ataraxion | ０１８．ｔｅｘｔ＋ａｃｔｉｏｎ？

Already! Then I am late for our meeting, aren't I? This cannot stand, I shall leave for the gardens at once.

[ she laughs. ]

Shall I teach you how we dance in Rome?

Through no fault of your own, dear Lucrezia. I have simply been invited to stay with the Princess Nuala, and so I am.

[ her eyes light up. ]

Oh, please! Could you? That would be lovely.

I shall be there in a moment.

[ and a moment it will be. after that, lucrezia arrives to the entrance to the gardens with dimples in her cheeks and bright eyes. ]

You are a welcome sight, Elizabeth. Our fair gardens have certainly because all the fairer with such beautiful company in them. Tell me, who is the princess you are staying with?

[ elizabeth is already waiting by the entrance when lucrezia arrives, with her hair unbound and feet bare because the grass is soft and the air warm and pleasant.

she smiles brightly, and takes the other woman's hands in her own in a warm greeting. the warmth of her smile has reached her eyes, in perhaps her first sincere expression of joy since news of jon snow's departure reached her. ]

As are you, dear friend. You flatter me with such kind words, which I will echo, for you are quite lovely yourself.

[ lizzie is all too happy to oblige, and releases her hands after a moment. ]

Her name is Nuala, and she is one of the people the Irish call the Fae. She is my patroness here, and has pledged to aid me in adapting to this strange place.

I have met the princess myself. I wonder - is she kin to the elves? Those I do know, beautiful beings of light and grace.

[ she takes her hand in hers again, runs her fingers over the knuckles. ]

Will this princess steal you away from me?

Similar, but not quite, as I am given to understand. They are all very long of life and fair of face, but they hail from different worlds.

[ nuala has taken her hands before, but she is still pleasantly startled when lucrezia does the same. this is what it is to not keep folk at arm's length. it is far nicer than she might have thought. thus, she squeezes the other girl's hands gently. ]

Whatever do you mean? We are friends, you and I as surely as she and I are.

Nothing will change that. I have thought.. [ she pauses, and decides to continue. ]

Sometimes I have wished I had been born a decade later than I was, that perhaps I might yet be able to be of an age with you should I ever be returned to England.

[ she laughs, leans her head on her shoulder. ]

I am teasing, nothing more. You are fair and sweet and you share your attentions with so many. And I am such an envious creature, it's a sin.

[ mostly a jape. mostly. ]

Why wish for such a thing, my love? We are together now.

[ she's not used to being teased so lightheartedly. it warms her heart. lucrezia is so free with little touches and gestures of affection that elizabeth is already becoming accustomed to it enough to slightly lean her head against hers for a moment.

she smiles, but then shakes her head. ] Even if you are, I do not mind.

Know simply that if you would see more of me, you need only but ask. I am fond of you and enjoy our time together.

[ whether it is or not, it's a novelty to be wanted simply for being herself. she finds she likes it very much. ]

For which I am blessed, surely. It would simply be a sweet thing to carry your friendship, even if distance might separate us. There are no friends at my Uncle's court.

Simply those who want one thing or another from me.

The Vatican is no different. A den of snakes, half want something of me and the other wishes to sink their venom into my veins. Did you ever imagine being a simple maid and not be troubled by such? it is a heavy price to pay for a title and a few beautiful gowns.

I imagine not. [ she says this softly, still leaning close. as though to comfort them both. ]

All the time. Sometimes, we did not even have the gowns. Twice, we were driven into sanctuary in the bowels of Westminster Abbey.

[ she hasn't gone into detail about this yet with anyone. it feels liberating. ]

I find joy in simple things, like what we are doing now. Do you find this preferable to being a game piece to be moved upon a board?

You did! why ever? are the politics in the English court as harsh as they are in Rome? Who ever made you seek sanctuary in that manner?

[ she hums and nods. ]

Indeed. It is a relief; I am tired of being sold to husbands as one sells a sheep in the market.

I was but a child the first time. My father's cousin, Lord Warwick began an uprising in an attempt to place my uncle George upon the throne instead. My little brother was born in Sanctuary.

The second was after.. [ she bites her lip, unable to keep her neutral mask intact. ] After my father's death and that same brother taken hostage. King Richard had him placed in the Tower, and he never saw daylight again.

[ oh, she gets that. elizabeth nods, making a face. ]

I understand completely. It is a wondrous thing, to choose. I confess I never wish to return, for I shall not be able to in that event. What of you?

Such cannot be allowed. My Holy Father is the one to crown most kings and to give blessings to the rulers of the Cities. I would like to think he would not allow for such a folly to happen. Some men only see power; before I was brought here, we were taken prisoners, my friend and I, by the hands of the French King. He seemed to have a dream of shredding the world to pieces.

[ she nods. ]

I would stay here.

