After the longest wait of life, I finally have a new chapter for you all! Please leave me a review when you're done reading to let me know what you think! I'll be introducing two new female characters within the next couple of chapters (because there need to be more females in this world...there are not enough of them) and I'm really excited to see what you guys think of them! Comments are loved! Thank you for your patience!

Chapter V

"Do you think it will be alright?" Katherine asked nervously, biting down on her lower lip. "I have never written such a letter before."

Anne smiled softly as she lifted her eyes from her needlework, sensing the uncertainly in Katherine's tone. "I believe it sounds exactly like you, which is how it should be."

"But I-"

"My dear," Anne cut her off gently, leaning forward to place one hand on her arm. "Philippe asked for you to write the letter, not his council nor his ambassadors nor even me. By now the English will probably know who you are if their spies did their job well. It does not need to be perfect."

Kate sighed softly. The two of them had been privately closeted in Anne's rooms for several hours now, seated before the roaring fire in the hearth as the daytime hours gave way into the evening. Kate had long since lost track of the number of times she had written and rewritten this letter that was to be sent off to the Duke of Buckingham, but she had sought Anne's advice in making sure that the words were not put together in an amateur fashion. Though she was fortunate enough to know how to read and write thanks to the tutelage of her father, she had never before written anything of such significance. It wasn't as if she were simply writing her heartfelt letter to Philippe again, or even a note to her father to explain her absence. This was something far more important.

The Duke of Buckingham came from a noble English family, with an educated mind that eclipsed her own without even trying. He would likely be fluent in a vast number of languages, a skilled dancer, potentially even if a poet depending on his disposition. And yet here was Katherine, the woman who was seen as the adopted daughter of a priest. Precious few knew of the illegitimate royal blood that ran through her veins and she hoped to keep it that way for a very long time. She had no title, no lands nor even a desire to remain at court for too long a time. It was a place filled with finery that was above her upbringing and people who couldn't be trusted because they only operated for their own selfish means.

So what business did a girl like her have in writing to someone as powerful as the Duke of Buckingham? The council was right, she thought. He would be insulted that such a lowly person was permitted to write to him on behalf of the King of France. But how on Earth was Kate supposed to tell people this without insulting the King? Or anyone else for that matter?

She'd already angered most of the older faction of the Privy Council by existing…

"I just want to make sure I don't ruin his chances at peace," she admitted softly, dropping her eyes to the piece of paper in her hand. "He isn't safe yet. And a war with England is the last thing he needs right now when he's being pressed to consider other matters."

Such as his marriage, she thought a little bitterly. It was no secret that his advisors and the Privy Council wanted Philippe to choose a foreign bride and secure an alliance that would make England think twice about invading their shores. A Spanish bride would certainly be preferable given the vast armies that would come with her. But any Catholic lady of nobility would certainly do in the eyes of France. It was imperative that he do this quickly though so that he might provide an heir to the throne. They needed the security of knowing that there was a Dauphin in the cradle who would one day succeed his father and continue to oversee the prosperity of the country.

Despite what he might personally want, he was going to have to put the needs of his country above the desires of his heart. She knew that. She was slowly attempting to put herself in a position where she might one day be able to accept that and smile at his wedding as he exchanged vows with his bride. But Philippe was making that difficult when he was continually dropping small hints of what he wanted when she was around. And as much as Katherine loved him she knew that she couldn't allow herself to do the one thing that would make them both eternally happy. It just wasn't possible though. Not when she was a commoner of questionable blood lines, and certainly not when it was possible for someone to discover that she was the illegitimate daughter of Anne's deceased husband, the previous King Louis. To those who didn't know of Anne's infidelity with D'Artagnan, of which there were precious few, such a union would be seen as sinful and incestuous.

No, no matter how much Philippe might want it, he would have to be denied.

Anne gave her arm a gentle squeeze, bringing Kate's attentions back to the Dowager Queen. "You worry far too much," she murmured gently to the girl. "You are young! You should be worrying about things of greater importance to you, not to a country."

"You realize that this is impossible now that Philippe has placed me on the Privy Council?" Katherine asked her, trying to offer a small smile with the hint of teasing in her tone.

The two women laughed lightly, Anne nodding her head in agreement. Though he had caught them all off guard with his announcement at the ball, the Dowager Queen certainly couldn't deny the fact that the new responsibility would give the girl much more reason to worry about things. And more of a right to worry. It was no longer just her father and uncles that she would be concerned with, but with the overall care of the people of France as well. They had yet to learn how the common people would respond to her elevation within the court system, but Anne could only hope that it would be welcomed far more than any of the tyranny that Louis had previously inflicted upon them.

Both heads turned when they heard someone knocking gently for entrance to Anne's chambers, noting immediately that it wasn't the main doors from which the sound emitted. Katherine rose swiftly to her feet as the secret entrance began to open, her body prepared to alert the guards outside if the intruder proved to be an unwelcome sight. But as his dark head appeared and the fabric of his uniform became clear, the two women relaxed in unison. D'Artagnan moved quickly to close the door behind him and started across the room toward them, his body void of any urgency that might have set them on edge once more. The soft smile that he bestowed on both women confirmed that all was well, and Katherine found that the tension in her shoulders was slowly beginning to fade under her uncle's gentle gaze.

