You guys are freaking incredible. It's only been a couple of days and I have already gotten a ton of feedback, so thank you for that! I'm obsessing over the new episode. If you want to talk about it, feel free to PM me here or on tumblr. And make sure you review! Enjoy!

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Francis awoke with a start. He was drenched in a cold sweat and could not shake the dream he just had. Not only had he lost Mary, he lost Sebastian, he lost his mother, and he lost his country. The threatening demeanor of Tomas was beginning to get to him, and now it was even coming up in his dreams.

He was beginning to give up hope. It had already been a week and Francis and Bash were unlucky in finding any information on Tomas. Frustrated and tired, yet unable to sleep, Francis went to practice the one thing that kept him from thinking too hard.

Though Francis hadn't been a bladesmith for long, he enjoyed knowing he was able to control the metal to suit his needs. He felt himself become lost in his art, causing him to miss the sun breaking the darkness of the early morning. It wasn't until the door opened that he broke out of his trance.

"Still wallowing?"

Bash was carrying a plate of food which immediately made Francis' mouth water. "I'm not wallowing," Francis claimed, snatching a roll off of the plate, "I'm thinking. We can't let her go through with it."

"I know, but what more can we do? We've asked around to everyone. We've done everything short of asking the King of Portugal himself." Bash was tired of searching for something that wasn't there. As much as he agreed with Francis, he wasn't so sure that they would ever find a way to stop the marriage.

"What if we stop asking, only to have something happen to Mary? You of all people know we can not let that happen."

"Can't let what happen?" Mary asked as she exited the stairwell leading to Francis' hideaway.

Francis stood gaping for a moment, caught off guard by the beautiful young woman standing in front of him. "Oh-um-we are just discussing the upcoming tournament," he lied.

Mary looked at Sebastian. "May have a moment with your brother?"

"Of course, m'lady," Bash shot Francis a look, "by all means, take your time."

Once Mary and Francis were alone, she looked across the room at him with inquisitive eyes. "I know what you're up to," she said, taking such slow, small steps forward that Francis didn't even notice.

"Oh?" Francis asked, with what he hoped was a surprised expression, rather than worried. "What might I be up to?"

"You're trying to take back your order. You're trying to disallow my engagement to Tomas."

Before he knew it, Mary was standing in front of him with her hand on his chest. Immediately, images of the kiss they shared not a fortnight prior began to race through his mind. "You know this isn't what I want, Francis. If there was anything we could do differently, I would. But you must stop making such a scene. I know you are asking questions about Tomas, and I know you asked the king to not allow our engagement to be broken." Mary looked exasperated, broken even.

Francis couldn't take her sad expression anymore. "I've realized something though, Mary," he said, lifting her chin so he could see her eyes, "I want you. As my friend, as my queen, as my everything."

"Things don't always work that way for kings and queens, Francis," Mary said sadly.

"I don't care." And with that Francis kissed Mary.

It wasn't the same as their first kiss. Their first kiss had been one of sadness and goodbyes. Francis was letting Mary go, or so they thought. This was more than that. There was hunger in this kiss. Passion. They were both fighting for control, for each other, and neither was going to let the other win without a fight.

It wasn't until there was a knock at the door that the young couple jumped apart. Bash stuck his head in, "Sorry to interrupt, but someone's coming."

Mary and Francis gave one more glance at each other before allowing Bash into a much more lighthearted conversation. It was only moments before Tomas walked in.

"Mary, there you are. What are you doing up here?" Tomas looked around at all of Francis' creations with a look of disgust . . . and a look of fear? Francis made sure to make note of that.

Francis intervened before Mary got a chance. "Is she not allowed to be her own person, to go where she pleases, now that she's engaged to you?" he asked the new Portuguese Prince, his cheeks still slightly pink from his experience with Mary not five minutes prior.

Mary shot Francis a look or worry; she didn't want him to get into trouble with Tomas. "Let's get some fresh air, my lord," Mary said to Tomas. As she began to walk toward the door, she bid both Sebastian and Francis good-day, but as she passed Francis, she snuck a note into his hand. With that, she and Tomas left Bash and Francis alone in the room.

Bash quickly turned to Francis. "I have news."

Francis looked up with interest from the folded up note he was holding. "What do you mean? And why didn't you tell me sooner?" Anything that would help him win Mary back was of utmost importance to him.

"There are new rumors in court that Tomas' first wife's death was not an accident. And with what we already know regarding his cruelty to his servants, I wouldn't put it past him to have done something more malicious." Bash was looking worried. It was obvious that both he and Francis were thinking the same thing: if Tomas was capable of doing something so ruthless to the woman he claims to have loved, what would he do to Mary? "We need to get her away from him. There must be someone who can help."

Francis was unsure of who they could turn to. "I don't know, but we are going to find out." With that, Francis opened the note from Mary:

My Dear Francis,

The lake is always so beautiful at sunset.

Meet me there tonight. We will figure this mess out together.

Yours,

Mary

Immediately, Francis felt more confident that they would find a way to be together, one way or another. They would make sure of it.