Love, Remember Me (7 page)

Lady Margaret's apartments were near those that would belong to the new queen. She greeted the Earl and Countess of Marwood cordially.

"It seems only yesterday that you came to court a bride, Lady FitzHugh," she said to Bliss. "You do not, I think, suffer time too greatly. How many children living have you?"

"Three sons and a daughter, madame," Bliss replied.

"Are these they?" Lady Browne asked, peering myopically.

"Only one is mine, madame. Young Owen, make your bow," Bliss commanded her son; smiling, pleased, when he did so. "Allow me to present Edmund Kingsley, the eldest son of my sister Blythe, and her husband, Sir Nicholas Kingsley. And these two lads are Philip, Viscount Wyndham, and his brother Giles, the sons of my eldest sister, the Countess of Langford. The king has appointed them pages in the new queen's household. I was told to bring them to you, madame."

The three boys bowed in turn as they were introduced, and Lady Browne nodded, obviously delighted by their good manners. "And the lass, Lady FitzHugh. Who is she?"

"This is Lady Nyssa Catherine Wyndham, madame. The daughter of the Earl and Countess of Langford. She is to be a maid of honor."

Nyssa curtsied prettily.

"
A maid of honor
?" Lady Browne exclaimed, and her face registered her distress. "Oh, dear, not another one! Every young woman of good family has come to court to be a maid of honor. There are simply not enough places! I wish I could help you, Lady FitzHugh, but I cannot."

"I have not made myself clear," Bliss said in an apologetic tone, but her husband recognized the iron beneath it. "Nyssa has already been appointed to her position by the king himself, when he visited Nyssa's home last October and stood godfather to her newborn twin sisters. Nyssa is the daughter of Blaze Wyndham, Lady Browne. We are here today because she was summoned to court by the king. Nyssa's appointment is not a tentative one, madame." She smiled, but there was determination in her eyes. No one would take this position away from Nyssa!

"
Oh!
" Lady Browne answered. "I did not know. Blaze Wyndham's daughter, you say? The name is familiar, but I cannot quite place it." The girl was pretty and had good manners, but she was a total nonentity. There were fully a dozen families petitioning her for places; families of much more importance, who would be willing to show her their gratitude in most substantial ways. The king had probably already forgotten his appointment of this pretty creature. She had to be put off.

"My mother was called the 'Quiet Mistress,' madame," Nyssa said suddenly. She had seen the look in Lady Browne's eye, and reacted instinctively to it. "Mama's tenure was brief, but I am certain you will remember her. She remains to this day the king's most loyal servant,
and friend
."

"You must not be so forward, child," Lady Browne said sternly, but when she sighed, both Bliss and Nyssa knew she was beaten. "Have you ever been to court before?" Lady Browne asked, but knew Nyssa's answer even before she spoke it. "Well, then, you have much to learn, and precious little time in which to learn it, I fear. Beginning tomorrow you will report to me after mass each day that we are here at Hampton Court. You will have to sleep at your family's lodging temporarily, as it is impossible to find accommodations right now in the palace. The Maidens' Chamber is filled with guests, since it is not needed for the new queen's use presently. When we move on to Greenwich, however, that will all change. You must then remain with the queen unless she gives you permission to go elsewhere."

"Yes, madame," Nyssa said, and she curtsied.

Lady Browne nodded then turned to Bliss. "The same instructions apply to the pages as well, Lady FitzHugh. They have not been from home before either, I imagine. I hope they will not become homesick, and weep about it. I cannot be bothered with weeping boys."

Both Philip and Giles looked extremely indignant at her words.

"Come, children," Bliss said. "We shall show you about the palace, for you will need to know where everything is."

"An excellent idea!" Lady Browne approved. "Do not forget, Nyssa Wyndham. First thing after mass in the morning!"

"I shall not forget, madame," Nyssa replied, and she curtsied again.

When they were safely away from Lady Browne's chambers, Bliss said, laughing, "If she could have frightened us off, Nyssa, she would have."

"I wonder if we should not have let her," Nyssa said thoughtfully.

