A/: Hi All! I am sorry to have kept you waiting for this chapter, as usual life got in the way, this is a long and important chapter though so I do hope you all enjoy it. I also hope to be updating An act of Fate in the coming weeks, which will also be a long and important chapter. Hopefully my other stories will co-operate too and ill have them updated in the coming months.

Anyway, I won't blab for too much. As always I thank you all for your support and encouragement it keeps me motivated and writing. A special thanks to everyone that has reviewed or placed myself or the story on their favourites/alert lists. I really do appreciate it.

As always I own nothing.

Please read, review and enjoy.

Chapter 6:

6th of July 1528

Hever Castle

In my opinion, there is no hope, Anne had heard the words muttered by the King's own physician outside her bedroom door just the day before, the vital signs of life are weak and worsening. The priest should attend her now, in extremis. I'm very sorry.

He would have written to her husband, the king, Dr Linacre would have told Henry that Anne and their child, who still clung desperately to life in her belly, would soon die. There had been no hope for either of them. Isobel, her dear darling daughter Izzie, would be raised without knowing her mothers love, and her and the child in her belly would be quickly forgotten. Perhaps Henry would take another woman as his princess consort in time and she would give him a son to one-day take the throne.

The sweat would take her and her baby and Anne would be remembered only as the mother of the king's second daughter and perhaps the people of England would say that she deserved the death that had come for her because of the ills she had bought against Katherine and the Princess Mary. She had gone to bed the night before plagued by such thoughts, of visions of her husband moving on from her death to another, she had slept thinking that she would not wake in the morning, that she would never see her husband and daughter again.

But she had not died. The sweat had not taken her; there had been hope after all. When George had found her he had almost fainted to see her sitting up in her bed, with a hand cradled around her big belly.

" Papa," Anne could hear George calling from outside her bedchamber, " come and see her. Get the master."

" My Lord, my Lord!"

" Papa, come quickly."

" George?" Anne heard her father question his voice taking on a hopeful tone. Her father too had given up all hope of her survival.

Her father and brother where at the door of her bedchamber within seconds, and immediately her father saw the change in her, the colour that had returned to her face, the alertness in her eyes, and the small smile on her lips.

"Praise be to God," Thomas Boleyn muttered kneeling at her daughters side and taking her hands into his own and for the first time in days Anne did not flinch away from human contact, " You know what you have done child? You have risen from the dead. Now you can see the King again, it can be just as before."

For a moment Anne could not help but wonder if her father was so happy at her recovery because she was his daughter or because her survival meant that she was still the Princess Consort of England and he had the chance of being the grandfather of the next King of England.

" The child Anne? Does he still live?" Perhaps he cared for both, Anne thought hopefully, her life as his daughter and her future as the wife of the King of England.

" Yes, Papa," Anne answered certainly, the babe kicking strongly in her stomach almost as if in confirmation to her words.

" You must write to the King and inform him of this miracle."

A miracle, Anne thought her smile widening slightly, her survival, her babies survival was nothing short of a miracle, no one could question her marriage to the King after this, nor her children right to the succession.

12th of July 1528

Hever Castle

Henry rode with much haste, without tact or care for anything other than reaching his beloved. He rode alone having left his entourage behind him in his desire to meet with Anne as soon as he could, and when he saw her, seated on a hill in the gardens outside of Heaver with only a maid and her own horse for company, his heart skipped a beat.

She had survived the sweat indeed. The letters he had received of her survival (so soon after he had heard of her certain doom) had not been untrue or exaggerated to ease his troubled mind. His wife's survival was nothing short of a miracle and a blessing to their marriage.

Anne was dressed in a simple riding habit, her hair covered in a black veil and her stomach where their unborn child still thrived despite all that had happened.

Within seconds they were in each other's arms, kissing each other with passion and frantic actions, it was an action of love and relief and Henry endeavoured to kiss and touch every part of his wife's face to ensure himself that she was still with him after all.

" Thank you, Thank you God," Henry murmured as he held Anne close in his arms before leaning down for another kiss.

In sickness or in health he would never leave her side again.

