In a crowd of thousands, I'd find you again. . .

•

When the shopping was done everyone met back at the hotel.

"You all have your keys?" Clara asked.

The three nodded.

"Okay, Jack and Davey, you're sharing a room. Katherine you get a room right across the hall. Fifth floor. I'll see you all tomorrow."

"Bye Clara." Katherine smiled, hugging her tightly.

Clara went over and kissed Davey's cheek before strutting out of the hotel.

"She's really something." Davey sighed dreamily.

"I'm happy for you Davey." Katherine grinned, "You two really are the perfect match."

"Sounds like two people I kn-"

"Rooms. Now." Jack quickly said, cutting Davey off.

•••

They made it to the fifth floor and exchanged their extra keys with eachother for emergencies. quickly bid their farewells before going to separate rooms across the hall.

Katherine put her key in the knob and twisted it to unlock it before pushing the door open.

It was a nice room. A gorgeous bed with a desk on one side of the room. Katherine sighed in awe. What'd she ever do to deserve this?

She went into the bathroom and could nearly cry tears of joy at seeing a shower for once. She quickly threw her bags on the bed before hopping in the shower. She couldn't remember the last time she was so fortunate to get a real shower. Or sleep in a real bed. Nonetheless a bed that looked like it was made for a princess.

To say she found the complimentary travel size soaps and shampoos to be interesting was an understatement. Somehow they were adorably fascinating and she smiled thinking how even if you forget something someone is gonna have your back. Kind of an ironic thing really.

Katherine got out of the hot shower and wrapped up in a towel, soaking in the warmth from it and sighing. She wrung her hair out and blow dried it (after taking a good 2 minutes to figure out the blow dryer) before going over to the bags of clothes she'd thrown on the bed in a hurry earlier. She pulled out a white nightgown with flowing sleeves that Clara had insisted on buying.  She slipped it over her head and gave a small twirl in the clean cotton before sighing, hugging her arms to herself.  It was all like a dream.  A hot shower.  A clean bed.  A boy- wait.

Katherine shook her head, clearing her thoughts.

"Stupid. Stupid. Stupid." She muttered, grabbing a hairbrush out of the bag and running it through her hair.

"Pull yourself together Katherine, come on."

She put the brush back, shaking her head before taking the bags off of the bed and setting them aside.  She pulled back the covers to the bed and slipped inside, loving the warmth that spread across her body.  She laid down against the pillow and turned off the light that sat on the nightstand.  She lay in the dark, staring deep in thought at the ceiling.

The ballet was tomorrow night.  She was meeting the Dowager Empress tomorrow night.  What if she's not the princess? What if she hates her? What if they came all this way for nothing?

She sighed and flipped over, pulling the covers up to her chin and placing her hands under her head.  She closed her eyes and quickly fell asleep.

•••

She felt young again.  The palace looked the same as always.  The King and Queen ruling as regal as ever with all of their little princes and princesses.  Katherine stood once more in a white dress as her ringlets of hair fell around her shoulders.  She felt a tap on her shoulder and the King stood there extending his hand.  Katherine curtsied before taking it and going to the floor where hundreds of people were dancing.  She knew this.  She remembered this.  She remembered dancing.  They began to waltz, twirling around and around until Katherine was sure she'd be dizzy.

"Be brave my dear." He whispered to her.

Katherine nodded, "But for what?"

Slowly it all faded away before he had time to answer.  As if a ghost everything slowly became transparent before it was gone.

She was in another room now, what seemed to be a basement.  She saw the family huddling against the wall as two guards stood in front of them.

Katherine went to run forward but she felt as if a glass window was blocking her.

One of the guards raised his gun and Katherine quickly screamed out.

"No! Wait! Please stop!" She cried.

Bang!

"Please!" Katherine cried now banging on the glass, feeling hot tears fall down her cheeks rapidly.

Bang!

"Stop it! Stop it!" She screamed.

Bang!

Katherine couldn't take it anymore and she quickly turned around to stop watching.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

She covered her ears at the screaming noises that erupted.

Bang! Bang!

Silence.

Katherine put a hand to her chest, breathing heavily and shaking violently.

"You're next." She heard a voice say.

She quickly looked up to see a man with a gun and she backed up, feeling glass was no longer there.  Her back hit the wall.  It was just the two of them in the room.  Nobody else.

"Please don't.  Please.  Think about this, please I beg of you!" Katherine cried.

"Your time is up dear.  I've always wanted to do this."

"Please." Katherine cried, barely audible through her sobbing.

She heard the click of the barrel and shut her eyes tight.

Ba-

•••

"Katherine! Katherine!"

Katherine tossed and turned, trying to kick or hit whoever's hands were around her wrists.

"Stop! Stop! Let me go!" She sobbed.

"Kath! Wake up!" Jack said, shaking her.

Katherine shot up, her hand hitting Jack in the face and knocking him off the bed.

"Ow!" Jack said, grabbing his nose.

"Oh gosh I'm sorry!" Katherine cried, quickly getting out of bed and running to him, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"It's fine." Jack groaned standing up, "Are yous alright?"

"Wait, why?"

