Thanks again for the reviews!
Just realised the date, 500th anniversary of the death of Prince Henry, Duke of Cornwall... imagine the differences if he had lived.
Henry could hear people speak as he slowly regained consciousness, he could hear his wife Kate assuring someone beside her that he would better in no time. He had been dancing he remembered, he was old, and he extinguished his energy. He was nearing his death, soon he would be grilled by St Peter at the pearly gate on all of his sins. He inwardly cringed having to admit to a saint of what he had done. He kept his eyes closed as he heard the three woman in his life speak around him. He heard Mary first.
'He is really ill, he is acting very odd' She said and he heard Elizabeth eagerly agree with her and the girl pointed out that their father had mentioned their mothers. Kate defended him.
'Your father is not as young as he had been, he may feel some regret what befell on them both' She said diplomatically, his daughters said nothing. Henry peaked through his eyes seeing Kate sitting sewing with both of his daughters, it was dark and they only had candles around them. He was touched that they did not want to leave his side at this hour of the night. He closed his eyes quickly before they caught him.
'Where is Sir Edmund?' Mary asked and Henry could practically feel Elizabeth smiling towards her sister.
'Why are you so interested?' She goaded and Mary scoffed and Henry almost did the same, that was her uncle! It sickened him slightly, but alas how were they do know?
'Don't be foolish Elizabeth' Mary defended herself and Elizabeth chuckled.
'You were dancing with him' She pointed out gleefully, Henry reminded himself not to sit up and scare them while insisting Edmund Owen was out of bounds, he wanted to listen to what his elder daughter would say.
'Father asked me to dance with him, I was being polite' Mary said with tone telling Elizabeth not to continue her line of thought. Elizabeth managed to control herself and muttered 'humph' in reply.
'Not that he could dance poor fellow, don't they know how to dance in Wales?' Elizabeth asked amused and Henry heard Kate chuckle.
'Of course they can, but he did look out of place' She said kindly
'So where is Sir Edmund?' Mary asked and Kate answered
'He is with Lord Hertford, Herford seemed eager to speak with him' She said her voice lowering at the thought of Edward Seymour.
'Why are you so interested?' Kate asked with a smile in her voice and Mary said nothing for a moment.
'Father called him "Arthur"' She said in a serious tone, the other two said nothing. Henry inwardly cringed, how was he to explain that?
'So…..?' Elizabeth asked disinterested
'They look alike, father and him have been inseparable, his name is Arthur, that is a Tudor family name, our uncle was called Arthur' Mary reminded Elizabeth who said nothing.
'What is the meaning of it all Mary?' Kate asked and Mary sighed.
'I think that no matter what father says, and for whatever reason he has for not telling us, that Sir Arthur Edmund Owen is his son' She said Henry was surprised that they did gasp in surprise.
'Perhaps' Kate simply said but he heard Mary stand up irritated.
'Why would he not say? He had no qualms about my poor dear brother Henry FitzRoy's existence, I believe he held celebrations at last he had fathered a healthy son' She said no able to keep the bitterness from her voice.
'Is he too young to be Uncle Arthur's illegitimate son?' Elizabeth asked and Henry could hear Mary round on her defensively.
'Prince Arthur of Wales was ill and sickly and could not perform tasks which men are suppose to, it was not his fault, he was a boy' She said managing to control her annoyance, oh how she worshipped her sainted mother.
'Calm Mary, Elizabeth had a very interesting point, there is obvious a connection between the two' Kate said and Mary sighed heavily.
'Arthur died in fifteen oh two, Arthur or Edmund or Owen whatever his name is, is only a year or two older than me'
'My money is on that he is our half brother' Elizabeth spoke up and he heard Mary laugh.
'Another half sibling' She muttered.
'There is something else about him' Mary began and Henry peaked out at the girl, his wife and younger daughter was looking at her.
'What?' Kate asked and Mary shook her head looking irritated she was unable to solve this puzzle.
'I'm not sure, nothing is as it seems with Sir Edmund' She said confused. They fell into silence until Elizabeth spoke up her voice held some sadness which Henry felt he did not deserve.
