~𝕭𝖊𝖙𝖗𝖆𝖞𝖆𝖑 𝖎𝖘 𝖔𝖓𝖑𝖞 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖇𝖊𝖌𝖎𝖓𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖌~
Born the youngest daughter of Charles I, Duke of Bourbon, Constance of Bourbon grows up amidst comfort and splendour on her powerful family's estates in France. A shy child, she prefers her...
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~Laid to Rest~
May 1476, Warwick Castle....
Margaret departed England at the beginning of February and returned after three weeks, seemingly a changed woman! A new spring was in her step, her smile became common to see and, while she was still devoted to her prayers, she was far more inclined to fun!
Not a day went by where she didn't thank the Queen or sink into the deepest curtsy possible when the King walked by; replying with great reverence if he spoke to her.
When the Royal Household embarked on their summer progress, she was in the highest of spirits and remained so, taking delight in sitting with Marie to sew with her.
Near the end of May, the extensive party reached Warwick Castle, a place that dug up unwanted feelings and memories for both the King and Queen. The Last time they'd been present, he had been imprisoned and she had been leading an army to free him. It had been the beginning of the hardships that followed they found it strange to reside within the castle walls without the Nevilles there.
One evening Constance had found Edward in their chambers, sitting on the edge of the bed, his shoulders hunched and eyes glazed over. As she went to him, a single tear trickled down his cheek and he leaned into her embrace.
"My head hates him" He whispered "But sometimes my heart still grieves for his loss, for what we shared" "Mine does too" She replied "I miss him at times, I miss the man he was and despise the traitor he became"
And so, as the days of their stay went by, they tried to remember happier memories, smiling when a happy memory was prompted and told. It felt that, perhaps, they could make peace with Warwick's memory at last.
"Will we be attending Ludlow this progress?" Katherine asked one afternoon as she and her fellow Ladies in waiting sat sewing in the queens chambers.
"We shall!" Constance replied happily, snipping the end of a thread with her tiny silver shears "We are to travel there once we have visited Fotheringhay. Ludlow is a shorter journey from here, mind you, but Edward has insisted we travel to Fotheringhay first. Why, I could not tell you!"
A knock came at the door and, looking up from her work, she called for entry, watching the page that entered and bowed to her. "Your grace, Lady Florence Bouchier has arrived and waits in your chamber for your permission to enter" The Queen took a breath, pain sparking in her chest.
It had taken her many months to choose a new Lady's maid, at first declaring she would not replace Anne, but, as Queen, there could not be a gap in her household. Over weeks and weeks she'd looked at possible candidates presented to her and had finally settled on the unmarried Lady Florence Bouchier, Edward's first cousin through his Aunt, Isabel of Cambridge, his Father's only sibling.
