Part 6

Two months later, Christopher presented his wife with a gift, a handsome locket, hanging from several strands of golden thread, tightly braided together. "We will have a portrait of our child placed in it," he told her.

Claudette froze, staring at the locket in her hands. Or more accurately, at the chain that the locket was dangling from.

"Do you like it?" Chris asked hopefully.

"It's beautiful," she replied.

"I'm glad you like it," he smiled, "I saved some of your gold to have it made."

"I see that…" she said softly.

"Is something wrong?" Chris looked worried, "You've gone pale." He touched her forehead and cheeks with the back of his hand. "Is it the baby?"

"It… it might be…" she set a hand on her stomach, sitting down.

"Shall I fetch the doctor?"

"It might be best," Claudette murmured.

"I will hurry," Chris said, bringing her a footstool and a blanket, "You just rest, my love." Kissing her lightly, he hurried off to fetch the doctor.

Claudette looked distraught. How could she have forgotten about the magic man? How could she have forgotten about the deal she had made with him. She rubbed her stomach, almost protectively. She couldn't give up her child. And Chris would never forgive her if she told him the truth. She fingered the locket that Chris had just given her. It was precious. Not just valuable, but any gift from her husband would be precious to her. Maybe that would be enough.

"I wish…"

"You don't have any straw."

Claudette jumped, and got to her feet quickly. (Which turned out to be a mistake, she had to sit back down again.)

The strange man, looking as he ever did, walked in front of her. "You are a queen now," he told her, "What could you possibly need to wish for?"

"To talk to you," she answered.

He tilted his head, "that's an odd thing to wish for."

"I was hoping that you would accept this. It's a gift from my husband." She handed him the locket.

He looked it over. "Why would I want something back that I have made already?"

"It's payment," she replied softly.

"For what?"

"For the last room of straw. I didn't have anything for you, remember?"

"I believe that we already settled on a payment," he told her carelessly.

"I know," she said, "But I felt bad. Who knows when I'll have a child, if I even do. My mother had a difficult time conceiving, and these things tend to run in families-"

He started laughing.

"What's so funny?" she demanded indignantly.

"When you were poor and married to someone you did not love, you were more than willing to give up a child," he cackled, "but now that you are a queen, living in comfort with your darling king, now you don't want to give it up."

"That's not true!" she cried out.

He extended a forefinger scoldingly. "You can't fool me, dearie. That child you are carrying is my rightful payment."

"No!" she cried out, "He's not yours! He never was!"

"And just what did you think you were promising, last year?" he smiled, setting his hands on the arms of her chair and leaning over her.

"Don't!" she exclaimed, alarmed, "Don't come any nearer! I'll scream! And then Chris and his guards will come running and you will be thrown in the dungeons to rot!"

He laughed again, but he did back off. "Good. Call him. We'll see what he thinks about all of this."

"Thinks?" she repeated uncertainly.

"Or did you tell him the truth about the gold?"

That made her blood run cold. She couldn't scream… She couldn't call for help. The man was right.

"Ah you didn't," he smiled, "Then I shall enlighten him."

"You wouldn't!"

"And why not?" he asked.

Claudette suddenly let out an ear piercing shriek, "Help! Guards!"

The magic man cringed and took another step back. "That was right in my ear, dearie," he complained, "Terribly rude."

Bootsteps came running at double-time in response to her scream. The door flew open and Baelfire entered. "Claudette? What's wrong?"

"Baelfire, thank goodness!" she exclaimed. "He-" she turned to point, and then blinked, and looked around. "He was just here!"

Baelfire searched the room quickly, looking in the wardrobe, under the bed, behind the tapestries, and out the window. "There's no one here."

"But he was here! A strange man with dark curly hair, dressed in dark clothes," she looked to Baelfire with wide eyes, "He was here! I know it!"

"He's not here now," Baelfire said slowly.

"I am not mad Bae!" she exclaimed, I know what I saw!"

"I didn't say you were mad," Baelfire replied. "What happened?"

"He spoke to me," she said softly, tearfully, "He threatened me. Me and the baby. Oh Bae… what have I done?" Claudette burst into tears

Without any better ideas how to comfort her, Baelfire just gave her a hug, trying to soothe her.

