Prince William and Prince Harry Rift: "Happy Families Are Not a Game That Everyone Can Play," Says Expert

In January, Prince Harry still seemed hopeful for a reconciliation with brother Prince William amid their years-long royal rift.

But eight months later, things between the estranged brothers are looking worse than ever, and a once conciliatory Princess Kate seems to have all but given up on facilitating a reunion. At least, that's how royal expert Jennie Bond sees it.

"When you come from a happy, united family—as Catherine does—it’s incredibly hard to understand how people can become estranged," Bond told OK!.

"I think she believed the rift could be fixed and, after Prince Philip’s funeral, we saw her talking with Harry and obviously encouraging William to do the same. But we now know that it didn’t work. In fact, William and Harry had a blazing row right after the funeral."

Then, Bond delivered the following zinger: "There comes a point when you just have to accept that happy families are not a game that everyone can play." Oooof, that doesn't sound good.

"Catherine has been hurt and insulted by things that Harry and Meghan have said, but she and William are a very strong team, and I suspect that, together, they’ve come to the conclusion that the rift with Harry cannot be fixed in the foreseeable future," Bond concluded. "They’ve closed their minds to that possibility and decided to get on with their lives."

Both the Sussexes and the Waleses are reportedly feeling hurt by one another's actions, and if you've ever been in a fight with a loved one, you'll know it's important not to take sides: Both subjective perspectives feel real to the people concerned.

To simplify a clearly very complicated situation, Harry is hurt that William didn't protect him and his wife Meghan Markle while they were working royals, and William is upset with Harry for leaving the U.K. and publicly revealing details of his and William's differences over the years.