Quick note: Arthur Tudor survived Sweating Sickness and is King of England currently (1522) with Catherine of Aragon as his Queen.
Chapter I
February, 1522
Servants rushed around the courtyard of Hampton Court while courtiers walked leisurely and chatted to themselves, none of them noticing the newest courtier – Mistress Anne Boleyn.
Wearing a maroon cloak that matched her French cut maroon gown and French hood adorned with seeded pearls, Anne glanced around, her passive expression masking the fear and uncertainty that swirled in her stomach. For the last seven and a half years, she had been abroad in the French Court, first serving Mary Tudor, Queen of France (sister of the English King) and then her successor, Queen Claude, wife of the present French king, Francis I.
As much as she loved France and felt she was as much a French noble lady as a native French noblewoman, Anne knew she would eventually return to England to be married off to a nobleman of her father's choice and be a mother.
Anne looked around again, hoping to see a familiar face. As minutes slowly went by, her heart pounded more anxiously as she wondered what she would do. Should she ask for directions to the chambers of His Majesty's loyal ambassador to France, Sir Thomas Boleyn?
Before she could decide, she heard her name.
"Anne! Anne!"
She turned and almost crashed to the stone ground as a figure with a slightly askew hood hurtled into view and crushed her into a tight embrace.
"Mary?" said Anne weakly.
Her elder sister Mary Boleyn (now Mistress Carey after her marriage with William Carey) smiled and broke away, looking at her carefully. "You've grown!" she said decidedly. "You were much shorter when I left France, or are you wearing new shoes with higher heels? What do you think of England, Anne? You have not been here since you were a child! Will you serve the Queen as one of her maid-of-honours, or will you serve your old mistress again?"
Anne laughed; relieved her sister had come to collect her and the large amount of questions that accompanied her. "I missed you greatly," she confessed. "I am so pleased to see you again! If you did not show up, I would not have known what to do! England seems bleaker than France, but I suppose I must get used to it, as I will live here for the rest of my life. Why am I called back to England? Has Father finally resolved the Ormond issue or chosen a husband for me? Your letter was quite vague while Father's was abrupt and more of an order."
Mary stared at her in surprise. "You do not know?! Well! I thought Father would tell you in his letter, but he didn't?! He wouldn't have forgotten it!"
"What is it?"
"Father will be an Earl! We will no longer be daughters of a knight but daughters of an Earl! Is that not exciting?! His Majesty had decided to give our father the earldom of Wiltshire for his services as French ambassador to England. The ceremony is tomorrow! He must've recalled you to England so the whole family can be here for his investiture ceremony."
"How is George?"
Mary smiled as Anne questioned about their only brother, the handsome, charming and witty George Boleyn. "He longs to see you again," she answered. "He claims I am his beautiful sister while you are his clever sister. George is in the Duke of York's circle of friends, and is also respected by the King and the Queen. Father predicts George will be England's youngest diplomat and will be rewarded with a peerage within a few years, or at least before his marriage."
"Oh? Father seems quite confident! I thought His Majesty would be more prudent in issuing peerage in fear of courtiers suspecting him of favouring a certain family. You mentioned earlier that you are now one of the Queen's maids-of-honour?"
"Lady-in-waiting now." Mary smiled. "I am a married woman."
Anne nodded. "Of course. How is the Queen?" She saw Queen Catherine (formally Infanta Catalina of Castile and Aragon) a couple of times during the peace negotiations between France and England in Calais two years ago and found her to be a loyal wife of the King and a pious, loving woman of similar qualities to her mistress – Queen Claude – back then. During her stay in France, she considered herself a devoted maid-of-honour to the religious Queen of France, though personally, she preferred serving Claude's more feisty, short-tenured predecessor.
"Well I suppose," said Mary absently, adjusting her hood while revealing strands of her blonde hair in the process. "The King still visits her everyday and always leads her into the first dance. Even after twenty one years of marriage, the King remains faithful to her. You sound like father, interrogating me on the Queen at least once a week."