"It is unkind to frighten us like that," she told him softly, a playful look gleaming in her blue eyes.

"I apologize, ma petite," he told her with a small chuckle as his pet name for her rolled off of his tongue. "You know I didn't mean it."

The brunette nodded slowly. "I do."

D'Artagnan folded his arms behind his back and smiled at Katherine. "My dear, I wish to speak to the Queen of a more private matter. Perhaps you could check on your father?"

There was no mistaking the way he asked her that. Clearly she was being dismissed as gently as possible from the Queen's side so that the two of them could share a moment between them. Though Katherine was still a maid she was not innocent of knowing the things that happened between a man and a woman in private, and so she found herself standing almost awkwardly between the two bodies now. But she had no power to deny them either, and so she nodded to D'Artagnan with a look of understanding before she turned to curtsey to Anne. Her curtsey only made it halfway down however before the older woman rose to her feet and reached out to grasp her arms, bringing the bright blue eyes back upward with slight confusion.

"There is no need for that when we are alone," she told the girl softly, giving her arms a little bit of a squeeze to emphasize her point. "Here, I am not a Queen, but your friend."

The confusion fell away from her face and a small smile instead took over as Katherine looked upward at the regal woman, nodding slightly to show her understanding. Satisfied with this, Anne released her from her grasp and left Kate free to wander over toward D'Artagnan. With her head bowed she attempted once more to drop herself into a small curtsey before him, but he too seemed to have caught on to the way that she planned to greet him. Instead the older man lifted a hand to catch her cheek and leaned forward, pressing his lips firmly against her forehead. Despite herself, Katherine found that her smile had widened a little at his actions.

"Just be careful," she murmured to him, slipping her arms around his neck for a quick hug. "There are eyes everywhere, uncle. And they are not all friendly."

She gave him no opportunity to respond before she headed for the main doors of the chamber, slipping through them with an ease that few people seemed to possess now. Her departure would serve to tell those who lingered outside of the Queen's Chambers that she was now alone inside. Katherine's voice carried through the heavy wooden doors as she instructed the waiting servants that Her Majesty wished to be left alone for the remainder of the evening and was not to be disturbed by anyone. At that, D'Artagnan couldn't help but press his lips together to keep from laughing. The child was certainly perceptive beyond her years, he knew that well enough. But he didn't doubt that if fortune had favoured her differently, she might have made an excellent ruler herself.

He turned his dark head back to face Anne, his arms once more folding behind his back as he straightened his spine. "I have doubled the guard around the palace again for the time being, at least until we are sure that there is no threat from the English spies."

"Is that necessary?" she asked with a raised brow at how he continued to address her so formally now that they were alone. "Surely Philippe is safe with you and the others watching over him."

"I will not take that chance," the captain told her firmly. "Not when the world still believes that it is Louis who sits on the throne of France."

D'Artagnan regretted his choice of words almost as soon as he had said them, watching as a pained look created a shadow over Anne's beautiful features for a moment before she turned her head away and stared into the fireplace instead. It was thoughtless of him to speak so lightly of their other son when he was only newly buried on that hillside, especially when he knew full well that Anne made a daily pilgrimage out there to visit with him. They had been unable to write his name upon the stone that had been left to mark the grave for fear of what might happen if someone else were to see it, but they both knew who lay beneath it. They were reminded daily of him when they saw Philippe. And though he knew that they both tried their hardest to put their sorrow behind them, it was a task that was still going to take time.

The captain quickly moved to make his way across the room, his arms opening so that he could take Anne into them and hold her tightly against his chest. "Forgive me, my love," he begged her softly, burying his face in the dark curls of her hair.

But Anne quickly shook her head, pressing her face against his chest as her fingers gripped at the material of his tunic, eyes tightly closed. "Please, not you too," she whispered. "Katherine has already apologized for it. She feels that she is responsible…that his loss is solely her fault." She sighed heavily, continuing to pull D'Artagnan as close as her smaller body would allow. "She does not understand that we lost him long ago."

He remembered all too well how they had lost him early on in his reign, perhaps as early as the moment when the dying King had revealed the existence of his twin brother to him. Louis had always been an ambitious person, but his paranoia of those around him had him trusting few people and always skeptical of their intentions. But he hadn't been a fool, and he had seen the benefit of having Katherine in his keep after they had tried to depose him. It killed D'Artagnan inside to know that his son had treated his niece with such cruelty at a time when she had been extremely vulnerable. Her illness had prevented her from fighting back the way she had that night at the Bastille when the entire ordeal had truly begun for them. But Anne was right. They had lost Louis a long time before his death.

"We will need to speak to Philippe about the way he treats her as well," Anne noted softly, lifting her dark head to look upward at her lover. "I know that he cares for her, D'Artagnan but he cannot be careless. Appointing her to the council like that was foolish with men like LaMarque attempting to control him like that. He cannot be blinded by his love for her."

