A/N: This is based on Ladyjaxs999, Couture212, Narcissa Bellatrix, CourtsOfLove, and Mimi Dubois on the forums Plot Bunnies and Challenges for everything else except Anne Boleyn section. You can find it there on page twenty five through six, if Mary had a son and she was under Cersei Lannister's tutelage. This happens *after* A Song of Ice and Fire. Although GRRM hasn't finished the sixth and seventh books, we can all imagine what will happen, this is based on my own guess how it will all end.
This is also a crossover with Reign, the new CW series. All historical characters are played by their Tudors and Reign counterparts.
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Mary did not hide her ancestry from the King of France. Henri II was weak with his mistress Diane at his every bidding, Mary was still an attractive woman and the King had been attracted to her since he hosted a feast to celebrate the young Queen of Scotland's arrival.
She could see the little minx had enchanted the French Court with her antics and why not? Use what you have to get what you want. She had not realized that until it was too late. When her father had wed Kitty Howard, she thought that had been the end of everything until Anne of Cleves' lady in waiting, Cersei Lannister told her everything from how to get a man to do your bidding to what true power meant.
"Knowledge is power." She told the former Queen of Westeros.
Cersei Baratheon nee Lannister laughed in her face. "Power," she said, "is power."
"And the only way to achieve it is through sheer will, do you have sheer will or do you still need your bishop's permission to act on it?"
"I am a free spirit." Was all Mary.
And it was all she needed to say. From then on, Cersei had taken her on her wing and had taught her everything. It was not easy, Mary was reluctant. She believed in goodness, the faithful observant of the Church laws that she was, she believed that everyone deserved a second chance and those obedient to the One True Faith would get their reward in due time.
Cersei taught her that was not true.
"Power is fickle thing my love. Power lies in here, not here." She pointed between her legs then moved her finger up to her head.
"I don't believe you. God told us to forgive us-"
"Your God is no more real than my Gods, and if He does exist did He not tell your prophets to act according to the tools He gave them? Do you think your God will do anything for you? If He is behind everything then am I not an instrument of His?"
"How do you know all this?"
"After they took everything from me." Cersei simply said. "They might have left me childless and miserable and a penniless Queen with only my memory of my glory days to bring me comfort, but they didn't take my knowledge. You want power, you want to be Queen, use the knowledge and tools your God gave you." She caressed the former Princess' cheek. "Otherwise people will always take advantage of you."
And they did. For the first month of her father's marriage to that laughing whore as she and Cersei Lannister loved to call her, she took advantage of her. She took every chance to mock her after Mary refused to pay homage to her 'holy image' and after she'd told her she would grow old and remain an "old maid" (her exact words, Mary grimaced at the memory) forever that had been the last straw.
She was desperate, a crying and total wreck she went to the former Queen of Westeros and asked for advice. No, she begged her for advice. And the former Queen gladly gave it to her.
She saw in Mary the opportunity to take back what the wretches in Westeros had taken from her. Through Mary she could live again, she could relive her glory days and through Mary, Cersei could be a Queen again in all but name.
Once Mary took power of course, and Cersei made sure that she did, she would be Mary's chief adviser and first lady of the bedchamber.
She told Mary how to get what she wanted, not just how but through who. The first test subject had been Henry Brandon but Mary had fallen for the man and Cersei being the good teacher that she was quickly disposed of him through her knowledge of herbs she'd learned from Grand Maester Pycelle.
Mary was appalled to see Henry go but Cersei was prepared for the woman's anger, her oath of vengeance on Cersei. Before the foolish youth died, Cersei seduced him and he had confessed to Cersei that he intended to marry Mary and on her wedding night violate her in the most inhuman way possible so she would submit to his rule and through her his family, the Brandons, would be one step closer to the truth.
"I don't believe you." Mary had said but Cersei produced the parchment where Henry Brandon foolishly declared himself King, a parchment that Gardiner and Tunstall had approved of. And not only that, there was another, a separate one where he promised, in case the first two didn't agree, to return England to the One True Faith which was Protestantism and rid England of the fires of Catholic injustice.
Mary stared at it numbly. Her fingers trembled and the parchments fell from her fingers. How could it be? No, she thought wildly. It can't be. But it was. Betrayed and not only by her own family, her own cousin and the man she'd sworn to spend her life with, but her own faith!
It didn't surprise her that Cranmer had agreed to this, hypocrite that he was but Gardiner and Tunstall, men of the cloth, of HER faith?
Mary had never felt more disgusted at herself and at being an Englishwoman. She wanted to cleanse herself of all her blood's impurity but worse, she wanted to cleanse herself of her faith, the faith that had brought her mother so much comfort.
It had all been a lie!
Cersei saw this and smiled.
Oh how she smiled! Mary remembered. Her lips twisted into a sadistic smile but Mary was too preoccupied with her own grief to notice.
She introduced to the young woman's bed another lover the following night, a lover she knew too well. Her father's Grand Usher, Master Culpepper. His eyes so green, she felt enchanted and Cersei had dressed her well, in one purple sleeveless dress that Cersei claimed she used when she first laid with Robert.
