Queen of England

Written for Hogwarts Assignment #2 - Travel & Tourism Task 2: write a Tudor!Au

Written for the Gobstones Club - Orange Stone - (theme) pregnancy, (A) cobalt, (P) monster, (T) owl

Written for Writing Club - book club - Offred: (dialogue) "The future is a nightmare.", (scenario) the other woman, (word) mistress, (colour) red, (word) fertile, (scenario) trying to get pregnant

Written for the Ultimate Writers Challenge - write an au

England had become an upheaval of discontent and division these past months. The concept of 'divorce' had been thrown around loosely amongst the common people and the upper class, and everyone was confused by what was happening. The Catholic church were doing their best to try and dull the talk, though it was to no use.

There is no other church, they were saying, yet even now people were speaking of 'divorcing' those they no longer loved. What a disaster this had caused, and people were looking to me as the cause (or with sheer gratitude).

They didn't understand, though. I wished for no part in this matter. In fact, I had spent a good portion of my life trying to avoid the king and his attempts at seducing me. Where many had failed, lured by his wealth and power over England, I had not succumbed. Why would I? There were many men out there, more charming and less thick around the waist, than what the king offered.

"You're a fool, Ginny," my dear friend Luna had said one evening over dinner. "He's rich, he's powerful, and despite all else, he's a good lover." She'd whispered the last bit to avoid my mother and father hearing.

Luna had become the king's mistress months earlier, going to his bed on a regular basis. But we both knew the king had little desire for Luna; it was me he wanted, and he simply used Luna as a means to meet his end.

Still, I refused numerous attempts of him drawing me into his bed. At least, I thought I was doing a good job until the day he caught me unawares in the palace gardens.

Being of noble birth, I was welcome to stroll the gardens as I pleased. Being a woman of interest to the king, I was even more welcome than the other women. No doubt he had spies to notify him of my presence, yet I had considered the early morning to be of no consequence. Unfortunately, I had assumed wrong. It seemed the king enjoyed the chase more than he enjoyed my company.

"My dear," the king said, bowing to me. "My dear. Thank you for coming."

I'm not sure what it was about him that day that stalled the usual excuses within me. He had bowed to me. The king had bowed to me!

With an awkward attempt to hide my surprise, I curtsied. He laughed and took my hand. "Come, Ginny," he said. "We shall eat together."

That morning was the end, after that. Despite the king being married to Bellatrix, I became what some referred to as 'the other woman'. I wasn't a mistress, someone to satisfy his needs in the bedchamber - I was loved by the king, and what an odd feeling that was for me.

I'm not sure I ever really loved him, not truly, but the woman is me was flattered that he did. Soon, his marriage to Bellatrix was annulled, and what a fuss that caused. England was no longer Catholic. Rome wanted nothing to do with us. We were now our own church, and that caused riots and hatred towards us. We had defied God, we had sinned. Yet, oddly, that mattered not.

I called him Tom when we were alone, because he insisted. It was odd, really. They said King Tom felt little affection for anyone, yet me… I was different. The lovemaking was rough, it hurt sometimes, but I went to him when he wanted me out of fear of him tiring of me.

Not long after our marriage, I learned that I was carrying a child; an heir. Tom was delighted, overjoyed. He would finally be getting a son he so craved. I was happy too, feeling a life growing inside of me. Becoming a mother was what women were raised to do; of course I could do it. I could be better than Bellatrix and produce a son for Tom.

Imagine, then, to my horror, when the doctors told me that I had given birth to a daughter. Tom was fuming, angry and violent. I apologised, worried that I had failed him and that he'd divorce me too. But soon his temper had simmered and we enjoyed the time with our daughter, Lily.

Some time after Lily's birth, I became pregnant again - this time not so much by want, but force. Tom was desperate for a son and I was quickly realising that perhaps the rumours were true - perhaps Tom did not love anyone. He saw me as a carrier for his heir and nothing more.

"You're young, you're fertile," he would say, over and over again.

I now came to his bed reluctantly, silent tears rolling down my cheeks as he grunted and groaned, his weight on top of me near suffocating. It took many attempts for me to even get a child there - so long that I feared the wrath of my husband. Some nights I hid in my rooms, feigning illness, to avoid his company.

So, imagine my relief when my illness was no longer pretend. That was what my second pregnancy was - a relief - for it put Tom in a good mood again. He announced that I was carrying the heir to England's throne and for my own sake, I wished it to be true.

And a boy I did carry… for three months. One night, as I lay in bed, I was woken to a searing pain in my belly. Calling for someone - anyone - I soon realised that I had bled. A deep, red stream came from my legs, smeared all over my sheets and my nightgown. A doctor was called and I was informed that I had miscarried. My child was dead.

Now this upset Tom more than anything that had ever happened before. As I was his wife, as I had been carrying his child, and as he was king, he was informed. It was a son. His heir. I had failed.

The only thing that saved me then was I was too unwell to be seen by him. Perhaps the doctor had lied to the king to protect me, for I was kept away, out of reach of my husband, for two weeks. Afterwards, there was no more excuses. I was released back into court life, and it was then that I learnt my fate.

I screamed, I fought, I argued with the king - my right as his wife. Yet, he was still king and he had dominion over me. I had failed in giving him a son, to which he now called me a murderer. He also accused me of adultery, which was not true and he knew it. I had been faithful to my husband, raising our daughter and that of Bellatrix's.

A trial was held, but it meant nothing. The king had made up his mind. I was to be killed for treason on nineteenth of May, fifteen thirty-six.

And that day is today.

A crowd has gathered to watch the spectacle, for my death is to be made public. It is a message to all other women who may become the wife of King Tom.

I am led to the Tower of London, with all eyes on me. I don't see them. The only image in my mind is my monster of a husband - or ex-husband, for our marriage was annulled, as it had been with Bellatrix.

As I am led along, I turn to the man dragging me. I'm no longer resisting, because I don't see the point. I will be dead soon, whether I fight it, or I slip into a peaceful space and go to Heaven as a good Christian.

The man does his best to ignore me, but I know he hears. Perhaps he even agrees. "The future is a nightmare," I say. "With Tom. Many more people will die with him in control."

He doesn't respond, but he flinches at my words and I know then that he agrees. I smile.

Tom will be defeated, I think. If not by me, but by an uprising of his people.

After that, I die peacefully. As I stare into the dark, cobalt-coloured eyes of the executioner - the two of us sharing a moment of serenity - I am distracted. As the blade falls down on my neck and a searing pain courses through my whole body, I see in the distance a small barn owl fly away. My very last thought as I sunk into my forever slumber was that little owl was a sign from above - an angel. My angel - my lost child - watching over me.

We'll meet again soon, my little one, I think as my head hits the ground.

Thank you to Tiggs for beta-ing.

Um... this is basically the replacement of names. I generated the prompt I wanted to use and Tudor!AU was the one I said 'please no' to, but I rolled with it anyway.

Thank you to Amber for saying I had to write Ginny/Tom.