Disclaimer: I do not own Reign or any of the characters featured in this story.

Without further ado...enjoy.

It's amazing how one lie can change your life. For better or worse.

I mean, lies are told everyday. You lie to yourself, you lie to others. You just. Lie. Poems and songs are written about lies, movies and televisions shows are centered on them.

So when you take the time to truly think about it, lies impact so much of daily life. It shouldn't be surprising that telling one, no matter how simple, can change the course of history.

One simple lie changed so much for Francis and I. Or maybe it was more than that. Looking back there were a lot of lies told between us that changed so much.

But it all started with one-

"I'm fine."

Age 10

things were tense between Francis and I after my birthday. A week later found us barely talking.

When I woke up the morning after my party I was expecting to see Francis in his room or even in the kitchen. I thought he would apologize for the night before and I would do the same and everything would be better. But that's not what happened.

Francis wasn't in the room he slept in and he wasn't in the kitchen or in any room of the house.

When I asked Ginny if she had seen him, she told me my father brought him home already.

That was that.

No goodbye, no apology. Not even a note saying goodbye. Just nothing.

He texted me telling me that Bash would be coming by to drop off the gifts they didn't bring to my party that was it.

A week later I felt myself getting fed up. He was my best friend. I couldn't understand what was wrong. What I had done wrong.

All I had done was ask about Olivia, I couldn't understand why he got so upset. I was mulling over the distance between us, pushing aside the oatmeal Ginny made for me when my mother walked into the kitchen.

"Mary, go upstairs and pack. Your father and I will be going to Scotland for a week and Catherine and Henry agreed to allow you to stay with them. You'll be leaving this afternoon."

I was filled with mixed feelings. I would finally be seeing Francis again and he would actually be forced to talk to me. But what if he didn't want to? What if this was the end of our friendship and he didn't want to talk to me anymore?

I felt my stomach drop at the thought and looked up to find my mother staring at me. Realizing she was waiting for an answer I silently nodded and pushed back from my chair. I wasn't hungry anyway.

"Why are you guys going to Scotland anyway? I thought daddy didn't have any meetings for another month."

"He doesn't. We are taking a family vacation."

Oh.

Francis wasn't home when I got to the Valois house. Catherine smiled down at me, little Charles in her arms and hurried me inside, suitcase dragging behind me.

"No Ginny this time Mary?" She asked, bringing me into the kitchen.

"No. Not this time." My voice sounded so quiet, so foreign to even me. It must have shaken Catherine to hear it as her head snapped down at me, eyes concerned. Despite the feelings of neglect and isolation I felt whenever my parents left me behind, I had always held onto some optimism. Being with Francis and his family, being with a family actually enjoyed having me around, that appreciated and loved me always gave me some hope. But this time, no matter how hard I tried. I couldn't feel that hope. Was it because of the fight Francis and I had? Was it because we had barely talked over the week? Maybe.

But maybe it was something else.

Maybe it was because of the feelings that had been stirring within me lately. For months things had been different. Where before seeing Francis always made me smile, always made me brighten up; lately I was feeling...different. Seeing him brought butterflies to my stomach. It made my cheeks warm and turn pink. It made my heart beat faster. I would find myself daydreaming about his smile, about his blonde curls and about the way his voice sounded as he told me about the things he did during the day.

When I asked Ginny about everything that I was feeling, she told me that they were the signs of a crush. That I liked someone as more than just a friend.

When she asked who I was talking about, I refused to tell her, already internally freaking out about what she told me.

Could she be right? Francis was always my best friend. But was I starting to look at him as more than that?

The thought scared me. What if Francis didn't feel that same way? I couldn't lose him or our friendship. But I was starting to feel like maybe it was too late for that.

Catherine's voice pulled me from my thoughts, "Are you alright darling?"

I nodded, "I just haven't been feeling well as of late. Would it be okay if I go upstairs and lay down for a bit?"

"Of course. I can bring you up some soup later."

I nodded silently and pulled myself and my bag up the stairs, past Bash's room, past Claude's, past Francis' and into the room across from his. The room designated as mine whenever I would stay over but never used. Something told me I would be using it this time.

As I began unpacking my belongings I began to think back on what my mother told me.

They were going on a vacation. A family vacation.

The look on my mother's face when she said that, it was like she didn't understand how the words would hurt me. Or she didn't care. She rushed me out of the house so quickly, I never even got to talk to my father, to tell him goodbye.

I pulled the last of my items from my suitcase, the photo of Francis and I. It didn't feel right not to bring it with me. The moment I sat it on the table, I heard a knock at the door. Spinning around I saw a mop of brown hair peaking through the crack.

"May I come in?"

