Honestly

Everyone in the room stood, as was customary when the King rose out of his chair and started to make his way out of the dining room.

Maria watched as Julien, who still held a slight grimace, gave his brother a reassuring pat on the shoulder before he watched him follow the King out of the room.

He let out a quick sigh before he turned his attention towards Maria; a smile that did not quite reach his eyes replaced the grimace, and he gave her a small bow of the head before he left the room himself.

Once he was gone, Maria slunk back into her chair and let out a big breath as she covered her face with her hands.

Jason sat back down beside her and rubbed reassuring circles on her back to help her soothe her worries.

Their mother watched her children and quickly took the seat next to Maria and grabbed her hand to give it a squeeze before she said, "I know you wanted to marry Henri, but Arthur is a good man, too, my child".

Maria felt Jason stiffen upon hearing their mother's words and he let out a soft chuckle before he said, "I highly doubt that".

"Don't you see the way he looks at your sister? He loves her, Jason."

"Not anymore," Maria said, bringing her face up to join the discussion.

The Queen's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, so Maria continued, "I'm afraid I had a lamentable reaction when he shared his feelings with me, and then he heard me tell you all about how I wanted to marry Henri. Finally, to make matters even worse, he came to my room before Henri did, and locked himself away in the bathroom to protect from speculation when Henri arrived to tell me that he was leaving, so he heard that entire conversation, including me begging Henri to marry me".

At that, she heard the Queen gasp, and Jason stopped rubbing circles on her back.

"It would be a miracle if he did not despise me, let alone if he still had the same feelings for me that he did yesterday. I think I've done more damage than I can repair with him. And now, he's forced to marry me. What a sick joke the gods have played on him."

"Wow, Mar, you somehow found a way to knock the cockiest man in Europe down a few pegs, haven't you?" Jason replied with a laugh.

Maria gave him a quick jab to the ribs with her elbow and he moved away and rubbed his side before he said, "Alright, alright. I'm sorry. But for you, not him. I don't like seeing you this upset".

She turned to face him and saw in his face that he truly did seem sad for her; before she could respond, their mother asked, "But what about you, Maria? How do you feel about marrying him? Honestly".

Maria looked away from Jason and to the other side of her to her mother.

She was looking at her in a way that all mothers look-- where they know your emotions and darkest secrets before you even do, so Maria knew that there was no use in lying.

"I feel helpless. I love him, but I realized it too late. I always figured that being trapped in a loveless marriage was the worst that could happen for me, but this is worse. I'll be trapped in a marriage in which I lost the love of my husband before we could share in it together. So now what? I sit back and watch as the man I love can't bear to look at me? Watch as he takes a lover that isn't me? And in a kingdom that isn't mine? Without my family by my side? I'll be more alone than I ever have been," she ended quietly.

She had already cried so much that morning, that there was nothing left to expel; she felt like an empty shell that was void of feeling and just left with numbness from the consequences of her actions.

"Is that why you pushed your father to agree to have you marry Henri? You thought that you lost your chance with Arthur?" her mother asked.

"Not exactly. At first, I couldn't tell if Arthur actually had feelings for me or if he was just playing some cat and mouse game with me. Even if I did love him, I didn't want to marry someone who I felt could so easily break my heart, as ironic as that is now. I thought Henri was the safe option for me and for Greece. I also believed he had true love for me, and I was starting to fall for him too, so I knew that we could be happy together. Clearly I have a bad judgement of character. Some Queen I'll be."

"I don't think any of us could have guessed that Henri would leave. I know he loved you because he told me as much and I do have a good judgement of character. There has to be more that was in that letter that he wasn't willing to divulge," Jason said pensively, "But as far as your future husband goes, if he doesn't treat you well, I will kill him for you. Just say the word and I'm there."

The Queen gave her daughter's hand a reassuring squeeze before she said, "I always hoped to protect my children from the heartbreak of losing love. I know that you are despairing over your loss of Henri, but I wouldn't count Arthur out just yet. If he loved you once, certainly he can find it in his heart to do so again."

"I hope so," Maria whispered, doubting it would become a reality.

She saw the indescribable pain in his face when he begged her not to marry Henri; the image haunted her.

"How much longer do we have until I'm sent away?" she asked her mother.

"Until tomorrow morning," the Queen replied.

Maria closed her eyes and nodded her head before she got up and left the room without a word, leaving her mother and brother behind.