ROYAL BLOOD
— 7. The Past

       Edward entered Nora's room, finding her sitting at her vanity. Her back was facing him and it was clear that she was ignoring him.

"I laid with Elizabeth as you told me to," Edward uneasily informed her, but still, Nora didn't turn to look at him, "You said I could only return to you only when she was carrying my child and she is."

Edward sighed, growing impatient with Nora. "Can you at least look at me, Nora?" He sighed in defeat, "How many times must I say sorry?" He asked and still, she didn't respond, "Can you forgive me?"

"I've made an awful mistake. Our affair was an awful mistake," Nora suddenly spoke up, turning to Edward with tears in her eyes.

"Please don't say that," Edward pleaded, shaking his head desperately.

"There were a thousand times where I could have stopped this affair, before it went too far. But I didn't. You want to know why? Because I'm utterly in love with you, Edward. Now, I am the mother of two of your children, yet I am not your wife," She paused, letting out a large scoff, "No, instead of making our marriage public, you marry another."

"After what happened, I didn't think you cared if I lived or died. Elizabeth Woodville was--" He began to explain, only to have Nora cut him off.

"Don't say her name!" Nora shouted at Edward angrily, "Or anything else to me, ever again, Edward."

Edward stood in place, refusing to leave where he stood. He stared down at Nora, a saddened look on his face. "I love you. And you love me. I know it."

"Look where that love has brought us, Edward," She whispered to him softly.

"How can you say that?" Edward complained, a look of betrayal on his face.

"How could you marry her?" She snapped at him in a venomous tone and Edward sighed in defeat, "I won't be content with being second best, Edward. Not now, not ever."

Edward scoffed, moving closer to Nora. He knelt before her, cupping her face in his hands. "You would never be second best to me, Nora," He argued, a look of disbelief on his face, "You would always come first for me. No matter what. I promise. She might be the queen in the eyes of England, but to me, you are my queen. My queen in all but name and the only person I'd ever bend my knee to," He paused, feeling uneasy, "You must not tell anyone this, but a part of me believe that if it came down to choosing between my kingdom and you, I'd choose you without second thought."

Nora's eyes widened at the confession, but still, she nodded. She smiled softly, beginning to speak in a whisper. "I forgive you," She responded and Edward smiled gratefully, "I forgive, Edward. I'll always forgive you, no matter what you've done, do you not realize that?"

"Oh, I think I do," Edward replied, causing them both to laugh, "But you needn't worry, my love, because I feel the same way about you. You are the only one for me. It doesn't matter how many whores I bed, you are the only one truly for me. You are the only one who shall remain by my side no matter what. The woman I will die in bed beside as I take my last breath. In my unexpected reign, you are my constant, Nora. My lover. My friend. My family. The one I trust most and above anyone. You are a part of me as I am a part of you."

"You are my family, Edward. My chosen family and you're right, no matter what we do, we shall always forgive you. And just know, my love, if you happen to die before me, just know that I will never love anyone the way I loved you. No one shall ever replace the part of my heart that belongs to you."

Edward smiled, cupping Nora's face in his hands. "You are what matters most to me, Nora. You and our children. I hope you know that." He confessed and Nora nodded.

Nora stared at Edward, deeply into his eyes. "I love you more you could ever know," She whispered softly, just before she found herself leaning forward.

"And I, you," Edward wrapped his arms around Nora, wasting no time kissing his lover.

"Mother," A voice called out, snapping Nora out of her thoughts.

She turned her head, sighing when she saw that it was just Lizbeth. "It's time," She informed her and Nora nodded, despite feeling uneasy about her daughter marrying Henry Tudor.

She always thought she'd be happy to see her children marry, but not at a time like that.

"You seem to have been thinking about something. What was it?" Lizbeth asked her curiously.

Nora forced a smile on her face as she shook her head. "It was nothing," she lied and Lizbeth seemed to believe her.

 
Later on, in the gardens of Westminster Palace, Lizbeth stood with her mother, her sisters, and Maggie, wearing her wedding dress.

It was nearly identical to the one her mother wore to marry Arthur Neville, but even more revealing. She wanted to piss them off and so she would, by dressing like what Lady Margaret would say looked like a common whore.

