heard a familiar voice and I had to check who it was. I moved closer to one of the rooms when I noticed that the door was slightly open, leaving me a little space to glance into the room. From what I saw, there were all sorts of maps hanging neatly on the wall and a wide black carpet covering the wooden floor. 

There were two men, one of whom was a member of parliament, his features looked familiar, but I couldn't link the appearance there, I didn't know who it was. Opposite him stood another man, whom I didn't know at all, holding a scroll wrapped in a thin film.

 For a moment, I thought of backing back and not listening to their routine conversation until one of them said, "No one should know about the number of fatalities, it would cause unnecessary pressure on the people, and it could endanger the entire alliance, we need France on our side, especially now. "

It was a Member of Parliament, he passed on his forehead as if this would help him think, what was he talking about? There are always wounded in battle or in certain attacks, it causes a little commotion, but nothing more. 

"But if they find out that we lied, it will cause even worse results. The king knows exactly how important it is and he still chooses to ignore the truth. He thinks that if we defend ourselves, we will be able to avoid war, but in the meantime, all that is happening is that we are losing more soldiers" Said the man who now opened the scroll and read it.

 I tried to understand what it was about, but I never really understood much when it came to politics or strategy in battle or to organize our power. It was Thomas's field. The only thing I understood was that something serious was going on, so serious that it could damage the alliance with France.

"Tonight we will again raise the subject to the king at the meeting. If he chooses to ignore it, we will have to prepare our own plan."

I moved back carefully; don't want them to hear my footsteps. I had to understand more to know exactly what to say to my father, or in this case to Thomas, who would really listen to my words. One thing is for sure, I have to be present at this evening's meeting.

"You cannot join the discussion Ally," said Thomas as he arranged some of his books on the table He looked a bit tired, wondering if he slept at night.

"I tell you it's important, they said it might lead to war, they sounded really worried," I said, but he did not seem to be listening to me, of course, he must be thinking of Charlotte. 

"Ally," he said and put his hands on my shoulders, trying to calm me down," "If there was anything that could endanger the alliance; I would know about it, we are in excellent shape in terms of strategy and the number of soldiers. If we weren't, then there probably wasn't an alliance in the first place," he said.

"What are you talking about?" I muttered, trying to follow his words.

"France wanted an alliance with us only because we could provide them with resources and help them against attacks or wars," he explains, "but if they weaken us militarily and we don't have enough soldiers, then France will have no reason to be with us in the alliance." He looked at me for a moment and then looked away as if thinking for a moment what he had said. 

I hoped that he understood now that the alliance with France might fall apart if we won't be strong enough militarily.