King's Tears (part 3)
The Duchess of Montpensier had been running along the bushes before she suddenly appeared on the scene. She was red in face. Guiche often laughed at her, saying that she could never be a beauty because she was always getting from some place to another in a hurry, never seemed to be prepared for what would happen to her.
But Lorraine felt that she had arrived just in time. It was as if she was given to him as a gift. For a fifteen-year-old young man deeply in anger, nothing could be a better comfort than a chance to take revenge. He was once again lucky.
"Excuse me, did you see my sister Christine? We went out for a walk and I was delayed a little by the queen, when I turned around she just disappeared! She is always idling in the palace."
"I'm afraid not, your Highness."
The duchess nodded and would go away, but Lorraine stopped her.
"Your Highness, May I ask you if you are having a good time in the palace?"
She hesitated a little before saying "Yes of course, thank you for your kindness. Pardon me, I forgot you are…"
"Philippe de Lorraine, your Highness." He replied. A dangerous idea was forming inside his head.
Guiche's whole plan started with the Duchess of Montpensier. If someone destroy it before it could take place, what would the count do? Would he continue or would he give up?
"I heard that the king and the duke missed you very much." Started him with a smile, " But you have left the court for too long. You no longer recognize your enemies. Many who had been friends with the Duke of Orléan were now trying to persuade the cardinal otherwise."
Anne Marie Louise d'Orléan, the daughter of Gaston d'Orléan was not happy to hear this.
"I do not understand your meaning. Are you referring to someone in particular?"
"Please do not misunderstand me," Lorraine smiled most innocently, showing her his nice teeth. "I don't believe anyone will deliberately conflict with you, Madamesoiselle. But people as smart as you should understand that it is not always simple to forgive in just a few years."
"The forgiveness of the king is good enough for me." Declared the duchess.
"You are absolutely right." Said Lorraine, "But the cunning ones are all around the court. They sometimes use the innocents to get what they want."
"What exactly are you trying to tell me?" Asked the duchess coldly.
"Believe me that I have good intentions." Lorraine smiled again, "Perhaps, Mademoiselle Christine just went over that pool."
"But you just told me you haven't seen her."
"Did I? I don't remember." Replied Lorraine, "My mother used to say a walk before dinner is always good for soul. In this case why don't your Highness walk a little bit further today?"
The duchess of Montpensier could see something in the eyes of the blond boy.
"It is a dangerous place, the court." Said she, "One will require prudence to survive in it."
"I am constantly warned, your Highness." Bowed Lorraine.
She glanced at him before going over the pool.
A few minutes later, she came back, putting one hand on the chest, trying to calm herself down. The Duke of Anjou was following her and trying to stop her. Lorraine quickly hid behind a tree to avoid to be seen.
"Marie-Louise," The duke was calling his cousin, "I have no idea you are in the garden at this hour. Whatever you have seen, I can explain to you."
"You don't need to explain anything to me." Replied the Duchess of Montpensier, "I know you since you were a child."
The Duke of Anjou paused, not knowing how to reply this.
"Fortune is supposed to bring happiness. But you see, it is not always true. You can own the largest fortune in Europe but still unable to get what you want." Said the Duchess of Montpensier.
The Prince looked at her thoughtfully. She did not appear to be angry. On the contrary she was quite calm and gentle, as if she was talking to a little brother who had just been naughty. He quickly understood that nothing she saw had ever shocked her or changed her mind, she was rather relieved to be able to talk to him like this.
"You want to marry my brother since you were a little girl." said the Prince softly, "Not only once, I have heard you called him your little husband."
"That dream will never come true." smiled the duchess Montpensier, "The Fronde has destroyed it. My father and I did it. I should be content for what I have now. But my life of exile has taught me one thing: The biggest power given to me by my fortune is to say 'No' when I need to."
"If that is true, I do envy you." He smiled.
"So you won't marry me, my dear cousin."