"I'm afraid he may already be," grumbled the captain of the musketeers.

Anne shook her head firmly. "He must be careful. They will not end up as we did, meeting in secret. But I fear that they may end up with broken hearts and be forced to love one another from afar. And if he continues the way that he is then he risks her reputation. People are already talking…"

He had heard the rumours, many of which were entirely unflattering…all of which were untrue. He had been there in the room when Porthos had pulled Katherine from her death and watched as she flew across the room to stand in Philippe's embrace. He had witnessed the way that his son clung to her with terror in his eyes at the prospect of losing her. The way he had kissed her would have been enough to banish any doubt he might have had in his mind.

He knew that they were not lovers, as the rumours mostly claimed they were. Philippe was still too nervous around her to do much more than attempt to hold onto her when they were alone and away from the prying eyes of the court. And Katherine was far too honourable a woman to allow herself to succumb to her desires like that. As much as she might perhaps have wanted to at times, he could trust her judgement. If not for herself, than for the honour of her father. There was nothing on this earth that could prompt Katherine to bring shame to Aramis after all he had done to raise her from the moment he had discovered her on the front step of the monastery.

"They are going to talk, Anne. That is something that they will never cease to do." D'Artagnan lifted his head a little then, his blue eyes looking down at her for a moment with a soft frown. "I will discuss this with Philippe, but right now I am not concerned with the children. I am concerned about you…and the toll that this is taking on you."

The Dowager Queen began to pull away from his arms, her eyes focused on the floor so that she didn't have to face him directly. "It is not always easy," she admitted gently. "It is not my place to stand at his side and argue anymore. If I were to do that now then people would question him more than they already do. But seeing the children together helps to make it a little easier. I try to maintain some hope for them…as little as that hope might be."

D'Artagnan watched with concern in his eyes as Anne moved back to sit in the chair that she had previously occupied when Kate was in her company, clasping her hands firmly in her lap before she turned to stare into the hearth. "Part of me wishes to retire from court life and move to the country. You could retire from leading the musketeers and we could go together with the few people that we have ever trusted with our secret."

The captain turned slowly to face her, lowering his body to the floor at an almost painful pace until he was able to kneel at her side. The motion had become much more difficult since recovering from his wound, but D'Artagnan was loathe to let anyone see that he was no longer a young man.

"Is that what you wish?" he asked her quietly. One of his hands slowly moved to lay on top of the two that rested in her lap. "Anne, if that is what you desire then you only need tell me and we could go as soon as tomorrow."

Her head turned sharply to look at him, almost surprised by the earnest tone that his voice had now taken. And for a moment it looked almost as if she were going to agree with him, ready to be whisked away like the young bride she had been when D'Artagnan had first caught her eye. And then the look began to fade away and a sadness crept into her features to replace the excited glimmer in her eye. Again she shook her head, dark locks swaying softly around her face.

"I cannot leave them." Her hands shifted, taking hold of his fingers. "As much as my heart might desire for us to go and be together…with the threat from England I could not bear to leave them now. They need us, my love. If we abandon them now then we leave them in the care of people who would just as easily let them fall as see them rise."

It was far too dangerous, she thought. Philippe was still new to his position as King, still too fresh to the idea of having to endure those meetings with the Privy Council as they argued over what course should be taken for the betterment of the country. And now that Katherine had been thrown into the mix so suddenly Anne couldn't help but feel that there was even more danger looming on the horizon for her. She was a woman in a world that was dominated by men. She had risen far above the ordinary responsibilities that one would associate with her sex and become a threat to those who thought they would otherwise dominate her. That put her in a precarious position…and if she continued to openly oppose men like LaMarque then that wasn't likely to change in the near future.

And D'Artagnan nodded quietly in agreement. As much as his own heart longed for a time when they could be together as more than Queen and musketeer, his heart knew that she was right. There was too much to lose if they were not careful, and already he had felt the terror in his heart when he had thought he would lose both Philippe and Katherine…

It was not a feeling that he was anxious to experience again.

"Very well," he acknowledged quietly. "But I beg of you…please do not sacrifice your own health and happiness for too much longer. I can see it wearing on you, and it kills my heart to knowing that you are trying to suffer in silence."

Anne offered him a gentle smile, the very one that she often used to put Katherine at ease. "My silence has endured since the day I was married. I can endure a little longer."

The answer was not entirely satisfying to D'Artagnan, but he knew better than to try and comment further. Anne would not rise to his words, but rather continue to attempt to put his mind at ease. It was in her nature. Even when sitting at the side of the old King she had always done her best to make other people comfortable regardless of their station. It was one of the things that he loved about her.

And so the captain swallowed his fears and slowly pushed himself to his feet once more, moving to take the seat that Katherine had previously occupied. But his hand remained firmly held in Anne's grasp. For the next several hours they didn't speak, but rather basked in the warm comfort of the fireplace.

And each other.