'Papa is dying isn't he' His throat tightened at the thought of it all, he was still not ready to go. Henry decided he did not want to hear anymore and made a great deal of tossing and turning as much as his shattered body could muster. He heard them rush over to him and call to him. He opened his eyes as slowly as he could and tried to give the expression that he was confused.
'Where am I?' He asked and Kate caressed his cheek, she was a very attentive wife.
'You are in your chambers, you fainted while dancing, it was lucky Sir Edmund was there he caught you on time before you hit your head' She said softly and he smiled weakly at her. A knock on the day interrupted them for a moment and Elizabeth ordered the person to enter, Arthur came in with a small smile. He bowed to them, they said nothing about how he came over to look at the King of England.
'How do you feel?' Arthur asked and Henry shook his head.
'Awful' He replied and Arthur smiled. Henry was content to know that Arthur was still there, there was still time to see other wrongs he had done, and there was still time to see the fate of his children.
'You gave us quite a scare' Kate said and his daughters nodded, Mary seemed more forlorn lately, he thought he had been making progress with her. He frowned at the thought that she would never be happy and it was too late. Kate stood insisting they should leave and let him rest and they did so but an unspoken agreement meant that Arthur remained behind. Henry waited until the door closed and he turned his head towards his brother.
'Can you make me better?' He asked, if Arthur could make him young again, he would not be ill, but perhaps he could make him have a little more strength than what he had at the moment. Arthur hesitated.
'I am not supposed to' He said glancing around him and Henry nodded accepting it.
'However I am not supposed to be here, oh God knows but God was not the one to send me, it was your wives' He said and Henry nodded he briefly wondered what type of correspondence Arthur had with them. He hadn't thought much about it, did they see each other up there in the clouds? Did liking one of them annoy the other? Arthur however did not seem to be paying attention to his little brother's thoughts and was leaning against the bed post he seemed rather happy with himself.
'We are coming along nicely though Henry, you feel remorse for what you have done, Thank God' Arthur said looking relieved.
'Why?'
'You thought it was hard to argue with Catalina, and then argue with Anne, try defend yourself against them together' Arthur said wearily and Henry laughed but it turned into a cough.
'Have we much else to see?' He asked fearfully, he was beginning to dread dying. The little time he had to take care of his children were not enough and he had wasted years with them seeing to his own needs.
'Jane's memories, and then your children's fates' He said and Henry nodded again. Arthur stood and watched the moon through the window. Arthur's voice then spoke from the window, his words sent chills down Henry's spine.
'She will come and see you tonight' He then warned his brother and Henry stared at his back. Horror overtook him, Arthur did not have to tell him who she was. Oh God! She was coming to see him? What would she say? What would she do? What would he say to her? Sorry? That seemed irrelevant, how could he mumbled just one small word to her?
'Arthur will you stay, like before when Katherine came' He said and Arthur turned and looked in surprise.
'Are you sure?' He asked folding his arms and Henry nodded briefly wondering what the difference between Anne and Katherine were to his brother. Henry insisted on getting out of the bed and dressing, Arthur hadn't wanted him to but he pushed further. Having dressed himself - with Arthur's help - he had something to eat to build up his strength and then he waited and waited. He watched Arthur like a hawk for any hint that she was about to enter the room. How had Katherine come again? Through a door? Or the wall? After an hour he was unable to sit, his nerves were frayed, he poured himself some wine to calm himself when he heard Arthur quickly walked over to him and give him a curt nod and told him to look behind him. His heart pounding in dread Henry turned slowly and came face to face with the spirit of his former wife Anne Boleyn, next to her stood Elizabeth. It was like before with Katherine and Mary, his daughter did not speak and seemed to only have a vague interest in her surroundings.
'You are here' Henry whispered to her in surprise that he should not have felt and she nodded.
'I came to see my daughter' She replied and turned her head and beamed at their child.
'I feel regretful how I treated her, I wanted to give you a son and so I neglected her my little girl, I am proud of her, she is clever and although she is like me in many ways, she is not so intemperate as I was' She said with a hint of amusement. She looked back to Henry her smile faltering slightly.
'You must be proud of her Henry' She said and he nodded
'I am very proud of her and I know how clever she is' He replied and her eyes narrowed slightly, an edge in her tone now.