Anne blushed. "I'm sorry."
"No, don't apologise! You will serve her soon. Knowing Father, he will convince the Queen to accept you as one of her maids in a matter of hours!"
"When will I meet her?"
"You have a chance tonight." Mary grabbed Anne's hand. "Come! You must change and rest before our father presents you to the King and his family! We can't have you dozing off in your first feast back in England, now can we?"
Anne smiled and allowed her sister to pull her through a maze of corridors until they reached a door identical to other doors they passed. Mary rapped on it twice.
"Enter!"
The Boleyn sisters went in and curtsied to the man in front of them – their father. White-haired with beady, sly eyes, the soon-to-be Lord Wiltshire nodded at them coldly.
"You took a while," he noted, rolling up a piece of parchment and tying it with a red ribbon. "I thought you would've arrived this morning. As you didn't show up, you kept George waiting. It was quite inconsiderate of you as George had to miss a royal hunt with the Duke of York and his younger brother, the Duke of Somerset. What happened? You took too long packing? I gave you plenty of time to prepare your departure from France and expected you at an earlier time!"
Anne was stunned at her father's sudden abruptness that it took her a moment before replying, "The weather was bad, my lord."
"The weather was bad," Sir Thomas Boleyn mocked. "I was told you were clever. Last time I met you, you were indeed witty. I called you back for your wit. Why else would I want you here? It certainly isn't for your ah, beauty! I have Mary here for that!"
"Why did you recall me back to England then, my lord?" said Anne calmly. "If not for my looks but for my wit, what exactly for?"
"The Ormond dispute," her father said promptly. "The 8th Earl has been dead for at least six years and his earldom and lands have not been sorted yet. However, Sir Piers Butler and I have finally come to a decision to end our quarrel. Together, we will write an agreement and present it to the King by the end of the week. Butler will inherit the earldom of Ormond on the sole condition that his son and heir – James Butler – will marry one of my daughters, and as Mary is married to Carey, you will marry James. If he happens to die before the wedding could take place, you will be obligated to marry the next Butler heir, James's brother Richard. Even if Sweating Sickness kills all the Butlers except a Butler boy of four, you will still marry him and I expect you to be a loyal wife to him."
Anne swallowed. "I understand."
"That is not all! Butler's niece (Eleanor) will marry my widowed younger brother, Sir James Boleyn, and Butler will provide her a dowry of five thousand sovereigns. To further secure the alliance, it is also agreed that your future son with James will marry George's future daughter, and if you happen to have a daughter, she will marry George's heir. I will provide your dowry of five thousand sovereigns. I could've arranged your match and tell you now that you will wed James Butler, but I have decided that as you were always complimented as the most intelligent of my offspring, you will use that clever mind of yours and enchant the Butlers – especially Butler's wife, Lady Margaret (née FitzGerald). She has powerful connections and we must convince them to be our allies. Do you understand?"
Anne nodded. "Yes, my lord. When will I meet my betrothed and his family?"
"Planning flattering words already, are you?" He chuckled a little. "Very good. Fortunately for you, the Butlers are already here in England for the ceremony tomorrow. Not only will I be invested as an Earl, but James – and William Carey – are both on the list of courtiers to be knighted. Tonight, I will introduce you to the King and Queen and try and find you a position in the Queen's household. You must impress them both to help me. After the feast, I will speak to Butler and hopefully he will send James to ask you to dance. You must be prepared. I'm certain you are talented at dancing, but Mary will teach you the steps of the most popular dances in the present. Not only do I want you to be a success in the family, but I want you to be the rising star at court. Can you do that for me?"
Anne's eyes sparkled at the challenge. Unlike most girls who would cave in at the pressure, Anne liked challenges that tested her wit.
Thomas Boleyn smiled as he saw her expression.
"Good," he said, dipping his quill into the ink pot as he reached for another sheet of parchment. "I knew you would not resist a challenge! Who knows? Perhaps you will be wedded and bedded to James Butler by the end of the week and the next Countess of Ormond by the month's end."