16th of July 1528

Ludlow Castle, Wales

Katherine was dressed in a gown of black velvet and golden lace, her dark hair hidden behind a Spanish hood. She was seated quietly in the nursery at Ludlow, watching as Mary played easily with Isobel, when one of her ladies brought her a letter bearing her husband's seal.

She knew well enough that the letter would bring her either news of Anne's survival or of her death. She had known of Anne's illness since her departure from court, and news had only continued to come to Katherine expressing the growing severity of the Princess Consort's illness. The thought, Katherine knew, was that Anne would be unlikely to survive, it seemed as if everyone in England was waiting to hear of the outcome, Katherine especially. She would never pray for Anne's death, to do so would be a sin against God, but even more so it would be to wish for a child to be raised without ever knowing their own mothers love, and as a mother herself Katherine could never wish for such a thing. Despite Anne's faults, despite Katherine's personal feelings towards her, she had no ill will for young Isobel (who was a charming and pleasant child) nor even towards the child Anne carried in her belly.

Katherine did not doubt that her supporters would be praying for Anne's death but she would have no part in such a thing. Anne's death would bring her no joy or success, Katherine wanted no part in it and she could not wish for it. With Anne dead, Katherine would once again be the King's only wife she would not have to share the position and with Anne having only birthed Isobel in her short time as Princess Consort it would mean that Mary remained the heir presumptive to the throne, but the Pope had allowed Henry to take a second wife once, no doubt, to keep the peace, he would do so again.

Henry would mourn Anne. He would make sure that little Isobel would grow up thinking of her mother as a saint, but he would not mourn forever. His desire for a son was too great for even that. At least with Anne alive Katherine knew what to expect, anything else could be a danger to her and to Mary.

Henry had little love left in him for her, there was no lust in their dealings anymore, he cared for her only because of the decades they had shared together, the children they had lost and the daughter they had raised, the man she had married she saw only in glimpses, and too often she saw him only in his dealings with Anne and his children. Who knew what the loss of Anne might do to him, Katherine did not dare think of it, yet when she thought back to the last time she had seen the King she could not help but shudder at the thought that the loss of Anne would indeed turn the King into a shadow of the man he once was.

"I've come to say goodbye," As always he was cool and indifferent towards her and just by looking at him Katherine had known that his mind had been elsewhere.

" Are you pleased to send me away?" Katherine had all but ground out her words, at the time she had thought that he had sent her away for one reason only, and used the sweat as an excuse to be rid of her, in an act that to everyone else would seem to be nothing more than a husbands concern for his wife and Queen, " You do not want to see your daughters….You send me away so that you can be alone with her….so that the two of you can rule the court without…."

" No," Henry had responded looking very much like a man who had been broken by some unspeakable tragedy, " The Princess Consort is going to Hever….One of her maids died of the sweat and Anne….Anne had some contact with her."

" Your fear of the sweat is greater than you infatuation with her? For the hope that the child she carries in her belly is a son?"

It had all made sense to her then, why Katherine and the girls were being moved to Ludlow and Anne was not. Anne may have been the king's wife and the proclaimed Princess Consort of England but her life would always come second to that of the King and his heirs. Even if those heirs were only girls. The child she carried could not save even her from Henry's fears of her own morality.

" You speak as if you wish her ill?" He had turned on her in seconds, his nostrils flaring in his anger, but Katherine knew more than anything that Henry's reaction was one of fear, " As if you wish my son ill?"

He was afraid of losing Anne and their baby, and Katherine had had to fight back tears at the thought.

Immediately Katherine had stepped away from him and looked towards the ground, she had been to bold, she had spoken without any thought towards the consequences and with Henry fearing for Anne's health that was a risk she could not afford to take, " No of course not."

" You should be glad Katherine, that I still love you enough to want to save your life," Henry had answered his temper calmed slightly, " Now do as I command, and go to Wales."

" When you speak like that my love, you act as though I had the plague, as if your love for me were a plague."

" I shall write to you," He had ignored her words completely, taking her hands in his and kissing her chastely on the cheek, " Tell my daughters that their father, the king, sends his love and devotion."

