Festina Lente

Chapter Thirty-One: The Announcement

1st of May 1532 - London, England

"It is with great pride and honour that I announce the engagement of my daughter, the Marquess of Winchester to the Duke of Hertford," King Henry announced raising his goblet of wine in the air and looking around the room. 

It was all arranged and he was most pleased that the Duke had been able to see what an offer this was being asked to marry a daughter of a King; it had taken sometime to arrange the deal but finally everything was arranged. 

Anne raised her own goblet at his words, she had been surprised when Henry had told her just who he had selected as a husband for Katherine's daughter. 

She had not expected such a match to happen so quickly but his words had quickly reassured her when she had learnt the terms of the deal that would see his daughter married to the Duke of Hertford. 

Mary stared at her father, a part of her wondering if this was some sort of sick joke and that she was being punished for something that her mother had done; she had never thought she'd be married off to a bastard. 

Despite the fact that she was now labelled one herself, she had expected a fine match maybe even a minor prince somewhere on the continent that would not seek a throne for himself. 

Taking a moment to squeeze her eyes shut, Mary tried to block out the sound of people celebrating her engagement; her mind unable to comprehend just what her future might be now. 

Whatever future that she had originally pictured after it was revealed that her mother was a liar and had betrayed her country was gone; she could not allow herself to live on what ifs when it wasn't going to happen. 

Letting out a deep breath, Mary opened her eyes and peered over to where the man that her father had decided to marry her off to was. 

He was rather handsome, she would admit that and she could count herself lucky that the Duke of Hertford wasn't much older than she was; she could have found herself married off to an old man like her aunt had been before she'd married the Duke of Suffolk. 

It was not the worst match in the world and while it secured her alliance to the throne it would also mean that she was no threat to her brother's rule when that time came.

Making her way across the room, she nodded her head to those that she knew in greeting and she could only imagine how fast such news would spread about her impending marriage; she would be a Duchess through her marriage and a Marquess in her own right. 

Mary had no doubts that her movements were being watched, the Imperial Ambassadors would write to her cousin the Emperor to inform him of her engagement into the Medici family. 

"Your Grace," Mary stated once she was before Ippolito, she wished she knew more about the man that was her intended but she had the chance to learn about him now. 

Her own knowledge of him and his family was limited but she would change that, she would make this work and make her father see that she was his loyal and obedient daughter. 

"My Lady," Ippolito replied bowing his head down to her, he was most surprised that she had come to speak with him especially given how secretive negotiations for her hand in marriage had been. 

Nothing had been left to chance and Ippolito knew that the news of his engagement to Mary would not be well received by those who would have wished to use her to gain the throne of England. 

Even though she had been declared a bastard, Ippolito had no doubts that there would be those in England that would happily seat her on the throne if it meant they gained power from doing so.