Queen Katrina of Belgium

1 • To Keep Of My Mind

August 8th , 1602
I sat in front of the porch , awaiting my mother's return.
But she never did return.
My dry tears stuck to my frozen red cheeks. As I roamed to town dragging my navy blue dress , my stares met the villagers.
I was lost , cold , and motherless.
It was at that moment were the moon and sun met and the sky transferred from a warm fire to a cold dark sea; that a woman approached me.
She had blonde silky hair, and wore a bright green dress that brought out her hazel eyes. She stared at me for a while before calling a man and saying " she seems suited to wear a crown" .
The man , stared at me and whispered "sofie".
I was confused , then the woman crouched to my level and said " are you lost?".
I only shoke my head up and down , and choose to keep quite and my mother had warm me about not talking to strangers.
" Where's your mother?" she asked.
This time I choose to speak as I remember the same woman who told me to stay quite had just abandoned me a few hours ago.
" She left me , all alone " I said as tears threaten to fall.
The woman looked at me and the man stared in disbelief.
The woman than once again spoke " do you want to be a princess? " .
I stared at her for a while , thinking; I liked princesses they lived in pretty castles.
I knobbed.
She then whispered to the man , and the moment she had finished, he whistled and no to far from where I stood , came a carriage.

The carriage was red, golden , with brown mustangs at the front.
A small man wearing a white-gray and blue uniform came of the carriage to open the door , for the woman.
She got on , but at the moment I hesitated was I really about to leave my life, all just because my mother failed to come back , god knows she may be looking for me.

At that moment I turned to look back , but then the woman spoke up " if you don't want to go , you don't have to go " .

But at that moment I thought about how my mother would always hide me away , when the people at my home walk by or how every time she met that man , she would lock me in my room , and tell me to stay there; as if I were a dog.

I thought about all the times she made me clean floors and windows and pretend to not be her daughter.

About how when people asked my name I would say Mary Bell instead of Katrina Bellevance.

So at that moment , although I was only 8. I boarded the carriage.

I watch the homes disappear, and watch the horses as they swam through the green fields.

The blonde lady , whose name was still unknown to me , remained quite for the rest of the ride.

After a while , I noticed a castle in view. I rose from my chair to get a better view . And it really was , it was a big grey castle.

When the carriage did stop , I quickly unlocked the door , as my feet hit the gravel beneath me.

I was attempting to look at the castle but the sun kept shining in my eyes.

But then , a dark shadow cover to sunlight as I looked up to see who it was.