Title: Joint wives.
Author: PrinceBrennonTudor
Summary: What would have happened if someone made it their mission to save Anne and told Henry just to have two wives? What would happen to England with two queens? Will there ever be an heir?
Disclaimer: I do not own the Tudors. But the story idea is mine.
Author's note: Thanks for the reviews and I promise I'm still working on the grammar. This story is coming along great and I'm sitting in class, coming up with ideas for the chapters, so you fine people can enjoy this story. So… I'm not sure of how I feel about the last chapter, but like I said before, it was pretty much filler for me just to get Henry and Jane's engagement out of the way. Personally, I'm not a Jane fan but I hope I wrote her right in that chapter. And for the Anne and Henry fans - don't worry, their relationship will get stronger in the future! Now here you go, the third chapter of Joint wives.
Chapter 3.
29 April 1536.
Anne was in her apartments, sitting rigidly in her favorite chair as her father, Thomas Boleyn Earl of Wiltshire, paced in front of her, face red from yelling.
"Well, how are you going to fix this mess?" he asked, looking at Anne with utter disdain.
"What can I do, Father? Henry is Supreme Head of the Church of England. I've tried begging him not do this and give me another chance…" Anne said in barely a whisper. She was thinking of the time she took Elizabeth from her nursery and found Henry walking outside. She was desperate, her dress dirty at the hem and covered in mud, her hair out of place. She begged Henry to give her another chance and not to marry Jane Seymour, but he just walked out yelling, "She will be what you are not - my true wife!" That outburst caused her to stop and cry out, "Your Majesty, I beg you!" But he was gone and she sank to her knees, held her daughter, and cried. She would just have to accept the fact that Henry would marry Jane and that she and her daughter would be pushed into the background.
Thomas Boleyn leaned into his daughter's face, saying, "I don't care what you do, just. Fix. It!" With that, he left and slammed the door as he left. Tears threated to fall from Anne's eyes but she refused to let them fall. She was Queen of England, no matter what Henry and the Seymour's thought, and her daughter was heir to the throne. She wouldn't show weakness and she would fight for her husband. She would fight to make sure her daughter was safe, no matter what she would have to do.
1 May 1536
Lady Mary couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her father was going to marry Lady Jane Seymour without trying to annul his so-called marriage with Anne Boleyn. She knew she would be called on by her father to take the oath and recognize Jane as queen. While she could never recognize her father as head of the English church, she might be willing to accept Jane was queen. Her mother was dead, so as the Pope said her father's marriage to Anne is invalid, Jane's marriage would be valid and she would be the true Queen of England. Mary was in such deep thought about this that she didn't hear Lady Bryan call her until she approached Mary and shouted in her ear.
"Lady Mary! Fetch warm water for the Princess Elizabeth's bath!"
Lady Mary sighed and stood to do as she was ordered. She smiled when she passed Lady Bryan, knowing the Seymour's were great supporters of her and her mother. She believed it would only be a matter of time before she would be restored to her father's favor, as well as her rightful place as a princess.
30 May 1536
Today was her wedding day. After waiting for the king to get the bishops to agree and making new laws, Henry and she would finally marry. Her maids dressed her in a gown of gold and ivory satin. It was one of the most beautiful gowns she had ever owned, one of her now many expensive gowns. She looked at herself in the mirror and even without a crown she saw a queen looking back at her. A queen who will bring the king back to the true church that that Boleyn whore tore him away from. As they placed the veil on Jane, she was shadowed in the illusion of a virgin. Just what the king wanted - a pure, virginal bride.
King Chapel
Same day.
King Henry approached the front of the altar where Jane stood. He couldn't believe how breathtakingly beautiful she looked in that white gown. He was suddenly taken over by the urge for this day to go by quickly so he could have Jane in the marriage bed. But the day wasn't going to go by any faster by wishing, so there was no point in it. When he arrived next to her he spoke.
"Lady Jane."
Jane dropped a curtsey and said, "Your Majesty."
They turned to the bishop who started the ceremony. "We have come here together before God and these witnesses to join here together in holy matrimony, Henry VIII, King of England, Ireland and France, Supreme Head of the Church of England and the Lady Jane Seymour…"
Great Hall
"Thank you so much for my gift, it's beautiful!" Queen Jane said to her new husband, King Henry.
Henry took her hand and kissed it, saying, "I hope I shall soon be thanking you for mine." Jane blushed fiercely. King Henry stood up and took Jane's hands. The music abruptly stopped and the courtiers bowed and curtsied to them. He led her down the steps from the golden canopy under which they sat. The king called for music and he and Jane led the court in a dance.
Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, danced with his wife Catherine and smiled when she looked over at Henry and the new Queen. She said to her husband, "Do you think she will make him happy?"
Charles smiled at her and said, "With God's help we'll all be happy." As the court danced, Cromwell looked at Queen Jane. If the rumors were true, she favors the old religion. While he did pretty much what he wanted with the abbeys he considered corrupt, he knew that if the new Queen Jane had any influence on the king, his work may be in jeopardy.
4 June 1536
Paris France
King Francis couldn't believe it - his English brother King Henry actually took a second wife. When his ambassador first told him of the King's plan to have two wives, Francis actually fell down laughing. He found it so funny thinking that he would never commit bigamy. But he just received word that day from the King that he did in fact marry Jane Seymour. The first thing Francis could say was, "…this is bad." While most of Europe didn't recognize Anne Boleyn as Queen, Francis knew that she favored his interest over the Spanish. The Queen Jane was rumored to have supported the Emperor, so he could count her an enemy. But he knew that Henry would be influenced by the women he loves at the time, so Anne would not be able to voice her opinion in favor of France. And even if she could, why would she? He had yet to accept her as Queen, let alone let her daughter become betrothed to his son Charles. If she ever returned to favor she may just agree with Spain just to spite him. But maybe he could have a permit ally in the English court…he will write to King Henry and tell him that he accepts Anne as Queen and wants to pursue a marriage between the Princess Elizabeth and his son Prince Charles.
So what do you guys think will Henry accept the proposal? How will she feel about Anne finally being accepted as queen after his marriage to Jane? Sorry this one took longer, I really had to think about where I wanted to go in this chapter. Next chapter Princess Elizabeth will meet her new step-mother and we will see how the Boleyn's and Seymour's act towards each other at court since they're all part of the royal family now. Please Review! I have a challenge for you, the fans. I pretty much have the story worked out but I want to know what you all think, so here is the question. Should Anne and Jane get pregnant at the same time? I want to see a lot of responses to this question, so throw out your ideas about what else should happen in the story and maybe I'll add some of them . P.S I would like to thank my friend Ryvkah for checking the grammar for this chapter so you all can enjoy the story better.
Please review!
TBC.