~Acts of Treason~

England. A land of torn loyalties and turncoats. Of treachery and murder. Of suspicion and wary glances that followed nobles an commoners alike.

Or, at least, that was what the land had become during the year of 1477. Ever since the Duke of Clarence had been found hiring a sorcerer and conspiring against both the King and Queen. With his disappearance the country seemed to have been thrown into chaos, more so in the nobility than anywhere else.

Rumours spread like wildfire, simple sparks, a word or two of idle gossip, fanning into a flame that threatened the very positions of nobles in mere moments.

Some said that George was on the run, was sheltering in one of his country manors plotting to take the crown for himself. Others claimed that his disappearance was no simple disappearance at all, that he had been secretly murdered by his own brother or by the Queen.

His hatred for Elizabeth was known country-wide by that point for he had made no secret of it and now everywhere the Queen went she could hear the whispers, feel the suspicious glances that were sent her way, wondering if the rumours were true.

'Witch!' 'Murderer!' 'Traitor!'

She knew there were some who said she was a witch. What would happen if they found evidence that it was true?

Even the North, the safe haven so cared for by its inhabitants, had not been left untouched throughout the past year. Anne had moved to Sudeley Castle, taking Isabel with her and even taking her Mother from sanctuary to be with them! She gathered her family close, fearful to let them go even a metre from the castle although she felt a little safer in her own household.

Rumours began to spread that George was hiding at Middleham; had been taken in by Eleanor or that she was hiding him from the law in an attempt to save him.

While she dismissed all these claims with a wave of her hand and most fervent protests (that were echoed by an outraged Richard) when Edward sent men to search the castle and the Gloucester's lands, a part of her wished that she was shielding him. At least then she would know where he was!

She had heard nothing from him since Autumn of 1476 and led sleepless nights worrying for him, almost willing him to run, to get out of England while he still could. But she knew he wouldn't and she knew he hadn't. Her instincts told her that he was still in England, biding his time.

Waiting.
Waiting for something.
She wished she knew what.

And she was sure that if he was intending to flee he would have sought out Eliza and would have taken her with him or at least tried to make contact if he was safely away! He loved her. For all his failings he loved his and Bella's daughter.
'He would not abandon her' Eleanor told herself firmly as she clutched her pillow to her chest one morning 'he will not abandon her'

But her missing brother in law was not the only thing to keep her awake.

While her little Cis had thrived under the care of nurses and nannies and the adoration of her siblings and parents (particularly her own brother George who had taken a shine to her), her twin Edward had refused to prosper, had stayed small and weak from the day he was born. At a year old he was no bigger than a babe just a little over half that age. He was often in his bed, had not yet begun to walk and was prone to sickness.

His Mother spent many nights at his bedside, reading to him, singing to him, feeding him, anything that would take his mind from the pain and nausea that controlled his small body. The family had been close to losing him when Christmas arrived and the celebrations that year had been the first to see an absence from their Duke and Duchess.

One day Edward had been taken out to see the new horses that had been given to John, baby George (who was a baby no longer), William and the young George Neville and when he had come back in his little nose was reddened and his teeth chattering as was expected. But by that evening he was vomiting up the contents of his stomach and his fever was so high, his siblings half feared he would burst into flames on his bed!

Edward had cried, wailed, thrashed at the covers that bound him and at the Doctor's hands that prodded and poked him before they pressed a cool cloth to his forehead. He was too hot, then too cold, could hear his Mother weeping, his Father's trembling voice as he tried to comfort her.

"I cannot lose him Richard!" She had wept "I will not lose my boy!"

It had been almost a miracle when Edward's fever broke on New Year's Day and he recovered, it had sent Eleanor fleeing into the Middleham chapel singing the Lord's praises at the top of her voice, thanking him for sparing her child.

But he was still weak, as he had ever been, and when the letter from the King came, requesting the Duke and Duchess attend court for the celebrations of his reign in January he was still bed bound.