_
Washed and dressed in a French cut red dress embroidered with flowers from golden thread accompanied by her favourite piece of jewellery – a necklace strung with pearls with the letter 'B' forged from pure gold with three hanging droplets of pearls – and her lustrous black hair covered by a pearl-adorned French hood.
She had wanted to wear her golden circlet but her father insisted for her to wear a French hood as she lacked an English gable hood to please the devout Queen.
"You look lovely," said George, appearing at the door. "A beautiful English rose."
"That does not suit me at all!" said Anne, with a small frown. "Mary is the beautiful English rose. I will not be a plain rose in a garden of roses! I will be the rose!" With that, she removed her French hood, her hair tumbling down. Defiantly, Anne reached for her golden circlet and placed it carefully on her head and smiled at herself in front of the mirror.
"I hope you don't anger Father," said George uneasily. "He will not be pleased. Anyway, we must go to the feasting hall. A late arrival won't do anyone favours."
Anne smiled beguilingly and held out her hand. "Then we shall go," she said sweetly.
George nodded and took her hand. "It will soon be James Butler escorting you to feasts," he remarked as they descended the stairs towards the chatter and faint music. "Will you charm the Butlers with your wit tonight so I will have the honour of calling you my Lady Ormond soon?"
"What about you? Mary hinted in her letters that Father betrothed you to a…Mistress Jane Parker? Do you like the lady?"
George shuddered. "She is a shrew! An utter shrew! You will meet her tomorrow if you join the Queen's household. Come! We must hurry! The feast will begin in a minute or two!"
Anne hitched up her skirt a little and sped up to the feasting hall. She gasped softly as she saw the lavish decorations in the feasting hall upon entry. Before she had a chance to look around, Mary walked up to her in a cream-coloured gown and matching hood, a grin on her face.
"You'll sit beside me," she said excitedly. "I cannot wait to hear of your last few days in France! George will sit over there with my husband." She nodded to a table of male courtiers a foot away from the ladies' table. "The royal family will arrive shortly," she added.
Anne quickly followed Mary to their seats and she instantly recognised her cousins, the Sheltons, and her childhood friend, Margaret Wyatt.
"Margaret?" said Anne, happy to see another familiar face.
"Well!" said Margaret Wyatt, amazed at the physical change in Anne's appearance (she hadn't seen her in many years). "Little Nannette Boleyn? Is it really you?!"
Anne nodded. "I've finally returned. It is good to see you again!"
"I have not seen you in years! I thought your father married you off to a French baron!"
Anne laughed. "Oh Margaret! My father would not dare marry me off to a mere baron! He'd rather eat a raw lemon than marry me to a baron! He knows I have the full potential to be a countess or even a duchess, not a French baroness!"
"That is brilliant," said Margaret admiringly. "You will be an excellent duchess. I can imagine you in a gown of mauve with a matching hat...I'm certain you will marry well."
Before Anne could reply, the royal heralds blew their trumpets and everyone stood up as the royal party
walked gracefully through the great mahogany doors to take their places at the high table.
At the King's nod, everyone sat down and the feast began.
Thomas Boleyn appeared at Anne's side before she could even nibble a slice of pigeon pie or sip English ale from her goblet.
"Their Majesties are ready to see you now," he said shortly.
Anne stood up again and walked with him to the high table. She curtsied deeply and heard her father say, "Your Majesties, this is my younger daughter I have been telling you about. She has just arrived from France today and been anxious to meet you. Anne, may I present His Majesty the King, and Her Majesty, Queen Catherine?"
Anne rose and looked at her sovereign and his consort properly for the first time in many years. Smiling at her was King Arthur. Tall, slender with almost an ethereal like skin colour and features, he looked at her with his clear blue eyes in interest as he gestured for her to rise, his thin, pale fingers only bedecked with two rings. Beside him with a kindly smile was his Spanish wife, Queen Catherine. Equally tall with slightly greying hair and in a gown of dark purple, she was indeed a regal sight.