"No, my little girl, I won't marry you." Replied Anne-Marie, "Doesn't mean that I don't love you." She looked at him kindly, the orange sunlight was bathing her hair."If there is anything I still miss within these palace walls, it will be the days when I went to balls with you, pretending to be two shepherdesses."
Now the duke was beaming at her, like a child.
"Will you tell your mother to rest her mind? I will never accept the proposal from the king of England because freedom is too important to me." Said the duchess of Montpensier, "In return, she should stop bothering me."
"I will make sure she get your message." The Prince kissed her hand.
So Anne Marie Louise d'Orléan went away just as quickly as she had arrived. Perhaps not as a beauty but as a free woman, the only one in court who could say no to her destiny. The smile on the face of the Duke of Anjou only diminished as she went completely out of sight.
"Come out." He turned to the tree where Lorraine was hiding, "I know you are there."
Embarrassed, Lorraine slowly come out from behind that tree.
"Why are you sneaking around and avoiding me?" The prince was obviously not happy, "And why are you still holding the letter you're supposed to give to my brother?"
"I…..I do..I mean, his…his Majesty asked me to give it to you, your Highness." Lorraine stammered out a reply.
"Does he remember me now?" asked the duke ironically, I thought he has no one else in mind except Marie Mancini."
"That is not true. His Majesty wishes to speak to you. He said you will know where to find him after seeing this." Lorraine handled the envelop with the tree tulip petals to the Prince.
It was certainly a surprise, but the duke took it.
"They are from the Tuileries garden," said he when he took out the petals, "The tricolor tulip are very rare in this season. My brother must be there."
The Tuileries garden was not far from the palace, but the royal family seldom came here during autumn. The Duke of Anjou went there on horse, taking Lorraine with him. They were only followed by two guards. They found the king's horse near the largest tulip patch. Lorraine still remember that horse, a white one with black hooves, the most beautiful wild horse from the king's stable.
"You shouldn't go further." Said Bontemps when he saw the them walking towards the king, "His majesty was biting his farewell."
The first valet did not lie. The king was holding a girl and the girl was crying hard with her face buried deeply in his chest, making his brownie red hair tangled.
The duke had to wait impatiently near the scene.
"What exactly does he wishes to tell me that cannot be told in the palace? Why do I have to come here?" He was supposed to talk to himself, but his voice was not that low," I don't have a whole day watching him cuddling."
"His Majesty expects that you understand him better in this way." said Alexander Bontemps gently.
"Did he really say so?"
Marie Mancini raised her eyes and looked one last time at her young king. Still full of tears, she picked up a lock of his hair and kissed it passionately.
"May I go to him now?" asked the Duke of Anjou when the girl finally turned her back.
"I see patience isn't a virtue you may boast," commented the king to the prince, "Don't you every have pity for your own brother?"
"I have no doubt you always have a way to call for all kinds of affections, but my pity will be the last thing you want." The duke freed himself from Bontemps and walked to the king, "Why do you want me here?"
"I want you to see what I have sacrificed for you." replied Louis, he continued to turn away from the duke, not willing to face him.
"Sacrifice for me?" his brother seemed to be amused by this joke, "You sacrifice only for your crown. I have nothing to do with this."
"You are wrong, brother." Replied Louis, "I don't fear to face anything including mother's anger and the threat of the crown, but there is one person I do not wish to be enemy with, and that person is you."
The prince was walking closer to the king, he suddenly stopped.
"I can't believe it." He was slightly trembling.
"Me neither." Said Louis with a low voice, "it is weak for a king to be threatened."
"I can't believe you are crying!" Said the duke, it seems that he could hear nothing the king was trying to tell him and he was trembling even harder than before.
"No, the protocol will never allow this. "Grumbled Louis, "Do not come closer!"
But the duke would not listen, he dashed to his brother and turned his face to him with two hands.
"Can this be true!?"He put a finger on one tiny little drop of tear, "My brother is crying."
"You warned me about this. To be at war with my own flesh and blood will only cause tears."
"It will be most hard for you to admit that I am right."
"Not harder than admitting I am weak." Said the king.