'But you ignore her, you claim she is no child of yours, even though you knew too well that it was only you and me during our marriage, my poor little girl' She said her voice strong and dominating, a tone he never forgot. Henry felt defensive about the truths and lies of their marriage.
'But you were not a virgin when you married me' He insisted showing neither of them had been angels, she found that amusing and smirked.
'Rather obsessive with that line of thought aren't you' She said and he heard his disloyal brother laugh with no shame and Anne sent him a wink of Henry's shoulder. Before Henry could chide the both them she spoke up.
'It matters not how I was before our marriage, it matters that I was true to you and I gave you a daughter, your own daughter, but then you tired of me, you were just as much to blame as me for the disgusting treatment of Katherine who you had known since you were ten, and you were to blame just as much as me, if not more for the mistreatment of your own daughter, but then you turned on me as well and destroyed me and with me you sent four innocent men to their deaths, two of those men you had once said were your friends' She said her voice rising and Henry turned away from her not able to look at her. He thought over Norris, Smeaton, George and even Brereton's execution, he felt ill again.
'Anne, stop' He whispered, he glanced at her and saw her shake her head saddened. Henry looked to Arthur but could barely see his face in the dark. Henry turned back to look at her and she looked at him sadly.
'Poor young Katherine Howard, another young lady in my family who was pushed to the front in a bid to get power, like me she saw a glittering prize that was the crown of England and she went for it, but unlike me she was just a child and knew little of what it meant to keep you happy, poor child went astray and you killed her' She said shaking her head.
'I am sorry' He whispered rasping to her, she stared at him for a moment and then nodded a smile gracing her lips. She looked to Elizabeth once again.
'Tell her not to be afraid, love can be a beautiful thing' She said looking fondly at her daughter. He nodded not sure what to say to her, he could not figure out if he still loved her but he did feel a desperation to try and keep her in the room with him. Anne looked over his shoulder to Arthur and smiled at him, Henry turned around to Arthur to see him stand still his arms crossed, Henry turned back to Anne and to his horror she was gone.
'Anne?' He called into the darkness but she never emerged. Henry turned to Arthur who stepped closer to him.
'You'll see her soon' He said and Henry nodded, he remembered he'd see George Boleyn, Henry Norris, William Brereton and Mark Smeaton soon also he cringed, maybe he could hold them off, maybe Arthur would help him.
'Go back to sleep Henry, we will continue where we left off tomorrow or perhaps the day after' He said and Henry nodded, he dressed for bed lay down and although he obviously did not make anything better with Anne he felt better about it than he had. She had come to see him, she had made no moves to attack him. He repented and when he went to heaven he would do all in his power to make peace with Katherine and Anne. He woke the next morning but was too sleepy to move from the bed, he asked Arthur to stay with him even when Lord Hertford insisted he come riding with him. Arthur stayed by his side with Mary and Elizabeth. They spoke in their natural language of gossip at court, nothing very interesting but he did learn with some selfish glee that King Francis was dying. Francis had an adult son to succeed him, and he had a grandson to succeed his son, Henry tried not to be jealous. He ate little the whole day and went to sleep early. Again Arthur was there when he wake, he had frown and seemed concerned.
'We will have to look at Jane's memories now' He said and Henry nodded, Arthur leaned over and make Henry young once again. The energy he almost forgotten came back to him like a good long lost friend, he stood quickly flexing his muscles delighted not to be a cripple of an old man. He could live with being thirty three in heaven. Arthur held out his hand and Henry took it. They reappeared at Whitehall, Jane was standing in a room with her brother Edward.
'This the day before her wedding' Arthur told him and Henry nodded. He admired Jane's beauty once again, her silvery silky blond hair, her pale beautiful complexion. Soon she would bring poor Mary back to court, and then she would bring poor Elizabeth. She would bring his broken family together for Christmas, he smiled watching her.
'Are you happy?' Edward Seymour asked her, he actually smiled softly at her. It was shocking to see, usually he smiled slyly. Jane nodded.
'Nervous' She told him and he chuckled. Arthur spoke up.