"Nonsense!" Bliss replied sharply. "This is a wonderful opportunity for you, Nyssa Wyndham. Your mother would be furious if you came home with your tail between your legs. Besides, it would take more than Lady Browne to frighten us off. She was only thinking of what she might gain from others, eager to place their daughters as maids of honor. Anything can be bought and sold, child. Your mother paid for your position in full many years back. The king owed her a debt and he knew it."

Nyssa was silent for the brief time it took to make their way into the public rooms of the palace. There, Lord and Lady Marlowe were waiting for them. Indeed it seemed to Nyssa as if Lady Marlowe had deliberately planned to meet up with them again as soon as she might. With the Marlowes was a young boy with a blotchy face, who shifted his feet nervously and looked extremely uncomfortable. He flushed, embarrassed, as his mother trilled out,

"
Over here, Bliss! Here we are!
"

While Lord Marlowe and the Earl of Marwood renewed their old acquaintance, Lady Marlowe proudly introduced her son Henry to Bliss. It was quite clear that she had a match between her son and Nyssa in mind. The male Wyndhams and their cousins were highly amused.

Owen FitzHugh decided to take matters into his own hand, saying to Lord Marlowe, "I say, I was just about to take my lads to see the tiltyards and the tennis courts. Why don't you and young Henry come along with us?"

"Excellent!" Lord Marlowe enthused, even as his son eagerly agreed.

"How old is Henry?" Bliss asked her old friend as the gentlemen departed. "He is a quiet boy, much like his father, I think."

"Twelve," Lady Marlowe said, and sighed deeply. "Aye, he is like John. Even more so, I fear."

"Nyssa will be seventeen on the thirty-first of December," Bliss said, and then went on to gently deflate her friend's hopes. "We mean to make a good match for her here at court. There is none yet to have engaged her heart. She is a considerable heiress, you know. She has her own estate, Riverside; lands from her late father; and her stepfather has settled a goodly sum on her. She is the apple of his eye, and to be frank, the only father she remembers, her own having perished before her second birthday. She is quite a headstrong girl, I fear, and will need the firm hand of an older husband to guide her."

They were speaking as if she were not even there, Nyssa thought irritably. She said in her own defense, "Why, Aunt, were you not headstrong in your youth? I do seem to remember hearing stories from Mama."

"
Headstrong? Me
? I do not recall being headstrong at all," Bliss replied, but her friend and her niece laughed at her denial.

They had found a quiet spot in which to settle, and the two women seated themselves.

"Tell me about your family," Adela Marlowe said. As they began to catch up on each other's lives over these past years, Nyssa grew restless.

Seeing them well-engaged, she slipped off, threading her way carefully through a noisy throng of chattering courtiers. Through the windows Nyssa could see a garden, and when she spied a small door in the same wall, she opened it, stepping out into the crisp morning air. Although it had been cloudy and gray earlier, when they had come to Hampton Court, the skies had finally cleared. The heavens were blue now, and the sun shone brightly down. She drew a long, deep breath. Court was very crowded. Her nose told her that not all the elegantly garbed ladies and gentlemen peopling it were as scrupulous about bathing as she was. It was good to be outdoors, away from them.

Nyssa began to walk slowly about, exploring her surroundings. The garden was filled with many small ponds, each one ringed with heraldic stone beasts set upon pillars. The wood railings edging the flower beds were painted green and white, the Tudor colors. They were empty now of blooms, but neat, and ready for the spring, when it finally would come again. She quickly discovered she was not alone in the garden. A young boy came toward her smiling, and bowed before her.

"You are new at court, lady," he said, and then he grinned mischievously. "I know all the pretty girls. I am Hans von Grafsteen. I am the ambassador from Cleves's personal page." He swept his velvet bonnet off his blond head and bowed again most politely.

She curtsied to him. "I am Lady Nyssa Wyndham, sir, come to court to serve the new queen. The king himself has appointed me a maid of honor."

"She vill like you," Hans said. "You are young, and not so stuck-up as many of these ladies are."

"Two of my brothers have come with me to be pages in her majesty's household," Nyssa volunteered. This young boy was not as intimidating as all the other people she had seen inside. "How old are you?" she asked him. "I think you are close to my brother Philip's age, but not quite as old as he is; yet you are older than Giles."

"How old are your brothers?" he countered.

"Thirteen and nine," she said.