At a rapid glance at the other members of the high table, Anne caught sight of her old mistress, the Dowager Queen of France – now Duchess of Suffolk – in a beautiful gown of green with a silver diadem on her mass of fiery red hair. The Duchess nodded at her with a smile of recognition.
"Mistress Anne," said the King benevolently. "Your father sang many praises about you while you were still in France. Are you pleased to be back home in England?"
"Greatly, Your Majesty," Anne replied smoothly. "When my sister Mistress Carey, was summoned back to England, I mourned as I was not chosen to return home to glorious England. The French court was brilliant, but when I first arrived in Hampton Court, I knew the English court is much more magnificent than that of France and I thanked God that my path lies in serving Your Gracious Majesties."
The King nodded, greatly pleased and turned to the smiling Queen. "My dear, would you like to say a word or two to Mistress Anne?"
"What are your plans, Mistress Anne?" said the Queen politely. "Will you wed Sir Piers Butler's heir and live with him in Ireland?"
The King grimaced. "Do not remind me of the Ormond dispute."
"I apologise for that, my lord," spoke Boleyn, with another bow. "However, you will be pleased to know that there will no longer be a quarrel about the Ormond earldom and the Butlers and I are now allies and ready to embrace each other as family."
The King nodded and said gratefully, "That is a relief, Sir Thomas! The last thing I wish for is more Irish family feuds over lands and titles. You are indeed loyal to the crown and I look forward in investing you with the earldom of Wiltshire tomorrow. I am quite pleased you have proven to be the more honourable man by relinquishing your claim to the Ormond earldom. Mistress Anne, you should be thankful you have such a faithful, dedicated and honourable father."
"I am, my lord King," answered Anne.
With an approved nod, the King looked intently at her father again. "Is there anything you wish for?" he inquired. "More land, permission for your son's marriage to a noblewoman?"
"As you know, Your Majesty, I care deeply for my family," Boleyn began. "You yourself, are a devoted father and uncle, and you must know how much a father like myself can love my children to such a great extent. My George is a page in your household, and Mistress Carey is one of Her Majesty's ladies-in-waiting, while Anne is not-"
"Do not fear, Sir Thomas," interrupted the Queen, glancing at Anne. "Mistress Anne will take her place tomorrow in my household as one of my maids-of-honour. Mistress Carey can inform her of her duties and attire between tonight and tomorrow and I expect Mistress Anne to be prepared for the day after tomorrow. I understand she will wish to participate in your family celebrations with Mistress Carey and the Sheltons tomorrow afternoon, and I am willing to give her tomorrow afternoon off. As one of my maids, I expect Mistress Anne to be ready tomorrow morning at dawn to attend Mass with me, and we will break our fast together after it."
"Thank you, Your Majesty," said Anne, curtsying to her. "I will be honoured to serve you and I am extremely grateful you have decided to accept me as one of you maids-of-honour." She waited a few seconds until the Queen nodded before she continued, "I promise on the Almighty I will continue serving you even after I wed James Butler."
"That is kind of you to say so, Mistress Anne. I hope you can present us with a song when you settle in your chambers and my household."
"I will be delighted to, Your Majesty."
The Queen smiled. "Excellent. I believe you remember Her Grace, the Duchess of Suffolk? She recommended you quite highly for my household. Next to her is my youngest sister-in-law, the Princess Katherine Tudor and my brothers-in-law, the Dukes of York and Somerset." Anne curtsied in turn to each prince and princess who nodded back at her.
"You may return to your place," the Queen informed her. "It will be in your best interest to ask Mistress Carey of your future duties."
Anne nodded vigorously. "I will, Your Majesty! I will!" She bobbed a final curtsey and returned gracefully to her seat beside Mary.
"The Queen accepted you as a maid-of-honour?" said Mary hopefully.
"Yes!" Anne confirmed joyfully. "She seems pleased with me."
