Disclaimer: I neither own Reign, nor profit from this story.
The Queen of the Bean celebration…contrary to popular belief this was not Queen Catherine's least favorite holiday. It came close, but at least if her husband's eyes were to wander, she knew would know who the recipient would be.
It was a little annoying how giddy he got, but he hadn't truly been hers for a long time anyway, so in principle it was not something that should bother her.
In principle.
This year of course would theoretically be a different story, but she had to prepare herself for either outcome.
At least it would be a clean cut if he chose his temporary Queen instead her…and over quickly. Her temporary replacement wouldn't last more than a day and then they could simply go back to their normal routine…generally ignoring each other, at times loathing each other, and running the country together as well as ever.
As Catherine chose her outfit for the afternoon celebration, or more specifically chose a tiara she wouldn't mind handing over to a peasant, Catherine could feel her nerves getting to her. The fact that she had never truly stopped loving Henry was not a revelation, but this was the first time in several years that a glimmer of hope had begun to grow within her that he might actually mean what he said and keep his promises to her.
-/-/-/-/-
Henry had a plan.
It was a good plan…he hoped.
Today's celebration was one that he normally thoroughly enjoyed…minus the whole tending-to-get-the-two-most-influential-women-in-France-mad-at-him-at-the-same-time thing…
But this years needed to be different, at least on his end. He knew that if he carried on as he normally did that he would lose Catherine, and that wasn't an option.
And so he had a plan…he just hoped it would at least pacify, if not please his wife.
He had received word that the renovations on the cottage Diane was supposed to occupy before she left had been completed. If all went well, the Bean Queen would be enjoying a night of luxury in her own private royal cottage…far away form his bed chambers and his wife's suspicious thoughts.
As he made his way to the celebration the King hoped that this would help Catherine to further trust in him and his intentions towards her.
He would participate in the celebrations as it was in reality a celebration of the servants, and he knew that they all looked forward to it. That didn't mean that he had to risk what he had only recently reacquired with his wife. Catherine would not be made a fool, and he had no intention of making her one.
Mid way through cutting and distributing the cake, the bean was found and the celebration's queen was hailed before alighting onto the raised chaise which had been set aside to carry her back to the true Queen's rooms. Catherine followed her out, ushered along by the crowds of servants cheering on their royalized representative.
Henry had wanted to cue his wife into his plans for the evening and so he trotted over to her and grasped her elbow as she followed the processional to her rooms. Unfortunately, the crowds were cheering too loudly and she couldn't hear a word he was saying. By the time they had gotten back to her room, the noise had died down but Catherine removed her arm from his and made her way swiftly to the doors of her room and left him no chance.
Apparently having some idea of what he might be trying to say, Catherine paused at her doors, turned back to him for a moment, and addressed him briefly before striding through and closing the doors behind her.
Her message came through clearly in just two simple words…"show me."
-/-/-/-/-
At the banquet the the King and Queen were as gracious as ever. He played his part at the Bean Queen's side, and she took her temporary displacement gracefully mingling among the guests and enjoying her momentary invisibility.
She couldn't help but glance his way every now and again. His interactions with her replacement seemed honorable enough, as he would be with any of the Noble's wives.
Near the end of the evening Henry called over Charles and little Henry, and asked them to escort the Bean Queen onto the dance floor for a final turn before they were to retire for the evening. Henry had specifically invited them to the celebration, much to Catherine's chagrin, as they were integral to his plans to win over his wife.
She did not like the example this showed to the children and intended to speak with him about it later.
He, meanwhile asked to speak with her and escorted her just outside of the hall where he paused silently, awaiting the trio which were to appear shortly.
Uncertain of his plans and becoming more anxious by the moment, Catherine turned to try and determine Henry's motives to solve the mystery of his unusual behavior. Instead of answering he leaned down to gently kiss her cheek and made a simple request, "trust me."
It didn't take long for their two children to exit the ballroom with the Bean Queen in tow. Henry had instructed them to bring her to this very spot as soon as their dance was completed.
Curious, Catherine quirked her eyebrow and plastered on a smile as Henry left her and approached the imposter. Praying that he wouldn't make a fool of her in front of their boys she simply stood there stiffly, already preparing to build up her walls and leave the evening behind with only the slightest twinge of regret.
Henry called the boys over and thanked them for their service, he then waved over their nannies and dismissed them after he and Catherine had said their good nights.
