Anne Boleyn & Catherine of Aragon
Always a Different Profession AU
Even if her husband's concubine Anjali produces a son, Rani Katyayani swears to herself that her daughter Rajkumari Miriam will always remain the king's eldest and most beloved child.
Before the Beginning
There is no spite in Queen Katherine's smile at the young Anne Boleyn, who has recently come back from the French court; even if her sister is currently Henry's mistress, there is no honor in being needlessly rude.
Bodyswap
King Henry is utterly nonplussed when Anne suddenly urges him to return to his wife and to the Catholic Church.
Curse
For all that they loathed each other, both women end up with only one living daughter and a succession of dead babies.
Darkest Timeline
There is nothing that could make their fates worse, except perhaps for the fact that Katherine was indeed poisoned, but not at the Boleyn faction's hands.
Fall
It took Katherine seven years to lose her place; it takes Anne a few weeks.
Floriography
On the rare occasions Henry sends her any letters at all, he always makes sure to include the new seal displaying the Boleyn falcon set on top of the Tudor rose.
Play
Anne wonders if Queen Katherine is being facetious when she assigns her the part of Perseverance in the upcoming masque.
Role Reversal
It is not Katherine who dies in January 1536 but Anne who does, in premature labor; Katherine's triumph is short-lived, as just a few months later, she is executed on charges of consorting with Spain and planning an invasion.
Space
Even Katherine has to admit that there must be something about Anne that makes her so alluring to her husband, even when she is quite literally not in this world.
Mary I & Elizabeth I
Always a Different Profession AU
The fact that little Rajkumari Elavarasi is the only one who does not call Miriam dasi, but simply Didi, is one of the few things that brings a smile to her lips these days.
Before the Beginning
Mary weeps when she hears the rumors that the concubine is pregnant with her father's child, a child that will replace her, weeps so hard that she throws up.
Bodyswap
The servants of Hatfield are nothing less than thunderstruck when the elder King's daughter suddenly develops a propensity for tantrums, while the younger has overnight assumed a mantle of decorum and propriety.
Curse
Of all the indignities she has suffered, the fact that she may never be married cuts deepest to Mary's soul, and one night at Hatfield, she whispers in a fit of rage and bitterness that Elizabeth will never be married no matter what God wills; come morning, she does not remember it, nor does she ever realize that her curse will ironically only serve to enhance her sister's comparative glory.
Darkest Timeline
The infant princess simply does not wake up one day at Hatfield, and no one can find an explanation for why.
Fall
"Boiled apple pies," Elizabeth requests for supper one autumn day while they are both living at Hundson, and only Lady Shelton understands why Mary shudders when the platters are laid out and refuses to eat one bite.
Floriography
[Polyanthus, Crimson, which represents "the heart's mystery"]
Elizabeth is released from the Tower eighteen years to the day after her mother's death, and as she gazes upon the crimson polyanthus on the trees alongside the Thames, she has no wit to decide whether her sister had a guiding hand in that cruel coincidence.
Play
Lady Mary is the only maid at Hatfield who will indulge the Princess Elizabeth's desire to play Grandmother's footsteps for the seventh time, and she loves her all the more for it.
Role Reversal
Elizabeth is young but already a survivalist, and for her, pragmatism will always trump principles, no matter how it breaks her mother's heart; when the Duke of Norfolk comes for her at Ludlow, she steels herself and says, "Please tell my father and Queen Anne that the Lady Elizabeth extends her heartiest congratulations on the birth of the Princess Mary."
Space
In the evenings when they have nothing to do, they shove all the furniture in the parlor against the wall so that Elizabeth might enough room to dance while Mary plays a melody upon the lute.
Elizabeth of York & Margaret Beaufort (Historical, with some Shadow of the Tower references)
Always a Different Profession AU
Rani Lishitha does not know whether to be amused or horrified that Rajmata Margavi Bhagat has sown a special sari embroidered with gold and bedecked with jewels for her to wear when the baby comes, but she respects the older woman far too much to object.
Before the Beginning
In some ways, Margaret knows the Lady Elizabeth better than she knows her own son- oh, how many years has it been since she sent Henry to the continent?
Bodyswap
Swapping bodies with your daughter-in-law while she is pregnant is decidedly not ideal, but for all the problems it raises, Margaret is strangely thrilled to be carrying a child, after so many years of barrenness.
Curse
Margaret outlives little Bessie, Edmund, Arthur, Elizabeth, baby Katherine and finally Henry; perhaps it's no surprise she lays herself down for the last time barely eight weeks after that final blow.
Darkest Timeline
There is a knowing look in Queen Elizabeth's eyes that Margaret pretends not to see on the rare occasion that the Princes in the Tower are brought up.
Fall
Thanks to Elizabeth and Margaret's combined efforts, Henry finally agrees not to send young Meg to Scotland so young, that she should see at least two more autumns before she becomes a wife.
Floriography
When Cecily of York marries without the King's permission and is banished from court, Margaret is the one to send her white roses so that Elizabeth does not have to choose between Henry and her sister.
Play
Margaret privately thinks it improper that Elizabeth takes it upon herself to teach Harry how to write, and her mild disapproval is rewarded when the little rascal scribbles "THIS BOKE IS MYNE" on every tome he owns.
Role Reversal
Catalina (now Katherine) thinks at first that My Lady the King's Mother domineers the actual Queen far too much, and it is not until she herself is widowed that she comes to appreciate her mother-in-law's quiet kind of strength.
Space
Where Margaret sits stiff and awkward while Henry plays hopscotch, Elizabeth has the room cleared so that she may also join in.
A/N: Originally posted on Tumblr. Below are historical footnotes directly copied from the Tumblr tags as I'm too lazy to turn them into complete sentences.
(Mary & Elizabeth)
#dasi means low-caste maid in hindi #the boiled apples thing is tied to mary and the duke of norfolk when having to sign the oath #elizabeth was indeed released from the tower on may 19 1554 #both mary and elizabeth shared a love of music and dancing #i'll answer the others in the next few days
(Margaret Beaufort & Elizabeth of York)
#the first one comes from mb's book about royal childbearing #mb was eoy's guardian for a few years before bosworth #mb and eoy convinced henry not to send young margaret to scotland while still young #mb intervened when cecily of york married w/o h7's permission #the bit about eoy teaching h8 to read and this boke is myne are both from history #and the hopscotch bit is straight from tsott