Which French King was this, dear one? I mislike the current one. I was betrothed to his son the Dauphin Charles, but as soon as my father was cold in his bed, he reneged upon the contract.

They are not honourable at all. And now that same Dauphin is King and would supply our enemy, Henry Tudor with men to take my country. It is unforgivable.

[ finally. someone who understands. ]

As would I.

Charles VIII. A man of great ambition and yet easy to give in to charm and sweetness. It is how we became his honored guests, my friend held lengthy conversations with the King and I read his palm.

[ she frowns ]

Why does France cares so much about England if it had not invaded?

[ she stiffens, and her face bleeds pale. ]

And such a man was once also my betrothed. For we speak of the very same monarch. Tell me, how did you escape his captivity?

[ she is horrified. ] I do apologise most profusely for his behaviour.

[ because she'd come within a hair's bradth of being his queen. ]

Because of the Hundred Years' War, dearest. Our nations have been at odds for a long time. I might explain it, if you like.

He could never have married you! You are much too young and lovely for that brute of a king.

[ of course, it never stopped her father from giving her to Giovanni Sforza, another brute but she liked to think Elizabeth married to a handsome, young king. ]

With charm and grace; he found me most amiable.

[ she nods her head. ]

Tell; of that war.

He was younger than me, but quite foolish and poor of health from the rumours. Now that I know the sort of man he will become, I am gladdened that such was not my fate.

[ it seems that if she returns home she is doomed to be bound to one horrid man or another. all the more reason to remain right here. ]

Ah, I see! I would learn such skill, if you will indulge me in the future.

[ she's never wanted to. diplomacy suits her, but this sort of thing lucrezia speaks of sounds much different. and now, she thinks it useful to know. ]

Originally, England was ruled by Saxons. They were conquered in 1066 when William the Conqueror sailed from Normandy and took it. By that tie to the duchy of Normandy, English monarchs owed fealty to the monarchs of France.

In 1338, King Edward III refused to give his allegiance to King Philip VI as nearly a decade earlier, Charles IV died without male issue. King Edward had French blood by his mother Isabella, who'd been the sister of Charles IV.

King Edward's lands in Aquitaine were confiscated; and thus King Edward claimed the right to the French throne instead. Salic law being what it is, however, he was not crowned. This led to several conflicts which lasted for over a century.

I wonder if that deep rift between my country and theirs ever healed.

Edited (it's not, not note. i'll remember that next time!) 2014-04-14 22:29 (UTC)

I have learned from a dear friend; it is fate that I shall teach another dear friend, it would seem.

[ would giulia be proud of her? of the woman she has grown to be between the stars? a riddle she cannot yet guess. ]

Such a long feud. I shall pray that it ends soon. I do believe there are some men from France aboard this ship, perhaps we can ask them.

[ she is surprised but also very pleased to be referred to as a dear friend. it warms her inside, and it reaches her smile as well as her eyes. ]

I will be very much in your debt then. I confess to not having been interested in such things. But compared to being at the whim of men, I find it necessary.

You have my eternal gratitude for this.

[ meaning she has developed a necessary interest in it now. it's either that or go home and blindly wed herself to her brother's murderer. ]

Yes, I do wish to know what becomes of it all. The last I had heard was that King Charles would be giving Henry Tudor men to cross the channel and invade.

[ her mouth sets itself in a firm line. ] From what you have told me of him, I no longer doubt the veracity of that rumour.

He is a ruthless man but he is a simple one.

[ which is an advantage. A simple man can simply be swayed one way or another with a smile and a sweet word. A complex man is a harder task but the French King formidable as he is, is hardly that. ]

I dare say I won his favor.

It seems I would be doomed to one such man or another. Henry Tudor claims my hand at home, though his men murdered my brother.

I will never forgive him for it, and will never become his wife.

[ he can rot in brittany first for all she cares. and for a bit, she is overwhelmed with her loathing for this pretender across the sea. it is lucrezia's geniality and wit which distract her, and cause her to smirk with a soft hint of mischief. ]

With flattery and wit?

With flattery and wit and mischief.

[ she nods; though her eyes sharpen. If she was to wed a man who would have hurt Cesare. ]

I would have had blood for such an act. If this Tudor lord shall come here, you shall have my protection from his claim.

I think I am very glad you will be teaching me this art.

[ because her disinterest in politics aside, it is plain that to survive she will need to educate herself to be smarter and sharper than the men about her. henry tudor will hurt no one else. no one she has come to care for.

he and his mother have taken away quite enough from her family. ]

So would my mother, and so would I. He is a pretender to the throne and a regicide.

[ the breath of relief she releases is genuine. ] Thank you. I will never forget such kindness.

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０１８． ｔｅｘｔ ＋ ａｃｔｉｏｎ？

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０１８．ｔｅｘｔ＋ａｃｔｉｏｎ？