Big Bang Fic: Between Golden Worlds, Chapter 7
Title: Between golden worlds
Author: pamymex3girl
Rating: T, just to be on the safe side
Pairings/characters: Susan, Lucy, Edmund, Peter, Mary Tudor, Thomas more; Susan/Caspian, Susan/OC, Peter/OC, all normal Tudor couples
Disclaimer: I do not own neither the narnian characters nor the historical characters, just my story.
Possible Spoilers/Warnings: death, spoilers for the first three Narnia movies and three seasons of the tudors
Author's Notes: I’ve used some scenes from the series the Tudors and although I’ve tried to be historically accurate I’ve changed some things. I’ve also changed the age of the Pevensies when they went back to Narnia for the second and the third time
Summary: It is August 1524 and the Pevensies are being send to the English court. Having just lost their own world they must now learn to walk in this world. They must accept their place and live their lives, but they must be careful. For the court of Henry VIII is a dangerous place, one step in the wrong direction could prove disastrous...
Chapter 7
July 14, 1531
She was being sent away.
Just like that, the king rode out with Anne Boleyn and his court; leaving only a handful of people behind, just enough to man the court. Then he’d send Cromwell, his newest ally in the fight against the Catholic Church, to tell her that the king wished her to leave the castle and reside at a new residence, to be gone by the time he came back and not to return. They all knew what it meant of course, the king had finally listened to Anne Boleyn (and though she did not agree with her in any way, Susan had to admit that she had a point, the rumor had reached her after all, they could not all three live under the same roof forever.) The queen did not protest; she asked Cromwell if she was allowed to take her ladies, and he told her that the king had degreed that they could all go with her, that she was to lack nothing.
All she was to leave behind were her crown jewels, and though she protested at first, Susan knew she would leave them behind.
She wished she could turn back the clock, to this time last year; when she held her new-born daughter in her arms. Her husband had not minded that it was a girl, she was healthy, and it was what truly mattered; though she could tell that despite his kindness, he really did want a son. The queen was her daughter’s godmother, and she’d named her after the women who meant so much to her, despite the warning from her husband that it could be taken as a bad thing; thankfully, it was not. Now she was pregnant again, and though she had not told the queen yet she knew she knew, but she was going to go with her this time. The king had degreed they were all to go, regardless of their loyalties; though most of the ladies who remained were loyal to Queen Catherine.
They were to be exiled from court all of them and then; she suspected, to be taken away from the queen one by one, until she relented.
If she ever would.
****
His wife was to give him another child.
The boy was growing up to be strong and handsome looking, but he wanted more children; he liked children. His place at the court of FitzRoy grew as soon as he’d realized that he was not so different from his father, one just had to agree even if one did not. So when the word came that the Queen had been banished, Henry (as well as his two friends) sends word to the king whom he would like to host a banquet for him and his future queen, the Lady Anne Boleyn. And the king gratefully accepted, probably because there were few that would take FItzRoy’s stand, at least not so openly.
However, in this world, Peter knew, one had to walk with the king or not walk at all.
They came in their entire splendor, and though she was good looking, she was nowhere near the beauty his sister was (or the king’s sister, for that matter) and she was not as royal as the queen. It was not her fault, unlike her predecessor she had not been brought up to be a queen, neither had his sisters, but they’d grown into their roles, and so would Anne Boleyn. But he wondered, as he watched them, if she ever realized that she could not rule him as she had ruled him before. That she would have to become submissive and accept everything the king wanted or if not give him a son, then she could get away with almost anything.
He felt like the world was exploding and there was nothing he could do but watch the wreckage.
****
They’d gone to say goodbye to the queen when she left.
There were many people there; most of them commoners, who proclaimed that she was their queen and always would be, that they would never accept anyone who would take her place, and that they would pray for her return. He saw a few lords as well, Susan’s husband too though that might have been for Susan that is in truth also why he came. She was shaking, though from grieve or fear he could not tell, and she hugged him tightly, so tightly he was afraid she would not let go; but she did and then she hugged her husband, got in her coach and never said a word; he wondered if she was too afraid she would cry.
