there's more to life than books, you know, but not much more [OTA]

[thatboleyngirl]

Anne had settled in at the hotel after a little bit, and she was beginning to become content with her situation. She figured being here was better than being dead, and she was attempting to make the best of things

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[faramir_hurin]

I think a moment to find a place to start.

"What is said of you is largely effected by your marriage. That said, much is written of his desperation, in some cases nearly to a level of madness, to have a son. This you surely know, and it is understandable to a degree." But not the lengths to which it was taken. "What I know of the modern world... well, it was ridiculous to blame his wives for the shortcoming."

According to the science of genetics, what little I understand, it is the man's 'DNA' that determines whether or not the child is male or female.

"History speaks of you in several lights, though the overall impression I had was of a woman caught up in a man's world and blamed for things over which you could not possibly have had any control--such as your children." I am trying not to say too much. I can add more but it is not possible to unhear. "It is an uncomfortable subject to speak on, the faith of husband and wife."

Especially when they were king and queen.

"It is known for a fact that the king known as Henry VIII was not faithful to his wives. He blackened your own name in that fashion, I understand. There has never been any proof at all to show that you were anything but a true wife. Some books even state that your husband nearly begged to know the truth before the end and that you, knowing your innocence, refused to ease his mind in the knowledge that he would not believe you anyway." There is half of a grim smile. "It is my personal opinion that he did not deserve to know. I am no king, but a man holds true to his lady no matter what."

[thatboleyngirl]

Her smile turned into a genuine one after he had finished.

"--Thank you," she said softly. She felt so much better now, knowing the truth about things.

"You are very kind and helpful. I appreciate that." She really did. Learning the truth made her feel more comfortable with herself somehow.

[faramir_hurin]

"Much is written, but in a number of books, those are the greatest things I have come to understand." They are largely agreed on. And the near-insanity became the real thing due to illness, not surprisingly related to the king's own infidelity. The Japanese call it 'karma', I understand.

"If I am kind then it is because I was raised so, though the truths I have read help in this instance. Being helpful is also the way I am even if it were not my job, Your Majesty." I smile. "I can help you find books if you still wish to read about yourself some more. I can only wonder what you have read about your daughter."

I think upon what I know.

"Surely you must have learned that she became the greatest queen your nation has known, and part of her greatness was due to the fact that she was a woman. No man could do what she did." Her lands needed a woman then. "In my world also there are not a lot of men who would wish to admit that. Having learned a little about modern women, there is little that they cannot do."

[thatboleyngirl]

"I have indeed read about her becoming queen, and I am very proud of her for that. She must have been very brave."

Anne liked the idea of Elizabeth getting her inner strength from herself, but she didn't want to admit that. It would seem vain and self-centered, and that was the last image of herself Anne wanted to project onto others.

[faramir_hurin]

"Indeed. She did not merely stand alone in a world of men, but above." History speaks kindly of that queen, with her greatest fault, to me, being physical vanity. Would that something so basic would be my greatest ill.

"Pardon me for asking, but it seems by what you have said that you do know your own fate. Have you spoken with anyone regarding that?" Not necessarily a counselor, as such did not work well for me. Or the counselor herself was the problem, which is more likely.

[thatboleyngirl]

"--I came here just as I was walking to the scaffold," she explained. "So I know that I was destined to die. But now that I'm here, I'm wondering if that fate was wrong. I have been told that we are all here to learn a lesson, but I am not certain of what my lesson might be."

She paused, taking a breath.

"I am hoping that I do not get sent back home for any reason."

[faramir_hurin]

It freezes my heart to know that this lady must return to the moment before her death, a death she does not merit.

"Our lessons, if that is why we are here, must surely be varied. My brother was here for a time, but he arrived after he died at home." A number have. To know that you return to... "Perhaps what you learn here will give you strength greater than that which you already possess. Another thing said of you is the endless dignity."

So very few could meet with the horror she faces without breaking, yet she has not and will not. Is that why she is here?

[thatboleyngirl]

"Endless dignity," she repeated, almost to herself. "I do hope that I have that strength within me. It would be so--helpful in the circumstances which I will face if I return."

She really didn't want to go back, but she had a feeling that it might happen, and figured it would be better to prepare herself for it now rather than later.

[faramir_hurin]

"My lady," I begin. It is a deliberate choice not to use the higher title. "Though it may well mean nothing from a stranger who knows you only by what he has read and what little he has seen from but one short meeting, I believe you already have that strength."

This is very much a woman, young though she is.

"I would consider it an honour to aid you in whatever way I might. If you must consider it so, then it is a gift to the future queen of Gondor." Another who will have to face a death she might not otherwise have had to do, and for her husband.

[thatboleyngirl]

"Thank you," Anne said softly. She was reassured by his words, and was glad for it.

"You seem to be a noble man, and I admire that greatly," she continued. "And I hope that I can be of aid to you as well someday. I would also consider that an honor."

[faramir_hurin]

"It might depend upon your definition of noble. As to the actions, I strive for them. It is a privilege and duty of my birth, a nobility which I had nothing to do with--none of us choose the stature of our births." I smile lightly. "Once, a time ago, I spoke with a man about such things. He had not considered before that we have little more choice in the way our lives are run than most. It seems we do, but our positions often give us fewer options than all but the poorest."

We just have grander homes and clothing and such physical things.

"Our world is more comfortable, but not so free."

I would not change it--I have love for my country that I might not have otherwise, nor would I give up my brother for anything.

"Friends can be an aid. I see it more often in the modern people, but men and women can be friends."

[thatboleyngirl]

"Nobility does not necessarily have to come from birth," she explained. "To me, I feel that noble people are made, not born. I was convinced that that wasn't true earlier in my life, but now I know it to be the case."

Anne smiled at his remark about friends. "Yes, I have counted men among my friends. Back home, my own brother was a dear friend of mine, as was one of the court musicians. I don't believe in any sort of segregation of the sexes--to me, that seems pointless and unnecessary."