Chapter Text
The party had been going so well, too. One moment, Geordo finally had Katarina all to himself, and the next he was watching in fear as she collapsed in his arms. Geordo was well aware he followed soon after, the sickly-sweet smell driving him into unconsciousness. But his only thoughts had been for Katarina.
And now, as he regained consciousness, he was met with his worst nightmare.
"KATARINA!"
The cry came unbidden, but not unwelcome, from his terrified lips, his face mimicking the sound of his distress. For his beautiful Katarina Claes was before him, but she was bound by chains, staring wide-eyed at a man holding a sword to her heart.
Geordo tried to lunge forward, tried to throw himself between his beloved fiancee and this stranger. But he found himself bound. Chained to the opposite wall where he would have a perfect glimpse of his fiancee's demise.
No. Not his Katarina. Not like this.
"It's okay, Geordo," his beautiful, wonderful, amazing fiancee was trying to reassure him. "There's no need to worry. Heinry and I were just discussing Fortune Lover."
Fortune… Lover…?
"Katarina, what-!?"
The man, Heinry, carefully removed his blade from Katarina's chest, revealing that, other than a puncture in her dress, there was no further injury.
"I must admit, your actions had me quite confused until this moment," Heinry chuckled, clearly amused. "But to think that you were also reincarnated… tell me, when did your memories of your past life return, Lady Katarina?"
"Remember Katarina's backstory from the game?" Katarina asked getting a nod from Heinry. "The minute I hit my head, I was suddenly overwhelmed with memories of my past life. As well as my memories of Fortune Lover."
"I see," Heinry hummed. "I have to admit, I was so beyond concerned when the story was suddenly derailed. But I can't imagine waking up as a child knowing there are two ways you could die if you made the wrong move."
"Oh, yes!" Katarina nodded vigorously. "Along with the possibility of exile! I tried to increase my magic capacity to defend myself, but that wasn't great. So then I took up fencing, and I learned Geordo was desperately afraid of snakes, and I took up farming in case of exile. It was so crazy, but I ended up making friends with everyone, so if anything does happen, I hope our friendship will at least result in exile at the worst."
Exile? Snakes? Deaths? Past lives?
What was this? What were they talking about?
"Well, I am glad that if the story was derailed that it was for a reason such as this. I used to play Fortune Lover religiously, so the changes to the story had me going crazy."
"Oh, yeah, that would be kind of odd. Sorry about that."
"No need to apologize. I would have made the same choice had I been in your shoes."
"Kata… rina… what are you…?"
As Geordo choked out the words, trying so desperately to comprehend all that was happening, he suddenly found two pairs of horrified eyes on him. Katarina looked downright mortified, but Heinry burst into laughter.
“It appears this tale may be interesting after all, Lady Katarina,” Heinry turned his attention back to Geordo’s mortified fiancee. “But this is a story you will have to deal with on your own. Go day, Lady Katarina, Prince Geordo. I hope you enjoy your long lives together.”
Heinry used a key to unlock only one of the cuffs holding his Katarina against the wall opposite of Geordo, then he placed a separate set of keys in Katarina’s free hand before leaving them alone. Geordo wanted to curse Heinry to the wind, and he silently vowed to find this man and make him suffer. But his gaze turned back to Katarina the minute he was sure Heinry had truly left. Katarina, for her part, had not moved from her mortification.
“Katarina?” he called softly to her, trying to shake her from whatever spiraling thought she was trapped in. “Katarina, are you alright?”
Katarina blinked. Blinked again. Shook her head like she was trying to shake off water.
“I… yeah…” Katarina said, her voice trembling in a way that betrayed her true state. “Yeah. I’m alright. I’ll get us out of here and just a moment, okay?”
Holding the second key between her teeth, Katarina finished unlocking her other cuff and the reached down to unlock the cuffs around her ankles that Geordo had failed to notice. It was painfully silent, the questions swirling around in Geordo’s mind, trying to understand all that Katarina and Heinry discussed.
Trying to make sense of what they discussed.
As Katarina raced over and unlocked the first cuff, his hand immediately fell to pull her to his chest, wrapping just a bit too tight around her waist.
“Geordo, I-”
“I am so glad you’re safe, Katarina,” he breathed into her hair. “I thought… I thought he was going to kill you.”