"Bash. Yeah come in."

Bash walked through the threshold of the door and dramatically spread his arms out to his sides, falling face first into the bed. "Mmmfsj sjsjuul lssh Mryfs?" It's moments like this where I would forget that Bash was almost three years older than me. He was going to be thirteen but acted younger than Francis and I sometimes.

"What?" I laughed at him, face pressed firmly into the mattress.

His head popped up. "I said, Mmmfsj sjsjuul lssh Mryfs."

"Bash." I whined.

He chuckled at my annoyance and leaned forward, elbows on his knees, hands cupping his face. "How are you?"

I shrugged. "I'm okay."

He nodded. He and I may not be as close and Francis and I but Bash still knew and understood a lot of my feelings. He had his own feelings of abandonment and longing when it came to family. He was born before Henry and Catherine were married, but not long before so. His mother being an ex-girlfriend of Henry's. They conceived Bash when Henry was engaged to Catherine and it caused a lot of tension between the adults. When he was only one year old his mom dropped him off with Henry for a weekend visit and never came back. When he was six Henry received papers from Diane, Bash's mother ending her parental rights.

It was something that always hurt Bash. The thought that his mother didn't want him, didn't want to be his mother.

Despite how it seemed, his presence hurt the relationship between Henry and Catherine. He was always a reminder of Henry's affair.

Bash told me once that he caught Catherine staring at him, almost glaring. When she realized he was looking at her, she shook her head, almost as if she was shaking away the hateful thoughts and smiled at him, encouraging him to play with his siblings-her children.

"I may not be as good a listener as Francis but I'm always here you know."

"I know." I mumbled. Looking around, feigning shock. "Where is Francis anyway."

"He's at the Lourve with Olivia and her family."

My head snapped up at his words. "Olivia?"

"Yeah. He met her at your party and they've hanging out everyday since."

"Everyday?" It took everything in me not to squeak out the word.

"Well almost everyday." He paused, "You didn't know that? I thought you would have been with them."

"No. I didn't know."

Silence surrounded us. Awkward tense silence.

"Well did you want to talk about it? Whatever's bothering you I mean?"

If only he knew how much was bothering me. My parents, Francis, the stupid butterflies that started up when I just heard his name, the sinking feeling when I hear his name and Olivia's together.

I shrug. "It's just, the same old thing. Being pushed aside as my mother and father do their own thing. Together. And I am left behind as always. They're in Scotland again this time. I figured it was for something for work, that's where dad's headquarters are anyway. But nope," I put an extra pop on the 'p', "Mother told me that it is for a vacation. A family vacation. That is the exact phrase she used. Family vacation. Forgive me, but I thought I was their daughter. That I was part of the..."My voice cracked and so did my resolve. The tears started pouring down my cheeks and I could feel the sobs begin to build in my chest. "family." I pushed myself to finish.

Bash had moved forward, pulling me into his arms, one hand rubbing my back and one cradling my head.

It was comfort that I was seeking but it wasn't the comfort I was seeking. I wanted Francis and the comfort and protection that only he could provide but he wasn't there. He hadn't been there in a week.

"They don't know how amazing you are Mary. And if they don't see that then they don't deserve to call you their daughter because you deserve so much more."

I hiccuped at his words and pulled back to wipe my cheeks.

"My mom doing this I can understand. I'm ten Bash and for years I have known that she sees me as nothing more than an accessory. Something to carry beside her and garner attention. No child should feel that way when they think about their mother. So her doing these things doesn't surprise me. I don't know if she even loves me. But my father. He was never like this. He used to tell me everyday that he loved me. Whenever he would go on these trips he would hold me in his arms for at least ten minutes before leaving. He would call me everyday, no matter what. No I barely see him when he is home and when he goes away, I don't ever talk to him. He brings me back gifts, hoping to buy my love, hoping that I would forget. He still calls me his princess, like that means anything anymore."

Bash pulled me back into his arms, "Does Francis know about any of this?"

"I mean he knows some. Things have gotten worse between my parents and I lately and he doesn't know about any that."

"Why not?"

"I haven't had the chance to tell him. It all got bad after my birthday and Francis and I haven't talked since then. I didn't know why before but now I guess it's because he's been hanging out with Olivia. I just...I miss him Bash. I miss my best friend and I want him back. I feel so alone." Another sob escaped me and buried my head in his shoulder.

"You will always be here for you Mary. You will never be alone."

And somehow, despite not being extremely close, Bash managed to say exactly what I needed to hear. He managed to break through my shield and his words touched me in the exact way that I needed.

"Thanks." I buried my head deeper in his shoulder as his arms tightened around me.

