The Other Henry VIII

Ignorance is Bliss

26th January 1523

Richard Cavill Jr. had made up his mind; it all depended on whether Leia had made up hers.
Court was moving again, despite the blustering cold that bit at their cheeks and fingers like a wild animal, and the king had ordered the heads of each noble family to ride ahead with him. This intriguing arrangement left Richard free to slip in wherever he pleased, since Rebecca had automatically put herself next to the King's pregnant sister Margaret. The Countess of Rochford, as she was legally titled, had spurned every suggestion to be carried in a litter or a carriage instead of riding when she was so far gone and would be locked into confinement as soon as the court was set up in Richmond Palace.

Richard had dressed in a thick fur cloak over his brown doublet to brave himself against the cold but it still rippled through his bones menacingly at every trot his horse made below him. Find Leia, he told himself, trying to be as confident as possible. Find her and tell her.
His teeth were chattering with the sound of pebbles falling onto stone. Good God, it's cold. Richard craned his neck to see if he could spot where Leia was. He'd irritatingly got stuck behind the Princess Margaret's flock of hens that she called her ladies-in-waiting, with Rebecca at the head of them, but he was at least intelligent enough to know that Marianne Westover would be riding near the front too. Perhaps Leia wanted to be with her cousin? Not likely. Richard also knew Marianne was not his lover's favourite relative and honestly did not care if her cousin was in the king's favour or not.

Sighing, he turned his head to search for Leia's face behind him. Or rather, to search for any strikingly blond heads among the various shades of brown. It wasn't long before Richard's eye fell on Leia and a few of her relatives a couple of rows back from him; they seemed to be in deep conversation but fortunately Leia glanced up and she immediately met his gaze.
Please smile at me, thought Richard desperately. He was always anxious that Leia would become angry with him, as she seemed to do so frequently with the king. Thankfully, she gave him a charmingly modest smile and began to weave her horse in between the people in order to catch up with him.
Richard took a deep breath. It suddenly occurred to him that he had not been at all prepared for Leia to understand from one look that he wanted to talk to her.

"Richard," greeted Leia as she pulled up alongside him. The sudden image of her long fingers clamping around his heart sprung to Richard's mind but he pushed it away. "Did you want to speak to me?"
She's squeezing it, came another unwelcome thought, followed by a pang in his chest. Swallowing, Richard briefly reflected on how weak Leia made him feel. And how little he cared.
"Yes, I did."
Oh please say something. Dear God, say something, he told himself. It was as if his mouth refused to open again, as if it was sealed shut. Richard found himself daydreaming again... she is so very beautiful. No-one else seems to think so but I am glad of it.

"Richard—" began Leia at the precise same time as he said "Leia." She turned away, her eyes fixed on her horse's ears quite stubbornly, whispering, "You can go first."
Say it now or you'll never be able to again.
"I love you," Richard blurted out, more abrupt than he had meant to. Leia didn't look up. "But I need to know if there is a point. I need to know if you have any prior.... engagements." There you go. You told her.
"I do not want to anger the King. As aggravating as it is, he still pursues me and who knows what he will do if I try to marry you." Her voice was heavy with something Richard had identified as worry. His heart sunk in his chest like a large rock, fast and merciless. Why won't she look at me?
"So you are saying no." The words came easier than Richard expected.
" I am not saying no," Leia retorted, her head snapping up. "I am saying that we must wait until he has taken another wife."
"How will that make any difference?" Richard felt his hands tighten on the reins.
"If he is married, he cannot legally obligate me to marry him. This country is still monogamous, in case you forgot."
"He could make you his mistress," he pressed on but Leia seemed quite determined.
"But I would be your wife. If we announce it now, I will be stripped from you and tied to the King like a piece of jewellery."
The silence that followed was one of the more uncomfortable that the couple had encountered. Richard did not want to be the one to break it and yet he knew Leia was far too stubborn to do so.
"So you are saying no."
"I am saying no for the time being but yes in the long term." Millions of problems raced through his head in that moment.
"And what if he never marries?"
"He will," Leia replied confidently. "He needs a legitimate son."