They had been tempted at first to refuse so that they could stay with their boy, and after all Eleanor was once again pregnant if they were to travel down to London she would most likely have the child there and neither wanted Elizabeth within a hundred miles of them when that happened!

But after hours of debating between themselves they reluctantly agreed they must travel to the capital.

To refuse would arouse more suspicion against them. And the shadow of treason was the last thing they needed though it already followed them daily.

꧁꧂

February 1478....

"I do not want to be here" Eleanor murmured into the dark, pushing the heavy bedcovers back and running her hands protectively over the swell of her belly that was hidden by her nightgown "I want to go home, Dickon"

"I know, sweetheart, I do too" Richard replied sleepily as he rolled onto his side to face his wife, placing a hand atop both of hers "but we have the celebrations to attend and you know you are forbidden to travel any more until after the babe is born" he paused "you do know that if you keep doing that they will only bleed?"

Eleanor frowned slightly until she felt one of Richard's fingers tap her thumbs and she sighed. Once again their sides were stripped bare of skin, just as they had been at Christmas when Edward was ill and, as her husband had said, in danger of bleeding.

"I cannot help it, my love"
"I know" he replied gently "and I do not mean to reproach you for it. It is your habit as mine is to twist my rings, though I won't deny I wish you would do that instead of purging your poor thumbs of life!"

Eleanor could not help smiling a little.
"Perhaps I will take your advice?" She suggested lightly.
"Perhaps you will, perhaps you won't" Richard murmured, sitting up when he felt a little foot press into his hand. Eleanor watched him; raised an eyebrow "we each of us have our habits. Even George though his is more dangerous than yours. At least your thumbs don't commit treason!"

"Thumbs and treason" she remarked before reaching out to pull Richard back to her, managing to curl a hand around the linen of his shirt "a rather strange comparison I will admit"
"Would you rather I compared it with heads on spikes?"
"No, you silly goose! I haven't heard of George sticking any heads on spikes though I don't think he would mind doing it to my sister!"

Now it was Richard's turn to raise an eyebrow while he pulled the covers back up around them, not wanting Eleanor and the baby to be cold in the icy February air that managed to enter even their warm chamber.

"Well whatever he wants to do to Elizabeth, it won't happen to George when he is caught" he said firmly, laying his head on her chest "Ned would not dare to go that far"

"Mm" Eleanor replied, playing with curls of his hair, winding them around her fingers "he knows what grief it would cause your Mother" she reached over to the small table beside the bed, her hand tapping around the wood until they found the rosary that had belonged to Richard's older brother.

Over the past year she had taken to carrying it with her; often had it looped around her girdle and had insisted she take it to London, knowing they would need all the help from the almighty they could get! "She has already lost Edmund" she continued quietly, running a finger over the silver crucifix, trying to imagine the seventeen year old boy that once held it.

Was he like Edward? Tall and blonde? Or was he like Richard and shorter and darker in his features?

"She could not bear to lose another son" Richard finished with a nod "but she won't, I am sure of it"
'Are you?' Eleanor thought. She wasn't so certain any more.

꧁꧂

Eleanor stared at herself in the mirror as Anais and Marie straightened the hem of her deep green gown, trimmed with sable fur; golden leaves and flowers embroidered upon the silk.

Behind her and dressed in identical materials, Richard paced back and forth, adjusting the velvet cap on his head and twisting the pendant on it. A hunted look haunted his eyes that night, reminding Eleanor of a deer being pursued as he moved, head whipping around at the slightest noise.

"What is it, Dickon?" She asked as Anais lifted one of her hands to slide rings onto her fingers. She could see the younger woman grinning at the nickname.

"Nothing, nothing" Richard said quickly, straightening the hem of his doublet and catching the look of doubt that Eleanor cast at him in the mirror. He ceased his pacing and paused a moment before he waved a hand in dismissal.

