This is Prompt No. 43-Never

Mitchie's hands were sweating, and her mind was whirling as she followed Maria down the many hallways that lead to the court. She studied the back of Maria's head, wondering why the younger girl was so standoffish today. She had always been bubbly and happy, even overly so, but now she was anything but.

"Maria," she began.

"Yes?" she asked, trying to conceal the sharpness in her voice.

"Is something wrong?" Mitchie asked. "Are you upset?"

Perhaps it was her concerned voice, or perhaps it was the fact that she was pointing out Maria's shortness, but whatever it was, Maria turned and sighed. "I'm sorry," she told Mitchie. Mitchie guessed that she was apologizing for her peevishness, but the way she said it sounded odd, as though she was apologizing for something else.

"It's fine," Mitchie said, as much to Maria as to herself.

"I'm very busy," Maria said as an excuse, "and I'm rather stressed."

Mitchie smiled. "I'm sorry I asked."

At this, Maria's face fell, and a troubled look came over her face. "I'm sorry too," she said, whirling around and continuing to walk down the hall before Mitchie could ask her to expound on her statement.

Mitchie followed obediently, completely lost without Maria, and refrained from asking any more questions. She had a feeling that she didn't want to. Instead, she tried to focus on what she would say when she arrived before the queen. As she went over her story in her head, it began to sound hollow to her, full of mistakes and holes, even though she knew that everything was perfect and that every angle had been covered. "Stop it!" she ordered herself silently. "You can do this!"

"Here we are," Maria said flatly, as though she regretted the arrival.

I can't do this," Mitchie panicked, but then pulled herself together and smiled lightly. "We'd best not keep Her Majesty waiting," she said.

The guards stepped aside, and Mitchie and Maria were let through the doors leading to the court. Maria led the way through the large crowds again, and Mitchie couldn't help but shudder, gripping her skirt in her hands out of fear as she heard the doors clang shut behind her. Her eyes drifted to the floor, disregarding Maria's advice of keeping her chin up and her eyes focused on the queen. Somehow, she couldn't look up at all those openly-curious faces right now.

This walk towards the queen seemed to take much longer than the first one had, and Mitchie was just beginning to think that she would never make it up to the front when Maria suddenly stepped to the side, and Queen Victoria was right in front of her. As usual, the queen was dressed in a dark silk dress, and the way she drummed her fingers on the arm of her throne disturbed Mitchie.

"You're finally here," the queen said, sniffing slightly with annoyance.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," Maria said, her voice sounding much like a squeak. "I had a hard time finding her."

The queen sniffed again and waved her hand dismissively in Maria's direction, indicating that she wanted silence from everyone. She turned back towards Mitchie, and her gaze seemed to pierce through her once more. It reminded Mitchie of the gazes she usually received during dinner from Victoria.

"Why did you come to court?" she asked, and Mitchie was surprised at her directness. In society, the spoken word must always have a double meaning. It must be confusing and cryptic so that it would not offend the receiver. It was never that direct.

"I came as a diplomat for the United States," Mitchie told her, surprising herself with the easiness with which she answered the question.

"Why?"

The bluntness once again startled Mitchie, but she answered, outwardly unruffled, "The States believed that I was the most qualified person." "Not a lie," she reminded herself. "Caitlyn couldn't come."

Queen Victoria sniffed again, a common gesture it seemed, and sat back in her throne. "Why would the United States send a woman as their diplomat?" she asked.

Mitchie's mouth fell open in shock at the blunt offense, but she recovered enough to say, "Like I said, Your Majesty, the States believe that I am the most qualified person."

"Why?"

Mitchie smiled. This question was easy to answer. "Your Majesty, you are a woman, and so am I. The States believe that I can relate better than a young man. Don't you?"

A couple of titters were heard around the room, and Queen Victoria glanced sharply at the perpetrators. "We are not amused," she sniffed.

Mitchie bit her lip as the queen stared at her coldly and refused to let herself shift from one foot to the other like she wished to do. "It wasn't supposed to be funny," she said carefully.

"Oh," said Queen Victoria dully. Her eyes narrowed again and she asked, "What did the States want?"

"The States would like to know if they have your allegiance," Mitchie told her.

Queen Victoria snorted. "As you must know," she said slowly, "the States are at war with themselves. How am I supposed to show allegiance to two different causes?"

Mitchie smiled slightly. "A very good question," she said with a nod. "The States are not coming to you as divided nations, but as one. They would like to know if they have Europe's protection."

"Against themselves?" Queen Victoria asked with a smirk, causing some of the courtiers to laugh.

"Against our enemies," Mitchie pressed. How could she word exactly what she wanted to know?

"What makes you think that I'd want to help the United States?" Queen Victoria asked. "You've made quite a mess of your country."

Mitchie nodded. "I agree with you," she said softly. She smiled up at the queen. "Well, which side would you support?"

"Which side of what?" the queen asked.

"Should the United States break and split off, which side would your allegiance cover?" Mitchie asked, realizing that this would be the easiest way to get the information she needed for the UUS. As soon as she asked, Victoria's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Why does that matter?" the queen asked.

Mitchie panicked for a moment, scrambling for an answer, but then responded evenly, "The States would like to know."

The queen regarded her for a moment and then she leaned forward slightly so that she could look at Mitchie almost levelly. "I would never support the Union," she hissed, and Mitchie took an involuntary step back. "I want the States divided." She grinned, but the gesture was malicious and hideous. "Easier to break apart that way," she told Mitchie. "I would never, ever, support a president that is stupid enough to think that he can run a country with that many plantations without slaves." She glared at Mitchie and hissed her final blow. "And I would never let a spy like you sway my opinion. Never!"

Mitchie's startled gasp could be heard throughout the whole court.

A/N: Uh oh! Did you see that coming? Come on guys, please review. I know you're reading it, so review it! :D Hope you liked it, and a shoutout goes out to mymakeupsmearedeyes for the "We are not amused," quote. Hope you laughed at that! LOL!