"So what's going on here?" Bash and I shot apart at the interruption and I looked at Francis standing in the doorway, a look on his face that I hadn't seen before, a look I couldn't explain.

"Ah. You're finally home. While I may be a good shoulder to cry on I am only temporary and you are far better. I will leave you two to do whatever it is you do." Bash stood up and moved towards the door, sending me a wink as a reminder to what he said. I will never be alone.

"So you wanna tell me what's going on? Why were you and Bash hugging like that?"

I shrugged and looked away, wiping the tears from my face.

There was once a time where Francis would rush to me I he even thought that I was going to cry, he always knew if I had cried even if it was hours later. Yet here he was, able to see the tears stain my cheeks and he ignored that.

"I'll be here for a week. My parents are in Scotland. On a family vacation."

He sighed. "Oh."

"And when I got here, you weren't. Bash came in to say hi and he saw I was upset and..."

He moved towards me and took the place on the bed Bash had previously been filling. "And he listened because I wasn't here to. I'm sorry I wasn't here Mary. I'm sorry I wasn't there after your birthday either. I know that you wanted to talk but..."

He kept talking, or he wanted to keep talking but I interrupted.

"It's okay. I'm fine."

Things got better between us after that. Francis spent everyday with me during the week I was at their house. We took our lessons together, both being home schooled and ended up sleeping in my room every night. It felt like old times.

Francis sat patiently as I told him everything I felt during and after my party regarding my parents. He told me about how things have been tough between his own. They were fighting more lately. I told him about how alone I had been feeling and he pulled me close promising to make sure I never felt that way again. Each day we would walk with his nanny through the streets of Paris, chasing each other through trees, dancing and jumping in the pond in his yard. Being us.

But there was something that was bothering me during it all. Well two things.

The first being those butterflies. They were always present and were making themselves more obvious the more time I spent with Francis. I was surprised one didn't make its way from my belly and fly from my mouth, they were getting so strong. I could only hope that Francis didn't notice. I couldn't lose his friendship and I knew that would happen if I told him about my feelings.

And the second thing was Olivia. Francis hadn't mentioned her once during the week we were together and I was too afraid to bring her up after the fight we had my party. After all that night all I asked was what they talked about. If I brought up the fact the he ditched me for a week to spend time with her he would think I was just jealous.

Maybe I was.

The last night that I was spending at the Valois house was spent over handmade pizza that Catherine aided all of the kids in making-we each were allowed to make our own, and movies that Elisabeth and Claude picked out.

After two Disney Princess movies Francis pulled me up to his bedroom, bidding everyone a night.

"If I have to watch Mulan one more time I may jump out a window." Francis fall backward onto his bed.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad. I'll make a man out of you is a really good song."

"Whatever." He muttered.

A silence fell across the room. But it wasn't awkward. It was comfortable. It was us.

I decided to take a risk

"Can I ask you something Francis?" I stared at me hands in my lap as I sat on the bed beside where he was lounging. He rolled over onto his side and propped his head on his hand.

"Anything."

"Have-have you ever had a crush on anyone?"

He was silent a moment. "Y-yeah. W-why?"

"I just-I think I have one on someone and I just don't know what to do."

"Well who is it?"

My eyes got wide at I looked at him.

"I can't tell you that."

"Well why not? I'm your best friend. You have to tell me. Besides now that I know you have a crush on someone I won't ever leave you alone till you tell me."

I shook my head.

"Come on. If you tell me who you have a crush on I will tell you who I have a crush on."

"No Francis. I don't want to."

He leaned up and put his hands on my cheeks. "Pweeease?"

I rolled my eyes. I couldn't tell him could I? I mean, if I did that would change everything. I would ruin our friendship and I would lose him forever, like I lost my parents. I couldn't bare the thought of losing the most important person in my life so I did the only thing I could think of.

I lied.

"Okay, it's-it's Bash."

He pulled his hands from my cheeks and his face changed from the playful one he had before to a face of stone.

"Oh well. I know that he doesn't have a crush on you, so that's just pointless."

A few seconds of silence.

"Mine is Olivia by the way. Since you told me. I have a crush on Olivia. We are gonna hang out again once your parents get back. We weren't able to when you were here but..."

"Oh. Okay."

Those butterflies were replaced by something else now. A sinking stone-like feeling that started in my chest and fell through my stomach.

Francis pushed off the bed, moving towards his dresser to pull out some clothes. His shoulders shaking slightly as I watched him from behind.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

It's tough for anyone to pick themselves up after breaking apart and pulling themselves back together, grown up or child. For so long I had Francis beside me, pulling me back up when I fell I didn't know how to do it myself.

Especially if he was the one that broke me to begin with.