Queen Jane set down her sewing and glanced out the window. The snow whirled around outside, but here in her chambers it was nice and warm. A midwife sat beside her bed as well as her sister Elizabeth. Outside of these two ladies, the room was abandoned- the only noise came from the women's needles poking through the fabric at a rhythmic pace. Jane had felt faint earlier that day and the midwife insisted she spend the rest of the day in bed, but Jane was painfully bored. She was annoyed that she was being treated like a porcelain doll-so fragile that she couldn't even be trusted to rest without supervision.
What made everything worse was the fact that she hadn't even seen her husband in two days. Henry had never been so unattainable to her before and it worried her. Anne Bassett had been around, so she knew he wasn't spending the time with his mistress. Or at least not this one. Jane had taken a bit of pleasure from the fact that the dark haired vixen seemed to have a perpetual pout on her face the last few days as well. Her brothers had done little to ease her worries-telling her that the king's business was none of her own. That she should just focus on the child in her belly. Her fingers absentmindedly came up to rest on the slight swell. She was truly starting to show now. The midwife said that she should be expecting her child by MayDay. A spring baby. A true Prince of Wales to usher in the summer. Jane smiled to herself and looked back out into the snow.
"Elizabeth," her sister looked up from her embroidery. "would you send a message to the king for me?" she set her stitches aside and rose. "Please ask his majesty if he could find the time to dine with me. Either tonight or tomorrow morning, I would just like to see him" Jane smiled at her sister as Elizabeth bent her knees and left. She waiting patiently, listening to the harsh winds howl outside until Elizabeth returned. When she did, Jane's smile faltered at the sheepish expression on her face.
"Forgive me, Your Majesty, but the king sends his apologies. He says he is quite held up by affairs of the state and he will come to visit you when things are better settled. He asks that you busy yourself with the care of his son."
Jane clicked her tongue in annoyance, but gestured that Elizabeth reseat herself. 'Busy herself with the care of his son'...She was only trying to see him, why did he have to brush her off like this? Things had been strained between them ever since he had brought Mary back to court. They had reached a tentative peace between them, but Henry shut down every time Jane tried to bring the poor girl up in conversation. As far as Jane knew, Mary was being held in her shabby rooms, basically under house arrest. Henry had refused her the ability to walk freely about court, but had not decided what he would do with her.
Henry's treatment of his eldest daughter infuriated his queen. She was determined to help broker some peace to the Tudor family. She knew that as soon as she had delivered a healthy prince, Henry would be easier to negotiate with. If Jane was only carrying another daughter however...
"You are both dismisssed" Jane said, mildly irritated at her thoughts. The midwife and Elizabeth shared a look before the midwife spoke.
"You should not be alone, Your Majesty.
"Then send in the Marquess of Pembroke" Elizabeth's eyebrows shot up, but the ladies complied.
Jane did not have to wait long before Anne walked in. She swept into a curtsy, but Jane waved her off. Even after all this time, Jane felt awkward when Anne showed her the respects due to her as queen. Her brothers would probably chastise her for such behaviours. They would be insistent that Anne humble herself before Jane at every chance, but all Jane could see when Anne bowed to her was Anne's undeniable grace. She looked like a true queen, even in her submission, and it made Jane uncomfortable.
"My Lady, please, distract me from all this silence." Anne smiled and came to take Elizabeth's spot by the bed.
"Would Your Majesty like to play cards? Or I could read to you, if you'd like." Jane scrunched up her nose.
"Is there any new court gossip? I heard that Sir Francis Bryan has befriended your brother"
Anne snorted in amusement and rolled her eyes "That rogue had best not corrupt poor George." She said good heartily, before a shadow crossed her face. "Unfortunately, Your Majesty, no one at court is talking about anything other than the rebels out in Lincolnshire."
Jane sat up, alarmed. "Rebels? What rebels?"
Anne looked at her surprised. "Forgive me, Your Majesty, I assumed you knew. There has been some unrest over the dissolution of the monasteries out in the country. The countrymen are rallying behind them and are protesting their closures. They've even marched against the King's Men!" Jane stared wide eyed as Anne recounted the events that she had been unaware of. "The King has summoned Thomas Cromwell and Charles Brandon from their homes to settle the issue. Have your brothers not told you?"
Jane's cheeks flamed with embarrassment and for once she looked at her swollen belly with disdain. Of course her brothers had not told her. Her brothers, her sisters, her ladies...Even her husband had left her in the dark. They all thought she was a silly little girl worth nothing outside of the contents of her womb. Tears threatened to spill over and Jane bit her lip to try to force them back. She met Anne's pitying eyes as she shook her head.
"No. Of course they haven't" she ground out bitterly. "The knowledge about what's happening in my country does nothing to help the child growing in me, so therefore has been deemed not important enough for the Queen of England" her irritation drowned her words and she was worried she looked like a stubborn child.
"I know how that feels" Anne's wistful words made Jane glance up at her again. Anne seemed to be chewing on her lip and absentmindedly smoothed her skirts.
"Like this is all I'm good for" Jane gestured towards her belly and Anne nodded sympathetically. Jane reached out and grabbed her hands. "My Lady...Anne." she pleaded "Please tell me what you know."
Anne looked hesitant for a moment but then nodded. "Alright, Your Majesty-"
"Jane. Please, when we're alone like this, call me Jane"
A/N: So here we are! A couple of chapters all at once. It was very fun writing Thomas Cromwell and I think that we needed a glance at things happening outside of court. I know that this chapter seems like just filler, but I wanted to showcase how far Jane and Anne's relationship has progressed. I know some reviews are pointing out that Jane and Anne would never get along like this, but I've always liked the idea of them not hating each other. Just like with Mary, everything that happened was Henry's doing. The parallels between the women are hard to ignore-demanding family and such. Now that Anne is free to live her life basically how she pleases, she sees Jane's situation for what it is.
To everyone who has reviewed and who continues to do so-Thank you so much! They do so much to encourage me to continue writing at this speed and I will try to keep it up. Please let me know how you like how things are going! I have a basic plan of how this story will plan out, but I am more than open to taking suggestions.
Hope everyone (in America) had a great holiday! Enjoy these chapters!