Mary wanted no part in it. The man had been a lecher and a fool, she did not want to wear the robes that the former Queen of Westeros wore for a man that had caused her so much pain but Cersei had a way of getting what she wanted and she did. She got Mary to lie with Culpepper that night. Her soft, soothing voice ensnared Mary and she used that same tone to ensnare Culpepper.
It wasn't hard and Culpepper himself was enchanted by the former Princess. He heard tales from the Queen who wanted him in his bed but he had refused, being warned by Seymour he would probably lose his head if he accepted her offer, that she was an old maid, old and ugly. But here she was, a goddess, stunning and possessing all the grace none of her stepmothers, even the kind one, Jane Seymour, possessed.
His joy increased tenfold when he discovered she was a virgin untouched by man. Or so he believed. Mary had learned from Cersei how to trick men and Culpepper (vain man that he was) was too pleased with himself to know the difference. Mary had marked him and made him hers.
She used him just as he used her to advance his position. Theirs was a union of power, passion, and convenience and the fact both were attracted to one on another based on their looks helped their relationship even more. Why have a kitten, he must have surely told himself, when he could have a Princess -and a future Queen? His mind must have also told him.
Mary remembered when the Queen saw her wearing the ring that Culpepper gave her, the same ring she had suckled on when she met her father and used that dirty trick to take him away from his rightful wife, Anne of Cleves, and lure him into her bed. It was the ring her parents had given her before they died. The ring that gave her strength when she had none to fight against the pain of being raped repeatedly by her school teacher and all those men her friends invited. Friends she believed had her best interests at hand but in truth, just like Mary, they saw her as nothing more than a discarded daughter of the House of Howard.
Mary had made her relive those memories when she laughed in her face pretending to be her friend. When she reconciled with her, when she showed her the ring that she 'ordered' be made for her and even had the gall to tell Kitty that she offered it as a gift. Her father at that point was growing too boring of Kitty's constant complaints and erratic behavior that he had all but forgotten about that ring that she had used to lure him. In fact when he looked at it, he did not recognize it.
Mary almost laughed, remembering those days. She had never enjoyed crushing someone as she did then. It was the first time she learned what true power meant. Power meant seduction, meant deception.
She had become unrecognizable by the time that she began wearing those clothes, combining Cersei's fashions with Kitty's fashions and creating her own to further infuriate Kitty and turn men's eyes, including Kitty's lovers, to her direction.
When Kitty lost her head, Culpepper remained with her and her father was so impressed on her good behavior, how she bend the knee to everything he said, even better than her half sister Elizabeth, he claimed, that he arranged a marriage for her. To Philip of Spain.
Mary hated her father for it. She would never forgive him. She wanted to be as Cersei, powerful and mistress of everything and a marriage upset all her plans. Worse still, despite what Chapuys claimed, Mary had a husband who would never accept no for an answer, a husband whose sole loyalty would be to Spain and his faith.
But Cersei taught her tricks, ways to keep her husband controlled. Whores, she said. "Use your whores to keep him controlled." And Mary did. She used her youngest and most beautiful ladies to keep him entertained. And as her brother came into power and she began to notice how enchanted he had become with Elizabeth, Cersei even suggested she let him get airs of marrying her.
Mary had given him nothing but girls and Mary's sister constantly whispered behind her back 'experienced girl that she was' (as Elizabeth's first lady in waiting, Kat Ashley loved to claim) that she would likely continue to give him nothing but more girls and dead babies just like her mother.
Mary smiled and smiled as Elizabeth twirled in the Prince of Spain's arms and then when she finally had her long awaited son, she found that Elizabeth was conspiring with Cecil and his own minions to get rid of her. With her out of the chessboard, Elizabeth could marry Philip or worse, claim the throne based on the same excuse her father had used to declare his marriage to her mother null and void. -That she was product of an incestuous union because her mother had been married to the King's brother and henceforth was his sister and she and her children were abominations and unfit to take the throne.
But Mary had anticipated that move. Through knowledge gained from Cersei, she arranged one hunting accident, an accident in which both her husband and Bess had died. Their horses had gone out of control when they went to hunt a deer. As usual Bess wanted to be the one to have all the glory, and Philip never being one to accept defeat, followed her and that caused both their death.
They could not believe that the former Catholic Princess and Queen of England had organized the whole thing but she had. And those that did believe were put in prison, Mary found one excuse after another then she had them executed under the pretense of national security.
"Never mix religion and politics, it's too dangerous. In this day and age people prefer their monarch to be neutral, someone who is slave to no one. Someone who pretends to favor none and executes her prisoners based on state justice. You must be that monarch or else risk the wrath of both religious factions." Cersei told her and she was right.
Mary favored neither Protestant or Catholic, or so it seemed. In reality she kept them both content and gave them little reasons to hate her. Now and then she would have them fight each other and destroy each other while remaining loyal to her at the same time.
