Katherine Tudor was supposed to be stillborn. A dead daughter of Elizabeth of York whom would die days before her mother.
That is no longer the case. Instead she became Queen of France at 13. The wife of Le Garcon Roi; the boy king. The Queen Mother...
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(A/n: I felt so bad that the last chapter was short so I'm posting this early )
Katherine woke up that morning with a sense of foreboding weighing her down. She woke up lethargic, her eyes dry and nose nasally congested, her maid noted how her cheeks were flushed with a mild fever.
“I should get the physician,” her maid said as she anxiously watched her mistress rise from the covers.
“No,” Katherine denied, “no I am..I’m fine.” She turned with a smile to her maid, “Draw me a bath, will you Dottie?”
Odette (Dottie), the maid, nodded. She wasted no time in completing the task, having other servants bring in the tub and warm water. She personally added the scented oils, fruit and flower petals. This was routine for her and she wondered how nice it would be to submerge herself in such a sweet smelling concoction.
She went back to fetch her mistress, who then dismissed her.
Katherine took a breath, inhaling all of the scents and felt herself relax. She untied the string holding the night shirt on. It fell to the floor, she stepped out of the fabric and into the bath, relaxing further in the warm water, her muscles melting like butter.
She sat in the bath for an hour, getting out just as her toes began to prune. She called for Odette, who came scurrying in with towels and a robe. “I called for your ladies,” Odette told her as she helped to dry her off. “Anne and Mary should be here soon,but Francoise was sleeping in and Anthias…”
“Was with her husband, yes I’m aware,” Katherine giggled. “No matter how much she complains about the byproduct, she can’t stand to sleep alone. I can’t say I blame her.”
“Oh! You received a letter, I forgot to tell you earlier but I sat on your desk,” the maid said. “Is marriage truly so sweet?” Odette asked with a kind smile.
She didn’t get many letters, Katherine didn’t write tomany people and she received very few letters in return. And she hadn’t written to anyone in months currently so she had no idea who this letter could be from. Katherine shrugged, “I’m not sure I would have ever married on my own if my brother didn’t want me to.”
Odette humed as she helped Katherine put on her robe. “You can go,” Katherine dismissed and Odette curtseyed before doing so. Katherine quickly braided her hair and tied the front of her robe shut as she made her way to her desk.
She took a seat and immediately found the letter her maid was talking about.
The seal was a black color, which immediately gave her pause. She quickly racked her brain for who sent this and why. It ate at her, the anxiety and the mystery.
Who died? She wondered. I must have known them, otherwise there would be no point in the wax being this color.
Before she could open the letter Anne and Mary had already entered the chambers and were ready to dress her. She put the letter in a drawer and looked up to greet them. They dressed her for breakfast and she went through the motions of the morning.