'It may surprise you, but Edward Seymour loved his little sister, both of them are quiet and they got on well as children, Tom Seymour and Elizabeth Seymour were the more wild child of the Seymour stock' He said and Henry nodded, he remembered many of Jane's childhood stories would be centred on what Edward and she would have gotten up to. He smiled fondly at some of the stories she told him, he seemed like a nice childhood, that of a countryside upbringing. He had said that to her once but she laughed and added it could be charming but also rather boring, and then there worries that they would not achieve much else than what they had. Edward the eldest had gone off to court, Henry had barely recognised him when he was introduced to Jane's brother but apparently Edward had held quite a few court positions. Henry watched as Jane spoke up.
'It is a pity Tom can't be here for the wedding' She said moving over to stare at her wedding dress laid out on the bed. With a pang Henry realised that she never got to say goodbye to her brother Thomas, he had been in France at the time, drinking wildly, and sleeping with a different woman every night. The calmer and more boring brother remained in England. Edward the bore nodded and leaned against a wall casually for some support. Jane spoke up.
'How is father, has his cough gone?' She asked and Edward's face went rather ugly at the mention of his father.
'No' He said curtly and Jane sent him a reproachfully look.
'He said he was sorry' She muttered almost reluctantly, Henry frowned confused.
'He still slept with my wife' Edward said through his teeth, she said nothing but looked at him sadly. Henry nodded to himself remembering that John Seymour had been caught in bed with Edward's first wife, Henry couldn't help but chuckle that Edward did not pick a great second wife. He watched as Edward changed the subject quickly.
'I wonder if the King will give me a good position at court, I am to be his brother in law, he needs to make our family more respectable if you are going to give him his male heir' Edward said and Jane smiled faintly. Henry tensed at the mention of this, had she also only married him for favours? Edward IV had risen all of his brother and sister in laws to the peerage when he married Elizabeth Wydeville, it was natural to do so. Henry had always enjoyed his mother's stories of how his grandparents had met, and how his grandfather had fallen madly in love with the beautiful Elizabeth Wydeville.
'He made Thomas Boleyn, earl of Wiltshire, and made George Boleyn, a viscount, perhaps he might make me one' Edward said thoughtfully and Jane nodded.
'She probably demanded it from him, I won't be' She said and Edward stood up straight.
'Jane you are to be queen, pillow talk is very affective' He told her and she shook her head.
'Perhaps eventually, I do not wish to push him, I will not be a disagreeable wife' She warned him and he nodded. Henry smiled at her, she had not been a disagreeable wife, he had been a disagreeable husband. She moved over and sat down on a chair.
'You still have not answered my question' She said and Edward frown in confusion.
'About Thomas?' He asked and rolled her eyes with a smile at the mention of her wayward brother.
'You have not told me which nunnery Anne has been sent to, I heard nothing while we were back in Wulfhall' She said and Edward sat up straighter. Henry felt his stomach drop, this was the moment when Jane saw him for what he was.
'She was not sent to a nunnery' He muttered uncomfortably, Jane looked at him confused.
'He gave that witch an estate?' She asked sounding disturbed, Henry mournfully wished he had. Edward stood up and paced the room for a moment as Jane eyed him.
'She's dead' He said bluntly and Jane made no movement.
'Dead?'
'Yes, by the order of his majesty's privy council she was executed for adultery along with Sir Henry Norris, Sir William Brereton, Mark Smeaton, and her brother and lover Viscount Rochford' He said in a dull business like voice.
'Did she do it?' Jane whispered, Edward shrugged.
'If his majesty said she did, then she did' He warned and Jane looked to the ground.
'Why are you upset, you hated her' He pointed out and Jane glared at him.
'Yes I hated her, but did I wish her dead? no I did not, and worst of all, he had her executed, his wife, tomorrow I will be his third' She said her voice rising, tears in her eyes. Edward sat next to her and put an arm around her. Henry could barely blame the woman, she had seen Katherine's horrible unjustly punishment and now she was about to put on a crown that had been worn by a murdered queen.
'Calm sister, it will be alright I promise, you will be safe' Edward assured her and she nodded but looked doubtful.
'Where is little Elizabeth?' She asked her face cringing, Edward shrugged.
'At Hatfield I suppose with Mary' He said and Jane shook her head.
'Anne was the reason for Mary losing her mother, and now I am the reason for Elizabeth losing hers' She said shaking her head. Henry did not think that he could have loved Jane more for her compassionate words, he wished to tell her it was his burden to bear and not hers.
