#KP ✩ verse: historical

[makethangels]

       ❝ of course i missed you. there is no one dearer to my heart in all of england. excluding the king of course. ❞ a pointed look is shot in jane’s direction. she knows, more than anyone, how this game is played. it should be MORE than obvious that cate holds the former queen in much higher regard than henry. she just can’t say such things out loud. ❝ i must admit, there was a time i thought i would never be able to think of this place as home, but now that i’ve returned to it... that is what it feels like i’ve come to, due in large part to YOUR GENEROSITY. you’ve been a dear friend to me, jane. i only wish i could properly express my gratitude. ❞

@herheroics​ from here

[makethangels]

@herheroics​ said: i’ll stand in front. I’ll take the blow for you. ( jane oh shit you ready ) x

       ❝ DON’T YOU DARE. ❞ catherine’s voice was low, but firm, insistent. she wasn’t surprised at jane’s offer. the former queen was kind and gentle and good, another reason she wouldn’t even fathom it. that, and it just wasn’t the type of person catherine was. ❝ this is my mess. i’ll clean it up. and if i can’t... well the children will need you more than ever. ❞ she’d grown so fond of her stepchildren, already loved them beyond measure. the thought of them having to watch their father go through yet ANOTHER wife... but she couldn’t control henry’s fickle moods. all she could do was use her sharp mind and sharper tongue to do her best to save her life. ❝ i appreciate you so much, jane, but i think we both know your sacrifice would only end up with us both killed. ❞

[makethangels]

       catherine WATCHED from her bed with a tired smile on her face. she trusted kat to show elizabeth what to do, and she trusted elizabeth with her daughter’s well being. seeing mary in elizabeth’s arms, her heart felt full. what a gift it was to have both of her girls ( though she would never call elizabeth that to her face ) in the same room. she saw the tiny hand reach for elizabeth’s finger. ❝ she likes you, ❞ catherine murmured, ❝ which is good CONSIDERING...i wanted to ask you something. ❞

       she did her best to sit up, wincing a little as she settled into place. ❝ come here, ❞ catherine beckoned, a sheen of sweat sprouting across her brow. ❝ i want to see BOTH OF YOU when i ask. ❞

@glorixna​ from here

[makethangels]

@historypowered​ said: i’m not who i was one year ago. [ from catherine howard ] x

       ❝ funny, isn’t it ? how the winds of fate can change things. ❞ it’s a quiet observation. cate knows, more than anyone, how things can CHANGE in an instant. the world has seen fit to take and take from her. but she can only imagine what the howard girl is going through. she’s so young. cate at least has the benefit of age to stabilize her a little. she reaches out and takes the young woman’s hand squeezing slightly. ❝ i’m SORRY. for all you’ve had to go through. ❞

[makethangels]

       the wine is flowing freely tonight, and catherine...well she isn’t drunk, but her cheeks are flushed and she’s got a girlish smile on her face. ❝ i don’t care if i have to flirt with you before ALL OF CHRISTENDOM. i know there’s a poet somewhere inside you, kat. i’m determined to get to know her. ❞

@queensgxverness​ // liked for a starter

[makethangels]

       catherine did not WANT the king’s affections. she was already married, albeit with an ailing husband rapidly hurtling towards the end of his life. she knew, even being a northern lady, that king henry’s wandering eye had put many a lady’s life in jeopardy. 

       truth be told, while her husband openly disapproved of the king’s marriage to queen anne, catherine herself was a quiet supporter. while she, of course, saw catherine of aragon as family ( she was, after all, the woman for whom she was named, as well as her godmother ), but she liked queen anne’s intelligence, her cunning, her willingness to STICK TO HER OWN BELIEFS. she admired the queen, which was why she hated the circumstance the king had put her in even more.

       ❝ i suppose that is what i’m unaccustomed to, ❞ catherine finally offered with a soft smile. ❝ in the north, we are much more direct. if we want something, we say it. if we need something fixed, we order it to be mended. THESE GAMES OF POLITICS... ❞ she shook her head. she was intelligent herself, of course, but in catherine’s eyes, the smartest course of action seemed to be to avoid court whenever at all possible. ❝ well your majesty is much more suited for them than i. ❞ a kind smile. ❝ i’m GLAD we have such a learned and open minded lady wearing the crown. ❞

       she prayed the queen understood the meaning behind her words, the assertion that she did not covet anne’s place, nor the king. she hoped that now, with his chosen queen, king henry might be at peace, that perhaps with anne boleyn by his side, he might turn england towards the true faith. but whatever may come, catherine did not WANT the king, and she would do what was in her power to avoid his advances.

