Disclaimer: I do not own the Tudors.
Chapter Sixty-One: The Duchess of Orleans.
13th of October 1534 - France
"We should not be out here, Your Grace," the maid whispered, she scurrying behind the Duchess of Orleans as they made their way through the dark forest, only the light of the moon lit the path ahead. The sound of an owl hooting in the distance made the maid pause, she glanced back over her shoulder fearing that it might be someone following them; they would be burned at the stake if they were discovered.
"If your Lord Husband…" the maid started to say, hoping that the mention of the Duke might be enough to dissuade her mistress from her path; she feared what they might find out here. Catherine laughed at her words, she paused in her walking and turned to the young maid that had come with her; as far as anyone at the castle was considered, she was in the chapel praying for a childlike she always did.
"He'll never know we're gone, he'll be between his mistress's legs for the rest of the evening," Catherine replied crudely, a blush formed on the maid's cheeks at her words and Catherine laughed knowing that she could tell her such things that would probably make her faint. Turning back the way that she was going, Catherine continued on her walk towards the hut that was seated in the middle of a clearing deep in the woods; her hood covering her blonde hair as she continued on her way.
The mud squelching under her feet and the train of her dress was dragged through the dirt; the autumn weather allowed a mist to form through the trees only adding to the feeling in the air. Climbing over the stream using the rocks to guide her way, Catherine clutched at her skirts knowing that ruining the bottom of her dress would only go unnoticed so far.
The air around the was still and Catherine was certain that if anyone was following them that they would hear them; though she had been careful to sneak away without anyone's notice. It was not long after the stream that they were greeted by the sight of a hut that had certainly seen better days; smoke rising from the roof telling them that there was a fire within that might offer them warmth.
"We should not go in," the maid trembled, her fingers clutching at her thin clock and she stared at the hut knowing that such things were forbidden and dark; she did not understand why her mistress would want to come here. Her hands felt numb with the cold and she longed to return to the palace, she stared at the hut feeling a sense of dread building inside of her, of what might be waiting inside for them.
"Of course, we should," Catherine insisted pulling away from the maid, she marched herself towards the hut knowing her maid would follow lest she might find herself questions on why her mistress had disappeared. Her other ladies were not to be trusted and she could not doubt the loyalty of this one, the maid was one that she could trust with her darkest secrets; she would be rewarded well for her actions.
Pushing aside the poorly made curtain that covered the entrance, Catherine wrinkled her nose at the smell that greeted her as she pushed her way inside; her maid eagerly on her tail not wishing to be left outside alone. The room inside was dark with little light coming from the fire at the centre, Catherine could not help but ponder the person that might call this hovel their home.
There seemed little inside and the darkness did little to help her sight, her eyes sweeping the room in desperation for the sight of the one that she had come to speak with. When her eyes landed on the slumped form of a being on the other side of the fire, she held her head high as she slowly moved around the flames towards where the figure had been slumped.
The odd things that littered the room did little to gain her attention, she cared not what they were only what their owner could do for her; the maid looking around feeling frightened of what they could see. This was heresy and if anyone were to discover that they had come here, then both she and the Duchess would be burned at the stake as witches; she trembled at the mere thought of the shame it would bring her family. Bumping into something that was in one of the hanging cages, the maid squealed in terror as the animal inside made a noise in fright of what she had done.
"Get out," croaked the woman in darkness, she looked around her eyes bleary from sleep and she eyed the two ladies that dared darken her door; she wished to sleep in peace but it was always the same with these nobles. They only cared what she could do for them, she stared at them wondering why they would come to her home uninvited; she could see from their finery that they were not any of the locals from the villages around here.
"I sent a messenger two days passed to speak with you, you granted me leave to come to you," Catherine insisted, she would not leave until she had what she came for; she needed to know what her future held and her astrologers could only tell her so much. She needed help getting her husband into her bed, no one seemed to realise that if she did not give him an heir then she was in danger; there were whispers that the Pope was in ill health and not long for this world. The woman rolled her eyes, perhaps she did but she said so many things especially when she had ale; she could not recall such a thing nor agreeing to see the noble.
"I know you are a witch and you can see the future. Tell me mine. I need to know," Catherine pleaded with her, she could not leave now when she was close; she was in danger, she could feel it and she was sure she had a great destiny. If Clarice could find her feet in England, then she would find her place in France, perhaps even on the throne itself and she would be the mother of a dynasty.
"Everyone wants to know their future... until they know their future," the woman told her, she leant back in her chair and eyed the Italian woman, she might think that she wished to know but it was better that she did not. The future was rarely what one expected for themselves, those who deserve death are often allowed to led full lives while those who deserved to live were often given such short lives.
Catherine would not be deterred, she reached into the skirts of her dress and pulled out a velvet purse; she held the small bag out to the woman offering her the entire contents in hopes it would sway her. The strange laugh that left the woman made Catherine frown and she watched as the woman reached behind her to retrieve a blade from the side of her chair.
"Blood. Give me a taste," the woman ordered holding out the ancient looking blade for Catherine to take, she watched as she set down the purse within reach of her before taking the blade from her. Holding the blade in her right hand for a moment, Catherine steeled herself for a moment before raising her left hand; she moved to prick the finger closest to her thumb knowing that she could easily say she had cut herself while embroidering.