It was in times like these though that she missed Philip. While he had never been the ideal husband, he had been fun to play with. And he was a good lover, better than Culpepper in fact. Poor man, she thought. Thomas Culpepper had died a year before that hunting accident, a victim of Catholic fires. Staunch priests who did not conform with their Queen's agreement to religious reform and keeping Cranmer Archbishop of Canterbury. As her Gentleman Usher and former favorite of the late King Harry, they used him as a sacrifice to their faith. 'Heretic' they chanted, believing this sacrifice would turn Mary away from her heretic counselors but it didn't.
Two of her children had been fathered by him but none of them knew and many times Thomas wanted to tell them but she always reminded him that just as easy as she had raised him, she could take it all away. He had to conform himself from seeing his children from afar and on few occasions greeting them, bowing to them as Royal Princesses of the blood whenever he came into her royal bedchamber.
Now Mary was in France, enjoying the attentions of Henri II. His bastard son Sebastian, otherwise known as 'Bash', was there along with his oldest (legitimate) son, the crown Prince Francis. The Prince could not tear his eyes away from one of the ladies in her mother's train. His eyes were glued to her and when he looked at his betrothed he offered her nothing but a cold glare.
Poor girl. Mary almost felt sympathy for her niece. Almost, but why should she when this was the girl's fault? If she invested more time in winning Prince Francis' heart instead of charming the entire court, then she would be more successful in tearing his gaze away from his mistress.
The King's eyes turned to her. He desired her. She was after all Queen Regnant, a Queen in her own right, and unlike the young Mary Stewart, she was more experienced and she wielded more power than the girl could ever dream of.
She knew what the king lusted for. England, Scotland in his grasp. France would be invincible. Mary was not going to let that happen.
It was easy to get his attention. He was growing tired of the constant squabbles that this little Queen had created between his mistress and present Consort, both disagreed on how to approach the engagement. Of course, Mary's champion among them was Diana Poiters who saw herself as the true Queen of Henri's court, but Catherine was envious and anxious for power. An alliance with Scotland would make Diana even more invincible and place Francis in Mary's control and Diana's. She would not let that happen and then there was her over-reliance in Nostradamus, her chief prophet.
Mary stole glances when these women were bickering and glaring at each other so she would not catch their attention.
Henri must have known what she was thinking but he was lust-driven that he did not care.
Mary decided to strike on the night of his official announcement of his son's engagement with the young Queen.
He surprised her by being the one coming to her chambers. He did not ask, he just ordered her ladies out and took her and she let him. She let him have complete power over her.
Not soon after he promised her marriage. At first she laughed mentally that he must be mad, but she realized by locking her gaze with his that he was serious and she said 'yes' all at once. Just as Cersei had taught her however, she bid her time and told him to appeal to the pope for a divorce. Her son was after all King of Spain and she had the pope in her hands, just as she had an alliance with Protestant Germany. Everyone would give him his dreaded divorce and once she was wed with him, she would give him his heat's desire, a child to love and cherish. A child molded in his image that would inherit his kingdom.
Catherine was appalled when she found out about her husband's plans. Diana was not and believed it would all be fruitless. Henri had slept with many women but he always came back to her. Let the Italian fret, Henri no matter whom he wed, would remain loyal to her and it would prove beneficial because in the end, she would have disunion amongst the royal family and that would allow her son Bash, to take the throne.
It was not unheard of. Many bastards had taken their father's thrones when their father's heirs proved too weak. Bash would take the throne from his half siblings. He was far too attached to Francis, but one malady she could arrange and one by one all of Catherine's male children would die and that would leave Bash.
She smiled. This was the best decision of Henri's life. Nothing would get in her way now.
Diana's scheme proved to be her undoing. As soon as Catherine was discarded like mere chattel that she was and Mary occupied her position of Queen Consort, Cersei took care of Diana.
The King's former mistress appealed to him but he wouldn't listen to her, seeing her he realized how much of a fool he had been. His father had been right, Diana was nothing but an opportunist. She had helped him, true, in the beginning to overcome his nightmares of his time in captivity during his father's reign (when his father had sold him and Francis so he'd escape Charles V) but that time was past and he had no use of her. Besides, Bash was a lovesick fool who had fallen for the Queen of Scots and even suggested her hand in marriage after his son Francis had died.
He would have nothing to do with them. Not soon after they were banished from Court, Mary and her loyal friend arranged a little something for them.
Mary was Queen invictus. She gave the King what he desired -a son created out of love and he did away with his promise to Catherine in keeping his sons first in line to the throne ahead of any sons she and Mary might have.
Mary had Henri revoke that law and had all of his remaining sons swear on her pregnant belly allegiance to her son and the many more she'd have.
Mary smiled, with another son on the way she would have France in her grasp. When it was time to do away with Henri, she did without hesitation and his sons soon followed in the rebellions that sprung in Southern France. Rebellions that Mary knew Catherine had orchestrated in her sons' names and she sent them there under the belief that they would be well guarded but once they went to Southern France to conspire with their mother, Mary had them all executed.
It was cold justice. It was the way of the world. Cersei Baratheon nee Lannister had taught her and it was the motto under which Mary lived 'Justice Under the One' and that One was Mary.
She was her God, her mistress. She decided her fate, she ruled all.