He could hear More attempt to assure Catherine, but it wasn’t working.
It was all moot anyway, they could say what they wanted but this was the end of the road; they all knew it. With or without the Pope the king had made his choice and the queen, the rightful queen, would never return to the palace. Never, no matter how much More fought for her, in the end, he would reach nothing. However, they could not say it, could not squash the final bit of hope in the Queen’s heart; she would not give up; he knew this. She loved her daughter too much for that, but it would do her no good, instead, Edmund suspected; her life would only get worse from this point on. He wondered if the king knew of the pain he caused, if he knew of what he was tearing apart.
He wondered if the king even cared.
May 16, 1532
Everything had, if that was possible, gotten worse.
Edmund had known it was coming, known that there was only so much that More could actually take; when the clergy had finally relented, when they had finally given him what he wanted, he knew it was only a matter of days. More could never live in a world where everything he believed in was demolished, where the world was being destroyed for whatever the king wanted in that moment. His conscience would not permit it and though his love for the king made sure More never spoke against him, he could not live like it anymore; so he resigned. He did not, of course, say out loud what he thought; instead, he said he wished to spend time with his family, perhaps write another book.
The king was sad to see him go, but he did not speak against it, just said he was glad they would always be friends.
More had taken him aside afterwards, he told him he was proud of him and always would be; but every boy must eventually go out in the world alone, and now it was his turn. He’d gotten him a place, a good place, in the entourage of the next Lord Chancellor, Cromwell, and he would do well. They’d meet again he was sure of it, and they would keep in correspondence but this was their parting point. Edmund wanted to argue, to say that he did not wish for them to part; however, he knew it would do them no good, More was, after all, right.
However, he could not shake the feeling that this would be the last time they would actually meet.
And it scared him, more than he could admit.
****
She was dead. It happened so suddenly that he was not prepared for it.
She’d been fine when he saw her yesterday, their new child growing in her belly; everything was going well. He was woken up early in the morning by one of his servants, strange the way things changed, who told him his wife was in labor. He knew it wasn’t good, at least not for the baby, because it was coming far too soon; but he never thought she would die. He didn't like her, he’s man enough to admit it, and he’d never managed to feel anything for her; but that does not mean he wanted her death. She was a good person and a good mother and now his son had no mother, and he had no wife.
He’d spend hours outside her chamber hearing her scream.
He thought, in that moment, that was the worst sound ever; that nothing that came afterwards would sound that awful. Then, suddenly and without explanation, the screaming seized and a deafening silence followed. And he realized, very quickly, in fact, that the silence was much worse then, the silence which was almost deafening. It drove him crazy; he could not hear her scream and for a moment, one shining moment, he thought it just meant it was over; but then he heard people moving rapidly inside, and he knew it was far from over. He has no idea, how long he said there, it could have been hours; it could have been just minutes.
Eventually, the doctor came out and told him both his daughter and wife were dead.
He has no idea, nor does he think it actually matters, what he said to him.
***
The castle was cold.
Maybe, Susan though, that was just her imagination; maybe it truly wasn’t that cold; she just thought it was. After all it was a beautiful place, grand, a good palace for the dowager princess of Wales; but not for a queen. And Catherine was the queen, no matter what anyone said; and despite all her assurances that she would never blame nor hate Anne Boleyn, Susan could help but do just that. Because if she had not shown up, then none of this would have happened, or perhaps it would have happened; perhaps the king would have thrown his loving wife, his strong queen, away anyway. He did want a son after all not a daughter.
That, however, was not what mattered, what mattered was that the queen was ill.