A quiet gasp escaped her as she made the cut, Catherine moved to hand the blade back only for the woman to reach out and grab the hand that she had cut herself on and stick the bloody finger in her mouth. Their eyes met for a moment and Catherine wondered what the woman could see in her own, was it the fear of what might become of her or her desperation at knowing what was to happen. Taking Catherine's finger from her mouth, the woman released the hand and continued to stare into her eyes; she slowly moved back into her seat as she spoke again.
"Three questions you get. You won't like the answers," the woman informed her, she made herself comfortable and continued to stare up into Catherine's eyes; she did not blink and her voice was soft as she spoke. The room in the hut was silent for a moment and Catherine thought about the questions that she was most desperate to have answered; she cared not for the panic of her maid as she spoke her first.
"Am I to be the Queen of France?" Catherine asked, her voice almost quiet as she spoke her first question knowing the implications that she was seeking. For her husband to be King, his elder brother would have to die and not have an heir; Francis was a fine man, although he kept to himself and she wished that things could have been different.
"Oh, yes. You will be Queen... For a time. Then comes another, younger, more beautiful, to cast you down and take all you hold dear," the woman told her, her voice filled with something that made Catherine's stomach twist at the idea that she would be cast aside. Her relief was only that it was not Diane that would replace her as Queen, she wondered if the woman spoke of perhaps a future bride for a son that she might have; she would have to play her part but to be cast down frightened her.
"Will the Duke and I have sons?" Catherine asked, her greatest desire revealed to those in the room with her. Every prayer that she had was about giving her husband the heir that he desired, even if he refused to come to her chambers and share her bed; she feared that perhaps he would declare her barren to ride himself of her.
"Three Kings you shall have. Gold will be their crowns. Gold their shroud," the woman told her with a cackle, she watched the tears fill Catherine's eyes at her words of doom for her sons. The Valois line would end as it was, Catherine would have her children of that she had no worry but the sons would be short lived; they would live long enough to become Kings but they would have no heirs.
"Will I be remembered?" Catherine whispered, her voice barely heard by the woman and she pondered the future that was set about before her; perhaps if she was careful enough then she would secure the dynasty. Protecting her children and gaining the throne that would be her goal in life, she would make her husband a King and he would love her for it. Ideas filled her mind and she knew that for such things to happen then she would have to remove the obstacles that stood in her husband's path to the throne; it would take time but Catherine was sure that she could do it.
"You shall be the Queen that brought about the end of the Valois dynasty," the woman stated with a dark look on her face, she started to cackle at her own words knowing that the country would be thrown into war. The Valois line would end and another house would rise to the throne, one that had been in the shadows for so long and they would be the house that would see the end of the Kingdom of France.
Catherine nodded her head, slowly starting to back out of the hut with her maid with her; she could not taking her eyes off the laughing woman before they reached the door and bolted. Rushing through the forest around them almost like they expected the woman to be chasing, neither of the stopping until they were a fair distance from the hut though the woman's words lingered.
Catherine tried to gather her wits about her, she could not be the Queen that saw the end of the House of Valois; if she was destined to have three sons then she would make sure they married well. They would have heirs and she would protect their claim to the throne, she would allow no one to take it from them and they would have a Golden future perhaps even brighter than the one the English King thought he could build.
Catching her breath, Catherine turned to look at her maid and she held onto her skirts knowing that no one could know what happened here this night; she would not have such words spoken again and the secret would die with her. If no one else knew or talked about it then it will not exist, Catherine could focus on making things right and using the woman's warning to ensure that her sons by Henri would have long lives. She would eclipse anything that had been done by those of her family, she would be the Medici that made their mark on history and put the family firmly on the map instead of upstart merchants.
"My Lady. We should head back to the castle," the maid whispered, she staggered across the uneven floor towards Catherine wishing for nothing more than to return to Catherine's warm chambers and to forget this night. They would never speak of this again and the maid prayed that this would be the last of it, the words that had been spoken had shaken her and it was treason to speak of the death of a royal.
"What was your name again?" Catherine asked moving towards the maid, she held her skirts and she doubted that she would be free of the stink that had come from the hut.
"Louise, Your Grace," the maid replied trying to ignore the fact that her own mistress, one that she had been loyal to for over a year now did not know her name despite how loyally she served her every day. Before she could dwell on the question for a moment longer, Catherine latched onto her; a sweet smile upon her face and she pulled Louise into a hug.
"Thank you, Louise. Your service shall not be forgotten," Catherine stated before plunging a dagger that she had concealed on her person into her back, she allowed Louise to crumble to the floor. Unable to note the irony that she was murdering a woman that was likely named after Louise of Savoy, the mother of King Francis; she stared down at Louise who attempted to crawl away from her on her hands. Walking up behind Louise as she attempted to flee, Catherine knew that what she did now was to ensure not only her future but that of her children; she would make the House of Valois great
Highly recommend Athenais Penelope Clemence's story, Chained by Love and War as well as the short prequel An Enchanting Dance in Calais by Countess of Sherwood. I also recommend For Even as Love Crowns You by wizardfantasy and Sanctuary by Cattyfan.
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