"Today, you will marry the king of England, my love," Nora spoke up, placing a hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"In a dress, fit for a harlot," Cecily commented, causing Lizzie to turn to her younger sister with an annoyed look.

"Was that necessary?" Lizzie complained to Cecily, who didn't seem to care what anyone thought in the slightest.

"No, but it's true," Cecily pointed out as she shrugged her shoulders, "You look like a harlot, Lizbeth. Lady Margaret and Henry won't be happy about it."

"Do you think I care what they think about me, Cecily?" Lizbeth asked her sister with an attitude, "I don't care what any of them think of me, nor will I ever."

Nora looked down, sighing in defeat when she saw the way her daughter balled her hand into a tight fist.

  "You must contain your rage and your hatred, my daughter, just for this day and you will end up right where you need to be," Nora assured her daughter, holding the girl's hand to comfort her, "On the throne beside the King of England."

   "I will, Mother. He is my enemy and so is his mother. No matter what they say and no matter what they try to do to woo me, I will always remember that they are the enemy," Lizbeth explained, a genuine look on her face, "I will fight them both within my marriage until my brother finally rises up and ends the Tudor reign once and for all. Only then will I be happy."

"So much for humble and penitent," Katherine scoffed loudly, causing her elder sisters and her mother to turn to her.

  "You're right. Humble and penitent be damned. Proud and vigilant shall be my motto," Lizbeth explained, causing Nora and Lizzie to smile proudly while Katherine and Cecily simply looked annoyed.

Several moments later, the wedding began and Lizbeth walked down the aisle alone. She looked forward to see Henry waiting for her. He was staring at her closely, a look of admiration in his eyes.

Henry wouldn't admit it, but he was, indeed, admiring how beautiful she looked, despite everything.

She remained an emotionless expression, which caused Nora to smirk in satisfaction as she stood off to the side with Cecily, Lizzie, and Katherine.

Lizbeth walked up the steps and Henry held his hand toward her. She declined it, the two of them turning toward the bishop.

They knelt beside each other, Lizbeth feeling more hesitant than him. She took a deep breath, turning to exchange a look with her mother.

Nora nodded at her daughter in encouragement, giving Lizbeth the courage she needed to marry Henry. She took a deep breath, just before turning her attention back to making her wedding vows.

____

  When it was time for the consummation, the priests blessed the room as Lizbeth was placed under the covers first.

Nora walked over to her daughter and grabbed her hand. She could see that Lizbeth was terrified, knowing what she'd have to do on that night.

"Don't be scared, my love," Nora whispered softly, placing her other hand on the side of her daughter's face, "It will hurt, at first, but then it will feel nice. You will be fine. Trust me."

"I'm not losing my maidenhead to a man who loves me. Who knows how he'll treat me?" Lizbeth told her mother in a hushed tone.

Nora slowly turned her head, noticing that Margaret and Henry's eyes were on them. She sighed in frustration before turning back to Lizbeth. "He's in love with you. You needn't worry. He'll put your needs above his own tonight. Trust me on that, my love."

Nora leaned forward, pressing a kiss to her daughter's forehead before she was forced to leave the room with Margaret.

Henry climbed into bed, the bishops blessing the room one last time before leaving the room.

Once everyone was gone, Lizbeth began to tense up as she turned to look at Henry. "Shall we do this or are you just going to keep staring at me as though I have four eyes?" She snapped at him and Henry only smiled in amusement. He climbed out of bed, walking away briefly before coming back with a white rose and a red rose.

They were in a vase and Henry ended up placing it on the nightstand on her side of the bed. He turned to her, a shy smile on his face. "As a show of our union," He informed her calmly and Lizbeth simply rolled her eyes, trying to act as though she didn't have butterflies in her stomach, "I have another gift for you as well, but it must wait for tomorrow."

  Henry sat on Lizbeth's side of the bed, an uneasy look on his face. "If you wish me to, after our duty has been done on this night, I shall sleep on the floor if you are uncomfortable laying beside me on this night."

Lizbeth glanced down at the red and white rose. She took a deep breath before looking back at Henry. "Let's just get this done and over with."