'You are not, you did not know this would happen' Edward insisted and Jane stood up away from him.
'It matters not, he took a fancy to me, I encouraged it, he sent me gifts, I declined because we knew it would entice him further, I came to court, I served his wife and she knew what was happening because she had done the same thing to Queen Katherine, I am no better than her!' Her voice raised and Edward stood up.
'Shush! Do you want the King to hear what you are saying?' He demanded and Jane turned away from him.
'I knew he would rid of her, but I did not realise he would kill her' She said and Edward shrugged.
'No loss, she was a wicked woman anyway' He said dismissively, Jane said nothing but she looked towards her dress and closed her eyes. Henry was brought out of his trance at staring at the scene before him when he felt Arthur take his hand and escorted him to a different time and place. They were at Hampton Court, Henry winched remembering this moment. He and Jane were sitting eating she was happily describing their visit to see Mary which she insisted upon. Henry scowled at his younger idiotic self as he sat looking irritated with her. Why could he have not embraced every moment with her? He saw Jane looking worried.
'Your majesty, why will you not speak to me?' She asked her beautiful voice sounding hurt and confused. He saw his younger self look at her coldly.
'I am disappointed that you are not yet with child' He said and she looked saddened at his remark. Henry shook his head disgusted with how callous he sounded. She would give him a son, and she would die from it and here he was unknowingly wishing for that day. Arthur led the way once again and Henry found his sweet Jane alone with her brother Edward once again. She looked troubled, Henry wished to soothe her but remembered it was impossible. He watched Jane pace back and forth agitated finally she turned to her ignorant brother.
'He has a mistress' Edward Seymour looked surprised and irritated by her.
'He's Henry the eight, of course he has a mistress, dear sister did you actually believe that he would only be content with you?' He asked softly, her face crumbled slightly and she paced back and forth again. Henry could not bring himself to be angry at Edward's harsh words, it was his harsh actions that had her almost in tears.
'Of course I knew, I came into this marriage knowing what was expected of me, I would turn a blind eye, I would adore him, I would give him his son, he would be kind to me, I was not a silly girl who thought the handsome prince would love me above all, I expected him to take a mistress, I even expect him to stop loving me, I am just surprised at how much it hurts' She said her voice almost breaking at the end. Henry shook his head angry and upset with himself, his poor sweet Jane. He wanted to her hug her and was thankful and shocked when Edward Seymour showed himself to have a heart and took his sister into his arms to calm her down. He let go of her and smile softly.
'The lady is Ursula Misseldon, I do not think she is all that much to look at but you know me and women, I have little notion of it all… look who I married' He said his voice turning rather more darkly. Jane looked at him sadly.
'Is she treating you well?' She asked and Edward barked a laugh
'Your embarrassing me, my little sister should not have to tell my wife to stop bullying me' He said with a harsh laugh, she looked at him sadly.
'She is not good to you, I don't understand why you married her' She said shaking her head, her own pain put to the side. Henry loved that about her, she cared for others more than herself. Edward muttered something about a dowry then turned back towards his sister who bit her lip nervously.
'Do you think he loves her?' She asked almost nervously, Henry shook his head frantically, he would never love Ursula. He was a spoilt selfish child, and eventually he would allow her to leave because he would look at her and realise that while he was with her, he should have been with his true love, and by then she was gone. Edward sighed sadly.
'Not now, I don't know if he will, have faith you will give him a son I know it' He said and she nodded.
'There are no signs, what if I am barren?' She asked and he shook his head.
'You are not, don't fret sister, soon everything will be better, it takes some time for theses matters' He assured her and she nodded.
'He is disappointed in me' She said and Henry closed his eyes, he opened them in time to see a nasty look on Edward's face.
'He is hard to please' He said coldly and Henry nodded for once liking Edward and his loyalty to his sister. Jane moved away from her brother.
'I love him, he can be vain, he can lose his temper easily, he can be cold to me, but sometimes - nay most of the time he is affectionate, he is like a grown child, endearing, and he wants to be loved, so very much, I don't quite understand yet why he feels the need to be the best he mentioned his mother adored him and he adored her, so love must have not been found wanting when he was a child, and he can be kind and generous to all those he trusts' She said and looked to her brother who nodded. She continued on a small smile on her face.
