The Dragon King's Heart

"Your Highness, let me hold it for you," Margaret said as she reached her hands out to take the woven basket from Laina.

"It's alright, Margaret, I can carry it. It's not that heavy anyway," Laina chimed as they continued down the hallway.

Laina had decided to bring Colette along to the Festival of the Felines. After all, what child did not like cats? Cute adorable furballs who delight up a room with their presence. Laina had the Royal Kitchen prepare a special basket filled with cat-themed sweets as a surprise for Colette.

When they reached the child's room, the maid who looked after her welcomed them in. She quickly knelt down to greet Laina respectfully as they entered the room. 

"Laina!" Colette's voice rang bright and clear as she ran up to the Princess, leaping into her embrace.

"Ah what a warm welcome I'm getting!" Laina said with a hearty laugh as she fumbled to keep the basket in her arms.

Colette noticed the basket Laina was holding in her arms. She could not contain her excitement as Laina placed her down so that she could show her what was inside. Margaret carefully removed the cloth that covered the contents of the basket, revealing what was underneath it,

Inside the basket was a wide array of treats and snacks, all of them hand-made by the dessert chefs in the Royal Kitchen. There were sugar cookies iced with cat portraits, macarons in the shape of cats, and even a cake that was cat-themed. 

Colette's eyes lit up as she carefully picked up a piece of macaron that was in the shape of an adorable black cat. She looked up at Laina with bewilderment in her eyes.

"How am I supposed to eat this when it's so cute?" The child asked in an innocent manner that warmed all of their hearts.

Laina and Margaret laughed as they looked on at the young child who was now in a dilemma. When Colette finally settled on which one to eat first, Laina was excited to see if she might have guessed the reason behind these cat-themed treats.

"Colette, do you like these cat-themed treats?" she asked with a wide smile. 

The young child quickly nodded as she proceeded to carefully eat a piece of the macaron. She looked up at Laina with bewilderment, wondering what the Crown Princess had planned for her next. 

"Would you like to have more?" Laina continued to ask.

"More? There are more?" the child gasped.

"If you follow us to attend the Festival of the Felines in Dracona, there will be so much more!" Laina exclaimed with glee!

A moment of joy flashed across the young child's face. But as quick as it had appeared, it quickly disappeared, replaced with a look of fear. Colette dropped the half-eaten macaron from her hands as her body shivered. 

"What's wrong, Colette?" Laina asked as she picked up the young child in her arms, "Hey hey, it's alright. There's nothing to fear. Tell me, what's wrong?"

She knew her cover would be blown the moment she came into close proximity to Dante. Going to Dracona would mean she had delivered herself straight into his hands. Even for all the cats in the entire realm, she knew she could not go. 

"Dracona… is full… full of dragons, right?" Colette asked in a quivering voice. 

"Yes, that's right," Laina realized why she was afraid, "Are you afraid of dragons?" 

The young child burst into tears, Laina did everything she could to console her but to no avail. She had hoped this would be a fun trip for Colette, and perhaps they could spend some quality time bonding together. 

But as it is, she knew it was not possible. 

"It's alright Colette," Laina reassured her, "You don't have to go if you're so afraid. There will always be next time. We can attend another one, that's not in Dracona, okay?"

The young child rubbed her eyes as she nodded, "Okay… will Laina stay with Colette?" 

The Crown Princess bit her lip, "I am afraid not, sweetheart. I will have to attend the festival. But I promise, I will bring back lots of cat-themed treats, toys, and more; okay?"

The child threw her arms in the air with excitement as she let out a squeal of happiness and laughter before wrapping her arms around Laina's neck. 

"Thank you Laina! You… you're the best!" Colette exclaimed with a wide smile on her face. 

For the rest of the day, Laina spent quality time together with her. They ate the treats together, Laina read her two storybooks and they played with the new toys Colette had received. After dinner was done, Colette soon fell sound asleep. 

Laina carefully carried her to rest in her bed, before retiring to her own room. She stretched out her back and let out a yawn as she laid down on the sofa. Margaret went to the bathroom to prepare the Crown Princess a bath. 

"Who knew playing with a child would be this tiresome?" Laina said as she stretched out her body once more, before heading to her walk-in wardrobe to pick out her nightwear. 

"Children do tend to be a handful," Margaret replied as she came out of the bathroom. 

"Having Colette is tiring enough. I can't imagine having more."

With all the duties she had to juggle as the Crown Princess, her duties will only grow when she officially ascends the throne as Queen of Kinshearth. At that point, where would she find the time to take care of Colette? 

Margaret walked over to Laina and placed her hands on the princess's shoulders. She gently massaged her shoulders, loosening her tight shoulder muscles. 

"Your hands are like magic, Margaret. Marius is such a lucky man," Laina remarked. 

The handmaid laughed, "This is something I only reserve for you, your Highness. He does not need any massages."

Laina took Margaret by the hand and pulled her to sit down next to her. Margaret already knew what she wanted to ask from the look in her eyes. But she did not know what to say. 

"So…" Laina asked with a grin, "How are things between Marius and you?"

The handmaid averted the gaze of the princess, pretending to not understand the question at all. But Laina was not buying her act. She repeated her question again. Margaret was reluctant to answer. 

"It's going alright. I guess?" 

"You must be excited to see him soon!" Laina commented, "Have you picked out what to wear while we're in Dracona?" 

"What?" Margaret gasped.

She had not considered what she was going to wear while they were there. In fact, she had been so focused on helping Laina with preparations, she barely had any time to think of what she was going to pack.