Anne's death and the resulting death of the child she carried would destroy Henry and any trace of the husband she had once known.

Katherine had had to read Henry's letter three times to be certain of it's contents. Anne had survived, when most had already thought of her as dead.

" God be praised ladies," Katherine announced loudly, so that all in the royal nursery could her hear, still she was the Queen of England and after decades on the throne Katherine knew to remember that there were eyes and ears upon her at all times, even here in her daughters nursery. She could not allow anyone to report that she was unhappy to hear of Anne's survival, "Her Majesty, the Princess Consort, has survived her illness. We must all pray for her life and the life and continued survival of the child she carries."

Katherine was met with a chorus of "Amen's," and " Thanks be to God's," from her (and the girls) attendants and she couldn't help but be thankful for them. No one would be able to question her conduct in this matter or that of any of her own supporters.

" Did you hear that Izzie?" Katherine heard her daughter question her younger sister, " Your Mama and our little brother or sister are going to be just fine."

At not even one Katherine doubted that Isobel understood her sisters words in the slightest nor did she think that the girl had even the slightest of ideas that her mother had been in any danger, yet still obedient to her older sister, Isobel lifted her two chubby arms in the air and exclaimed " Mama," much to the delight of those present in the nursery.

Mary's conduct too could not be questioned, and of that Katherine was most thankful.

27th of July 1528

Richmond Palace

Anne's survival should have been the end of it, for Henry nothing else had mattered, Anne had survived and so the sweating sickness was abated. The idea of more deaths occurring, especially those that may have had some effect upon him, had never once entered his mind since her had learnt of Anne's survival so consumed was he by his wife and his unborn child.

The sweating sickness had not finished its work and now Henry had to inform his son, his only living son (illegitimate though the boy was), that the boy's mother had succumbed to the illness that had now devastated much of the country.

Henry had loved Bessie for many years and her loss had hit him hard, not because he was still in love with her but because of the past they had once shared and for the son they both desperately loved. Hal was just a little boy, not yet ten, how was Henry meant to tell him that he would never see his mother again…. how would the boy even begin to understand and comprehend her death.

18th of October 1528

Richmond Palace

The sweating sickness had killed thousands; men, women and children had all succumbed and with such an illness it had not matter whether a person was common born or a member of the nobility.

Masses had been said and bodies had been buried and yet life continued as it always did and Anne at the very centre and heart of the royal court needed to forget the ordeal that had almost killed her and her child and return to her duties as Henry's consort as if no great tragedy had ever befallen them or their country.

She knew people labelled her survival as a miracle, she also knew that the news of her survival had warmed the commons to her marriage to the King more importantly she knew that if her child was a boy (as she knew in her heart he was) it would be further proof to the whole of Europe that her marriage to the King was blessed by God and not simply the result of a Popes cowardice.

It had been easier than she would have thought to return to her normal life and duties. There was no point in her dwelling on all that could have happened, there was no point in her thinking about the fact that she almost left Isobel motherless just as poor Henry Fitzroy had been left, nor was there any point in wondering what Henry would have done had she and their baby died, it was all pointless. She lived, she beat death, it would be an insult if she did anything other than live her life to its fullest potential now.

And so Anne did as she had always done since her tenure as Princess Consort begun, she dressed fashionably, danced gaily, and spoke with all the wit and charm she pocessed all the while cultivating the favour of Henry's courtiers.

Dressed in a gown of deep purple and golden thread Anne knew she looked the part of royalty, and it only helped her further that her dress hung to the curve of her belly perfectly.

" Princess Anne," Thomas Cromwell, a great favourite of her family and now a member of Wolsey's household (at Anne's request) greeted her with a low bow.

" Master Cromwell," Anne answered giving him her hand to kiss, " Do you have a message from the King?"

" No," Cromwell answered gesturing for Anne to move to the side ever so slightly so that they were out of earshot from the rest of the court, " I think we understand each other, your majesty, and a mutual friend, a Mr Fish, now living in exile in Holland has sent me a gift for you."

