#KP ✩ verse: modern royalty au

[makethangels]

       ❝ tatiana ! i’m so glad you’re here ! ❞ catherine rises to her feet, beaming as she goes to greet the younger woman. placing a polite kiss to each cheek, the english queen is still BEAMING when she pulls back. ❝ to what do i owe the pleasure ? did we have a meeting i’ve forgotten about ? ❞

@guvernantka​ // liked for a starter

[makethangels]

some major plot points for cate’s modern queen verse ( most modern aus use this timeline, she just doesn’t become queen in some of them ).

born to a wealthy family in the north of england. the eldest of three children. her mother was a member of the royal household and good friends with queen catherine of aragon. as such, cate and princess mary were childhood friends.

marries sir edward burgh at age 19. the marriage was forced upon both members of the couple by their parents, in the unofficial sort of arranged marriages wealthy european families still occasional engage in today.

sir edward died less than 5 years later. she was sad for him and his family, but was inwardly grateful for the opportunity to pursue her own interests. catherine got up through a PhD in english literature at the university of cambridge.

she often has tea with princess mary at the castle, which is how she caught henry’s eye. 

marries henry after a short courtship, making her queen of england.

henry dies a few years into their marriage, after which catherine has a short lived romance with thomas seymour, resulting in the birth of a daughter, mary.

catherine divorces thomas when she discovers he has made inappropriate advances on her stepdaughter elizabeth and testifies against him, helping to send him to jail.

she currently lives in a relatively rural estate, writing as much as she can and raising her daughter. she still talks to all of henry’s children quite frequently.

[makethangels]

@asperad​: 🗣️x

cate: just be yourself, say something nice. stella: which one? i can't do both.

stella: oh, i never brag. cate: you once called your face “proof of god’s existence.”

stella: i would do anything for you. you want the moon? i will get it for you. cate: i want you to eat three meals a day and have a regular sleeping schedule. stella: i will not.

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: “Your voice is more comfortable to listen to than anyone else’s.”

       ❝ is that so ? ❞ her fingers are RUNNING through stella’s hair, playing with it while her other hand holds the book she’s currently reading from. ❝ in that case... ❞ a gentle kiss. ❝ shush and listen to the story. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: “ You’re cute when you blush. “ x

       ❝ STELLA... ❞ her voice is half giggle, half whispered moan as she leans back in the other’s arms. cate may be the taller of the pair, but to her, stella has always been a safe place to land, a steady hand to hold, someone to catch her when she NEEDS to be caught. ❝ i’m the dowager queen of england. i’m not cute. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: stella’s going to just casually slide a single flower into cate’s hair.

       catherine CAN’T STOP SMILING. the gesture is so sweet and considerate and utterly stella that catherine pulls her in for a kiss. she knows that stella likes to put on a show, likes to make the world think she’s cold and unfeeling and tough, but catherine herself is a prime example of soft and tough not being mutually exclusive. stella is no different. she has the one of the warmest hearts catherine has ever known. the trick is GETTING HER TO LET YOU SEE IT.

       when she pulls away, she tucks strands of stella’s own hair behind her ears and presses her forehead against hers. ❝ you are so very loved, stella gibson. i hope you know that. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: “I want to know you, Cate.” x

       it’s a rather ODD proclamation, considering stella’s been sharing her bed for a fair while now. but there is a difference, catherine has to admit. most people don’t know her. they see her quite frequently. they know her persona, they know the queen, they don’t know her. she’s trembling slightly as she reaches out to tuck blonde strands behind stella’s ear. ❝ i...i find myself WANTING YOU TO, ❞ she confesses softly, ❝ i’m not quite sure what to do with that, if i’m quite honest. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: take my hand

       ❝ what are you PLANNING, ms. gibson, ❞ cate laughs, fingers entwining with stella’s without a second thought. it’s terrible of her, she thinks, to be relieved that her husband is dead, but getting able to finally be with stella, really be with her, she feels like she’s floating on air. ❝ i KNOW that look. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: ‘ may i ? ’ lithe fingers lift without waiting, tucking the fallen bits of blonde behind the other woman’s ear. stella’s lips twitch as she blinks, fingers drifting down till she’s met with catherine’s jawline. thumb brushes across the bone as her sight flicks to meet the others. she shouldn’t, she knows she shouldn’t. but she does. two beats passing before she’s closing the gap between them, lips pressing softly against catherine’s.