“I think he planned to,” Katarina admitted. “But-”
“He didn’t,” Geordo finished for her, pulling back just enough to look into her eyes. “Why, Katarina? What did it mean?”
Katarina dropped her gaze, hands clenching into fists against his chest.
“Can we just forget about it? Please?”
“I can’t just forget it, Katarina,” Geordo tried to keep his voice soft. “He said you knew how you would die.”
Why did you need to take precautions? Why was the snake so significant in your explanation? The farming? The fencing? Were they not just hobbies? What are you hiding, Katarina? Please. Please. Please.
Katarina ducked her head lower. Shoulders shaking for a moment. Geordo wanted to take it back in that moment, but his Katarina always knew how to surprise him. In the next second her head had whipped up, and she was staring at him with determination.
“Let me uncuff you, first,” she stated. “And then I’ll tell you everything. I promise. Just… you may not believe me. But I swear everything I’m going to tell you is the truth!”
Geordo looked into the passion and earnest flaring in Katarina’s beautiful eyes, and in that moment he knew he’d believe anything she said.
“Alright…”
Katarina quickly got to work.
—----------------------------------
The truth…
The truth was so much worse than anything Geordo could have ever dreamed of.
“I’m still me,” Katarina was rapping up her tale in earnest. “I am Katarina Claes. But I was Chiharu. And… and I do like farming, and sweets, and fencing. And… and I know this probably changes things, but I do consider you all my friends. I didn’t just do that to survive, I… I really love spending time with everyone.”
Geordo was hunched over himself, knowing full well that if he sat up, he’d see Katarina crying. If he even dared to look at her, he knew he would be unable to stop himself from doing the same.
“I’m… I’m glad I finally got to tell someone,” Katarina sniffed. “I know that means I’ll have to leave. I’ll… I’ll really miss everyone. But I’ll go. And I’m sorry that I ruined everything, but…”
He couldn’t stop himself. He lifted his head in horror at the pain in her voice, at her claim of self-exile, because… because…
“But I am so glad to have met you, Prince Geordo!”
His Katarina was crying.
The next few seconds were a blur, but Geordo would never regret them.
“Geordo…”
Having launched himself across the distance between them, Geordo had wrapped his arms around Katarina from where she sat on her stack of boxes. He held onto her for dear life, face buried in her stomach as he trembled.
“You are not leaving me, Katarina!” Geordo bellowed the words.
“Geordo, I-”
“I don’t care what that stupid game says. You are not the villainess of this story. It wasn’t Maria who brought color back into my life, it was you! It wasn’t Maria who healed my relationship with Alan, it was you! It was you who brought Mary out of her shell. It was you who showed Alan how amazing he could be outside of my shadow. It was you who gave Keith a loving family. It was you who gave Nicol and Sophia joy. It was you who rescued Maria. You, Katarina! Not Maria! It is you I love, Katarina! And I can’t lose you!”
“Wha… what?!” Katarina bulked. “You… you love… me…?”
“I have loved you since the day I proposed to you in your garden,” Geordo felt the words fall so easily as he lifted his head to look at her. “Katarina, I don’t care about your past life, or what happened in the story! I could never hate you! So please… please stay here!”
Later, Geordo would look back on this moment, normally when Katarina would bring it up, and he would turn beat red. Never before had he ever dared to be this intimate with Katarina. This open.
But the horror of killing Katarina… the mere thought…
“I swear to you, Katarina! I will never raise my sword or any weapon against you! I will never exile you, and should you be exiled, I would go with you! So please, Katarina, please stay here! Stay with us! With me! Stay by my side! Even if I must keep this secret with you, I swear you will not have doom befall you so long as you are here by my side!”
“Geordo… I… I…”
His Katarina was crying again.
Moving his arms from around her waist, he reached up to cup her face, trying to use her thumbs to brush her tears away. They were falling too quickly, though. Too thickly. He leaned forward, gently kissing a falling tear away from her face. Then another. Then another.
“I want to stay,” Katarina continued to sob, hands fisting in his shirt. “I want to stay with you all of you. I want to be by your side. I… Geordo… I… I don’t know if…”
“I know,” he breathed, the relief that she was staying the only thing that mattered. “I know, Katarina. It’s okay, now. It’s okay. I don’t expect my love to be returned right now. And maybe it never will, but stay. Stay with me.”
“I will,” she whimpered, tucking into his chest. “I’ll stay. I promise I’ll stay.”
