~Blood for Blood~

20th of September 1469, the Tower of London....

Two names.

That was what lay inside of Elizabeth's locket. Two names written in blood, the Queen's blood, the blood of Melusina seeped deep in ancient magic. A curse.

She had cursed the lives of Warwick and George, bound them with chains of avid revenge forged in fires of a hatred that would not be broken. 'It shall be for the both of us' Elizabeth had said the morning after the curse was laid, a deep determination to her voice that was so true Catherine could not help but believe it.

The curse that lay in the Queen's locket would serve as her revenge on Warwick too, the long overdue payment for the pain he had inflicted on her mind and heart.

And as for George, well, she could only sigh with despair when she thought of him. She had thought him a friend and now he had proved himself an enemy; allied with Warwick which was a move he would never be able to retract. He had chosen his side and she was determined never to let him back onto her own.

As the sun rose above the horizon in an amber-golden glow, Catherine woke to a gentle murmur beside her. Opening her eyes, she could not help but let a lazy smile cross her lips at the sight of her son. Golden hair fluffed like duckling down from sleep around his head, he stood on study little legs, chubby hands clinging to the side of his carved crib. He had fixed his gaze intently upon her slumbering figure, peering down curiously until the sun shook her from sleep.

Long free of his blankets, which were strewn across the cot, he stomped his tiny feet back and forth, almost jumping upon his feathered mattress while he gurgled. Over the past month, this was a sight Catherine had become accustomed too and relished each moment of the endearing spectacle, watching with glee as he learnt to slowly haul himself onto his own two feet. He could not yet walk but each day he made progress, beaming and giggling while Catherine cooed encouragingly.

"Ma....ma...." One eager little hand reached out, the other still curled around his crib "Mama!"

Catherine's gentle smile grew and her heart swelled with so much love she half feared it would burst through her chest! Just one week prior Henry had spoken his first word, screeched it at the top of his little lungs while he rolled around on his Mother's bed one evening. She'd stared at him with shocked eyes, hardly daring to believe her ears while he merely grinned, clutching at his toes and squealing with delight.

She didn't think she had ever been so happy as she was in that moment! To hear her boy speak, call her his Mother was the greatest blessing God could give and ever since then she kept her ears keen, beaming each time Henry babbled his new word.

"Mama!" He gurgled again, reaching further over the side of his crib and Catherine grinned, finally rising from her covers with a slight groan and a yawn. How proud Richard would be of their boy once he heard him speak, oh, she could almost see the joyful look he would hold on his face! From dawn till dusk she longed to see even a glimpse of her husband but during the month she had been housed in the Tower, she had been denied that blessing.

Not a day after their arrival, Anthony had ridden out to join the young Duke (soon joined by Georgie) on his quest for support and neither had returned. It made Catherine worry, of course, but she could not help but feel proud each time she heard Richard had claimed more support for his captured brother! He would return to her, she was sure of it, a proven commander of men, the Father of a son who grew stronger each day!

Her eyes fluttered shut for a fleeting second at the happy notion of their reunion, the smell of lavender and leather filling her senses for one blissful moment before her son's disgruntled gurgles brought her to the present once more. He was ever the eager one to face a new day!

"Good morning, my love" She cooed, taking Henry's little cotton clad body into her arms; sighing contently when his hands automatically fisted themselves into her loose hair. He nuzzled into her neck and she smiled, remembering with excitement that the new day brought more than just the rays of dawn.

It brought the completion of the first year of Henry's little life! His first birthday!

Part of her heart could not believe it! That the little blonde angel wriggling in her arms had graced her life for an entire year, filling her heart, her soul, her mind with a love so strong she was sure it could move the very earth! Twelve months ago to the day she'd laid in Duchess Cecily's arms, begging to be spared the pain tearing her in two and now she had her boy, a strong, healthy Prince who was growing up before her very eyes!