" What is it, Master Cromwell?" Anne questioned slightly breathless from nerves. Anything he was giving her in a secret could be a dangerous gift, and in her position and condition Anne could let nothing affect her reputation nor standing in her husbands favour.

" The obedience of the Christian Man by William Tyndale," Cromwell answered his voice low as he placed a book, wrapped in brown paper and thread into her hand, immediately Anne bought the book to her chest not wanting anyone to see it, " it contains many good criticisms of the papacy and of the arrogance and abuses of priests. I believe you will find it most illuminating, but always and ever be cautions as to which you show this, you must know it might be accounted heresy even to possess it. And Wolsey is still keen enough to prosecute heretics, as we are called, who embrace the true religion."

At his words Anne felt her stomach drop. Her family were reformers, a fact that few people knew of, Anne herself did believe that there was corruption in the church and she believed that the Pope had powers beyond his vocation. However she was not a Lutheran, nor where the members of her family, she believed change was needed in England especially, and she was determined to bring such matters to Henry's attention once she was delivered of a healthy son. Cromwell's rash actions had now put her, the Princess Consort of England, in danger of being labelled a heretic.

She needed to be careful in how she went forward in this matter, now and always.

" I will, " Anne answered giving Cromwell her hand to kiss once again, " And God bless you, Master Cromwell."

December 27th 1528

Richmond Palace

Anne's confinement had been long and tiring, mostly due to the fact that while the rest of the court were busy celebrating the Christmas festivities, she was locked away in a darkened room with little company other than her ladies.

Henry visited her, of course, from him she received daily visits in the morning and evenings, the rules his grandmother had once strictly given in regards to a Queen's confinements being solely the business of women were forgotten to him, as they had been when she was carrying Isobel. Her father and brother visited as well, albeit less frequently then her husband. All of them she knew were trying to make the weeks less lonesome for her, assuring her that she had not been forgotten, and there had been no whisperings of Henry taking a mistress during the time (not that she had truly given thought as to why he would), yet still Anne couldn't shake the feeling that while she was enduring her confinement and the last months of her pregnancy in seclusion, Katherine was once again at the centre of the court, as if it were as it used to be with she England sonly consort.

Their daughters too were at court, like Henry, Isobel came into her rooms daily, chattering away, mostly, in words only she could understand, yet her presence gave light to Anne's dark filled days and every time she laid eyes on her daughter she was awed by her. Her little Izzie was beautiful and charming, and Anne had no doubt that she would grow into a fine lady. Yet her daughter was only one, the Princess Mary on the other hand was soon to be thirteen, and so while Isobel spent most of her time in the nursery with little Hal Fitzroy, Mary was constantly at the side of her mother, enjoying the court and the Christmas celebrations in ways that her half siblings could not.

Katherine and Mary were at the courts centre again and while Anne tried not to she could not help but feel fearful and resentful of the fact. No one could be allowed to forget her existence, or that of her daughters, yet in confinement, she felt very much forgotten by the world outside of her immediate family and ladies.

That would soon end, Anne thought as another contraction assaulted her body "Argh," her son would soon be delivered into the world; let them try to forget her then.

" Just one more push, my lady," the midwife called from between Anne's legs, " I can see the head."

At last, Anne sighed, preparing her body to push again. This labour had been longer and more painful than that of Isobel's and Anne could not help but think how funny it was that in her happiness over her daughter she had forgotten the pains that had come with bringing her into the world. She did not think she would forget so easily again.

" Argh," Anne cried again, grasping her sisters and Nan Saville's hands more firmly as she pushed her child in the world.

Anne's efforts were met with an infant's loud wail and immediately Anne felt relief. She had birthed another live child; surely no one could dare question the sanctity of her marriage now.

" It is a son, Your Majesty," the midwife exclaimed happily, clearly pleased that she had pulled the king's first legitimate son into the world, " A healthy and bony prince."

" A boy?" Anne questioned breathless, using all of her energy to look up at the wailing infant the midwife was holding up for her inspection. He was a boy indeed. She had a son; she had given the king a healthy and legitimate son.

Anne had not failed, not this time.