—-------------------------
They fell asleep not long after that painful discussion. Huddled against the floor of the weird tower they had been imprisoned in, the two woke beside each other. Hungry, cold, but unable to stop the smiles on their faces.
“I don’t suppose you know where we are, do you?” Katarina asked Geordo as they made their way out of the tower.
“No. I’ve never seen this tower, before. But it does appear that we’re somewhere deep in the woods.”
It was true. There was an overgrown path leading to the tower, but the two had a feeling it would be further hidden as they went along it.
“I saw some swords in one of the crates on our way down,” Katarina offered to Geordo. “Maybe we should grab them for protection. I don’t actually know what Heinry’s plan was.”
“I suppose that’s as good an idea as any,” Geordo nodded in thought. “There’s no telling what we may come across, and if we aren’t near a town, we may need to hunt.”
“Oh! We could have a campfire!” Katarina clapped giddily, eyes already alight with the idea. “It’ll be so much fun!”
There was a different sort of ease to Katarina as she beamed brightly. It was the only sign Geordo had that she hadn’t forgotten their discussion last night.
She trusted him with her greatest burden and he had passed with flying colors.
Swords gathered, the two set off along the path. Katarina managed to locate Black Berry bushes, and the two munched on the deliciously sweet fruit with its slight sour tang as they walked. Geordo managed to snag a rabbit, and they built a campfire where the two struggled to figure out how to cook rabbit. They may or may not have stumbled on a bear. Both agreed that the incident did not need to be spoken of.
But they ended up using the hem of Katarina’s gown for bandages, regardless of what actually occurred.
As they went through their forest-escape-stroll, Katarina told Geordo more about Fortune Lover, and her fears. And then switched to topics of things from her past life when the tales Katarina spoke of further distressed Geordo.
But there is always an end to every tunnel.
“I’m honestly surprised how long this path was,” Katarina mused when half a day had gone by and they had finally found a main road. “I wonder how long we’ve been missing. Half the kingdom must be in an uproar.”
“I dread to think,” Geordo admitted sheepishly, knowing the others would have kicked up far more of a fuss over Katarina being gone than over Geordo being gone. “Katarina, will you-?”
Before Geordo could finish, his attention was snapped to the sound of thundering horse hooves. Katarina moved to say something but Geordo quickly threw a hand over her mouth and dragged them both into some nearby brush that provided them both with cover. He waited for Katarina to hear the sound before removing his hand, motioning that she stay silent with a finger to his lips. She nodded, and the two were left to sit and wait. The horses thundered by, and the two moved to get a better view.
Katarina recognized them first.
Shoving her way out of the brush, dragging Geordo with her, she began to wave wildly at the soldiers.
“PRINCE GEOFFREY! OVER HERE!”
The look on Geoffery’s face was thunderous as he jerked his head to the sound of his name. It was a look Geordo and Alan had only seen in passing. Geoffrey always came off as foolish, playful, childish. A long list of things that made many think he was unfit to be King. But in that moment, Geordo was reminded why Geoffery was perfect for the position.
The look, however, vanished and was replaced with a tearfully giddy grin as Geordo and Katarina were suddenly tackled to the ground
“YOU’RE BOTH OKAY! OH MY LITTLE BROTHER AND HIS BEAUTIFUL FIANCEE! I’M SO GLAD!
As Geoffery was intent to smother them, his fiancee, Suzanna Randall, gladly gave them both food and water. Katarina was given Geoffery’s cloak, and Geordo’s injury was carefully looked over.
“Your arm looks as though it got slashed by a bear claw, your highness,” Suzanna mused as the injury was rewrapped with proper banadages. “What on Earth happened?”
“Nothing.”
Suzanna stared at the couple, blinking in masked-surprise at their twin response done so perfectly in sync. Rather than press the matter, she simply shrugged as the carriage they called for arrived at the scene.
“You’ve been missing for three days,” Suzanna informed them as they piled into the carriage, Geoffery and Suzanna on one side, and Geordo and Katarina on the other. “The party was three nights ago, soon to be four in the next few hours.”
“Huh, that does explain why we were so hungry,” Katarina turned to look at Geordo. “Good thing we caught that rabbit and found those black berries, right?”
“Right,” Geordo agreed, his smile soft, causing Katarina to blush. “I’m glad you thought of it, Katarina.”