Susan suspected that while she was obviously really ill, it was more the despair that got her down. They’d send the king a message, telling him that his wife was ill; however, she suspected that would not help, and she was right. They got a message back telling them that the king was not married, but he was slightly worried about his sister-in-law, and he was sending his doctor to check on her. At least, while he could not admit that they were married, he still cared enough for the mother of his child to make sure she was alright. The doctor, she can’t remember his name, checked her over and told them that the Princess Dowager would be alright. One of the ladies said that there was no princess here just a queen. She shouldn’t have said anything, then perhaps she could have stayed; instead, one of the armed men who came with the doctor arrested her and dragged her away.
Many years later Susan tried to find out whatever happened to her and found her in the household of the Princess Elizabeth.
At least, she wasn't hurt.
****
Every day new reports came in from court.
The new Spanish ambassador, Eustace Chappuys, was doing everything in his power to help them and keep them informed. There were times, like the day they had been told the queen had been banished; that Lucy hated him, hated the information he was giving her best friend, hated him for bringing only bad news. However, she supposed it was better she heard it from him, a man who actually cared about both, her and her mother, as opposed from people who hated her and would love her to be hurt. The rumors from court arrived here at Ludlow anyway, and some of them might be exaggerated or wrong; from Chappuys at least they would hear the truth.
Perhaps it was even better for her to hear, better than to imagine things.
But Lucy wished she could protect her, shield her best friend from all the evils of the world - even if the evil that now threatened her was her own father - and make sure that nothing could ever hurt her. Protect her from the changes, make sure that she could forever pretend she was a princess and perhaps the love her father felt for her, a love, she herself had seen, would protect her as well. Perhaps he’d leave her there, allow her to remain a princess and simply place her behind all of his future’s wife children, but she’d be a princess, and she’d be safe. Perhaps nothing would ever happen to her, maybe they were safe here.
There were moments she wished she could ask Aslan to let them both go to Narnia and just stay there.
However, that, she knew, would never be possible.
Prologue | Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four | Chapter Five | Chapter Six | Chapter Seven | Chapter Eight | Chapter Nine | Chapter Ten | Chapter Eleven | Chapter Twelve | Epilogue
Author: pamymex3girl
Rating: T, just to be on the safe side
Pairings/characters: Susan, Lucy, Edmund, Peter, Mary Tudor, Thomas more; Susan/Caspian, Susan/OC, Peter/OC, all normal Tudor couples
Disclaimer: I do not own neither the narnian characters nor the historical characters, just my story.
Possible Spoilers/Warnings: death, spoilers for the first three Narnia movies and three seasons of the tudors
Author's Notes: I’ve used some scenes from the series the Tudors and although I’ve tried to be historically accurate I’ve changed some things. I’ve also changed the age of the Pevensies when they went back to Narnia for the second and the third time
Summary: It is August 1524 and the Pevensies are being send to the English court. Having just lost their own world they must now learn to walk in this world. They must accept their place and live their lives, but they must be careful. For the court of Henry VIII is a dangerous place, one step in the wrong direction could prove disastrous...
Chapter 7
July 14, 1531
She was being sent away.
Just like that, the king rode out with Anne Boleyn and his court; leaving only a handful of people behind, just enough to man the court. Then he’d send Cromwell, his newest ally in the fight against the Catholic Church, to tell her that the king wished her to leave the castle and reside at a new residence, to be gone by the time he came back and not to return. They all knew what it meant of course, the king had finally listened to Anne Boleyn (and though she did not agree with her in any way, Susan had to admit that she had a point, the rumor had reached her after all, they could not all three live under the same roof forever.) The queen did not protest; she asked Cromwell if she was allowed to take her ladies, and he told her that the king had degreed that they could all go with her, that she was to lack nothing.
All she was to leave behind were her crown jewels, and though she protested at first, Susan knew she would leave them behind.
