The Lost Tudor Rose

"Come on, My lady! It's almost here! One more push!" Cried Isabel Stumpe, the half sister of Queen Katheryn Howard. Katheryn screams as she bring forth a new life. The baby's cries are heard. "What is it? What's wrong?" Katheryn asks out of breath looking between the two women holding her hands. Isabelle squeezes her little sister's hand, stalling as long as she can. "Nothing, nothing." Replies Cathy Knollys, her cousin Mary's daughter. "Your Majesty has given birth to a perfectly healthy baby girl." Isabel says holding her sister's hand as the midwife takes her to be blanketed against the harsh December weather. Katheryn wept hysterically. She has failed! Now Henry was going to force her and hurt her until she died! God help her! But the pain was far from over. Her labor pains are starting back up. "Ah!" She screams, wild with pain. "What's happening?!" Lady Stumpe cries, panic rising in her voice. Everyone scrambles to get ready for another babe. "There is another child!" Exclaims the midwife, the Lady Ursula Stourton. Katheryn's husband, King Henry VIII comes in. "I must have a son!" He exclaims. Lady Ursula rolls her eyes. She was a close friend of another royal midwife, the one who delivered the Prince of Wales, Prince Edward. "Katheryn's carrying twins, possibly even triplets, so leave’ maybe spend time with your new daughter so we can focus on the queen." Lady Jane Rochford says pushing him out. It's then that the next child arrives, announcing their arrival. Katheryn weakly looks at Ursula who is holding her second. "A healthy baby boy! You have given us our Duke of York, Your Majesty!" She cries. She passes him off to his aunt. But the labor continues on. On for what seems like hours beyond hours until finally, the last arrives, her cries announcing her late arrival into this world. "Another baby girl, your highness." Lady Mary Tudor says. Katheryn smiles triumphantly. 'Triplets! I have done my duty! I'm safe. He won't be able to touch me like with the others!' She thinks. She's physically exhausted and it dose not go unnoticed by her women. Her ladies show her the babes and she kisses each of them. "Rest now, my queen." Lady Lucy Somerset soothes. "You shall see them soon." Katheryn falls into a deep sleep, clearing the way for Lady Ursula and Lady Mary Tudor to make the announcement to the king and Lady Elizabeth Tudor. "Well?" Henry asks. Lady Ursula smiles. She couldn't believe how well Katheryn pulled through. In modern times, it's a struggle to get through the delivery of one child, but three at once, especially so young, is practically unheard of. "You have two beautiful daughters and a son." She announces. He smiles in disbelief. Probably reaching the same conclusion she had. "A son? A SON! A DUKE OF YORK!" He exclaims. People gather to congratulate Henry. "When can I see him?" Ursula wants to glare at him. He seems to have forgotten that he has two newborn daughters as well. "Queen Katheryn is resting. If you wish, you may see them if you are quiet." She says clearing the way for him to enter. To everyone's surprise, Katheryn is awake and holding her newest newborn daughter. "Ooh! Ooh!" She coos bouncing the wiggling baby. "My precious one!" Between us—well not really just us, everyone knows—Katheryn felt close to the youngest because she was the second youngest of twelve full and half siblings born to her mother, Jocasta Culpepper. And she knew her son would always be looked after by his father. Henry notices a silver chain around the baby's neck. Hans Holbein, his favorite artist, is also there standing mere feet away from the queens bedside, painting her with the other two babes being held by the ladies in waiting of Katheryn's inner circle. However, he doesn't really pay attention in regards to the locket. Katheryn had lockets made in case she had a girl, one for each of her top two names. Although she never said them to him. Furthermore, he's more intrigued about how Hans got there so fast. He struck it as Hans heard the gossip that Katheryn had gone into labor and used a secret passageway from his rooms. He clears his throat as Hans finishes the rough sketch and Katheryn immediately looks up smiling. He loved her smile. This beautiful creature was his and his alone. And she had just proven herself to everyone beyond all belief. "Madam!" Henry says bowing. Katheryn giggles. Music to his ears. "My lord." She says nodding while stroking her baby's cheek. He gives her a long and very passionate kiss. Lady Margret Douglas, Henry's niece brings their son over and gives him to Henry. "Thank you, my love. For you have given me the greatest gift a women can give a man." He says holding his newborn son. "If you really wish to thank me, I have suggestions for our daughters." She says looking at her youngest. "Anything." He says eagerly. She takes a breather. She has been thinking about this since she first told Henry. "Our youngest shall be called Angelica. Angelica Rose Tudor because... well, look at her. She's such a little angel and just look at her cheeks. They are so rosy." She says. "I love it." He says stroking his daughter's cheeks. She opens her eyes, her mother's eyes, and she gazes up at her. At this, Katheryn smiles. However, she hesitates revealing her wish for her oldest's name. "I want my oldest to be Jocasta Anne. After my mother and my niece and my friend." She blurts out. There's another meaning to her wish for the middle name, she wants it to be after her cousin, Anne Boleyn. He sighs in thought and she looks down. Mostly, she scared he doesn't like it. "Jocasta. That's a mouthful. How about we call her 'Joy' as a nickname?" He suggests. She kisses him and exclaims, "It's perfect for her. Thank you, my lord!" "Our son will be Prince Nicholas Alexander Tudor." He says. She