In A Heartbeat - Larry Stylinson [complete]

Chapter 6 (B)

A.N.: I thought this was going to be a really short chapter, but it turned up almost 2K? Thank you all so so so much for the votes, comments, fannings, ... You can't believe how happy they make me! And really, almost 1000 reads? adskmqskdm!  

Warning: Historical inaccuracies (Well, I did my very best to make it as real as possible)

 

‘Liam Payne, is that really you?’

‘Long time no see I guess,’ Liam answered while scratching the back of his neck.

‘Wait this is "theDanielle"? The Danielle you told me about?’ Louis looked utterly gobsmacked. He’d heard Liam telling about her dozens of times, but he’d never met her. He didn’t even know that she was still alive.

‘Yes, that has to be me. I’m- ’ Danielle wanted to tell, until she was abruptly interrupted by Eleanor’s irritated voice, as she hated being left out of anything.

‘Alright, can someone please explain what this is all about, ‘cause I’ve no idea what this is all about and it’s annoying like hell,’ she pouted, folding her arms over her chest.

The room fell silent again. The four of them looked at each other, waiting for someone to take the word. Eventually Liam turned to Eleanor and spoke with a clear voice.

‘Danielle is my ex-fiancé.’

‘Wait, what?' was the immediate answer of Eleanor, her eyes spread wide open and her mouth agape, ' Is she a vampire as well? How did you meet? Why doesn’t even Louis knows her?’ Eleanor was now even more confused. Danielle placed her hand on the slightly taller girl’s shoulder to stop her from bombarding Liam with questions.

‘Let him explain, El.’

She then gestured Liam to continue. The latter took a deep breath and started his story.

‘It all happened a long, long time ago. I didn’t know Louis, as he was yet to be born.
It was the year 911, Early Middle Ages. England wasn’t like the country you know now. It was divided in many little kingdoms. My family had been the owner of Winchester as far as people could remember, but weren’t satisfied. They wanted to conquer every other kingdom on the island.

 My father Edward the Elder was at that time busy with the occupation of London and Oxfordshire. To help him in battle, he wanted to sign an alliance with Mercia. In that time the only way to sign one was by way of marriage.
My older brother was already happily married to a beautiful girl from York. As I was his second oldest son and therefore the second in line to the throne, he decided to marry me off to the eldest daughter of the king of Mercia, Danielle.
Our family prepared every little detail. We were going to marry the second of may. We both had no say in it. However as I didn’t want to marry a girl I’d never seen before, I asked if I couldn’t meet her. My father allowed me to visit her a week before the big day.

After a two days trip by horse –Mercia wasn’t that far away –I arrived at their castle. I still remember how amazed I was by it. The towers had almost double the size of our own and were ivy-grown.  Roses were blooming all over the garden. A huge wooden drawbridge was down, at that time it was high-tech technology. I used it to cross over the moat that surrounded the building. Standing before the huge front door I banged loudly on it door. A beautiful lady with her dark, curly hair covered opened.  I asked her if she could let Danielle know that her fiancé had arrived. The girl gave me a bright smile and told me that that was her. She’d opened the door herself as her parents were out hunting together with the majority of the staff and–‘