The Prince took out a silk handkerchief and put it gently around the corner of the King's eyes. Louis seemed to be quite annoyed.
"Your perfume smells terrible." Complained the king.
"There is no perfume." Explained the Prince softly, "It is the taste of tears, brother. You will get used to it. Tears are bitter. You are not weak, you just haven't get used to it. Is this the first time you realize that even a king may not get what he wanted? How strange it is? Look at me. I have been accepting that all my life…"
"I will not let this happen." The king suddenly annouced.
"Let what happen?" Asked his brother.
"You and I being enemy." Replied Louis.
"Oh that…"the Prince was taming the king's hair by hand, "You shouldn't be worrying about that from beginning."
"It is not anything you can control." Whispered the King seriously, "In the future when I do have power or even before that… any time, any person who can be less kind than our own mother will not give up finding opportunities. Because this is a never-ending war. It has started from the moment we were born."
The Prince was not paying attention to what the king said. The only thing important to him at that very moment was a lock of hair he was trying to put back behind his brother's ear.
Louis had wanted to explain something else, but he decided not to. Instead he seized the handkerchief from his brother.
"Give it back!" The prince was surprised.
"I call it into requisition in the name of France." Said the King.
"That is outrageous." Protested his brother.
"Is it?" Asked the king when he put the handkerchief into his pocket, "It is in the protocol that a king does not weep, which means no one can have a proof of king's tears."
"Bontemps, where is my horse?" The king turned away as if he already forgot his brother," Shall we have a race going back to the palace?" His steps were quick and light as his mood now. It seemed that he could even started to dance again.
The Duke of Anjou signed, turning back slowly to take his own horse and realized that Lorraine was still there waiting for him.
"I haven't finished with you yet." He stared at him.
"It was you who had followed me in Fontainebleau. You who had hid behind the thickets, you who had drawn attention of the duchess of Montpensier on purpose." Said the Prince fiercely with his eyes fixed upon Lorraine, "Do you really think I am completely ignorant to what you have done?"
Lorraine couldn't feel his limbs any more. His face were burning so hard that he wished he could dig himself a hole. But he was frozen there unable to react…until the prince decided to take one step forward and closed the air between them with his lips…
It was no longer the same feeling as he was seven years old. So hard to describe, it was like a single hot wave running inside his body, or a strong fragrance that took the shape of the duke of Anjou including the hair, the tongue, the nose that was slightly touching his own and both of the hands clenching to him nervously, including the three tulip petals that was till hidden somewhere in the clothes, and the mild wind filling the air of Tuileries garden.
Lorraine had to use all his energy to stay conscious, not to kiss back even there was something burning in his chest that made him almost died from his own desire.
"What is it?" Gasped the Prince with a whisper, " Don't you want me?"
Lorraine softly pushed him away, looked into the green eyes where he can see ripples on the lake.
"I am not a toy, your Highness." He could hear his voice, rough as a dull knife.
"What?" The green eyes slightly focused, "How can you say such a thing!"
"It was like this eight years ago, isn't it?" Said Lorraine, "Last time you kissed me because your bother was not drowned; today you kissed me because your brother would not be enemy with you. Do you deny it? "
The duke of Anjou stared him.
"I am not a toy, your Highness." Repeated Lorraine. And he turned away quickly to mounted his horse.
"His Majesty asked me what I want in return for serving him well." He told the duke who was still standing there stunned, "I begged him to let me go to Italy. My father is at the siege of Turin, he will need me there."
The duke of Anjou breathed heavily to this news.
"No, impossible. "Said the Prince, "You are only fifteen years old. You are still a child. My brother will never permit…"
"His Majesty already gave his consent." Said Lorrain. He kicked his horse hardly on its stomach.
"If I shall come back alive, your Highness, will you stop calling me a child?" He looked at the Prince. The sun was setting in the Tuileries garden but the last beam still dwelled. He felt as if he was blind in the dazzling sun light.
And then he started to run on horseback, stopping himself from looking behind. He could hear a few footsteps, just a few, and then everything went silent.