Empire of Dreams

*17*

The birthday of the King was no minor celebration. Edward had managed to call all the dukes, viscounts, counts, knights and earls. Lady Irem had joined Aunt in her room while I was left to tend to Little Mary as usual.

"Let the feast begin" Edward announced and the men were served by the thousands of butlers in the palace.

The ladies were all in a room adjacent to the courtroom where the main feast was going on, hosted by my mother and Kathyrn.

"There is a letter for you, my lady" a servant quickly curtsied, handing me the letter before scurrying away.

I was used to getting letters in the morning, brought in by Sia as usual so it was odd to recieve a letter midday. Opening the seal, the letter inside was written in odd slants, showing almost perfect penmanship done hurriedly.

Dear Jane,

Meet me outside in the Garden in 10 minutes. Will be waiting by the daffodils.

With just that, the letter ended. There was no name or signature, just like the letter was sealed with the wax of the royal house, meaning it was a nite rather than a letter.

"What's the matter?" Mother scowled in my direction as the ladies clapped politely for the singers.

"Nothing, I'll be here in a minute" I said and ran back up to my room. From my balcony, I peered down to look at the daffodils but could not see them. They were on the other side of the palace then.

I turned to go but my gown got stuck in the vanity drawers corner, tugging at which led to it getting ripped.

I quickly rushed downstairs and making sure no one paid much heed to me, I snuck out into the garden. Who can it be? I wondered and though curiosity was getting the better of me, I felt knots in my stomach, as if something was wrong.

The daffodils were indeed on the other side of the palace and I took my time to reach there. Surrounded by the yellow heads was a man in his middle age, his hands fixing his coat mindlessly as he stared towards the dark sky.

"You summoned me, sir?" I asked, not sure of the man's intentions.

"Ah yes, I did. I am Archduke Leonard. I must say you look beautiful, my lady"

"Thank you, kind sir, but I am not sure I understand the purpose of our meeting"

"It is understandable as I have not clearly revealed my intentions yet. As you see, you are now coming to the age of Marriage my lady and I have been finding a suitable someone for marrying my nephew. He too is an Archduke, but he is much closer to your age. I will not hide anything from you. An old foe of mine, Sir James Hales has been quite reluctant in recognising my nephew and his position in the court, seeing as he is not purely of English origins. His marriage to you would secure great freedom and wealth for you and a position in the court for him. I can request for permission from your father or the king, as you wish."

"I understand your proposal, Sir, but I need to meet your nephew before making a decision. I also appreciate your concern for permission, but I want to make it very clear that the decision will be mine and mine alone, so there is no need of permission. I shall ask you to arrange a meeting with your nephew for me and we shall see where this leads us" I replied.

I don't what I had in mind, even agreeing to such a thing, but what Kathyrn said was true, I needed to think about my marriage before father took any steps. Another thought struck my mind though. Anne and Catherine both believed that I was destined to be the Queen. As far fetched as that was, I still needed to make sure that I would marry someone who would not overpower me in an attempt to snatch the throne.

It was not uncommon for new bloodlines to start like this. I would need to keep in mind what I needed. What England needed.

"It is settled then. I shall arrange a meeting and send you a letter with the time and place for the same. Thank you for considering this" he looked genuinely grateful so I nodded and then gestured for him to return back to the palace.

I walked behind him, trying not to lose our way as it was a night of new moon.

"You need to tell me all about this" my mother giddily approached me as the ladies took their seats on the table. The dinner was served soon and I managed to keep my mother at a distance for the rest of the night, also retiring early so that I wouldn't have to talk to her. After I was sure that the palace was empty of its guests, I made my way to the library, lighting a candle on the windowside table and taking out a dusty old book on warfare but soon left it when it was clear I wouldn't be able to concentrate on it.

Libitina Campden, a friend of Kathyrn's from the training at the medical camps, had been here that night. What I did not know was that she had managed to stay back this long. She found me in the library, breaking the peace of my solitude, but I was open to company at this point. She was older than me, but only by three or four years. She already had a son though, who was fast asleep as she walked to my table.

"I am pleased to meet you again, Lady Jane" she smiled as she took a seat.

"It is my pleasure too" I replied.

We sat in silence for sometime, seeing as all we knew about each other was that we were both close to Kathyrn.

"I am not used to being in the presence of Kings and princesses. We belong to a quite simple family..." She said, fidgeting continuously.

"It is not your status that keeps me so silent, Mrs Campden, it is just that I do not know you well enough." I said, trying to comfort.

"Would you like to? If you want, we can be friends too" she said hopefully, already forgetting the societal barriers dividing us. Despite myself, I found my heart warming to hers and so with a small smile, I nodded.