'Sometimes we have to sacrifice our youths in order to let people live.'
Tulia Byrne has been a Queen for longer than she could remember. Her story begins so carefree and so full of love and yet by the end of it you'll be wondering if you even know...
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3rd January 1568
It had only been two months. Two whole months since Tulia Byrne had conquered England. It had been a welcome relief to be returned to a warm, freshly made, bed every night, but the new Queen of England had been struggling with figuring out what to do with herself now that she no longer had a country to reclaim.
She had been busying herself with preparing for her coronation, trying her best to take her mind off of wondering who was going to be loyal to her and who wasn't. Tulia's paranoia had only increased since she had returned to her birth place, every day that passed she got more suspicious as to who was really on her side. She prayed that the feelings would change as her reign continued, but at the moment it seemed the right thing to do was be cautious.
After hearing that the war had come to an end, it was finally time for the Valois-Angouleme family to be reunited once more. Tulia had been looking forwards to this moment for so long now. Jean was eight-years old now, Harry was six, and the twins were both nearing their second birthday. It seemed like only yesterday that the children were babies.
She hadn't realised how long it had truly been since she last set foot in Windsor castle as a member of the royal family. She had last been there when she was just a mere girl of ten and that was a whole fourteen years ago. Everything felt so familiar, yet so different. Tulia never truly belonged anywhere, she was a Queen of five nations and yet nowhere truly felt like home.
The Queen had spent so much time trying to get back to England. She thought that when she finally returned she would feel at peace. But it was strange, because she didn't feel anything. She just felt lost. What was her purpose if not to conquer.
As far as the men were concerned she had completed every task under her name. Grow up, get married, become Queen, have children. She had done it all by the age of twenty-five. What was she supposed to do now.
Currently, the young Queen was waiting patiently on her throne as the guards were tasked with bringing in the person that she had been so reluctant to see again. Henri was being brought all the way from Wales under the pretence that he had some answering to do to his Queen. The Prince of France, of course, had not been told that Tulia had succeeded in her mission to take England and so currently he believed that he was on his way to see Elizabeth.
If it were anyone else, Tulia would find the situation amusing. But this was a man she trusted, a man she loved. Henri Valois was going to tell the Queen every act he had ever committed against her or he would die for it. Perhaps he would die anyway.
Tulia was sat there for a good two more hours before there was news that Henri and the party had entered the streets of London. Once this information had reached her ear, all guests and people coming to see her had been sent away. The only people that needed to hear this were people that she trusted. She did not trust half of her English companions as of yet.