Moving over to her counterpart, Henry grasped Bean Queen's hand once he was within arms reach and kissed it gallantly asking how she had enjoyed the festivities, and if her day had been everything she could have wanted. She of course answered in the affirmative and fluttered her lashes at him, apparently having heard the rumors about how this day often ended for girls like her. But once again Henry was full of surprises, and to Catherine's shock he informed them both of the plans that had been made for the rest of her evening…plans that didn't include the King or his bedchambers.
Smiling graciously, the Bean Queen waked over to Catherine and curtsied, removing the crown from her own head, and returning it to the rightful owner.
Catherine took the crown from her and bid her goodnight, her shock expertly hidden from view, at least until the girl had left to be escorted to her evening accommodations.
Henry walked over to his Queen, amused to find her staring at the returned crown as if it was a mirage. He gently took it from her hands and returned it to its rightful place on her head, tipping her chin up and asking, "Would my Queen care to accompany me for one last dance?"
Music could be heard floating softly into the hallway where they were standing and Catherine wordlessly nodded her head, allowing him to grasp her hands to lead her in the dance.
She was somewhat afraid that she was dreaming and if she spoke she would wake to find herself alone. Catherine allowed him to lead her through the dance still trying to wrap her brain around the idea that he had chosen her. He had the perfect opportunity to revisit his wandering ways, but he had chosen her.
Interrupting her thoughts Henry called to her and she found his eyes, still a bit lost and grateful that he was being so patient with her.
The song came to a close, and Henry drew her from her reverie, "Catherine, if you would accompany me I have set out something special planned for just the two of us. It's nothing extravagant, but I did want to have some time alone with you to thank you for all the work you had put into today's festivities, even as it meant that you were to be dethroned in the process."
Her usual eloquence having left her she simply replied, "Thank you Henry."
Taking this as acquiescence, he offered his arm and led her to one of the sitting rooms in a wing of the Castle that was infrequently used. There he had prepared a small indoor picnic hidden behind an arc of chairs and couches so that if you didn't know it was there you couldn't have found it without a thorough search. He brought them around the edge of the arc near a set of glass doors that led onto a open patio with a clear view of Catherine's favorite gardens. He had ordered cushions and blankets to be thrown about, so that they could comfortably lounge on the floor for as long as they'd like.
After giving her a moment to take in his surprise he offered her a seat and a fur as the spot was a bit drafty, then set about preparing some food and wine for them.
Catherine accepted the wine but continued to stare out the window. A light snow had begin to fall and it made for a very romantic backdrop. Worried that she was ruining this moment that he had clearly put quite a bit of effort into she turned to him and opened her mouth to speak, but was cut short by a finger to her lips.
"I know that this has been a long day…and an even longer several years for you. I also know that there is little I can say to change your mind or coerce you into trusting me. So if you will permit, I would love to just sit here and enjoy the moment with you."
Nodding her acceptance she watched him warily for a moment as he moved behind her and sat with his legs on either side of hers. Leaning back on a conveniently placed chair he grasped lightly her shoulder and tugged her back so that she was resting on his chest as his arms wrapped around her waist.
She placed her wine to the side so that she she could relax more fully, eventually sighing and closing her eyes as well. She had allowed her head to rest on his chest, to let the peace of the night wash over her. For once in a long long while she truly felt content. This was certainly a surprise, and she had to admit that she was suitably impressed by his thoughtful gesture. In fact she had relaxed so much that she eventually nodded off against his chest.
Henry stared at his wife, taking in every feature he had missed over the years. She was still as beautiful as when they met, but there were new features that he had never taken the time to notice before…the hint of wrinkles that had appeared with the advent of her years of wisdom, the tinge of pink in her cheeks after an evening of enjoying the many offerings of wine, her accentuated curves from carrying eight children, the rise and fall of her chest now in synchrony with his own.
After calling her name a few times to determine how far into sleep she had fallen, he slowly extradited himself from behind her and lifted her into his arms.
As much as he would have loved to just lay there with her all night, he knew that come morning she would be most unappreciative of having slept on the hard cold floor.
Sighing as he thought of how the night had gone, he hoped that her trust in him was growing. He had started running out of new ideas to impress her, and he was worried that she would tire of him before he had the chance to truly win her back.
Entering her room he took her straight to her bed and laid her down.
When her ladies realized who was entering the room, they made sure to turn down the covers ahead of him so that he would be unimpeded. They then worked slowly to gently remove her restrictive garments so she could sleep more comfortably. Knowing that she would not appreciate him staying and staring he turned to leave as quietly as he came, trusting her ladies to take good care of her, all the while hoping that one day he would be allowed to do so in full confidence and with full permission.