" You've done it Annie," Mary exclaimed next to her, just as delighted as Anne herself at the birth of her nephew.

" Give him to me," Anne ordered, watching as her ladies and the midwife washed and wrapped her son.

He was a beautiful boy, the perfect mix of his parents, whereas Isobel had closely resembled her father, their new little son had bits of both if his parents in his features, so much so that it would be hard to say who he resembled more. Her boy had dark hair like his father, with Anne's eyes and colouring and Henry's nose and mouth, he was a long and robust child, no doubt he would be tall and strong like his Tudor ancestors. He was a perfect little creature and Anne would never let any harm come to him.

" Inform the king of the birth of his son," Anne exclaimed, " And have the bells rung at once."

Unlike when Isobel was born no one dared question her order.

Henry had all but raced into Anne's bedchamber when the news of his son's birth had been delivered to him. Yet it was not until the boy, his newborn son, was placed into his waiting arms, that it all became real.

He had a son. A healthy and legitimate heir at last; and it was all thanks to Anne.

As Henry stared at the boys face he could not help but think of how perfect he was. He was a heavy baby (a sign of his health) with long limbs and a hearty set of lungs. And of course he was a good-looking babe, blue eyed and dark haired, a perfect blend of his two handsome parents.

Gently Henry kissed his sons cheek, before smiling widely as the baby looked up at him with alert eyes, as if already he knew who Henry was.

" You did it, my love," Henry praised, turning his attention from the baby to Anne. To him she had never looked more beautiful than she did in that moment, " We have our son."

"I promised didn't I?" Anne answered with a tired smile. His wife had spent many hours labouring to bring their son into the world, yet not once did she complain to him of her exhaustion, like him she was too enthralled with their boy to care.

Truthfully Henry could not believe the fortune that had recently befallen him, Anne had survived the sweating sickness when most people had already believed her survival to be a lost cause and now they had a strong and healthy son, as well as their daughter of course, his sons birth would not change his love for either of his daughters, but surely this, the birth of this precious little jewel was proof enough that his marriage to Anne was indeed valid and blessed by God.

Was it not also a sign then that his marriage to Katherine was a sin against God and man? Katherine had fallen pregnant to him seven times and in those seven times she had delivered three stillborn daughters, two stillborn sons, a son who had lived no more than fifty two days, and Mary the only one of their children to survive infancy. Yet Bessie Blount had given him a healthy and thriving son in little Henry Fitzroy (illegitimate though he may be), and Anne in such a short time since they had been wed had given him a healthy and beautiful daughter and now a strong and bony son.

He had married his brothers widow, and despite Katherine's protests, now more than ever he believed that Arthurs marriage had been consummated and as a result he had been living and continued to live in sin. Perhaps now it would be clear that his desire to annul his marriage to Katherine had not been done to appease his lusts, legally she was not his wife, surely this alone was proof enough.

Yet still the Pope would refuse to grant the annulment he had allowed Henry to take a second wife in Anne, the Pope (coward that he was) would think that enough to appease the English king and for the most part it did. Henry and Anne were happy, more children would follow their first two and already the people of England felt warmer and warmer towards their marriage, yet Katherine too was still bound to them, forever entrapping him in a life of sin and risking the damnation of his soul and that of those closest to him.

Was he just meant to let such a thing continue because the Pope was too much of a coward?

" What shall we name him?" Anne questioned, breaking him from his musings with her light tone, clearly she had no idea where his thoughts had turned to and Henry was glad for such a fact, now was not the time to be thinking of such matters.

He had a little Duke of Cornwall at last. That was all he should be thinking of.

When Henry had first married Katherine he had always thought to name their first son Henry and they had had a Henry, Duke of Cornwall, the New Years Prince, the boys that had come after him would have been Henry's as well….had they lived….and of course Bessie's boy was Henry too although that hadn't been his decision Bessie (thinking to please him) had named their boy in his honour she never would have known the pain that name, given to a little Tudor boy so like his first boy, had resulted in. More often than not Henry called his son Hal most others how now followed suit.

And so Henry was out of the question. There would not be another Henry, Duke of Cornwall; this little boy would not be King Henry IX.