Suzanna coughed. “Both the royal family and the Claes family have been searching the kingdom, scouring it for any leads. Aided and accompanied by your friends, of course. Late yesterday evening, however, we got a note from an anonymous source on a rough estimate to your location.”
Katarina looked to Geordo, begging him with her face alone to remain silent.
And for her, Geordo would do anything.
“We awoke chained in a tower. The man who had us taunted me with killing my fiancee and then left. But my brilliant Katarina, with her bizarre skill set, managed to free herself and then me. We haven’t seen our captor since.”
Geoffery was clever. If anyone could see through a lie Geordo told, it was Geoffery. Better to tell the truth.
“I see,” Geoffery hummed, definitely picking up on the fact that Geordo was only telling the bare minimum. “You realize this will mean an increase in security.”
“Yes. I do.”
Katarina, content with Geordo’s answer, moved Geoffery’s cloak so it was covering both herself and Geordo. Under the cover of the cloak, she grasped his hand, lacing her fingers with his. To add to the moment, her head was suddenly leaning against his shoulder. Naturally, Geordo couldn’t help but lay his head against Katarina’s.
It wasn’t long before the two drifted off into a peacefully content slumber.
“Katarina seems more at ease,” Suzanna remarked thoughtfully as she studied her charge. “I don’t think what happened was entirely bad.”
“Geordo is terrified.”
Suzanna paused, noting the sudden dark change in her fiance’s tone. Looking to Geoffery, she noted that Geoffery hadn’t taken his gaze off the couple once.
“Whatever happened to them, Katarina was relieved of whatever burden has been plaguing her since she was young, and Geordo is trying to come to terms with that burden he must now also bear. But I suppose you are right, Suzanna. Whatever the burden was, it has drawn them closer.”
Geoffery could only hope and pray it would not destroy his brother.
Upon their return, Katarina’s friends all tried to surge in and swoop Katarina away, but Geoffery waved them away. Geordo, his poor little brother who was still on edge, was awoken by the commotion. With Geoffery’s instruction and Suzanna’s aid, Geordo was permitted to carry his love into the palace.
While the others protested, Geordo let his gaze lock with both his twin and his best friend. Though the two couldn’t understand what was going on in Geordo’s head, they knew it was bad. And for a moment, they squashed their feelings for Katarina in honor of their brotherhood.
“Mary, that’s enough,” Alan snapped as Mary continued to kick up a fuss at Geordo going with Katarina and how propriety wouldn’t allow it.
“Master Keith, I think we should let Geordo go,” Nicol yanked Keith back as he tried to charge after Geordo and his sister.
“Byt big brother-!” Sophia tried to protest.
“This isn’t about our rivalry for her heart,” Nicol addressed his sister before turning to Geoffery. “He’s not alright, is he?”
Geoffery only shook his head.
“What they do to him?” Alan demanded of his elder brother.
“I don’t know, little brother,” Geoffery confessed. “But I implore you all, give them some space.”
“BUT-”
“Mary, stop!” Alan rounded on his fiancee. “I don’t like this anymore than you do, but whatever happened, Geordo is terrified .”
“Terrified? What-?”
“We need to give them time,” Nicol was the one to pick up. “If Geordo is this terrified, I can only imagine what Katarina must be feeling.”
—--------------------------------------
Waking up to Geordo leaving was the most terrifying thing Katarina never realized haunted her dreams. He had dutifully placed her on her bed, only to have Katarina wake up and panic as he moved to be further examined by the doctors.
“It’s alright, Katarina. We are not going anywhere.”
A hot bath, a warm meal, and a statement later saw Katarina laying in a guest bedroom at the palace, staring up at the ceiling as streaks of lightning entered her room. The storm that had come in was as wild as her mind was racing over the events of the previous night and the recent day.
Geordo loved her.
In her past life, her time as Chiharu was cut short. She died at the age of 17 on her way to school after getting hit by a truck. It was her own fault, but still. Love had never been something she was familiar with.
Did she love Geordo?
She didn’t know. She wasn’t sure how to know. She need to ask someone, but who did she ask? Her friends? No, she wasn’t sure any of them had ever actually been in love before. Her parents were in love, but they were already so far out into the kingdom, it would be another day before they returned.
No. If she was going to ask anyone, it would have to be Geordo.
