Francis

I was surprised by her reaction.

Why was she running away from me?

Thinking that I must have done something wrong, I quickly ran after her, much to everyone else's shock.

The crowd of my guests whispered amongst themselves as I tried to stop my future bride from running away, thinking that I had gone mad.

I did not care about their talking, though, just about that woman.

"Wait!" I called after her. "Princess of England, please, wait! Do not go!"

I gently took her hand in mine, stopping her from escaping any longer.

"Let go of me, please!" she begged, fear in her deep, green eyes. "I cannot stay here, Your Grace! You do not understand how complicated this is!"

"Can I at least get your name before you leave me?" I replied, wanting to know everything about her, still. "Please, Princess, at least give me such a right!"

Oh, if she left, the Court of France would kill me!

Without saying another word, she broke free from my grasp and continued to run out of the ballroom, leaving me speechless and her mask within my other hand.

~~~~~~

"How long are you going to stare at that mask?" Antonio inquired. "It has been an entire day already. The Ball has ended."

"She is not going to come back, Francis," Gilbert agreed. "No matter how much you refuse to admit this, she is your enemy."

"But she is the one!" I told them, standing up from my chair in my study while still holding the mask in my hands. "I swear it this time! She was so beautiful, witty. And her eyes! Oh, I could stare into them forever and never tire!"

I caressed the smooth fabric of the mask with my thumbs, imagining her eyes peeking through the holes and staring into mine.

"I have not seen him like this before!" Pierre cried with shock, looking at my friends. "He is truly pining for that woman!"

"I need to see her again," I told them. "I want search parties everywhere in England. I do not care how long it takes, just...find that woman! She is my betrothed, and I will have her here, at my side, by any means necessary."

"But Your Highness," Pierre began, "we simply cannot start a search this quickly!"

"And why not?" I questioned harshly. "I am going to marry her, even if I have to travel to England myself!"

"They are our enemy!" Gilbert argued. "Francis, please, you cannot just find another woman to satisfy your needs?"

"Ever since I met that woman at the Ball," I answered, "I vowed to myself late last night that I would never treat another woman so poorly like I have done in the past. She is the one, Gilbert, Antonio, and I will marry her."

"Yes, we understand that," Antonio nodded, "but Francis, you should wait until there are less...pressing matters at stake, like this War, for example. Besides, you two cannot get married right away. You have to get to know each other more, and not strictly at a ball."

"Then I will wait as long as I have to for her return," I told them as I looked out of a window longingly, "however long it may be."

~~~~~~

Later that evening, I walked down a long hallway that no one was allowed access to except for me.

I sighed softly, looking at the portraits of my late father, mother, and sister. I knew that they would be proud of me for taking care of our country, especially my father, and that made me smile.

I missed them, but I also knew that I had no time to dwell on the past.

I had a bride to find, after all.

"She is the one, and I know it!" I told myself, sitting down on a bench in the grand garden that my sister and I used to spend hours in as children.

We mostly talked together, occasionally playing a hiding game in the same afternoons.

"Oh, Francine," I began, looking at the starry sky. "You always knew what to say in the times where I am doubting myself. Does falling in love with an English woman really have to be such a terrible crime? Why can we not love who we want to love? She is so perfect, you see, and...I truly love her. If only I knew her name...."

No, love should not come at such a forbidden height.

Love should be free.

I should be free.

I am the future King of France, after all!

This should definitely be my choice!

I had decided to retire to my bedroom and got into the comfortable piece of furniture, pretending that the woman from England was sleeping there, with me, through the whole night.

~~~~~~

"Thank you all for your excellent advice," I told my friends and Advisor the next morning, "but I have already made my choice, and I will not be forced to think otherwise."

"Heavens have mercy!" Pierre groaned hysterically, disappointed.

"It would be useless to argue against you, unfortunately," Antonio sighed, beginning to eat his breakfast, "so I will not."

"Good," I nodded with approval, a grin on my face. "It would be useless for you to argue with your King, anyway."

"But you are not even-" Antonio began, but soon gave up.

"Oh, we will," Gilbert challenged, "but not at the moment, like Antonio had earlier stated."

"It was just a joke, Antonio," I calmed them both down. "I will be coronated as soon as my bride is brought to me."

"Which will never happen," Antonio told me.

"How many times do we have to tell you this?" Gilbert agreed.

Before I could reply, however, one of the Guards ran up to us.

"My apologies for interrupting your breakfast, Your Highness," the man began, looking out of breath, "but there is a woman outside of the castle who requests an audience with you immediately."

"And who might that be?" I questioned, looking at him with confusion.

That rarely happened, mainly because I made sure that everyone's needs in my country were met.

"Your Grace?" a voice spoke up, the woman the guard was talking about walking up to me and making my friends and Advisor gasp in surprise.

It was the woman from the Ball.

The Princess of England.