Coming to halt, Meredith stared. When Philip said the family had gone for a hike, she thought he meant the whole family. With her own two eyes, she saw that wasn't true. Her stomach twisted, vomit threatening to come up. Meredith had vomited on one member of the royal family, and she didn't need to make it a second member. Before her own two eyes was the Queen, and then Harry's niece and nephew.
"Um..." Meredith tried to protest. It was no help; Philip had already gone to his wife.
After greeting his wife, Philip turned back to Meredith. "She doesn't bite."
Meredith wasn't so sure.
The Queen-- Harry's granny-- smiled nicely at her.
Meredith almost pissed herself. Trying to curtsy, she almost fell to the ground. Meredith's legs trembled, and the ground waved, like she floated in the sea. Her breath caught in her throat, and she suppressed a cough.
"Are you all right?" the Queen's soprano voice came.
"Yes." Eyes on the ground, Meredith swallowed and waited, deep in curtsy. "Your majesty. Thank you, your majesty."
"You're going to ruin your knees," Philip said. "Get up."
Meredith rose, but her eyes rested on the ground.
"She's very good with orders," Philip commented, and the Queen tsked him. "She is."
"Ms Rogue, welcome to Balmoral. I know you have been here before, but are you enjoying this morning?" she asked. "It is fine weather."
"Yes, beautiful, terrific, wonderful, great, amazing," Meredith agreed, "your majesty." The Queen walked, and Meredith followed a few steps behind, eyes on her own feet. Don't make it awkward, she internally monologued, but it was hopeless. They know I'm weird. Abort. Abort. Abort! Meredith's eyes glanced around, and it was a flat field where they walked, meaning there was nowhere to hide. Philip kept glancing back, which only made things worse.
"Granny!" Harry's nephew, George, ran over, holding out rocks for his great-grandmother. It made Meredith wonder what he called Camilla. George turned his attention to the new woman. "Hello."
Meredith didn't know if she was supposed to curtsy to a child. The answer was yes, because he was royal; yet he was also a child. He wasn't going to remember this anyway. Thankfully the time passed quickly because George's little sister, Charlotte, appeared, having shiny rocks in her small hands too. Confusion rocked Meredith, now unsure if she meant to curtsy to both children; none one cared either way.
Feeling creepy just standing there, Meredith's eyes traveled around her surroundings. While it was a flat field with a small creek running through, the hills of the Highlands climbed around her, creating a cradle for her to be cast in. Harry talked about this field many times, how he laid under the sky and watched the clouds float by, liking all the airplanes for their quickness. Meredith understood.
"Miss?" George asked, and Meredith snapped to attention.
"Yes, your highness." Was that correct for a toddler? "Sir? Prince George?" Meredith didn't dare look up, knowing she wasn't impressing anyone. Swallowing, the only other words she thought of were sire and grace; neither of those fit him.
George didn't seem to notice anything odd. "Are you Uncle Harry's girlfriend?"
"Yes." What name was she supposed to use? Meredith glanced to Philip, but he didn't give any indications. "Does he speak about me?"
"He told Dad you snore."
If that was the worst George knew about her, then it was totally fine. Meredith smiled weakly.
"The castle walls are thick," the toddler said.
"I will try not to keep you up," Meredith noted.
He smiled. "Would you like to see my rocks?"
"Very much so." Meredith smiled nicely and bent down as the child came forward, showing off the shiny rocks in his hands. It was only a few, but they took up both hands. "You've found quartz." Her fingers played over the rocks. "And an agate."
"What's quartz?" he asked.
Charlotte fought her way over, looking between his handful of rocks and her own. "Do I have any?"
Meredith looked over and picked up one. "Quartz is a type of rock that is really shiny," she said. "Sometimes it looks like glass, and people get it confused with sea glass, but this," Meredith picked up a white and almost clear rock, "this is quartz. It is a common mineral, but when its so pure like this, it's just amazing. It takes a lot of pressure and heat to create rock like this."
He dropped the rest of his rocks. "What makes it?"
"Volcanoes usually."
George looked around. "Is there volcanoes here?"
"Are-- are there volcanoes here?" corrected the Duke of Edinburgh.
"No, but at one point, probably. The world is very old, and volcanoes come and go because the world is always moving." Meredith stayed away from tectonic plates for now. Grabbing the agate from the ground, she handed it to him. "Agates are rare too. Do you see these different colors?" George and Charlotte crowded around her. "Inside there are many different colors."
"I want to see inside. I want to see inside. I want to see inside," George commanded.
"George," the Queen warned.
Prince George pouted. "Please."
Meredith perhaps knew better than to say anything, because while looking around, she didn't see anything to crack open the agate. Taking the rock from the two children, who followed her anyway, it took a few tries but she managed to crack it open on the sharp rock. Coming apart in three bits, she handed them back to the children. They were in shock at the different designs inside of years and years of sediment pushed together.
"How do you know about rocks?" George asked.
"There are a lot of rocks where I come from."
"Where's that?"
"Minnesota."
George shook his head. "I don't know that place."
"A big river runs through it, and there are a lot of agates in rivers and in lakes. Quartz can usually be found in bigger lakes, like Lake Superior."
"Where's that?" Charlotte asked.
"Canada, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan."
"Whoa!" George mused. "That's big."
"Very," Meredith said.
"Mere!" Harry called as he came walking up beside the group. He acknowledged his grandparents, giving a quick glance to his girlfriend, yet she didn't seem to be in a full panic. Giving her a kiss on the cheek, he whispered, "You good?"
"Yep," Meredith responded, knowing herself that any moment this would all become real. She felt like she was in a dream, and the world still tilted beneath her.
"Daddy!" George yelled, running over to his father with Charlotte on his heels. "Look what I have! Look at the rocks!" William and his wife, the Duchess of Cambridge, bent down to his children, glancing through the rocks. "It's ah-gates and quirtz."
Close enough, Meredith thought. He was, like, five.
"Where did you get these?" the Duchess of Cambridge asked.
"The creek," Charlotte said.
"How do you know they're agates and quartz?"
"She told us." George pointed her small finger, and Meredith almost pissed herself from being pointed out of the group. She hoped she might fall into the background, yet a small child just made her real. "She's right, isn't she?"
"I'd say so," William said. Coming over, the duke gave Meredith a friendly smile. "It's nice to see you again, Meredith."
"Yes. Me too-- you too. It's better circumstances. It's nice outside," Meredith rambled.
"I'm Catherine." The duchess extended her hand. "I've heard such nice things about you."
"You too-- me too-- thanks." Meredith smiled, but internally told herself to shut up. Harry's hand slid down her back, trying to calm her.
"Where's granddad?" asked George.
"He and grandmum are still hiking. He saw some flowers he liked," Catherine said. "And you're absolutely filthy. Let's get you two washed up. Come along." The two children followed their mum inside the castle.
"Do you mind if I borrow Meredith for a bit?" Harry asked his grandparents.
"She's your girlfriend," Philip responded. "Do what you like."
"Mere?" Harry asked hopefully.
"Yes," Meredith breathed, anyway to get away from here and now. Taking her by the hand, Harry led her away from the rest of the family and down a path. Once they were out of sight, Meredith took a deep breath.