A reluctantly look on his face, Henry nodded his head. He got under the covers, moving closer to Lizbeth. They were both sitting up and Henry cupped her face in his face. He stared into her eyes, realizing that they were both nervous.

"I never expected our first time to go like this," Henry confessed, letting out a sigh in defeat, "I thought it would be..."

"What we thought would have never been the reality, Henry," Lizbeth reminded Henry in a cold tone, "We were just kids, then. Now we are not. We've come to the understanding that all that we thought our union would be like could never happen. It was simply a lovesick fool's dream of happiness when it was impossible for people like us to have together."

Henry remained silent, slowly nodding his head. He stared at Lizbeth closely, tucking the strands that were in her face behind her ear.

"I don't care what you want to believe, Lizbeth. I love you, I do. Even after everything that's happened, "Henry confessed before gesturing toward the roses, "And it doesn't matter how many roses I give you. You will always be the most beautiful of them all."

Lizbeth's lips parted as she stared up at Henry, trying to maintain composure. She couldn't take it anymore and leaned forward, pressing her lips against his.

Henry's eyes widened slightly, shocked by her taking the first step. It didn't take long for him to close his eyes, beginning to kiss back.

Lizbeth untied her nightgown before removing it. Henry did the same as well, leaving them both bare in front of each other. Henry pulled away from the kiss and tossed them to the side, giving Lizbeth time to lay down on the bed.

Henry knelt between her legs, placing his hands on both sides of her. He leaned down, pressing his lips against hers once more.

After a long moment, though, Henry pulled away, looking Lizbeth in the eyes. His own were filled with hesitance, which Lizbeth was quick to notice.

"Are you only willing to do this because it is your duty to as my wife or because there's a part of you deep down that still cares for me, Lizbeth?" He found himself asking and Lizbeth's lips parted as she let out a small sigh.

"I can't answer that, Henry," Lizbeth confessed in a whisper, an ashamed look on her faces

She knew it was the latter. However, Henry thought the opposite. Lizbeth wanted him to continue thinking that, too. She couldn't let him nor anyone know. She couldn't let them know that a part of her still cared for him deeply, despite what he had done.

Most of all, she couldn't let her mother know.

Henry sighed in defeat and nodded his head, knowing that whatever her answer was, it didn't matter, they had to consummate the marriage.

"It will hurt you for a bit at first, I'm told," Henry whispered to her softly and Lizbeth nodded in understanding, "I'll try to make it hurt as less as possible. I promise. If you want to stop, tell me and I'll allow you to take a break before we continue. Either way, we must consummate this marriage on this night and if we don't, we'll both be paying for it."

"I know," Lizbeth responded quickly as she nodded his head in understanding, "Just kiss me. Please."

Henry nodded, wasting no time leaning forward. He pressed his lips against hers, which concealed her small gasp in pain as she was forced to lose her maidenhead to the man she was supposed to hate, but deep down knew she didn't.

     On that night, Henry and Lizbeth had consummated the marriage and as much as the York girl wanted to say she hated it, she didn't.

   Henry was kind to her and stopped anytime she looked to be finding the whole ordeal painful. They went through with it, though, and soon after they both fell asleep in each other's arm, despite Lizbeth's initial plan to sneak away once it was all over.

They had fallen asleep, Lizbeth cuddled up to Henry's chest with his arm wrapped around her. She knew it was wrong to feel that type of way toward a man she and her mother were playing to overthrow, but she couldn't help it.

She began to view him as a victim of the whole ordeal, just as she was. In that moment, they were both victims of their mothers' ambitions.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

We all know Nora will NOT be happy when she finds out Lizbeth is actually starting to like Henry.

Nora might have claimed that perhaps Lizbeth would start to like Henry, but clearly she only said it to see how Lizbeth would respond. And every time, Lizbeth claimed she could never love Henry after what he did, but clearly, she does.

If it isn't obvious, Nora is up to something big, something she won't even tell Lizbeth. 😬🤷🏻‍♀️

Also, a lot of you have been asking about when Nora and Jasper will see each other again and I promise, it will be soon.

Nora is clearly avoiding him and just using the idea of seeing him again as a way to torment Margaret, but they will reunite soon I promise.

Question: Do you ship Henry and Lizbeth? If not, do you think you will start to in the future?