Anais and Marie curtsied and left.
Walking over to the mirror, Richard wrapped his arms around Eleanor's waist and rested his head on her shoulder. She smiled; leant back against him "I think...." he began quietly "that we shall see George tonight"
"George?"

Richard nodded.
"George" he repeated quietly "I do not know why but I have a feeling that something is about to go awry Leena....and all of us shall be dragged down with it"

"Why the sad thoughts, my Lord?" Eleanor murmured as she turned around, placing her hands either side of her husband's cast down face. "George can be rather stupid at times, I will admit, but do you really think that he would come to Westminster during the celebrations of Edward's reign? When he is sure to be caught?"

Richard shrugged, no longer knowing what to think of his elder brother apart from that he was a danger to himself and everyone he came into contact with.
"I no longer know what he will do" he admitted "they say that when Isabel and their son died he suddenly went out of his mind, as mad as old King Henry!"

꧁꧂

Eleanor and Richard walked the corridors of Westminster place with hesitance and a wariness about them that every other courtier held as well. Trees lined the walls and dancers and mummers wove gracefully between them. Music floated through the air as merry as if it were Christmas and fires roared at every corner.

Yet all the splendour did nothing to diffuse the tension in the air. With masks covering their faces, hiding their identities beneath beasts, birds and mythical creatures, the courtiers observed each other from a distance, each keeping a level of suspicion about them even as they danced and laughed.

All the men were armed, swords at their sides. It had been Edward's order for he feared that Elizabeth would be assassinated by George or another who opposed her given all of the rumours.

All of the court was divided. For or against the Queen.

Eleanor glanced up at Richard from where the two had taken refuge in an alcove, peering through the small holes in her Phoenix mask and finding herself unable to resist a smile as she watched her husband sporting his boar one.

"What is so funny, ma belle?" He asked quietly as if he could sense the smile that played on her lips, though did not look towards her until a moment later "what?" He asked again with a chuckle to which Eleanor only shook her head, tapping a finger to her nose as if she held a secret.

"I'm simply admiring my husband" she said lightly and Richard smiled, took her hand.
"Have you seen Elizabeth yet?" He asked and Eleanor sighed, weather it was from reluctance or relief he could not tell.

"No" she replied "though I hear she is dressed as a unicorn! Edward, who I have seen, is a lion!"
"I suppose the latter makes sense" Richard murmured as they emerged from their alcove and began to walk the corridors again.

Though concealed within the endless folds of velvet that made Eleanor's gown, they kept their hands joined as if the other's touch was all the support they needed for them to walk the halls with their heads held high. For they were well aware of the suspicious looks that burned into their backs.

"They still think we shelter George" she whispered and Richard nodded his agreement.
"But we know that we don't" he said "and that truth is enough for me"
"I'm not sure it is enough for me....I hate this air of suspicion that surrounds us"
"Do not worry, my love, it will not only needlessly distress you but our babe"

He was rather startled by the eruption of laughter that emerged from Eleanor as a wide smile lit up her face and her shoulders bobbed as she chuckled.

"Jesus! I never thought I would hear something similar to that again" she giggled, grinning when she saw the look of confusion on Richard's face. "you said something similar when I was carrying Jacquetta, though without the tenderness with which you just spoke!"

"Ah, I remember" he murmured, not sure weather to laugh along with her, though when she suddenly moved forward, coaxing him into a warm kiss, he could feel himself smile.
"I love you, Dickon" she whispered against his lips "never forget that"

"How could I ever forget such a precious treasure as your love, sweetheart?" He returned and then it was her turn to smile, her features illuminated in the firelight as she blushed.

"I've decided to call this child Isabella if it is a girl!" Eleanor remarked as they began to walk again and Richard smiled his approval "I keep hearing the name, a soft singing of sort sometimes, like it is travelling on a gentle breeze or is being carried down a flowing stream"

"Mayhap you should become a poet?" he teased and she grinned.
"It is time my sister had a namesake, I think Eliza would like it too...."

