Prologue- 1177, Fontevraud Abbey, Poitou
The day had been humid and as night crept in, the temperature only seemed to rise. A young nun, fanning herself with a piece of parchment as she sprawled out on the front lawn of the abbey, screamed in shock as a dark horse leapt over her lazy form. She lifted her head up, baffled, her wimple comically hanging from her head, before collapsing back onto the hard ground with a thud.
The horse and its rider continued onwards for the modest building, leaping haphazardly over foliage and resting nuns. At the front door of the building, the rider dismounted, swinging off the horse gracefully, especially for a man of his tall and muscly build.
Inside the foyer, decorated beautifully with mosaics and stained glass, he was greeted by the Mother Superior who stared up at the man bemusedly.
"Monsieur!" she exclaimed, straightening her wimple. "Why have we a visitor at this late hour? The nuns are soon to have prayer and then bed!"
"Sister," the man whispered, kneeling before the bemused nun. "I have come directly from her most humble Grace, Queen Isabel of Castile, daughter of Henry and Eleanor of England."
"I am acquainted with all of the royal families of Western Europe, child," the elderly woman bristled. "I myself oversaw the Queen's education when she was but a child here. I know her mother personally." She paused briefly, her thoughts turning back to the Duchess of her realm, imprisoned hundreds of miles away by her own husband. "Why would she need me at this hour?"
The man, pulled his hat off and wiped his forehead with it. His riding clothes had already needed a wash before he was sent galloping off to this abbey. His greasy, brown curls framed his face as he stroked the dark stubble forming underneath his weather-worn chin.
"The night before last," he began. Or was it the night before the night before last? "The night before last, their Majesties, the King and Queen of Castile… passed away. The summer plague has been especially bad this year and it managed to infect the royal court before the monarchs could evacuate to the countryside. Her Majesty's health has never been fully well since she had the stillborn in the spring and so she caught it first before his Majesty, Eduard. They both died within an hour of each other."
The nun's face fell as she battled in vain to regain her composure. Death was something she had met many a time in her years of wearing the veil but this death perhaps hit her the hardest. Though she tried to remember Isabel as a queen, a woman far above her and chosen by God, all she could think of was the little brown-haired girl who collected flowers in the abbey's gardens.
"Dear Lord," she whispered, crossing herself fervently. "May they find eternal peace." She whispered a few more prayers in Latin and the messenger bowed his head and crossed himself.
"Thank you, Sister…?"
"Abbess Bridget, my son," she whispered, shock still stuck on her face. She gestured with her hand for him to follow her down a passageway and into her plain chambers. Nodding towards a vacant chair, she collapsed into the oppositely placed chair. If the night had been warm before, it was almost roasting now. Cursing the messenger for his company and bad news, she pulled at the stiff collar of her robes.
"Abbess, my lady, I must now explain the reason of why I am here. As you may know, if your knowledge of the European royal lineage is correct, that Isabel and Eduard had only one living offspring, a daughter."
"Ah, oui! The Princess Marie-Anne."
"Though she is a sweet and pretty child, she is unfortunately a female. My apologies, Abbess. Her father's will had stated that Castile would go to either his first-born living son or to his younger brother, Guido. As King Eduard had no living male son, Guido is now king of Castile."
"King Guido and Queen… Reina? They already have three sons and two daughters if I am correct?"
"Yes and her Majesty expects another child in the autumn. That however is not why I am here.
"Princess Marie-Ann is not mentioned in her father's will apart from a sum of money for her dowry one day. Her mother's will however states that Marie-Ann is to go into the care of her maternal grandmother, Eleanor of Aquitaine. If this is impossible, which seeing as Eleanor is imprisoned currently is impossible, the princess is to be educated at Fontevraud until she is old enough to be married. Upon reaching marriage age, she is to be married as her grandfather and grandmother wish."
"Of course. The princess is welcome to live here. We do educate many noble young ladies from all over Europe. Her mother included." The abbess sighed sadly, turning her head towards the window where a large moon hung over the rural bliss. "When do we expect the princess' arrival?"
"Before morning with any luck," the messenger replied, his muscles aching still from the ride. "She would have arrived with me but she is barely four and a hard ride would destroy her."
"I will have some of the younger nuns prepare a room for her. You too are free to stay here for the night with the monks before you ride back." The messenger pulled himself back onto his feet and yawned widely. "I will hope to see you before you leave but if not, God speed, my child."
"Thank you, Abbess," he bowed lowly, backing out of the door.
"One more thing!" she called. "What is this princess like? You seem to know her quite well."
"The princess?" the messenger smiled, looking up at the nun through a wild curtain of hair. "She has her mother's beauty but her father's temper. Her face is as sweet as an orange but her character is as strong as a lemon. A real firecracker."
AUTHOR'S CORNER
Hey, my name is Willow and this is the first story I've published on fan ! Exciting much!
I have a big love for history but in writing this story, I've pulled the truths far too much. Castile is (was) a true place as well as Fontevraud Abbey. Henry and Eleanor too were real people. Isabel and Eduard as well as the other characters however are not. But as we go further into this story, we'll be meeting more of the canons and less of the OCs!
Before you all go insane about what's written, yes, this is based on the BBC version of Robin Hood. However, in a more AU scenario. I've always loved Maid Marian and though I want her to be the same, feisty one as portrayed by Lucy Griffiths, I've always wanted her to be more regal. More closely related to King Richard etc.
Once this story gets going, I promise we will be following more closely to the plots of the TV series. Pinky promise!