Catherine of Aragon felt as if she were floating on air as she woke up alone on a warm summer morning. Her silky bedclothes bunched up around the curves of her body, and her feathery duvet balanced out the breeze fluttering in from the open window.
As she sat up and leaned against the headboard, there was a knock at her bedroom door.
"Catalina? Are you up?"
"Maria! Come in!"
Catherine's lady in waiting poked her head into the room with a grin.
"Good morning!"
"Good morning to you too, your majesty! You seem chipper."
"Just in a good mood, I guess. Hard not to be, on a morning like this."
"I couldn't agree more. Are you ready to get dressed?"
"Of course."
Catherine tossed the covers to the side and took Maria's hands as she pulled her out of bed, landing on the floor with a slight waddle.
"And how is the little prince?" Maria asked, placing a gentle hand on the Queen's belly.
"I can only hope he's doing well." Catherine mused, looking down fondly.
"Henry must be thrilled." The other girl offered, pulling Catherine's shift off over her head.
"Right..." Catherine's thoughts trailed off as she took her hair out of a bun.
"You mean...he's not excited?"
"No, I don't think it's that. I don't think he even believes me, Maria."
"Believes you? About what?"
"That I can give him an heir. That I'm even expecting in the first place."
"That's horrible." Maria said sadly as she worked on the Queen's hair. "He seems so fond of our dear Mary."
"Not as fond as he would be of a son. And of course, I could never tell her that."
"Of course not. But Mary's a bright little girl. She'll figure it out eventually, if she hasn't already."
Catherine ran her hands over her face with a sigh. "I just hope this baby gives us a chance to secure her a place on the throne too."
"I hope so too. But! Let's not worry about that right now." Maria responded as she finished lacing Catherine's corset. "It's a beautiful day, the sun is shining, and did you hear we got a new girl in court?"
"I didn't! What's she like?"
"A bit of a free spirit, if I'm being honest. But she seems nice enough. Anne Boleyn is her name. She's a pretty young thing, too, and I think that's just what we need around here."
"What do you mean by that?" Catherine asked, her spine stiffening.
"Oh, I didn't mean it like that, dear! If anything, you two could be a force to be reckoned with at court. She might even become your friend."
"Or Henry's." She responded ruefully, biting the corner of her lip.
"I know the King's...relations...are hard on you, dear." Maria said sympathetically, trying to gage her friend's reaction.
"It's like he's already trying to replace me, Maria." Catherine's eyes were wide and threatening to water. "Like me, Mary, the nearly thirty years we've been married...it seems as if they don't mean anything to him. We don't even share a bedroom anymore."
"Don't lose heart, Catie." Maria said, gently pulling her into her arms. "You're still the Queen, whether Henry likes it or not. And there's nothing even he can do to change that."
"Thank you, darling." Catherine responded, squeezing Maria's hand.
"And speaking of which, we have a busy day today so...chin up, shoulders high, and I will see you later." Maria playfully tapped the Queen's nose, receiving a small but genuine smile before heading out the door.
Catherine straightened her heavy skirts with her knuckles and took a deep breath as she walked into the hallway.
Turning the corner in a daze, she nearly knocked over the person turning the corner in front of her.
"Ooof!"
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Catherine subconsciously placed a hand on the stranger's shoulder as their eyes met.
"It's alright." The other girl responded, dimples forming at her cheeks. "You must be Her Majesty, Queen Catherine?"
She gave a sort of awkward bow before looking at her expectingly.
"Yes, just Catherine is fine. And who are you? I don't believe we've met."
"Oh, of course! I'm Anne Boleyn. I joined the British court just recently, I'm originally from France."
"I see." Catherine said as she discretely looked her up and down.
Maria was right, she was very pretty. A slender face, bright eyes, and a winning smile. She seems just the type to be leaving Henry's bedroom late at night...
"Anyways, I'm sure you're busy and I don't mean to keep you." Anne added with a wave. "But I look forward to seeing you again, Your Maj...er, Catherine."
"As do I." Catherine replied with a curt bow of her head.
Anne passed her and Catherine continued on her way, in a substantially worse mood than when she woke up.