Chapter Text
11 February 1536
Whitehall Palace, England
Henry sat in his private study with a jug of wine on his desk, staring at his mother's portrait. Exactly 33 years ago he had lost her to puerperal fever, from which the good Queen Elizabeth of York never recovered. She had become pregnant for the seventh time to make up for the loss of the nursery, when his older brother Arthur died from sweating sickness at the age of 15. But the things didn't go as planned and in the eighth month Elizabeth gave birth to a daughter, who died after 8 days, followed by her. Her death upset everyone, especially him, as only his mother truly understood him and was patient with him as his father and grandmother trained him to be the new Prince of Wales. But Henry knew that her sacrifice, though in vain, had not left his father, old King Henry VII, without heirs, but on the contrary. His mother had done her duty, and even after the loss of two sons, still there was one male heir to continue the Tudor reign. And so Henry become the second monarch of the dynasty, ruling for 27 years now, but he hadn't one thing - a son to succeed him.
This thought didn't give him peace, and the fact that he had been married twice, and had only daughters, upset him more. His second wife and Queen, Anne Boleyn, was currently recovering from her second miscarriage of a boy she lost after his ill-fated jousting. It was hard enough for him to accept that he would hardly ever be able to play sports like before and when he got the news of the loss of the child and what its gender was, he became angry and wept bitterly, shut himself up in his private rooms, allowing only his good friend Charles Brandon to visit him.
And so it's been two weeks. During those two weeks, he reflected on what had happened and came to one conclusion - his marriage was cursed. The stillbirths he endured in his previous marriage to Catherine also happened to Anne, leading him to believe that she was to blame and that there was something wrong with her. So he made a fateful decision.
- Guards! - Henry called them loudly - Bring Thomas Cromwell! Tell him we have important work to do.
The men at the post nodded fearfully and went to fetch the king's minister.
The Queen's chambers
Anne stood by the fireplace in her bedroom sewing clothes for the poor with her most trusted maids. None of them dared to speak and break the silence that had crept over their mistress after the traumatic event and her argument with the king, and with their heads bowed on their laps they sewed. Everyone in the kingdom was aware that nothing would be the same between the royal couple, but what worried most was that the king not only had the opportunity to banish her, but kill her. After his accident in the tournament, he had changed and was now feared by everyone because of his temper tantrums and paranoia that caused him to go crazy and give unthinkable orders.
The doors opened and two of the king's guards burst into the room. The ladies sprang from their seats and Anne turned pale at the thought that they were coming to take her to the Tower, and gripped the back of her chair hard to keep from falling.
- We're sorry for the stress, Your Highness, but the king calls you to his chambers immediately - one of the men said
- Can I get one of my ladies to accompany me? - Anne asked them
- No. The king wants you to go alone.
- Well, then lead me - she told them and looked back at Mary for the last time. Her elder sister was looking at her with teary eyes and barely breathing with fear.
The three made their way to the chambers to the chambers and she couldn't help but notice the frightened faces of everyone who passed and wondered if they knew anything about her fate or if they really had no idea.
The men gave her way to the front and opened the doors, then closed them.
She could feel the tension in the air upon entering the room and the cold eyes staring at her from the desk confirmed her thoughts. Approaching him with small steps, her gaze rested on his bed, which brought back many memories. In their early years, the two could hardly keep their hands from each other, danced in front of the whole yard, discussed various books and politics, and in the evening they indulged in their passion and laughed, telling each other funny stories from childhood, until they drifted off into an unawakened sleep, hugging and happy. Now those moments of theirs seemed distant to her.
Anne gave him a deep bow and settled into the chair.
- You call me, my lord - she said, snapping him out of his thoughts
- I wanted to talk about something important that affects England, but mostly ourselves - Henry said, looking her straight in the eye to read her body language. To his surprise, she wasn't scared, but sat as still as a statue. Her dark brown eyes staring at him as if they wanted to burn him to ashes.
- I guess it's about our marriage - Anne suggested. Henry nodded his head.
- The last incident made me wonder if there was something wrong with the whole story. I have come to the conclusion that we have lived in sin and we are punished by having no living son and only a daughter. We need to fix our mistake and that can only be done through divorce.
Anne said nothing, but her shifting in her chair showed him that she was startled. She couldn't believe that the man who had fought for her for years wanted to get rid of her like he did with her predecessor.
- You want to get rid of me like Catherine? - she stood up - You think I believed your foolish arguments, my lord, and I will go away to clear the way for that Seymour woman? Is that why you called me!?
- What are you expecting, Anne? To return in your bed to conceive a child, who you will lose again? I gave you two chances to give me with a son, but you failed and it's time to pay the price - Henry protested to her, looking at her with a deadly look, but Anne didn't move.
- And what did you decide? Are you going to banish me to some nunnery, separating me from our daughter? Or will you send me to the tower to rot for the rest of my life? - she asked him in a sarcastic tone, seeing his anger rising
- I won't make it easy for you, dear. I will marry you to a nobleman and sent away. The only news you'll hear from the court in future is how Jane gave me the son you couldn't give me.
His mischievous grin made her want to pounce on him and claw at his plump face. As she remained silent and tried to control her voice, Henry enjoyed watching her body shake with anger.
- For whom will you marry me to?
- Since I know how much you loved Henry Percy and how Thomas Wolsey and I separated you, you will marry his second brother, Ingelram. He hasn't wife and only one bastard, who gives you the opportunity to give birth to a legitimate heir if you manage to carry a son to term - he answered her mockingly
The mention of her first love made Anne fall silent and step back. She and Henry Percy once had plans to marry and have many children to raise in the country, but they were caught and separated and he married Mary Talbot, whom they hated and lived apart.
- What? Aren't you grateful? You will be part of his lineage, even if you are not Henry's wife - he noted, seeing how speechless she was
- Have you notified them?
- Not yet, but I will. The preparations for your wedding must begin. The sooner, the better.
Anne didn't know what to say and nodded submissively, knowing she couldn't argue with the king's decision and had to accept it. He had decided her fate.
- You can go, my lady. I said what I wanted to said. I have work to do.
On the way to her bedroom Anne said nothing to the people who stopped her and asked if she was all right, and when she got there she shut herself up and wept, cursing the day she had met Henry.