" I had thought of Edward," Henry put forward, it was well known that he favoured the name of his maternal grandfather, he and Anne had even discussed the name before and both had agreed to their liking of it, yet immediately Anne scrunched up her nose at the notion.

" He's not an Edward," Anne put forward firmly causing Henry to look down at the bundle in his arms in concentration and despite himself he found he agreed with his wife. The name did not suit him; their son was not an Edward.

" What about Charles?" Henry asked naming another name they had discussed during Anne's two pregnancies, but again Anne scrunched up her nose, " George then? Or Thomas perhaps?"

Despite the fact that such names would honour key members of Anne's family she still refused them, " He needs his own name….like Isobel did."

Slightly frustrated and more than a bit amused Henry decided to put the decision in Anne's hands, " Do you have any ideas sweetheart?"

For a moment Anne did nothing before motioning for Henry to place the babe in her arms and for a few minutes she did nothing more than stare at their boy obviously thinking of names and whether or not they suited him.

" Perhaps, we should call him John?" Anne questioned eventually, putting the decision back in his hands.

It was a fine name, a strong name, a name with both biblical and royal meaning, a name worthy of the future Prince of Wales.

" John," Henry repeated rolling the name on his tongue for good measure, " John, yes I like it well."

When Katherine reached the royal nursery her daughter was already gone, as was little Isobel and Lady Salisbury, and immediately she knew that she was too late, someone else had got there before her.

Katherine had lingered in her grief and sadness for too long, instead of focusing on getting to her daughter once the news had been bought to her, she had focused on her own sorrow and despair, for Anne Boleyn had birthed a son for the king and it would be her son, instead of Katherine's daughter that one day ruled England.

She should have gone to Mary as soon as the news had broke but she hadn't and now no doubt someone else would have told her daughter about the birth of the long awaited prince. Katherine just prayed that the news was at least broken to her gently.

While it was true that Mary had warmed to little Isobel immediately and had learnt to curb her tongue in regards to the Princess Consort, there was still a chance that Mary would react with jealously to the news of her half-brothers birth and that was something the King could not be allowed to see or hear of.

" Where is the Princess Mary?" Katherine questioned one of the maids present in the apartments of the nursery.

" Forgive me, Your Majesty, I thought you had been sent word," The maid responded stumbling through a curtsey, " The King and Princess Anne requested the presence of the Princesses so that they might meet their new brother... Prince John."

At that Katherine blanched slightly, Anne had only just given birth, it was to be expected really that the mention of a newborn prince would be foreign and uncomfortable for her. Of course, despite her discomfort, Katherine had not failed to notice that the maid had given the Princess Consort's son a name. John. It was not a name she had been expecting.

Henry and Edward. Whenever Katherine had found herself pregnant throughout the course of their marriage those had been the names she and Henry had always talked about for a boy, and for a time, they had had a little Prince Henry, she had thought perhaps that Anne would have one as well.

No doubt Anne had wanted to avoid the name, given Katherine's history and the fact that Bessie Howard's bastard had been named Henry as well. And a part of Katherine was glad for it, for the fact that Anne had chosen such an uncommon name for her son, it meant that her son would not forgotten or replaced, people would not look at Anne's John and forget that there had been a Prince Henry before him.

Of course she shouldn't be thinking of such things. To do so only left her with feelings of pain and anger that Anne had succeeded where she had failed, anger that God would will Anne's child to the throne of England and not her own, such thoughts were not becoming of a Queen, and it would not do we her well to let her enemies (nor even her supporters) know the true pain that her counterparts success had had upon her.

The sounds of the bells ringing loudly alerted Katherine to the fact that she had been standing in the royal nursery too long. Mary would not be returning any time soon, it would be best for Katherine to return to her apartments and have prayers ordered for the new Duke of Cornwall.

She would not visit Anne's rooms as she had when the Princess consort had birthed Isobel. The birth of a daughter had been easier on her, it was always going to have been easier for her….she doubted very much that her absence would be noted or even missed.

Katherine was the Queen of England yet another woman's son would one day be king.