She would never forget the first time she held him, nor the adoration that had filled her heart at the sight of his reddened face. He had been so perfect, so delicately angelic! How glad she had been to have her own dear boy! "Happy birthday, Henry" She murmured into his hair and Henry giggled, letting his little legs swing back and forth in the air, toes wiggling.

"Mama! Mama! Mama!" He chanted in his own childish gurgle when she set him down, taking an interest in her embroidered coverlet and crawling across the covers to pluck at a silk flower "Mama!" He babbled again, squashing the delicate bloom beneath his palm with a grin she mirrored, nodding enthusiastically.

"Yes, Henry! That is a daisy! Tis very pretty is it not?"
A string of his own language answered her, a line of happy chortling that once again made her heart swell "We should teach you to say Papa, my love" She mused aloud, smoothing his unruly golden curls with one hand "Then you can greet your Father properly when he returns!"

Little Henry's ears pricked up at that and he grinned, looking expectantly towards the chamber door as if Richard were about to stride right through! Above almost all else Catherine wished he would, not simply for his own safety but for their son! It was his first birthday and so much had been missed already (yet another thing she resented Warwick for), he could not miss this!

"Ba!" The little boy said, frowning as his mouth tried to form the right sounds "Ba....ma...baba!"
"Baba?" Catherine repeated, blinking as she wondered why her son was attempting to imitate a sheep.
"Ba!" Henry said again, kicking his little feet on the covers "Baba! Baba!" One little finger pointed at the door and his Mother had to refrain from exploding with laughter when she realised he was trying to say Papa!

Encouraged by her grinning face, Henry began to squeal the word, shrieking with giggles when Catherine scooped him into her arms and began to laugh into his neck.
"Oh my dearest darling!" She chuckled as his hands once more slid into her hair"How you brighten my days!"

"Mama!" He simply said, followed by a wet kiss (or at least that was what she thought it was meant to be) pressed clumsily to her cheek "Mama, Baba!"

꧁꧂

Under the shade of a great oak tree upon Tower green, the Queen and Duchess sat, watching their children play. While the summer weather was slowly dwindling to Autumn cold and every so often orange leaves landed beside them, they found it did them good to be out in the open instead of trapped with their thoughts inside.

Margery rocked Princess Cecily back and forth, Mary and Lizzie played, chasing one another around the green while Henry crawled after them. He shrieked with delight at their antics, clapping his little hands and reaching for their skirts when they came close. Both his Mother and the Queen were void of such happiness, Elizabeth's head placed wearily on Catherine's shoulder while the latter watched her son.

"What news?" She had asked when she first emerged, Henry in her arms, but there had been no news to give and so the two settled down for another day of uncertainty. It was all they could do until either Richard returned or the Queen's curse took its course.

Even then, Elizabeth toyed with it, winding the leather cord around her fingers while her lips moved in silent condemnation of the men who's names lay inside. She would not give up, not for one moment, that was for certain.

"Your boy is a wonder" She suddenly murmured and Catherine glanced to the blonde head on her shoulder, unable to resist the smile that crossed her lips.
"He is one today" She replied "I cannot quite believe it!" With a tired sigh, Elizabeth sat up straight, leaning back against the rough bark of the oak tree while she watched her daughters play. She adored them with all her heart, truly she did, but she could not help the longing within her for a son, a royal Prince of her own.

With George already the assumed heir apparent and now a rival for the throne, a Prince was needed more than ever and yet after Cecily's birth her womb had not quickened again! Not that there had been much time for love making in the months following her birth, they had been on royal progress and then Edward had been taken captive!

"One" She murmured, staring at Henry with a soft smile. He was a dear little thing and her heart was fond of him as it was his Mother and Father "Such a time of innocence, isn't it? Blissful ignorance and nothing but a world of shining stars full of promise...."

"And hope" Catherine finished, gently covering Elizabeth's hand with her own "Do not let your hope for a son dwindle, my friend. Boys shall come just as daughters have! You have had sons before! You shall do so again!"

