Disclaimer: I own Ever After.

JUST KIDDING. Honestly, why do you think this website is called fanfiction?

I DO NOT OWN EVER AFTER.

A/N: Really short chapter… I'm SORRY:P

Chapter 9

Danielle sat and gazed into the fog on the other side of the lake. She felt someone come up behind her.

"If that's you, Henry, go away." She said brusquely.

"It's not Henry." Rafe's voice came hesitantly. "Do you want me to go away too?"

Danielle closed her eyes. Did she want Rafe to go away?

"Please… just leave me alone."

"Okay. Just… be careful." The echo of Rafe's footsteps faded and died. She put her head in her hands.

"Danielle, please listen to me."

Unbidden, a tear slipped out from beneath her lashes.

"Henry, Henry, Henry… do I hate you?" She breathed. Danielle picked up a stone and skimmed it over the water's edge, desperately trying to get her thoughts in order. "No. I do not hate you." At least she'd managed to establish that one fact. She sat down and let the water lap at her feet and the hem of her dress.

"I think that you…" What did she think about Henry? "I think that you are arrogant, vain and selfish… but I know you are understanding, receptive and open. You are genuinely concerned for the welfare of your people."

The water was cool and inviting.

"Yes." She flicked the water and watched the drops spiral and fall. "Your people should love you. But where does that leave me?"

Carelessly, she eased her way into the water, so that she was sitting in the shallows. The water only reached her waist.

"As your subject, I think that you will be a good king. As myself, I think you will be a good king. But your crown aside…"

She lay back in the shallows; just keeping her head and neck above the water on the warm, warm sand.

"You, Henry, as a person… are impetuous, loving, caring… you gave me your heart, and you felt betrayed." Understanding Henry seemed so important to her – so she could work out what she thought.

"In your mind, I betrayed you."

"You madam, are just like the rest of them."

She stifled a sob.

"I loved you… and then…" Her tears mingled with the lake water. "Oh Henry… will there ever be a future?"

Danielle flicked the water again.

"You think you can just come back into my life and resume where we left off. Is that what I want? Can't I just live without you?"

She sat up, pondering her answer.

"I can exist… but I cannot live."

-------------------------------------------

Henry paced back and forth in a clearing between the trees.

"I was wrong. I know I was wrong. You know I was wrong." He paused. "Then why does it still hang between us?

"You are an enigma, you are a mystery. I am sorry. I really am sorry."

He leaned against a tree.

"Should I move on? Do I want to move on?"

Henry watched the leaves fall, drifting on the breeze.

"What can this mean for me? What can it mean for the rest of the kingdom? What will it mean?"

He stood up straight.

"I shall try once more – one last time to get a response from you… after that… I have gone… you have gone… and 'we' shall be no more."