The Sword (Prince Harry fanfic #3)

Chapter Thirty-One

Harry's hand brushed over Lucy's skin, as she managed to lie still longer than thirty seconds after last night. He wished to be with her a little longer, and she managed to stay close to him. She managed to continue to lie in bed with him, but she was tense. Her eyes watched outside through the drawn back curtains as the sun made the room grow warm.

"Do you regret what you did last night?" he asked.

She scoffed. "No. Do you?"

"No." A smile tugged at his lips. "You're tense."

Moving her head back, she looked at him. "There is so much more I want to show you, but you'll have to get up."

"You're on top of me."

"Like it should be." Lucy jumped off the bed and was naked in front of him. "I'm taking a shower."

"Would you like company?"

Glancing back, she had disgust on her face. "I wash myself in the shower. We leave the fun out here."

She marched into the bathroom and turned on the water. The spraying water echoed through the room as Harry stared at the ceiling. Every time he blinked, he saw her again. She was in his dreams and in his memory. Steam rolled out of the bathroom, coming into the bedroom more. The door was cracked open, and he heard her humming to herself. It was beautiful when she sang.

"Harry, get dressed," Lucy called. "We have a lot of things to do today."

Pushing himself off the bed, he walked over to the suitcase. The windows stood in front of him, and he saw out at the blue waves rolling in on the never ending lake. Harry opened the window slightly so that cooler air came in. With every blink, he became hot again. The sun blinded him from outside, and he was forced to turn away.

"Do you want the shower?" Lucy asked from the bathroom having turned off the water.

"Yeah, I'll be quick."

They switched places, and Harry was indeed quick. Soon enough, both of them were washed and dressed, ready for another journey. Harry knew better than to ask so he went along with her as they stopped for breakfast and then got in the car again, using the scenic route to get there. Along the ways, Lucy would occasionally stop, especially at the tourist traps. Harry got a taste of northern Minnesota. Lucy would also stop at beautiful lookouts, where they would spend a few minutes. Instead of the hour drive, it took almost three hours to get up there. Once they did, Harry loved it.

Split Rock Lighthouse was on a large cliff upon the North Shore. The lighthouse had been in use many years ago to moves boats off of the rock shores. Waves pounded the rocks underneath them. Water went on for miles, as if to drop off the face of the earth. It was clear that day, with no fog so they could see that far. The view was spectacular, even with the biting cold. Harry didn't even shiver this time. Lucy said he might become a true Minnesotan if the cold didn't end up bothering him.

On the way down from Split Rock Lighthouse, it was faster. All the tourist traps had been hit, and Harry had gotten a piece of pie. Harry watched as the trees zoomed past him as she drove. Music filled the car. Though he would've liked to have a conversation with her, Lucy liked driving with music. She would hum along sometimes; other times, she would flat out scream the lyrics, which made Harry laugh. She never took the singing seriously.

"Are we done for today?" Harry asked as they neared Duluth.

Lucy had mentioned that they hit most of the tourist traps and wouldn't want to hit all of them in one go. Yet, that meant going back to the Twin Cities. Paparazzi were undoubtedly looking for them, and they would eventually be found out. These moments of peace had been wonderful. The private time with Lucy had been wonderful. Now it was time to go back to reality. No one wanted their beautiful moments ruined.

"One more stop."

She kept going on the highway and then took a right as she came out of Duluth. The bridge was high as the small car crossed it. Smoke from a factor blew by them. Harry watched as they went over the large bay of crystal blue water and slowly descended into Superior, Wisconsin.

Superior was flat, unlike its counterpart, Duluth, Minnesota. It was a small town compared to Duluth as well, under thirty-thousand to eighty-thousand. The bridge led you off into the downtown area and straight through the small campus of the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

"Now, Harry, if you look to your left and right, we are in the middle of campus of U.W.S., the college I was going to go to before one of my classmates decided to be an asshole." Whenever Lucy said something like this so casually, it made him job. Things easily rolled off her tongue, as if it was a normal thing here. "Also, Arnold Schwarzenegger went to this school."

He arched an eyebrow. "Really?"

She pretended to be offended. "You don't believe me?"

Harry leaned back in the chair. "Of course, I believe you."

"Good." Lucy drove through the rest of the campus and then onto the highway again. "You have another state under your belt. It is time for a stop."

Continuing to drive, Lucy turned off the highway and then down a dirt road, heading through swamp-like areas. Eventually, she found enough of a good spot to park and they both climbed out. Duluth was cold but Superior was colder. With the lake effect, all the cold air came from the lake. Lucy warned it would only get colder as they went in, and he nodded, following after her. Upon crossing snow, she showed more of Lake Superior. A smile crossed her face.

Wisconsin Point stood in front of them.

Grabbing his hand, Lucy led him down the pathway and toward the beach. Water was frozen on the shoreline. Ice bloomed. Cracking sounds echoed off the ice as waves rolled in. Sand was hard and cold. Snow blew in the air.

Harry sat down and pulled Lucy down with him. She landed roughly on him, but at least he broke her fall. His arms twisted around her, tight and close. His warm breath made her hair stand. His lips landed on hers. She kissed back.

Pulling back for only a moment, Harry spoke, "I love you."

"I love you."