The Queen's smile widened and she allowed her head to rest on the Duchess' shoulder once more, thinking of her two dear boys. They were somewhere about the fortress practicing with their swords, the distant clashes of metal on metal told her, eager to imitate their godly stepfather in war. God forbid the day when she would see them away to their first battle! She was sure her heart could not take it.

When she and Edward had first met five long years ago, he had promised to see the law of England run from one coast to the other; to see England united. He had achieved his word for a time, she supposed and the country had seen peace but now the very house that had first brought such a time was burning and a cloud of thick smoke had gathered across the land.

The petals of the white rose were beginning to fall, it seemed.

"Your grace! Your grace! Riders!"

Guards raced along the ramparts and the two beneath the oak tree sprang to their feet at the news.
"Margery!" Catherine called over her shoulder but her lady (having passed Cecily to her nurse) was already scooping Henry from the ground, cuddling him close while the little boy wriggled, wanting to be on the ground once more.

There had been no new arrivals to the Tower for weeks and Catherine's breath hitched as the portcullis was raised; the heavy wooden gates pulled open. Surely it could not be an enemy! They would not be permitted entry!

A large wolfhound bounded through the gates, his shaggy grey coat shaking as he ran straight towards the Duchess; ears pricked up.
"Roland!" She exclaimed when the dog landed at her skirts, circling her eagerly before the sound of hooves filled their air, following him into the Tower "Roland what are you...."

"Anthony!" The Queen cried, suddenly snapping from her brooding mood to one of sweet relief as she saw her elder brother accompanied by two others. Richard and Georgie. Catherine's heart leapt joyfully in her chest and, picking up her long skirts, she ran, Roland at her side, in her eagerness to reach her husband.

"Richard!"
His blue eyes flicked to hers, filling with love as he pulled his steed to a halt, all but jumping from the saddle. When they collided it felt as if the world had healed, as if they were truly whole once again, their souls reunited under the Autumn sun. They had been parted for too long.

"Cate!" He murmured into her hair, wrapping his arms tightly around her body to hug her to him "Christ I have missed you!"

"And I you" She replied, unable to wait any longer as she crashed her lips to his, the need for his warmth, his love overwhelming her. Her mind and body had been so wrought with worry those past weeks she had begun to fear she would never feel at peace again, but now, she did. Or almost at least "I did not expect you! I thought that...."

His deep chuckled startled her somewhat and she blushed fiercely as he gently raised her chin with his fingers.
"You did not truly think I would miss our son's first birthday did you, ma belle?" He asked, placing a soft kiss to her lips while Roland danced happily around their feet, panting "Nay I would never miss such a thing as that!"

Catherine felt her heart swell and turned to take her son from Margery, lifting the happy little boy easily into her arms. There was so much to show his Father! So much to make him proud of their boy!

"Look!" She exclaimed with an almost childish excitement in her voice, taking Henry's hand and kissing it "There is something I must show you! Henry?" He peered up at her, tilting his head to the side "Who is Mama?"

For a moment his brow furrowed in confusion and she repeated the word, slowly, gently, until his little face brightened and one hand planted itself against the bodice of her gown.
"Ma....mama!" He declared proudly and Richard gave a cry of utter delight, wasting no time in gathering his little family into his arms; beaming at his son.

"Our boy speaks!" He laughed, looking at the little boy with all the pride the world could hold "My little knight you are turning into a man already! Come here, lad, let me see how much you've grown" Henry was eager for his Father's embrace and steadfastly clung to the fur on his cloak while ebony curls tickled his face. Richard smiled. His boy had grown and was a fine weight yet still anchored himself into place like a newborn, peering upward with that curious glint in his eyes.

"Ba!" Henry said before pounding one little fist on Richard's chest "Ba! Baba!"

"Baba?" He repeated, his confused expression turning to a small frown as Catherine began to laugh, gently winding one of their son's curls around her finger.
"He discovered a name for you this morning!" She said and he arched an eyebrow "It seems you have been christened a sheep, my love! And I see you have brought our son's champion?"