5th of January 1528

Royal Chapel

Richmond Palace

As the king's favourite sister, Mary had expected to be asked to act as her nephew's godmother. Whatever had gone between them from her marriage to King Louis and her subsequent remarriage to Charles to his own marital dramas with Katherine and now Anne, their fondness for one another had never disappeared and as such she was the sister he had chosen to honour now that he had a legitimate son and heir.

Margaret, of course had not been completely forgotten in Scotland, she had been named as Isobel's godmother, yet of course it was more prestigious and important to be asked to be Godmother to a Prince, and Mary was more than pleased to have been chosen for the role.

She held no ideas that the Princess Consort would be happy with such a choice, Anne had decided upon the Duchess of Savoy, Margaret of Austria to act as John's second Godmother but of course the Duchess of Savoy would not be attending the Prince's christening and as such the focus would be solely on Mary… as it used to be before Anne Boleyn made her mark on Henry's court.

Mary was pleased with neither Henry's decision to take a second wife or his choice that his Princess Consort be Anne Boleyn, a commoner without tact or class. It was well known at court that Henry's favoured sister and his favoured wife were not close, Mary supported and loved Katherine, therefore she could never see Anne Boleyn as her sister as she did the Queen, yet still they managed to be civil with one another, it took all of Mary's strength, but they managed it. For the sake of her relationship with her brother and the love she held for (all of) her nieces and nephews, Mary had no other choice.

She would never treat Anne's children any different than she did Katherine's daughter, just as she had never treated little Hal any different, despite his bastard status, she would never blame the children for the faults of their parents.

Little John's christening was to be held in the chapel royal at Richmond, and by the looks of it, it would be a lavish ceremony, her brother had spared no expense for his long awaited son. Since his birth, fires had been lit in the streets of London and church bells had been ringing across England for days now in celebration, for England finally had an heir in Prince John, the future King John II.

Already there had been a procession from the Princess Consort's apartments to the chapel. As John's godmother, Mary had been tasked with holding her nephew, her eldest niece, Mary, bore the chrisom cloth, while little Isobel was carried into the chapel by her grandfather. Isobel was little more than a babe herself, yet Anne had been adamant that her daughter would not be left out of the festivities.

The French king, Francis, and Thomas Howard, The Duke of Norfolk had been chosen as John's Godfathers. And Mary could not help but wonder if Thomas Wolsey felt somewhat slighted that he had been chosen as a Godfather for only the King's bastard son and second born daughter instead of the Duke of Cornwall, especially given all that he had done to arrange for Anne Boleyn's elevation. Her own husband had also been overlooked for the role of Godfather in favour of Anne's uncle, but like Wolsey, Charles had already acted as Godfather for Isobel, no doubt Henry had thought it best to appease Anne and her family by honouring the Howards.

Mary had carried her nephew under a canopy of cloth of gold, which was held on either side by her husband and George Boleyn. William FitzAlan, the Earl of Arundel had been tasked with carrying the train of the Prince's robe with help from Lord William Howard, another canopy of cloth of gold had been carried above them by Sir Edward Neville, Sir John Wallop Richard Long and Anthony Knivert. In order to make the whole procession grander, Henry had ordered that torchbearers surround the canopies.

The procession into the royal chapel had been large, after the Prince's entourage had come the Lords and Ladies of the court (In order of precedence) as the acknowledged son of the King and a Duke twice over little Hal Fitzroy had led the courtiers into the chapel and now they all waited as Cardinal Wolsey performed the baptismal rites in front of what, Mary estimated to have been three to four hundred people. Yet there was only one face that held her focus in the crowd.

The Queen was in attendance. And though she hadn't (and no doubt would not) take part in the procession her presence had been noted and would not doubt be discussed and gossiped about in the coming days. Neither Henry or Anne (who had of course yet to be churched) were attending their sons christening (as was the tradition with royalty) as such Katherine was the senior member of the royal family at the chapel and she would have to be accorded all the rights that her station commanded.

