Black Heart - The Tudors Fanfiction

Chapter Two

It was not until she was back in her rooms that she realised what she had done. Her attendant was still fast asleep at the bottom of her bed none the wiser that Anne disappeared. So not to disturb her, Anne gently sat on the closest chair and put her face into her hands.

What use had it been to confront Henry? Even if he did believe her innocence, he would not stop the investigation now, it was only a matter of time before the guards came to arrest her.

And for the Duke of Suffolk to walk in! How he must have loved to see Henry pinning her against the wall. The vile man was probably looking forward to her execution. There was no doubt in her mind that if he told his bitch of a wife then the whole court would be aware of last nights events by morning.

Alas, there was nought to be done now. With shaking hands, Anne poured herself a goblet of wine and drained the cup.

She had gone too far this time. And though she would never admit it to another soul, she was terrified.

Mentioning Elizabeth had a mistake, a foolish mistake. While Anne would gladly die if it guaranteed Elizabeth's safety, and maybe even the chance for her to be Queen, the words had been spoken to anger her husband. She may have public support for a while, but her death and the anger it would bring would be forgotten eventually. Elizabeth would need support from others when she was a woman who would help her to be a fine Queen, not support that would dwindle before her third birthday.

There was little chance of Elizabeth becoming Queen. And selfishly, she did not want her daughter to grow up without her. Elizabeth was the one good thing that had come out of her marriage, she wanted the chance to watch her daughter grow into the beauty she was destined to be.

The thought brought tears to her eyes. Elizabeth was too young to understand. While others may tell her that her mother loved her dearly, she would be too young to have many memories of her. She would not understand why her mother could not be able to see her anymore.

Even if Henry could find no way to make Elizabeth a bastard and was still considered a Princess, her legitimacy would still be questioned by other monarchs and the Catholic Church, but her position would be even worse than before. Princess or not, she would still be considered the child of a traitor and a whore. Henry would barely be able to tolerate her, look at how he had treated the Lady Mary whose mother had only ever loved Henry. How would he treat his other daughter whose mother he believed to be a whore? Nobody would dare speak up for Elizabeth because of who her mother was, not even her family. Her father and uncle would distance themselves from the whole scandal in hopes of not falling with her.

Anne drained another goblet of wine. She could already imagine her father's plots to gain more titles, but this time involving Elizabeth. The thought made her sick to her stomach. What kind of world would Anne be leaving her sweet daughter in?

The tears finally escaped her eyes trailing softly down her cheeks. How ironic it was that three years ago Henry had been prepared to go against the Pope, betraying all of his religious beliefs just to make her his Queen! And when he finally placed the crown upon her head he wanted to remove it with a blow to the neck! She was going to be remembered for centuries; whether people pitied her or laughed at her, she did not know.

Where had her sweet Henry disappeared to? Was he still in there, underneath the cold front he put on when in her presence? Did he look at Jane Seymour the way he once looked at her? It broke her heart to even think of it. Anne did not doubt that he was infatuated with the girl, but she would never hold his attention for long. If she was to be Queen then she would have to be crowned quickly, because Jane Seymour had no hope of keeping a King's attention for years as she once did.