Madianna- Glad you liked the last chapter so much! Henry is an ass, and I hate the way he treats his kids, especially Geoffrey...

YorkistGirl- Richard's here now!

"No, I didn't say that. I'm telling you, it's all fake! Alright, alright, listen. When I said not to do that, you don't go ahead and do it! Arrgh! I'm hanging up! No, I'm being serious! Bye!"

Richard sat down, breathing a large sigh of relief. God, his brothers were so infuriating! He'd just sat down to relax, when Clarence rang up from the bakers, saying that they were serving a traditional pudding called, 'Spotted Dick,' and it was not funny! He liked his name, but he hated the fact that it had rude meanings that everyone liked to blurt out all the time. He'd slammed down the phone, only to have his dad walk in and tell him off! Then Ned and Edmund had decided to ring in from work, pretending to be angry Indians who had been mis-sold PPI Insurance. Again, Richard had slammed down the phone, earning more yells from his dad from across the room.

Then Hal and Mercutio came round, dressed up in ladies clothes and layers of makeup splattered all over their faces, asking if this was the red-light district. Mercutio had stated that he had some 'unfinished business' that he had to finish, and Tybalt had left his frilly knickers here the other night from getting drunk. Richard had responded by slamming the door in their faces, earning fits of laughter from them, and more yells from his dad. Again! He'd had enough of these prank calls and prank visits, and whoever rang or knocked on the door was going to have fists to answer to.

He sat down.

Ring! Ring!

"Arrrghhhh!" Richard yelled. "Leave me alone!" He went up to the phone and picked it up. "Go away!" he yelled into the phone. "I don't care whether you need insurance, or want to dress up as a stripper, just get the hell off the line! I-"

"Hello, Richard. Is your father there?" came the smooth reply.

Richard stood still, and then he blushed red and face palmed. "O-oh! H-headmaster Warwick! I-I do apologise, I-"

"It's okay, Richard, by the tone of your voice, I presumed you've been hassled by the 'Devil Twins' and your brothers."

"Y-yes."

"I'd expect as such…" There was a deep sigh on the other end of the line. "Can I speak to your father now?"

"O-oh, yes, of course!" He turned and yelled: "Dad! Warwick's on the phone!"

The Duke of York came running in. He grabbed the phone and ran back out again. "Dad!" Richard yelled. "You're not allowed to run, remember? The doctor said so!"

No reply.

Richard sat down again. Maybe now that his dad had the phone, he could relax in peace.

Ding! Dong!

"Can you get that?" the Duke yelled from the kitchen.

Richard sighed, got up again, and headed towards the door. He really was losing it. Really. He had every right though to go and punch whoever was there. He really didn't want to be disturbed.

"Look!" he shouted. "Just go home! Leave me to rest in peace!"

He opened the door.

"I really can't-"

Anne stood there, terrified. It had started to rain, and her clothes were slowly going darker. Richard's eyes widened. "Anne…" he breathed. "What's wrong?"

Anne didn't say anything. She sniffed and said in a quiet voice: "Can I come in?"

Richard nodded. "Sure. Sure, you come right in," and he took her hand and led her into the house.

"Sit down," he offered, but Anne shook her head. "Can I speak to you in private?"

Richard smiled. "Sure. Come on upstairs."

Anne didn't need to be told twice.

"Cosy?" Richard asked, as Anne sat in his bed, looking down at her lap. She nodded, but didn't say anything.

Sitting down beside her, Richard felt nervous. He'd never really spoken to a girl in his room properly before. What if something went wrong?

His eyebrows rose as he saw her rest her hand on her stomach. She'd been doing that a lot lately. Especially at the dance.

His eyes widened when he remembered what had happened, and what she'd said:

"Please! No more, Edouard, no more!"

Had he hurt her? If he had…

His thoughts were interrupted when Anne suddenly let out a sob and hugged him tightly, burying her face in his chest.

Stunned, Richard slowly wrapped his arms round her, and held her close. He hated to see her hurt. Hated it…

When the sobs eased, Richard slowly started speaking.

"Whenever I get upset, I just think of happy memories. Do you do that?"

He felt a nod against his clothing.

"I often think about my first day at school, as that was where I met most of my friends. That was such a happy time. Do you remember?"

Another nod.

"I'm grateful for all of our friends. I don't think I could get through these hard times without them. Or without you, too."

Anne felt a blush paint her cheeks. Good thing Richard couldn't see.

"I'm glad I have my brothers, even though they're right asses sometimes."

Anne giggled, and Richard, surprised, looked down at her, grinning. "It's funny, isn't it?"

Anne nodded.

"I'm glad," he whispered.

The girl looked up at Richard's serious face, and frowned. He was always so serious…

"Why are you always frowning?" she asked, and he looked down at her.

"Frowning?" he said. "I'm not frowning."

Anne nodded. "Yes you are," she stated. "Why?"

Richard shrugged in response. "I guess I'm just sad."

"Why?"

"Because everyone's happy instead of you. What's wrong?"

Anne looked down at her lap again. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Then why did you come here?"

"I needed- I needed to be with one of my closest friends."

"That's me, right?"

"Of course!"

Richard grinned. "You're smiling again."

Anne blushed. "Honestly, Richard…"

"What? What did I do?"

Anne just grinned, and looked down at her lap again, shaking her head. "Just… No."

"Am I embarrassing you?"

"Just a little."

"Don't worry, it's only me here."

"I know."

She hugged him again. "And I wouldn't have it any other way…"

And Richard couldn't help but grin. God, he loved her so!