"Kath, yous was crying and screaming in yo' sleep.  I could hear yous from across the hall."

Katherine quickly put her hands to her head, backing up to sit on the bed as the memory hit her quickly.  Her breathing was rapid and she shook her head.  She pulled her knees up and buried her head in them, determined not to start crying again and failing as her shoulders shook.

Jack carefully sat next to her on the bed, "Do you wanna talk 'bout it?"

Katherine looked back up at him, her eyes bloodshot and her lips trembling before she threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly and gripping at the fabric of his shirt.

"It's fine. You're alright." Jack whispered, sitting further back to hold on to her easier.

"T-They're d-dead." She choked out between cries.

Jack gently stroked his hand through her hand whispering calming shushes in her ear.  She shook her head, burying it against his shoulder.

"I-I watched them.  T-They were s-shot right in f-front of m-me." She said, her voice cracking hard.

"Yous alright Kath."

"I'm not." She whispered, "I'm not at all."

Jack quickly took her face in his hands, wiping the tears off of her cheeks. He pushed her bangs out of the way that had been sticking to her forehead in sweat.

"Jus' breathe, okay? Breathe. I can't have yous hyperventilating. You're okay." Jack said pressing their foreheads together, "Jus' like t'is, okay?" Jack breathed slow and steady and Katherine shakily tried to follow his pattern. He gently laced his fingers between her's.

"Yous okay." Jack whispered, "Nothing is gonna hurt yous if I have anythin' t'a do with it."

Katherine nodded, closing her eyes gently, "I'm sorry." She whispered, "For waking you."

"I was more concerned about yous." Jack smiled.

"Why?"

Jack cheeks flushed pink, "Well I like ya. Yous a nice girl."

Katherine furrowed her eyebrows at the lame remark, what felt like a balloon in her heart quickly deflating.

"Well, um, I like you too." She said awkwardly.

She sat back on the bed against the pillows, "You know, I've always had this vision."

Jack raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"I don't know if it even happened. Could just be me and my silly imagination." Katherine muttered, playing with the hem of her nightdress.

"What was it?"

Katherine sighed, resting her hands in her lap.

"After all of that happened- the deaths. I was running from something, I don't know what. But someone had grabbed me and I was yelling and kicking and screaming for them to let go. It was horrifying. But someone helped me. I don't know who. But it was a young boy. If it weren't for him I probably wouldn't have gotten out alive honestly." Katherine sighed, "Stupid I know."

She looked up to see Jack's shocked face; his eyes wider than she'd ever seen.

"What?" She asked, tilting her head.

"I-I was t'at boy." Jack stuttered, "I was the son of one of t'a servants. You- Yous remember."

Jack smiled, grabbing her hands, "You really are the princess."

"Just because I remember something doesn't mean I'm- mmph!"

Katherine was cut off by Jack pressing his lips against her's. She could feel her heart flutter wildly in her chest and her eyes closed in bliss as she felt as if her stomach was doing flip-flops over and over. Her legs felt like jell-o as she twisted her fingers through his shaggy black hair. He was a good kisser, she'd admit that. Jack wrapped one of his hands around her waist as the other tangled into her hair. Finally they pulled away, breathing hard and foreheads pressed together once more.

"I've been wanting t'a do that. . . fo' a long. . . time." Jack got out between breaths.

Katherine was grinning like an idiot, her cheeks flushed with color and her eyes absolutely sparkling, "You may not be the only one." She whispered, putting a hand to his cheek and giving him another kiss.

Jack rolled off the bed and stood up, "I's gotta get back to the room or Dave will get up and wonder where I's went."

A small jolt of fear made its way through Katherine's body.

"Can- Can you please, maybe, stay?" She stammered nervously, "Just even until I fall asleep- I just, I don't want it to come back. . . I know it will." She said, looking away shamefully.

Jack looked at the door and back to her. He walked over and tilted her chin up.

"Okay, I'll stay with yous."

Katherine nodded, "Thank you."

She slipped back under the covers and Jack cautiously got in next to her, unsure how the boundaries were set here.

He laid on one side as she later on the other, awkward silence in the air between them.

"Goodnight Jack." Katherine said softly.

"Um, yeah, goodnight." Jack said, turning over to face the window.

Within a few minutes Jack heard Katherine's breathing steady out and he turned over to face her. Katherine's eyes were closed, her face relaxed and her lips parted. Jack smiled, gazing over at her. After a few minutes of a yes or no in his mind he pulled her closer to him. Katherine, in a half asleep state, scooted over until her head was pressed against his chest and threw her arm across his torso. Jack tensed up nervously but quickly relaxed as he stroked her hair softly.

So he'd kissed her. And she'd kissed back. They kissed. Kissed.

What happens now?

Jack decided not to think about that. Right now he had his favorite girl, no- princess laying in his arms and that was all he needed to feel content.

He closed his eyes, wrapping an arm around Katherine's waist, and soon fell asleep himself.

WOW THAT WAS A LONG ONE BUT YAAAAY THEY KISSED! HOPE YOU ALL ARE HAVING A GOOD DAY AND TALK TO YOU LATER!! :)