Grabbing a robe, she quickly threw it on and prepared herself to search every room in the palace for Geordo. But as she opened her door and stepped out, she discovered that there was no need to look for him.
A short distance from her door to her left, Geordo was sprawled on the floor, Alan crouched beside him.
“Geordo! You’re here! I wanted to-!”
The words died in Katarina’s throat as a lightning suddenly struck, causing Katarina to have a sudden clear view of Geordo’s face. He was pale. Trembling. Tears streaming down his face, and he was staring at her as if he was seeing a ghost.
Her feet were carrying her to him before she even processed what she was doing. But that didn’t matter. Nor did it matter when she fell to her knees and tugged Geordo to her, allowing him to bury his face in her chest. As thunder roared outside, Geordo released a wail that struck deep into Katarina’s soul.
“It’s okay. I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. I’m right here. Nothing happened. I’m here.”
As Geordo continued to wail into Katarina’s chest, his brother’s watched on in mixed degrees of horror and worry for their brother. And as Katarina assured Geordo that she was still with him; Geoffery, Ian, and Alan watched as Geordo’s emotional walls crumbled.
“Promise me, Katarina,” Geordo begged, his voice hoarse from his wailing. “Promise me you won’t leave.”
“I promise I won’t leave. They’d have to drag me away. I promise.”
Eventually, the exhaustion took over, and Geordo fell asleep, tucked against Katarina. Geoffrey got creative and brought the two to the couch in Katarina’s room.
“What happened?” Katarina whispered after a few candles had been lit and the three brothers had settled around the room, watching over Geordo and Katarina.
“He had a nightmare," Alan informed her easily, his gaze never leaving his twin as he crouched beside his twin and his secret crush. "I'm not… we were sitting with him as he fell asleep, and then we were talking about how Geoffrey found you, and he just… bolted up in bed, screaming your name. I couldn't tell what he was talking about, only that he needed to find you. That he has to stop you from leaving."
"I won't leave," Katarina said.
As if she was promising herself more than Alan and Geordo.
"Lady Katarina," Ian was next to speak. "Geoffrey already told us what Geordo was willing to speak of the events. But we know there is more to the tale. Please, we ask you to help us understand."
Geordo was fast asleep, not even stirring as the storm raged outside. The three brothers had sat dutifully with their brother as he refused to speak of what had occurred to himself and Katarina. And even when he had finally fallen asleep in his own room, it had been fitful, muttering strange things about Chiharus, trucks, swords, exile, and other strange things. But now, their brother lay in Katarina’s lap, arms wrapped around her waist, face buried in her stomach. She had one arm draped over his back, rubbing circles with her hand, and the other hand was gently carding through his hair.
“The man who captured us intended to kill me in front of Geordo because he thought I intended to hurt the Kingdom. It was meant to be an act to “free” Geordo from whatever “curse” I had him under. I managed to clear up the confusion, but… I had to… tell the man something I’d never told anyone before. Geordo was forced to hear it.”
“Was it bad?” Alan couldn’t help but ask. “What you had to tell Geordo and the man?”
Katarina nodded. “I don’t-”
“We won’t ask you any more questions, Lady Katarina.”
“What, but Geoffery, we-!”
“Lady Katarina has had to endure and relive enough trauma for one day,” Geoffery cut off Alan’s protest with a gentle hand on his little brother’s head. “Geordo, too. Let us not drag up old demons any further. At least, not tonight. And not until Lady Katarina is ready.”
Alan wanted to protest, but as he looked to Geordo and Katarina, he noticed how tired Katarina looked, her eyes never leaving Geordo, and how his twin was still crying, even in sleep.
“Yeah. Okay. Whatever.”
“It’s quite improper to leave a lady alone with another man, but-”
“Please stay,” Katarina breathed the words so quickly, Geoffrey almost missed them. “I… I know it’s improper, but I think it would make Geordo and I feel better if we weren’t alone.”
“Then we’ll have a sleepover~!” Geoffery cheered.
“Why do you have to make it sound so weird?” Alan seethed.
That was how Anne found them the next morning. Katarina and Geordo cuddled on a couch, with the the Princes’ brother’s all laying around the couch. Geoffrey was the only one still awake, and he placed a finger to his lips as he tugged the blanket up higher on the couple.
—--------------------------------
It was Alan who came to get the others for breakfast the next morning, leading them all to the rose garden, claiming that both Katarina and Geordo insisted that they be there. Mary didn’t believe that for a second.