@xx--ofmanythoughts--xx​ // cont’d 

[makethangels]

       ❝ my lady elizabeth. it’s an honor to meet you. ❞ catherine gives the girl a kind smile when she enters. she’s trying to do this delicately. she knows henry’s children have been through a lot, that they have every right to be SUSPICIOUS of their...fourth new stepmother, in elizabeth’s case. but she wants to make things right, and she does have a soft spot for children. ❝ thank you for making the journey from hatfield. i have some things i would like to discuss with you, if that’s alright ? just TO GET TO KNOW YOU. ❞

@glorixna​ // liked for a starter

[makethangels]

       ❝ i NEVER said that i want this. this burden came to me. ❞

@idiosynchronics​ // liked for a lyric starter for lucrezia

[makethangels]

       ❝ my mother says i shouldn’t ask you for things, your majesty, but i wonder if knowledge falls under that category. princess mary speaks often of her spanish heritage. might you tell me about it ? i believe i’m to be MARRIED soon and, should it please your majesty, i’d like to learn as much as possible before i go. ❞

@spainhearted​ // liked for a starter

[makethangels]

@honourandobedience​ said: ❝ I say no harm, I think no harm- but I wish everybody good. ❞

       ❝ I KNOW, ❞ catherine smile, brushing an errant strand of hair behind the girl’s ear. ❝ that is one of the many things i admire about you. ❞ her voice was gentle, warm, and kind. ❝ i wish i had half your GRACE, young lady. i’d be a very blessed woman indeed. ❞

[makethangels]

@anarmyofcanons​ said: ( LETTER ) sending mine a love letter. {{ Henry, of course }} x

       she knew she should have been completely HONEST with her husband, but after he reacted to the gifts the king had sent her, the last thing she wanted to do was add insult to injury. she slipped the piece of paper from the neckline of her dress where she’d hidden it. slightly trembling hands unfolded it. eyes took in the words, and though she was still terrified by these affections, though her heart belonged to another, she saw the king in a different light. his words touched her, they painted the picture of a man she, dare she say it, wouldn’t actually mind GETTING TO KNOW.

       it wasn’t until months later, when they were married and she was laying in his arms, that she dared to ask. ❝ do you remember the letter you sent me ? after we met ? ❞ there was only one she could mean, surely. ❝ did you mean them ? those things you said ? ❞

[makethangels]

@mvndrvke​: ‘ life ain’t easy, life ain’t fair. ’ penelope

       ❝ is that A GREEK SAYING or one of your own ? ❞ catherine smiles at the princess. she’s rather enjoyed having penelope at court. female company is always welcome. ❝ either way, i agree. though...i find life has a way of surprising you, BOTH with good things and bad. ❞

[makethangels]

       ❝ i have been FIGHTING for this dream in my soul and i won’t let it go. ❞

@spainhearted​ // liked for a lyric starter

[makethangels]

       ❝ it is a well rehearsed grace, your majesty. i assure you, i was an incredibly clumsy girl. were it not for the guidance of my mother and godmother, i likely would not have even learned my first pavan. ❞ truth be told, catherine was more than a little RELIEVED to be welcomed back into court. perhaps it was because the young queen was too youthful to know much of the politics. catherine herself wished she could have that kind of freedom. but such was not her fate.

       she joined the queen in the starting position, already smiling widely as they began to dance. it did take A FEW ROUNDS to remember the exact steps, but maud parr had been a very thorough teacher. her gaze turned towards her sister. anne had served every queen of england since catherine of aragon. it was nice, though their positions were both different now, to be able to dance with her again.

       slightly BREATHLESS when the music ceased, catherine found herself holding the queen’s hands. she gave them a gentle squeeze. ❝ it has been quite awhile since i’ve had such joy in my life, your majesty. thank you for REMINDING ME HOW TO DANCE, in body and in spirit. ❞

@warringpeace​ from here 

[makethangels]

       her godmother. goodness, how catherine missed her. catherine of aragon had been a constant presence in her life when she was young, a strong woman who, along with her own mother, taught her what strength was, how to be a woman who had PRINCIPLES AND OPINIONS. catherine had been a guiding light for her.

she quickly shook her head at the queen’s offer. ❝ i greatly appreciate that, majesty, but that won’t be necessary. i’m not physician myself, but i fear that what ails my husband is not…of the body, but OF THE SOUL. he is deeply troubled, and i only wish that i could do more to help him. perhaps a priest to pray for him. most of the local ones claim they have better things to do. ❞

       she had to quickly chide herself for bothering the queen with such information. ❝ MY APOLOGIES, your majesty. i know you have much more important things to be dealing with. but thank you for expressing your concern. i’ll admit it can get rather lonely up north. my brother visits when he can, but being so far away from everyone and everything...well suffice to say your court is A BEACON OF LIGHT for me. ❞

@warringpeace​ from here

[makethangels]

anonymous said: What's the worst part about moving between castles?

       ❝ that depends on why one might be moving. when his majesty and i were forced to stay away from the capital in the early days of our marriage, the hardest part was the worry for our people, praying that the city would be able to SURVIVE the outbreak. logistically, figuring out who and what to bring is often the biggest challenge. one doesn’t wish to leave the place we are leaving with no staff, but we also don’t want to offend anyone in the process. all in all, i desire to do so as INFREQUENTLY as possible. ❞