'I looked at him when he saw Mary and I saw a different Henry Tudor than most do, but I know he will stop loving me eventually, I would rather do my duty by giving him his son, and dying before I bore him my feelings for him are that strong' She said her smile gone, and her brother scolded her as Henry shook his head again, he would love her until the end of time.
'Don't be so foolish Jane' Edward said and began to lecture her about how good she was, and how kind she can be, he pointed out the delicate way she handled bringing Mary back to court. Jane barely listened.
'I am no angel, Anne Boleyn's blood is on my hands just as much as it is on Henry's' She said and Edward began to rant at her about her folly. Arthur held out his hand and Henry took his wondering when else he had hurt her. There were no more memories of Jane, she was gone and Edward was a baby, Henry watched with shock as he looked over visits to his infant son as he grew from a baby to a boy of nine. He had never realised how little he had seen of Edward, the child he had longed for since he was seventeen and the new King of England. He watched Edward alone with Lady Bryan, Mary visited him rather often, they were more like mother and son than brother and sister. Elizabeth was his playmate but Henry still saw Edward alone without parents. Arthur held out his hand after watching Katherine Parr read Edward a bedtime story which caused Henry to smile softly at, he wished she could have a child. It did not matter if it was not his child, he hoped she would have a child she clearly longed for. They reappeared in Whitehall in Henry's chambers and again he was older and possibly more frail than before. Henry sat down quickly before he kneeled over from his lack of energy, he put his hands in his receding hair in sadness. He had lived an old age, it could be longer, the old earl of Shrewsbury had lived until his eighties! But it was still long enough, he could have died as a teenager, or when he was hit in a joust, he was lucky to reach his age but he realised now he had spent more time with meaningless mistresses - whose names he could barely recite - than with his own children. He sat down deciding he could not be of good cheer to joy and enjoy his family's company. He ordered for him and Arthur to be fed and left alone. To pass the evening they gambled by playing dice, Henry did not wish to talk much and allowed Arthur to rant about how terrible gambling was. He really was a miser. As the sun set in the distance Henry watched it sadly, when it was gone Arthur spoke up.
'Jane is coming tonight' He warned him and Henry stared at him in surprise, that was quick. He nodded his heart elevated that he would see and he would make sure he knew he was sorry for what happened between them. He would apologise for his cold behaviour, could he hold her?
'Will you leave?' He asked and Arthur nodded and rose from the chair, Henry was startled.
'She's coming now!' He didn't mean to shout out in surprise and Arthur laughed and nodded. He left promising he would return as soon as she left and Henry nodded willing himself to remember to ask Arthur how exactly he knew when she would come, and when she would go. Henry sat in the quiet room, it beginning to be exceedingly dark again. He waited and waited, he stood to pour himself out a drink to help his nerves. Then he heard her.
'How is my son?' She asked in that same beautiful voice, he turned around and he was full of pride at seeing his handsome boy with his beautiful wife. She had her arm on his shoulder affectionately.
'Jane' Henry said smiling at her lovingly, to his surprise she did not smile back, her eyes went to their son she looked worried like how she had in the memories. He could not hold her but he urged himself to soothe her with his words.
'He is well, I have taken all care of him, sweet Jane and soon he will be King' He said proudly and he noticed she looked on the verge of tear, she shook her head.
'My poor boy, my poor child' She said raising her voice, he moved towards her in desperation, this was not how he imagined this.
'No he is the most beloved, he is my special boy' He said trying to urge her to remember how dear their son was to him. She looked at him tears in her eyes.
'He will die young' She said sadly and Henry's heart turned eye cold, he shook his head in denial. Arthur would have told, Arthur would have told him Edward would die young if he really would. Henry felt like crying, she would not lie about such a thing, her sadness was coming off her in waves. Their boy was doomed to die young. Henry put his head in his hand and sobbed. Why did Edward have to die? He did no wrong in life, and all this time of taking five more wives it would mean Mary would get the throne or maybe war would break out like he always believed it would. He shook his head, tears rolling down his cheeks, Jane spoke up.
'You expected too much of him Henry, you locked him away like your father did to you, King's too are made of clay' She said and he shook his head unwilling to believe it. He had taken enormous precaution to ensure Edward's survival, constant cleaning of his nursery, nannies constantly watching him, keeping him away from court. Jane continued.