“That two-timing Prince! I bet he’s already seated right next to Katarina, whispering all sorts of things in her ear! Kidnapped or not, I won’t let him get any advantages!”
“We’re they alright, Alan?” Nicol asked, turning away from Mary’s rant.
“No,” Alan’s response was blunt and haunted. “Geordo… I saw Geordo express more emotion in the course of last night than I’ve seen in my entire life as his twin brother. And Katarina wasn’t much better, though I think she was too exhausted to really process everything.”
“Was it bad, Master Alan?” Maria asked, voice small.
“They tried to kill her in front of Geordo.”
The entire group stopped.
“They tried to… kill my sister?” Keith asked, his voice a mix of horror that slowly became something deadly.
“It's not my story to tell,” Alan shook his head, already to begin to walk again. “Just… do Katarina a favor. Don’t ask her about what happened.”
And then they were stepping out into the rose garden where Geordo…
Was…
Not…
Sitting beside Katarina.
No. He was definitely not sitting next to Katarina. Instead, he had positioned himself across from Katarina at a round table that would allow the two to see everyone. It was clear that the act was intentional, too. Perhaps it was so that Katarina would always be forced to look directly at Geordo, but it was also clear that Geordo was contently watching Katarina describe something that she was describing adamantly if her hand gestures and silly expressions were anything to go by.
“I am curious as to whether we could recreate this electricity,” Geordo was saying as the group got closer. “It does sound rather useful.”
“It definitely can be!” Katarina agreed, “though I’m not sure how we’d recreate it here. This world is really dependent on magic. Though there was a show where fire-benders could produce lightning, but- OH! EVERYONE!”
Katarina, naturally, found herself distracted as her friends all rushed forward to see how she was doing. Alan dutifully moved to his brother’s side, watching as Keith claimed the chair to Katarina’s left, and Sophia claimed the chair to Katarina’s right, much to Mary’s growing fury.
“Are you alright, Geordo?” Nicol asked, pulling away from the group coddling Katarina.
“As I can be,” Geordo hummed, taking a sip of his tea. “Please, will you sit? I’d like for things to be… normal for a moment.”
Alan and Nicol did so readily.
“Are you really okay, sister?” Keith was pressing, checking Katarina over for anything.
“Just some bumps and bruises,” Katarina offered a shaky smile. “Geordo was hurt more than I was.”
“You were hurt?” Nicol asked of his friend, face barely betraying his surprise.
“It was nothing.”
“That’s not what the Geoffery and Suzanna said,” Alan challenged. “Suzanna said you looked like you went toe-to-toe with a bear.”
“What!? Really? What happened?” Sophia asked, eyes wide as Maria quickly got up to look at Geordo’s arm.
“Nothing.”
The group of friends paused, even Alan, who was wrestling off Geordo’s sleeve so Maria could get a better look at the damage. The twin response from Geordo and Katarina had everyone glancing between the two, even as Geordo continued to sip his tea and Katarina shoved a large piece of sausage in her mouth, neither looking at the other, and both giving tense smiles.
It certainly didn’t look like nothing.
“Geordo and I are both alright,” Katarina spoke after she finished chewing. “Tired. Hungry. But we’re as okay as we can be.”
“Oh, Lady Katarina, you must be starving!” Mary gushed in worry. “Here, have my muffin!”
“I’d be happy to prepare some sweets for you!” Maria added.
“And I’m sure you can rest all you want, sister,” Keith added eagerly.
The conversation flowed easily after that, everyone chatting brightly now that their sun had returned to them. Katarina actively took part in the conversations around her, but Geordo remained silent. Watching. It was clear Mary was trying her usual tactics of making Katarina forget any intimate moments with Geordo, but what Mary didn’t know was that the beautiful ordained table-clothed spread before them was hiding a secret.
Alan noticed it. Nicol noticed it. Sophia noticed it and went to say something until Nicol shook his head at her.
Under the table, Katarina and Geordo had their legs stretched out, tangling their ankles together away from prying eyes.
“Lady Katarina,” Anne spoke as she arrived at the table. “Please forgive the interruption, but the guests you requested have arrived.”