"Would that be me or the dog?" An amused voice quipped from the side and Catherine grinned, turning to her first husband and drawing him into a tight hug.
"Both of you, Georgie! Mon cher frère, I have missed you!"

"As I have missed you!" He replied, placing a quick kiss to her forehead when he drew away "But I cannot stay long! None of us can!" Catherine's face fell and she frowned in confusion, feeling her heart sink. They had only just arrived! Surely she could not be alone again so soon?

"But why?" She asked as Anthony and Elizabeth joined them and Richard sighed, bouncing his son in his arms.
"I am to go to Parliament to defend Edward against Warwick and George" He answered grimly, nodding at her look of surprise "Yes, they are in London, sweetheart and now we must face them"

"And defeat them" Anthony added "Or God help us all"

꧁꧂

As the morning light fell across her face, Catherine groaned, her hands eagerly seeking the warmth she'd claimed from her husband the previous night. After placing Henry in the nursery with the other children, they were not separated and fell asleep in one another's arms after hours of tender lovemaking that made their minds spin.

Now, she merely sought his embrace, the comfort his closeness brought and frowned when she could not find it. Only a lingering warmth remained on the covers her fingers danced across and Catherine forced her eyes to open, a sudden, stinging fear that Richard had set out for parliament already filling her heart.

But she need not have worried for her eyes fell on his figure almost immediately, waving away the squire that dressed him before he took to staring out of the closest window. He appeared unusually young that morning, almost small in a way and Catherine felt an affectionate smile flit across her lips. Fiddling with his doublet, he straightened his sword belt, twisting the rings he wore before carding a hand through his thick hair.

She often forgot how young he was, how young they both were, just sixteen yet already saddled with responsibilities most adults would balk at. That day he was to step into Westminster with nothing but his own words to defend him, to defend his King, facing his own brother, his mentor and men to whom he had to prove he was no child.

If the men he had rallied in the North not proved a testimony to his talent already, Catherine didn't know what would but she understood his nerves and sought to comfort him. Draping a nearby sheet around her body, she slowly tiptoed from the bed, padding over to the window where her husband lingered, jumping slightly when her arms slipped around his waist.

"It's only me, love" She murmured softly, pressing a kiss to his neck and he sighed; hands covering hers.
"I'm not sure if I can do it, ma belle" He confessed "To face my cousin and George across a room, to know they are traitors.....how am I even meant to convince Parliament to oppose my brother's claim?"

"Because you are strong!" She told him firmly, turning him to face her "You have a way with words but better still you have honour. Loyalty. The council will see that and listen to you"
"They think me a boy...."

"Then show them you are a man!" She cried, gently tilting up his chin just as he had done to her the previous day "I remember what you told me when we first returned to Middleham and I say those words to you now, Dickon. Hold your head high, and none shall doubt you. I certainly do not"

꧁꧂

Climbing the Tower ramparts, Catherine wrapped her grey shawl a little tighter around her, glad to see she was alone for once with no guards or soldiers to disturb her thoughts. Breathing in the crisp air of evening, she allowed her eyes to flutter shut for a moment, letting the amber glow of the sunset turn her skin to shining gold.

Ever since Richard had set out with Georgie and Anthony in tow that morning, there had been no word, only a sense of worry that thrummed through the air; each of their hearts. Even little Henry seemed somewhat subdued for once, sitting quietly in Margery's lap while he watched his Mother pace back and forth across her chamber.

Richard would win, she assured herself over and over, like a prayer, he would secure his brother's position and send the traitors into the mud. If he held his head high like she had told him then there could be no doubt of his victory, of Edward's victory. A York victory....

The sound of soft footsteps took her from her thoughts and Catherine glanced sharply to her right to see the Queen beside her. She did not murmur any greeting or even let their eyes meet, she simply wrapped her shawl around herself, just as the young Duchess had done minutes before, and stared out over the river, over the city.