She wished she could turn back the clock, to this time last year; when she held her new-born daughter in her arms. Her husband had not minded that it was a girl, she was healthy, and it was what truly mattered; though she could tell that despite his kindness, he really did want a son. The queen was her daughter’s godmother, and she’d named her after the women who meant so much to her, despite the warning from her husband that it could be taken as a bad thing; thankfully, it was not. Now she was pregnant again, and though she had not told the queen yet she knew she knew, but she was going to go with her this time. The king had degreed they were all to go, regardless of their loyalties; though most of the ladies who remained were loyal to Queen Catherine.
They were to be exiled from court all of them and then; she suspected, to be taken away from the queen one by one, until she relented.
If she ever would.
****
His wife was to give him another child.
The boy was growing up to be strong and handsome looking, but he wanted more children; he liked children. His place at the court of FitzRoy grew as soon as he’d realized that he was not so different from his father, one just had to agree even if one did not. So when the word came that the Queen had been banished, Henry (as well as his two friends) sends word to the king whom he would like to host a banquet for him and his future queen, the Lady Anne Boleyn. And the king gratefully accepted, probably because there were few that would take FItzRoy’s stand, at least not so openly.
However, in this world, Peter knew, one had to walk with the king or not walk at all.
They came in their entire splendor, and though she was good looking, she was nowhere near the beauty his sister was (or the king’s sister, for that matter) and she was not as royal as the queen. It was not her fault, unlike her predecessor she had not been brought up to be a queen, neither had his sisters, but they’d grown into their roles, and so would Anne Boleyn. But he wondered, as he watched them, if she ever realized that she could not rule him as she had ruled him before. That she would have to become submissive and accept everything the king wanted or if not give him a son, then she could get away with almost anything.
He felt like the world was exploding and there was nothing he could do but watch the wreckage.
****
They’d gone to say goodbye to the queen when she left.
There were many people there; most of them commoners, who proclaimed that she was their queen and always would be, that they would never accept anyone who would take her place, and that they would pray for her return. He saw a few lords as well, Susan’s husband too though that might have been for Susan that is in truth also why he came. She was shaking, though from grieve or fear he could not tell, and she hugged him tightly, so tightly he was afraid she would not let go; but she did and then she hugged her husband, got in her coach and never said a word; he wondered if she was too afraid she would cry.
He could hear More attempt to assure Catherine, but it wasn’t working.
It was all moot anyway, they could say what they wanted but this was the end of the road; they all knew it. With or without the Pope the king had made his choice and the queen, the rightful queen, would never return to the palace. Never, no matter how much More fought for her, in the end, he would reach nothing. However, they could not say it, could not squash the final bit of hope in the Queen’s heart; she would not give up; he knew this. She loved her daughter too much for that, but it would do her no good, instead, Edmund suspected; her life would only get worse from this point on. He wondered if the king knew of the pain he caused, if he knew of what he was tearing apart.
He wondered if the king even cared.
May 16, 1532
Everything had, if that was possible, gotten worse.
Edmund had known it was coming, known that there was only so much that More could actually take; when the clergy had finally relented, when they had finally given him what he wanted, he knew it was only a matter of days. More could never live in a world where everything he believed in was demolished, where the world was being destroyed for whatever the king wanted in that moment. His conscience would not permit it and though his love for the king made sure More never spoke against him, he could not live like it anymore; so he resigned. He did not, of course, say out loud what he thought; instead, he said he wished to spend time with his family, perhaps write another book.
The king was sad to see him go, but he did not speak against it, just said he was glad they would always be friends.
More had taken him aside afterwards, he told him he was proud of him and always would be; but every boy must eventually go out in the world alone, and now it was his turn. He’d gotten him a place, a good place, in the entourage of the next Lord Chancellor, Cromwell, and he would do well. They’d meet again he was sure of it, and they would keep in correspondence but this was their parting point. Edmund wanted to argue, to say that he did not wish for them to part; however, he knew it would do them no good, More was, after all, right.
However, he could not shake the feeling that this would be the last time they would actually meet.
And it scared him, more than he could admit.
****
She was dead. It happened so suddenly that he was not prepared for it.
