A/N: Thanks again, everyone, for all the lovely reviews!
Chapter 8
Queen Marie stared out the window, but she didn't really see anything. Her brow was furrowed in thought and her mind raced as she played with the sleeve of her dress.
Thoughts and ideas – incredulous and ridiculous ideas – had been plaguing her all day and refused to banish from her mind.
She couldn't stop thinking about Rapunzel Fitzherbert. Couldn't stop seeing her face in her mind: her wide, smiling green eyes and her short pixie hair, looking like someone had taken a pair of scissors to it and cut blindly.
Couldn't get rid of the incredible coincidences between Anna Maria and Rapunzel. The age was right…and the birthday too…
The Queen spun around from the window, angry with herself. They were ridiculous notions, ones that she could not afford to entertain. They were just that: coincidences. And yet…
She slowly turned back to the window and rested her forehead against the cool glass. She heaved a weary sigh. She wanted to believe, that was the truth of it. Her heart was crying inside; it hadn't stopped in nineteen years. And just the thought of her baby being alive and well, just within her reach –
She reached a hand out and let it rest against the glass, as if she was reaching out for her baby. "If only it were that simple," she whispered.
The doors being opened behind her made her straighten up and turn to face her husband. He was frowning and approached her cautiously. "Marie, dear, I heard you hired one of the women from the town to paint a portrait of you?" he questioned, not bothering to beat around the bush.
"I did," she responded. "She was at the market and I saw her paintings. They are delightful, Rupert, and she needed the money. Come, look," she said and led him to the corner of the room, where Rapunzel had left her easel and paints and the very beginnings of a painting. "We are only just started, she's coming back tomorrow morning, but look darling." The Queen smiled up at the king. "Isn't it wonderful?"
King Rupert nodded slowly. "I agree, she is talented." He turned and touched his wife's shoulders. "But dear, we have royal painters that are skilled and highly recommended –" he was cut off from finishing his sentence by his wife's frown.
She stepped back out of his reach, and his hands fell to his sides. "Yes, I know, Rupert. But I want her to paint this portrait," she said adamantly.
The King raised his hands defensively. "Alright, alright. I understand. Do whatever you want, darling." He knew when to admit defeat. Marie could be quite stubborn when she wanted to be and he didn't dare go against her.
Smiling, Queen Marie stepped forward, and on tiptoe, she kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Rupert. Really, you should meet Rapunzel. She's a wonderful girl. You would like her." She didn't voice her secret intentions however: that her goal was to see whether anything familiar struck her husband about Rapunzel. Despite trying to convince herself otherwise, she still found herself lingering on the possibility that Rapunzel was Anna Maria. To discover the truth, she wanted the girl around as much as possible and she wanted her husband to be able to see it too.
The King sighed heavily, his eyes tired as he studied his wife. "Of course," he finally said. "I would love to meet her."