       catherine’s been attracted to her for a long time. granted, she’s tried to push it to the back of her mind, but it’s been there. her touch alone has the queen nearly shivering with anticipation, and when her lips meet catherine’s, she lets out a small moan of contentment. she’s soft. and warm. and GENTLE, and catherine instantly raises a hand to cup stella’s cheek. her arms go around the other blonde’s waist and pull her closer, losing herself for a moment in the feeling of letting herself have something she truly wants. when she pulls back, she’s panting, eyes opening to find stella’s once again. ❝ you...are amazing, ❞ she pants, ❝ to answer your question, yes, you may. YOU ALWAYS MAY. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: stella’s going to slowly come up behind cate, arms sliding round the woman’s waist till her hands clasped together and rest just above her abdomen. lips come to find the woman’s bare back, once, twice, moving down till she meets the fabric of cate’s dress.

       catherine startles slightly when stella touches her, but as soon as she feels the soft sensation of her lips on her bare skin, she relaxes. only one person can be so tender and so utterly arousing at the same time. ❝ STELLA... ❞ her voice is a silky purr as she removes her earrings, depositing them in their box before she turns and pulls the smaller blonde in for a kiss. she guides them so she’s sitting on the edge of her bed and stella’s in her lap. catherine’s hands wander, framing the curve of a hip and the apple of a cheek. ❝ do you have any idea how much i’ve WANTED YOU all night ? ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: don’t let the height fool you, i’m not one to be underestimated.

       ❝ what ? ❞ catherine’s eyes jolt up to look at stella, a confused knot to her brow. she shakes her head, blonde curls flying rapidly around her ears. ❝ i do HOPE i haven’t given you the impression that i underestimate you. i wouldn’t have hired you if i didn’t think you were up to the task. honestly, if someone’s gotten close enough to me that your height is an issue, i think a lot else will have ALREADY gone wrong. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: - There’s no one I’d trust more with my child than you x

       catherine smiles softly as she watches mary play with cora. her arm is wrapped losely around stella and catherine is playing GENTLY with her hair. it’s a kind of magic, really, watching the two interact. it’s then that catherine realizes she has all of the people she loves most in one room, and she feels tears prick at the corners of her eyes. ❝ i feel the same, ❞ she murmurs, nuzzling gently against the top of stella’s head. ❝ this is quite THE LITTLE FAMILY we’ve got, isn’t it ? ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: kiss me like you mean it, like you miss me, like i’m all you’ve ever wanted.

       stella doesn’t have to TELL HER TWICE. writer’s fingers grip stella’s hips and pull her closer, lips kissing her just the way stella’s asked to be kissed. equal parts love and passion, desire and utter adoration. ❝ you are, ❞ she murmurs, when she has to pull back to breathe, ❝ you are all i want, stella. please don’t tell me i’ve made you DOUBT THAT ? ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: 🛋 / cate

       catherine’s been watching her HEAD OF SECURITY pace around her room all morning. she can practically hear the gears in stella’s head turning, and for a moment she’s content to watch. the king is abroad, catherine is in charge of the castle with a minimal staff since nothing’s planned so it’s as close to a vacation as she can get. she’s comfortable enough to ask stella to stay with her for a few days, hence her current view of the woman from her own bed. and still, STELLA PACES. catherine chuckles and shakes her head before finally speaking up.  ❝ you’re  so  wonderfully  weird. ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: ‘ women come and women go. ’ x

       ❝ you do realize i’m not the sort of woman to be IMPRESSED by a partner’s conquests ? ❞ she doesn’t intend it meanly, rather is stating it as the truth it is. she cares about stella. it doesn’t matter if she’s been with a hundred women or none. she’s with her right now. that’s what matters. ❝ i’m not going anywhere right now, and i’m not PLANNING on going anywhere in the future. everyone else...isn’t relevant to our relationship, don’t you think ? ❞

[makethangels]

@asperad​ said: “  don’t give me that look.  ” x

       the look very much CONTINUES. if anything, stella’s getting it even more now. ❝ stella... i realize that it’s your job to protect me, and i would never be so arrogant as to ask you to stop doing it, but what you did today was reckless. unnecessarily reckless. i can’t...i would be lost without you, understand ? i need you to...well, I JUST NEED YOU. so for the love of god, use your head next time. ❞