“Oh! Already?” Katarina turned to Anne, a look of surprise on her face. “That was fast. But I guess since she was already in the castle…”
Katarina trailed off, clearly thinking over something. Her friends watched her, puzzled, some even sneaking glances at Geordo, who seemed just as surprised as the others. Before the others could ask about Katarina’s guests, she suddenly bolted to her feet.
“Please forgive me for cutting breakfast so short, everyone,” Katarina gave them all a bright smile and that weird bow thing she did sometimes. “This is something I really have to do.”
“Would you like one of us to go with you?” Mary stood up quickly. “I would be glad to-”
“Not this time, Lady Mary,” Katarina shook her head. “This is something I must do alone. But thank you.”
“But sister, what if someone-”
“I’m only meeting with Prince Geoffery and Prince Ian,” Katarina promised her brother as he, too, made to stand up. “So there really isn’t any need to worry.”
“Oh, you must be finishing giving your statement,” Alan was quick to jump in. “Well, I guess we really shouldn’t keep you. Geoffery and Ian want this creep caught as soon as possible. We’ll find you later, okay?”
“Sounds great!” Katarina beamed brightly at the others. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“Of course,” Geordo gave her a gentle smile.
Nothing more was said as Katarina walked off to meet her guests. Though all eyes instantly snapped to Geordo as Katarina finally vanished from sight.
“Well, Prince Geordo,” Mary said, her voice tight, expression mostly neutral. “I certainly hope you didn’t take advantage of our dear Katarina while you were-”
“Katarina was chained to one side of the tower and I the other,” Geordo stated flatly. “I woke to see a sword pressing against her chest above her heart, and while Katarina managed to talk the man out of killing her, we were both shaken by the experience. And then we had to find our way home, having gone three days without proper rest, food, or water. So forgive me if our survival meant that Katarina and I spent less than a day together.”
Mary didn’t seem overly pleased with this answer, but the reminder that Katarina had nearly died was enough to let her keep her mouth shut. Geordo sighed, setting his cup back on the saucer with a little more force than necessary, causing the cup to clank with a loud echo. He rested his forehead against one hand, not wanting to look at anyone.
“I won’t lie, I did tell Katarina I loved her,” Geordo confessed. “But I don’t know if this moment will be any different than every other time. The moment in which I did it, I thought I was going to lose her forever.”
“Prince Geordo,” Maria whispered, her voice soft and worried. “You’re shaking.”
Geordo wished he could hate Maria. Hate what she was meant to be and become. But he was reminded that Katarina had wooed Maria just as she had all of them. She’d made “Capture Targets” of each of them without even trying, and yet her fear of death had been the roadblock between a survival and a truly happy life.
And yet Katarina was happy.
Maybe she couldn’t see the affection they all had for her, but there was more to Katarina’s actions than simply trying to survive. Being a dutiful fiancee who eventually stepped aside was one thing, as was sword play, farming, and snake crafting. But to have befriended him, spent time with him, and the overall act of teaching him to be a good person? That was beyond survival.
Katarina was determined to survive, but she had not let that stop her from living.
Was she really just that dense, then?
“Hey, you alright?” Alan asked, giving his brother a nudge.
“I… don’t know…”
—-----------------------------
Katarina hadn’t lied when she said she was meeting with Prince Alan and Prince Geoffrey. She was doing just that right this very moment. But the part she hadn’t told anyone about was that she was also meeting with Lady Suzanna and Lady Selena. She knew that if she mentioned the other fiancee’s, Mary would have at least wanted to go with. Alan seemed to understand she needed space, and Geordo knew this was important, even if he didn’t know why or what, but Katarina wanted to do this in private.
“There’s no reason to be nervous, dear,” Lady Suzanna told her gently. “Ask us whatever it is you wish, if it is within our power-”
“How do you know if you’re in love?”
Whatever the couples had been expecting, that was not it.
“My, my,” Geoffrey recovered first. “What brought this on, Lady Katarina?”
“I… Geordo and I talked about… things. When we were kidnapped. And he told me he loved me, and I told him that I didn’t know if I loved him, and I don’t want to hurt him, but-!”
“Breathe, Lady Katarina,” Suzanna quickly hushed the younger. “Your question merely surprised us. Geordo and quite a few others have been pining for you for a rather long time. Forgive us for being curious.”
A few others?
She’d ask Geordo later.
“So… how do you know when you’re in love? I’ve always heard it described as a feeling. People always say they know . But I just…”
“Well, I guess the first thing we should correct is that love is not a feeling.”