'Don't you understand you have killed him' She then said digging the knife further into his heart.
'No, no, no, why?' He asked sobbing, he turned to her and watched her share his grief. She took Edward's hand and looked at him sadly then they began to walk away in the darkness. He did not know how long he stood there sobbing, but heard his brother come back in the room. Through the tears he saw his brother stare at him, the old hatred he had for his brother bubbled angrily to the surface.
'Why did you not tell me?' He asked gritting his teeth, he wanted to hurt Arthur, if only it would take his mind away from the fact that his beloved son would die young, and all his efforts for a male heir had horribly been in vain. Arthur said nothing and Henry shook his head.
'My boy is to die young, what age?' He asked and Arthur hesitated.
'What age?' He roared at Arthur who looked shocked at his outburst.
'Fifteen and a half, the same age as me' He replied softly and Henry sobbed and shook his head. His father's old prophecy came back to haunt him "Our dynasty will fail" he had said with such haunting eyes, haunted by the loss of a son he had felt sure would step up and continue his work. For once in his life Henry realised he and his father had something in common, both their darling sons would die much too soon in their lives. He was more crippled than his father at this loss, Edward had been his only son, his father although he had never been enthusiastic about it still had a spare son, a duke of York to succeed. Henry sat down in his armchair and continued to sob into his hands, Arthur did not seem to know what to say to him.
'Leave me' He begged Arthur, his brother placed an arm on his shoulder then left the room quickly. Henry thought about divorcing Katherine because of their dead sons, he thought of killing Anne because of their dead deformed miscarried son, it was a horrible fate for his only living son to die young at fifteen. He would never be King in his own right, he would still be subjected to councillors. So Edward was fated to die early, what else had Arthur warned him about when he came first? One would fall into a dark sadness…. Mary…. It was not hard to know that. With the life he had given her, and her mother's family's natural melancholy moods it would be no wonder. And of Elizabeth? What was it that Anne had said "tell her not to be afraid, love can be a beautiful thing" she had said, Elizabeth would never take a chance at love, and she would regret it. Jane had said he killed their boy, he did more, he ruined his daughter as well. He put his head in his hands in despair. And soon he would see their future, he would see Edward die as a young boy not quite a man, he would watch whatever despair and chaos which would descend on Mary, and Elizabeth, he would watch her live a quiet life mourning a love not with her. It made him feel sick! A father was to protect his children, and yet they were doomed each in their own way. He poured himself more wine almost wishing that God would stop all of these unpleasant surprises and take him to the grave. He drank for as long as he could, even when he could barely stand from old age, exhaustion and the alcohol he continued to pour more wine. His moods changed from indignation that his son would! To pity about how unfortunate his life was, to anger at God. He thought of his beautiful blond hair boy Lord Henry FitzRoy or Hal as he liked to call him, if he had lived he would have placed in line for the succession, but he died too. His little earthly jewel died and Henry had barely been around him. He had thought he would die of the grief then. Little Hal and Edward would have been good friends, there would have been an eighteen year age gap but Hal would have grown into a fine young man. Henry hadn't realised he had passed out from the alcohol until Arthur was nudging him awake. His brother had a concerned expression on his face, he helped Henry stand and Henry felt pain everywhere, his back from the awkward position on the armchair, his legs, his shoulders, and his head felt like it would explode.
'I want to see their fates, now!' He said and Arthur shook his head.
'You are too ill and upset' He said softly and Henry shook his head furiously
'I will still be upset in a hundred years, I want to see the fate of my children now' He ordered and Arthur nodded and complied. Arthur held out his hand and Henry became young again, Arthur gestured for him to turn around.
'I am sorry Henry' Arthur told him and he shook his head.
'I am the one who should be sorry' He replied.
'Come along little brother' Arthur said with a small smile
'To where?' Henry asked.
'Fifteen- forty-eight, Edward's third loss of a parent' Arthur replied sadly and Henry's stomach jolted…Kate? Mary?
A/N: If anyone thought I rushed through Edward and Elizabeth's childhood it was because I didn't want to rewrite each scene from the Tudors, but scenes in their childhood will be mentioned in their future. Thanks for the feedback.