"I am eleven," he told her. "The ambassador is my uncle. He is my mother's eldest brother, and that is how I obtained my place. Who are your people, my lady Nyssa?"

"I am the daughter of the Earl and Countess of Langford," she answered him. She did not think it was necessary to explain that Anthony was her stepfather.

"That is not a great name, I think," Hans said. "How did you obtain such a coveted appointment as maid of honor to my lady Anne?"

What on earth am I going to tell him? Nyssa wondered briefly. Then a little voice inside her said,
Tell him the truth
. "My mother was the king's mistress many years ago," she answered him. "They have remained good friends. When she asked him for this appointment, the king gladly complied." She was relieved to see that Hans von Grafsteen did not seem in the least shocked by her bold revelation.

Rather, he asked frankly, "Are you the king's get, lady?"

Nyssa blushed to the roots of her dark hair. "Ohh, no, sir! My father was Edmund Wyndham, the third Earl of Langford. I am trueborn. My mother was a widow when she came to court to meet the king." She would now have to explain everything. "My mother afterward married my father's nephew, who was his heir. The only father I can remember is my stepfather."

"Ahh," Hans said, smiling. Now it made sense to him.

"Tell me about the lady Anne," Nyssa said. "I am told she is fair of face and kind of heart. I am pleased to have been chosen to serve her. What is she really like? What language shall I speak to her?"

The boy looked amused, and then he said, "Do you speak High Dutch, my lady Nyssa?"

"
High Dutch
?" She looked puzzled. "Why, no," she replied.

"Then you vill not be able to speak to the lady Anne, for it is the only language she knows. In Cleves, vomen, even highborn vomen, are not educated as you English educate your vomen. God and the house; that is vhat the vomen of Cleves know, my lady Nyssa."

"How will she speak to the king?" Nyssa wondered aloud.

"I think it vill not matter," Hans said frankly. "She comes to cement an alliance, and to haf babies. She need not speak for that."

"Oh, you are wrong, I fear, Hans," Nyssa told him. "My mother always told me how greatly the king values an intelligent woman; a clever woman; a woman of wit. He loves music and dancing and cards. Any woman hoping to please him must conform to these standards. Beauty is not enough for the king, although he appreciates a pretty woman."

"Then my lady Anne is doomed on all accounts," the boy said. "She is not really pretty, and knows neither music, or cards. She cannot dance, for dancing and many other such pastimes are thought to be frivolous by the court of Cleves."

"Ohh, dear," Nyssa said. "What will happen to the poor lady if the king is not pleased with her? Hans, you must teach me some words and phrases of High Dutch, so I may help the lady Anne learn to acclimate herself to her new country, and to our ways."

How kind she is, the boy thought. None of the other women appointed to the lady Anne's new household had thought to inquire if there was a way they could make their new queen comfortable. Well, he would help Nyssa Wyndham. He had been at the English court for several months now, and he had quickly decided that his poor princess would have a very difficult time of it. Her upbringing had been so strict and sheltered. The English court was going to be a shock to her. "I vill help you to learn my language, lady. Vhat other languages do you speak?"

"Just French and Latin," Nyssa admitted, "although I can read Greek. I was raised in the country, you see, and never thought to come to court."

"Vhat else did you learn?" he asked, curious.

"Simple sums; I read and write a legible hand; and I know some history." She smiled at him. "The languages came easily. The sums were harder, but Mama says a woman must know enough to be sure that she is not being cheated by her servants or the tradesmen."

He laughed, his bright blue eyes crinkling at the corners. "Your mama sounds like a practical voman. In Cleves ve like practical vomen. The princess is a practical voman."

"She will need to be, I fear, if the king does not like her," Nyssa said. "Poor lady. It cannot be easy coming from so far away to a strange land with all new customs, and a new language. Do you think she will be able to learn English, Hans?"

"She is not stupid," Hans replied, "and although it vill be hard for her at first, I think she vill like England, and its many freedoms. My uncle, who knows her vell, says she is a high-spirited voman, although they haf tried to beat it out of her. A voman should be meek and modest in her behavior."

Nyssa giggled. "Not an English woman," she told him.

He stared at her. "You are very beautiful vhen you smile," he said seriously. "Alas I am too young, and of not high enough stature for an earl's daughter. Still, ve can be friends, can ve not?"