Whether she attended the christening or not the Queen's choice would have been condemned, in this instance Katherine was not in a situation she could win. If she had of decided not to attend her enemies (and Henry and Anne no doubt) would have said that she refused out of fear and cowardice, while in attending Katherine had ensured that no one would be able to label her a coward she had also ensured that comparisons would be made. Mary knew well enough that her sister-in-law did not want herself or her daughter to slip away into obscurity while Anne and her own were at the centre of England and court life. But such efforts only left for comparisons between the two royal wives and their children.

For all her years of marriage to the King, through all the pregnancies, Katherine had managed to birth only one healthy child. Anne, still newly married (and many years younger then the Queen) had already birthed two healthy children, and one of them a healthy son. As such the Princess Consort (and her marriage to the King) was being praised throughout England, she had become the peoples Princess where once Katherine was labelled the Queen of hearts. As long as John lived, as long as Anne continued to bear living children, Henry would favour her and England would too.

For Mary, who had herself birthed four children (although only three still reminaed to her and Charles), it was hard not to think that the fuss that was being made of Anne was much exaggerated. Breeding children was something that had been done since the beginning of time, it required no skill only luck, yet of course she could never say something like that to Katherine, for it would not ease her mind, no doubt the Queen would have done anything o have been able to have just one healthy son.

It felt like an eternity before Wolsey had finished, but when he had, when little John had yelped at the Holy water touching his skin, when all of the torches were lit and the Garter King of Arms had proclaimed her nephew as " Prince John, Duke of Cornwall and Earl of Chester," and when the Te Deum was sung, and spice, hippocras, bread and sweet wine were all served, only then did the torch lit procession make its way out of the chapel for the little prince to be reunited with his mother and father, but of course since the Queen had made the decision to attend her step-sons christening it was her that had to lead the procession back to the Princess Consorts apartments, and Mary had no doubt that her brother and Anne would not be pleased by such a fact.

Whether intentionally or not, Katherine had drawn eyes to herself on a day that was meant to be solely about Anne's son and the celebration of his birth. Neither Henry nor Anne would forgive her quickly for such a slight.

A/N: So there it was, Chapter 6, I hope you all enjoyed it, for it was quite an important chapter.

Firstly we had Anne (and the baby) surviving the sweat. I hope no one thought she was ever in any danger of dying, the purpose of my AU's tends to be giving Anne (and most of the wives if I can manage it, a happier ending). We also saw reactions from Henry and Katherine in relation to her survival.

Sadly however the sweat was not as kind to everyone, and as we learnt Bessie Blount died of the sweat. In the T.V show it was little Henry Fitzroy who caught the sweat and died but in reality the King's illegitimate son died in his late teens, and so I have decided to stick with history and keep him alive although unforuntatly for poor Bessie Blount I did decide to end her life prematurely, the importance of this will become evident in later chapters I promise.

Now in this chapter we also got an introduction to Thomas Cromwell and the reformation, this was just a taste of whats to come in regards to both the character and the issue of the reformation. Which is a difficult one to incorporate in this story given the Pope allowed for Henry to marry Anne. However Anne is still a reformist who believes there is corruption in the church she is (as she was in history) a Catholic at heart but there is much about the church that she and other disagree with. This will be important...so watch this space.

It is also important now that Anne has birthed a healthy son; Prince John. He bought with him much happiness for Anne and Henry but he also made Henry begin to question whether or not the Popes refusal to grant his annulment to Katherine is something he can live with, given his beliefs that his marriage to Anne has been blessed by God.

We also saw Katherine's reaction to little John's birth and the Duchess of Suffolk's. In my original outline of this story Isobel did not exist and John was Anne and Henry's first born child but as you all know I decided to have Anne birth a daughter first (thus the creation of Isobel) from here on out Anne and Henry's children will be exactly as I originally planned them to be, it is all planned out and will not change (so don't be asking me to give her a son or a daughter the next time she's pregnant ha...I already know what she's having). The only thing I will tell you all is that Elizabeth will be born on her historical birthdate, this is the case for all my stories and will not change. As such she will be one of Anne and Henry's younger children in this story.

Thank you all again for your continued support, please review to let me know your thoughts on the chapter.