The door opened "The doctor will-" Chris trailed off. "Baelfire? Claudette? What's wrong? What happened?"

"She screamed," Baelfire told Christopher, "Someone was in here. A stranger. A man, who was making threats against her… and your child."

He took Claudette into his arms. "search the grounds," he commanded, "He can't have gotten far."

"He's gone," she whispered, "You won't find him."

"We'll find him," Christopher assured her.

"No…" she pushed her husband away slightly, "I… I have to tell you…"

"Tell me what, my love?" he asked gently.

"I know him," she said softly, "Or… I know of him. He came… to remind me… of a debt I owe him."

"Debt?" he repeated, "Well, we can take care of that. What do you owe him?"

She burst into tears again. "You'll despise me!"

"I could never," Chris said firmly, "Just tell me."

It took Claudette quite awhile to work up the courage. "Our baby," she whispered.

The king was shocked. At first, he thought that he had misheard her. But she had spoken clearly, despite her tears. Then he couldn't believe that he'd heard what he thought he heard. What kind of monster would demand another's child? And surely Claudette must have made this arrangement years ago, when she was barely out of being a child herself. No one was going to take their child! He was King Christopher Rupert and he was not going to lose his first (or any, really) child!

While Christopher was contemplating this, Claudette, not hearing anything promising in her favor, let out a gigantic sob and pulled away from her husband, running out of the room in tears.

The King was stunned and had to sit down.

"Chris?" Baelfire spoke up cautiously.

"This can't be true…" Chris said. His eyes narrowed and he looked at Baelfire. "No one is taking my child! I don't care what he thinks he's entitled to. You must find him."

Baelfire crossed his fist over his chest and bowed. "We will."

*~*~*~*
Chris found Claudette outside in the gardens, sitting on the edge of an ornamental fish pond, dangling her fingers in the water. He sat down next to her without a word, putting his hands on her shoulders and rubbing them gently.

"You hate me," she murmured.

"I love you," he corrected.

"I'm as bad as my father," she whispered.

"Please, talk to me," he continued to rub her shoulders.

"I… I promised him our b-baby," she shuddered, "I… I didn't know…"

"Why would you need to do such a thing?" he asked.

Claudette took a deep breath. "So… so h-he would spin the room full of straw into gold."

Chris blinked in surprise.

"See?" she exclaimed, "You hate me!"

"I think I'm allowed to decide what I feel for myself, aren't I?" he asked calmly.

"I… I suppose..." she stared back down at the golden fish in the pond.

"And I don't hate you," he told her firmly, "Although… I am a little hurt." He continued to rub her shoulders, "Will you tell me the truth now?"

"It'll make me feel better," she admitted, "To know that you finally know the whole truth…"

She told him everything, about her father's drunken bragging, how too many people had heard it, how she hadn't known that she was expected to spin straw into gold until she was left in that room, how she had wished and the magic man had come. She had been afraid to tell Christopher after she had learned how nice the king was, and how happy he was with her. The first night, she had traded him her ring. The next year, the chain that Chris had given her. ("I'd sort of wondered where that had gone.") But the third night, she hadn't had anything, and so…

"He will not take our child," Christopher said firmly, "I won't let him."

Claudette started crying again, but it was different this time. She really didn't deserve someone like Christopher, but she knew that he would argue that point with her.

"You don't think I'm horrid?" she whispered.

"I do not," he assured her, "I love you."

Claudette smiled through her tears up at him.

"And we'll set this right," he told her, "We'll just have to give him something else. He can't really want a child."

"I even tried giving him this," she took the locket out of her pocket, "But he wouldn't take it."

"Odd," Christopher frowned slightly, "it's valuable."

"He sneered at it," she said, "He laughed at me because I was 'more than willing to give up a child with someone I didn't love' when the deal was made."

"I want to talk to him," Chris said with a nod.

Claudette blinked, "What?"

"I want to receive him in the throne room," the King decided, "I can be intimidating if I want to." He gave her a wink, "And we'll see what we can arrange."