Katarina whipped her head to Lady Selena, eyes wide as the older gave her a warm smile, lacing her fingers with Ian.
“Love is a choice, Lady Katarina,” Selena continued with a bright, beaming smile she directed to Ian. “Love is giving yourself to someone, and them giving themselves to you. It’s going to involve pain and bitterness, and that person may use things against you, but it also means warmth, trust, and the knowledge that if that person has made the same choice as you, there is no one you will be safer and more cherished with.”
“It’s also not something that can be rushed, and it is often confused with the feeling of lust,” Ian further explained, brushing hair from Selena’s face and tucking it behind her ear. “Its important to note that lust and love are not the same thing. But love can feel like many emotions at once. Joy, delight, happiness, stress, adoration. So many others.”
“What my lovesick brother and his fiancee are trying to say is, sometimes you don’t always know if you’re in love, and it’s easy to fall into a snare of believing you are in love,” Geoffrey laughed brightly at the couple, getting a giggle from Selena and a glare from Ian. “Especially if you overthink it. Love comes in many different forms. Familia, platonic, romantic. You love your family. You love your friends. There is no rush, Katarina. Even if you end up never choosing him, I believe my brother would wait the rest of his life for you.”
“The important thing, Lady Katarina, is that you don’t try to force the thought,” Suzanna told her gently. “There is no press for marriage, and rushing things could only result in you becoming miserable. You deserve to love and be loved, Lady Katarina. Remember that.”
This was… more than she expected.
“Thank you,” Katatrina gave them all a wary, but pleased smile. “Thank you for this. I’ll be sure to consider your words.”
“Of course, Lady Katarina,” Geoffrey laughed. “We’ll leave you to your thoughts. Don’t think too hard, though!”
As the four left, Katarina was left alone with her thoughts and the tea Anne brought into the room. She had a lot to think about.
—--------------------------------------
A knock on the door was the only thing that alerted Katarina to what time it was. Anne quietly opened the door, approaching Katarina with a relieved expression that she had been wearing since Katarina returned to them. Behind Anne, her friends quietly crept into the room, careful not to wake Geordo, who was slumped on the other end of the couch, fast asleep, only his ankles brushing against Katarina’s.
Katarina quietly bookmarked her spot and set the romance novel aside as Alan approached Geordo with soft foot-falls.
“He’s really out, huh?” Alan whispered, relieved. “Good. I’m glad. He didn’t sleep much last night, either.”
It had been an entire day since her discussion with Geoffrey, Suzanna, Ian, and Selena. Geordo had wandered to her room, where she had asked to be alone, and had promptly fallen asleep the minute he sat down and assured himself Katarina was alright.
“You’d think being unconscious for almost three days would mean you were caught up on sleep,” Katarina weakly joked. “He was out the minute I made him sit down.”
Anne was already getting several servants to set up a table and bring in food and chairs in front of the couch for the group of friends to have lunch. Mary finally got her spot next to Katarina, giving the sleeping Geordo a dark glare.
“I brought those sweets I promised,” Maria offered, handing Katarina a basket full of wonderfully smelling baked goods.
“Oh!” Katarina was practically drooling. “Oh, we should share these! As a reunion celebration! Should we wake Geordo?”
Katarina didn’t wait for anyone to confirm or deny her question, instead placing the basket on the table and placing a gentle hand on Geordo’s shoulder to shake him awake. Geordo quite literally jolted awake. As he whipped around to look at Katarina, he immediately found a pastry shoved in his mouth.
“Good, right?” Katarina beamed.
Geordo blinked. Blinked again. The poor man was clearly not awake at all. But as he slowly took in the happenings around him, he reached up to grab the pastry to properly bite into it.
“It’s wonderful,” Geordo agreed. “Thank you, Maria.”
As Katarina bit into a pastry, she observed her friends as they all began to interact and discuss over pastries and sandwiches. She wasn’t sure if she loved Geordo romantically, but her time to herself had let her realize how much she loved him platonically. There was time to decide who she had romantic interest in, after all.
Time. She had that now.
She’d probably still farm and fence. And making snakes was actually kind of fun too. But now she was doing them for just that. Fun. No more running. No more fear of doom. Katarina Claes had avoided her doom ending.
She’d have to thank Heinry if she ever saw him again.