"That is brilliant! Father must be so delighted! It will be so exciting serving the Queen together! I must warn you, Mass is always the dullest part of the day. The Queen will pray for hours upon end, and some of the ladies sleep through it."
Anne frowned a little. "I certainly will not sleep while the Queen prays! In France, Queen Claude was a devout woman, and she prayed for hours each day. I think I am used to religious queens and waiting patiently during Mass."
"Hmm. That is good! Have you seen the Duke of York yet?"
"The Queen introduced him to me, but I was too nervous to take a good look. Why?"
"Does he not look handsome to you?" Mary sighed dramatically. "He looks so sad! His wife just died last month from Sweating Sickness along with their young son and now he only has a daughter to remember the Duchess of York by!"
"What?" said Anne, interested. "Why do I not know this?"
"I didn't think you would've wanted me to write about it to you in our letters." Mary shrugged as Anne hissed softly with frustration at missing out such an important piece of court news.
"Besides, you were packing," added Margaret Wyatt. "The letter could arrive next week. What you must know, is that the Duke of York had been married to Princess Anne d'Alençon as a clause for the King's peace treaty with France and they were happy as husband and wife. The Duchess gave her husband a lovely daughter – Lady Margaret of York – and a son – Lord Henry of York – before she caught Sweating Sickness and died with her son. The Duke was desolate! It was quite uncharacteristic of him, but he is still in deep mourning."
"He has another son," said Anne's cousin, Madge Shelton helpfully. "Illegitimate of course. He slept with other women, the most notorious being Bessie Blount, now Baron Tailboys' wife. It was quite a scandal when the Duke acknowledged the child as his own! The King wouldn't speak to his brother for days! The late Duchess was devastated as she had only given birth to little Lord Henry a week earlier! Would it surprise you if I told you the Duke named his bastard 'Henry'?"
Anne shook her head, more fascinated than ever. "Henry Fitzroy?"
"Henry FitzTudor! The King refuses to give him the last name 'Fitzroy' and told the Duke that he should be grateful he acknowledges the boy as a FitzTudor and not a FitzBlount or something. The day FitzTudor was christened, the King was so sullen! He'd never been that brooding before!"
The ladies ate for a while before the King decided it was time to dance.
Gallantly, George saved Anne from finding a dance partner by leading her gracefully into the first Galliard instead of dancing with Jane Parker.
"I thought you needed a dancing partner," said George, grinning at her.
"I did," Anne admitted. "Mary is married and all our other friends have admirers or husbands they can dance with while I only knew you."
"You should know more people, dear Anne! I cannot dance solely with you every night! There are plenty of other ladies waiting for me to dance with them." He boldly paused in the middle of a dance step and winked roguishly at nearby ladies who blushed as pink as strawberries. "You see," George continued, twirling Anne around. "I am such a charming gentleman and no woman can resist my charms, I doubt even the princesses can!"
Anne gasped at his boldness. "George!"
"Mistress Anne," said a voice behind them. "Mistress Anne Boleyn?"
Anne stopped and looked at the speaker. A grin spread on her face as she recognised him as Lord Henry Percy, son and heir of the 5th Earl of Northumberland.
"Lord Percy!" she said, even more delighted to distinguish another familiar face. "What a surprise and pleasure to see you again!"
"George," said Lord Percy, smiling widely at George Boleyn. "May I have the honour of dancing with your sister, Mistress Anne?"
George gave Anne another smile and found himself another dance partner while Lord Percy grasped Anne's hands and began the next dance.
"Did you miss me?" said Anne rather seductively.
Lord Percy chuckled as he spun her around.
"Of course," he said, mesmerised by her long black hair and charismatic charm. "Every day I spent in England after seeing you in France, I wished I was at your side. My father did not like you or your family, and threatened to have me disinherited if I kept thinking about you instead of Mary Talbot! Don't worry, dear Anne. You will always have a place in my heart."
Characters may be a little OOC at the moment, but they will get more in character hopefully in the next chapter :) There will be more introductions to the other members of the royal family in the next few chapters too when Anne settles in :D
