Tu Es Ma Lumière

25 - Milk

(This is easily one of the weirdest things I've ever written, but I alluded to a scene like this in a previous oneshot and haven't been able to get it out of my mind, so here ya go!)

The young Queen of France smiled down at her baby. The Dauphin James suckled against his mother's breast. Her four week old baby had quite the healthy appetite and as such, her body provided as much milk as his strong appetite could handle. Mary didn't care about the courtiers who looked down and tutted at the Queen who fed her son by her own breast. After all, those who spoke ill of her had their tongues cut out, a little trick shown to her by Catherine that proved most effective.

Mary stroked her baby's soft golden hair. It was long, and it appeared already starting to curl at the ends. Mary smiled at it, for it was inherited from the man she loved the most. She ran her fingers through the baby's long, lush locks, admiring the softness of the child's hair and the beauty of the baby's face. He was a perfect mix of them both, his beautiful blue eyes already starting to darken into the glittering gold belonging to his mother. He held his fathers nose, but her cheekbones, Francis' lips, but her eye shape, Francis' chin and jaw, but her skin tone. He was perfect. And he was hers.

"Aren't you sweet?" Mary murmured to her previous baby that already meant the world to her. If all she knew was this feeling of love, her husband and a peaceful duo of countries, then Mary would consider herself quite content. "The sweetest, most beautiful thing I've ever seen." she murmured. The baby's tiny hand on her finger tightened, as if in response. Mary smiled down at him. He had been conceived on her wedding tour, borne just two weeks after his father's return to court after sixteen days of turmoil, heartache and death. 

It was true. Her baby almost never cried, even for being a newborn. He simply slept and ate, almost always within his mothers arms. Even when she was doing royal business from her childbed, the little Dauphin and duke of Rothsay was there. The only time the child was away from his mother was when the nannies were changing his soiled clothing, the child even sleeping in her chambers. But whenever the boy would get too loud, there were always nannies in conjoined rooms to take the baby before he could disturb his father.

Mary looked up at the sound of footfalls echoing down the coridoors. She frowned. Because she was still in her childbed phase, yet to be churched, people tended to keep away from the royal chambers in which the Queen rested and the Dauphin grew. The only time she had human contact was the times the nannies would come to clean her baby, or when her ladies would come to keep her company. Well, two of them. Or in dire circumstances when Scotland needed her Queen's authority over her regents.

She listened closely, they were familiar, yet different than usual. She recognised one instantly, quicker than she would see the back of her hand. It was her husband. The other she recognised clearly, but it brought worry to her gut. It was Lola, a third sound catching her attention.

It was the muffled cry of a baby. It didn't take a genius to figure out who it was, but the child that brought so much turmoil to her marriage. If she didn't have James, that child may have been the nail in her coffin.

The young, resplendent Queen looked up from the baby as he suckled from her. In walked her husband and his rumoured mistress, as well as the young Baron de Velay. Another issue in itself.

"No, no, I can't ask her!" Lola gasped out as Francis pulled her into the room by the wrist. The other hand held the baby against one shoulder.

"We'll both ask her." he stated calmly, turning to his wife who sat propped up against the pillows, her white nightgown gently flowing over her body, one shoulder lowered to feed the baby.

"Mary," Francis stated, unable to not smile as he saw his wife with their new son. Mary smiled wearily at him, not entirely sure of the reasoning of this visit. The two families bound by one man hadn't ever came this close before. 

"Yes?" she asked.

"Umm-" he turned to Lola, who seemed exhausted and near tears. Her gown was messily tied together, a messy bun holding her hair up. She looked awful, and was covering her baby's mouth as it wailed behind his mothers' hand. "We-we have something to ask of you." he started. Mary rose a brow, one perfectly tweezed, thanks to Kenna's earlier visit.

"Yes?" she repeated.

"I can't feed him, Mary." Lola stated, glancing at the Prince who was sucking strongly at Mary's breast. "My milk won't come in." she paused.

"Get a wet nurse." she shrugged.

"That's the problem." Lola sighed. "All three of them have taken a trip to Beauvais to see a physician. There's nobody and I fear my child will go hungry if I don't do something." she stated.

Growing steadily more confused by this conversation, yet fearing she knew where it was going, Mary held James closer to her a little. Francis saw this and sighed. 

"Love, I know this is an extremely strange request-" he paused. Mary nodded vigorously. Yes, yes it was. Was he honestly going to ask her to feed his bastard child from her milk? What on earth? "but he is hungry, he can't feed from his mother, we think her milk is drying up." Mary tried not to feel the pang of pain that the word we gave her. After all, he had married her and they had a child, too. He slept next to her and kissed her good morning, she meant more to him than Lola. She had to. There was nothing to worry about anymore. "I know what he signifies in our marriage," the bastard parents shared an embarrassed look. "but you wouldn't let a babe go hungry, would you?" he asked. "You've told me you produce more than he needs many-a-time."

Mary sighed. That was emotional blackmail at it's finest. 

"Very well. Wait until James is done, then we'll see if there's anything left."

"Thank you, Mary."

~~

Hey!

Sorry that was so weird, but I couldn't stop thinking about this scene and had to write about it. Anyway, I've been working on TBD and another kinda sad oneshot, so I'm gonna try and get'm up ASAP, but inspiration is on the low everybody. So, if you wanna help a girl out, give a couple of prompts in the comments and what you want to happen in any stories of mine that you've read!

love,

me.

:)