nods and he puts his son back in his cradle before he goes. Fireworks are heard and Katheryn holds her daughter out to see the bright lights, telling her that it’s all for them. That's about when Angelica decides to demand her mother give her attention once more. "Hello, little one." Katheryn coos. Angie just whines and grabs the top of her mother's dress. "Oh! Shh!" Isabel says stroking the babe's cheek. "Hungry?" She gives her a look that says, 'that simply won't do.' Izzy grabs her new niece's foot to keep her from wiggling too much and Katheryn pulls down her corset for breastfeeding. "Your Majesty, what are you doing?" Lady Somerset asks. "May I not feed her from my own breast?" Katheryn asks. Lady Somerset clicks her tongue and shakes her head. "Queens don't do that. Especially not for a daughter." She says walking towards them. "That is enough! Remember your place, My Lady." Isabel says blocking Lady Somerset, who bows growling and leaves. "Thank you Izzy. You've always had my back, and now you've proven yourself further." Katheryn says. "Kitten, you're my baby sister. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you." Izzy says. "I want you to be their godmother." Katheryn says. Izzy tries to fight it, but Katheryn says, "I insist. You've been by my side through everything. There's no one I'd rather look after my children if anything happens to me." Izzy still seems hesitant. "Please! For me?" "I would be honored,...Your Majesty." Izzy says curtsying. With that done, Katheryn turns her attention back to the child in her arms. She finishes preparing herself and guides the child to her breast using her thumb. As she suckles, Katheryn kisses her daughter's head, gently stroking her cheek with her thumb and sings a song she wrote while she was pregnant. Golden slumbers kiss your eyes, Smiles awake you when you rise; Sleep, pretty wantons, do not cry, And I will sing a lullaby, Rock them, rock them, lullaby Rock them, rock them, lullaby (Poem originally written by Thomas Dekker) She immediately yawns and falls asleep curled up on her mother’s chest. "My beautiful girl." Katheryn holds he baby close to her heart and kisses her head. "My Queen, as much as I like to see you with her, you can't keep her awake all day. You both need your rest." Lady Somerset says walking towards the queen and the newborn princess. She reaches for the baby and the girl cries at the foreign contact. "Oh, my precious one, it's okay. I'll be right here." Katheryn say bouncing her as the baby grips her hair. "Ooh ooh! I love you, Angie. I love you with all my heart and I bid you never forget it." She kisses her daughter's cheek and she cries a little, until her mother calms her and she falls asleep cuddled in. "Your Majesty." Lady Stumpe says holding her hands out for the girl. Katheryn hands over the sleeping baby and falls asleep herself, exhausted from the delivery. "Give her to me! I'm her governess." Lucy orders holding out her arms. Izzy sighs in relent and hands the girl over. "Anything else, Madam?" Izzy mocks sarcastically curtsying. Lucy harshly glares at her. "You're dismissed so that I may take her to the nursery with her older siblings." She growls. Izzy leaves the room grumbling. Lucy takes the baby to the crib, lights a candle in front of the window, and waits until a knock on the window is heard. A women in all black comes in through it. "Madam." Lucy says nodding her head. Madam Bennet glares at her. She had no time for formalities. Or talk in general. "This way." Lucy leads the way to the crib. They hover over the cradle watching the sleeping newborns. "Ready a horse. I think my children are tired." Bennet says touching the boy. "Yes, My Lady." Lucy says nodding, and then leaves. "How could something so beautiful happen to someone so sinful?" She says firmly holding the boy. Katheryn and Bennett grew up together in the household of the Dowager Duchess, where she was known as Alice Acworth, bastard half sister of Joan Bulmer, one of Katheryn's ladies in waiting. She was always jealous of Francis Dereham's interest in Kitty. Bennett and Dereham were supposed to be married until the king had him beheaded on Katheryn's behalf after Dereham tried to win her back. She later married Master Bennett, Earl of Dover, but he too was taken from her. He died from the plague, leaving her and his son with a large property on the outskirts of England. A man comes in and the two women hides in the darkness until Bennett sees who he is. He whispers something to the girls, looks at Bennet, nods, and goes. Bennet goes over and reaches for the youngest, thinking that Henry would NEVER look for yet another "useless girl". But then again,... the king certainly wasn't going to be a problem for her. She waits for only a moment as the baby whimpers and she whispers, "Don't worry, I'll take great care of you." But the baby shrieks at this women's hard foreign touch, alerting the queen. "HENRY, SOMETHING'S WRONG WITH THE CHILDREN!" The queen screams. The queen! How could she forget the queen? To be fair, she didn't count on the nursery to be anywhere near the birthing chambers. In modern times, royal mothers don't really pay attention to their children because their kings believe it distracts them from birthing more male heirs. But Katheryn begged and pleaded for their children to be close to her so that they would know who there mother was and how much she loved them if anything should ever happen to her. Lady Isabel and Lord Henry rush in to see the women steal the child and just like that... gone. Katheryn is beside herself with grief. She sob's clutching onto her baby's bonnet. "Don't worry, my sweet girl. We will find you." But she vanished. And just like that, December 25, 1542 will forever go down in their hearts as the day they lost a Tudor Rose.