"George!" Edward's enraged roar could be heard throughout the palace and Eleanor and Richard looked at each other, slowly bringing up their hands to remove their masks. Laying them to one side, they began to move as quickly as their feet would allow towards the King's rage "He's here, the swine!" He yelled "I can hear him!"

Soon enough courtiers began to join them, also laying aside their masks as they hurried towards the chaos that was breaking out amongst the party, the rustle of skirts and the patter of shoes filling the air.

'Not now!' Eleanor pleaded in her mind 'Run George! Run!' But her fears were only confirmed as she saw Elizabeth standing at a clearing in the hallway, her skin as white as alabaster, fingers trembling as she removed her own mask.

In her gown of silver and white she appeared almost as a ghost though as she reached out, hand curling around Eleanor's wrist, her sister knew she was as real as ever.

"He's here Leena" she hissed as Edward continued to storm around the Palace, the sounds of doors crashing and people yelling becoming more and more frequent until a silence fell and a voice called out.

Soft as first, then louder and louder as it approached.

George.

"I know" Eleanor replied, shivering as Elizabeth's grip on her wrist became tighter, though it was not threatening not malicious. The Queen's eyes were wide and pleading as they stared at her sister. 'Save me' they almost begged 'help me'.

Eleanor pulled away with a shake of her head.
"He won't hurt you" she said, slowly backing away to where Richard stood "he won't hurt any of us, Elizabeth"

"How do you know that?!" The Queen cried and Eleanor took a sharp breath about to reply before she heard George's voice, harsh and grating... almost mad....and she realised that she didn't know after all. Not in that moment.

Edward appeared, his face red, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead as his blue eyes looked for his brother.
"Where is he" he hissed and Richard shook his head silently.

"So your King!" George yelled, his voice clearer now and Eleanor spun around with the rest only to see him stumbling down the hallway. He was dressed in black and his face was thinned though now sported a ragged beard. His eyes were wide, his mouth twisted into a maddened smile that scared even his closest friend as she moved to take Richard's hand, the other wrapping around the rosary on her belt.

"Your great King! Your beloved Edward is a murderer!" George cried, spitting on the ground as he approached "just as you have murdered before eh, Edward? When you took a pillow and you smothered old king Henry! And who bade you do it?!" He turned towards the Queen.

"George!" Edward yelled "stop this now or I swear..."
"That evil witch Elizabeth Rivers!" George roared "and you killed my wife! And you took my Bella away from me!" Tears welled in his reddened eyes, spilled down his cheeks while Elizabeth stepped away, her face filled with fear. "I want her back!" He wept "I want my Isabella back!"

"Somebody take him! Take him to the Tower!" Edward yelled and at once near a dozen men jumped to attention including Richard.

"He's gone mad!" Eleanor cried as George was wrestled to the ground, his limbs thrashing and flailing as sobs and screams tore from his throat. "can you not see that Edward?! He needs a physician! Not a cell!"

"Leena!" George yelled as he was dragged away, making the entire court turn to her as she tried to smother a sudden sob, her lower lip trembling as she pressed a hand to her mouth "Leena! Help me!"
"Geor-ah!" She let out a cry as she suddenly stumbled back, her legs giving way as she felt her waters break and warm liquid soak her legs.

"Shit!" Edward cried as she fell back only to be caught by a pair of thin, yet surprisingly strong arms. Looking up she found herself staring into the kind face of Jane Shore who helped her to sit up, carefully supporting her torso "Richard! Dickon, get here, damn you!"

Within the blink of an eye Richard had reappeared, rushing to Eleanor as the King began to wave courtiers angrily away.
"I'm here, my darling" he said as he knelt by her, taking her hand and for once paying no attention to Jane who usually grated his nerves to shreds "do not worry about a thing"

"George" she gasped, clutching at her belly while Jane worked on releasing her belt from her waist in an effort to give the Duchess some relief. Elizabeth merely watched on in shock "we.... must....help him"