She’d been fine when he saw her yesterday, their new child growing in her belly; everything was going well. He was woken up early in the morning by one of his servants, strange the way things changed, who told him his wife was in labor. He knew it wasn’t good, at least not for the baby, because it was coming far too soon; but he never thought she would die. He didn't like her, he’s man enough to admit it, and he’d never managed to feel anything for her; but that does not mean he wanted her death. She was a good person and a good mother and now his son had no mother, and he had no wife.
He’d spend hours outside her chamber hearing her scream.
He thought, in that moment, that was the worst sound ever; that nothing that came afterwards would sound that awful. Then, suddenly and without explanation, the screaming seized and a deafening silence followed. And he realized, very quickly, in fact, that the silence was much worse then, the silence which was almost deafening. It drove him crazy; he could not hear her scream and for a moment, one shining moment, he thought it just meant it was over; but then he heard people moving rapidly inside, and he knew it was far from over. He has no idea, how long he said there, it could have been hours; it could have been just minutes.
Eventually, the doctor came out and told him both his daughter and wife were dead.
He has no idea, nor does he think it actually matters, what he said to him.
***
The castle was cold.
Maybe, Susan though, that was just her imagination; maybe it truly wasn’t that cold; she just thought it was. After all it was a beautiful place, grand, a good palace for the dowager princess of Wales; but not for a queen. And Catherine was the queen, no matter what anyone said; and despite all her assurances that she would never blame nor hate Anne Boleyn, Susan could help but do just that. Because if she had not shown up, then none of this would have happened, or perhaps it would have happened; perhaps the king would have thrown his loving wife, his strong queen, away anyway. He did want a son after all not a daughter.
That, however, was not what mattered, what mattered was that the queen was ill.
Susan suspected that while she was obviously really ill, it was more the despair that got her down. They’d send the king a message, telling him that his wife was ill; however, she suspected that would not help, and she was right. They got a message back telling them that the king was not married, but he was slightly worried about his sister-in-law, and he was sending his doctor to check on her. At least, while he could not admit that they were married, he still cared enough for the mother of his child to make sure she was alright. The doctor, she can’t remember his name, checked her over and told them that the Princess Dowager would be alright. One of the ladies said that there was no princess here just a queen. She shouldn’t have said anything, then perhaps she could have stayed; instead, one of the armed men who came with the doctor arrested her and dragged her away.
Many years later Susan tried to find out whatever happened to her and found her in the household of the Princess Elizabeth.
At least, she wasn't hurt.
****
Every day new reports came in from court.
The new Spanish ambassador, Eustace Chappuys, was doing everything in his power to help them and keep them informed. There were times, like the day they had been told the queen had been banished; that Lucy hated him, hated the information he was giving her best friend, hated him for bringing only bad news. However, she supposed it was better she heard it from him, a man who actually cared about both, her and her mother, as opposed from people who hated her and would love her to be hurt. The rumors from court arrived here at Ludlow anyway, and some of them might be exaggerated or wrong; from Chappuys at least they would hear the truth.
Perhaps it was even better for her to hear, better than to imagine things.
But Lucy wished she could protect her, shield her best friend from all the evils of the world - even if the evil that now threatened her was her own father - and make sure that nothing could ever hurt her. Protect her from the changes, make sure that she could forever pretend she was a princess and perhaps the love her father felt for her, a love, she herself had seen, would protect her as well. Perhaps he’d leave her there, allow her to remain a princess and simply place her behind all of his future’s wife children, but she’d be a princess, and she’d be safe. Perhaps nothing would ever happen to her, maybe they were safe here.
There were moments she wished she could ask Aslan to let them both go to Narnia and just stay there.
However, that, she knew, would never be possible.
Prologue | Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four | Chapter Five | Chapter Six | Chapter Seven | Chapter Eight | Chapter Nine | Chapter Ten | Chapter Eleven | Chapter Twelve | Epilogue