"What was it like?" Her voice was quiet, crisp like the cold air around them "To lose your Father as a child? He was killed at Towton wasnt he? You must have only been....seven?"

"Eight" Catherine corrected softly, somewhat surprised and unnerved by the sudden question. She never spoke of her Father; hardly ever thought of him "I remember I cried, I screamed, I blamed all around me whom I could reach for his death, including my husband, but I also remember realising.....that it was not truly my father for whom I grieved"

At that, the Queen frowned slightly, at last turning to her friend while the gentle breeze stilled to silence around them.
"How so?"

"I grieved his memory, my memory. You see I never saw my Father again after the Nevilles took me and well, by Towton my memory of him had all but failed me. Of course I mourned the loss of a Father, the pain it caused myself my mother and brother, but I also mourned the loss of the chance to know him again, to see his face as something.....other than a blur" The sob that threatened to emerge from her throat startled her and she jumped, taking a shaky breath as tears pricked her eyes; blurring her vision "I'm sorry, Elizabeth, I hardly ever speak of him...."

The Queen shook her head, placing a tender arm around the girl's shoulders with an almost Motherly warmth to the embrace.
"It's quite alright, Cat" She murmured, gently cradling Catherine's head against her neck while she sniffed, trying in vain to push back her childish tears.

"If you would listen to my council I have some to give" She managed at last and Elizabeth nodded, giving the shoulder beneath her hand a gentle squeeze.
"And I would accept it gladly"

"Mourn, my friend, cry and rage all you wish but do not forget to treasure the memories that you have of your Father and brother. Keep them close to your heart always and let them heal the wound Warwick has struck in your heart. Or let it fuel your revenge"

꧁꧂

October 1469, the Tower of London....

"To King Edward!"

"King Edward!" Catherine cried, smiling as the goblets those gathered around the table collided, causing a pleasant cling to chime through the air. Still, she found it hard to lift the silver cup to her lips, so stunned she still was at the sight of the blonde York King grinning over all of them. While he looked comparatively disheveled to his usual glittering self, she was sure she'd never been more relived to see him!

Only fifteen minutes prior, Richard had shaken her awake as excited as a child on Christmas Day, a wide grin painted across his lips.
"It's Ned!" He'd cried, all but dragging her from the bed; throwing her robe at her "Ned! He's back! He's back!"

"Back?" Catherine exclaimed, struggling to force her arms through the velvet sleeves as Richard pulled her through the Tower halls by her hand to a well lit chamber where Elizabeth stood, beaming, King Edward beside her. He'd been grinning from ear to ear, one arm around his Queen's waist while Anthony and Jaquetta watched on happily.

Catherine had almost fainted at the sight!

"They lost their nerve!" Edward now chuckled, taking a hearty swig of wine from his goblet and grinning around at his kin "George said he would behead me but of course he would not dare! Not even Warwick has the stomach for that!" The others laughed, each of their heart's filled with sweet relief that brought a new life to their smiles "He thought I was still that boy he could control! He tried to make me give up Elizabeth but I told him I would happily stay in his household forever but never would I give up my wife nor who I am!"

"They are fools to think it!" Richard quipped, earning nods of agreement across the room and an indulgent grin from his brother.
"I owe a lot to you, Dickon!" He said, raising his goblet in his direction "Without you I may not have my throne. John said that you were most convincing in Parliament" The boy flushed with pride and Catherine giggled, drawing him close to press a gentle kiss to his cheek.

"So they just released you?" Jaquetta asked and Edward nodded, filling his goblet again.
"Parliament wouldn't declare for George and make him King" Anthony replied "So if Edward wouldn't abdicate and they wouldn't kill him...."

"Warwick let me out for exercise" Edward chuckled smugly "To save his pride!"
"And now they will be sorry!" Elizabeth added, glancing happily at Catherine while one hand gently clasped the silver locket around her neck.

"You won't like it but they won't"

An icy hush fell across the room, the merry mood souring like old milk, and suddenly all eyes were on the King, wide with disbelief and then a blossoming anger in the Queen's. Catherine frowned, feeling her heart quicken at the almost guilty expression that surfaced on Edward's face; the gentle squeeze of warning Richard gave to her waist.

"What?"
"We must have peace" The King said slowly "And I was a fool to see that I had shut my cousin out! But he knows he has lost and he will beg for my forgiveness, as will George!"

"Y-you must not give it" Elizabeth laughed, shaking her head in disbelief while Edward merely frowned.
"I will....and what is more, I will make Warwick's nephew Duke of Bedford"
"My first husband's title?" Jaquetta exclaimed, her surprise echoed by Catherine's almost outraged gasp.

"How could you do such a thing?" She cried, forcing her eyes to stay level with the King's when he turned to her, clearly surprised by her outburst. Usually she was quite reserved around him, wary almost at times. There was only a tentative link of trust between them, one forged long ago by the lingering memory of Edmund and the kindness she had shown him. He was fond of her but he did not truly know what she thought of him.

"I must give him a stake in staying loyal to me...." He began but the Duchess only scoffed, pushing away Richard's hands when he once more tried to give her waist a squeeze of warning.

"I do not care what Warwick's nephew gets! John is a good man and has stayed loyal to you throughout this! Reward his loyalty if you will but do not reward Warwick's treason! Nor your brothers! It's lunacy!" Edward's eyes narrowed at that and he took a short sip of wine, his fist tightening around the metal "You must punish them!"

"I can't!" He returned cooly "And I won't....and what's more" He paused for a moment, rolling the words he was about to speak on his tongue in hesitance "I will give my daughter Elizabeth to young Bedford in marriage" This time Elizabeth's gasp joined Catherine's and both women stared in disbelief at the King, jaws slackened in shock.

"Over my dead body!" Elizabeth hissed, taking her friend's hand to refrain from letting her fists fly.
"How could you!" Catherine cried again, finding her eyes once more met the King's, his piercing blue gaze now lit with icy fire, one that should've been a warning but only stoked her own rage.

What right had he to be angry with her? With Elizabeth? He was all but rewarding murder, brushing aside plain treason as if it were no more than petty theft "You would give your own daughter to the nephew of the man who had your Father and brother in law killed?" She exclaimed "As if congratulating them for their butchery?"

"Cate...." Richard murmured but she raised a hand, commanding, angry, forcing him to silence in a way no wife was meant to.

"Give whatever you want to John" Elizabeth snapped, glaring at her husband from across the table; her delicate features turned sharp in the candlelight "But I swear to you, our daughter will never marry his son! Never!"

"Well I'm sorry for trying to keep you safe but he would've killed you!" Edward yelled, causing the Queen to jump while Catherine only felt her anger flare.

"Which is all the more reason to kill him!" She retorted sharply and his expression darkened dangerously "You reward a man who would kill your Queen and possibly your children? I know for a fact that he has no qualms about hurting them for he hurt me, Edward, more than you will ever know and I do not think....."

"It doesn't matter what you think!" He suddenly roared, eyes ablaze and cheeks red with rage; stunning them all. Even Catherine fell into silence though the determination in her face would not be subdued and she clutched the Queen's hands firmer "I am the King, Lizzie is my daughter and I will give her to marriage in to anyone that I choose and no one, including you, shall stop me!"

Her chest heaved, lips thinning to an angry line while Edward glared at her. She shook her head, almost sneering in disgust and about to bite a sharp tongued retort when a distant wail suddenly drove through the thick blanket of tension suffocating them all.

Henry's wail, calling softly to her through the gloom.

Richard moved to go to him but Catherine put out a hand, halting him in his tracks. Still her eyes held a steely gaze, one that refused to soften, refused to waver as she glided around the side of the table; coming to stand before the King.

"No, Dickon" She said softly "I'll go. It is clear I hold no sway here"